1 50 12 https://slovakia.wordsofpassage.net/files/original/3c67b573458ddcd07dfab57a20eae2ac.pdf 09d01fafd5281065eaf92974b3355566 PDF Text Text � � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource 1966, Vol. 16 Description An account of the resource Vol. 16 (No. 39), 1966. Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available The Slovak League of America Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1966 Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Text Any textual data included in the document  Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Front Matter, Slovakia, Vol. 16 (No. 39) Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1966 https://slovakia.wordsofpassage.net/files/original/67406a640fb71c7f19f8eb1fdefe8c0e.pdf a2394ec21e2f99a13346f09b9ba36ddb PDF Text Text SLOV AKIA Pu-blished by the Slovak League of America VOL. XVI 1966 N O. 39 THE SLOVAK LANGUAGE AND ITS PLACE AM.ONG THE SLAVIC LANGUAGES J. M. Kirschbaum I. Introductory Note A review of symposia, surveys and handbooks,1 dealing with Slavs and their languages, indicates that there is a certain confusion as far as the language of the Slovaks and their literary media are concerned. The confusion seems to have been created, on one hand, by Slavists and literary historians who failed to draw a proper distinction between the native and spoken language of the Slovaks and their written or literary language. On the other hand, the misconceptions were intentionally spread by philologists and literary historians who were influenced by political views and aspirations, and some Slavists accepted them without the necessary caution required in scholarly works. As a result, we find in manuals and symposia on Slavic peoples or in works on philology and Slavic languages either the thesis that the Slovak language is merely a dialect of the Czech, or that Slovak became a literary language only at the beginning of the XIXth century. Some surveys speak even of a Czechoslovak language. Before analyzing these misconceptions, it may perhaps be stated that the claim that Slovak is but a dialect of the Czech language, was not based on facts of history or philology. It was a biased opinion of those who tried to give a scholarly basis to political aspirations denying to the Slovaks the right to their independent national and cultural life. And there lay also the origins of the erroneous thesis that Slovak began to be used as a literary language only from the second half of the nineteenth century. Slovak philologists and linguists (Bernolak, Safarik, Stur, Czambel, Skultety, Bartek, Stanislav, Novak, Pauliny) �2 SLOVAKIA rejected, during the last two centuries, all these biased theories and looked for linguistic criteria to determine the origin and the main characteristics of the Slovak language. They reviewed the historic forms of the Slovak tongue, and by scholarly methods and comparative study of Slavic languages determined the place of Slovak among Slavic languages. 2 Works of Slovak philologists, except for those of Safarik and partly Stur and Czambel, remained, however, for a long time ·e ither unknown to foreign Slavists, or were interpreted incorrectly. As a result, we find only recently in linguistic studies, published outside Slovakia, the proper distinction between the Slovak language and the literary media used by Slovaks, and a rejection of the thesis that Slovak has been but a dialect of the Czech language or that there is a Czechoslovak language. According to these studies, during long centuries, Slovak people spoke their own Slovak dialects, which developed from the primitive Slavic after its disintegration, into the modern Slovak language, but they used several literary media. It was first the Old Church Slavonic, in the 9th and 10th centuries, afterwards the Latin language, the Biblical Czech (used by the Protestant minority until the second half of the 19th century), the literary Slovak based on Slovak western dialects and finally the revised present form , based on central Slovak dialects.3 On the following pages, we shall attempt to p0int out and analyze the main misconceptions about the Slovak language and the literary media used in Slovakia and define the place of Slovak among Slavic languages in the light of recent linguistic research of European Slavists, including the Marxist philologists of Slavic countries.4 II. Views and conceptions of Slovak philologists In their scholarly studies of phonology, etymology, lexicology and grammar Slovak philologists and linguists maintained continuously the point of view that the Slovak language has been distinct from any other Slavic tongue. This was not so clear and evident to Slavists of the 19th century, according to Slovak philologists, because philology was in its infancy and used primitive methods.5 Recent research, how- �SLOVAKIA 3 ever, proves that Slovak language has been the real and original national tongue of the inhabitants of Slovakia since the dawn of history, and the linguistic analysis of the fundamental roots of the Czech and Slovak languages and a comparative study of their developments showed that Slovak language never was a part of the Czech or so-called "Czechoslovak" language.6 If we accept the theiiis, supported by Trubeckoj ,7 that in the ninth century the Old Slavonic &1:.ill was the common tongue of the Slavs with a unified phonology, and that from the ninth century different dialects developed into distinct Slavic languages, it is to be assumed, according to Slovak philologists, that among them was also the Slovak tongue. There is no historical or philological reason why it should not be claimed that at the time of disintegration of the Old Slavonic and of the rise of new independent Slavic languages, Slovak was among them and that its development cannot be identified with that of the Czech language.8 This thesis is strengthened also by the fact that the Slovak territory was annexed after the collapse of Great Moravia, by Hungary and, hence, the only contact the Slovaks had with Czechs was through Moravians who have continued to speak a Slovak dialect in spite of the pressure of the Czechs from the West, and to the p-resent time they have retained their own phonological structure. Consequently, the relation between the Czech and Slovak languages became a matter of controversy because of political aspirations of some Czech politicians and scholars and not because of philological reasons - is the view of Slovak philologists. In fact, as early as in the 16th century Vavrinec Benedikti z Nedozier (1555-1615), a learned Slovak philologist and professor at the Prague University exhorted his Slovak countrymen to cultivate their native tongue. He wrote his appeal in a grammar he composed for Czechs, which makes it clear that already for him there were two different languages. 9 From the sixteenth century on, there are numerous proofs that Slovak erudities, with the exception of a few protestants, considered Slovaks as one of the "tribes" of Slavic nation, but speaking their own "dialect" different from the Czech, Polish or Russian, using the word dialect for our term language. Slovak was used not only in homiletic �4 SLOVAKIA writings, but also in scholarly works and poetry, especially since the middle of the 17th century around the University of Trnava (founded 1635) and, at the end of the 18th century, Anton Bernolak only codified a language in use in his linguistic works Dissertatio, Gramatica slavica and his huge pentalingual Dictionary. 10 The well-known Slavist, P. J . Safarik, and initially also Jan Kollar, were aware of the fact that there had been a Slovak ~anguage and Slovak literature, different from the Czech or the other Slavic languages and literatures. Safarik gave testimony to it in his Geschichte der Slawischen Sprache und Literatur in allen Mundarten (1826) , and when some Czech leaders reproached him and his scholarly objectivity, Safarik indignantly announced that he would go even farther in stressing the differences than he did in his book.11 Jan Kollar was also instrumental originally in preparing Sti'.lr's reform and later changed his mind and became an advocate of a common literary language with the Czechs (which he called "old Slovak" ) because of reasons which Slovak literary historians avoid to discuss. The great poet of Panslavism had also some human deficiencies like very high personal pride and terrible temper, and took it as an insult ,that Stur and his group dared to do something in Slovak cultural life without consulting him or without his patronage. 12 This "crimen lesae majestatis" moved Kollar to opose Stu.r's reform and the final acceotance of the Slovak literary language also by Slovak protest;nts. Safarik did not change his scholarly views which he expressed in his Geschichte, but being employed in Prague and financially supported by Czech patriots, he tried to convince his Slovak countrymen that they should not move too far from Czechs and suggested that the Czech should be adjusted to the Slovak linguistic phenomena and peculiarities. "The will of the Slovak groups to assert their own national individuality was, however, too strong", as admitted by Radl, 13 and Stu.r's reform was victorious over Kollar's protests and Safa:rik's advices, because it was in line with the linguistic facts and centuries' long Slovak national development. The reasons for a sporadic use of the Czech language for administrative and partly also for literary purposes (mainly by the Slovak Protestants) which some Czech philologists considered as a proof of national and linguistic unity of the �SLOVAKIA 5 Czechs and Slovaks, have been reconsidered by several "bourgeois" and "marxist" philologists and literary historians. There are at least three theories om the penetration of the Czech language into the Slovak territory. One theory refers to the continuation of relations between Slovaks and Moravians (who adopted the Czech language) from trhe time of Great Moravia, which relations survived the collapse of that state and developed between the Moravian cultural center Olomouc arnd Slovak religious centers. More acceptable and also more elaborated is the theory ascribing the use of the Czech language to the fact that Czech clerks were used at certain periods not only in the Slovak territory but also in Hungary and Poland in state and city-administration. 14 In Slovakia, the use of the Czech, adapted to local dialects, survived because of the Reformation which penetrated into Slovakia from Germany and Bohemia with Bible and religious books writteJ) in the old Czech, and because during the Counter-Reformation "many protestant Czechs found shelter in Slovakia and even printed books in Czech for the purpose of smuggling them into Bohemia" .15 Settled in Slovakia, the Czech refugees tried to keep all Slovak protestants linked to Bohemia by language also in secular writings. 16 Around 1840, it became, however, clear to the leaders of the Protestant minority in Slovakia that the Czech language was not intelligible to the common people, that their writings could not reach Slovak population and for reasons which U. Stur explained in his Narecia slovenskuo and other writings, they agreed with Catholics who used the Slovak for homiletic as well as for secular writings from the 16th century, on the reform taking for basis central Slovak dialects, and on the exclusive use of Slovak in Slovak literature. Stur's reform, by which the Slovak language was finally established as a literary medium of all Slovaks, has been accepted by the Slovak intelligentsia within a very short space of time, and it received its final linguistic , form in the grammar of a Catholic priest, Martin Hattala. Thus the peculiar situation of multilingualism in modern Slovak literature was changed. 17 During all these centuries, Slovak people spoke, as we mentioned before, their own Slovak dialects which developed from the Old Slavonic after its disintegration into modern Slovak language, which happened more or less at the same �6 SLOVAKIA time at which other central European peoples began to use vernacular for literary purposes. On the position of Slovak among Slavic languages, Slovak philologists expressed various opinions. 18 V. Jagic in his book Entstehungsgeschichte der Kirchenslawischen Sprache, wrote that "in Great Moravia people must have spoken in the ninth century a tongue which in its fundamentals was identical with the Slovak language of today". J . Dobrovsky admitted that certain linguistic phenomena linked Slovak with South Slavic languages and S. Czambel elaborated linguistically a theory to prove that the question as to whether Slovak is closer to Western Slavic or to the Southern Slavic group of languages deserves to be reconsidered by philologists. Stur viewed the position of the Slovak language as a central clearing house, mainly because he was conscious of many of its similiarities with the Slavic tongues of the East, West, North and South, especially noting the South Slavic dialects with which Slovak came into intimate contact during long centuries. 19 Recent studies indicate that the Slovak language conserved many archaic forms and expr-essions common to all Slavs. Remaining for centuries only a spoken vernacular of the people, it was affected mainly by the influence of neighbouring Slavic peoples, and since it was codified in the era of the revival of Slavonic peoples, the Slovak cultural and political leaders saw to it that Slovak language might conserve its central position and Slavic purity. Kollar himself argued, and some Slavists of that time accepted his idea that the Slovak language "stands grammatically and geographically in the center of all Slav dialects" and the Tatra mountains are the "nest and cradle of all Slavs" which, of course, the modern science of history, archeology and ethnography challenges. However, U1.e central position of the Slovak language, geographically or linguistically, is accepted to a great extent even by modern philology. According to de Bray "the Slovaks have preserved a beautifully soft and musical language, which might well serve as a modern "Common Slav" or lingua franca among the Slavs today. For modern Slovak is the most comprehensible of the living Slavonic languages to all other Slavs. Just as the Slovaks occupy geographically a central position among the Slavs, so, too, their language, in its �SLOVAKIA 7 sounds and forms, is the nearest to an all-round compromise between the various Slavonic languages, having features which make it near both to East and South Slav, as well as to the other West Slav languages. 20 In fact, the Slovaks - either educated or common people - do not experience much difficulty in communicating in Slovak with Poles, Ukrainians, C:ziechs, Russians, or Slovenes and Croats, as has been proven even on the American Continent, since basically there ar,e no great differences among Slavic languages, and in the case of the Slovak language, history and geography made it close not only to Polish and Czech, but also to Ukrainian and South Slavic, Slovenian and Croat. 21 Slovak intellectuals of the nineteenth century read not only Polish or Czech poets and writers in original, but also Russian and Ukrainian, Croat and .Slovenian. Modern scientific and literary development drifts the twelve Slavic languages more apart. Nevertheless, even if we cannot agree with the nineteenth century poet that "with the Slovak language you may travel Earth's four corners", the fact remains that Slovaks are able to communicate in their own vernacular with the majority of the Slavic peoples. III. Views and conceptions of European Slavists As for European Slavists, including the present-day Czech philologists, some of their recent studies would indicate that they corrected many of the erroneous views they held on the relation between the Slovak and Czech and the origin of the Slovak literary language. It is evident that the modem techniques in linguistics and philology have thrown new light on the subject and have been instrumental in giving modified conceptions that are far advanced beyond the hasty unwarranted conclusions of the amateur-philologists or linguists serving political aspirations. Noteworthy among the new conceptions are not only those which defend the distinct and ancient character of the Slovak among Slavic languages but also the views that the history of the Slovak literary language necessarily begins in the 9th century with the Old Church Slavonic as the first literary medium in Slovakia. This view has been held by Slovak literary historians .for a long time, but never was considered before by foreign �8 SLOVAKIA Slavists. Recently, howev,er, the well-known Polish philologist T. Lehr-Splawinski expressed the following view: "The beginnings of the literary language in Slovakia are connected with the period of activities of ConstantineCyril and Methodius in the Moravian state. As the whole of Slovakia was, without ,any doubt, a part of that state, and the important centers of its political and cultural life were situated on the Slovak territory, writings in the old ChurchSlavonian language must have undoubtedly developed among the Slovaks in the last quarter of the IXth century". 22 R. Auty, from the University of Cambridge, in his paper, presented to the VIIIth Congress of the International Federation of Modern Languages & Literatures at Liege, August 1960, corrected misconceptions on Bernolak and Stur and their reforms. Anton Bernolak codified in 1870 a language which was already in use, according to Auty, and "in the following fifty or sixty years a considerable number of literary and other works were published or written in this (Bernolak's) form of Slovak". 23 The Czech language was, according to Auty, "sporadicalin Slovakia (with certain local modification) for used ly administrative and, still more occasionally, literary purposes". The reasons for this sporadic usage of Czech for administrative and "mor,e occasionally" also for literary purposes, are explained by Auty in his statement that "since the Reformation the Czech had been the language of the Lutheran scriptures and Church Services in Slovakia". "Stur, Protestant though he was, acted against what he regarded as an unnatural linguistic situation which had been brought about by the hazards of history. His reaction was radical" - says Auty, and gives a detailed picture of the changes which were brought about in the Slovak language by the agreement of the Catholics and Protestants in order to end bilingualism in Slovak literature. Auty's views on the reform of the , Slovak literary language which took place in the 1840's are fairly in line with the historical truth and recent r-esearch. According to him "Catholic and Protestant Slovaks agreed to accept a new written form of their language for all purposes: this has been worked out by U. Stur in discussion with other Slovak intellectual leaders in the perfod 1842-44 and was somewhat modified by M. M. Hodza and M. Hattala in subsequent years". _,/ �SLOVAKIA 9 Stur "on more than one occasion praised the work of Bernolak, and above all, the poetry of Jan Holly and fully accepted one element of Bernolak's linguistic reform - the orthographical system" - continues Auty. The general pattern of the language, as fashioned by Stur, was in accordance with the needs of Slovak Society and has proven itself - and Stur's genius - by its survivor". 2 " R. G. A. de Bray, in his Guide to the Slavonic Languages, is equally close to the views of Slovak philologists and literary historians. "It is not true to say" - writes de Bray - "that Slovak was not written till the nineteenth century, as some assert. It is true that the modern literary language, as we know it today, was then first stabilized, but there are traces of the Slovak language in the local Latin documents from the elev,enth to the fifteenth centuries, Latin being the official language at the time". 25 On the relation between the Czech and Slovak de Bray expressed the following view: "While the phonetic system of Slovak is more conservative than that of Czech and so is nearer to that of Old Slavonic and other Slavonic languages, its morphological system has developed further than that of Czech, its nearest relative, mainly through the workiings of analogy and the generalization of certain standard endings, especially in the plural of nouns. Both the 1st and 2nd palatalization of gutturals occur less frequently in the declensions than they do in Czech, owing to the workings of analogy, as in Russian and Slov•enian. And in general Slovak morphology has fewer irregularities, exceptions, and archaic survivals, such as the declension of Kamen (- stone) in Czech. Prof. Roman Smal-Stocki in his paper Discrimination and Bias in Two Unesco Publications also raised his voice against treating Slovak and Czech "as one unit". "From the linguistic point of view" - says Prof. Smal-Stocki - "it js inadmissible to mix state units with existing languages and to treat "as one unit" Czech and Slovak, because the linguistic fact is that in existence are two separate units, Czech and Slovak". 26 The contributors to the Encyclopedia Britanica (1959, Vol. 20) published some correct and some incorrect views, �10 SLOVAKIA but they grasped the essential points of difference between the Czech and Slovak. 27 "The Czech, as spoken and written today in Bohemia, diverges considerably from Slovak - says the Encyclopedia. The disagreement is least marked in vocabulary but appears prominently in the phonetics; in particular the itacism so distinct a characteristic of Czech, is non-existent in Slovak, which has preserved the fuller diphthongs (ia, ie, iu etc.) of the Slavonic languages; a further small.er point is the dz, from Common Slav dj, is used (as in Polish) where Czech has z. In one point only is there a divergence which goes back beyond the time of the common ancestry of the two languages; Slovak has not developed the t, which is characteristic of Czech and in that language occurs since the beginning of its literature. The Slovak palatalization of n, d, t and 1 after e, which does not occur in modern literary Czech, is a further point of disagreement, although this would not be obvious from Slovak spelling which does not find it necessary to distinguish by diacritics; consonanrts are always softened in this position". The Encyclopedia also points out to the relation of Slovak with other Slavic languages. It says: "The dialectical development shows some characteristics identical with those in South Slavonic and Russian. Not everywhere, for example, have u and i been confused, and instead of the e, which is the normal result in Slovak as in Czech, we find in Eastern dialects an o from the u, thus agreeing with Russian. An agreement with South Slavonic is the occurrence of raz- and la- and lo-. Because of these and other phonetic and morphological reasons the grammarian Czambel, a keen opponent of the identity of Czech and Slovak, has asserted that Slovak should rightly be associated with South Slavonic". 28 It would appear from this brief survey that European Sl~vists are very close to the views of Slovak philologists and that misconceptions, which we still can find in American symposia, considered hereafter, are disappearing from European Slavic studies. Very close to the views of European Slavists is also the well-known Canadian Slavist Prof. W. Kirkconnell who already in 1939 stated: "It cannot be too strongly emphasized that the Slovaks are not Czechs, and that there is no such ciieature as a 'Czechoslovak'. While they speak closely related Slavic languages, Slovak is not �SLOVAKIA 11 a mere dialect of Czech. The differences are about as great as those between the similarly related languages, Dutch and German. I have on my shelves Miroslav Kalal's Slovak-Czech dictionary (published 1924), in which there are 35,000 Slovak words that were apparently unintelligible to a Czech and hence required definition." (d. Canada, Europe, and Hitler, p. 44) IV. Misconceptions in American symposia and surveys With the sudden development of Slavic Studies on the American continent came hand in hand a large number of symposia, handbooks and surveys on Slavic literatures and langutlges. They are, however, written predominantly by scholars and writers with European schooling and background and, therefore, it is more appropriate to speak, in this respe0t, rather of American symposia than of American Slavists. A survey of several such symposia indicates that there are misconceptions not only in the relation of the Slovak with the Czech, but also on the history of the Slovak literary language and the role of foreign languages in Slovak literature. In this respect, we read not without surprise that even the well-known Slavist, Roman Jakobson, helped to spread some erroneous views on the Slovak language. In his study Slavic Languages, he writes as follows: "Toward the middle of the same (i.e. the 19th) century, the Slovaks, who had used literary Czech (somewhat adapted to their own habits) inaugurated their own literary language based on the central Slovak dialect but patterned after standard Czech". 29 Prof. A. Senn in Strakhovsky's Handbook of Slavic Studies, completed and modified Jakiobson's description of Slovak literary language. His classification of Slovak is correct, but we could hardly agree with certain parts of his definition. Prof. A. Senn says: "Slovak forms a connecting link with the South Slavic Slovenian and is more archaic than Czech. Otherwise differences between Czech and Slovak are not very great. Slovak became a literary language at the beginning of the nineteenth century . . . Slovak and Czech form one "Czechoslovak unit". �12 SLOVAKIA In the same symposium, another contributor, Otto Radl, admitted that "as early as 1635 in Trnava books were printed in different Slovak dialects", but he confusingly states further that it was only i,n 1844, in the period of Romanticism, that "the therefore common written language, the Czech, was being replaced by a newly-originated Slovak literary language". According to Radl "this movement had been begun at the end of the 18th century by the learned Slovak philologist Anton Bernolak who published several works in Latin in which he tried to show that the Slovaks were a separate nation and that they should therefore use their own distinctive written language based on dialects spoken in Western Slovakia". 30 A similar version can be found in Prof. H. S. Thompson's book "Czechoslovakia in European History", who says that "a deliberate effort to substitute for the written Czech then in use in Slovakia a language based upon a local dialect came from the Catholic camp only in 1790, when Anton Bernolak published a Gramatica slavica". However, he asserts further that "about the only followers Bernolak had were Catholic writers, and even among them the vogue for his grammar and dictionary soon died out. The year 1834-1835 is usually given" - concludes Thompson - "as the date of the rise of written Slovak, although strictly speaking, Stur did not make his first formal declarartion until 1846". 31 In R. J. Kerner's symposium Czechoslovakia and in V. Busek-N. Spulber's Czechoslovakia under Communism, we find only slightly modified or re-worded versions of the views mentioned above. "Catholic Slovaks under Bernolak tried to create with indifferent success a written Slovak dialect", we read in Kerner's symposium, and Busek-Spulber's symposium gives the following genesis of the Slovak literary language: " ... the first attempts were made (aside from earlier sporadic ventures) to establish a distinct Slovak literary language in the last decade of the 18th century by Anton Bernolak (1762-1813) who selected the Western Slovak dialects as a basis of the new literary medium: his suggestions, not elaborated linguistically, did not take permanent hold. "The decisive step towards the establishment of Slovak literary language was undertaken through the initiative of the Protestants. Ludovit St(ir selected the central Slovak dialect for the Slovak literary medium. Beginning in the �SLOVAKIA 13 1840's, several poets followed Stur and used the new literary language with great skill".32 It is perhaps not necessary to sum up all the mistaken assertions and impressions which we find in the symposia mentioned here. The foregoing views of European and Slovak philologists showed that Slovak was spoken by Slovak people from the dawn of their history and that it was in use for literary purposes from the 17th century, and Bernolak codified only a literary language used by the majority of Slovaks for more than 150 years. The function of the Czech language in Slovakia and the reasons for its sporadic use, besides Latin and Slovak, were also explained by Slovak as well as European Slavists. Responsibility for the lack of precision and mistaken views in American symposia might lay with the sources used by the contributors to these symposia. It would appear that they predominantly relied on old studies, which favoured the biased conceptions of linguistic, cultural -and political unity of Czechs and Slovaks, and which has been abandoned during the past two decades even by the Czech philologists, as we shall see from the survey of Czech and Slovak contemporary linguistic studies. Since all the symposia under review were edited or written by writers who specialized in Slavic studies, we might perhaps mention also at this point that academic precision would have required to say that before Stur's reform Slovaks used for literary purposes far more frequently Latin, on the Catholic side, and German, on the Protestant J.ide, than the Czech "somewhat adapted to their own hal>its". Bernolak codified Slovak language in Latin works, the first works on history of Slovakia were written by their Slovak authors also in Latin, and on the Protestant side Safarik wrote his first scholarly work in German, used Czech later only because he was forced to do it by unhappy circumstances, and Kollar also wrote in German his treatise on Slavic solidarity -Ober die Literarische Wechselseitigkeit zwischen den verschiedenen Stammen und Mundarten der slavischen Nation. Equally imprecise for a scholarly writer is to say that Stur's reform was based "on the central Slovak dialect but patterned after standard Czech". Recent research proves that Stur relied on Bernolak in many respects and that the literary language, reformed by Stur, "was not based on the dialect of any single area, but represented a kind of 'koine' of the �14 SLOVAKIA central Slovak dialects, eschewing features from both the eastern and western dialects" - as R. Auty correctly says and new works on Slovak language confiirm. V. "Marxist" conceptions of literary Slovak and the origins of the Slovak language Slovak philology has been exposed, since the inclusion of Slovakia into the Soviet political and cultural sphere, to the influence of Marxist criteria and method, and is gradually developing with considerable dependence on Soviet philology. There were strong attempts at the beginning to apply to Slovak philology "the theoretical directives given the Marxist philology by J. V. Stalin in his genial work Marxism and Problems of Linguistics"33 and later other Soviet examples were imitated. However, a considerable number of Slovak philologists adhered, in the first place, to scientific principles and methods and results of favourable development of Slovak philology are visible in two recent bibliographies, not only in the number of entries, but also in the number of fields covered. Scholarly research into the Slovak language is, of course, still the principal field of interest. The number of works, studies and articles referring to Slovak, its history and development during the period of 1939-1945 alone was over 1000 and amounts to 700 in Dvonc's Bibliography of Slovak philology which covers only the years 1948-1952. Many of these entries were written by highly qualified philologists of Slovak or foreign origin (J. Stanislav, L. Novak, E. Pauliny, V. Uhlar, A. Janosik, S. Peciar, J. Horecky, V. Blanar, E. Jona, Kniesza, Vazny, Kiraly, Stieber etc.) and they cover the history of literary languages in Slovakia, historical grammar, dialectology, ,etymology, phonology, orthography, vocabulary, etc. From the published works by the "marxist" philologists and literary historians it is obvious that the theses on the Slovak language, on the history of the Slovak literary language and on the function of some fureign languages (Czech, Czechoslovak) in Slovak literature, which theses were intended to support the political theory of a single Czechoslovak nation, have been definitely buried. Particularly noteworthy in this regard is the work of the Czech University Profe~or A. Dostal, 34 and of the Slovak school, Prof. E. Pauliny's Dejiny spisovnej slovenciny (History of Literary Slovak, Brati- �SLOVAKIA 15 slava, 1948), and A. Mraz's Dejiny slovenskej literatury (History of Slovak Literature, Bratislava, 1948), as well as the papers read at the Moscow Fourth International Congress of Slavists in 1958. Professor A. Dostal, in his work "Nastin dejin ceskeho a slovenskeho jazyka" published in Prague in 1954, accepted not only the thesis that the Slovak is a distinct and ancient tongue, but he also condemned the traditional views of Czech philologists. "Slovak language whose development goes back to ancient times, was established as a literary language in connection with the formation of Slovaks into a nation", says Dostal. "Its establishment cannot at all be viewed as a separation from the literary Czech language, but as a long, slow development towards a literary language ... " Prof Dostal goes even further and says that the attempts to impose the Czech language upon Slovaks as literary medium must be considered "as a negation of centuries long development which in the 1840's was already a historical fact in Slovakia ... " 35 The paper of Prof. E. Pauliny on bilingualism in the history of the Slovak literary language, d_eserves particular attention. Pauliny tries to explain the function of the Czech language in Slovakia in the XVth and the following centuries on the basis of social and economic phenomena and changes. He has arrived, nevertheless, at the same conclusions as the philologists who did not apply "Marxist criteria" in philology, i.e. that the Czech language was a foreign language in Slovakia and could not stand competition with the Slovak vernacular when the Slovak ethnicum evolved in its national consciousness. Literary Slovak won in spite of the fact that the Protestant minority, predominantly of Czech origin, at that time tried to maintain it even in the XIXth century when the Slovak literary language was established by the Catholic majority (80%) over a century ago. The relation between the Czech and Slovak is, therefore, according to Pauliny, that of bilingualism. 36 In the introduction to his book Dejiny spisovnej slovenciny, Pauliny understands the history of the language as the history of the origin, disappearance and changes of its individual styles. However, in the book itself, he divided the history of the Slovak literary language according to the �HS SLOVAKIA languages which were used by the Slovaks as literary languages in addition to the spoken vernacular from the time of the Greater Moravia. He writes: "Although, in this case, the period of the actual Slovak literary language can begin only with Bernolak, or with the period shortly before Bernolak, nevertheless, it is not possible to begin the history of the literary languages of the Slovaks either with Bernolak or Stur, but it is necessary to go deep into the past, all the way to the very beginnings of the historical period of our nation in the Greater Moravian epoch, nay, in certain matters, it is necessary to go even further, into the prehistoric period, when our ancestors were not yet baptized and did not participate in the Eul'opean culture which was introduced to us by Chl'istianity". In his contribution to a volume O vzajomnych vzt'ahoch Cechov a Slovakov, published in 1956 by the Slovak Academy of Sciences, Pauliny states that "Bernolak codified a language which can be traced in the writings of the middle-class, the lower nobility and educated Slovaks back to the 15th century, and this in both Catholic and Protestant writings". 37 Stu.r's reform, which is erroneously presented by some Slavists as the beginning of the Slovak literary language (in this respect even Jakobson is wrong), in Pauliny's view, is but a "younger branch of Bernolak's school". 38 In the opinion of Prof. A. Mraz, who still remains the main authority in Marxist literary history of Slovakia, Anton Bernolak reformed and codified the Slovak literary language and its orthography. 39 Mraz regards the activity which Ol'iginated around the Catholic University of Trnava (1635) as a starting point for introducing Slovak vernacular as a literary medium and stresses that the first manifestation of the new era in Slovak national life was the publication of Cantus Catholici by Benedict Szollosi in 1655. "The book Cantus Catholici", says Mraz, "laid the foundation on which the language used by Slovak Catholic writers, was formed into an independent Slovak literary language. Crystallization of the language, which Slovak Catholic writers used during the period of the University of Trnava (16351777), progressed so far in accordance with the spoken language in Western Slovakia that, when Bernolak and his followers came, at the end of the 18th century, with the idea �SLOVAKIA 17 of an independent literary language, they merely codified, in many respects, a language used and domesticated among the Catholic Slovak writers of the preceding period". 40 Scholarly basis to this conception of the development of the Slovak literary language was given by several philologists of today's Slovakia, among whom noteworthy is in the first place Prof. Jan Stanislav with his two volumes on the history of the Slovak language (Dejiny slovenskeho jazyka) and philological studies of J6na, Uhlar, Ruzicka, Peciar etc. 41 By a careful analysis of the fundamental roots of both languages, Czech and Slovak, as well as through the comparative study of their later developments, they revealed the true basis of the Slovak language and have classified it properly as one of the distinct Slavonic languages which developed after the disappearance of the Old Slavonic language. As a result of this development the relation between the two literary languages of today's Czecho-Slovakia is now officially accepted as a relation between two Slavic but distinct languages. The Czech poetry and prose are translated into the Slovak and vice versa as the Polish or Russian have been. Life and historical facts prevailed over artificial tendencies and theories a long time ago, and finally they have prevailed even over the reluctance of some politicians and philologists to recognize their victory. A century-long debate, as to whether Slovak is a dialect of the Czech language or a distinct Slavonic tongue, has thus been "officially" closed by the recognition on both Czech and Slovak sides that, from its earliest beginnings, the Slovak language has always manifested a distinct identity as a Slavonic tongue of the inhabitants of Slovakia. NOTES AND BIBLIOGRAPHY See the following symposia: R. J . Kerner, Czechoslovakia, (Berkeley, Calif., University of California Press, 1949), and L. I. Strakhovsky, ed. Handbook of Slavic Studies ( Cambridge, Mass., Harvard University Press, 1949) the article by 0 . Rad!. The chapter on the Slavic languages by A. Senn in the same symposium is in accordance with recent research. Slavonic Encyclopedia, chapter by J. S. Roucek (New York, 1949) in the same category as Kerner's symposium. 2. See Eugen Pauliny, Dejiny spisovnej slovenciny (Bratislava, Slovenska Akademia vied a umeni, 1948) . 3. Cf. A. Mraz, Die Literatur der Slovaken (Wien, 1943). 1. �18 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16. 17. 18. 19. 20. 21 . SLOVAKIA Cf. Prof. A. Dostal, Ncistin dejin ceskeho a siovenskeho jazyka (Prague, 1954), pp. 200-206. Cf. J. M. Kirschbaum, "Contemporary Tendencies in Slovak Philoiogy", Etudes siaves et Est Europeennes, IV, (1959-60 ), pp. 163-174. Cf. E. Pauliny, op. cit., and Jan Stanislav, Dejiny siovenskeho jazyka (Bratislava, 1957), p. 326, also H. Bartek, siovensky pravopis, (Whiting, Ind., 1956). N. S. Toubetzkoy, Grundzuge der Phonofogie, (Prague, 1939), pp. 117, 136, 141. J. Dobrovsky and P. J. Safarik have traced the linguistic line which separated the Czech and Slovak dialects around the Moravia. Cf. J. Skultety, Sketches from siovak History, (Middetown, Pa., 1936) and his Stodvadsat'piit' rokov zo siovenskeho zivota, Turc. Sv. Martin, 1920. Cf. E. Pauliny, Dejiny spisovnej siovenciny, p. 41. Benedicti Grammaticae Bohemicae iibri due, (Prague, 1603) p. VI, has written: "Neque tamen ego hie eos ad Bohemicam linguam cogo, sed ad exercitationem et culturam ipsorum idiomatis invito: praesertim cum non tantum in civitatibus et oppidis, sed etiam in pagis scholis abundent". Cf. E. Pauliny, op. cit., pp. 57 and 113, and A. Mraz, Dejiny siovenskej Hteratury, p. 108. See, J. Skultety, op. cit., p. 23, and Jaroslav Vlcek, Medzi Vcihom a Vitavou, (Bratislava 1957), pp. 228-234. J. Skultety, op. cit., pp. 20-30. L. I. Strakhovsky, op. cit., pp. 494-495. E. Pauliny, op. cit., pp. 30-36. 0. Radl, in L. I. Strakhovsky's Handbook of siavic Studies, p. 491. Cf. E. Pauliny, op. cit., p. 36-37 and 53. Pauliny is of the opinion that the occupation of Hungary by Turks (1526) helped the penetration of the Czech language, since there was a sort of common border between Slovakia and Moravia in the Habsburg Monarchy. E. Pauliny, op. cit., p. 17; A. Mraz, op. cit., pp. 12-16, and Jan Stanislav, op. cit. p. 12. J. Dobrovsky in 1875 wrote that Slovak is close to the Croat and Slovene languages in several respects. Zd. Stieber considers certain characteristics of the Slovak language as southern Slavic elements (juhoslavismy) . Cf. Jan Stanislav, Dejiny siovenskeho jazyka, p. 387. V. Jagic, Entstehungsgeschichte der Kirchensiawischen Sprache (Wien, 1900), p. 19; E. Pauliny, 0 vzcijomnych vzt'ahoch cechov a Slovcikov (Bratislava, 1956), p. 101., and David Diringer, Cambridge Univ., England, article in The Encydopedia Americana, Can. Edition, 1963, p. 379-380. S. Czambel, siovenskci rec a jej miesto v rodine siovanskych jazykov, (Turciansky Sv. Martin, 1906), pp. 320, and J. M. Kirschbaum, I!udovit stur and His Piace in the siavic World, Slavistica No. 32, Cleveland, Ohio, 1956. A. Senn "Slavic Linguistics", in Handbook of Slavic Studies, edited by L. I. Strakhovsky, p. 116-139, and R. G. A. de Bray, Guide To The siavonic Languages (London & New York, J. M. Dent & Sons Ltd., 1951), p. 513. J . M. Kirschbaum, "A Note on Two Modern Slovak Translators �SLOVAKIA 22. 23. 24. 25. 26. 27. 28. 29. 30. 31. 32. 33. 34. 35. 36. 37. 38. 39. 40. 41. 19 of Mickiewicz" in Adam Mickiewicz in World Literature, edited by W. Lednicki, (Berkeley & Los Angeles, Calif. University of Calif. Press, 1956) , p. 487-493. T. Lehr-Splawinski, Preglad i charakterystyka jezykow slowianskich (Warszawa, 1954,) p. 71. Robert Auty, "Dialect, Koine and Tradition in the Formation of Literary Slovak", The Slav onic and East European Review, XXXIX, (1961), p . 331-356. Ibidem, pp. 342-346. R. G. A. de Bray, op. cit., pp. 513-515. Roman Smal-Stocki, Discrimination and Bias in Two UNESCO Publications, (New York, Shevchenko Scientific Society, 1961), p. 3. T. Lehr-Splawinski, op. cit. p. 71. Ibid. p. 800. Roman Jakobson, Slavic Languages (New York, Columbia University Press, 1949) , p. 10. L. I. Strakhovsky, op. cit. p. 491. See S. H . Thomson, Czechoslovakia in European History, (Prince: ton, University Press, 1943) , p. 242-258. V. Busek-Spulber, Czechoslov akia under Communism (New York Mid-European Study Center, 1957) , 193-197. See J. M. Kirschbaum "Contemporary Tendencies in Slovak Philology", Etudes Slaves et Est-Europeennes, vol. IV, (1960), pp. 163-174. A. Dostal, Nastin dejin ceskeho a slovenske ho jazyka (Prague, 1954), pp. 200-201. See also "Die Tschechoslowakische Sprachenwissenschaft in den Jahren 1933 bis 1944" - Zeitschrift fur Slavische Philologie, Band XXIX, XXX, XXXI, Heidelberg, 196263. See esp. Vol. XXX, 1. p. 164-180. A. Dostal, op. cit., pp. 200-201. E. Pauliny, Dejiny spisovnej slovenciny (Bratislava, 1948) , p. 46-108. Symposium O vzajomnych vzt'ahoch techov a Slovakov, (Bratislava, Slovenska Akademia Vied, 1956) . teskoslovenske pfednasky pro IV. Medzinarodni zjezd slavistu v Moskve, ed. Ceskoslovensky komitet slavistu, (Praha, 1958). A. Mraz, Dejiny slovenskej literatury, (Bratislava, 1948) . Ibid. p. 101-118. See Bibliography. BIBLIOGRAPHY of selected works in English, French, German and Italian on Slovak Language and Literature Auty, Robert, The Evolution of Literary Slovak, Cambridge, 1953. Reprint from Transactions of the Philological Society, p. 143-160. Dialect, Koine and Tradition in the Formation of Literary Slovak (Paper presented to the VIIIth Congress of the International Federation of Modern Languages and Literatures at Liege, August 1960), published in The Slavonic and East European Review, Vol. 39, No. 93, London, 1961. �20 SLOVAKIA Bernolak, Anton, Slowakische Grammatik, Aus dem Lateinischen ins Deutsche iibersetzt, gedr. mit konigl. ung. Universitatsschriften, Offen, 1817. Bokes, F., Literarische Vbersicht des geschichtlichen Schaffens in der Slowakei, Leipziger Vierteljahrschrift fiir Siidosteuropa 4, Leipzig, 1940. Bray de, R. G. A., Guide To The Slavonic Languages (London & New York, J. M. Dent & Sons Ltd., 1951) , p. 513. Cizevsky, Dmitry, Outline of Comparative Slavic Literatures, American Academy of Arts and Sciences, Boston, Mass., 1952. On Romanticism in Slavic Literatures, Gravenhage, Monton & Co., 1957. Aus Zwei Welten, Beitrage zur Geschichte der Slawisch-westlichen literarischen Beziehungen, 1956. Mickiewicz, Stur and Kral, in W. Lednicki's Adam Mickiewicz in World Literature, Berkeley, 1956. A Bibliography of the Publications of Dr. Dmitry Cizevsky in the Fields of Literatiire, Language, Philosophy and Culture, Cambridge, Mass., 1952. Denis, Ernest, La question d'Autriche - Les Slovaques, Paris, 1917, Librairie Delagrave. One of the best books on Slovaks before the end of the First World War. His views on Bernolak, Stur, etc. are slightly distorted by the idea of the national and cultural unity of Czechs and Slovaks. Dixon, Charlton, Slovak Grammar for English speaking Students, Middletown, Pa., Jednota Printery, 1935. Harkins, W. E. - Simoncic, K., Czech and Slovak Literature, Oxford, King's Crown Press, 1951. Fischel, Alfred, Panslavismus bis zum Weltkrieg, Stuttgart und Berlin, 1919. One of the best documented works on Panslavism in the German language. Giusti, Walgango, Il Panslavismo, Milano, 1941, Instituto per gli studi di politica internazionale. Rather political than scholarly review of the idea of Panslavism among Slavic peoples. Gross, Felix (ed.), European Ideologies, New York, 1948, Philosophical Library, W. Lednicki's chapter on Panslavism. Scholarly written treatise from the Polish point of view. Hrobak, Philip A., Slovak Lessons, Lakewood, Ohio, Middletown, Pa., Jednota Printery, 1935. The Slovak Language, Book I - II. Middletown, Pa. , Jednota, 1935-1936. Hrusovsky, F., Geschichte der Slowakei, Bratislava, 1942. This is Slovakia, Scranton, Pa., 1953. Jakobson, Roman, Sur l'histoire et sur les relations mutuelles du tcheque et du slovaque. Le Monde slave, XIV., 1937, 353-366. Slavic Languages, Columbia University Press, 1949. Kirschbaum, J . M., Slovakia - Nation at the Crossroads of Central Europe, New York, Speller & Sons, 1960. Slovak Literature under the Soviet Impact, The Slavic and EastEuropean Studies, Montreal, 1956, Part 1, p. 45-54. nudovit Stur and His Place in Slavic World, Slavistica No. 32, Winnipeg-Cleveland, 1956. Contemporary Tendencies in Slovak Philology, An Offprint from �SLOVAKIA 21 Slavic and East-European Studies, Vol. IV, No. 3-4, Montreal, 1960. Pavel Jozef Safarik and His Contribution to Slavic Studies, The Slovak Institute, Cleveland, Ohio, 1962, Slavistica No. 43, p. 51. A Note on Two Slovak Translators of Mickiewicz in W. Lednicki's Adam Mickiewicz in World Literature, Berkeley, 1956. Anton Bernolak - The First Codifier of the Slovak Language, Slavistica No. 52, Cleveland - Winnipeg, 1964. Slovak Literary History in Marxist and Western Interpretations. A reprint from Canadian Slavonic Papers, Vol. VI, University of Toronto Press, Toronto, 1964. The Role of the Cyrilo-Methodian Tradition in Slovak National and Political Life. An offprint from Slovak Studies III, Rome, 1963. La litterature de la periode cyrillo-methodienne et la slovaquie. An offprint from Slovak Studies III, Rome, 1963. La place du slovaque parmi les langues slaves. An offprint from Etudes slaves et est-europeennes, Vol. VIII. Fasc. 3-4, Universite de Montreal, 1963. Jan Kollar - Slovak Poet of Pan-Slavism, Slavistica No. 56, The Slovak Institute, Cleveland-Toronto-Winnipeg, 1966. Kohn, Hans, Pan-Slavism, Its History and Ideology, University of Notre Dame Press, 1953. One of the most objective books on Pan-Slavism. Konus, Joseph, Practical Slovak Grammar. A textbook for high schools, colleges and adult private students, Pittsburgh, Pa., 1939. New English-Slovak Dictionary, Pittsburgh, Pa., 1941. Kniezsa, Stefan, Zur Geschichte der Jugoslavismen im Mittelslowakischen, Budapest, 1948, tire a part des Etudes slaves et roumaines, Vol. 1, Fasc. 3. Kramoris, Ivan J., An Anthology of Slovak Poetry, Scranton, 1947. A selection of lyric and narrative poems including some members of Stur's group. Slovakia and Slovak Literature. Reprinted from the Catholic Encyclopedia, New York, 1950. A Chronological Outline of Slovak Literature and History, Passaic, N. J., 1946 Krcmery, Stefan, A Survey of Modern Slovak Literature, Offprint from The Slavonic Review, Vol. VII, No. 19, 1928-1929. Lednicki, Waclaw (ed.), Adam Mickiewicz in World Literature, University of California Press, 1956. Articles by D. Cizevsky and J. M. Kirschbaum. Leger, Louis, Le panslavisme et l'interet francais, Paris, 1917, Ernest Flammarion. Relatively objective study of pan-slavism and Slovak contribution. French point of view. Locher, T. J., Die nationale Differenzierung und Integrierung der Slowaken und Tschechen in ihrem geschichtlichen Verlauf bis 1848, Harlem, 1931. Macartney, C. A ., Hungary and Her Successors, London-New York- Toronto, 1937. Manning, Clarence A. (ed.), An Anthology of Czech and Slovak Poetry, New York, 1929, Columbia University Press. Contains translations by Prof. Kirkconnell, Kramoris, Gallik, Manning, Slabey, Kotouc, etc. �22 SLOVAKIA Meriggi, Bruno, Storia deUe letterature ceca e slovacca. University of Florence, 1959. Mikus, J . A., La Slovaquie dans le drame de l'Europe, Paris, Les Iles d'Or, 1955. La Slovaquie, Individualite politique de l'Europe Centrale, Paris, 1952. Mraz, Andreas, Die Literatur der Slowaken, Wien-Stuttgart, 1943. A History of Slovak literature by a contemporary scholar and professor at the University of Bratislava. The work was completed and edited in the Slovak language in 1948 by The Slovak Academy of Sciences and Arts and presents one of the best works on the history of Slovak literature. Pastrnek, Fr., Beitriige zur Lautlehre der Slowakischen Sprache in Ungarn (Aus dem Sitzungsberichten der philos.-hist. Klasse der K. Akademie der Wissenschaften), Wien, 1888. Petrovich, Michael B., The Emergence of Russian Panslavism, Columbia University Press, 1956. Rekem, John, The Origin and Dei;elopment of the Slovak Language, an offprint from Slovakia, Vol. XII, No. 35, Middletown, Pa., 1962. Slovak Literature and National Consciousness Before Bernolak, Cleveland, 1965. Seton-Watson, R. H. , A History of the Czechs and Slovaks, London, 1943. Scholarly written history by one of the best defenders of the Slovak people at the beginning of this century (see his Racial Problems in Austria-Hungary) who turned against the Slovak movement for autonomy and independence being influenced by his Czech friends. Scotus, Viator, Racial Problems in Hungary, London, 1908. Slovak Studies I, Historica 1, Slovak Institute, Rome, 1961. Safarik, J . P., Geschichte der Slawischen Sprache und Literatur nach allen Mundarten. Mit konigl. ung. Universitatsschriften, Offen, 1826. Skultety, Joseph, Sketches From Slovak History, Middletown, Pa., 1930, Jednota Press. Translation from Slovak by 0 . D. Koreff. Skultety was professor at the University of Bratislava and one of the most outstanding figures in the Slovak cultural life in the first half of the century. Stefanek, Anton, Zur Soziographie der geistigen Kultur in der Slowakei, Bratislava, 1944. Strakhovsky, L. I. (ed.), A Handbook of Slavic Studies, Harvard University Press, 1949, chapters by A. Senn and Otto Radl. Both articles reflect recent research, though Radl's contribution is strongly pro-Czech. Vajda, Jaroslav, Bloody Sonets, transl. from Hviezdoslav, P. 0., Scranton, Pa., 1950. Viktorin, J. K. Gramatik der Slowakischen Sprache. Zurn Schul-und Selbstunterricht, Budapest, 1862. Tourtzer, H. Louis Stur et l'idee de !'independence slovaque, Cahoss et Alencon, Paris, 1913. Trubetzkoy, N. S., Grundzilge der Phonologie, Prag, 1939. (on Slovak language p. 117-118, 136, 141, 143, 161, 167, 170, 175, 208, 245.) Yourchak, Peter P., The Slovaks, Whiting, Ind., 1947, Lach editions, �SLOVAKIA 23 chapters from Slovak history and literature destined for Americans of Slovak origin. BIBLIOGRAPHY in Slavic Languages Bartek, Heinrich, Anton Bernolak, Trnava, 1937. £udovit Stur a slovencina, Turc. Sv. Martin, 1943. Krest'anstvo a slovencina, in the Symposium Nadej vit'azna, Scranton, Pa., 1947. Slovensky pravopis s gramatickymi pouckami a slovnikom, Whiting, Ind., Lach Publications, 1956. Spravna vyslovnost' slovenska, Bratislava, 1943. Blanar, Vincent, Bibliografia jazykovedy na Slovensku v rokoch 19391947. Slovenska akademia vied a umeni. Bratislava, 1950. Bobek, W., Prehl'adne dejiny slovenskej literatury, Bratislava, 1939. Mickiewicz v literaturze slowackiej, Praha, 1931. Dzieje literatury slowackiej w zarysie. An offprint from Slowacja i Slowacy, Edit. W. Semkowicz, Krakow, 1938. Czambel, Samo, Prispevky k dejinam jazyka slovenskeho, Budapest, 1887. Slovenska rec a jej miesto v rodine slovanskych jazykov, Turc. Sv. Martin, 1906. Slovensky pravopis. Historicko-kriticky nakres. Budapest', 1890. Dvonc, Ladislav, Bibliografia slovenskej jazykovedy za roky 1948- 1952. Matica slovenska, Martin, 1957. Gajdos, V. J. Slovenske glosy v latinskom missali za XVI. storocia, Historica slovacca I-II, Bratislava, 1940-1941, 221-243. Grabowski, T. S., Dwaja Slowaccy pionerzy oswiecenia i postepu, Bernolak i Fandly, 1951. Hattala, Martin, Kratka mluvnica slovenska, Bratislava, 1852. Gramatica linguae slovenicae, Schemnicii, 1850. Hodza, Michal M., Vetin o slovencine, Levoca, 1848. Isacenko, A. V. Zaciatky vzdelanosti vo Vel'komoravskej risi, Jazykovedny sbornik I-II, 1947, 137-178. Jagic, I. V., Istorija slavianskoj filologii, S. Petersburg, 1910. Jankovic, V. "Prvy preklad slovensky celeho Pisma svateho", Verbum I, Bratislava, 1946-1947. Kondrasov, N. A., Kategorija licnosti i nelicnosti v slovackom jazyku, MGU, 1949. Programma po istoriji slovackogo jazyka. Programma po sovremennom slovackom jazyku, Izdatelstvo Moskovskogo universiteta, 1951. Slavianskaja filologia, Stati i monografiji, Izdatelstvo Moskovskogo univerziteta, 1951. Kotvan, Imrich, "Jozef Ignac Bajza a slovenska rec", Linguistica slovaca III, Bratislava, 1941. Juraj Fandly, Trnava, 1946. "Juraj Fandly a slovensky jazyk", Linguistica slovaca I-II, Bratislava, 1939. Bernolakovci, Trnava, 1948. Bibliografia bernolakovcov, Matica slovenska, Martin, 1957. �24 SLOVAKIA Magiera, J., Literatura czeska i slowacka, Obraz pismiennictwa, Warszawa, 1929. Magnuszewski, J., Mickiewicz wsr6d Slowakow. Wroclaw, 1956. Misianik, Jan, Dejiny starsej slovenskej literatury, SAV, Bratislava, 1958. Stran 320. Mraz, Andrej, Gavlovicova skola krest'anskci. Brati!lava, 1940. Dejiny slovenskej literatury, Bratislava, 1948. Novak, l;udovit, Cestina na Slovensku a vznik spisovnej slovenciny. Odtlacok zo Slovenskych pohl'adov LIV, 1938. Jazykovedne glosy k ceskoslovenskej otcizke, Turc. Sv. Martin, 1935. ~udovit Stur ako jazykovedec, Slovenske pohl'ady III, 1936. Pastrnek, Fr., Starci jazykovci pamcitka slovenskci, Sbornik filologicky VII, 1922. Pauliny, Eugen, Na okraj kamaldulskeho Pisma, Verbum I, 1946-1947. Glosy k pomeru: bernolcictina a sturovcina, Kultura XIV, 1942. Dejiny spisovnej slovenciny, Slovenska akademia vied a umeni, Bratislava, 1948. Pisut, Milan, Literatura ncirodneho obrodenia, SAV, Bratislava, 1960, p. 490. Slovensky litercirny romantizmus, C-sl. prednasky pro medzinarodni sjezd slavistu v Moskve. Semkowicz, W., Slowacia i Slovacy, Krakow, 1937. Skultety, Jozef, Stodvadsat'piit' rokov zo slovenskeho zivota 1790-1914, Martin, 1920. 0 Slovcikoch, Turciansky Sv. Martin, 1936. Sobolevskij, A. I., Cerkovno-slavianskije texty moravskogo proischozdenija, Ruskij filologiceskij vestnik, 1900. Stanislav Jan, K jazykovednemu dielu A. Bernolcika, Bratislava, 1941. Pribinovi velmozi, Linguistica slovaca I-II, 1939-1940. "Spisovny jazyk slovensky", Symposium Slovanske jazy ky v dobe pfitomne, Praha, 1937. Dejiny slovenskeho jazyka I-II, Slovenska akademia vied, Bratislava, 1958. Stiebr, Zdislaw, Zarys dialektologii jezykow zachodnio-slowianskich. Warszawa, 1956. Stur, l;udovit, Nauka reci slovenskej, Bratislava, 1846. Ncirecia slovenskuo, Bratislava, 1844. Tibensky, Jan, J. Papanek • J. Sklenar: Obrancovia slovenskej ncirodnosti v XVIII. storoci. Osveta, Martin, 1958. "K problemu hodnotenia bernolactiny a bernolakovskeho hnutia". Historicky casopis, VII., 4, 1959. "Vznik, vyvoj a vyznam vel'komoravskej tradicie v slovenskom narodnom obrodeni. Sbornik O vzcijomnych vzt'ahoch Cechov a Slovcikov, SAV., 1956. Varsik, Branislav, Slovcici na prazskej univerzite do konca stredoveku, Bratislava, 1926. Vilikovsky, Jan, Cantus Catholici, Bratislava, 1935. Vlcek, Jaroslav, Dejiny literatury slovenskej, Turc. Sv. Martin, 1923. Weingart, Milos, 0 najstarsich jazykovych pamcitkach slovenskych, CMF., Prague 1935. � SLOV AKIA Pu-blished by the Slovak League of America VOL. XVI 1966 N O. 39 THE SLOVAK LANGUAGE AND ITS PLACE AM.ONG THE SLAVIC LANGUAGES J. M. Kirschbaum I. Introductory Note A review of symposia, surveys and handbooks,1 dealing with Slavs and their languages, indicates that there is a certain confusion as far as the language of the Slovaks and their literary media are concerned. The confusion seems to have been created, on one hand, by Slavists and literary historians who failed to draw a proper distinction between the native and spoken language of the Slovaks and their written or literary language. On the other hand, the misconceptions were intentionally spread by philologists and literary historians who were influenced by political views and aspirations, and some Slavists accepted them without the necessary caution required in scholarly works. As a result, we find in manuals and symposia on Slavic peoples or in works on philology and Slavic languages either the thesis that the Slovak language is merely a dialect of the Czech, or that Slovak became a literary language only at the beginning of the XIXth century. Some surveys speak even of a Czechoslovak language. Before analyzing these misconceptions, it may perhaps be stated that the claim that Slovak is but a dialect of the Czech language, was not based on facts of history or philology. It was a biased opinion of those who tried to give a scholarly basis to political aspirations denying to the Slovaks the right to their independent national and cultural life. And there lay also the origins of the erroneous thesis that Slovak began to be used as a literary language only from the second half of the nineteenth century. Slovak philologists and linguists (Bernolak, Safarik, Stur, Czambel, Skultety, Bartek, Stanislav, Novak, Pauliny) �2 SLOVAKIA rejected, during the last two centuries, all these biased theories and looked for linguistic criteria to determine the origin and the main characteristics of the Slovak language. They reviewed the historic forms of the Slovak tongue, and by scholarly methods and comparative study of Slavic languages determined the place of Slovak among Slavic languages. 2 Works of Slovak philologists, except for those of Safarik and partly Stur and Czambel, remained, however, for a long time ·e ither unknown to foreign Slavists, or were interpreted incorrectly. As a result, we find only recently in linguistic studies, published outside Slovakia, the proper distinction between the Slovak language and the literary media used by Slovaks, and a rejection of the thesis that Slovak has been but a dialect of the Czech language or that there is a Czechoslovak language. According to these studies, during long centuries, Slovak people spoke their own Slovak dialects, which developed from the primitive Slavic after its disintegration, into the modern Slovak language, but they used several literary media. It was first the Old Church Slavonic, in the 9th and 10th centuries, afterwards the Latin language, the Biblical Czech (used by the Protestant minority until the second half of the 19th century), the literary Slovak based on Slovak western dialects and finally the revised present form , based on central Slovak dialects.3 On the following pages, we shall attempt to p0int out and analyze the main misconceptions about the Slovak language and the literary media used in Slovakia and define the place of Slovak among Slavic languages in the light of recent linguistic research of European Slavists, including the Marxist philologists of Slavic countries.4 II. Views and conceptions of Slovak philologists In their scholarly studies of phonology, etymology, lexicology and grammar Slovak philologists and linguists maintained continuously the point of view that the Slovak language has been distinct from any other Slavic tongue. This was not so clear and evident to Slavists of the 19th century, according to Slovak philologists, because philology was in its infancy and used primitive methods.5 Recent research, how- �SLOVAKIA 3 ever, proves that Slovak language has been the real and original national tongue of the inhabitants of Slovakia since the dawn of history, and the linguistic analysis of the fundamental roots of the Czech and Slovak languages and a comparative study of their developments showed that Slovak language never was a part of the Czech or so-called "Czechoslovak" language.6 If we accept the theiiis, supported by Trubeckoj ,7 that in the ninth century the Old Slavonic &1:.ill was the common tongue of the Slavs with a unified phonology, and that from the ninth century different dialects developed into distinct Slavic languages, it is to be assumed, according to Slovak philologists, that among them was also the Slovak tongue. There is no historical or philological reason why it should not be claimed that at the time of disintegration of the Old Slavonic and of the rise of new independent Slavic languages, Slovak was among them and that its development cannot be identified with that of the Czech language.8 This thesis is strengthened also by the fact that the Slovak territory was annexed after the collapse of Great Moravia, by Hungary and, hence, the only contact the Slovaks had with Czechs was through Moravians who have continued to speak a Slovak dialect in spite of the pressure of the Czechs from the West, and to the p-resent time they have retained their own phonological structure. Consequently, the relation between the Czech and Slovak languages became a matter of controversy because of political aspirations of some Czech politicians and scholars and not because of philological reasons - is the view of Slovak philologists. In fact, as early as in the 16th century Vavrinec Benedikti z Nedozier (1555-1615), a learned Slovak philologist and professor at the Prague University exhorted his Slovak countrymen to cultivate their native tongue. He wrote his appeal in a grammar he composed for Czechs, which makes it clear that already for him there were two different languages. 9 From the sixteenth century on, there are numerous proofs that Slovak erudities, with the exception of a few protestants, considered Slovaks as one of the "tribes" of Slavic nation, but speaking their own "dialect" different from the Czech, Polish or Russian, using the word dialect for our term language. Slovak was used not only in homiletic �4 SLOVAKIA writings, but also in scholarly works and poetry, especially since the middle of the 17th century around the University of Trnava (founded 1635) and, at the end of the 18th century, Anton Bernolak only codified a language in use in his linguistic works Dissertatio, Gramatica slavica and his huge pentalingual Dictionary. 10 The well-known Slavist, P. J . Safarik, and initially also Jan Kollar, were aware of the fact that there had been a Slovak ~anguage and Slovak literature, different from the Czech or the other Slavic languages and literatures. Safarik gave testimony to it in his Geschichte der Slawischen Sprache und Literatur in allen Mundarten (1826) , and when some Czech leaders reproached him and his scholarly objectivity, Safarik indignantly announced that he would go even farther in stressing the differences than he did in his book.11 Jan Kollar was also instrumental originally in preparing Sti'.lr's reform and later changed his mind and became an advocate of a common literary language with the Czechs (which he called "old Slovak" ) because of reasons which Slovak literary historians avoid to discuss. The great poet of Panslavism had also some human deficiencies like very high personal pride and terrible temper, and took it as an insult ,that Stur and his group dared to do something in Slovak cultural life without consulting him or without his patronage. 12 This "crimen lesae majestatis" moved Kollar to opose Stu.r's reform and the final acceotance of the Slovak literary language also by Slovak protest;nts. Safarik did not change his scholarly views which he expressed in his Geschichte, but being employed in Prague and financially supported by Czech patriots, he tried to convince his Slovak countrymen that they should not move too far from Czechs and suggested that the Czech should be adjusted to the Slovak linguistic phenomena and peculiarities. "The will of the Slovak groups to assert their own national individuality was, however, too strong", as admitted by Radl, 13 and Stu.r's reform was victorious over Kollar's protests and Safa:rik's advices, because it was in line with the linguistic facts and centuries' long Slovak national development. The reasons for a sporadic use of the Czech language for administrative and partly also for literary purposes (mainly by the Slovak Protestants) which some Czech philologists considered as a proof of national and linguistic unity of the �SLOVAKIA 5 Czechs and Slovaks, have been reconsidered by several "bourgeois" and "marxist" philologists and literary historians. There are at least three theories om the penetration of the Czech language into the Slovak territory. One theory refers to the continuation of relations between Slovaks and Moravians (who adopted the Czech language) from trhe time of Great Moravia, which relations survived the collapse of that state and developed between the Moravian cultural center Olomouc arnd Slovak religious centers. More acceptable and also more elaborated is the theory ascribing the use of the Czech language to the fact that Czech clerks were used at certain periods not only in the Slovak territory but also in Hungary and Poland in state and city-administration. 14 In Slovakia, the use of the Czech, adapted to local dialects, survived because of the Reformation which penetrated into Slovakia from Germany and Bohemia with Bible and religious books writteJ) in the old Czech, and because during the Counter-Reformation "many protestant Czechs found shelter in Slovakia and even printed books in Czech for the purpose of smuggling them into Bohemia" .15 Settled in Slovakia, the Czech refugees tried to keep all Slovak protestants linked to Bohemia by language also in secular writings. 16 Around 1840, it became, however, clear to the leaders of the Protestant minority in Slovakia that the Czech language was not intelligible to the common people, that their writings could not reach Slovak population and for reasons which U. Stur explained in his Narecia slovenskuo and other writings, they agreed with Catholics who used the Slovak for homiletic as well as for secular writings from the 16th century, on the reform taking for basis central Slovak dialects, and on the exclusive use of Slovak in Slovak literature. Stur's reform, by which the Slovak language was finally established as a literary medium of all Slovaks, has been accepted by the Slovak intelligentsia within a very short space of time, and it received its final linguistic , form in the grammar of a Catholic priest, Martin Hattala. Thus the peculiar situation of multilingualism in modern Slovak literature was changed. 17 During all these centuries, Slovak people spoke, as we mentioned before, their own Slovak dialects which developed from the Old Slavonic after its disintegration into modern Slovak language, which happened more or less at the same �6 SLOVAKIA time at which other central European peoples began to use vernacular for literary purposes. On the position of Slovak among Slavic languages, Slovak philologists expressed various opinions. 18 V. Jagic in his book Entstehungsgeschichte der Kirchenslawischen Sprache, wrote that "in Great Moravia people must have spoken in the ninth century a tongue which in its fundamentals was identical with the Slovak language of today". J . Dobrovsky admitted that certain linguistic phenomena linked Slovak with South Slavic languages and S. Czambel elaborated linguistically a theory to prove that the question as to whether Slovak is closer to Western Slavic or to the Southern Slavic group of languages deserves to be reconsidered by philologists. Stur viewed the position of the Slovak language as a central clearing house, mainly because he was conscious of many of its similiarities with the Slavic tongues of the East, West, North and South, especially noting the South Slavic dialects with which Slovak came into intimate contact during long centuries. 19 Recent studies indicate that the Slovak language conserved many archaic forms and expr-essions common to all Slavs. Remaining for centuries only a spoken vernacular of the people, it was affected mainly by the influence of neighbouring Slavic peoples, and since it was codified in the era of the revival of Slavonic peoples, the Slovak cultural and political leaders saw to it that Slovak language might conserve its central position and Slavic purity. Kollar himself argued, and some Slavists of that time accepted his idea that the Slovak language "stands grammatically and geographically in the center of all Slav dialects" and the Tatra mountains are the "nest and cradle of all Slavs" which, of course, the modern science of history, archeology and ethnography challenges. However, U1.e central position of the Slovak language, geographically or linguistically, is accepted to a great extent even by modern philology. According to de Bray "the Slovaks have preserved a beautifully soft and musical language, which might well serve as a modern "Common Slav" or lingua franca among the Slavs today. For modern Slovak is the most comprehensible of the living Slavonic languages to all other Slavs. Just as the Slovaks occupy geographically a central position among the Slavs, so, too, their language, in its �SLOVAKIA 7 sounds and forms, is the nearest to an all-round compromise between the various Slavonic languages, having features which make it near both to East and South Slav, as well as to the other West Slav languages. 20 In fact, the Slovaks - either educated or common people - do not experience much difficulty in communicating in Slovak with Poles, Ukrainians, C:ziechs, Russians, or Slovenes and Croats, as has been proven even on the American Continent, since basically there ar,e no great differences among Slavic languages, and in the case of the Slovak language, history and geography made it close not only to Polish and Czech, but also to Ukrainian and South Slavic, Slovenian and Croat. 21 Slovak intellectuals of the nineteenth century read not only Polish or Czech poets and writers in original, but also Russian and Ukrainian, Croat and .Slovenian. Modern scientific and literary development drifts the twelve Slavic languages more apart. Nevertheless, even if we cannot agree with the nineteenth century poet that "with the Slovak language you may travel Earth's four corners", the fact remains that Slovaks are able to communicate in their own vernacular with the majority of the Slavic peoples. III. Views and conceptions of European Slavists As for European Slavists, including the present-day Czech philologists, some of their recent studies would indicate that they corrected many of the erroneous views they held on the relation between the Slovak and Czech and the origin of the Slovak literary language. It is evident that the modem techniques in linguistics and philology have thrown new light on the subject and have been instrumental in giving modified conceptions that are far advanced beyond the hasty unwarranted conclusions of the amateur-philologists or linguists serving political aspirations. Noteworthy among the new conceptions are not only those which defend the distinct and ancient character of the Slovak among Slavic languages but also the views that the history of the Slovak literary language necessarily begins in the 9th century with the Old Church Slavonic as the first literary medium in Slovakia. This view has been held by Slovak literary historians .for a long time, but never was considered before by foreign �8 SLOVAKIA Slavists. Recently, howev,er, the well-known Polish philologist T. Lehr-Splawinski expressed the following view: "The beginnings of the literary language in Slovakia are connected with the period of activities of ConstantineCyril and Methodius in the Moravian state. As the whole of Slovakia was, without ,any doubt, a part of that state, and the important centers of its political and cultural life were situated on the Slovak territory, writings in the old ChurchSlavonian language must have undoubtedly developed among the Slovaks in the last quarter of the IXth century". 22 R. Auty, from the University of Cambridge, in his paper, presented to the VIIIth Congress of the International Federation of Modern Languages & Literatures at Liege, August 1960, corrected misconceptions on Bernolak and Stur and their reforms. Anton Bernolak codified in 1870 a language which was already in use, according to Auty, and "in the following fifty or sixty years a considerable number of literary and other works were published or written in this (Bernolak's) form of Slovak". 23 The Czech language was, according to Auty, "sporadicalin Slovakia (with certain local modification) for used ly administrative and, still more occasionally, literary purposes". The reasons for this sporadic usage of Czech for administrative and "mor,e occasionally" also for literary purposes, are explained by Auty in his statement that "since the Reformation the Czech had been the language of the Lutheran scriptures and Church Services in Slovakia". "Stur, Protestant though he was, acted against what he regarded as an unnatural linguistic situation which had been brought about by the hazards of history. His reaction was radical" - says Auty, and gives a detailed picture of the changes which were brought about in the Slovak language by the agreement of the Catholics and Protestants in order to end bilingualism in Slovak literature. Auty's views on the reform of the , Slovak literary language which took place in the 1840's are fairly in line with the historical truth and recent r-esearch. According to him "Catholic and Protestant Slovaks agreed to accept a new written form of their language for all purposes: this has been worked out by U. Stur in discussion with other Slovak intellectual leaders in the perfod 1842-44 and was somewhat modified by M. M. Hodza and M. Hattala in subsequent years". _,/ �SLOVAKIA 9 Stur "on more than one occasion praised the work of Bernolak, and above all, the poetry of Jan Holly and fully accepted one element of Bernolak's linguistic reform - the orthographical system" - continues Auty. The general pattern of the language, as fashioned by Stur, was in accordance with the needs of Slovak Society and has proven itself - and Stur's genius - by its survivor". 2 " R. G. A. de Bray, in his Guide to the Slavonic Languages, is equally close to the views of Slovak philologists and literary historians. "It is not true to say" - writes de Bray - "that Slovak was not written till the nineteenth century, as some assert. It is true that the modern literary language, as we know it today, was then first stabilized, but there are traces of the Slovak language in the local Latin documents from the elev,enth to the fifteenth centuries, Latin being the official language at the time". 25 On the relation between the Czech and Slovak de Bray expressed the following view: "While the phonetic system of Slovak is more conservative than that of Czech and so is nearer to that of Old Slavonic and other Slavonic languages, its morphological system has developed further than that of Czech, its nearest relative, mainly through the workiings of analogy and the generalization of certain standard endings, especially in the plural of nouns. Both the 1st and 2nd palatalization of gutturals occur less frequently in the declensions than they do in Czech, owing to the workings of analogy, as in Russian and Slov•enian. And in general Slovak morphology has fewer irregularities, exceptions, and archaic survivals, such as the declension of Kamen (- stone) in Czech. Prof. Roman Smal-Stocki in his paper Discrimination and Bias in Two Unesco Publications also raised his voice against treating Slovak and Czech "as one unit". "From the linguistic point of view" - says Prof. Smal-Stocki - "it js inadmissible to mix state units with existing languages and to treat "as one unit" Czech and Slovak, because the linguistic fact is that in existence are two separate units, Czech and Slovak". 26 The contributors to the Encyclopedia Britanica (1959, Vol. 20) published some correct and some incorrect views, �10 SLOVAKIA but they grasped the essential points of difference between the Czech and Slovak. 27 "The Czech, as spoken and written today in Bohemia, diverges considerably from Slovak - says the Encyclopedia. The disagreement is least marked in vocabulary but appears prominently in the phonetics; in particular the itacism so distinct a characteristic of Czech, is non-existent in Slovak, which has preserved the fuller diphthongs (ia, ie, iu etc.) of the Slavonic languages; a further small.er point is the dz, from Common Slav dj, is used (as in Polish) where Czech has z. In one point only is there a divergence which goes back beyond the time of the common ancestry of the two languages; Slovak has not developed the t, which is characteristic of Czech and in that language occurs since the beginning of its literature. The Slovak palatalization of n, d, t and 1 after e, which does not occur in modern literary Czech, is a further point of disagreement, although this would not be obvious from Slovak spelling which does not find it necessary to distinguish by diacritics; consonanrts are always softened in this position". The Encyclopedia also points out to the relation of Slovak with other Slavic languages. It says: "The dialectical development shows some characteristics identical with those in South Slavonic and Russian. Not everywhere, for example, have u and i been confused, and instead of the e, which is the normal result in Slovak as in Czech, we find in Eastern dialects an o from the u, thus agreeing with Russian. An agreement with South Slavonic is the occurrence of raz- and la- and lo-. Because of these and other phonetic and morphological reasons the grammarian Czambel, a keen opponent of the identity of Czech and Slovak, has asserted that Slovak should rightly be associated with South Slavonic". 28 It would appear from this brief survey that European Sl~vists are very close to the views of Slovak philologists and that misconceptions, which we still can find in American symposia, considered hereafter, are disappearing from European Slavic studies. Very close to the views of European Slavists is also the well-known Canadian Slavist Prof. W. Kirkconnell who already in 1939 stated: "It cannot be too strongly emphasized that the Slovaks are not Czechs, and that there is no such ciieature as a 'Czechoslovak'. While they speak closely related Slavic languages, Slovak is not �SLOVAKIA 11 a mere dialect of Czech. The differences are about as great as those between the similarly related languages, Dutch and German. I have on my shelves Miroslav Kalal's Slovak-Czech dictionary (published 1924), in which there are 35,000 Slovak words that were apparently unintelligible to a Czech and hence required definition." (d. Canada, Europe, and Hitler, p. 44) IV. Misconceptions in American symposia and surveys With the sudden development of Slavic Studies on the American continent came hand in hand a large number of symposia, handbooks and surveys on Slavic literatures and langutlges. They are, however, written predominantly by scholars and writers with European schooling and background and, therefore, it is more appropriate to speak, in this respe0t, rather of American symposia than of American Slavists. A survey of several such symposia indicates that there are misconceptions not only in the relation of the Slovak with the Czech, but also on the history of the Slovak literary language and the role of foreign languages in Slovak literature. In this respect, we read not without surprise that even the well-known Slavist, Roman Jakobson, helped to spread some erroneous views on the Slovak language. In his study Slavic Languages, he writes as follows: "Toward the middle of the same (i.e. the 19th) century, the Slovaks, who had used literary Czech (somewhat adapted to their own habits) inaugurated their own literary language based on the central Slovak dialect but patterned after standard Czech". 29 Prof. A. Senn in Strakhovsky's Handbook of Slavic Studies, completed and modified Jakiobson's description of Slovak literary language. His classification of Slovak is correct, but we could hardly agree with certain parts of his definition. Prof. A. Senn says: "Slovak forms a connecting link with the South Slavic Slovenian and is more archaic than Czech. Otherwise differences between Czech and Slovak are not very great. Slovak became a literary language at the beginning of the nineteenth century . . . Slovak and Czech form one "Czechoslovak unit". �12 SLOVAKIA In the same symposium, another contributor, Otto Radl, admitted that "as early as 1635 in Trnava books were printed in different Slovak dialects", but he confusingly states further that it was only i,n 1844, in the period of Romanticism, that "the therefore common written language, the Czech, was being replaced by a newly-originated Slovak literary language". According to Radl "this movement had been begun at the end of the 18th century by the learned Slovak philologist Anton Bernolak who published several works in Latin in which he tried to show that the Slovaks were a separate nation and that they should therefore use their own distinctive written language based on dialects spoken in Western Slovakia". 30 A similar version can be found in Prof. H. S. Thompson's book "Czechoslovakia in European History", who says that "a deliberate effort to substitute for the written Czech then in use in Slovakia a language based upon a local dialect came from the Catholic camp only in 1790, when Anton Bernolak published a Gramatica slavica". However, he asserts further that "about the only followers Bernolak had were Catholic writers, and even among them the vogue for his grammar and dictionary soon died out. The year 1834-1835 is usually given" - concludes Thompson - "as the date of the rise of written Slovak, although strictly speaking, Stur did not make his first formal declarartion until 1846". 31 In R. J. Kerner's symposium Czechoslovakia and in V. Busek-N. Spulber's Czechoslovakia under Communism, we find only slightly modified or re-worded versions of the views mentioned above. "Catholic Slovaks under Bernolak tried to create with indifferent success a written Slovak dialect", we read in Kerner's symposium, and Busek-Spulber's symposium gives the following genesis of the Slovak literary language: " ... the first attempts were made (aside from earlier sporadic ventures) to establish a distinct Slovak literary language in the last decade of the 18th century by Anton Bernolak (1762-1813) who selected the Western Slovak dialects as a basis of the new literary medium: his suggestions, not elaborated linguistically, did not take permanent hold. "The decisive step towards the establishment of Slovak literary language was undertaken through the initiative of the Protestants. Ludovit St(ir selected the central Slovak dialect for the Slovak literary medium. Beginning in the �SLOVAKIA 13 1840's, several poets followed Stur and used the new literary language with great skill".32 It is perhaps not necessary to sum up all the mistaken assertions and impressions which we find in the symposia mentioned here. The foregoing views of European and Slovak philologists showed that Slovak was spoken by Slovak people from the dawn of their history and that it was in use for literary purposes from the 17th century, and Bernolak codified only a literary language used by the majority of Slovaks for more than 150 years. The function of the Czech language in Slovakia and the reasons for its sporadic use, besides Latin and Slovak, were also explained by Slovak as well as European Slavists. Responsibility for the lack of precision and mistaken views in American symposia might lay with the sources used by the contributors to these symposia. It would appear that they predominantly relied on old studies, which favoured the biased conceptions of linguistic, cultural -and political unity of Czechs and Slovaks, and which has been abandoned during the past two decades even by the Czech philologists, as we shall see from the survey of Czech and Slovak contemporary linguistic studies. Since all the symposia under review were edited or written by writers who specialized in Slavic studies, we might perhaps mention also at this point that academic precision would have required to say that before Stur's reform Slovaks used for literary purposes far more frequently Latin, on the Catholic side, and German, on the Protestant J.ide, than the Czech "somewhat adapted to their own hal>its". Bernolak codified Slovak language in Latin works, the first works on history of Slovakia were written by their Slovak authors also in Latin, and on the Protestant side Safarik wrote his first scholarly work in German, used Czech later only because he was forced to do it by unhappy circumstances, and Kollar also wrote in German his treatise on Slavic solidarity -Ober die Literarische Wechselseitigkeit zwischen den verschiedenen Stammen und Mundarten der slavischen Nation. Equally imprecise for a scholarly writer is to say that Stur's reform was based "on the central Slovak dialect but patterned after standard Czech". Recent research proves that Stur relied on Bernolak in many respects and that the literary language, reformed by Stur, "was not based on the dialect of any single area, but represented a kind of 'koine' of the �14 SLOVAKIA central Slovak dialects, eschewing features from both the eastern and western dialects" - as R. Auty correctly says and new works on Slovak language confiirm. V. "Marxist" conceptions of literary Slovak and the origins of the Slovak language Slovak philology has been exposed, since the inclusion of Slovakia into the Soviet political and cultural sphere, to the influence of Marxist criteria and method, and is gradually developing with considerable dependence on Soviet philology. There were strong attempts at the beginning to apply to Slovak philology "the theoretical directives given the Marxist philology by J. V. Stalin in his genial work Marxism and Problems of Linguistics"33 and later other Soviet examples were imitated. However, a considerable number of Slovak philologists adhered, in the first place, to scientific principles and methods and results of favourable development of Slovak philology are visible in two recent bibliographies, not only in the number of entries, but also in the number of fields covered. Scholarly research into the Slovak language is, of course, still the principal field of interest. The number of works, studies and articles referring to Slovak, its history and development during the period of 1939-1945 alone was over 1000 and amounts to 700 in Dvonc's Bibliography of Slovak philology which covers only the years 1948-1952. Many of these entries were written by highly qualified philologists of Slovak or foreign origin (J. Stanislav, L. Novak, E. Pauliny, V. Uhlar, A. Janosik, S. Peciar, J. Horecky, V. Blanar, E. Jona, Kniesza, Vazny, Kiraly, Stieber etc.) and they cover the history of literary languages in Slovakia, historical grammar, dialectology, ,etymology, phonology, orthography, vocabulary, etc. From the published works by the "marxist" philologists and literary historians it is obvious that the theses on the Slovak language, on the history of the Slovak literary language and on the function of some fureign languages (Czech, Czechoslovak) in Slovak literature, which theses were intended to support the political theory of a single Czechoslovak nation, have been definitely buried. Particularly noteworthy in this regard is the work of the Czech University Profe~or A. Dostal, 34 and of the Slovak school, Prof. E. Pauliny's Dejiny spisovnej slovenciny (History of Literary Slovak, Brati- �SLOVAKIA 15 slava, 1948), and A. Mraz's Dejiny slovenskej literatury (History of Slovak Literature, Bratislava, 1948), as well as the papers read at the Moscow Fourth International Congress of Slavists in 1958. Professor A. Dostal, in his work "Nastin dejin ceskeho a slovenskeho jazyka" published in Prague in 1954, accepted not only the thesis that the Slovak is a distinct and ancient tongue, but he also condemned the traditional views of Czech philologists. "Slovak language whose development goes back to ancient times, was established as a literary language in connection with the formation of Slovaks into a nation", says Dostal. "Its establishment cannot at all be viewed as a separation from the literary Czech language, but as a long, slow development towards a literary language ... " Prof Dostal goes even further and says that the attempts to impose the Czech language upon Slovaks as literary medium must be considered "as a negation of centuries long development which in the 1840's was already a historical fact in Slovakia ... " 35 The paper of Prof. E. Pauliny on bilingualism in the history of the Slovak literary language, d_eserves particular attention. Pauliny tries to explain the function of the Czech language in Slovakia in the XVth and the following centuries on the basis of social and economic phenomena and changes. He has arrived, nevertheless, at the same conclusions as the philologists who did not apply "Marxist criteria" in philology, i.e. that the Czech language was a foreign language in Slovakia and could not stand competition with the Slovak vernacular when the Slovak ethnicum evolved in its national consciousness. Literary Slovak won in spite of the fact that the Protestant minority, predominantly of Czech origin, at that time tried to maintain it even in the XIXth century when the Slovak literary language was established by the Catholic majority (80%) over a century ago. The relation between the Czech and Slovak is, therefore, according to Pauliny, that of bilingualism. 36 In the introduction to his book Dejiny spisovnej slovenciny, Pauliny understands the history of the language as the history of the origin, disappearance and changes of its individual styles. However, in the book itself, he divided the history of the Slovak literary language according to the �HS SLOVAKIA languages which were used by the Slovaks as literary languages in addition to the spoken vernacular from the time of the Greater Moravia. He writes: "Although, in this case, the period of the actual Slovak literary language can begin only with Bernolak, or with the period shortly before Bernolak, nevertheless, it is not possible to begin the history of the literary languages of the Slovaks either with Bernolak or Stur, but it is necessary to go deep into the past, all the way to the very beginnings of the historical period of our nation in the Greater Moravian epoch, nay, in certain matters, it is necessary to go even further, into the prehistoric period, when our ancestors were not yet baptized and did not participate in the Eul'opean culture which was introduced to us by Chl'istianity". In his contribution to a volume O vzajomnych vzt'ahoch Cechov a Slovakov, published in 1956 by the Slovak Academy of Sciences, Pauliny states that "Bernolak codified a language which can be traced in the writings of the middle-class, the lower nobility and educated Slovaks back to the 15th century, and this in both Catholic and Protestant writings". 37 Stu.r's reform, which is erroneously presented by some Slavists as the beginning of the Slovak literary language (in this respect even Jakobson is wrong), in Pauliny's view, is but a "younger branch of Bernolak's school". 38 In the opinion of Prof. A. Mraz, who still remains the main authority in Marxist literary history of Slovakia, Anton Bernolak reformed and codified the Slovak literary language and its orthography. 39 Mraz regards the activity which Ol'iginated around the Catholic University of Trnava (1635) as a starting point for introducing Slovak vernacular as a literary medium and stresses that the first manifestation of the new era in Slovak national life was the publication of Cantus Catholici by Benedict Szollosi in 1655. "The book Cantus Catholici", says Mraz, "laid the foundation on which the language used by Slovak Catholic writers, was formed into an independent Slovak literary language. Crystallization of the language, which Slovak Catholic writers used during the period of the University of Trnava (16351777), progressed so far in accordance with the spoken language in Western Slovakia that, when Bernolak and his followers came, at the end of the 18th century, with the idea �SLOVAKIA 17 of an independent literary language, they merely codified, in many respects, a language used and domesticated among the Catholic Slovak writers of the preceding period". 40 Scholarly basis to this conception of the development of the Slovak literary language was given by several philologists of today's Slovakia, among whom noteworthy is in the first place Prof. Jan Stanislav with his two volumes on the history of the Slovak language (Dejiny slovenskeho jazyka) and philological studies of J6na, Uhlar, Ruzicka, Peciar etc. 41 By a careful analysis of the fundamental roots of both languages, Czech and Slovak, as well as through the comparative study of their later developments, they revealed the true basis of the Slovak language and have classified it properly as one of the distinct Slavonic languages which developed after the disappearance of the Old Slavonic language. As a result of this development the relation between the two literary languages of today's Czecho-Slovakia is now officially accepted as a relation between two Slavic but distinct languages. The Czech poetry and prose are translated into the Slovak and vice versa as the Polish or Russian have been. Life and historical facts prevailed over artificial tendencies and theories a long time ago, and finally they have prevailed even over the reluctance of some politicians and philologists to recognize their victory. A century-long debate, as to whether Slovak is a dialect of the Czech language or a distinct Slavonic tongue, has thus been "officially" closed by the recognition on both Czech and Slovak sides that, from its earliest beginnings, the Slovak language has always manifested a distinct identity as a Slavonic tongue of the inhabitants of Slovakia. NOTES AND BIBLIOGRAPHY See the following symposia: R. J . Kerner, Czechoslovakia, (Berkeley, Calif., University of California Press, 1949), and L. I. Strakhovsky, ed. Handbook of Slavic Studies ( Cambridge, Mass., Harvard University Press, 1949) the article by 0 . Rad!. The chapter on the Slavic languages by A. Senn in the same symposium is in accordance with recent research. Slavonic Encyclopedia, chapter by J. S. Roucek (New York, 1949) in the same category as Kerner's symposium. 2. See Eugen Pauliny, Dejiny spisovnej slovenciny (Bratislava, Slovenska Akademia vied a umeni, 1948) . 3. Cf. A. Mraz, Die Literatur der Slovaken (Wien, 1943). 1. �18 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16. 17. 18. 19. 20. 21 . SLOVAKIA Cf. Prof. A. Dostal, Ncistin dejin ceskeho a siovenskeho jazyka (Prague, 1954), pp. 200-206. Cf. J. M. Kirschbaum, "Contemporary Tendencies in Slovak Philoiogy", Etudes siaves et Est Europeennes, IV, (1959-60 ), pp. 163-174. Cf. E. Pauliny, op. cit., and Jan Stanislav, Dejiny siovenskeho jazyka (Bratislava, 1957), p. 326, also H. Bartek, siovensky pravopis, (Whiting, Ind., 1956). N. S. Toubetzkoy, Grundzuge der Phonofogie, (Prague, 1939), pp. 117, 136, 141. J. Dobrovsky and P. J. Safarik have traced the linguistic line which separated the Czech and Slovak dialects around the Moravia. Cf. J. Skultety, Sketches from siovak History, (Middetown, Pa., 1936) and his Stodvadsat'piit' rokov zo siovenskeho zivota, Turc. Sv. Martin, 1920. Cf. E. Pauliny, Dejiny spisovnej siovenciny, p. 41. Benedicti Grammaticae Bohemicae iibri due, (Prague, 1603) p. VI, has written: "Neque tamen ego hie eos ad Bohemicam linguam cogo, sed ad exercitationem et culturam ipsorum idiomatis invito: praesertim cum non tantum in civitatibus et oppidis, sed etiam in pagis scholis abundent". Cf. E. Pauliny, op. cit., pp. 57 and 113, and A. Mraz, Dejiny siovenskej Hteratury, p. 108. See, J. Skultety, op. cit., p. 23, and Jaroslav Vlcek, Medzi Vcihom a Vitavou, (Bratislava 1957), pp. 228-234. J. Skultety, op. cit., pp. 20-30. L. I. Strakhovsky, op. cit., pp. 494-495. E. Pauliny, op. cit., pp. 30-36. 0. Radl, in L. I. Strakhovsky's Handbook of siavic Studies, p. 491. Cf. E. Pauliny, op. cit., p. 36-37 and 53. Pauliny is of the opinion that the occupation of Hungary by Turks (1526) helped the penetration of the Czech language, since there was a sort of common border between Slovakia and Moravia in the Habsburg Monarchy. E. Pauliny, op. cit., p. 17; A. Mraz, op. cit., pp. 12-16, and Jan Stanislav, op. cit. p. 12. J. Dobrovsky in 1875 wrote that Slovak is close to the Croat and Slovene languages in several respects. Zd. Stieber considers certain characteristics of the Slovak language as southern Slavic elements (juhoslavismy) . Cf. Jan Stanislav, Dejiny siovenskeho jazyka, p. 387. V. Jagic, Entstehungsgeschichte der Kirchensiawischen Sprache (Wien, 1900), p. 19; E. Pauliny, 0 vzcijomnych vzt'ahoch cechov a Slovcikov (Bratislava, 1956), p. 101., and David Diringer, Cambridge Univ., England, article in The Encydopedia Americana, Can. Edition, 1963, p. 379-380. S. Czambel, siovenskci rec a jej miesto v rodine siovanskych jazykov, (Turciansky Sv. Martin, 1906), pp. 320, and J. M. Kirschbaum, I!udovit stur and His Piace in the siavic World, Slavistica No. 32, Cleveland, Ohio, 1956. A. Senn "Slavic Linguistics", in Handbook of Slavic Studies, edited by L. I. Strakhovsky, p. 116-139, and R. G. A. de Bray, Guide To The siavonic Languages (London & New York, J. M. Dent & Sons Ltd., 1951), p. 513. J . M. Kirschbaum, "A Note on Two Modern Slovak Translators �SLOVAKIA 22. 23. 24. 25. 26. 27. 28. 29. 30. 31. 32. 33. 34. 35. 36. 37. 38. 39. 40. 41. 19 of Mickiewicz" in Adam Mickiewicz in World Literature, edited by W. Lednicki, (Berkeley & Los Angeles, Calif. University of Calif. Press, 1956) , p. 487-493. T. Lehr-Splawinski, Preglad i charakterystyka jezykow slowianskich (Warszawa, 1954,) p. 71. Robert Auty, "Dialect, Koine and Tradition in the Formation of Literary Slovak", The Slav onic and East European Review, XXXIX, (1961), p . 331-356. Ibidem, pp. 342-346. R. G. A. de Bray, op. cit., pp. 513-515. Roman Smal-Stocki, Discrimination and Bias in Two UNESCO Publications, (New York, Shevchenko Scientific Society, 1961), p. 3. T. Lehr-Splawinski, op. cit. p. 71. Ibid. p. 800. Roman Jakobson, Slavic Languages (New York, Columbia University Press, 1949) , p. 10. L. I. Strakhovsky, op. cit. p. 491. See S. H . Thomson, Czechoslovakia in European History, (Prince: ton, University Press, 1943) , p. 242-258. V. Busek-Spulber, Czechoslov akia under Communism (New York Mid-European Study Center, 1957) , 193-197. See J. M. Kirschbaum "Contemporary Tendencies in Slovak Philology", Etudes Slaves et Est-Europeennes, vol. IV, (1960), pp. 163-174. A. Dostal, Nastin dejin ceskeho a slovenske ho jazyka (Prague, 1954), pp. 200-201. See also "Die Tschechoslowakische Sprachenwissenschaft in den Jahren 1933 bis 1944" - Zeitschrift fur Slavische Philologie, Band XXIX, XXX, XXXI, Heidelberg, 196263. See esp. Vol. XXX, 1. p. 164-180. A. Dostal, op. cit., pp. 200-201. E. Pauliny, Dejiny spisovnej slovenciny (Bratislava, 1948) , p. 46-108. Symposium O vzajomnych vzt'ahoch techov a Slovakov, (Bratislava, Slovenska Akademia Vied, 1956) . teskoslovenske pfednasky pro IV. Medzinarodni zjezd slavistu v Moskve, ed. Ceskoslovensky komitet slavistu, (Praha, 1958). A. Mraz, Dejiny slovenskej literatury, (Bratislava, 1948) . Ibid. p. 101-118. See Bibliography. BIBLIOGRAPHY of selected works in English, French, German and Italian on Slovak Language and Literature Auty, Robert, The Evolution of Literary Slovak, Cambridge, 1953. Reprint from Transactions of the Philological Society, p. 143-160. Dialect, Koine and Tradition in the Formation of Literary Slovak (Paper presented to the VIIIth Congress of the International Federation of Modern Languages and Literatures at Liege, August 1960), published in The Slavonic and East European Review, Vol. 39, No. 93, London, 1961. �20 SLOVAKIA Bernolak, Anton, Slowakische Grammatik, Aus dem Lateinischen ins Deutsche iibersetzt, gedr. mit konigl. ung. Universitatsschriften, Offen, 1817. Bokes, F., Literarische Vbersicht des geschichtlichen Schaffens in der Slowakei, Leipziger Vierteljahrschrift fiir Siidosteuropa 4, Leipzig, 1940. Bray de, R. G. A., Guide To The Slavonic Languages (London & New York, J. M. Dent & Sons Ltd., 1951) , p. 513. Cizevsky, Dmitry, Outline of Comparative Slavic Literatures, American Academy of Arts and Sciences, Boston, Mass., 1952. On Romanticism in Slavic Literatures, Gravenhage, Monton & Co., 1957. Aus Zwei Welten, Beitrage zur Geschichte der Slawisch-westlichen literarischen Beziehungen, 1956. Mickiewicz, Stur and Kral, in W. Lednicki's Adam Mickiewicz in World Literature, Berkeley, 1956. A Bibliography of the Publications of Dr. Dmitry Cizevsky in the Fields of Literatiire, Language, Philosophy and Culture, Cambridge, Mass., 1952. Denis, Ernest, La question d'Autriche - Les Slovaques, Paris, 1917, Librairie Delagrave. One of the best books on Slovaks before the end of the First World War. His views on Bernolak, Stur, etc. are slightly distorted by the idea of the national and cultural unity of Czechs and Slovaks. Dixon, Charlton, Slovak Grammar for English speaking Students, Middletown, Pa., Jednota Printery, 1935. Harkins, W. E. - Simoncic, K., Czech and Slovak Literature, Oxford, King's Crown Press, 1951. Fischel, Alfred, Panslavismus bis zum Weltkrieg, Stuttgart und Berlin, 1919. One of the best documented works on Panslavism in the German language. Giusti, Walgango, Il Panslavismo, Milano, 1941, Instituto per gli studi di politica internazionale. Rather political than scholarly review of the idea of Panslavism among Slavic peoples. Gross, Felix (ed.), European Ideologies, New York, 1948, Philosophical Library, W. Lednicki's chapter on Panslavism. Scholarly written treatise from the Polish point of view. Hrobak, Philip A., Slovak Lessons, Lakewood, Ohio, Middletown, Pa., Jednota Printery, 1935. The Slovak Language, Book I - II. Middletown, Pa. , Jednota, 1935-1936. Hrusovsky, F., Geschichte der Slowakei, Bratislava, 1942. This is Slovakia, Scranton, Pa., 1953. Jakobson, Roman, Sur l'histoire et sur les relations mutuelles du tcheque et du slovaque. Le Monde slave, XIV., 1937, 353-366. Slavic Languages, Columbia University Press, 1949. Kirschbaum, J . M., Slovakia - Nation at the Crossroads of Central Europe, New York, Speller & Sons, 1960. Slovak Literature under the Soviet Impact, The Slavic and EastEuropean Studies, Montreal, 1956, Part 1, p. 45-54. nudovit Stur and His Place in Slavic World, Slavistica No. 32, Winnipeg-Cleveland, 1956. Contemporary Tendencies in Slovak Philology, An Offprint from �SLOVAKIA 21 Slavic and East-European Studies, Vol. IV, No. 3-4, Montreal, 1960. Pavel Jozef Safarik and His Contribution to Slavic Studies, The Slovak Institute, Cleveland, Ohio, 1962, Slavistica No. 43, p. 51. A Note on Two Slovak Translators of Mickiewicz in W. Lednicki's Adam Mickiewicz in World Literature, Berkeley, 1956. Anton Bernolak - The First Codifier of the Slovak Language, Slavistica No. 52, Cleveland - Winnipeg, 1964. Slovak Literary History in Marxist and Western Interpretations. A reprint from Canadian Slavonic Papers, Vol. VI, University of Toronto Press, Toronto, 1964. The Role of the Cyrilo-Methodian Tradition in Slovak National and Political Life. An offprint from Slovak Studies III, Rome, 1963. La litterature de la periode cyrillo-methodienne et la slovaquie. An offprint from Slovak Studies III, Rome, 1963. La place du slovaque parmi les langues slaves. An offprint from Etudes slaves et est-europeennes, Vol. VIII. Fasc. 3-4, Universite de Montreal, 1963. Jan Kollar - Slovak Poet of Pan-Slavism, Slavistica No. 56, The Slovak Institute, Cleveland-Toronto-Winnipeg, 1966. Kohn, Hans, Pan-Slavism, Its History and Ideology, University of Notre Dame Press, 1953. One of the most objective books on Pan-Slavism. Konus, Joseph, Practical Slovak Grammar. A textbook for high schools, colleges and adult private students, Pittsburgh, Pa., 1939. New English-Slovak Dictionary, Pittsburgh, Pa., 1941. Kniezsa, Stefan, Zur Geschichte der Jugoslavismen im Mittelslowakischen, Budapest, 1948, tire a part des Etudes slaves et roumaines, Vol. 1, Fasc. 3. Kramoris, Ivan J., An Anthology of Slovak Poetry, Scranton, 1947. A selection of lyric and narrative poems including some members of Stur's group. Slovakia and Slovak Literature. Reprinted from the Catholic Encyclopedia, New York, 1950. A Chronological Outline of Slovak Literature and History, Passaic, N. J., 1946 Krcmery, Stefan, A Survey of Modern Slovak Literature, Offprint from The Slavonic Review, Vol. VII, No. 19, 1928-1929. Lednicki, Waclaw (ed.), Adam Mickiewicz in World Literature, University of California Press, 1956. Articles by D. Cizevsky and J. M. Kirschbaum. Leger, Louis, Le panslavisme et l'interet francais, Paris, 1917, Ernest Flammarion. Relatively objective study of pan-slavism and Slovak contribution. French point of view. Locher, T. J., Die nationale Differenzierung und Integrierung der Slowaken und Tschechen in ihrem geschichtlichen Verlauf bis 1848, Harlem, 1931. Macartney, C. A ., Hungary and Her Successors, London-New York- Toronto, 1937. Manning, Clarence A. (ed.), An Anthology of Czech and Slovak Poetry, New York, 1929, Columbia University Press. Contains translations by Prof. Kirkconnell, Kramoris, Gallik, Manning, Slabey, Kotouc, etc. �22 SLOVAKIA Meriggi, Bruno, Storia deUe letterature ceca e slovacca. University of Florence, 1959. Mikus, J . A., La Slovaquie dans le drame de l'Europe, Paris, Les Iles d'Or, 1955. La Slovaquie, Individualite politique de l'Europe Centrale, Paris, 1952. Mraz, Andreas, Die Literatur der Slowaken, Wien-Stuttgart, 1943. A History of Slovak literature by a contemporary scholar and professor at the University of Bratislava. The work was completed and edited in the Slovak language in 1948 by The Slovak Academy of Sciences and Arts and presents one of the best works on the history of Slovak literature. Pastrnek, Fr., Beitriige zur Lautlehre der Slowakischen Sprache in Ungarn (Aus dem Sitzungsberichten der philos.-hist. Klasse der K. Akademie der Wissenschaften), Wien, 1888. Petrovich, Michael B., The Emergence of Russian Panslavism, Columbia University Press, 1956. Rekem, John, The Origin and Dei;elopment of the Slovak Language, an offprint from Slovakia, Vol. XII, No. 35, Middletown, Pa., 1962. Slovak Literature and National Consciousness Before Bernolak, Cleveland, 1965. Seton-Watson, R. H. , A History of the Czechs and Slovaks, London, 1943. Scholarly written history by one of the best defenders of the Slovak people at the beginning of this century (see his Racial Problems in Austria-Hungary) who turned against the Slovak movement for autonomy and independence being influenced by his Czech friends. Scotus, Viator, Racial Problems in Hungary, London, 1908. Slovak Studies I, Historica 1, Slovak Institute, Rome, 1961. Safarik, J . P., Geschichte der Slawischen Sprache und Literatur nach allen Mundarten. Mit konigl. ung. Universitatsschriften, Offen, 1826. Skultety, Joseph, Sketches From Slovak History, Middletown, Pa., 1930, Jednota Press. Translation from Slovak by 0 . D. Koreff. Skultety was professor at the University of Bratislava and one of the most outstanding figures in the Slovak cultural life in the first half of the century. Stefanek, Anton, Zur Soziographie der geistigen Kultur in der Slowakei, Bratislava, 1944. Strakhovsky, L. I. (ed.), A Handbook of Slavic Studies, Harvard University Press, 1949, chapters by A. Senn and Otto Radl. Both articles reflect recent research, though Radl's contribution is strongly pro-Czech. Vajda, Jaroslav, Bloody Sonets, transl. from Hviezdoslav, P. 0., Scranton, Pa., 1950. Viktorin, J. K. Gramatik der Slowakischen Sprache. Zurn Schul-und Selbstunterricht, Budapest, 1862. Tourtzer, H. Louis Stur et l'idee de !'independence slovaque, Cahoss et Alencon, Paris, 1913. Trubetzkoy, N. S., Grundzilge der Phonologie, Prag, 1939. (on Slovak language p. 117-118, 136, 141, 143, 161, 167, 170, 175, 208, 245.) Yourchak, Peter P., The Slovaks, Whiting, Ind., 1947, Lach editions, �SLOVAKIA 23 chapters from Slovak history and literature destined for Americans of Slovak origin. BIBLIOGRAPHY in Slavic Languages Bartek, Heinrich, Anton Bernolak, Trnava, 1937. £udovit Stur a slovencina, Turc. Sv. Martin, 1943. Krest'anstvo a slovencina, in the Symposium Nadej vit'azna, Scranton, Pa., 1947. Slovensky pravopis s gramatickymi pouckami a slovnikom, Whiting, Ind., Lach Publications, 1956. Spravna vyslovnost' slovenska, Bratislava, 1943. Blanar, Vincent, Bibliografia jazykovedy na Slovensku v rokoch 19391947. Slovenska akademia vied a umeni. Bratislava, 1950. Bobek, W., Prehl'adne dejiny slovenskej literatury, Bratislava, 1939. Mickiewicz v literaturze slowackiej, Praha, 1931. Dzieje literatury slowackiej w zarysie. An offprint from Slowacja i Slowacy, Edit. W. Semkowicz, Krakow, 1938. Czambel, Samo, Prispevky k dejinam jazyka slovenskeho, Budapest, 1887. Slovenska rec a jej miesto v rodine slovanskych jazykov, Turc. Sv. Martin, 1906. Slovensky pravopis. Historicko-kriticky nakres. Budapest', 1890. Dvonc, Ladislav, Bibliografia slovenskej jazykovedy za roky 1948- 1952. Matica slovenska, Martin, 1957. Gajdos, V. J. Slovenske glosy v latinskom missali za XVI. storocia, Historica slovacca I-II, Bratislava, 1940-1941, 221-243. Grabowski, T. S., Dwaja Slowaccy pionerzy oswiecenia i postepu, Bernolak i Fandly, 1951. Hattala, Martin, Kratka mluvnica slovenska, Bratislava, 1852. Gramatica linguae slovenicae, Schemnicii, 1850. Hodza, Michal M., Vetin o slovencine, Levoca, 1848. Isacenko, A. V. Zaciatky vzdelanosti vo Vel'komoravskej risi, Jazykovedny sbornik I-II, 1947, 137-178. Jagic, I. V., Istorija slavianskoj filologii, S. Petersburg, 1910. Jankovic, V. "Prvy preklad slovensky celeho Pisma svateho", Verbum I, Bratislava, 1946-1947. Kondrasov, N. A., Kategorija licnosti i nelicnosti v slovackom jazyku, MGU, 1949. Programma po istoriji slovackogo jazyka. Programma po sovremennom slovackom jazyku, Izdatelstvo Moskovskogo universiteta, 1951. Slavianskaja filologia, Stati i monografiji, Izdatelstvo Moskovskogo univerziteta, 1951. Kotvan, Imrich, "Jozef Ignac Bajza a slovenska rec", Linguistica slovaca III, Bratislava, 1941. Juraj Fandly, Trnava, 1946. "Juraj Fandly a slovensky jazyk", Linguistica slovaca I-II, Bratislava, 1939. Bernolakovci, Trnava, 1948. Bibliografia bernolakovcov, Matica slovenska, Martin, 1957. �24 SLOVAKIA Magiera, J., Literatura czeska i slowacka, Obraz pismiennictwa, Warszawa, 1929. Magnuszewski, J., Mickiewicz wsr6d Slowakow. Wroclaw, 1956. Misianik, Jan, Dejiny starsej slovenskej literatury, SAV, Bratislava, 1958. Stran 320. Mraz, Andrej, Gavlovicova skola krest'anskci. Brati!lava, 1940. Dejiny slovenskej literatury, Bratislava, 1948. Novak, l;udovit, Cestina na Slovensku a vznik spisovnej slovenciny. Odtlacok zo Slovenskych pohl'adov LIV, 1938. Jazykovedne glosy k ceskoslovenskej otcizke, Turc. Sv. Martin, 1935. ~udovit Stur ako jazykovedec, Slovenske pohl'ady III, 1936. Pastrnek, Fr., Starci jazykovci pamcitka slovenskci, Sbornik filologicky VII, 1922. Pauliny, Eugen, Na okraj kamaldulskeho Pisma, Verbum I, 1946-1947. Glosy k pomeru: bernolcictina a sturovcina, Kultura XIV, 1942. Dejiny spisovnej slovenciny, Slovenska akademia vied a umeni, Bratislava, 1948. Pisut, Milan, Literatura ncirodneho obrodenia, SAV, Bratislava, 1960, p. 490. Slovensky litercirny romantizmus, C-sl. prednasky pro medzinarodni sjezd slavistu v Moskve. Semkowicz, W., Slowacia i Slovacy, Krakow, 1937. Skultety, Jozef, Stodvadsat'piit' rokov zo slovenskeho zivota 1790-1914, Martin, 1920. 0 Slovcikoch, Turciansky Sv. Martin, 1936. Sobolevskij, A. I., Cerkovno-slavianskije texty moravskogo proischozdenija, Ruskij filologiceskij vestnik, 1900. Stanislav Jan, K jazykovednemu dielu A. Bernolcika, Bratislava, 1941. Pribinovi velmozi, Linguistica slovaca I-II, 1939-1940. "Spisovny jazyk slovensky", Symposium Slovanske jazy ky v dobe pfitomne, Praha, 1937. Dejiny slovenskeho jazyka I-II, Slovenska akademia vied, Bratislava, 1958. Stiebr, Zdislaw, Zarys dialektologii jezykow zachodnio-slowianskich. Warszawa, 1956. Stur, l;udovit, Nauka reci slovenskej, Bratislava, 1846. Ncirecia slovenskuo, Bratislava, 1844. Tibensky, Jan, J. Papanek • J. Sklenar: Obrancovia slovenskej ncirodnosti v XVIII. storoci. Osveta, Martin, 1958. "K problemu hodnotenia bernolactiny a bernolakovskeho hnutia". Historicky casopis, VII., 4, 1959. "Vznik, vyvoj a vyznam vel'komoravskej tradicie v slovenskom narodnom obrodeni. Sbornik O vzcijomnych vzt'ahoch Cechov a Slovcikov, SAV., 1956. Varsik, Branislav, Slovcici na prazskej univerzite do konca stredoveku, Bratislava, 1926. Vilikovsky, Jan, Cantus Catholici, Bratislava, 1935. Vlcek, Jaroslav, Dejiny literatury slovenskej, Turc. Sv. Martin, 1923. Weingart, Milos, 0 najstarsich jazykovych pamcitkach slovenskych, CMF., Prague 1935. � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource 1966, Vol. 16 Description An account of the resource Vol. 16 (No. 39), 1966. Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available The Slovak League of America Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1966 Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Text Any textual data included in the document SLOV AKIA Pu-blished by the Slovak League of America VOL. XVI 1966 N O. 39 THE SLOVAK LANGUAGE AND ITS PLACE AM.ONG THE SLAVIC LANGUAGES J. M. Kirschbaum I. Introductory Note A review of symposia, surveys and handbooks,1 dealing with Slavs and their languages, indicates that there is a certain confusion as far as the language of the Slovaks and their literary media are concerned. The confusion seems to have been created, on one hand, by Slavists and literary historians who failed to draw a proper distinction between the native and spoken language of the Slovaks and their written or literary language. On the other hand, the misconceptions were intentionally spread by philologists and literary historians who were influenced by political views and aspirations, and some Slavists accepted them without the necessary caution required in scholarly works. As a result, we find in manuals and symposia on Slavic peoples or in works on philology and Slavic languages either the thesis that the Slovak language is merely a dialect of the Czech, or that Slovak became a literary language only at the beginning of the XIXth century. Some surveys speak even of a Czechoslovak language. Before analyzing these misconceptions, it may perhaps be stated that the claim that Slovak is but a dialect of the Czech language, was not based on facts of history or philology. It was a biased opinion of those who tried to give a scholarly basis to political aspirations denying to the Slovaks the right to their independent national and cultural life. And there lay also the origins of the erroneous thesis that Slovak began to be used as a literary language only from the second half of the nineteenth century. Slovak philologists and linguists (Bernolak, Safarik, Stur, Czambel, Skultety, Bartek, Stanislav, Novak, Pauliny) 2 SLOVAKIA rejected, during the last two centuries, all these biased theories and looked for linguistic criteria to determine the origin and the main characteristics of the Slovak language. They reviewed the historic forms of the Slovak tongue, and by scholarly methods and comparative study of Slavic languages determined the place of Slovak among Slavic languages. 2 Works of Slovak philologists, except for those of Safarik and partly Stur and Czambel, remained, however, for a long time ·e ither unknown to foreign Slavists, or were interpreted incorrectly. As a result, we find only recently in linguistic studies, published outside Slovakia, the proper distinction between the Slovak language and the literary media used by Slovaks, and a rejection of the thesis that Slovak has been but a dialect of the Czech language or that there is a Czechoslovak language. According to these studies, during long centuries, Slovak people spoke their own Slovak dialects, which developed from the primitive Slavic after its disintegration, into the modern Slovak language, but they used several literary media. It was first the Old Church Slavonic, in the 9th and 10th centuries, afterwards the Latin language, the Biblical Czech (used by the Protestant minority until the second half of the 19th century), the literary Slovak based on Slovak western dialects and finally the revised present form , based on central Slovak dialects.3 On the following pages, we shall attempt to p0int out and analyze the main misconceptions about the Slovak language and the literary media used in Slovakia and define the place of Slovak among Slavic languages in the light of recent linguistic research of European Slavists, including the Marxist philologists of Slavic countries.4 II. Views and conceptions of Slovak philologists In their scholarly studies of phonology, etymology, lexicology and grammar Slovak philologists and linguists maintained continuously the point of view that the Slovak language has been distinct from any other Slavic tongue. This was not so clear and evident to Slavists of the 19th century, according to Slovak philologists, because philology was in its infancy and used primitive methods.5 Recent research, how- SLOVAKIA 3 ever, proves that Slovak language has been the real and original national tongue of the inhabitants of Slovakia since the dawn of history, and the linguistic analysis of the fundamental roots of the Czech and Slovak languages and a comparative study of their developments showed that Slovak language never was a part of the Czech or so-called "Czechoslovak" language.6 If we accept the theiiis, supported by Trubeckoj ,7 that in the ninth century the Old Slavonic &1:.ill was the common tongue of the Slavs with a unified phonology, and that from the ninth century different dialects developed into distinct Slavic languages, it is to be assumed, according to Slovak philologists, that among them was also the Slovak tongue. There is no historical or philological reason why it should not be claimed that at the time of disintegration of the Old Slavonic and of the rise of new independent Slavic languages, Slovak was among them and that its development cannot be identified with that of the Czech language.8 This thesis is strengthened also by the fact that the Slovak territory was annexed after the collapse of Great Moravia, by Hungary and, hence, the only contact the Slovaks had with Czechs was through Moravians who have continued to speak a Slovak dialect in spite of the pressure of the Czechs from the West, and to the p-resent time they have retained their own phonological structure. Consequently, the relation between the Czech and Slovak languages became a matter of controversy because of political aspirations of some Czech politicians and scholars and not because of philological reasons - is the view of Slovak philologists. In fact, as early as in the 16th century Vavrinec Benedikti z Nedozier (1555-1615), a learned Slovak philologist and professor at the Prague University exhorted his Slovak countrymen to cultivate their native tongue. He wrote his appeal in a grammar he composed for Czechs, which makes it clear that already for him there were two different languages. 9 From the sixteenth century on, there are numerous proofs that Slovak erudities, with the exception of a few protestants, considered Slovaks as one of the "tribes" of Slavic nation, but speaking their own "dialect" different from the Czech, Polish or Russian, using the word dialect for our term language. Slovak was used not only in homiletic 4 SLOVAKIA writings, but also in scholarly works and poetry, especially since the middle of the 17th century around the University of Trnava (founded 1635) and, at the end of the 18th century, Anton Bernolak only codified a language in use in his linguistic works Dissertatio, Gramatica slavica and his huge pentalingual Dictionary. 10 The well-known Slavist, P. J . Safarik, and initially also Jan Kollar, were aware of the fact that there had been a Slovak ~anguage and Slovak literature, different from the Czech or the other Slavic languages and literatures. Safarik gave testimony to it in his Geschichte der Slawischen Sprache und Literatur in allen Mundarten (1826) , and when some Czech leaders reproached him and his scholarly objectivity, Safarik indignantly announced that he would go even farther in stressing the differences than he did in his book.11 Jan Kollar was also instrumental originally in preparing Sti'.lr's reform and later changed his mind and became an advocate of a common literary language with the Czechs (which he called "old Slovak" ) because of reasons which Slovak literary historians avoid to discuss. The great poet of Panslavism had also some human deficiencies like very high personal pride and terrible temper, and took it as an insult ,that Stur and his group dared to do something in Slovak cultural life without consulting him or without his patronage. 12 This "crimen lesae majestatis" moved Kollar to opose Stu.r's reform and the final acceotance of the Slovak literary language also by Slovak protest;nts. Safarik did not change his scholarly views which he expressed in his Geschichte, but being employed in Prague and financially supported by Czech patriots, he tried to convince his Slovak countrymen that they should not move too far from Czechs and suggested that the Czech should be adjusted to the Slovak linguistic phenomena and peculiarities. "The will of the Slovak groups to assert their own national individuality was, however, too strong", as admitted by Radl, 13 and Stu.r's reform was victorious over Kollar's protests and Safa:rik's advices, because it was in line with the linguistic facts and centuries' long Slovak national development. The reasons for a sporadic use of the Czech language for administrative and partly also for literary purposes (mainly by the Slovak Protestants) which some Czech philologists considered as a proof of national and linguistic unity of the SLOVAKIA 5 Czechs and Slovaks, have been reconsidered by several "bourgeois" and "marxist" philologists and literary historians. There are at least three theories om the penetration of the Czech language into the Slovak territory. One theory refers to the continuation of relations between Slovaks and Moravians (who adopted the Czech language) from trhe time of Great Moravia, which relations survived the collapse of that state and developed between the Moravian cultural center Olomouc arnd Slovak religious centers. More acceptable and also more elaborated is the theory ascribing the use of the Czech language to the fact that Czech clerks were used at certain periods not only in the Slovak territory but also in Hungary and Poland in state and city-administration. 14 In Slovakia, the use of the Czech, adapted to local dialects, survived because of the Reformation which penetrated into Slovakia from Germany and Bohemia with Bible and religious books writteJ) in the old Czech, and because during the Counter-Reformation "many protestant Czechs found shelter in Slovakia and even printed books in Czech for the purpose of smuggling them into Bohemia" .15 Settled in Slovakia, the Czech refugees tried to keep all Slovak protestants linked to Bohemia by language also in secular writings. 16 Around 1840, it became, however, clear to the leaders of the Protestant minority in Slovakia that the Czech language was not intelligible to the common people, that their writings could not reach Slovak population and for reasons which U. Stur explained in his Narecia slovenskuo and other writings, they agreed with Catholics who used the Slovak for homiletic as well as for secular writings from the 16th century, on the reform taking for basis central Slovak dialects, and on the exclusive use of Slovak in Slovak literature. Stur's reform, by which the Slovak language was finally established as a literary medium of all Slovaks, has been accepted by the Slovak intelligentsia within a very short space of time, and it received its final linguistic , form in the grammar of a Catholic priest, Martin Hattala. Thus the peculiar situation of multilingualism in modern Slovak literature was changed. 17 During all these centuries, Slovak people spoke, as we mentioned before, their own Slovak dialects which developed from the Old Slavonic after its disintegration into modern Slovak language, which happened more or less at the same 6 SLOVAKIA time at which other central European peoples began to use vernacular for literary purposes. On the position of Slovak among Slavic languages, Slovak philologists expressed various opinions. 18 V. Jagic in his book Entstehungsgeschichte der Kirchenslawischen Sprache, wrote that "in Great Moravia people must have spoken in the ninth century a tongue which in its fundamentals was identical with the Slovak language of today". J . Dobrovsky admitted that certain linguistic phenomena linked Slovak with South Slavic languages and S. Czambel elaborated linguistically a theory to prove that the question as to whether Slovak is closer to Western Slavic or to the Southern Slavic group of languages deserves to be reconsidered by philologists. Stur viewed the position of the Slovak language as a central clearing house, mainly because he was conscious of many of its similiarities with the Slavic tongues of the East, West, North and South, especially noting the South Slavic dialects with which Slovak came into intimate contact during long centuries. 19 Recent studies indicate that the Slovak language conserved many archaic forms and expr-essions common to all Slavs. Remaining for centuries only a spoken vernacular of the people, it was affected mainly by the influence of neighbouring Slavic peoples, and since it was codified in the era of the revival of Slavonic peoples, the Slovak cultural and political leaders saw to it that Slovak language might conserve its central position and Slavic purity. Kollar himself argued, and some Slavists of that time accepted his idea that the Slovak language "stands grammatically and geographically in the center of all Slav dialects" and the Tatra mountains are the "nest and cradle of all Slavs" which, of course, the modern science of history, archeology and ethnography challenges. However, U1.e central position of the Slovak language, geographically or linguistically, is accepted to a great extent even by modern philology. According to de Bray "the Slovaks have preserved a beautifully soft and musical language, which might well serve as a modern "Common Slav" or lingua franca among the Slavs today. For modern Slovak is the most comprehensible of the living Slavonic languages to all other Slavs. Just as the Slovaks occupy geographically a central position among the Slavs, so, too, their language, in its SLOVAKIA 7 sounds and forms, is the nearest to an all-round compromise between the various Slavonic languages, having features which make it near both to East and South Slav, as well as to the other West Slav languages. 20 In fact, the Slovaks - either educated or common people - do not experience much difficulty in communicating in Slovak with Poles, Ukrainians, C:ziechs, Russians, or Slovenes and Croats, as has been proven even on the American Continent, since basically there ar,e no great differences among Slavic languages, and in the case of the Slovak language, history and geography made it close not only to Polish and Czech, but also to Ukrainian and South Slavic, Slovenian and Croat. 21 Slovak intellectuals of the nineteenth century read not only Polish or Czech poets and writers in original, but also Russian and Ukrainian, Croat and .Slovenian. Modern scientific and literary development drifts the twelve Slavic languages more apart. Nevertheless, even if we cannot agree with the nineteenth century poet that "with the Slovak language you may travel Earth's four corners", the fact remains that Slovaks are able to communicate in their own vernacular with the majority of the Slavic peoples. III. Views and conceptions of European Slavists As for European Slavists, including the present-day Czech philologists, some of their recent studies would indicate that they corrected many of the erroneous views they held on the relation between the Slovak and Czech and the origin of the Slovak literary language. It is evident that the modem techniques in linguistics and philology have thrown new light on the subject and have been instrumental in giving modified conceptions that are far advanced beyond the hasty unwarranted conclusions of the amateur-philologists or linguists serving political aspirations. Noteworthy among the new conceptions are not only those which defend the distinct and ancient character of the Slovak among Slavic languages but also the views that the history of the Slovak literary language necessarily begins in the 9th century with the Old Church Slavonic as the first literary medium in Slovakia. This view has been held by Slovak literary historians .for a long time, but never was considered before by foreign 8 SLOVAKIA Slavists. Recently, howev,er, the well-known Polish philologist T. Lehr-Splawinski expressed the following view: "The beginnings of the literary language in Slovakia are connected with the period of activities of ConstantineCyril and Methodius in the Moravian state. As the whole of Slovakia was, without ,any doubt, a part of that state, and the important centers of its political and cultural life were situated on the Slovak territory, writings in the old ChurchSlavonian language must have undoubtedly developed among the Slovaks in the last quarter of the IXth century". 22 R. Auty, from the University of Cambridge, in his paper, presented to the VIIIth Congress of the International Federation of Modern Languages & Literatures at Liege, August 1960, corrected misconceptions on Bernolak and Stur and their reforms. Anton Bernolak codified in 1870 a language which was already in use, according to Auty, and "in the following fifty or sixty years a considerable number of literary and other works were published or written in this (Bernolak's) form of Slovak". 23 The Czech language was, according to Auty, "sporadicalin Slovakia (with certain local modification) for used ly administrative and, still more occasionally, literary purposes". The reasons for this sporadic usage of Czech for administrative and "mor,e occasionally" also for literary purposes, are explained by Auty in his statement that "since the Reformation the Czech had been the language of the Lutheran scriptures and Church Services in Slovakia". "Stur, Protestant though he was, acted against what he regarded as an unnatural linguistic situation which had been brought about by the hazards of history. His reaction was radical" - says Auty, and gives a detailed picture of the changes which were brought about in the Slovak language by the agreement of the Catholics and Protestants in order to end bilingualism in Slovak literature. Auty's views on the reform of the , Slovak literary language which took place in the 1840's are fairly in line with the historical truth and recent r-esearch. According to him "Catholic and Protestant Slovaks agreed to accept a new written form of their language for all purposes: this has been worked out by U. Stur in discussion with other Slovak intellectual leaders in the perfod 1842-44 and was somewhat modified by M. M. Hodza and M. Hattala in subsequent years". _,/ SLOVAKIA 9 Stur "on more than one occasion praised the work of Bernolak, and above all, the poetry of Jan Holly and fully accepted one element of Bernolak's linguistic reform - the orthographical system" - continues Auty. The general pattern of the language, as fashioned by Stur, was in accordance with the needs of Slovak Society and has proven itself - and Stur's genius - by its survivor". 2 " R. G. A. de Bray, in his Guide to the Slavonic Languages, is equally close to the views of Slovak philologists and literary historians. "It is not true to say" - writes de Bray - "that Slovak was not written till the nineteenth century, as some assert. It is true that the modern literary language, as we know it today, was then first stabilized, but there are traces of the Slovak language in the local Latin documents from the elev,enth to the fifteenth centuries, Latin being the official language at the time". 25 On the relation between the Czech and Slovak de Bray expressed the following view: "While the phonetic system of Slovak is more conservative than that of Czech and so is nearer to that of Old Slavonic and other Slavonic languages, its morphological system has developed further than that of Czech, its nearest relative, mainly through the workiings of analogy and the generalization of certain standard endings, especially in the plural of nouns. Both the 1st and 2nd palatalization of gutturals occur less frequently in the declensions than they do in Czech, owing to the workings of analogy, as in Russian and Slov•enian. And in general Slovak morphology has fewer irregularities, exceptions, and archaic survivals, such as the declension of Kamen (- stone) in Czech. Prof. Roman Smal-Stocki in his paper Discrimination and Bias in Two Unesco Publications also raised his voice against treating Slovak and Czech "as one unit". "From the linguistic point of view" - says Prof. Smal-Stocki - "it js inadmissible to mix state units with existing languages and to treat "as one unit" Czech and Slovak, because the linguistic fact is that in existence are two separate units, Czech and Slovak". 26 The contributors to the Encyclopedia Britanica (1959, Vol. 20) published some correct and some incorrect views, 10 SLOVAKIA but they grasped the essential points of difference between the Czech and Slovak. 27 "The Czech, as spoken and written today in Bohemia, diverges considerably from Slovak - says the Encyclopedia. The disagreement is least marked in vocabulary but appears prominently in the phonetics; in particular the itacism so distinct a characteristic of Czech, is non-existent in Slovak, which has preserved the fuller diphthongs (ia, ie, iu etc.) of the Slavonic languages; a further small.er point is the dz, from Common Slav dj, is used (as in Polish) where Czech has z. In one point only is there a divergence which goes back beyond the time of the common ancestry of the two languages; Slovak has not developed the t, which is characteristic of Czech and in that language occurs since the beginning of its literature. The Slovak palatalization of n, d, t and 1 after e, which does not occur in modern literary Czech, is a further point of disagreement, although this would not be obvious from Slovak spelling which does not find it necessary to distinguish by diacritics; consonanrts are always softened in this position". The Encyclopedia also points out to the relation of Slovak with other Slavic languages. It says: "The dialectical development shows some characteristics identical with those in South Slavonic and Russian. Not everywhere, for example, have u and i been confused, and instead of the e, which is the normal result in Slovak as in Czech, we find in Eastern dialects an o from the u, thus agreeing with Russian. An agreement with South Slavonic is the occurrence of raz- and la- and lo-. Because of these and other phonetic and morphological reasons the grammarian Czambel, a keen opponent of the identity of Czech and Slovak, has asserted that Slovak should rightly be associated with South Slavonic". 28 It would appear from this brief survey that European Sl~vists are very close to the views of Slovak philologists and that misconceptions, which we still can find in American symposia, considered hereafter, are disappearing from European Slavic studies. Very close to the views of European Slavists is also the well-known Canadian Slavist Prof. W. Kirkconnell who already in 1939 stated: "It cannot be too strongly emphasized that the Slovaks are not Czechs, and that there is no such ciieature as a 'Czechoslovak'. While they speak closely related Slavic languages, Slovak is not SLOVAKIA 11 a mere dialect of Czech. The differences are about as great as those between the similarly related languages, Dutch and German. I have on my shelves Miroslav Kalal's Slovak-Czech dictionary (published 1924), in which there are 35,000 Slovak words that were apparently unintelligible to a Czech and hence required definition." (d. Canada, Europe, and Hitler, p. 44) IV. Misconceptions in American symposia and surveys With the sudden development of Slavic Studies on the American continent came hand in hand a large number of symposia, handbooks and surveys on Slavic literatures and langutlges. They are, however, written predominantly by scholars and writers with European schooling and background and, therefore, it is more appropriate to speak, in this respe0t, rather of American symposia than of American Slavists. A survey of several such symposia indicates that there are misconceptions not only in the relation of the Slovak with the Czech, but also on the history of the Slovak literary language and the role of foreign languages in Slovak literature. In this respect, we read not without surprise that even the well-known Slavist, Roman Jakobson, helped to spread some erroneous views on the Slovak language. In his study Slavic Languages, he writes as follows: "Toward the middle of the same (i.e. the 19th) century, the Slovaks, who had used literary Czech (somewhat adapted to their own habits) inaugurated their own literary language based on the central Slovak dialect but patterned after standard Czech". 29 Prof. A. Senn in Strakhovsky's Handbook of Slavic Studies, completed and modified Jakiobson's description of Slovak literary language. His classification of Slovak is correct, but we could hardly agree with certain parts of his definition. Prof. A. Senn says: "Slovak forms a connecting link with the South Slavic Slovenian and is more archaic than Czech. Otherwise differences between Czech and Slovak are not very great. Slovak became a literary language at the beginning of the nineteenth century . . . Slovak and Czech form one "Czechoslovak unit". 12 SLOVAKIA In the same symposium, another contributor, Otto Radl, admitted that "as early as 1635 in Trnava books were printed in different Slovak dialects", but he confusingly states further that it was only i,n 1844, in the period of Romanticism, that "the therefore common written language, the Czech, was being replaced by a newly-originated Slovak literary language". According to Radl "this movement had been begun at the end of the 18th century by the learned Slovak philologist Anton Bernolak who published several works in Latin in which he tried to show that the Slovaks were a separate nation and that they should therefore use their own distinctive written language based on dialects spoken in Western Slovakia". 30 A similar version can be found in Prof. H. S. Thompson's book "Czechoslovakia in European History", who says that "a deliberate effort to substitute for the written Czech then in use in Slovakia a language based upon a local dialect came from the Catholic camp only in 1790, when Anton Bernolak published a Gramatica slavica". However, he asserts further that "about the only followers Bernolak had were Catholic writers, and even among them the vogue for his grammar and dictionary soon died out. The year 1834-1835 is usually given" - concludes Thompson - "as the date of the rise of written Slovak, although strictly speaking, Stur did not make his first formal declarartion until 1846". 31 In R. J. Kerner's symposium Czechoslovakia and in V. Busek-N. Spulber's Czechoslovakia under Communism, we find only slightly modified or re-worded versions of the views mentioned above. "Catholic Slovaks under Bernolak tried to create with indifferent success a written Slovak dialect", we read in Kerner's symposium, and Busek-Spulber's symposium gives the following genesis of the Slovak literary language: " ... the first attempts were made (aside from earlier sporadic ventures) to establish a distinct Slovak literary language in the last decade of the 18th century by Anton Bernolak (1762-1813) who selected the Western Slovak dialects as a basis of the new literary medium: his suggestions, not elaborated linguistically, did not take permanent hold. "The decisive step towards the establishment of Slovak literary language was undertaken through the initiative of the Protestants. Ludovit St(ir selected the central Slovak dialect for the Slovak literary medium. Beginning in the SLOVAKIA 13 1840's, several poets followed Stur and used the new literary language with great skill".32 It is perhaps not necessary to sum up all the mistaken assertions and impressions which we find in the symposia mentioned here. The foregoing views of European and Slovak philologists showed that Slovak was spoken by Slovak people from the dawn of their history and that it was in use for literary purposes from the 17th century, and Bernolak codified only a literary language used by the majority of Slovaks for more than 150 years. The function of the Czech language in Slovakia and the reasons for its sporadic use, besides Latin and Slovak, were also explained by Slovak as well as European Slavists. Responsibility for the lack of precision and mistaken views in American symposia might lay with the sources used by the contributors to these symposia. It would appear that they predominantly relied on old studies, which favoured the biased conceptions of linguistic, cultural -and political unity of Czechs and Slovaks, and which has been abandoned during the past two decades even by the Czech philologists, as we shall see from the survey of Czech and Slovak contemporary linguistic studies. Since all the symposia under review were edited or written by writers who specialized in Slavic studies, we might perhaps mention also at this point that academic precision would have required to say that before Stur's reform Slovaks used for literary purposes far more frequently Latin, on the Catholic side, and German, on the Protestant J.ide, than the Czech "somewhat adapted to their own hal>its". Bernolak codified Slovak language in Latin works, the first works on history of Slovakia were written by their Slovak authors also in Latin, and on the Protestant side Safarik wrote his first scholarly work in German, used Czech later only because he was forced to do it by unhappy circumstances, and Kollar also wrote in German his treatise on Slavic solidarity -Ober die Literarische Wechselseitigkeit zwischen den verschiedenen Stammen und Mundarten der slavischen Nation. Equally imprecise for a scholarly writer is to say that Stur's reform was based "on the central Slovak dialect but patterned after standard Czech". Recent research proves that Stur relied on Bernolak in many respects and that the literary language, reformed by Stur, "was not based on the dialect of any single area, but represented a kind of 'koine' of the 14 SLOVAKIA central Slovak dialects, eschewing features from both the eastern and western dialects" - as R. Auty correctly says and new works on Slovak language confiirm. V. "Marxist" conceptions of literary Slovak and the origins of the Slovak language Slovak philology has been exposed, since the inclusion of Slovakia into the Soviet political and cultural sphere, to the influence of Marxist criteria and method, and is gradually developing with considerable dependence on Soviet philology. There were strong attempts at the beginning to apply to Slovak philology "the theoretical directives given the Marxist philology by J. V. Stalin in his genial work Marxism and Problems of Linguistics"33 and later other Soviet examples were imitated. However, a considerable number of Slovak philologists adhered, in the first place, to scientific principles and methods and results of favourable development of Slovak philology are visible in two recent bibliographies, not only in the number of entries, but also in the number of fields covered. Scholarly research into the Slovak language is, of course, still the principal field of interest. The number of works, studies and articles referring to Slovak, its history and development during the period of 1939-1945 alone was over 1000 and amounts to 700 in Dvonc's Bibliography of Slovak philology which covers only the years 1948-1952. Many of these entries were written by highly qualified philologists of Slovak or foreign origin (J. Stanislav, L. Novak, E. Pauliny, V. Uhlar, A. Janosik, S. Peciar, J. Horecky, V. Blanar, E. Jona, Kniesza, Vazny, Kiraly, Stieber etc.) and they cover the history of literary languages in Slovakia, historical grammar, dialectology, ,etymology, phonology, orthography, vocabulary, etc. From the published works by the "marxist" philologists and literary historians it is obvious that the theses on the Slovak language, on the history of the Slovak literary language and on the function of some fureign languages (Czech, Czechoslovak) in Slovak literature, which theses were intended to support the political theory of a single Czechoslovak nation, have been definitely buried. Particularly noteworthy in this regard is the work of the Czech University Profe~or A. Dostal, 34 and of the Slovak school, Prof. E. Pauliny's Dejiny spisovnej slovenciny (History of Literary Slovak, Brati- SLOVAKIA 15 slava, 1948), and A. Mraz's Dejiny slovenskej literatury (History of Slovak Literature, Bratislava, 1948), as well as the papers read at the Moscow Fourth International Congress of Slavists in 1958. Professor A. Dostal, in his work "Nastin dejin ceskeho a slovenskeho jazyka" published in Prague in 1954, accepted not only the thesis that the Slovak is a distinct and ancient tongue, but he also condemned the traditional views of Czech philologists. "Slovak language whose development goes back to ancient times, was established as a literary language in connection with the formation of Slovaks into a nation", says Dostal. "Its establishment cannot at all be viewed as a separation from the literary Czech language, but as a long, slow development towards a literary language ... " Prof Dostal goes even further and says that the attempts to impose the Czech language upon Slovaks as literary medium must be considered "as a negation of centuries long development which in the 1840's was already a historical fact in Slovakia ... " 35 The paper of Prof. E. Pauliny on bilingualism in the history of the Slovak literary language, d_eserves particular attention. Pauliny tries to explain the function of the Czech language in Slovakia in the XVth and the following centuries on the basis of social and economic phenomena and changes. He has arrived, nevertheless, at the same conclusions as the philologists who did not apply "Marxist criteria" in philology, i.e. that the Czech language was a foreign language in Slovakia and could not stand competition with the Slovak vernacular when the Slovak ethnicum evolved in its national consciousness. Literary Slovak won in spite of the fact that the Protestant minority, predominantly of Czech origin, at that time tried to maintain it even in the XIXth century when the Slovak literary language was established by the Catholic majority (80%) over a century ago. The relation between the Czech and Slovak is, therefore, according to Pauliny, that of bilingualism. 36 In the introduction to his book Dejiny spisovnej slovenciny, Pauliny understands the history of the language as the history of the origin, disappearance and changes of its individual styles. However, in the book itself, he divided the history of the Slovak literary language according to the HS SLOVAKIA languages which were used by the Slovaks as literary languages in addition to the spoken vernacular from the time of the Greater Moravia. He writes: "Although, in this case, the period of the actual Slovak literary language can begin only with Bernolak, or with the period shortly before Bernolak, nevertheless, it is not possible to begin the history of the literary languages of the Slovaks either with Bernolak or Stur, but it is necessary to go deep into the past, all the way to the very beginnings of the historical period of our nation in the Greater Moravian epoch, nay, in certain matters, it is necessary to go even further, into the prehistoric period, when our ancestors were not yet baptized and did not participate in the Eul'opean culture which was introduced to us by Chl'istianity". In his contribution to a volume O vzajomnych vzt'ahoch Cechov a Slovakov, published in 1956 by the Slovak Academy of Sciences, Pauliny states that "Bernolak codified a language which can be traced in the writings of the middle-class, the lower nobility and educated Slovaks back to the 15th century, and this in both Catholic and Protestant writings". 37 Stu.r's reform, which is erroneously presented by some Slavists as the beginning of the Slovak literary language (in this respect even Jakobson is wrong), in Pauliny's view, is but a "younger branch of Bernolak's school". 38 In the opinion of Prof. A. Mraz, who still remains the main authority in Marxist literary history of Slovakia, Anton Bernolak reformed and codified the Slovak literary language and its orthography. 39 Mraz regards the activity which Ol'iginated around the Catholic University of Trnava (1635) as a starting point for introducing Slovak vernacular as a literary medium and stresses that the first manifestation of the new era in Slovak national life was the publication of Cantus Catholici by Benedict Szollosi in 1655. "The book Cantus Catholici", says Mraz, "laid the foundation on which the language used by Slovak Catholic writers, was formed into an independent Slovak literary language. Crystallization of the language, which Slovak Catholic writers used during the period of the University of Trnava (16351777), progressed so far in accordance with the spoken language in Western Slovakia that, when Bernolak and his followers came, at the end of the 18th century, with the idea SLOVAKIA 17 of an independent literary language, they merely codified, in many respects, a language used and domesticated among the Catholic Slovak writers of the preceding period". 40 Scholarly basis to this conception of the development of the Slovak literary language was given by several philologists of today's Slovakia, among whom noteworthy is in the first place Prof. Jan Stanislav with his two volumes on the history of the Slovak language (Dejiny slovenskeho jazyka) and philological studies of J6na, Uhlar, Ruzicka, Peciar etc. 41 By a careful analysis of the fundamental roots of both languages, Czech and Slovak, as well as through the comparative study of their later developments, they revealed the true basis of the Slovak language and have classified it properly as one of the distinct Slavonic languages which developed after the disappearance of the Old Slavonic language. As a result of this development the relation between the two literary languages of today's Czecho-Slovakia is now officially accepted as a relation between two Slavic but distinct languages. The Czech poetry and prose are translated into the Slovak and vice versa as the Polish or Russian have been. Life and historical facts prevailed over artificial tendencies and theories a long time ago, and finally they have prevailed even over the reluctance of some politicians and philologists to recognize their victory. A century-long debate, as to whether Slovak is a dialect of the Czech language or a distinct Slavonic tongue, has thus been "officially" closed by the recognition on both Czech and Slovak sides that, from its earliest beginnings, the Slovak language has always manifested a distinct identity as a Slavonic tongue of the inhabitants of Slovakia. NOTES AND BIBLIOGRAPHY See the following symposia: R. J . Kerner, Czechoslovakia, (Berkeley, Calif., University of California Press, 1949), and L. I. Strakhovsky, ed. Handbook of Slavic Studies ( Cambridge, Mass., Harvard University Press, 1949) the article by 0 . Rad!. The chapter on the Slavic languages by A. Senn in the same symposium is in accordance with recent research. Slavonic Encyclopedia, chapter by J. S. Roucek (New York, 1949) in the same category as Kerner's symposium. 2. See Eugen Pauliny, Dejiny spisovnej slovenciny (Bratislava, Slovenska Akademia vied a umeni, 1948) . 3. Cf. A. Mraz, Die Literatur der Slovaken (Wien, 1943). 1. 18 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16. 17. 18. 19. 20. 21 . SLOVAKIA Cf. Prof. A. Dostal, Ncistin dejin ceskeho a siovenskeho jazyka (Prague, 1954), pp. 200-206. Cf. J. M. Kirschbaum, "Contemporary Tendencies in Slovak Philoiogy", Etudes siaves et Est Europeennes, IV, (1959-60 ), pp. 163-174. Cf. E. Pauliny, op. cit., and Jan Stanislav, Dejiny siovenskeho jazyka (Bratislava, 1957), p. 326, also H. Bartek, siovensky pravopis, (Whiting, Ind., 1956). N. S. Toubetzkoy, Grundzuge der Phonofogie, (Prague, 1939), pp. 117, 136, 141. J. Dobrovsky and P. J. Safarik have traced the linguistic line which separated the Czech and Slovak dialects around the Moravia. Cf. J. Skultety, Sketches from siovak History, (Middetown, Pa., 1936) and his Stodvadsat'piit' rokov zo siovenskeho zivota, Turc. Sv. Martin, 1920. Cf. E. Pauliny, Dejiny spisovnej siovenciny, p. 41. Benedicti Grammaticae Bohemicae iibri due, (Prague, 1603) p. VI, has written: "Neque tamen ego hie eos ad Bohemicam linguam cogo, sed ad exercitationem et culturam ipsorum idiomatis invito: praesertim cum non tantum in civitatibus et oppidis, sed etiam in pagis scholis abundent". Cf. E. Pauliny, op. cit., pp. 57 and 113, and A. Mraz, Dejiny siovenskej Hteratury, p. 108. See, J. Skultety, op. cit., p. 23, and Jaroslav Vlcek, Medzi Vcihom a Vitavou, (Bratislava 1957), pp. 228-234. J. Skultety, op. cit., pp. 20-30. L. I. Strakhovsky, op. cit., pp. 494-495. E. Pauliny, op. cit., pp. 30-36. 0. Radl, in L. I. Strakhovsky's Handbook of siavic Studies, p. 491. Cf. E. Pauliny, op. cit., p. 36-37 and 53. Pauliny is of the opinion that the occupation of Hungary by Turks (1526) helped the penetration of the Czech language, since there was a sort of common border between Slovakia and Moravia in the Habsburg Monarchy. E. Pauliny, op. cit., p. 17; A. Mraz, op. cit., pp. 12-16, and Jan Stanislav, op. cit. p. 12. J. Dobrovsky in 1875 wrote that Slovak is close to the Croat and Slovene languages in several respects. Zd. Stieber considers certain characteristics of the Slovak language as southern Slavic elements (juhoslavismy) . Cf. Jan Stanislav, Dejiny siovenskeho jazyka, p. 387. V. Jagic, Entstehungsgeschichte der Kirchensiawischen Sprache (Wien, 1900), p. 19; E. Pauliny, 0 vzcijomnych vzt'ahoch cechov a Slovcikov (Bratislava, 1956), p. 101., and David Diringer, Cambridge Univ., England, article in The Encydopedia Americana, Can. Edition, 1963, p. 379-380. S. Czambel, siovenskci rec a jej miesto v rodine siovanskych jazykov, (Turciansky Sv. Martin, 1906), pp. 320, and J. M. Kirschbaum, I!udovit stur and His Piace in the siavic World, Slavistica No. 32, Cleveland, Ohio, 1956. A. Senn "Slavic Linguistics", in Handbook of Slavic Studies, edited by L. I. Strakhovsky, p. 116-139, and R. G. A. de Bray, Guide To The siavonic Languages (London & New York, J. M. Dent & Sons Ltd., 1951), p. 513. J . M. Kirschbaum, "A Note on Two Modern Slovak Translators SLOVAKIA 22. 23. 24. 25. 26. 27. 28. 29. 30. 31. 32. 33. 34. 35. 36. 37. 38. 39. 40. 41. 19 of Mickiewicz" in Adam Mickiewicz in World Literature, edited by W. Lednicki, (Berkeley & Los Angeles, Calif. University of Calif. Press, 1956) , p. 487-493. T. Lehr-Splawinski, Preglad i charakterystyka jezykow slowianskich (Warszawa, 1954,) p. 71. Robert Auty, "Dialect, Koine and Tradition in the Formation of Literary Slovak", The Slav onic and East European Review, XXXIX, (1961), p . 331-356. Ibidem, pp. 342-346. R. G. A. de Bray, op. cit., pp. 513-515. Roman Smal-Stocki, Discrimination and Bias in Two UNESCO Publications, (New York, Shevchenko Scientific Society, 1961), p. 3. T. Lehr-Splawinski, op. cit. p. 71. Ibid. p. 800. Roman Jakobson, Slavic Languages (New York, Columbia University Press, 1949) , p. 10. L. I. Strakhovsky, op. cit. p. 491. See S. H . Thomson, Czechoslovakia in European History, (Prince: ton, University Press, 1943) , p. 242-258. V. Busek-Spulber, Czechoslov akia under Communism (New York Mid-European Study Center, 1957) , 193-197. See J. M. Kirschbaum "Contemporary Tendencies in Slovak Philology", Etudes Slaves et Est-Europeennes, vol. IV, (1960), pp. 163-174. A. Dostal, Nastin dejin ceskeho a slovenske ho jazyka (Prague, 1954), pp. 200-201. See also "Die Tschechoslowakische Sprachenwissenschaft in den Jahren 1933 bis 1944" - Zeitschrift fur Slavische Philologie, Band XXIX, XXX, XXXI, Heidelberg, 196263. See esp. Vol. XXX, 1. p. 164-180. A. Dostal, op. cit., pp. 200-201. E. Pauliny, Dejiny spisovnej slovenciny (Bratislava, 1948) , p. 46-108. Symposium O vzajomnych vzt'ahoch techov a Slovakov, (Bratislava, Slovenska Akademia Vied, 1956) . teskoslovenske pfednasky pro IV. Medzinarodni zjezd slavistu v Moskve, ed. Ceskoslovensky komitet slavistu, (Praha, 1958). A. Mraz, Dejiny slovenskej literatury, (Bratislava, 1948) . Ibid. p. 101-118. See Bibliography. BIBLIOGRAPHY of selected works in English, French, German and Italian on Slovak Language and Literature Auty, Robert, The Evolution of Literary Slovak, Cambridge, 1953. Reprint from Transactions of the Philological Society, p. 143-160. Dialect, Koine and Tradition in the Formation of Literary Slovak (Paper presented to the VIIIth Congress of the International Federation of Modern Languages and Literatures at Liege, August 1960), published in The Slavonic and East European Review, Vol. 39, No. 93, London, 1961. 20 SLOVAKIA Bernolak, Anton, Slowakische Grammatik, Aus dem Lateinischen ins Deutsche iibersetzt, gedr. mit konigl. ung. Universitatsschriften, Offen, 1817. Bokes, F., Literarische Vbersicht des geschichtlichen Schaffens in der Slowakei, Leipziger Vierteljahrschrift fiir Siidosteuropa 4, Leipzig, 1940. Bray de, R. G. A., Guide To The Slavonic Languages (London & New York, J. M. Dent & Sons Ltd., 1951) , p. 513. Cizevsky, Dmitry, Outline of Comparative Slavic Literatures, American Academy of Arts and Sciences, Boston, Mass., 1952. On Romanticism in Slavic Literatures, Gravenhage, Monton & Co., 1957. Aus Zwei Welten, Beitrage zur Geschichte der Slawisch-westlichen literarischen Beziehungen, 1956. Mickiewicz, Stur and Kral, in W. Lednicki's Adam Mickiewicz in World Literature, Berkeley, 1956. A Bibliography of the Publications of Dr. Dmitry Cizevsky in the Fields of Literatiire, Language, Philosophy and Culture, Cambridge, Mass., 1952. Denis, Ernest, La question d'Autriche - Les Slovaques, Paris, 1917, Librairie Delagrave. One of the best books on Slovaks before the end of the First World War. His views on Bernolak, Stur, etc. are slightly distorted by the idea of the national and cultural unity of Czechs and Slovaks. Dixon, Charlton, Slovak Grammar for English speaking Students, Middletown, Pa., Jednota Printery, 1935. Harkins, W. E. - Simoncic, K., Czech and Slovak Literature, Oxford, King's Crown Press, 1951. Fischel, Alfred, Panslavismus bis zum Weltkrieg, Stuttgart und Berlin, 1919. One of the best documented works on Panslavism in the German language. Giusti, Walgango, Il Panslavismo, Milano, 1941, Instituto per gli studi di politica internazionale. Rather political than scholarly review of the idea of Panslavism among Slavic peoples. Gross, Felix (ed.), European Ideologies, New York, 1948, Philosophical Library, W. Lednicki's chapter on Panslavism. Scholarly written treatise from the Polish point of view. Hrobak, Philip A., Slovak Lessons, Lakewood, Ohio, Middletown, Pa., Jednota Printery, 1935. The Slovak Language, Book I - II. Middletown, Pa. , Jednota, 1935-1936. Hrusovsky, F., Geschichte der Slowakei, Bratislava, 1942. This is Slovakia, Scranton, Pa., 1953. Jakobson, Roman, Sur l'histoire et sur les relations mutuelles du tcheque et du slovaque. Le Monde slave, XIV., 1937, 353-366. Slavic Languages, Columbia University Press, 1949. Kirschbaum, J . M., Slovakia - Nation at the Crossroads of Central Europe, New York, Speller & Sons, 1960. Slovak Literature under the Soviet Impact, The Slavic and EastEuropean Studies, Montreal, 1956, Part 1, p. 45-54. nudovit Stur and His Place in Slavic World, Slavistica No. 32, Winnipeg-Cleveland, 1956. Contemporary Tendencies in Slovak Philology, An Offprint from SLOVAKIA 21 Slavic and East-European Studies, Vol. IV, No. 3-4, Montreal, 1960. Pavel Jozef Safarik and His Contribution to Slavic Studies, The Slovak Institute, Cleveland, Ohio, 1962, Slavistica No. 43, p. 51. A Note on Two Slovak Translators of Mickiewicz in W. Lednicki's Adam Mickiewicz in World Literature, Berkeley, 1956. Anton Bernolak - The First Codifier of the Slovak Language, Slavistica No. 52, Cleveland - Winnipeg, 1964. Slovak Literary History in Marxist and Western Interpretations. A reprint from Canadian Slavonic Papers, Vol. VI, University of Toronto Press, Toronto, 1964. The Role of the Cyrilo-Methodian Tradition in Slovak National and Political Life. An offprint from Slovak Studies III, Rome, 1963. La litterature de la periode cyrillo-methodienne et la slovaquie. An offprint from Slovak Studies III, Rome, 1963. La place du slovaque parmi les langues slaves. An offprint from Etudes slaves et est-europeennes, Vol. VIII. Fasc. 3-4, Universite de Montreal, 1963. Jan Kollar - Slovak Poet of Pan-Slavism, Slavistica No. 56, The Slovak Institute, Cleveland-Toronto-Winnipeg, 1966. Kohn, Hans, Pan-Slavism, Its History and Ideology, University of Notre Dame Press, 1953. One of the most objective books on Pan-Slavism. Konus, Joseph, Practical Slovak Grammar. A textbook for high schools, colleges and adult private students, Pittsburgh, Pa., 1939. New English-Slovak Dictionary, Pittsburgh, Pa., 1941. Kniezsa, Stefan, Zur Geschichte der Jugoslavismen im Mittelslowakischen, Budapest, 1948, tire a part des Etudes slaves et roumaines, Vol. 1, Fasc. 3. Kramoris, Ivan J., An Anthology of Slovak Poetry, Scranton, 1947. A selection of lyric and narrative poems including some members of Stur's group. Slovakia and Slovak Literature. Reprinted from the Catholic Encyclopedia, New York, 1950. A Chronological Outline of Slovak Literature and History, Passaic, N. J., 1946 Krcmery, Stefan, A Survey of Modern Slovak Literature, Offprint from The Slavonic Review, Vol. VII, No. 19, 1928-1929. Lednicki, Waclaw (ed.), Adam Mickiewicz in World Literature, University of California Press, 1956. Articles by D. Cizevsky and J. M. Kirschbaum. Leger, Louis, Le panslavisme et l'interet francais, Paris, 1917, Ernest Flammarion. Relatively objective study of pan-slavism and Slovak contribution. French point of view. Locher, T. J., Die nationale Differenzierung und Integrierung der Slowaken und Tschechen in ihrem geschichtlichen Verlauf bis 1848, Harlem, 1931. Macartney, C. A ., Hungary and Her Successors, London-New York- Toronto, 1937. Manning, Clarence A. (ed.), An Anthology of Czech and Slovak Poetry, New York, 1929, Columbia University Press. Contains translations by Prof. Kirkconnell, Kramoris, Gallik, Manning, Slabey, Kotouc, etc. 22 SLOVAKIA Meriggi, Bruno, Storia deUe letterature ceca e slovacca. University of Florence, 1959. Mikus, J . A., La Slovaquie dans le drame de l'Europe, Paris, Les Iles d'Or, 1955. La Slovaquie, Individualite politique de l'Europe Centrale, Paris, 1952. Mraz, Andreas, Die Literatur der Slowaken, Wien-Stuttgart, 1943. A History of Slovak literature by a contemporary scholar and professor at the University of Bratislava. The work was completed and edited in the Slovak language in 1948 by The Slovak Academy of Sciences and Arts and presents one of the best works on the history of Slovak literature. Pastrnek, Fr., Beitriige zur Lautlehre der Slowakischen Sprache in Ungarn (Aus dem Sitzungsberichten der philos.-hist. Klasse der K. Akademie der Wissenschaften), Wien, 1888. Petrovich, Michael B., The Emergence of Russian Panslavism, Columbia University Press, 1956. Rekem, John, The Origin and Dei;elopment of the Slovak Language, an offprint from Slovakia, Vol. XII, No. 35, Middletown, Pa., 1962. Slovak Literature and National Consciousness Before Bernolak, Cleveland, 1965. Seton-Watson, R. H. , A History of the Czechs and Slovaks, London, 1943. Scholarly written history by one of the best defenders of the Slovak people at the beginning of this century (see his Racial Problems in Austria-Hungary) who turned against the Slovak movement for autonomy and independence being influenced by his Czech friends. Scotus, Viator, Racial Problems in Hungary, London, 1908. Slovak Studies I, Historica 1, Slovak Institute, Rome, 1961. Safarik, J . P., Geschichte der Slawischen Sprache und Literatur nach allen Mundarten. Mit konigl. ung. Universitatsschriften, Offen, 1826. Skultety, Joseph, Sketches From Slovak History, Middletown, Pa., 1930, Jednota Press. Translation from Slovak by 0 . D. Koreff. Skultety was professor at the University of Bratislava and one of the most outstanding figures in the Slovak cultural life in the first half of the century. Stefanek, Anton, Zur Soziographie der geistigen Kultur in der Slowakei, Bratislava, 1944. Strakhovsky, L. I. (ed.), A Handbook of Slavic Studies, Harvard University Press, 1949, chapters by A. Senn and Otto Radl. Both articles reflect recent research, though Radl's contribution is strongly pro-Czech. Vajda, Jaroslav, Bloody Sonets, transl. from Hviezdoslav, P. 0., Scranton, Pa., 1950. Viktorin, J. K. Gramatik der Slowakischen Sprache. Zurn Schul-und Selbstunterricht, Budapest, 1862. Tourtzer, H. Louis Stur et l'idee de !'independence slovaque, Cahoss et Alencon, Paris, 1913. Trubetzkoy, N. S., Grundzilge der Phonologie, Prag, 1939. (on Slovak language p. 117-118, 136, 141, 143, 161, 167, 170, 175, 208, 245.) Yourchak, Peter P., The Slovaks, Whiting, Ind., 1947, Lach editions, SLOVAKIA 23 chapters from Slovak history and literature destined for Americans of Slovak origin. BIBLIOGRAPHY in Slavic Languages Bartek, Heinrich, Anton Bernolak, Trnava, 1937. £udovit Stur a slovencina, Turc. Sv. Martin, 1943. Krest'anstvo a slovencina, in the Symposium Nadej vit'azna, Scranton, Pa., 1947. Slovensky pravopis s gramatickymi pouckami a slovnikom, Whiting, Ind., Lach Publications, 1956. Spravna vyslovnost' slovenska, Bratislava, 1943. Blanar, Vincent, Bibliografia jazykovedy na Slovensku v rokoch 19391947. Slovenska akademia vied a umeni. Bratislava, 1950. Bobek, W., Prehl'adne dejiny slovenskej literatury, Bratislava, 1939. Mickiewicz v literaturze slowackiej, Praha, 1931. Dzieje literatury slowackiej w zarysie. An offprint from Slowacja i Slowacy, Edit. W. Semkowicz, Krakow, 1938. Czambel, Samo, Prispevky k dejinam jazyka slovenskeho, Budapest, 1887. Slovenska rec a jej miesto v rodine slovanskych jazykov, Turc. Sv. Martin, 1906. Slovensky pravopis. Historicko-kriticky nakres. Budapest', 1890. Dvonc, Ladislav, Bibliografia slovenskej jazykovedy za roky 1948- 1952. Matica slovenska, Martin, 1957. Gajdos, V. J. Slovenske glosy v latinskom missali za XVI. storocia, Historica slovacca I-II, Bratislava, 1940-1941, 221-243. Grabowski, T. S., Dwaja Slowaccy pionerzy oswiecenia i postepu, Bernolak i Fandly, 1951. Hattala, Martin, Kratka mluvnica slovenska, Bratislava, 1852. Gramatica linguae slovenicae, Schemnicii, 1850. Hodza, Michal M., Vetin o slovencine, Levoca, 1848. Isacenko, A. V. Zaciatky vzdelanosti vo Vel'komoravskej risi, Jazykovedny sbornik I-II, 1947, 137-178. Jagic, I. V., Istorija slavianskoj filologii, S. Petersburg, 1910. Jankovic, V. "Prvy preklad slovensky celeho Pisma svateho", Verbum I, Bratislava, 1946-1947. Kondrasov, N. A., Kategorija licnosti i nelicnosti v slovackom jazyku, MGU, 1949. Programma po istoriji slovackogo jazyka. Programma po sovremennom slovackom jazyku, Izdatelstvo Moskovskogo universiteta, 1951. Slavianskaja filologia, Stati i monografiji, Izdatelstvo Moskovskogo univerziteta, 1951. Kotvan, Imrich, "Jozef Ignac Bajza a slovenska rec", Linguistica slovaca III, Bratislava, 1941. Juraj Fandly, Trnava, 1946. "Juraj Fandly a slovensky jazyk", Linguistica slovaca I-II, Bratislava, 1939. Bernolakovci, Trnava, 1948. Bibliografia bernolakovcov, Matica slovenska, Martin, 1957. 24 SLOVAKIA Magiera, J., Literatura czeska i slowacka, Obraz pismiennictwa, Warszawa, 1929. Magnuszewski, J., Mickiewicz wsr6d Slowakow. Wroclaw, 1956. Misianik, Jan, Dejiny starsej slovenskej literatury, SAV, Bratislava, 1958. Stran 320. Mraz, Andrej, Gavlovicova skola krest'anskci. Brati!lava, 1940. Dejiny slovenskej literatury, Bratislava, 1948. Novak, l;udovit, Cestina na Slovensku a vznik spisovnej slovenciny. Odtlacok zo Slovenskych pohl'adov LIV, 1938. Jazykovedne glosy k ceskoslovenskej otcizke, Turc. Sv. Martin, 1935. ~udovit Stur ako jazykovedec, Slovenske pohl'ady III, 1936. Pastrnek, Fr., Starci jazykovci pamcitka slovenskci, Sbornik filologicky VII, 1922. Pauliny, Eugen, Na okraj kamaldulskeho Pisma, Verbum I, 1946-1947. Glosy k pomeru: bernolcictina a sturovcina, Kultura XIV, 1942. Dejiny spisovnej slovenciny, Slovenska akademia vied a umeni, Bratislava, 1948. Pisut, Milan, Literatura ncirodneho obrodenia, SAV, Bratislava, 1960, p. 490. Slovensky litercirny romantizmus, C-sl. prednasky pro medzinarodni sjezd slavistu v Moskve. Semkowicz, W., Slowacia i Slovacy, Krakow, 1937. Skultety, Jozef, Stodvadsat'piit' rokov zo slovenskeho zivota 1790-1914, Martin, 1920. 0 Slovcikoch, Turciansky Sv. Martin, 1936. Sobolevskij, A. I., Cerkovno-slavianskije texty moravskogo proischozdenija, Ruskij filologiceskij vestnik, 1900. Stanislav Jan, K jazykovednemu dielu A. Bernolcika, Bratislava, 1941. Pribinovi velmozi, Linguistica slovaca I-II, 1939-1940. "Spisovny jazyk slovensky", Symposium Slovanske jazy ky v dobe pfitomne, Praha, 1937. Dejiny slovenskeho jazyka I-II, Slovenska akademia vied, Bratislava, 1958. Stiebr, Zdislaw, Zarys dialektologii jezykow zachodnio-slowianskich. Warszawa, 1956. Stur, l;udovit, Nauka reci slovenskej, Bratislava, 1846. Ncirecia slovenskuo, Bratislava, 1844. Tibensky, Jan, J. Papanek • J. Sklenar: Obrancovia slovenskej ncirodnosti v XVIII. storoci. Osveta, Martin, 1958. "K problemu hodnotenia bernolactiny a bernolakovskeho hnutia". Historicky casopis, VII., 4, 1959. "Vznik, vyvoj a vyznam vel'komoravskej tradicie v slovenskom narodnom obrodeni. Sbornik O vzcijomnych vzt'ahoch Cechov a Slovcikov, SAV., 1956. Varsik, Branislav, Slovcici na prazskej univerzite do konca stredoveku, Bratislava, 1926. Vilikovsky, Jan, Cantus Catholici, Bratislava, 1935. Vlcek, Jaroslav, Dejiny literatury slovenskej, Turc. Sv. Martin, 1923. Weingart, Milos, 0 najstarsich jazykovych pamcitkach slovenskych, CMF., Prague 1935.  Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource The Slovak Language and its Place Among the Slavic Languages Description An account of the resource J. M. Kirschbaum Slovakia, Vol. 16 (No. 39), 1966 pp. 1-24 Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Kirschbaum, Jozef M., 1913-2001 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1966 SNK https://slovakia.wordsofpassage.net/files/original/937f986bc1dbfefde3d1b863b9010fed.pdf 81ffe9bd306ab625c3f9f7dfafb1b744 PDF Text Text SLOVAKIA 25 FATHER OF AMERICAN SLOVAKS By Si ster M . Martina Tybor, SS.C.M. The noisy night tra1n daittered out of Cleveland, Ohio. Its pa;sse:ngers -by tmns re'la.xed or braced tfuemselves in keepin1g with tihe jo1ti1Ilg ThytJhms of the orange-eyed monster as it spumed spat1ks and ,c inders and hurtled along the shiny rails toward Pennsylvania. Among the travelers, it ca·ITied a thougihllful priest wihose quiet eyes looked upon liife with a wisdom born of natural gifts and rich exiperience. 'l'he tr,ain ste adied itself to ain even speed. A conductor came down the aisle punohirng tiokets and as ihe took U!p Fatller's, the yehlow gleam from tfue ga:s jet ovet1head showed that it was daited early iJil September 1906 and was made ourt for Wilkes-Barre. '11he dim light also reveailed the identirf,ication tag on Father's traveling bag marked Rev. Stephen Furdek Our Lady of Lou'I'ldes Church Cleveland, Ohio For a few moments after the conductoT moved on, Father fingered the gold cross that huing from his watoh chain. Then he studied some letters and paipers from his porbfolio, and finally he reached into ihis pocket for his prayer beads. From early dhi:1dhood lh e had Oll'ltivated a m3/I'lked dev,otion to OuT Lady and he 1ha,d in her a sure refuge and he'lp in every need. He had grown up amid hardships and difificuUies of aH kinds ·b ut the wais not hurt or wa11ped lby them. In fact, crosses had only made him the stronger to endure more. Let us trace some of ihis growing-up days a:nd you wihl see fOT yourself. September 2, 1855 was the date of Stephen furdek's bir,tJh, and Tr,s tena in Orava County, 1Sloviakia, was the phaoe. In maiteTial resouTces Oreva ,is one of tlh.e poorest regions orf central Europe but it has given -tfue Slovak people a remairkaJble number orf intellectuails and leaders. Stephen Furdelk, too, 'becairne one of tihese grea,t men of his people, for God had fitted him for a parti!oohar work amd lh.e was reaidy when the time was right. His scholastic career was bri.ililianrt even from his ele- �26 SLOVAKIA merutaTy grades at the villaige sdhool where he was ta'l.tght by 1:Jhe Franciscans. For his ,hig1h school courses Stephen went to Bamska Bystrioa amd then to the gymnazium or senior high sdhool in Nitra. lt was m Nitra, too, tihat he begoo 'his semim.ary training for the priestlhood. Because of his outstandin1g success in phHosophy and -theology, howeveT, his bishop singled out Stephen FuTdek for special studies at tJhe univemity in Budapest. This 'hirg,h honor and distinction was especially gratifying to lris parents who were providi!ng for ihirs education at the cost of great sacrifice. Unfortunately, the young student took sick in Buda,pe,st and iha:d to return home. On recovering, he resumed hirs studies ·but he decided to Teturn to itlhe Nirtra seminary r-atiher tham ,to tlle university in Budapest. He <Xmcenrtrated on his lessoos 'but politiml troubles dirstu111bed the times very much and the spirit of unrest and hosthl:ity reached even into the seminary. ,Stephen Fu<rdek's tempernment preferred peace to contention. Y oll!Ilg as he was, he h,ad a sixth sense whiic:ih directed birm toward a tactful line of CO'lldruct, toward a decisiion wihioh would avoid tmUJble wiitlhout sia,crifici111g principle. Besi<les, he enjoyed the fatfuerly guidance of the Trstemiborn Dr. Martin Hattala, an eminent priest-philologist who was at tlhis time a professor of languages at ChaTles University in Pr-ague. Acti'lllg under these two iin:filuences, tJhe student Furdek withdrew from see1:1hirng Nitra. 'Dhis step demanded the sacrifice of ihis priestly ideal! but the ·s pirit of the times was such thaJt a SlovaJk patriot was denied the opportunity to complete his studies for professional work. 'Dhe overlords demanded that you eicf:lher tramsfex- your ai1legiamoe or surrender academic pur~suit. Ln leaving the semin,a.ry, Stephen did what he 1!hougiht was •r ight and he firmly trusted in God. FoT some time after he left Nitra, Furdek was a teacher in Stramirl.ce, MoraViia. This took him out of t!he region of trouble 1b ut his new work did not satisfy him. Realizing thaJt this was not really his vocation, he decided to return to 1his books. Perhaps he felt 1!hat iif he had to be denied the privfiledge of serving his people as a priest, he wOIU!ld .t ry to serve them as a fully ti,ained professionaJl, a specia:liized teaC'heT, pemaps one Hke Dr. Haittala whose distiinction it was to be both a priest and a teac!her. �SLOVAKIA 27 F,or tihree years F1t.mieJk diligently studied classical laJnguages and ,philology at OhaI'les Universiity. Dlll'ing this tirme he ibecame acquainted wiith Dr. Flrancis Bauer who was rector of the diocesan seminary in P,r ague amd was deslbined to •b ecome camdmaJl ar<fub1slhop of O1omoUJc in Moravia. Dr. Bauer saw ilrl the promising s.tudenit the greaiter promise of service for botJh God amd country. He advised Furdek .to Teturn to his seminary couTses and lh e suggested that it would be well for him to do so rig.ht there in Prague. F1uridek was haJppy to have this encouraigement. It retll!I'ned to him tJhe hope dearest ito his th eart and brought him oloser to its Tealiization. He followed Dr. Bauer's advice e8)gerly . .AJbout four years lateT, w!hen he was in hls last year of theology, FuTdek learned tlhat an urgent appe81l from America rea•o hed his superiors. lt 08)me from Bishop Riobard Gi:lrmour of Cleveland, Ohio, and eXJpressed ,h is concern foT the spirituaJ care of many Slavic immigrants lirvmg in his diocese wrthout a priest of their OWtil tongue to minister to their needs. Bishop GilmoUT ha;d written to severau European bishops amd to various religious orders beg,gi:ng for priests and for advanced students who wouid be ruble to finish their studies ilrl America 01nd serve these people in Christ's narrne. 'Dhis was a caJ!l for generous and missiona,rysouled worikers. Who would be foU1I1d willing to answer? Who would be qualified? Father Francis Sasinek, am eXJperiienced and soholtarly Slovak priest, recommended tJhe semi.nariam Furdek for this responsible work. Furrdek's superions at the seminary endorsed the recommenda:tion, for they knew that ,t his young man had 'tJhe spiTituaJ.ity and the tiauenrt:s to succeed in such an assig,nmenrt of pionem-ing for Ohrist among the immigramts in America. The prospects were ma:de known to him and though it cost muoh to part frcxm al!l that was so dear to him, Stephen Furdek generously mrade the sa,cr.iifice. It was tJhe g,uiding prindple of his lirfe to wol'k for God amd for country, and here is taJil'gilble proof tJhat he did not merely iderulize t,hat motto; he lived it wibh aU its implioations. He bade farewell to ,his famhly and friends in tJhe spring of 1882 and embanked for .America. By March 15 he w,as in Cleveland, strengtihened by itihe ,g ,ra,ce of God and seasoned by past hardships for whatever trials might lie in the years �28 SLOVAKIA aJhead. Jin tfuis new and wondel'fttl though still st'l'!all!ge world, he completed his studies in a few montlhs and was ordained by Bishop Gilmour in St. Wenceslaus Church on JUJly 1 of t!he same year. This was tJhe fulfillment of hi:s fondest dreams. For aibout ten months a;fter ordination, Father Furdek served as an assistant at St. Wenceslaus. At the same bme, however, he arranged for the Slova!ks of the area to attend Sunday mass offered by a non.,SloV1aJk Franciscan Father at St. Joseph's ohurch in Clevelailld where he himself would come every week to prea•ch, to inst'I'll'ct, and to hea:r confessions in Slovak. This 1kind of dual apostolate •becaJme FatJher Furdek's liifework. For all his priesi'ly yeiars dati:ng from April 1883 until his death on J ,a nuary 18, 1915, he was pastor of Our Lady of Lourdes par~sh which the bishop authori!zed him to organize, and he devoted hims~Lf to the care and guidance of countless Sloy,a•IDs throughout America. For what do we remeimbeT him most? He was an exemplary pr,iest, educator, leader, organizer, journalist, novelist, poet, paitriot - and he merited every one of these distmctions folly. Yet over and a:bove aill this, he was in the true sense of 1Jhe word t!he F'atJher of Amerioan Slovaks. He ha:d 'haroly orientiated h~mself i:n this adopted coootry when he reaJLized that his God.igiven mission extended beyond the immediate needs of the parish work that was a:ssi:gned to him. He always discharged his pastora.'l duties conscientiously ,but parish wonk was not hiiis one falent to be hidden safely m a napkin and retu:rmed to the Master at His coming. Fat!her Furdek was entrusted v,ivh mamy talents and he zealously trafficked with the much that had been g,iven him. Besides ,buildi:ng a maignificent church and a modem school of sixteen classrooms, besides managing all the interests of Our Lady of Lourdes parish and its sohool witlh an enrollment of a thousand pupils, Father Furdek heliped to organize many Slovruk parishes ·both in Clevelaind and in other widely scattered Slovak •s ettlements. The need of the hour was to help these Sloviak immigrants to achieve a sense of belongiiing, to giive them a bond of unity, to satisfy their spiriturul cravmg a.ind their sociail needs amd to educaJte tJhem. It was important to teach them cooperation in wmikiing for common i:nterests and mutual helpfuhl.ess. Solicitous F1ather �SLOVAKIA 29 of all the Slova:ks in America that he was, Father Furdek took each of these problems to heaTt and worked for its soliution. To iprovide priests for newly organized and organi,z ing panishes, Father Furdek undertook more th3Jn one trip to Slova,kia because both hiis bishop a,nd he realized that personal conta,ct would be more effectiv,e than any ot her type of solicitation. And he did succeed in interesting a number of worthy priests a,nd derics from abroad to come to these pioneer parishes a,mong the immigrants. But even wi1:Jh individuail parishes organized here and there a,s circumstances warranited it, the entire ,problem of the Slovak immigrant in America was not solved. Father Furdek in hi:s missionary travels among the people witnessed their efforts to for,m local fraternal and benefiicial societies. He saw a:lso that his countrymen needed to 1be safeguarded from leaders and movements that threatened their spiritua[ outlook while pretending to offer them materiaJl advantages. Before ,}ong he realized, too, that most of those newcomers were going to establish permanent homes in America; they needed to plan for a secure future and a wlholesome heritage for their posteriity :iin the new world. Riis keen vision sa,w 'beyond the immediate present, 0JS does every true leader's. Beg,inning wi:th a nucleus of pioneers in Clevela,nd, Father Furdek in 1890 founded a men's organization called the First Catholic Slova,k Union or the Jednota. Two years later a similia:r ladies' organization wa;s began. The Jecmota grew to be the largest Slovak fratemal bene£it organization in the world. It is also a strong pillar of Slova:k Ca,t;Jholicity in America. 'J1hrough it, Father Furdeik propag,ated the vivifying ti deal "For God and N ruti001." On this Chri:stiain prin~ ciple is formulated the entire philosophy a;nd structure of the Jednota aind this is what ,g ives tJhe body its stabi'Li:ty and strength. To a people making history in a la:nd where they were without traditions, without established precedent, it was essentiall to build wisely and well. Father Furdeik with his gift of vision prepared that ·b luepriint for them e~ceptiona1ly wel!l. His firm hut tactflllil leadershiip directed the early funmigrants toward healthy progress. 'Dhe Jeiooota pmvided aU tlhe ·benefits of a mutual aid society, it brought the mem- �30 SLOVAKIA hers of a local branch together for periodic meetings and conferences, it ,s pomored national conventions and its bylaws emphasrzed fidelity to reliigious duty. This was putting first thing,s first. Flather Furdelk repeatedly msisted that it was imperative for Cathollics to jom Catlholic societies because non-sectarian infiJ.uences, innocuous as they may seem to be, have a tendency to cool fervor and lead to indifference in the spiritual liife. AIS a matter of fuct, there were some sad instaJn ces to prove that suoh Hberallism even resulted in ag,nostici,s,m aJild free thinikling. These were the rugged days of early pioneering for great numbe11s of :immigrants. In theiT period of adjustment they were e~osed to both adva,ntJa:ges and <lis•a dvanta,ges. Men who 'had 'been iong suppressed and oppressed found themselves sudden,l y free amd they couM have leaned over too far, disregaroing or discoun:tin:g some forms of autJhority completely, claiming an Ulllcontro:J.lled emancipation. Father FuTdek's presence and influence among them was the needed leaven. Patiently and finnJ.y he worlked to balance their outlook. CourageQIUJS•l y he set himself again,s t tJhe forces that advocated a ,c omplete libera!l<tsm or secuffiarism, tJhat disregard for spiritual discipline that would have resulted in crass materialism. Wit'h the gnts of a !born tea·o her he rooched his people and restrained tJhem from becoming the victims of such errors. He saved them from tJhe influence of false ,l eaders and besides ta<king a necessa11Hy agressive stand in these ma;tters, he also stimll'lated lay acti'Vity. In teaching the meaning of 1iib erty, Father Furde'k stressed the opportunities wthich his peo'.)le should use here for self-improvement amd cultural adva;ncement. One year after founding the Jednota o:t1ganization, he launched tlhe J,ffiDNOTA weekly (1891) whi-dh 1became the offici~l organ of tJhe society. In 1896 at his own e~ense he gave his people their first JE}DNOTA iK:ALffiNDAiR, an annrua•l or a!hnanac. llil t his way :h e brought into the homes of ha:t1d-worlcing common people press materials whioh became a medium of culture and a weHspring of spiritual refreshment. The duties of editing and publicrution were his and althougih it meant a tremendous demand on his time, energy and talent to compose rund expedite a newspaper every week 8.llld a ri~h almanac every year, he aJSSumed this blll'den and responsibility in addition to his pastoral wook be- �SLOVAKIA 31 cause he knew how mu,~h the Slovairos in Ameriica needed such wholesome reading matter. He also invited quaJlirfied oontriibutors to send mainuscriipts and it was usually our priests both here and from aibr-oad wiho did sulbmit some exceHent articles for the Jednota publication. Slov,aJk immigr,ants with theiir new privilege of reading t!heir own newspapers in America were being instructed amd infoI1llled lb y them. A Jedinotar w,ho took up his copy alter a day's strenuous wcmk on the furm or in a mine, mill or factory, found relaxation and enjoyment in reading its columns. His Catholic weekly broug1ht him news items, editoriials, tJhe Sunday epistle amd gospel wiibh a homhly, e~lanations of the oatMhism and of tJhe Hturgical year, interesting lessons on :the duties and privileges of American citizenship, and a survey of American history presented eit!her topicaHy or serially or throug.h biographical sketches. Father Furdek's admiration for America and his devotion to the ideal of democr,acy prompted him to write on this subject repeatedly and to urge Slovaks in America to become natlurcli1irzed. His patriotism to two countries was baJlanced with an uneXJceiled nicety and with demoeratic expertness which 'he e~ressed very a:ptly in the poem "Amerika, zem velilka" ("America, Great Land") which was awarded first honors in a competition sponsored by P. V. Rovnianek. In th4:s poem Furdek sings the glories of America - her progress, her emancipation of the slave, her democracy, her greaJt native sons, her mothering of the oppressed who come to her shores, the opportunities she o:fifera to all witJhout discrimination. Then he voices a touohilllg apostrophe to his homeland, characterized by the snow-ca:pped Tatry, as if he wished to e~ress the assurance that the ocean may separate but it does not divide a loyial people. Poetically and neatly he arigues that a son still. loves his mother tJhoug,h he gives his heart to his wife, and that it is by just such a pa,ra'Hel that loyial emigrants love the land they left as well as the country of their adoption. 'Dhe more he studied the problems of the day, the more he became convinced that practica11y all the Slovak :immigrants in America were here to stay. This reaili2Jation made him aiH the more eager to he]Jp them :to become intelligent .American citizens, men and women capaible of a great love �32 SLOVAKIA for this democratic new wonld yet mindful and proud of their ancestry. He often reminded them to note how muoh ilm.iproved their living cO'llditions were here over w'ihat ~hey had been under the MaJgy,a r regime at home. He urged them to compare America's repulblicaJn fomn orf government with Hungary's despotism. He repeatedly pointed out that there is no subject class in this country aJnd 1Jhat ruH wiho enjoyed America's freedom have many opportunities to advance and improve themselves. Furdek's articles represented America as a great school w;here t!he iimmig:r,ant could learn out orf the book of actuaJ living amd doing. He pointed out that here even an unschooled SlovaJk w011ker learns rhow to mine ores, he comes to understand the intricacies amd 1:Jhe operation of simple and orf complex machines, he reads aind he learns from his newspapers, he travels free1y and cain master basic geography, he struggles with tJhe fanguage problem and everutua:lly he can come to sipea:k English as well a:s a teacher. In short, whatever he needs to know, he can learn in 1:Jhe scthool of Amerioan 1ife. Furdek thad am unlbound patriotism which is reflected in all his journaJlistic output. As a matter of fact, he was no mere journa:list; he was a pub1ioist who propagiated his open admiration aind devotion to America togetJher with a steady remembrance and love for Slovalkia. He forecast the Americanization of the Slovaks - not becaJUse America is a melting pot but because it is irmposs~ble for human life and thoug,ht to withsbrund the tide of change and the demands of reasona1ble adjustment. But he did not favor a sudden and complete sundering from home ties. Wisely he urged his people to preserve a love for ancestraJl roots and an appreciation of their national culture aJnd to transmit this devotion to future generations. It is not without cause that we look upon him ais the Father of American Slovaks. There was no problem of American Stlovak life that escruped his serious study and analysis. He took a definite stand in every sigmificant isSl\le and wherever the need required it, he was bhe spiI'itual a:dviser, prime mover, •a nd inspiration to thousands of people. His was a many-sided creatiwiess and 1he had a genius for keeping pace with the progress orf time. '!'he Jednota, whiclh he founded, preserved the ideals of Fu11dek because he himself �SLOVAKIA 33 was so deeply imbued with the spiriit which he imparted to it. It was a spirit which even reac'hed from America to Silovakia and supported national movements there. See him now as he blesses himself on finishing his rosary. He looks caJlm and untroubled but a heavy oross lies upon his heart. "How wiU this affair end?" he asks himself. Here he is coming to a rally intended to alleviate suffering abroad and to strengthen the spirit of his people on this new soil, aind yet this very ceil~ration threatens to brmg about undesirable Tesults. He and his brother.,priests have designated the gathering to which he is going as a Slovak Catho1ic Congress, but enemies - like the GOiSpel sowers of tares among the wheat - have been busy noi:sing it abroad that Father Furdek and his al'lies planned this mass meeting in order to launch a new heresy and to effect a schism of Slovak Catholics. And the wi1d rumor was reported officiail!ly even to the Apostolic Delegate in W a:sihimgton and to various bisihops and archbishops, urging t:Jhem to suspend and penalize all those priests wlho were in any way associa,ted with the affair. Father Furdek's name, namuraUy, led the rest in the list of tJhose who were marked to be proscribed. What was the outcome to 1be? The great S,lova1k Catholic Co'lligress took pla:ce on La:bor Day, September 3, 1906 in Wrl1kes-Barre. It attraoted oveT ten thousand Slovaks from all parts of Amedca and that in a day when traveling was time-consuming, tiresome, imconvenient, a:nd much of a humry for people wi1lh limited earnings. The program of tJhe day was planned to irndude religious services a1nd a series of addresses both in English and in Slovak on subjects of vital interest and conseque-nce to the Slovruk people. 1 Father Furdek arranged for representatives of the daily newspapers as well as editors of leading SlovaJk publications to be present in order to cover t'he story. Tihis would provide a greater circUJlation of reports on Slova1k matters among ,a little-informed American iputbHc as well as among an interested Slovruk audience. It was for this reasorn also that he arranged for notable American officiaJls and dignitaries to attend. It would be very he1pful to 'have tJhem become acquaimted with the Slovruk question. Bishop Hoban of Scranton had agreed to preside. �34 SLOVAKIA WihaJt was Fa!tlher Furdek to eX!pect of his plans now that such damaging stories were ma!king their rounds in o,nficia:l circles as well as among the common people? Would Bishop Hdban honor the occasion with rhis presence? And if he came, would it lbe to censure or to question or to approve tJhe true effort of Father Flurdek and his co-wo!1kers? One could not very welll iknow before hand. On the morning of the Congress, Father Furdek and Faltlher Murgas set out by horise and carriage for Sugar Notc'h where tJhey were to call for Bishop Hoban and drive Mm to the Congress. They went with mixed emotions but they were fortified by the consciousness of upright motives 0Jnd blameless conduct. Bislhop Hoban did not disaippoint them. He graciously accepted their offer of a ride and showed that he was eager to act as chairman of the event which they had prepared. As he mounted the carriage 8/Ild sat between the two priests, he put ithem at ease by p1ungilllg at once into the subject of their to:r,menting thoug,hts, the painful topic of the accusations whicih had 1been made against them. He discussed some of the charges at length and judiciously disposed of them. For inst8Jllce, he found it ridiculous that in America where liberty prevaiils someone shOU!ld giloaJt ilil laibeling them PianSlavs (because of their a:Megiance to tJheir native lamd. "I iknow yoUT people well, " Bishop Hdban said wit!h gentle UIIlderstanding in tJhe couTISe of itihi s conversation. Then as they were passing the Ashley ohurcih he added, "l built tfuis ohur,c'h when I was pastor here. Among my parishioners were m8/Ily Slova:k,s and I became wel!l. acquainted wiibh them. I have great sympathy for the SlovaJks." 1 "I am an American althoug;h my ancestors came from Irel81Ild," the Bishop continued as though he were marshalli!ng faots in a debate. "The Irish have a long history of political persecution; tlle Irish :kin.ow wlhat it is to be oppressed. I have great sympa:tJhy for every oppressed nation whetlher irt be Armeruam, Polish, kish or whatever it may be. There a,re many nationalities in my diocese and I do not discriminate. We are all OatJhoHcs." Bishop Hoban could not undel'Stand why the idea of Pan-Slav should figure in an indictment presented to eccles- �35 SLOVAKIA iastical superiors. "What has that to do wit'h it? fo America one may be a Pan-American; ilil Germany, let him wiho wishes ,b e a Pan-Gennam. It is no crime or sin to be a Pam-S[av. 'l'he term has political implication only." He was shrewd enoug,h to perceive that the charges which had ,been trumped up under c-lerical pretentiOIIlS were 1basicaJBy of a politicall nature and tha;t they were essentially distortions or gross misrepresentations. Im the course of this ride, Bishop Hobim also showed FaJther Furdek a communication from t!he Apostolic Delegate inqu~riD'g ililto the nature of the accusations. But Bishop Hoban assured both priests that he had already sent to Washington a complete report vindicating the acoused and exiplainililg the motives that had prompted 1:Jhe effort to foil 1:Jhe success of the Catholic Congress. And they were, in fact, extreme measures to which the p'lotJters had resorted. At the last moment they even tried to intimidate Bishop Hoban by sendililg him a telegram warning that his presence at the Silovak Catholic Congress wou[d reflect discredit UipOn t!he American Catholic hierarchy. But BiSlhop Hobam was not to be deterred by t!hreats. In fact, he justly resented the attempts to put pressure on him from un8Juthor1zed quarters. Becaiuse of Bishop Hoban's fundaJmental ohaTity for ahl, his sympathy for the downtrodden and his unbiased sense of democracy, the Catholic Congress of Slovak Americans was a more glorious event than even Father Furdek had hoped it would be. It wa•s a complete vindicatiO!Il of the priests who 'had ,b een maJligned and it was am unqoo:lified triumph for the Slova:k people. Bishop Hoban openly championed their cause, the press gave the even.rt fulil coverage, and the SlovaJk people themselves were iby this huge gatJhering more closely bound to one amother than they had ever been before. The manifestation was a Catiholic Congress but it attracted many Slovruk•s of other religious denominrutions, too, as well as from various fraternall orgaJnizations both Ca:tholic and non-sectarian. This triumph of September 3, 1906 marked a lmld of renaissamce in Slovak life on two continents and it inspired Father Fourdek to urge upon Slovaik leaders iJil publ-ic life the formation of a national SloV0Jk organizrution to unify 1 �36 SLOVAKIA the American effort on behalf of Slov,a;kia. The outcome was the S1ovaik League of America which iin time evolved from suClh pre1i1minary movements as Furdek's drive "Za tu nasu slovenicinu !" (Jin defense of the Slovak cause!) which netted some ten thousand doll,ars for 1:Jhe na,t ional aid in the home1a:nd; the National Fund which sUJbsidized at least two hundred Slovruk students abroad rund brought relief to very many Slovak political leaders ,t hen houinded by unjust persecution, a:nd the lawnching of "Indignation Meetings" or pwbli,c demonstrations throughout the United States in order to protest the injushce and 1:Jhe human cruelty which viotimiized the Slovak people in their own homeland. 'I1hese tokens of help from America re-vitaUzed the crushed spirit and the depleted energies of S1ova!k patriots who were driven almost to t:he brilllk of despair iin fueir efiforts to save Silova kia. Costly :fii:nes and unrelenting pressure were syistematicaUy draining their resources and counteracting their achievements. American interest and Americain slllpport were their only encouraigement and mainstay. FiinanciaJ help came from tJhe drives which were organized expressly to raise funds. Morrul support was won by the Indignation Raillies, seven of which were originally planned to be held in key cities of the United States. T:he first of these was arranged by Father Furdek in 0levelaind. 1 LiJke all of Father Furdek's projects, tMs Indignation RaHy, too, was staimped with his spirit. Jit was an inspired and an inspiring demonstration, and it set 1:Jhe pattern for similar puiblic meetings. It:s puripose was to publicize Slov,aJkia's grievances against autocratic Hungarian agression, to prove t:hat Hungary was not in reality that "islallld of liberty" in central Europe which it gloried in caiHing itself, and to solicit the sympathy and the understanding of true leaders of liberty among the Americam people. Outstanding representatives of Americain 1ife amd thought participated in these rallies. For example, at the Cleveland gathering held on February 10, 1907, a crupaoity audience in Gray's Armory gave speHbo·u nd attention to addresses delivered by Professor Bourine, by three attorneys, three priests, and seveml journailists. The American public and especially the American thinking :public was quickly beginning to see the truth. At the �37 SLOVAKIA same time, the f,ire of truth amd the justified indignarti<on orf all lovers of justice was rea,ching out among S'loV'aJks and non-Slo'V'aJks alike, to enkindJe effective means for the triumph of true Iiiberty and fairness. ~he time seemed to be right then for Father FuTdek to try again to efifect a nationwide unification of the Slovak people in America. He had attempted it before when he founded the Matica S•l ovenska, a cultural society which did not thrive lonig because new world cond~tions were not yet favo:r,a!ble for such am undertwkrng (1893). Thi:s newer effort originated at a Pittsburgh meeting of SlovaJk journalisrts convened at Fa,ther Furdek's iinvitation on April 7, 1907 where it wa,,s agreed to stage a SlovaJk Congress in May for the purpose of founding the Slovak League of America. The time was ausipi'Cious, the attitude was enthusiastic, the fruit of the movement was good. 1 The Slovak L eague of America became a civic and cultural organization with a dual objective: 1) to advaJnce American interests and security and 2) to create a better understanding and ruppredation of the islova•k nation - its history, culture, traditions, achievements, and its long, bitter struggle for freedom and autonomy. The first president of the Slovak League was Father Furdelk and he aJbly guided its interests and its efforts and helped to launch it very successfully upon its fruitful career. Furdek 's spirit of self-sacrifice and his relentless drive took :lwavy toH on his physical resources. He burned out his life young but the flame of his ardor would allow no sparing of self when there was so much to be done for God and nation, for bme and for eternity. And even when it was apparent that his energies were faiNng, he did not stop to think of himself. Always his dominant thought was for others and for the general good. Extensive traveling, constant literary production, frequent appearances as a pubEc spewker or a church preacher, steady devotion to the management of his parish, constant attention to the needs of his school and its advancement , concern for the welrfare of a,,11 his people - these and many related issues crowded his days and his nights. 1 It is difficult to realize how he managed such a rich and fruitful life, how he provided in it for projects of nat - �38 SLOVAKIA ionail scope and significance as weM as for close and immediate needs such as tJhe compiling of three textbooks, a gra,matiJka and two citamky of such S'lllperior practicail use and benefit thaJt they served .s everal generations with soUJDd advantage. He also experimented wibh a patented pedaJgogic,rul device for fille teadhring of a,:r,~tlhmetic. A,s early as 1906 Father Fur<lek had brought about officiail aotion for the founding of a home for oriphans. F\inaiHy in 1914 he had the joy of seeing such a home a reality ilrl Middletown, Pennsylv,ania where Phili,p and Mary Hroba!k of Lakewood, Ohio were the first children under J ednota care in a home manruged by tlhe S1isters of SS. Cyril and Methodius. Father Furdeik was also deeply initerested in t!lris new Slovak Community of Sisters and he endorsed the efforts of the Jednota ovgani21ation to adv,am,ce it and its wovks. After 1912 FatJher Furoek's healit:Jh was so much on the declrine that hris vision became imiparirred. Yet he carnied on heroicailly and even shortly after the New Year 1915 he accepted an invitation to preacll at a Forty Hours' Devotion ;in LoraJin, Ohio. It wrus on his retmm fr.om t!his priestly servke that he suffered eX)posure in a wintry storm amd on January 18, 1915, in t!he fifty-lllinbh year of his life, the thirty-second of his priesthood, he was called to his eternal reward. Fi,fty thousand Jedn<Ybars and cowntless friends and adirniirers on both sides of the Ati1'amtic mourned his death. 1 The tvue greatness of Father Furdek is made more digtJin:ct to us as it stamds in the perspective of years since his death. T,he void left by his deparrture to etemal life has IIlever been fiiil.led, and we see now tJhat it was with prophetic appreciaition and with some degree of regrettruble lament that Father J anikola spdke 1:Jhese words in his euJlogy on t'he day orf Father Furdek's funeral, "We wiH never see his like again. Slovrukia shall not send us another Furdek; America wi:Jil not produce another." 1 The greaJtness of Father Furdek's achievements derives from fille gifts of hi:s mind rund Clharrucl:er not from a mere aiccident of circumstances. We have even now ,t he need for ArrneriJcan Slovruks of uncommon gifts and moral stature to foad on in a modem world of mrugni:fl1cent opport.ll!Ilities. We need leaders who are seers and doe11s, wtho can vi:talli:ze and �SLOVAKIA 3g inspire, who can hold before us the V1s1on and dispel our lethargy so that we American Slova!ks will want to :reaclh out for the attaiinment, will want to assert a pride of aincestry and a new hig,h of national greatness. But it has not been given us to have a second Furdelk in America. God grant that a younger geineration may pl'O'V'ide fuat in,s piration end greatness. As we survey Father FuTdek's place and his merits in American Slovalk history, we come to realize how well he deserves to be honored 8Jlld remembeTed as tlhe Father of American Sllovaks. BIBLIOGRAPHY Capek, Thomas, The Slovaks of Hungary. New York: The Knickerbocker Press, 1906. 214 pp. Cooke, Vincent, "Catholic Objectives in the Care of Children," Catholic Action, XXXII (May, 1950), 8. Culen Konlitantin, "American Slovaks and Slovak Statehood," Slovakia, I (May, 1951), 18. Culen, Konl;tantin, Slovcici v Amerike, Turciansky Sv. Martin, Slovakia, Matica Slovenska Press, 1938. 519 pp. Culen. Konstantin, "Stefan Furdek," Kultura, VII (September 1935), 377-386. Emerentia, Mother M., History of the Sisters of Saints Cyril and Methodius. Unpublished Master's thesis, Marywood College. Falcon, The, (Katolicky Sokol), Passaic, N. J ., July 5, 1944. Fortieth Anniversary Souvenir 1907-1947, Saints Cyril and Methodius Church, Bridgeport, Connecticut. Furdek, Stephen, Prvci Citanka pre Slovenske Skoly, Cleveland: Furdek, 1913. 125 pp. Furdek, Stephen, Druhci Citanka pre Slovenske Skoly, Cleveland: Furdek, 1913. 125 pp. Furdek, Stephen, "Hymna americkych Slovakov," Kalendcir Jednota, I (January, 1896), 22. Furdek, Stephen, Kalendcir Jednota, 19 Vol. (1896-1915 ). Furdek, Stephen, "Katolicka Jednota vo Spojenych Statoch," Kalendcir Jednota, I (1896 ), 26-37. Furdek, Stephen, "Katolicky Slovensky Kongress," Kalendcir Jednota, XII (1907), 145-155. Furdek, Stephen, "Keby nie jeho, nepotreboval by som dnes ziadneho -Ostavu," Kalendcir Jednota, (1914), 69. �40 SLOVAKIA Furdek, Stephen, Sv et a jeho zahady. Cleveland: Furdek, 1910. 250 pp. Hlinka, Andrew, "K jubileu striebornej konvencie Prvej Katolickej Slovenskej Jednoty v Amerike," Kalendar Jednota, (1935) , 35. Hrobak, Philip, Ed., Editorial, Slov akia, I, (May, 1951). Hrobak, Philip, "The First Catholic Slovak Union of the U.S.A. ," Slov ak Record, (September, 1943) . Rusek, Joseph, "K dvadsat'pat'rocnici I. Kat. Slov. Jednoty," Kalendar Jednota, (January, 1916) 30-59. Rusek, Stephanie, "The Slovaks in America," Kalendar Jednota, Golden Jubilee, (September 2, 1940) 111-116. J ednota, Middletown, Pa., Dec. 17, 1913; Mar. 11, 1914; June 17, 1914; June 17, 1914; Sept. 23, 1914; Jan. 20, 1915; Jan. 27, 1915; Feb. 11, 1915; Apr. 24, 1935; June 18, 1952. K niha dejin Spolku sv. Jozefa, cislo 1. Z prilezitosti oslavy 50. rocneho jubileuma. Cleveland: 1939. Kozak, A. V., "-Ostav I. Katolickej Slovenskej Jednoty," Kalendar Jednota, ( 1912) 19-24. Leech, George L. , Letter to First Catholic Slovak Union on the Occasion of Its Golden Jubilee, 1940. Liscinsky, John Method, "Katolicka Slovenska 2enska Jednota," ( 1911 ) 180-184. Martvon, John, "Autobiograficky nacrt," Kale ndar Jednota, Golden Jubilee, (September 2, 1940) 19. Mulcahy, George, "Life of Saints Cyril and Methodius," Radio Broadcast on Diocesan Catholic Hour, WHP, Feb. 13, 1940. Palickar, Stephen J., " Father Furdek, Leader," Commonweal, VI (June 8, 1927) 126. Prva Katolicka Slovenska Jednota, "Kulturny Program Prvej Kat. Slov. Jednoty," Kalendar Jednota, (1935) 31. Rovnianek, P . V., Zapi sky za ziva pochovaneho. Pittsburgh: Rovnianek Press, 1924. Slovak League of America, Editorial, "What Is It?" The Slov ak Digest, I, (November-December, 1946) . Slovak v Amerike, New York, N. Y., August 30, 1949. Spolok Panny Marie Ruzencovej , Z Dejin I .K.S.J. , Pamatnik Slavnej XVII. Konvencie I.K.S.J., (September, 1925), Scranton, Pa. Tybor, Caroline, " Slovak Language in Our Academy," Fialky, IV (December, 1924) 71-72. Yurchak, Peter J. , The Slovaks, Their History and Tradition, Whiting : John J . Lach, 1946. 278 pp. Zlamal, Oldrich, "Life of Reverend Stephen Furdek," Sixtieth Anniv ersary of Our Lady of Lourdes Parish, (Svet Publishing Co. , Cleveland, Ohio) 1943. � SLOVAKIA 25 FATHER OF AMERICAN SLOVAKS By Si ster M . Martina Tybor, SS.C.M. The noisy night tra1n daittered out of Cleveland, Ohio. Its pa;sse:ngers -by tmns re'la.xed or braced tfuemselves in keepin1g with tihe jo1ti1Ilg ThytJhms of the orange-eyed monster as it spumed spat1ks and ,c inders and hurtled along the shiny rails toward Pennsylvania. Among the travelers, it ca·ITied a thougihllful priest wihose quiet eyes looked upon liife with a wisdom born of natural gifts and rich exiperience. 'l'he tr,ain ste adied itself to ain even speed. A conductor came down the aisle punohirng tiokets and as ihe took U!p Fatller's, the yehlow gleam from tfue ga:s jet ovet1head showed that it was daited early iJil September 1906 and was made ourt for Wilkes-Barre. '11he dim light also reveailed the identirf,ication tag on Father's traveling bag marked Rev. Stephen Furdek Our Lady of Lou'I'ldes Church Cleveland, Ohio For a few moments after the conductoT moved on, Father fingered the gold cross that huing from his watoh chain. Then he studied some letters and paipers from his porbfolio, and finally he reached into ihis pocket for his prayer beads. From early dhi:1dhood lh e had Oll'ltivated a m3/I'lked dev,otion to OuT Lady and he 1ha,d in her a sure refuge and he'lp in every need. He had grown up amid hardships and difificuUies of aH kinds ·b ut the wais not hurt or wa11ped lby them. In fact, crosses had only made him the stronger to endure more. Let us trace some of ihis growing-up days a:nd you wihl see fOT yourself. September 2, 1855 was the date of Stephen furdek's bir,tJh, and Tr,s tena in Orava County, 1Sloviakia, was the phaoe. In maiteTial resouTces Oreva ,is one of tlh.e poorest regions orf central Europe but it has given -tfue Slovak people a remairkaJble number orf intellectuails and leaders. Stephen Furdelk, too, 'becairne one of tihese grea,t men of his people, for God had fitted him for a parti!oohar work amd lh.e was reaidy when the time was right. His scholastic career was bri.ililianrt even from his ele- �26 SLOVAKIA merutaTy grades at the villaige sdhool where he was ta'l.tght by 1:Jhe Franciscans. For his ,hig1h school courses Stephen went to Bamska Bystrioa amd then to the gymnazium or senior high sdhool in Nitra. lt was m Nitra, too, tihat he begoo 'his semim.ary training for the priestlhood. Because of his outstandin1g success in phHosophy and -theology, howeveT, his bishop singled out Stephen FuTdek for special studies at tJhe univemity in Budapest. This 'hirg,h honor and distinction was especially gratifying to lris parents who were providi!ng for ihirs education at the cost of great sacrifice. Unfortunately, the young student took sick in Buda,pe,st and iha:d to return home. On recovering, he resumed hirs studies ·but he decided to Teturn to itlhe Nirtra seminary r-atiher tham ,to tlle university in Budapest. He <Xmcenrtrated on his lessoos 'but politiml troubles dirstu111bed the times very much and the spirit of unrest and hosthl:ity reached even into the seminary. ,Stephen Fu<rdek's tempernment preferred peace to contention. Y oll!Ilg as he was, he h,ad a sixth sense whiic:ih directed birm toward a tactful line of CO'lldruct, toward a decisiion wihioh would avoid tmUJble wiitlhout sia,crifici111g principle. Besi<les, he enjoyed the fatfuerly guidance of the Trstemiborn Dr. Martin Hattala, an eminent priest-philologist who was at tlhis time a professor of languages at ChaTles University in Pr-ague. Acti'lllg under these two iin:filuences, tJhe student Furdek withdrew from see1:1hirng Nitra. 'Dhis step demanded the sacrifice of ihis priestly ideal! but the ·s pirit of the times was such thaJt a SlovaJk patriot was denied the opportunity to complete his studies for professional work. 'Dhe overlords demanded that you eicf:lher tramsfex- your ai1legiamoe or surrender academic pur~suit. Ln leaving the semin,a.ry, Stephen did what he 1!hougiht was •r ight and he firmly trusted in God. FoT some time after he left Nitra, Furdek was a teacher in Stramirl.ce, MoraViia. This took him out of t!he region of trouble 1b ut his new work did not satisfy him. Realizing thaJt this was not really his vocation, he decided to return to 1his books. Perhaps he felt 1!hat iif he had to be denied the privfiledge of serving his people as a priest, he wOIU!ld .t ry to serve them as a fully ti,ained professionaJl, a specia:liized teaC'heT, pemaps one Hke Dr. Haittala whose distiinction it was to be both a priest and a teac!her. �SLOVAKIA 27 F,or tihree years F1t.mieJk diligently studied classical laJnguages and ,philology at OhaI'les Universiity. Dlll'ing this tirme he ibecame acquainted wiith Dr. Flrancis Bauer who was rector of the diocesan seminary in P,r ague amd was deslbined to •b ecome camdmaJl ar<fub1slhop of O1omoUJc in Moravia. Dr. Bauer saw ilrl the promising s.tudenit the greaiter promise of service for botJh God amd country. He advised Furdek .to Teturn to his seminary couTses and lh e suggested that it would be well for him to do so rig.ht there in Prague. F1uridek was haJppy to have this encouraigement. It retll!I'ned to him tJhe hope dearest ito his th eart and brought him oloser to its Tealiization. He followed Dr. Bauer's advice e8)gerly . .AJbout four years lateT, w!hen he was in hls last year of theology, FuTdek learned tlhat an urgent appe81l from America rea•o hed his superiors. lt 08)me from Bishop Riobard Gi:lrmour of Cleveland, Ohio, and eXJpressed ,h is concern foT the spirituaJ care of many Slavic immigrants lirvmg in his diocese wrthout a priest of their OWtil tongue to minister to their needs. Bishop GilmoUT ha;d written to severau European bishops amd to various religious orders beg,gi:ng for priests and for advanced students who wouid be ruble to finish their studies ilrl America 01nd serve these people in Christ's narrne. 'Dhis was a caJ!l for generous and missiona,rysouled worikers. Who would be foU1I1d willing to answer? Who would be qualified? Father Francis Sasinek, am eXJperiienced and soholtarly Slovak priest, recommended tJhe semi.nariam Furdek for this responsible work. Furrdek's superions at the seminary endorsed the recommenda:tion, for they knew that ,t his young man had 'tJhe spiTituaJ.ity and the tiauenrt:s to succeed in such an assig,nmenrt of pionem-ing for Ohrist among the immigramts in America. The prospects were ma:de known to him and though it cost muoh to part frcxm al!l that was so dear to him, Stephen Furdek generously mrade the sa,cr.iifice. It was tJhe g,uiding prindple of his lirfe to wol'k for God amd for country, and here is taJil'gilble proof tJhat he did not merely iderulize t,hat motto; he lived it wibh aU its implioations. He bade farewell to ,his famhly and friends in tJhe spring of 1882 and embanked for .America. By March 15 he w,as in Cleveland, strengtihened by itihe ,g ,ra,ce of God and seasoned by past hardships for whatever trials might lie in the years �28 SLOVAKIA aJhead. Jin tfuis new and wondel'fttl though still st'l'!all!ge world, he completed his studies in a few montlhs and was ordained by Bishop Gilmour in St. Wenceslaus Church on JUJly 1 of t!he same year. This was tJhe fulfillment of hi:s fondest dreams. For aibout ten months a;fter ordination, Father Furdek served as an assistant at St. Wenceslaus. At the same bme, however, he arranged for the Slova!ks of the area to attend Sunday mass offered by a non.,SloV1aJk Franciscan Father at St. Joseph's ohurch in Clevelailld where he himself would come every week to prea•ch, to inst'I'll'ct, and to hea:r confessions in Slovak. This 1kind of dual apostolate •becaJme FatJher Furdek's liifework. For all his priesi'ly yeiars dati:ng from April 1883 until his death on J ,a nuary 18, 1915, he was pastor of Our Lady of Lourdes par~sh which the bishop authori!zed him to organize, and he devoted hims~Lf to the care and guidance of countless Sloy,a•IDs throughout America. For what do we remeimbeT him most? He was an exemplary pr,iest, educator, leader, organizer, journalist, novelist, poet, paitriot - and he merited every one of these distmctions folly. Yet over and a:bove aill this, he was in the true sense of 1Jhe word t!he F'atJher of Amerioan Slovaks. He ha:d 'haroly orientiated h~mself i:n this adopted coootry when he reaJLized that his God.igiven mission extended beyond the immediate needs of the parish work that was a:ssi:gned to him. He always discharged his pastora.'l duties conscientiously ,but parish wonk was not hiiis one falent to be hidden safely m a napkin and retu:rmed to the Master at His coming. Fat!her Furdek was entrusted v,ivh mamy talents and he zealously trafficked with the much that had been g,iven him. Besides ,buildi:ng a maignificent church and a modem school of sixteen classrooms, besides managing all the interests of Our Lady of Lourdes parish and its sohool witlh an enrollment of a thousand pupils, Father Furdek heliped to organize many Slovruk parishes ·both in Clevelaind and in other widely scattered Slovak •s ettlements. The need of the hour was to help these Sloviak immigrants to achieve a sense of belongiiing, to giive them a bond of unity, to satisfy their spiriturul cravmg a.ind their sociail needs amd to educaJte tJhem. It was important to teach them cooperation in wmikiing for common i:nterests and mutual helpfuhl.ess. Solicitous F1ather �SLOVAKIA 29 of all the Slova:ks in America that he was, Father Furdek took each of these problems to heaTt and worked for its soliution. To iprovide priests for newly organized and organi,z ing panishes, Father Furdek undertook more th3Jn one trip to Slova,kia because both hiis bishop a,nd he realized that personal conta,ct would be more effectiv,e than any ot her type of solicitation. And he did succeed in interesting a number of worthy priests a,nd derics from abroad to come to these pioneer parishes a,mong the immigrants. But even wi1:Jh individuail parishes organized here and there a,s circumstances warranited it, the entire ,problem of the Slovak immigrant in America was not solved. Father Furdek in hi:s missionary travels among the people witnessed their efforts to for,m local fraternal and benefiicial societies. He saw a:lso that his countrymen needed to 1be safeguarded from leaders and movements that threatened their spiritua[ outlook while pretending to offer them materiaJl advantages. Before ,}ong he realized, too, that most of those newcomers were going to establish permanent homes in America; they needed to plan for a secure future and a wlholesome heritage for their posteriity :iin the new world. Riis keen vision sa,w 'beyond the immediate present, 0JS does every true leader's. Beg,inning wi:th a nucleus of pioneers in Clevela,nd, Father Furdek in 1890 founded a men's organization called the First Catholic Slova,k Union or the Jednota. Two years later a similia:r ladies' organization wa;s began. The Jecmota grew to be the largest Slovak fratemal bene£it organization in the world. It is also a strong pillar of Slova:k Ca,t;Jholicity in America. 'J1hrough it, Father Furdeik propag,ated the vivifying ti deal "For God and N ruti001." On this Chri:stiain prin~ ciple is formulated the entire philosophy a;nd structure of the Jednota aind this is what ,g ives tJhe body its stabi'Li:ty and strength. To a people making history in a la:nd where they were without traditions, without established precedent, it was essentiall to build wisely and well. Father Furdeik with his gift of vision prepared that ·b luepriint for them e~ceptiona1ly wel!l. His firm hut tactflllil leadershiip directed the early funmigrants toward healthy progress. 'Dhe Jeiooota pmvided aU tlhe ·benefits of a mutual aid society, it brought the mem- �30 SLOVAKIA hers of a local branch together for periodic meetings and conferences, it ,s pomored national conventions and its bylaws emphasrzed fidelity to reliigious duty. This was putting first thing,s first. Flather Furdelk repeatedly msisted that it was imperative for Cathollics to jom Catlholic societies because non-sectarian infiJ.uences, innocuous as they may seem to be, have a tendency to cool fervor and lead to indifference in the spiritual liife. AIS a matter of fuct, there were some sad instaJn ces to prove that suoh Hberallism even resulted in ag,nostici,s,m aJild free thinikling. These were the rugged days of early pioneering for great numbe11s of :immigrants. In theiT period of adjustment they were e~osed to both adva,ntJa:ges and <lis•a dvanta,ges. Men who 'had 'been iong suppressed and oppressed found themselves sudden,l y free amd they couM have leaned over too far, disregaroing or discoun:tin:g some forms of autJhority completely, claiming an Ulllcontro:J.lled emancipation. Father FuTdek's presence and influence among them was the needed leaven. Patiently and finnJ.y he worlked to balance their outlook. CourageQIUJS•l y he set himself again,s t tJhe forces that advocated a ,c omplete libera!l<tsm or secuffiarism, tJhat disregard for spiritual discipline that would have resulted in crass materialism. Wit'h the gnts of a !born tea·o her he rooched his people and restrained tJhem from becoming the victims of such errors. He saved them from tJhe influence of false ,l eaders and besides ta<king a necessa11Hy agressive stand in these ma;tters, he also stimll'lated lay acti'Vity. In teaching the meaning of 1iib erty, Father Furde'k stressed the opportunities wthich his peo'.)le should use here for self-improvement amd cultural adva;ncement. One year after founding the Jednota o:t1ganization, he launched tlhe J,ffiDNOTA weekly (1891) whi-dh 1became the offici~l organ of tJhe society. In 1896 at his own e~ense he gave his people their first JE}DNOTA iK:ALffiNDAiR, an annrua•l or a!hnanac. llil t his way :h e brought into the homes of ha:t1d-worlcing common people press materials whioh became a medium of culture and a weHspring of spiritual refreshment. The duties of editing and publicrution were his and althougih it meant a tremendous demand on his time, energy and talent to compose rund expedite a newspaper every week 8.llld a ri~h almanac every year, he aJSSumed this blll'den and responsibility in addition to his pastoral wook be- �SLOVAKIA 31 cause he knew how mu,~h the Slovairos in Ameriica needed such wholesome reading matter. He also invited quaJlirfied oontriibutors to send mainuscriipts and it was usually our priests both here and from aibr-oad wiho did sulbmit some exceHent articles for the Jednota publication. Slov,aJk immigr,ants with theiir new privilege of reading t!heir own newspapers in America were being instructed amd infoI1llled lb y them. A Jedinotar w,ho took up his copy alter a day's strenuous wcmk on the furm or in a mine, mill or factory, found relaxation and enjoyment in reading its columns. His Catholic weekly broug1ht him news items, editoriials, tJhe Sunday epistle amd gospel wiibh a homhly, e~lanations of the oatMhism and of tJhe Hturgical year, interesting lessons on :the duties and privileges of American citizenship, and a survey of American history presented eit!her topicaHy or serially or throug.h biographical sketches. Father Furdek's admiration for America and his devotion to the ideal of democr,acy prompted him to write on this subject repeatedly and to urge Slovaks in America to become natlurcli1irzed. His patriotism to two countries was baJlanced with an uneXJceiled nicety and with demoeratic expertness which 'he e~ressed very a:ptly in the poem "Amerika, zem velilka" ("America, Great Land") which was awarded first honors in a competition sponsored by P. V. Rovnianek. In th4:s poem Furdek sings the glories of America - her progress, her emancipation of the slave, her democracy, her greaJt native sons, her mothering of the oppressed who come to her shores, the opportunities she o:fifera to all witJhout discrimination. Then he voices a touohilllg apostrophe to his homeland, characterized by the snow-ca:pped Tatry, as if he wished to e~ress the assurance that the ocean may separate but it does not divide a loyial people. Poetically and neatly he arigues that a son still. loves his mother tJhoug,h he gives his heart to his wife, and that it is by just such a pa,ra'Hel that loyial emigrants love the land they left as well as the country of their adoption. 'Dhe more he studied the problems of the day, the more he became convinced that practica11y all the Slovak :immigrants in America were here to stay. This reaili2Jation made him aiH the more eager to he]Jp them :to become intelligent .American citizens, men and women capaible of a great love �32 SLOVAKIA for this democratic new wonld yet mindful and proud of their ancestry. He often reminded them to note how muoh ilm.iproved their living cO'llditions were here over w'ihat ~hey had been under the MaJgy,a r regime at home. He urged them to compare America's repulblicaJn fomn orf government with Hungary's despotism. He repeatedly pointed out that there is no subject class in this country aJnd 1Jhat ruH wiho enjoyed America's freedom have many opportunities to advance and improve themselves. Furdek's articles represented America as a great school w;here t!he iimmig:r,ant could learn out orf the book of actuaJ living amd doing. He pointed out that here even an unschooled SlovaJk w011ker learns rhow to mine ores, he comes to understand the intricacies amd 1:Jhe operation of simple and orf complex machines, he reads aind he learns from his newspapers, he travels free1y and cain master basic geography, he struggles with tJhe fanguage problem and everutua:lly he can come to sipea:k English as well a:s a teacher. In short, whatever he needs to know, he can learn in 1:Jhe scthool of Amerioan 1ife. Furdek thad am unlbound patriotism which is reflected in all his journaJlistic output. As a matter of fact, he was no mere journa:list; he was a pub1ioist who propagiated his open admiration aind devotion to America togetJher with a steady remembrance and love for Slovalkia. He forecast the Americanization of the Slovaks - not becaJUse America is a melting pot but because it is irmposs~ble for human life and thoug,ht to withsbrund the tide of change and the demands of reasona1ble adjustment. But he did not favor a sudden and complete sundering from home ties. Wisely he urged his people to preserve a love for ancestraJl roots and an appreciation of their national culture aJnd to transmit this devotion to future generations. It is not without cause that we look upon him ais the Father of American Slovaks. There was no problem of American Stlovak life that escruped his serious study and analysis. He took a definite stand in every sigmificant isSl\le and wherever the need required it, he was bhe spiI'itual a:dviser, prime mover, •a nd inspiration to thousands of people. His was a many-sided creatiwiess and 1he had a genius for keeping pace with the progress orf time. '!'he Jednota, whiclh he founded, preserved the ideals of Fu11dek because he himself �SLOVAKIA 33 was so deeply imbued with the spiriit which he imparted to it. It was a spirit which even reac'hed from America to Silovakia and supported national movements there. See him now as he blesses himself on finishing his rosary. He looks caJlm and untroubled but a heavy oross lies upon his heart. "How wiU this affair end?" he asks himself. Here he is coming to a rally intended to alleviate suffering abroad and to strengthen the spirit of his people on this new soil, aind yet this very ceil~ration threatens to brmg about undesirable Tesults. He and his brother.,priests have designated the gathering to which he is going as a Slovak Catho1ic Congress, but enemies - like the GOiSpel sowers of tares among the wheat - have been busy noi:sing it abroad that Father Furdek and his al'lies planned this mass meeting in order to launch a new heresy and to effect a schism of Slovak Catholics. And the wi1d rumor was reported officiail!ly even to the Apostolic Delegate in W a:sihimgton and to various bisihops and archbishops, urging t:Jhem to suspend and penalize all those priests wlho were in any way associa,ted with the affair. Father Furdek's name, namuraUy, led the rest in the list of tJhose who were marked to be proscribed. What was the outcome to 1be? The great S,lova1k Catholic Co'lligress took pla:ce on La:bor Day, September 3, 1906 in Wrl1kes-Barre. It attraoted oveT ten thousand Slovaks from all parts of Amedca and that in a day when traveling was time-consuming, tiresome, imconvenient, a:nd much of a humry for people wi1lh limited earnings. The program of tJhe day was planned to irndude religious services a1nd a series of addresses both in English and in Slovak on subjects of vital interest and conseque-nce to the Slovruk people. 1 Father Furdek arranged for representatives of the daily newspapers as well as editors of leading SlovaJk publications to be present in order to cover t'he story. Tihis would provide a greater circUJlation of reports on Slova1k matters among ,a little-informed American iputbHc as well as among an interested Slovruk audience. It was for this reasorn also that he arranged for notable American officiaJls and dignitaries to attend. It would be very he1pful to 'have tJhem become acquaimted with the Slovruk question. Bishop Hoban of Scranton had agreed to preside. �34 SLOVAKIA WihaJt was Fa!tlher Furdek to eX!pect of his plans now that such damaging stories were ma!king their rounds in o,nficia:l circles as well as among the common people? Would Bishop Hdban honor the occasion with rhis presence? And if he came, would it lbe to censure or to question or to approve tJhe true effort of Father Flurdek and his co-wo!1kers? One could not very welll iknow before hand. On the morning of the Congress, Father Furdek and Faltlher Murgas set out by horise and carriage for Sugar Notc'h where tJhey were to call for Bishop Hoban and drive Mm to the Congress. They went with mixed emotions but they were fortified by the consciousness of upright motives 0Jnd blameless conduct. Bislhop Hoban did not disaippoint them. He graciously accepted their offer of a ride and showed that he was eager to act as chairman of the event which they had prepared. As he mounted the carriage 8/Ild sat between the two priests, he put ithem at ease by p1ungilllg at once into the subject of their to:r,menting thoug,hts, the painful topic of the accusations whicih had 1been made against them. He discussed some of the charges at length and judiciously disposed of them. For inst8Jllce, he found it ridiculous that in America where liberty prevaiils someone shOU!ld giloaJt ilil laibeling them PianSlavs (because of their a:Megiance to tJheir native lamd. "I iknow yoUT people well, " Bishop Hdban said wit!h gentle UIIlderstanding in tJhe couTISe of itihi s conversation. Then as they were passing the Ashley ohurcih he added, "l built tfuis ohur,c'h when I was pastor here. Among my parishioners were m8/Ily Slova:k,s and I became wel!l. acquainted wiibh them. I have great sympathy for the SlovaJks." 1 "I am an American althoug;h my ancestors came from Irel81Ild," the Bishop continued as though he were marshalli!ng faots in a debate. "The Irish have a long history of political persecution; tlle Irish :kin.ow wlhat it is to be oppressed. I have great sympa:tJhy for every oppressed nation whetlher irt be Armeruam, Polish, kish or whatever it may be. There a,re many nationalities in my diocese and I do not discriminate. We are all OatJhoHcs." Bishop Hoban could not undel'Stand why the idea of Pan-Slav should figure in an indictment presented to eccles- �35 SLOVAKIA iastical superiors. "What has that to do wit'h it? fo America one may be a Pan-American; ilil Germany, let him wiho wishes ,b e a Pan-Gennam. It is no crime or sin to be a Pam-S[av. 'l'he term has political implication only." He was shrewd enoug,h to perceive that the charges which had ,been trumped up under c-lerical pretentiOIIlS were 1basicaJBy of a politicall nature and tha;t they were essentially distortions or gross misrepresentations. Im the course of this ride, Bishop Hobim also showed FaJther Furdek a communication from t!he Apostolic Delegate inqu~riD'g ililto the nature of the accusations. But Bishop Hoban assured both priests that he had already sent to Washington a complete report vindicating the acoused and exiplainililg the motives that had prompted 1:Jhe effort to foil 1:Jhe success of the Catholic Congress. And they were, in fact, extreme measures to which the p'lotJters had resorted. At the last moment they even tried to intimidate Bishop Hoban by sendililg him a telegram warning that his presence at the Silovak Catholic Congress wou[d reflect discredit UipOn t!he American Catholic hierarchy. But BiSlhop Hobam was not to be deterred by t!hreats. In fact, he justly resented the attempts to put pressure on him from un8Juthor1zed quarters. Becaiuse of Bishop Hoban's fundaJmental ohaTity for ahl, his sympathy for the downtrodden and his unbiased sense of democracy, the Catholic Congress of Slovak Americans was a more glorious event than even Father Furdek had hoped it would be. It wa•s a complete vindicatiO!Il of the priests who 'had ,b een maJligned and it was am unqoo:lified triumph for the Slova:k people. Bishop Hoban openly championed their cause, the press gave the even.rt fulil coverage, and the SlovaJk people themselves were iby this huge gatJhering more closely bound to one amother than they had ever been before. The manifestation was a Catiholic Congress but it attracted many Slovruk•s of other religious denominrutions, too, as well as from various fraternall orgaJnizations both Ca:tholic and non-sectarian. This triumph of September 3, 1906 marked a lmld of renaissamce in Slovak life on two continents and it inspired Father Fourdek to urge upon Slovaik leaders iJil publ-ic life the formation of a national SloV0Jk organizrution to unify 1 �36 SLOVAKIA the American effort on behalf of Slov,a;kia. The outcome was the S1ovaik League of America which iin time evolved from suClh pre1i1minary movements as Furdek's drive "Za tu nasu slovenicinu !" (Jin defense of the Slovak cause!) which netted some ten thousand doll,ars for 1:Jhe na,t ional aid in the home1a:nd; the National Fund which sUJbsidized at least two hundred Slovruk students abroad rund brought relief to very many Slovak political leaders ,t hen houinded by unjust persecution, a:nd the lawnching of "Indignation Meetings" or pwbli,c demonstrations throughout the United States in order to protest the injushce and 1:Jhe human cruelty which viotimiized the Slovak people in their own homeland. 'I1hese tokens of help from America re-vitaUzed the crushed spirit and the depleted energies of S1ova!k patriots who were driven almost to t:he brilllk of despair iin fueir efiforts to save Silova kia. Costly :fii:nes and unrelenting pressure were syistematicaUy draining their resources and counteracting their achievements. American interest and Americain slllpport were their only encouraigement and mainstay. FiinanciaJ help came from tJhe drives which were organized expressly to raise funds. Morrul support was won by the Indignation Raillies, seven of which were originally planned to be held in key cities of the United States. T:he first of these was arranged by Father Furdek in 0levelaind. 1 LiJke all of Father Furdek's projects, tMs Indignation RaHy, too, was staimped with his spirit. Jit was an inspired and an inspiring demonstration, and it set 1:Jhe pattern for similar puiblic meetings. It:s puripose was to publicize Slov,aJkia's grievances against autocratic Hungarian agression, to prove t:hat Hungary was not in reality that "islallld of liberty" in central Europe which it gloried in caiHing itself, and to solicit the sympathy and the understanding of true leaders of liberty among the Americam people. Outstanding representatives of Americain 1ife amd thought participated in these rallies. For example, at the Cleveland gathering held on February 10, 1907, a crupaoity audience in Gray's Armory gave speHbo·u nd attention to addresses delivered by Professor Bourine, by three attorneys, three priests, and seveml journailists. The American public and especially the American thinking :public was quickly beginning to see the truth. At the �37 SLOVAKIA same time, the f,ire of truth amd the justified indignarti<on orf all lovers of justice was rea,ching out among S'loV'aJks and non-Slo'V'aJks alike, to enkindJe effective means for the triumph of true Iiiberty and fairness. ~he time seemed to be right then for Father FuTdek to try again to efifect a nationwide unification of the Slovak people in America. He had attempted it before when he founded the Matica S•l ovenska, a cultural society which did not thrive lonig because new world cond~tions were not yet favo:r,a!ble for such am undertwkrng (1893). Thi:s newer effort originated at a Pittsburgh meeting of SlovaJk journalisrts convened at Fa,ther Furdek's iinvitation on April 7, 1907 where it wa,,s agreed to stage a SlovaJk Congress in May for the purpose of founding the Slovak League of America. The time was ausipi'Cious, the attitude was enthusiastic, the fruit of the movement was good. 1 The Slovak L eague of America became a civic and cultural organization with a dual objective: 1) to advaJnce American interests and security and 2) to create a better understanding and ruppredation of the islova•k nation - its history, culture, traditions, achievements, and its long, bitter struggle for freedom and autonomy. The first president of the Slovak League was Father Furdelk and he aJbly guided its interests and its efforts and helped to launch it very successfully upon its fruitful career. Furdek 's spirit of self-sacrifice and his relentless drive took :lwavy toH on his physical resources. He burned out his life young but the flame of his ardor would allow no sparing of self when there was so much to be done for God and nation, for bme and for eternity. And even when it was apparent that his energies were faiNng, he did not stop to think of himself. Always his dominant thought was for others and for the general good. Extensive traveling, constant literary production, frequent appearances as a pubEc spewker or a church preacher, steady devotion to the management of his parish, constant attention to the needs of his school and its advancement , concern for the welrfare of a,,11 his people - these and many related issues crowded his days and his nights. 1 It is difficult to realize how he managed such a rich and fruitful life, how he provided in it for projects of nat - �38 SLOVAKIA ionail scope and significance as weM as for close and immediate needs such as tJhe compiling of three textbooks, a gra,matiJka and two citamky of such S'lllperior practicail use and benefit thaJt they served .s everal generations with soUJDd advantage. He also experimented wibh a patented pedaJgogic,rul device for fille teadhring of a,:r,~tlhmetic. A,s early as 1906 Father Fur<lek had brought about officiail aotion for the founding of a home for oriphans. F\inaiHy in 1914 he had the joy of seeing such a home a reality ilrl Middletown, Pennsylv,ania where Phili,p and Mary Hroba!k of Lakewood, Ohio were the first children under J ednota care in a home manruged by tlhe S1isters of SS. Cyril and Methodius. Father Furdeik was also deeply initerested in t!lris new Slovak Community of Sisters and he endorsed the efforts of the Jednota ovgani21ation to adv,am,ce it and its wovks. After 1912 FatJher Furoek's healit:Jh was so much on the declrine that hris vision became imiparirred. Yet he carnied on heroicailly and even shortly after the New Year 1915 he accepted an invitation to preacll at a Forty Hours' Devotion ;in LoraJin, Ohio. It wrus on his retmm fr.om t!his priestly servke that he suffered eX)posure in a wintry storm amd on January 18, 1915, in t!he fifty-lllinbh year of his life, the thirty-second of his priesthood, he was called to his eternal reward. Fi,fty thousand Jedn<Ybars and cowntless friends and adirniirers on both sides of the Ati1'amtic mourned his death. 1 The tvue greatness of Father Furdek is made more digtJin:ct to us as it stamds in the perspective of years since his death. T,he void left by his deparrture to etemal life has IIlever been fiiil.led, and we see now tJhat it was with prophetic appreciaition and with some degree of regrettruble lament that Father J anikola spdke 1:Jhese words in his euJlogy on t'he day orf Father Furdek's funeral, "We wiH never see his like again. Slovrukia shall not send us another Furdek; America wi:Jil not produce another." 1 The greaJtness of Father Furdek's achievements derives from fille gifts of hi:s mind rund Clharrucl:er not from a mere aiccident of circumstances. We have even now ,t he need for ArrneriJcan Slovruks of uncommon gifts and moral stature to foad on in a modem world of mrugni:fl1cent opport.ll!Ilities. We need leaders who are seers and doe11s, wtho can vi:talli:ze and �SLOVAKIA 3g inspire, who can hold before us the V1s1on and dispel our lethargy so that we American Slova!ks will want to :reaclh out for the attaiinment, will want to assert a pride of aincestry and a new hig,h of national greatness. But it has not been given us to have a second Furdelk in America. God grant that a younger geineration may pl'O'V'ide fuat in,s piration end greatness. As we survey Father FuTdek's place and his merits in American Slovalk history, we come to realize how well he deserves to be honored 8Jlld remembeTed as tlhe Father of American Sllovaks. BIBLIOGRAPHY Capek, Thomas, The Slovaks of Hungary. New York: The Knickerbocker Press, 1906. 214 pp. Cooke, Vincent, "Catholic Objectives in the Care of Children," Catholic Action, XXXII (May, 1950), 8. Culen Konlitantin, "American Slovaks and Slovak Statehood," Slovakia, I (May, 1951), 18. Culen, Konl;tantin, Slovcici v Amerike, Turciansky Sv. Martin, Slovakia, Matica Slovenska Press, 1938. 519 pp. Culen. Konstantin, "Stefan Furdek," Kultura, VII (September 1935), 377-386. Emerentia, Mother M., History of the Sisters of Saints Cyril and Methodius. Unpublished Master's thesis, Marywood College. Falcon, The, (Katolicky Sokol), Passaic, N. J ., July 5, 1944. Fortieth Anniversary Souvenir 1907-1947, Saints Cyril and Methodius Church, Bridgeport, Connecticut. Furdek, Stephen, Prvci Citanka pre Slovenske Skoly, Cleveland: Furdek, 1913. 125 pp. Furdek, Stephen, Druhci Citanka pre Slovenske Skoly, Cleveland: Furdek, 1913. 125 pp. Furdek, Stephen, "Hymna americkych Slovakov," Kalendcir Jednota, I (January, 1896), 22. Furdek, Stephen, Kalendcir Jednota, 19 Vol. (1896-1915 ). Furdek, Stephen, "Katolicka Jednota vo Spojenych Statoch," Kalendcir Jednota, I (1896 ), 26-37. Furdek, Stephen, "Katolicky Slovensky Kongress," Kalendcir Jednota, XII (1907), 145-155. Furdek, Stephen, "Keby nie jeho, nepotreboval by som dnes ziadneho -Ostavu," Kalendcir Jednota, (1914), 69. �40 SLOVAKIA Furdek, Stephen, Sv et a jeho zahady. Cleveland: Furdek, 1910. 250 pp. Hlinka, Andrew, "K jubileu striebornej konvencie Prvej Katolickej Slovenskej Jednoty v Amerike," Kalendar Jednota, (1935) , 35. Hrobak, Philip, Ed., Editorial, Slov akia, I, (May, 1951). Hrobak, Philip, "The First Catholic Slovak Union of the U.S.A. ," Slov ak Record, (September, 1943) . Rusek, Joseph, "K dvadsat'pat'rocnici I. Kat. Slov. Jednoty," Kalendar Jednota, (January, 1916) 30-59. Rusek, Stephanie, "The Slovaks in America," Kalendar Jednota, Golden Jubilee, (September 2, 1940) 111-116. J ednota, Middletown, Pa., Dec. 17, 1913; Mar. 11, 1914; June 17, 1914; June 17, 1914; Sept. 23, 1914; Jan. 20, 1915; Jan. 27, 1915; Feb. 11, 1915; Apr. 24, 1935; June 18, 1952. K niha dejin Spolku sv. Jozefa, cislo 1. Z prilezitosti oslavy 50. rocneho jubileuma. Cleveland: 1939. Kozak, A. V., "-Ostav I. Katolickej Slovenskej Jednoty," Kalendar Jednota, ( 1912) 19-24. Leech, George L. , Letter to First Catholic Slovak Union on the Occasion of Its Golden Jubilee, 1940. Liscinsky, John Method, "Katolicka Slovenska 2enska Jednota," ( 1911 ) 180-184. Martvon, John, "Autobiograficky nacrt," Kale ndar Jednota, Golden Jubilee, (September 2, 1940) 19. Mulcahy, George, "Life of Saints Cyril and Methodius," Radio Broadcast on Diocesan Catholic Hour, WHP, Feb. 13, 1940. Palickar, Stephen J., " Father Furdek, Leader," Commonweal, VI (June 8, 1927) 126. Prva Katolicka Slovenska Jednota, "Kulturny Program Prvej Kat. Slov. Jednoty," Kalendar Jednota, (1935) 31. Rovnianek, P . V., Zapi sky za ziva pochovaneho. Pittsburgh: Rovnianek Press, 1924. Slovak League of America, Editorial, "What Is It?" The Slov ak Digest, I, (November-December, 1946) . Slovak v Amerike, New York, N. Y., August 30, 1949. Spolok Panny Marie Ruzencovej , Z Dejin I .K.S.J. , Pamatnik Slavnej XVII. Konvencie I.K.S.J., (September, 1925), Scranton, Pa. Tybor, Caroline, " Slovak Language in Our Academy," Fialky, IV (December, 1924) 71-72. Yurchak, Peter J. , The Slovaks, Their History and Tradition, Whiting : John J . Lach, 1946. 278 pp. Zlamal, Oldrich, "Life of Reverend Stephen Furdek," Sixtieth Anniv ersary of Our Lady of Lourdes Parish, (Svet Publishing Co. , Cleveland, Ohio) 1943. � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource 1966, Vol. 16 Description An account of the resource Vol. 16 (No. 39), 1966. Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available The Slovak League of America Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1966 Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Text Any textual data included in the document SLOVAKIA 25 FATHER OF AMERICAN SLOVAKS By Si ster M . Martina Tybor, SS.C.M. The noisy night tra1n daittered out of Cleveland, Ohio. Its pa;sse:ngers -by tmns re'la.xed or braced tfuemselves in keepin1g with tihe jo1ti1Ilg ThytJhms of the orange-eyed monster as it spumed spat1ks and ,c inders and hurtled along the shiny rails toward Pennsylvania. Among the travelers, it ca·ITied a thougihllful priest wihose quiet eyes looked upon liife with a wisdom born of natural gifts and rich exiperience. 'l'he tr,ain ste adied itself to ain even speed. A conductor came down the aisle punohirng tiokets and as ihe took U!p Fatller's, the yehlow gleam from tfue ga:s jet ovet1head showed that it was daited early iJil September 1906 and was made ourt for Wilkes-Barre. '11he dim light also reveailed the identirf,ication tag on Father's traveling bag marked Rev. Stephen Furdek Our Lady of Lou'I'ldes Church Cleveland, Ohio For a few moments after the conductoT moved on, Father fingered the gold cross that huing from his watoh chain. Then he studied some letters and paipers from his porbfolio, and finally he reached into ihis pocket for his prayer beads. From early dhi:1dhood lh e had Oll'ltivated a m3/I'lked dev,otion to OuT Lady and he 1ha,d in her a sure refuge and he'lp in every need. He had grown up amid hardships and difificuUies of aH kinds ·b ut the wais not hurt or wa11ped lby them. In fact, crosses had only made him the stronger to endure more. Let us trace some of ihis growing-up days a:nd you wihl see fOT yourself. September 2, 1855 was the date of Stephen furdek's bir,tJh, and Tr,s tena in Orava County, 1Sloviakia, was the phaoe. In maiteTial resouTces Oreva ,is one of tlh.e poorest regions orf central Europe but it has given -tfue Slovak people a remairkaJble number orf intellectuails and leaders. Stephen Furdelk, too, 'becairne one of tihese grea,t men of his people, for God had fitted him for a parti!oohar work amd lh.e was reaidy when the time was right. His scholastic career was bri.ililianrt even from his ele- 26 SLOVAKIA merutaTy grades at the villaige sdhool where he was ta'l.tght by 1:Jhe Franciscans. For his ,hig1h school courses Stephen went to Bamska Bystrioa amd then to the gymnazium or senior high sdhool in Nitra. lt was m Nitra, too, tihat he begoo 'his semim.ary training for the priestlhood. Because of his outstandin1g success in phHosophy and -theology, howeveT, his bishop singled out Stephen FuTdek for special studies at tJhe univemity in Budapest. This 'hirg,h honor and distinction was especially gratifying to lris parents who were providi!ng for ihirs education at the cost of great sacrifice. Unfortunately, the young student took sick in Buda,pe,st and iha:d to return home. On recovering, he resumed hirs studies ·but he decided to Teturn to itlhe Nirtra seminary r-atiher tham ,to tlle university in Budapest. He <Xmcenrtrated on his lessoos 'but politiml troubles dirstu111bed the times very much and the spirit of unrest and hosthl:ity reached even into the seminary. ,Stephen Fu<rdek's tempernment preferred peace to contention. Y oll!Ilg as he was, he h,ad a sixth sense whiic:ih directed birm toward a tactful line of CO'lldruct, toward a decisiion wihioh would avoid tmUJble wiitlhout sia,crifici111g principle. Besi<les, he enjoyed the fatfuerly guidance of the Trstemiborn Dr. Martin Hattala, an eminent priest-philologist who was at tlhis time a professor of languages at ChaTles University in Pr-ague. Acti'lllg under these two iin:filuences, tJhe student Furdek withdrew from see1:1hirng Nitra. 'Dhis step demanded the sacrifice of ihis priestly ideal! but the ·s pirit of the times was such thaJt a SlovaJk patriot was denied the opportunity to complete his studies for professional work. 'Dhe overlords demanded that you eicf:lher tramsfex- your ai1legiamoe or surrender academic pur~suit. Ln leaving the semin,a.ry, Stephen did what he 1!hougiht was •r ight and he firmly trusted in God. FoT some time after he left Nitra, Furdek was a teacher in Stramirl.ce, MoraViia. This took him out of t!he region of trouble 1b ut his new work did not satisfy him. Realizing thaJt this was not really his vocation, he decided to return to 1his books. Perhaps he felt 1!hat iif he had to be denied the privfiledge of serving his people as a priest, he wOIU!ld .t ry to serve them as a fully ti,ained professionaJl, a specia:liized teaC'heT, pemaps one Hke Dr. Haittala whose distiinction it was to be both a priest and a teac!her. SLOVAKIA 27 F,or tihree years F1t.mieJk diligently studied classical laJnguages and ,philology at OhaI'les Universiity. Dlll'ing this tirme he ibecame acquainted wiith Dr. Flrancis Bauer who was rector of the diocesan seminary in P,r ague amd was deslbined to •b ecome camdmaJl ar<fub1slhop of O1omoUJc in Moravia. Dr. Bauer saw ilrl the promising s.tudenit the greaiter promise of service for botJh God amd country. He advised Furdek .to Teturn to his seminary couTses and lh e suggested that it would be well for him to do so rig.ht there in Prague. F1uridek was haJppy to have this encouraigement. It retll!I'ned to him tJhe hope dearest ito his th eart and brought him oloser to its Tealiization. He followed Dr. Bauer's advice e8)gerly . .AJbout four years lateT, w!hen he was in hls last year of theology, FuTdek learned tlhat an urgent appe81l from America rea•o hed his superiors. lt 08)me from Bishop Riobard Gi:lrmour of Cleveland, Ohio, and eXJpressed ,h is concern foT the spirituaJ care of many Slavic immigrants lirvmg in his diocese wrthout a priest of their OWtil tongue to minister to their needs. Bishop GilmoUT ha;d written to severau European bishops amd to various religious orders beg,gi:ng for priests and for advanced students who wouid be ruble to finish their studies ilrl America 01nd serve these people in Christ's narrne. 'Dhis was a caJ!l for generous and missiona,rysouled worikers. Who would be foU1I1d willing to answer? Who would be qualified? Father Francis Sasinek, am eXJperiienced and soholtarly Slovak priest, recommended tJhe semi.nariam Furdek for this responsible work. Furrdek's superions at the seminary endorsed the recommenda:tion, for they knew that ,t his young man had 'tJhe spiTituaJ.ity and the tiauenrt:s to succeed in such an assig,nmenrt of pionem-ing for Ohrist among the immigramts in America. The prospects were ma:de known to him and though it cost muoh to part frcxm al!l that was so dear to him, Stephen Furdek generously mrade the sa,cr.iifice. It was tJhe g,uiding prindple of his lirfe to wol'k for God amd for country, and here is taJil'gilble proof tJhat he did not merely iderulize t,hat motto; he lived it wibh aU its implioations. He bade farewell to ,his famhly and friends in tJhe spring of 1882 and embanked for .America. By March 15 he w,as in Cleveland, strengtihened by itihe ,g ,ra,ce of God and seasoned by past hardships for whatever trials might lie in the years 28 SLOVAKIA aJhead. Jin tfuis new and wondel'fttl though still st'l'!all!ge world, he completed his studies in a few montlhs and was ordained by Bishop Gilmour in St. Wenceslaus Church on JUJly 1 of t!he same year. This was tJhe fulfillment of hi:s fondest dreams. For aibout ten months a;fter ordination, Father Furdek served as an assistant at St. Wenceslaus. At the same bme, however, he arranged for the Slova!ks of the area to attend Sunday mass offered by a non.,SloV1aJk Franciscan Father at St. Joseph's ohurch in Clevelailld where he himself would come every week to prea•ch, to inst'I'll'ct, and to hea:r confessions in Slovak. This 1kind of dual apostolate •becaJme FatJher Furdek's liifework. For all his priesi'ly yeiars dati:ng from April 1883 until his death on J ,a nuary 18, 1915, he was pastor of Our Lady of Lourdes par~sh which the bishop authori!zed him to organize, and he devoted hims~Lf to the care and guidance of countless Sloy,a•IDs throughout America. For what do we remeimbeT him most? He was an exemplary pr,iest, educator, leader, organizer, journalist, novelist, poet, paitriot - and he merited every one of these distmctions folly. Yet over and a:bove aill this, he was in the true sense of 1Jhe word t!he F'atJher of Amerioan Slovaks. He ha:d 'haroly orientiated h~mself i:n this adopted coootry when he reaJLized that his God.igiven mission extended beyond the immediate needs of the parish work that was a:ssi:gned to him. He always discharged his pastora.'l duties conscientiously ,but parish wonk was not hiiis one falent to be hidden safely m a napkin and retu:rmed to the Master at His coming. Fat!her Furdek was entrusted v,ivh mamy talents and he zealously trafficked with the much that had been g,iven him. Besides ,buildi:ng a maignificent church and a modem school of sixteen classrooms, besides managing all the interests of Our Lady of Lourdes parish and its sohool witlh an enrollment of a thousand pupils, Father Furdek heliped to organize many Slovruk parishes ·both in Clevelaind and in other widely scattered Slovak •s ettlements. The need of the hour was to help these Sloviak immigrants to achieve a sense of belongiiing, to giive them a bond of unity, to satisfy their spiriturul cravmg a.ind their sociail needs amd to educaJte tJhem. It was important to teach them cooperation in wmikiing for common i:nterests and mutual helpfuhl.ess. Solicitous F1ather SLOVAKIA 29 of all the Slova:ks in America that he was, Father Furdek took each of these problems to heaTt and worked for its soliution. To iprovide priests for newly organized and organi,z ing panishes, Father Furdek undertook more th3Jn one trip to Slova,kia because both hiis bishop a,nd he realized that personal conta,ct would be more effectiv,e than any ot her type of solicitation. And he did succeed in interesting a number of worthy priests a,nd derics from abroad to come to these pioneer parishes a,mong the immigrants. But even wi1:Jh individuail parishes organized here and there a,s circumstances warranited it, the entire ,problem of the Slovak immigrant in America was not solved. Father Furdek in hi:s missionary travels among the people witnessed their efforts to for,m local fraternal and benefiicial societies. He saw a:lso that his countrymen needed to 1be safeguarded from leaders and movements that threatened their spiritua[ outlook while pretending to offer them materiaJl advantages. Before ,}ong he realized, too, that most of those newcomers were going to establish permanent homes in America; they needed to plan for a secure future and a wlholesome heritage for their posteriity :iin the new world. Riis keen vision sa,w 'beyond the immediate present, 0JS does every true leader's. Beg,inning wi:th a nucleus of pioneers in Clevela,nd, Father Furdek in 1890 founded a men's organization called the First Catholic Slova,k Union or the Jednota. Two years later a similia:r ladies' organization wa;s began. The Jecmota grew to be the largest Slovak fratemal bene£it organization in the world. It is also a strong pillar of Slova:k Ca,t;Jholicity in America. 'J1hrough it, Father Furdeik propag,ated the vivifying ti deal "For God and N ruti001." On this Chri:stiain prin~ ciple is formulated the entire philosophy a;nd structure of the Jednota aind this is what ,g ives tJhe body its stabi'Li:ty and strength. To a people making history in a la:nd where they were without traditions, without established precedent, it was essentiall to build wisely and well. Father Furdeik with his gift of vision prepared that ·b luepriint for them e~ceptiona1ly wel!l. His firm hut tactflllil leadershiip directed the early funmigrants toward healthy progress. 'Dhe Jeiooota pmvided aU tlhe ·benefits of a mutual aid society, it brought the mem- 30 SLOVAKIA hers of a local branch together for periodic meetings and conferences, it ,s pomored national conventions and its bylaws emphasrzed fidelity to reliigious duty. This was putting first thing,s first. Flather Furdelk repeatedly msisted that it was imperative for Cathollics to jom Catlholic societies because non-sectarian infiJ.uences, innocuous as they may seem to be, have a tendency to cool fervor and lead to indifference in the spiritual liife. AIS a matter of fuct, there were some sad instaJn ces to prove that suoh Hberallism even resulted in ag,nostici,s,m aJild free thinikling. These were the rugged days of early pioneering for great numbe11s of :immigrants. In theiT period of adjustment they were e~osed to both adva,ntJa:ges and <lis•a dvanta,ges. Men who 'had 'been iong suppressed and oppressed found themselves sudden,l y free amd they couM have leaned over too far, disregaroing or discoun:tin:g some forms of autJhority completely, claiming an Ulllcontro:J.lled emancipation. Father FuTdek's presence and influence among them was the needed leaven. Patiently and finnJ.y he worlked to balance their outlook. CourageQIUJS•l y he set himself again,s t tJhe forces that advocated a ,c omplete libera!l<tsm or secuffiarism, tJhat disregard for spiritual discipline that would have resulted in crass materialism. Wit'h the gnts of a !born tea·o her he rooched his people and restrained tJhem from becoming the victims of such errors. He saved them from tJhe influence of false ,l eaders and besides ta<king a necessa11Hy agressive stand in these ma;tters, he also stimll'lated lay acti'Vity. In teaching the meaning of 1iib erty, Father Furde'k stressed the opportunities wthich his peo'.)le should use here for self-improvement amd cultural adva;ncement. One year after founding the Jednota o:t1ganization, he launched tlhe J,ffiDNOTA weekly (1891) whi-dh 1became the offici~l organ of tJhe society. In 1896 at his own e~ense he gave his people their first JE}DNOTA iK:ALffiNDAiR, an annrua•l or a!hnanac. llil t his way :h e brought into the homes of ha:t1d-worlcing common people press materials whioh became a medium of culture and a weHspring of spiritual refreshment. The duties of editing and publicrution were his and althougih it meant a tremendous demand on his time, energy and talent to compose rund expedite a newspaper every week 8.llld a ri~h almanac every year, he aJSSumed this blll'den and responsibility in addition to his pastoral wook be- SLOVAKIA 31 cause he knew how mu,~h the Slovairos in Ameriica needed such wholesome reading matter. He also invited quaJlirfied oontriibutors to send mainuscriipts and it was usually our priests both here and from aibr-oad wiho did sulbmit some exceHent articles for the Jednota publication. Slov,aJk immigr,ants with theiir new privilege of reading t!heir own newspapers in America were being instructed amd infoI1llled lb y them. A Jedinotar w,ho took up his copy alter a day's strenuous wcmk on the furm or in a mine, mill or factory, found relaxation and enjoyment in reading its columns. His Catholic weekly broug1ht him news items, editoriials, tJhe Sunday epistle amd gospel wiibh a homhly, e~lanations of the oatMhism and of tJhe Hturgical year, interesting lessons on :the duties and privileges of American citizenship, and a survey of American history presented eit!her topicaHy or serially or throug.h biographical sketches. Father Furdek's admiration for America and his devotion to the ideal of democr,acy prompted him to write on this subject repeatedly and to urge Slovaks in America to become natlurcli1irzed. His patriotism to two countries was baJlanced with an uneXJceiled nicety and with demoeratic expertness which 'he e~ressed very a:ptly in the poem "Amerika, zem velilka" ("America, Great Land") which was awarded first honors in a competition sponsored by P. V. Rovnianek. In th4:s poem Furdek sings the glories of America - her progress, her emancipation of the slave, her democracy, her greaJt native sons, her mothering of the oppressed who come to her shores, the opportunities she o:fifera to all witJhout discrimination. Then he voices a touohilllg apostrophe to his homeland, characterized by the snow-ca:pped Tatry, as if he wished to e~ress the assurance that the ocean may separate but it does not divide a loyial people. Poetically and neatly he arigues that a son still. loves his mother tJhoug,h he gives his heart to his wife, and that it is by just such a pa,ra'Hel that loyial emigrants love the land they left as well as the country of their adoption. 'Dhe more he studied the problems of the day, the more he became convinced that practica11y all the Slovak :immigrants in America were here to stay. This reaili2Jation made him aiH the more eager to he]Jp them :to become intelligent .American citizens, men and women capaible of a great love 32 SLOVAKIA for this democratic new wonld yet mindful and proud of their ancestry. He often reminded them to note how muoh ilm.iproved their living cO'llditions were here over w'ihat ~hey had been under the MaJgy,a r regime at home. He urged them to compare America's repulblicaJn fomn orf government with Hungary's despotism. He repeatedly pointed out that there is no subject class in this country aJnd 1Jhat ruH wiho enjoyed America's freedom have many opportunities to advance and improve themselves. Furdek's articles represented America as a great school w;here t!he iimmig:r,ant could learn out orf the book of actuaJ living amd doing. He pointed out that here even an unschooled SlovaJk w011ker learns rhow to mine ores, he comes to understand the intricacies amd 1:Jhe operation of simple and orf complex machines, he reads aind he learns from his newspapers, he travels free1y and cain master basic geography, he struggles with tJhe fanguage problem and everutua:lly he can come to sipea:k English as well a:s a teacher. In short, whatever he needs to know, he can learn in 1:Jhe scthool of Amerioan 1ife. Furdek thad am unlbound patriotism which is reflected in all his journaJlistic output. As a matter of fact, he was no mere journa:list; he was a pub1ioist who propagiated his open admiration aind devotion to America togetJher with a steady remembrance and love for Slovalkia. He forecast the Americanization of the Slovaks - not becaJUse America is a melting pot but because it is irmposs~ble for human life and thoug,ht to withsbrund the tide of change and the demands of reasona1ble adjustment. But he did not favor a sudden and complete sundering from home ties. Wisely he urged his people to preserve a love for ancestraJl roots and an appreciation of their national culture aJnd to transmit this devotion to future generations. It is not without cause that we look upon him ais the Father of American Slovaks. There was no problem of American Stlovak life that escruped his serious study and analysis. He took a definite stand in every sigmificant isSl\le and wherever the need required it, he was bhe spiI'itual a:dviser, prime mover, •a nd inspiration to thousands of people. His was a many-sided creatiwiess and 1he had a genius for keeping pace with the progress orf time. '!'he Jednota, whiclh he founded, preserved the ideals of Fu11dek because he himself SLOVAKIA 33 was so deeply imbued with the spiriit which he imparted to it. It was a spirit which even reac'hed from America to Silovakia and supported national movements there. See him now as he blesses himself on finishing his rosary. He looks caJlm and untroubled but a heavy oross lies upon his heart. "How wiU this affair end?" he asks himself. Here he is coming to a rally intended to alleviate suffering abroad and to strengthen the spirit of his people on this new soil, aind yet this very ceil~ration threatens to brmg about undesirable Tesults. He and his brother.,priests have designated the gathering to which he is going as a Slovak Catho1ic Congress, but enemies - like the GOiSpel sowers of tares among the wheat - have been busy noi:sing it abroad that Father Furdek and his al'lies planned this mass meeting in order to launch a new heresy and to effect a schism of Slovak Catholics. And the wi1d rumor was reported officiail!ly even to the Apostolic Delegate in W a:sihimgton and to various bisihops and archbishops, urging t:Jhem to suspend and penalize all those priests wlho were in any way associa,ted with the affair. Father Furdek's name, namuraUy, led the rest in the list of tJhose who were marked to be proscribed. What was the outcome to 1be? The great S,lova1k Catholic Co'lligress took pla:ce on La:bor Day, September 3, 1906 in Wrl1kes-Barre. It attraoted oveT ten thousand Slovaks from all parts of Amedca and that in a day when traveling was time-consuming, tiresome, imconvenient, a:nd much of a humry for people wi1lh limited earnings. The program of tJhe day was planned to irndude religious services a1nd a series of addresses both in English and in Slovak on subjects of vital interest and conseque-nce to the Slovruk people. 1 Father Furdek arranged for representatives of the daily newspapers as well as editors of leading SlovaJk publications to be present in order to cover t'he story. Tihis would provide a greater circUJlation of reports on Slova1k matters among ,a little-informed American iputbHc as well as among an interested Slovruk audience. It was for this reasorn also that he arranged for notable American officiaJls and dignitaries to attend. It would be very he1pful to 'have tJhem become acquaimted with the Slovruk question. Bishop Hoban of Scranton had agreed to preside. 34 SLOVAKIA WihaJt was Fa!tlher Furdek to eX!pect of his plans now that such damaging stories were ma!king their rounds in o,nficia:l circles as well as among the common people? Would Bishop Hdban honor the occasion with rhis presence? And if he came, would it lbe to censure or to question or to approve tJhe true effort of Father Flurdek and his co-wo!1kers? One could not very welll iknow before hand. On the morning of the Congress, Father Furdek and Faltlher Murgas set out by horise and carriage for Sugar Notc'h where tJhey were to call for Bishop Hoban and drive Mm to the Congress. They went with mixed emotions but they were fortified by the consciousness of upright motives 0Jnd blameless conduct. Bislhop Hoban did not disaippoint them. He graciously accepted their offer of a ride and showed that he was eager to act as chairman of the event which they had prepared. As he mounted the carriage 8/Ild sat between the two priests, he put ithem at ease by p1ungilllg at once into the subject of their to:r,menting thoug,hts, the painful topic of the accusations whicih had 1been made against them. He discussed some of the charges at length and judiciously disposed of them. For inst8Jllce, he found it ridiculous that in America where liberty prevaiils someone shOU!ld giloaJt ilil laibeling them PianSlavs (because of their a:Megiance to tJheir native lamd. "I iknow yoUT people well, " Bishop Hdban said wit!h gentle UIIlderstanding in tJhe couTISe of itihi s conversation. Then as they were passing the Ashley ohurcih he added, "l built tfuis ohur,c'h when I was pastor here. Among my parishioners were m8/Ily Slova:k,s and I became wel!l. acquainted wiibh them. I have great sympathy for the SlovaJks." 1 "I am an American althoug;h my ancestors came from Irel81Ild," the Bishop continued as though he were marshalli!ng faots in a debate. "The Irish have a long history of political persecution; tlle Irish :kin.ow wlhat it is to be oppressed. I have great sympa:tJhy for every oppressed nation whetlher irt be Armeruam, Polish, kish or whatever it may be. There a,re many nationalities in my diocese and I do not discriminate. We are all OatJhoHcs." Bishop Hoban could not undel'Stand why the idea of Pan-Slav should figure in an indictment presented to eccles- 35 SLOVAKIA iastical superiors. "What has that to do wit'h it? fo America one may be a Pan-American; ilil Germany, let him wiho wishes ,b e a Pan-Gennam. It is no crime or sin to be a Pam-S[av. 'l'he term has political implication only." He was shrewd enoug,h to perceive that the charges which had ,been trumped up under c-lerical pretentiOIIlS were 1basicaJBy of a politicall nature and tha;t they were essentially distortions or gross misrepresentations. Im the course of this ride, Bishop Hobim also showed FaJther Furdek a communication from t!he Apostolic Delegate inqu~riD'g ililto the nature of the accusations. But Bishop Hoban assured both priests that he had already sent to Washington a complete report vindicating the acoused and exiplainililg the motives that had prompted 1:Jhe effort to foil 1:Jhe success of the Catholic Congress. And they were, in fact, extreme measures to which the p'lotJters had resorted. At the last moment they even tried to intimidate Bishop Hoban by sendililg him a telegram warning that his presence at the Silovak Catholic Congress wou[d reflect discredit UipOn t!he American Catholic hierarchy. But BiSlhop Hobam was not to be deterred by t!hreats. In fact, he justly resented the attempts to put pressure on him from un8Juthor1zed quarters. Becaiuse of Bishop Hoban's fundaJmental ohaTity for ahl, his sympathy for the downtrodden and his unbiased sense of democracy, the Catholic Congress of Slovak Americans was a more glorious event than even Father Furdek had hoped it would be. It wa•s a complete vindicatiO!Il of the priests who 'had ,b een maJligned and it was am unqoo:lified triumph for the Slova:k people. Bishop Hoban openly championed their cause, the press gave the even.rt fulil coverage, and the SlovaJk people themselves were iby this huge gatJhering more closely bound to one amother than they had ever been before. The manifestation was a Catiholic Congress but it attracted many Slovruk•s of other religious denominrutions, too, as well as from various fraternall orgaJnizations both Ca:tholic and non-sectarian. This triumph of September 3, 1906 marked a lmld of renaissamce in Slovak life on two continents and it inspired Father Fourdek to urge upon Slovaik leaders iJil publ-ic life the formation of a national SloV0Jk organizrution to unify 1 36 SLOVAKIA the American effort on behalf of Slov,a;kia. The outcome was the S1ovaik League of America which iin time evolved from suClh pre1i1minary movements as Furdek's drive "Za tu nasu slovenicinu !" (Jin defense of the Slovak cause!) which netted some ten thousand doll,ars for 1:Jhe na,t ional aid in the home1a:nd; the National Fund which sUJbsidized at least two hundred Slovruk students abroad rund brought relief to very many Slovak political leaders ,t hen houinded by unjust persecution, a:nd the lawnching of "Indignation Meetings" or pwbli,c demonstrations throughout the United States in order to protest the injushce and 1:Jhe human cruelty which viotimiized the Slovak people in their own homeland. 'I1hese tokens of help from America re-vitaUzed the crushed spirit and the depleted energies of S1ova!k patriots who were driven almost to t:he brilllk of despair iin fueir efiforts to save Silova kia. Costly :fii:nes and unrelenting pressure were syistematicaUy draining their resources and counteracting their achievements. American interest and Americain slllpport were their only encouraigement and mainstay. FiinanciaJ help came from tJhe drives which were organized expressly to raise funds. Morrul support was won by the Indignation Raillies, seven of which were originally planned to be held in key cities of the United States. T:he first of these was arranged by Father Furdek in 0levelaind. 1 LiJke all of Father Furdek's projects, tMs Indignation RaHy, too, was staimped with his spirit. Jit was an inspired and an inspiring demonstration, and it set 1:Jhe pattern for similar puiblic meetings. It:s puripose was to publicize Slov,aJkia's grievances against autocratic Hungarian agression, to prove t:hat Hungary was not in reality that "islallld of liberty" in central Europe which it gloried in caiHing itself, and to solicit the sympathy and the understanding of true leaders of liberty among the Americam people. Outstanding representatives of Americain 1ife amd thought participated in these rallies. For example, at the Cleveland gathering held on February 10, 1907, a crupaoity audience in Gray's Armory gave speHbo·u nd attention to addresses delivered by Professor Bourine, by three attorneys, three priests, and seveml journailists. The American public and especially the American thinking :public was quickly beginning to see the truth. At the 37 SLOVAKIA same time, the f,ire of truth amd the justified indignarti<on orf all lovers of justice was rea,ching out among S'loV'aJks and non-Slo'V'aJks alike, to enkindJe effective means for the triumph of true Iiiberty and fairness. ~he time seemed to be right then for Father FuTdek to try again to efifect a nationwide unification of the Slovak people in America. He had attempted it before when he founded the Matica S•l ovenska, a cultural society which did not thrive lonig because new world cond~tions were not yet favo:r,a!ble for such am undertwkrng (1893). Thi:s newer effort originated at a Pittsburgh meeting of SlovaJk journalisrts convened at Fa,ther Furdek's iinvitation on April 7, 1907 where it wa,,s agreed to stage a SlovaJk Congress in May for the purpose of founding the Slovak League of America. The time was ausipi'Cious, the attitude was enthusiastic, the fruit of the movement was good. 1 The Slovak L eague of America became a civic and cultural organization with a dual objective: 1) to advaJnce American interests and security and 2) to create a better understanding and ruppredation of the islova•k nation - its history, culture, traditions, achievements, and its long, bitter struggle for freedom and autonomy. The first president of the Slovak League was Father Furdelk and he aJbly guided its interests and its efforts and helped to launch it very successfully upon its fruitful career. Furdek 's spirit of self-sacrifice and his relentless drive took :lwavy toH on his physical resources. He burned out his life young but the flame of his ardor would allow no sparing of self when there was so much to be done for God and nation, for bme and for eternity. And even when it was apparent that his energies were faiNng, he did not stop to think of himself. Always his dominant thought was for others and for the general good. Extensive traveling, constant literary production, frequent appearances as a pubEc spewker or a church preacher, steady devotion to the management of his parish, constant attention to the needs of his school and its advancement , concern for the welrfare of a,,11 his people - these and many related issues crowded his days and his nights. 1 It is difficult to realize how he managed such a rich and fruitful life, how he provided in it for projects of nat - 38 SLOVAKIA ionail scope and significance as weM as for close and immediate needs such as tJhe compiling of three textbooks, a gra,matiJka and two citamky of such S'lllperior practicail use and benefit thaJt they served .s everal generations with soUJDd advantage. He also experimented wibh a patented pedaJgogic,rul device for fille teadhring of a,:r,~tlhmetic. A,s early as 1906 Father Fur<lek had brought about officiail aotion for the founding of a home for oriphans. F\inaiHy in 1914 he had the joy of seeing such a home a reality ilrl Middletown, Pennsylv,ania where Phili,p and Mary Hroba!k of Lakewood, Ohio were the first children under J ednota care in a home manruged by tlhe S1isters of SS. Cyril and Methodius. Father Furdeik was also deeply initerested in t!lris new Slovak Community of Sisters and he endorsed the efforts of the Jednota ovgani21ation to adv,am,ce it and its wovks. After 1912 FatJher Furoek's healit:Jh was so much on the declrine that hris vision became imiparirred. Yet he carnied on heroicailly and even shortly after the New Year 1915 he accepted an invitation to preacll at a Forty Hours' Devotion ;in LoraJin, Ohio. It wrus on his retmm fr.om t!his priestly servke that he suffered eX)posure in a wintry storm amd on January 18, 1915, in t!he fifty-lllinbh year of his life, the thirty-second of his priesthood, he was called to his eternal reward. Fi,fty thousand Jedn<Ybars and cowntless friends and adirniirers on both sides of the Ati1'amtic mourned his death. 1 The tvue greatness of Father Furdek is made more digtJin:ct to us as it stamds in the perspective of years since his death. T,he void left by his deparrture to etemal life has IIlever been fiiil.led, and we see now tJhat it was with prophetic appreciaition and with some degree of regrettruble lament that Father J anikola spdke 1:Jhese words in his euJlogy on t'he day orf Father Furdek's funeral, "We wiH never see his like again. Slovrukia shall not send us another Furdek; America wi:Jil not produce another." 1 The greaJtness of Father Furdek's achievements derives from fille gifts of hi:s mind rund Clharrucl:er not from a mere aiccident of circumstances. We have even now ,t he need for ArrneriJcan Slovruks of uncommon gifts and moral stature to foad on in a modem world of mrugni:fl1cent opport.ll!Ilities. We need leaders who are seers and doe11s, wtho can vi:talli:ze and SLOVAKIA 3g inspire, who can hold before us the V1s1on and dispel our lethargy so that we American Slova!ks will want to :reaclh out for the attaiinment, will want to assert a pride of aincestry and a new hig,h of national greatness. But it has not been given us to have a second Furdelk in America. God grant that a younger geineration may pl'O'V'ide fuat in,s piration end greatness. As we survey Father FuTdek's place and his merits in American Slovalk history, we come to realize how well he deserves to be honored 8Jlld remembeTed as tlhe Father of American Sllovaks. BIBLIOGRAPHY Capek, Thomas, The Slovaks of Hungary. New York: The Knickerbocker Press, 1906. 214 pp. Cooke, Vincent, "Catholic Objectives in the Care of Children," Catholic Action, XXXII (May, 1950), 8. Culen Konlitantin, "American Slovaks and Slovak Statehood," Slovakia, I (May, 1951), 18. Culen, Konl;tantin, Slovcici v Amerike, Turciansky Sv. Martin, Slovakia, Matica Slovenska Press, 1938. 519 pp. Culen. Konstantin, "Stefan Furdek," Kultura, VII (September 1935), 377-386. Emerentia, Mother M., History of the Sisters of Saints Cyril and Methodius. Unpublished Master's thesis, Marywood College. Falcon, The, (Katolicky Sokol), Passaic, N. J ., July 5, 1944. Fortieth Anniversary Souvenir 1907-1947, Saints Cyril and Methodius Church, Bridgeport, Connecticut. Furdek, Stephen, Prvci Citanka pre Slovenske Skoly, Cleveland: Furdek, 1913. 125 pp. Furdek, Stephen, Druhci Citanka pre Slovenske Skoly, Cleveland: Furdek, 1913. 125 pp. Furdek, Stephen, "Hymna americkych Slovakov," Kalendcir Jednota, I (January, 1896), 22. Furdek, Stephen, Kalendcir Jednota, 19 Vol. (1896-1915 ). Furdek, Stephen, "Katolicka Jednota vo Spojenych Statoch," Kalendcir Jednota, I (1896 ), 26-37. Furdek, Stephen, "Katolicky Slovensky Kongress," Kalendcir Jednota, XII (1907), 145-155. Furdek, Stephen, "Keby nie jeho, nepotreboval by som dnes ziadneho -Ostavu," Kalendcir Jednota, (1914), 69. 40 SLOVAKIA Furdek, Stephen, Sv et a jeho zahady. Cleveland: Furdek, 1910. 250 pp. Hlinka, Andrew, "K jubileu striebornej konvencie Prvej Katolickej Slovenskej Jednoty v Amerike," Kalendar Jednota, (1935) , 35. Hrobak, Philip, Ed., Editorial, Slov akia, I, (May, 1951). Hrobak, Philip, "The First Catholic Slovak Union of the U.S.A. ," Slov ak Record, (September, 1943) . Rusek, Joseph, "K dvadsat'pat'rocnici I. Kat. Slov. Jednoty," Kalendar Jednota, (January, 1916) 30-59. Rusek, Stephanie, "The Slovaks in America," Kalendar Jednota, Golden Jubilee, (September 2, 1940) 111-116. J ednota, Middletown, Pa., Dec. 17, 1913; Mar. 11, 1914; June 17, 1914; June 17, 1914; Sept. 23, 1914; Jan. 20, 1915; Jan. 27, 1915; Feb. 11, 1915; Apr. 24, 1935; June 18, 1952. K niha dejin Spolku sv. Jozefa, cislo 1. Z prilezitosti oslavy 50. rocneho jubileuma. Cleveland: 1939. Kozak, A. V., "-Ostav I. Katolickej Slovenskej Jednoty," Kalendar Jednota, ( 1912) 19-24. Leech, George L. , Letter to First Catholic Slovak Union on the Occasion of Its Golden Jubilee, 1940. Liscinsky, John Method, "Katolicka Slovenska 2enska Jednota," ( 1911 ) 180-184. Martvon, John, "Autobiograficky nacrt," Kale ndar Jednota, Golden Jubilee, (September 2, 1940) 19. Mulcahy, George, "Life of Saints Cyril and Methodius," Radio Broadcast on Diocesan Catholic Hour, WHP, Feb. 13, 1940. Palickar, Stephen J., " Father Furdek, Leader," Commonweal, VI (June 8, 1927) 126. Prva Katolicka Slovenska Jednota, "Kulturny Program Prvej Kat. Slov. Jednoty," Kalendar Jednota, (1935) 31. Rovnianek, P . V., Zapi sky za ziva pochovaneho. Pittsburgh: Rovnianek Press, 1924. Slovak League of America, Editorial, "What Is It?" The Slov ak Digest, I, (November-December, 1946) . Slovak v Amerike, New York, N. Y., August 30, 1949. Spolok Panny Marie Ruzencovej , Z Dejin I .K.S.J. , Pamatnik Slavnej XVII. Konvencie I.K.S.J., (September, 1925), Scranton, Pa. Tybor, Caroline, " Slovak Language in Our Academy," Fialky, IV (December, 1924) 71-72. Yurchak, Peter J. , The Slovaks, Their History and Tradition, Whiting : John J . Lach, 1946. 278 pp. Zlamal, Oldrich, "Life of Reverend Stephen Furdek," Sixtieth Anniv ersary of Our Lady of Lourdes Parish, (Svet Publishing Co. , Cleveland, Ohio) 1943.  Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Father of American Slovaks Description An account of the resource Sister M. Martina Tybor, SS.C.M. Slovakia, Vol. 16 (No. 39), 1966 pp. 25-40 Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Tybor, Sister M. Martina, SS.C.M. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1966 name https://slovakia.wordsofpassage.net/files/original/8ece0905832f6c07ea3b4ef134836c1b.pdf 8b7a48ca63cf6a9520576e837e68fe19 PDF Text Text SLOVAKIA 41 New Interests 1900-1914 SLOVAKS IN THE U.S.A. By James J. Zatk o, Ph. D ., University of Notre D ame By 1900 growing Slovak nationalism had begun to grip the Slovak immigrants, and during the next decade and a half the Slovaks agitated for distinotly Slovak institutions, for Slovak education, and for Slovak liberation overseas from Hungarian control. What seemed the most important need of the Slovak immigrants to many thinking minds was Slovak education. Some Catholics found the cause of religious decline in the non-confessional Slovak schools that others advocated and established. Public schools seemed equally pernicious to their mind as being Protestant schools. Too much Americanization injured faith and morals. To them the great answer was Slovak Catholic schools; but these were practically non-existent. Some pastors just were not interested in schools, Slovak or Catholic. The debts resulting from building churches weighted down the parishes and blocked any ambitious program of school construction. Often Slovaks were too scattered throughout a region to support their own church and school.1 However, the crucial obstacle was a lack of Slovak teachers. Even if schools were built, they might be Catholic schools, but they would not be Slovak schools, for there were not enough Slovak teachers. As early as 1900 Rev. M. Jankola, a Catholic priest, suggested a solution, Slovak nuns to teach in Slovak schools, but this suggestion took almost ten years to mature. 2 Nevertheless, schools were not entirely neglected during these first years of the twentieth century. In 1900 the Rev. Bartholomew Kvitek, a Catholic priest, organized the Slovak school of St. Michael's parish in Chicago; and in 1902 the first Vincentian Sisters of Charity arrived from Slovakia to serve in St. Michael's parish in Braddock, Pa., where they took charge of the parochial school's 65 students. 3 Plans for non-confessional schools never came to very much, because the Slovaks were opposed to education without religion. 4 In 1900 the Slovaks won a local victory over the Hungarians when their protests blocked the erection of Louis Kossuth's statue in the public square of Cleveland. When Count �42 SLOVAKIA Albert Apponyi and forty delegates arrived in America during the World's Fair at St. Louis in 1904, the Slovaks presented a Memorandum recounting their objections against the electoral system in Hungary and Magyarization. Although the Count refused even to discuss Slovak grievances, ,the Memorandum at least informed public opinion about undemocratic election procedures and anti-Slovak schools. 5 However, all anti-Magyar agitation was focussed by the creation in 1907 of the Slovak League of America on May 26, in Cleveland, Ohio, by seven thousand delegates. The League became an alliance of Slovak educational, fraternal, and religious groups in this country. The purposes of the League were to educate Slovaks everywhere, to uplift them here in America and elsewhere morally, economically, socially and politically. 6 It became the leader in the drive to alleviate political conditions in Slovakia, but its efforts might have been still-born had not the Massacre of Cernova on the 27th of October, 1907 aroused not only Slovaks but world opinion. To understand this ev,e nt some facts need to be reviewed. The Rev. Andrew Hlinka, a Catholic priest both pious and devoted to the political and social welfare of the Slovaks, in 1897 became editor of The People's News and fought the Magyarization program of the gov,e rnment; his speeches and writings helped elect seven Slovaks to the Hungarian Parliament in 1906. He and fifteen other Slovaks were arrested and tried for "agitation against Hungarian nationality". Hlinka was fined 1500 crowns and costs of 680 crowns and sentenced to two years in prison. In a farewell message to his parishioners he declared thart he would gladly suffer imprisonment to secure recognition of the Slovak nation. For this he received another eighteen months and a fine of 400 crowns. 7 Prior to this the Rev. A. Hlinka had been appointed pastor in his native city, Ruzomberok; in the quarter known as Cernova he had begun building a new church for which he collected funds from all over Slovakia. He had in the meantime been suspended by Bishop Parvy, an ardent pro-Magyar. When the church in Cernova was to be dedicated, the parishioners refused to permit the blessing, unless their pastor returned to them. On October 27, 1907 gendarmes marched into Cernova to help keep order, and they lined the streets leading to the church. That morning coaches arrived bringing the Rev. Pazurik from Llkavka and other visitors to conduct the dedi- �SLOVAKIA 43 cation. When the people blockaded the road, the coachman began to lay about his whip in order to drive his horses through the crowd ; some men seized the horses' bridles to turn them around. An order was given to the gendarmes to open fire. Instantly nine people fell dead, men, women, and children, and six more died of their wounds later. 8 The National Slovak Society immediately took in hand the problem of aid for the widows and orphans that resulted from the Cernova Massacre and voted $2,000 for r•elief.9 While political nationalism received immense stimulus from the Massacre, nationalism began to play a greater role in the sphere of religion after 1900. Under the influence of their nationalism, the Slovaks began to feel their unity as a group and their need of exclusivness as a nation. This led to organization on a unique national basis in religion and to demands for r•ecognizing the "rights of Slovaks" in religious matters, like organization of synods for the Lutherans, Catholic action groups for the Slovak Catholics, and teaching of Slovak in the schools. The Slovak Lutherans formed the Slovak Evangelical Lutheran Synod of the United States of America with headquarters in Whiting, Indiana. This Synod was founded in the church of St. Peter, September 2, 1902, at Connellsville, Pa. A beginning had been made in Mahanoy City, Pa., but more definite steps were taken at conferences in Wilkes-Barre, Pa., and Braddock, Pa.; in the actual founding all the Slovak ministers and congregations cooperated. The Synod used the Slovak language in services and sermons, except where unusual circumstances required the use of English. Even the children wer,e taught their religion in Slovak. The Synod obtained its funds from prescribed contributions of the various parishes belonging to it. In Cleveland it owned a considerable prope1;ty intended for a Lutheran orphanage. The of.ficial organ was the Svedo k, which began in 1906 and was published twice a month.10 The troubled relations of Catholicism with Slovak nationalism continued to split various groups. A National Slovak Sokol had been established to include all Sokol activities in the United States; but discrimination against Catholics led to the creation of the Slovak Catholic Sokol in 1905; the headquarters of this group were in Passaic, N. J. The Slovak Catholic Sokol began publishing its own paper, the Katolicky �44 SLOVAKIA Sokol, and launched an extensive program to attract Slovak youth in gymnastics, athletics, and social activities. 11 The most violent conflict among Slovaks of the first decade of the twentieth century involved Slovak nationalism, but it was a conflict within the Catholic group between Catholic Nationalists and the Madarones. The founder of the First Catholic Slovak Union, the Rev. Stephen Furdek, called for an annual Slovak day that was to renew the Catholic spirit and attachment to Slovak nationality. The first Slovak day was to be called the Catholic Congress. This evoked bitter opposition in letters and even a telegram to Bishop Michael J . Hoban of Scranton from the Rev. Kossalko who denounced the whole project as "pan-slavistic" and as an attempt to set up a national church. When Bishop Hoban sanctioned the Slovak Day or Catholic Congress in Wilkes-Barre, Pa., by addressing it on September 3, 1906, Kossalko's rage knew no bounds. He addressed a Memorandum, signed by a large number of Madarone Slovak clergy, to the Apostolic Delegate and the archbishops of the United States. He demanded a condemnation of the affair. The Memorandum expressed fear for the unity of the church and the salvation of 500,000 souls, and accused the Slovak Catholics of working for "panslavism", which was inimical to Hungary, Germany, and the United States. However, Bishop Hoban's influence shielded the Catholic Slovak clergy and no action was taken.12 This event discredited the Madarones. Within the framework of the Catholic Church in the United States Slovak Catholics became involved in a struggle to preserve what they considered their national rights. There were arguments with non-Slovak pastors over hiring organists who would be able to teach Slovak to the children. 13 At other times Slovak Catholic efforts to obtain Slovak priests who could minister to them in their own language conflicted with bishops who did not always agree on Slovak "rights" .14 One bitter quarrel led to a schism in the Slovak settlement of Masontown, Pa. In Leckrone, Pa., a settlement of Irish and Slovaks, the Church of Our Lady of Perpetual help was blessed by Bishop Richard Phelan of Pittsburgh on October 9, 1904. In 1907 the church burned down, but a hall was built in which religious services were held. The Slovaks by this time had a Slovak pastor, but they still wanted a parish all their own. Bishop �SLOVAKIA 45 Francis R. Canevin of Pittsburgh requested the Rev. Charles Janda to look for a suitable location ; Rev. C. Janda sugg,ested Masontown. Since the Irish Catholics also wanted to have a parish in Masontown, the Slovaks were told to take the church in Leckrone for their use; but the Slovaks in Masontown were not satisfied. They went ahead and built their own church, and when the bishop would not cooperate with them, they cast about for a priest who might be willing to serve their church. Eventually they found an "independent" priest and so fell into schism.15 In sptte of such trouble, the Slovak Catholic body remained generally healthy. On February 22, 1911 a Slovak Catholic Priest and inventor, the Rev. Joseph Murgas, led in forming The Slovak Catholic Federation in America in Wilkes-Barre, Pa. Und,e r the control of Slovak Catholic priests this group was to spread and coordinate Catholic action among Slovaks in America; until this year Slovak Catholic activities had been unorganized and subordinated to political and social ends.16 Exact religious statistics for ·t he Slovak immigrant group for that time are not available, but the best estimate suggests that of the 560,000 Slovak immigrants in America in 1911, 450,000 were Roman Catholics. The Slovak Catholics had 134 parishes in the United States. Protestants among the Slovaks numbered 95,000 .17 Of this Protestant group, Calvinists are estimated to run about 15,000. 18 After 1905 the development of Slovak Catholic elementary schools gained momentum. A system both Slovak and Catholic had been impossible without Slovak Catholic teachers. The Rev. M. Jankola, a Catholic priest, organized the Priests' Society of St. Anthony's Burse in the United States of America in Wilkes-Barre, Pa. , in 1903 and it was chartered in 1905. In the Kalendar Jednota of 1908 Rev. M. Jankola proposed the Burse of St. Anthony for Catholics generally to support students preparing to be teachers and Slovak girls preparing to be teaching nuns. 19 Although the Slovak Catholics supported this program generously with frequent collections and donations 20 , the fund proved insufficient for the purpose. Three Slovak girls who had been sent to the novitiate of the Sisters of the Immaculate Heart of Mary in 1906 were the nucleus of a Slovak sisterhood. In 1909 interested Slovak priests petitioned for the foundation of a distinctly �46 SLOVAKIA Slovak sisterhood, the Sisters of SS. Cyril and Methodius. On June 26, 1909 the Congregation for Religious approved this project, and the motherhouse of the new Slovak congregation was established in Danville, Pa.21 In the year 1911 the Most Reverend Joseph Koudelka, the bishop of Superior sent a request to the general motherhouse of the Congregation of School Sisters of the Third Order of St. Francis in Prague. He asked the sisters to come to his diocese to work. Mother General M. Xavier sent Sister M. Georgia and Sister M. Hyacinth to look over the possibilities. These sisters stopped in Pittsburgh, where the Rev. J. Vrana persuaded them that the Pittsburgh diocese offered them greater opportunities and had greater need. When Sister M. Hyacinth took sick and died on March 10, 1912, the Mother General herself came to Pittsburgh. Rev. Ferdinand Prikazky, who at the moment was struggling to get nuns to teach in his St. Gabriel's parochial school, convinc,e d the sisters to settle in Pittsburgh. This was the beginning. By 1914 twenty three sisters of this congregation were teaching 579 children in three Slovak Catholic parishes.22 Progress had been made in solving the problem of elementary school education; schools were built in the parishes almost as quickly as teachers could be provided. The question of secondary school education also began to agitate Slovak circles. Very early, the Rev. Stephen Furdek suggested the idea of a Slovak high school for boys; he was seconded in this by the Rev. M. Jankola. However, nothing came of the idea until 1921 when it revived and resulted in the Benedictine High School in Cleveland in 1927.23 The Sisters of SS. Cyril and Methodius opened a high school for girls at Danville in 1922, and the Sisters of St. Francis opened one at Bellevue, Pa., in 1927. 24 There was continuous agitation for a college. A Slovak business college was suggested to improve the Slovak economic position.25 P. J . Kunovsky worked out a whole scheme for a Slovak school on a higher level. He argued that $100,000 would put up a building, and then he suggested that each fraternal organization ought to support a professor. This school was to include business and technical courses. As to religious affiliation, the school would be non-confessional, but the Oatholics could have a lecturer on the Catholic Faith and the Lutherans could support one to lecture on the Lutheran faith. This in- �SLOVAKIA 47 stitution was to be coeducational. Nothing came of this project.2s Very few Slovak children of the first immigrants had a chance to go to college, but those who did go generally took advantag,e of existing colleges. In 1901 the Czech Benedictines had established St. Procopius College at Lisle, Ill., and by 1907 there were ten Slovak youths studying there. They organized the "Literary Society of Stephen Moyses" and issued a monthly multigraphed little paper, Horlivost'. The club and the paper lasted for four years. The Slovaks also owed a special debt to the College and Seminary of St. Vincent's Archabbey in Latrobe, Pa., for in this college and seminary almost all the Catholic Slovak priests and many Slovak young men were trained. 27 During the years between 1902 and 1936 545 Slovak students attended St. Vincent's. 28 Informal education made most progress among the Slovaks. Clubs, multiplied, political, social, cultural, and literary. The political club seems to have been the most popular. It had a variety of purposes: to fighrt political apathy among the Slovaks, to help the Slovaks gain their political rights, and to help Slovaks become American citizens. In one year a club in Rankin, Pa., succeeded in getting thirteen Slovaks to obtain their citizenship papers. 29 Literary clubs also became popular among the Slovaks as a mean of self- improvement. 30 Both the newspapers and the almanacs were also instrumental in educating the Slovak immigrants. The Jednota discussed Darwinism, the "higher criticism" and socialism. 31 The almanacs explained the procedure of becoming citizens, American electoral system, stocks and bonds, and even discussed the origin of the world. 32 One of the complaints about the Slovaks made by their own leaders is their lack of interest in books and good reading. To make the Slovaks book-lovers, Slovak political and literary clubs founded Slovak libraries. 33 The national fraternal organizations sometimes contributed money to help in the acquisition of a building, or, if the Slovaks already possessed a lodge hall, to aid in the purchase of books. 34 That a demand actually developed for Slovak books is suggested by the special sections for Slovak readers in public libraries, as for instance, the Oarnegie Library in Homestead, Pa., 35 and the public library in Cleveland. 36 The most ambitious project launched to interest the Slo- �48 SLOVAKIA vaks in reading was a book club. P. J. Kunovsky suggested in 1912 the formation of a book club to consist of 5,000 Slovaks. This number would enable the club to sell four books for a dollar. 37 By July 11, 1912 a literary committee to choose books had been elected. 38 Even this cultural project could not move along without factions; for there were some objections to the composition of the literary committee. Only "one side" was represented. 39 There were complaints by Kunovsky that progress was slow; in fact, after six months of vigorous propaganda, there were not even 1,000 members, and the club needed 5,000 members in one year. 40 By November, 1914, the "Four Books for a Dollar" was still going and growing somewhat, 41 but the Slovaks were apparently still not too interested in books. One book promotion was quite successful. The Rev. J. Murgas led a drive to get 3,000 subscribers for a Cathechetical Encyclopedia, written by Rev. Vaclav Melchior, C. Ss. R. 42 Enough subscribers undertook to buy the book. It was a project more adapted to Slovak ideas; it seemed worthwhile to invest in a book on religion. The taste of Slovaks in reading was quite varied. We cannot judge from actual reports of reading, but the types of books published for them may serve as an indication of their reading tast,e. There were romances dealing with the Janosik cycle, a Slovak Robin Hood; others dealt with the adventures of a likeable thief, Rinaldo Rinaldini; sensational stories included Dracula, Harry Tracy, Most Desperate Criminal of Our Time , and World Detective Romances and Novel series.43 Other books published dealt with Slovak history and Magyar oppression. 44 One anti-clerical work was Z dejin Cirkvi by A. M. Spera, an anti-Catholic church history: 45 there was even a socialist work, Socialisti idu. 46 Publications included readers and catechisms, 47 dictionaries and grammars, 48 and devotional works. 49 The translations printed in the Narodne Noviny from American literature included Edgar A. Poe's The Black Cat 50 and Washington Irving's The Legend of Sleepy Hollow.51 Whatever reading may have been done by the Slovaks besides the almanacs and newspapers, these books are a suggestion of its type. Another form of informal education proposed was a Slovak Chautauqua. The Rev. W. Regnemer, a Calvinist minister, suggested that a fraternal organization hire a pleasure �SLOVAKIA 49 park during the summer for one day, prepare a cultural and entertaining program and charge an admission of twenty fiv,e or fifty cents. 52 This idea was still-born. Theatrical productions were very common among the Slovaks, 53 but the drama was not on a very high level. Most popular were plays in Slovak portraying Slovakia and Slovak life. There was no attempt to translate the English classics of the stage into Slovak. 54 Both the Narodne Noviny and the Jednota encouraged the staging of plays by publishing a large number of them in their columns, 55 for plays portraying Slovak life served to arouse national consciousness, besides being good entertainment. 56 One complaint about the theatrical entertainment was the bad conduct of the audience, which frequently shouted to their friends on the stage, whistled, stamped their feet. Mothers brought very young children or babies who disturbed the performance with their crying. 57 The Slovaks organized bands and choirs ;58 popular music was also encouraged by the publication of songs in the almanacs. Some of the choirs advanced so rapidly that they were able to stage small operettas. 59 One obstacle to further Slovak progress was intemperance. The drink problem, its source in poverty, was an old one for the Slovaks. All sources agree that drink, especially whisk,ey, was the curse of Slovakia and helped impoverish the country. 60 During the 1840',s Rev. Stephan Zavodnik, a Catholic priest, influenced by Father Matthew, inaugurated the struggle against intemperance in Slovakia. Father Matthew's influence had trav,elled through Germany, Bohemia, Poland, and finally reached Slovakia. 61 Temperance societies were first organized in Orava in 1845 and in half a year had 20,000 members. The city councils assisted the societies; the ecclesiastical authorities put their prestige behind the movement. In 1847 the bishop of Banska Bystrica asked his clergy to publicize these societies during Lent ; the bishop of Roznava issued a pastoral letter on the subject in 1846. The Lutherans too supported the movement. 62 The nationalistic agitation and revolution in 1848 disrupted the growth of these societies, but by 1870 the fight against drink revived. 63 When the Slovaks came to America, they brought their weakness for drink with them. Still there were Slovaks who understood the pernicious effect of over-indulgence in strong �50 SLOVAKIA drink. Saloon keepers were attacked for disrupting family life. Slovak saloon keepers were urged to remove the national disgrace by going into another line of business. 64 The agitation against the use and abuse of alcohol filled many a column in the N arodne N oviny and J ednota. Alcohol was the cause of disease, for example, tuberculosis, of many economic and social losses ; whiskey was the root of all social evils.65 The most eff.ective agitation against intemperance was the total abstinence society. The best reason for creating such societies was their need. There were such sodeties already in existence in 1911 for example, in Hazleton, Pa., McAdoo, Pa. , St. Clair, Pa., and Mahanoy City, Pa.66 When the temperance club was organized in Wilkes-Barre, Pa., forty five prospective members attended the meeting; but only eight were willing to take the pledge and join the society. Eventually twenty women and girls joined; since then five or six members were added at each meeting, and the number finally grew to forty five! 67 Hand in hand with the progress in religious organization, in education, and political action, went the bettering of the Slovak economic conditions. As with the other activities, economic life among the Slovaks began to be colored by nationalism. The Slovaks set up Slovak grocery stores and Slovak banks. Surprisingly enough, a farm movement among the Slovaks developed from many causes. The success of the Slovaktown venture was continually reported in the newspapers: news of hay selling for $7 a ton, in November, 1912, seven weddings, good markets, freedom from the bleak life of a miners' town and from strikes. 68 To some life on the farm meant a life less dangerous to the faith and a healthier family life;69 to others it meant protection against too quick an assimilation to American ways, especially American morals.70 In 1910 the National Slovak Society embarked on a considerable farm colonization venture. The Society's national convention had voted in 1909 that not less than 1,000 acres of farm land should be bought for an orphanage. A committee investigated real estate in Prince George, Calvert, and St. Mary's counties in Maryland; enough land was to be bought to build an orphanage and to form a Slovak settlement to help in the upkeep of the orphanage. After considerable debate on whether the primary purpose was a settlement �SLOVAKIA 51 or an orphanage, 2,813 acres of land were purchased for F 0,000 in St. Mary's county, near St. Mary's, Maryland. One thousand one hundred acres were arable and the rest was woodland ; there was a three mile frontage on St. Mary's River. 71 Eight hundred acres were to be set aside for the orphanage and old folks ' home, and two thousand acres were to be put up for sale.72 The land was divided into thirty nine farms, ranging in size from 33 acres to 132, and classified in value thus: class A farms at $40-$50 an acre, class B farms at $25-$40 an acre, and Class C at $10-$25 an acre. The price of the farms varied from $600 to $3,100.73 The land sales went so well that the National Slovak Society decided to reserve only 500 acres for the orphanage and to sell 2,300 acres for farms.74 Such was the venture's success that by June, 1912, the Slovak Farmers Association was chartered in Maryland with a capitalization of $25,000. First class stock was to get 5% dividend; and as soon as the second class stock reached 5%, the rate of the first class was to jump to 7%. The organization's purpose was to settle Slovaks on good farms, especially in Maryland. The association also had a hotel where Slovaks might disport themselves in the summer for longer or shorter periods of time. 75 Behind the scenes, however, some financial skulduggery was afoot and the exposure of "commission-masters" definitely dampened enthusiasm for the project. A. S. Ambrose, the president of the National Slovak Society, had taken a ten percent commission on $48,735 worth of land sales and netted himself a tidy $4,875.30. Of the sales themselves $16,156.70 in cash had been placed into the Society's treasury, while $28,580 had been mortgaged to the Society. 76 On this transaction the Society was estimated to have lost nearly $20,000 through various "commissions." 77 At least on paper in 1911 the Slovak American Colonization Company was organized with an intended Capitalization of $50,000 at $50 a share. It planned the erection of houses, business structures, saw-mills, and other needed buildings. It remained a paper organization. 78 In spite of the publicity giv,en these projects, the influx of Slovaks onto the land came from individual initiative for most part. Small colonies of Slovak farmers grew up around Denmark, Maine, 79 Phillips, Wisconsin, 80 Tabor, Minnesota,81 Louisiana and Mississippi,82 Callahan and Pine Land, Flo- �52 SLOVAKIA rida,83 Michigan,84 and North Emporia and Antioch, Virginia.a5 If the Slovak farmer struck upon land already cleared, he did not have too difficult a time making a success of farming; but if he bought land that had yet to be cleared, like the second growth timberlands in Wisconsin, the first few years on the "blessed" land were murderous in their demands of labor and capital. For instance, two brothers and their families, having read accounts of successful farming in Wisconsin, used their savings to buy a farm in northern Wisconsin. The land had to be cleared, and ,even the women were put to work carrying away the heavy wood. Besides, the brothers had to build a log house big enough to shelter the two families. During the winter months, the men worked as lumberjacks, and in order to have enough capital to begin farming in spring had to borrow at six percent. After plowing and buying seed, the two new farmers were without money. One of them went to work in a glass mill in Illinois, while the other continued the back-breaking work clearing the land and farming. To add to their troubles, the nearby creek dried up in the summer, and the water could be brought in only from a distant spring. A horse had to be bought ! The beginning of farming was bitter for the Slovaks in northern Wisconsin.86 Although the Slovak farmers did organize locally, they did not form any national Slovak farmer societies. In Moquah, Wis. , for instance, a special farmers' society was established in 1911. The two national fraternal organizations served their social purposes sufficiently. One farmer from Tabor, Minn., did suggest that the Slovak farmers in the west needed a "clearing house" in a city like Pittsburgh, where they could sell their products, especially, grain, directly to the consumer. This would save the farmer some of his profits and the workingman some of his hard earned money. This remained only a suggestion. 87 Generally the new farmers were quite successful. The land was good, profits were high, and there were no strikes. 88 In Slovaktown hay was sold for $7 a ton in 1913; a Slovak farmer in Virginia made $1 ,100 on peanuts and $220 on cotton on a 220 acre farm . Still there were failures . A considerable number of advertisements announcing the farm sales appeared in the Jednota and the Narodne Noviny. 89 Some- �SLOVAKIA 53 times the reason was the mortgag,e ;90 at other times the family found the life too difficult and drab.9 1 While some Slovaks managed to escape to the farm from the hard life of mine and mill, most Slovaks remained city-dwellers. One of the problems of the city-dweller was the high cost of living as compared with wages. 92 The high prices led to a large number of cooperative ventures on a nationality basis. Most frequently this was a meat and grocery store. The enterprise resembled a corporation more than a cooperative. A share might cost $10 and a board of directors headed and managed the enterprise. Sometimes a limit was placed on the number of shares an individual might hold, lest any one person should capture control of the corporation.93 In Yukon, Pa., for instance, 200 families established a share-holding grocery store which was successful despite the opposition of some Slovaks. The corporation charter provided that any man could belong, but no one was allowed to invest more than $1 ,000! In 9 months a dividend of $4.85 was paid for each share. The cooperative enterprise could save a working man about fifteen cents a day on his food bill. In spite of considerable propaganda in the papers heralding these ventures, the Slovaks did not support these "Slovak stores" universally. The proprietors complained that Slovaks continued to patronize non-Slovak businesses. 9 4 There were many suggestions for Slovak enterprise: the organization of all Slovak businessmen in America, a law firm to take care of Slovak interests, a hospital for Slovak immigrants, a shoe factory to be built by the National Slovak Society or the Slovak League. 95 Of all the ephemeral proposals made, one did become actual. A Slovak bank to handle Slovak business was considered a necessity; but the idea was only gingerly approached after the failure of Peter V. Rovnianek's Bank in Pittsburgh, in 1907. Michael Bosak founded the State Slovak Bank in Wilkes-Barre, Pa.; the bank opened for business on December 2, 1912, and in its first five months showed a profit of $7,250. 96 Progress was also the keynote of the First Catholic Slovak Union. In 1910 the Union established its own printery in Middletown, Pa. This was a two story red brick building, one hundred twenty feet long and forty feet wide. The equipment included Duplex printing press and a linotype machine. The blessing of the printery took place on October 27, 1910.97 �54 SLOVAKIA In 1914 the Union also opened an orphanage, which the Sisters of Ss. Cyril and Methodius took under their supervision. The building itself cost $97,000, and the total cost was about $110,000. The chapel had an altar of Vermont marble worth $1,200 and a seating capacity of 150. 98 This orphanage was located in Middletown, Pa. The Slovak Catholics wer,e justly very proud of this achievement, especially when they remembered how poor they had been when they landed in the United States. The National Slovak Society showed its energy by creating an official newspaper for its own use, the Narodne Noviny, in 1910; this paper replaced the Amerikansko-Slovenske Noviny which had spoken for the National Slovak Society but had never been adopted as the official organ of the Society. This new newspaper became definitely anti-clerical and sometimes anti-Catholic. In 1910 an editorial defended the modernists and attacked the Catholic Church as being an Italian and Roman Church, and not truly Catholic. 99 Any clerical scandal was written up with glee, and cartoons were not only anti-clerical but in very bad taste. These attacks and insults became so violent that the Bishop of Altoona, Eugene A. Garvey, banned the newspaper from his diocese on the grounds that it was written and published by "Jews, unbelievers, and heretics," spreading anarchism, unbelief, and socialism.100 The National Slovak Society did more constructive work when it organized the Youth Circles of the National Slovak Society in 1913. The chief purpose of these circles was educational. The elder and chief gymnast had to be total abstainers and men of sound general educa:tion. 101 The official language was Slovak. Dues were to be twenty cents a month for each child; of this amount fifteen cents were to be forwarded to the treasurer of the National Slovak Society. All meetings were to begin with Slovak and American patriotic songs; the American songs were to be translated into Slovak.102 Besides one official meeting a month to transact business, there were frequent meetings for lectures, study, and general education. 103 These circles presented programs which featured recitation of poems in Slovak, Slovak songs sung as solos and in chorus, instrumental solos, lectures by visitors. 104 The circles were beneficial to young Slovaks, and their growth �SLOVAKIA 55 was very rapid. By September, 1914, sixty nine circles had been established. 105 In spite of all the discussion of an orphanage, the National Slovak Society finally abandoned the plan. The matter was dropped because of the religious problem. The Society consisted of members belonging to various religious sects and claimed that it could not without showing favoritism provide for religious instruction. An orphanage without religious instruction and education was unacceptable to the Slovaks. 106 The fraternal organizations during this time suffered somewhat from embezzlement and swindling. Joseph Joscak, an editor of the Narodne Noviny , had taken a $19,000 "commission" from the National Slovak Society but was caught up with in 1913. 107 During the same years a William Vokolek swindled the Slovak fraternal organizations to the extent of $300,000. 108 Of course, A. S. Amrose's "commission" on the St. Mary's settlement must also be recalled here. Another common feature of fraternal life in this period was the construction of lodge halls, which were built almost in every settlement. These lodge halls became the centers of social life; they provided places for lodge meetings, theatrical productions, dances, gymnastic exercises, and quarters for the political and literary clubs. 109 One of the storms that troubled the fraternal organizations was the debate on the "old system" as against the "new system." Almost any issue of the Jednota after 1906 and the Narodne Noviny after 1910 contained letters with arguments on both sides of the question. 110 While operating under the older method of assessment, the organizations failed to build up a reserve for times of special demand; they were merely collecting agencies. For instance, if the organization needed $3,000 and had 12,000 members, each member was obliged to pay twenty five cents, which were collected to meet the cost. The new system involved paying dues r,e gularly, determined according to age. As early as 1906 the Rev. S. Furdek, the Rev. M. Jankola, and A. S. Ambrose pointed out the advantages of the new system, but there was much opposition. By 1914 both the First Catholic Slovak Union and the National Slovak Society had adopted the modern method. m Although progress was considerable among the Slovak immigrants in education, business enterprise, and farming , in many ways the lot of the workingman remained a hard �56 SLOVAKIA one. For instance, mine disasters continued to take lives. At Fernie, Pa. , in June, 1902, 200 miners perished, 50 of them Slovaks. Forty two Slovak miners were killed at Cambria, Pa. , during July, 1902. 112 Strikes still plagued the coal fields in which Slovaks were working. In Westmoreland county a strike began at Greensburg, Pa., on March 10, 1910 over union recognition and as a protest against the company store system. It spread to the neighboring mining centers of K,eystone, Irwin, Latrobe, and Westmoreland. Then in the confusion a mine guard shot an eighteen year old youth, and 15,000 miners went on strike. Eleven thousand wer•e said to be Slovaks. They joined the union to show their defiance and to emphasize their demands. As a counter-measure, the company called in the Pinkerton detectives, and the striking miners were blacklisted.113 During the strike the miners had very little to subsist upon, and that little came from the United Mine Workers of America. The union provided $2.50 a week for each man, $1.00 a week for each woman dependent, and $0 .50 a week for each child. 114 The president of the National Slovak Society, Mr. A. S. Ambrose, visited the strike-bound coal-fields. In his newspaper articles he estimated that about 20,000 men were on strike ; about 95 % were Slavs, and of this latter group about 60 % were Slovaks. The striking miners lived in shacks that could not protect them against the bitter cold, the children went about bare-foot and hungry. 115 Since 500 strikers were members of the National Slovak Society, the Society published appeals for help and even began a collection for relief of the strikers in Westmoreland county.116 Gradually the strike was broken and nothing substantial was won. Another strike in which many Slovaks were involved began in 1913, led by the Industrial Workers of the World. It started in the broad-loom silk mills of Patterson, N. J. , on February 25, 1913. Over twenty five thousand workers were affected. There were two factors that prolonged the bitter strife. One was the introduction of the three and four loom system; this involved the question of whether Patterson should invade the cheap silk field in opposition to the Pennsylvania mills. Fear of lower wages and loss of work followed as a consequence. The second factor was resentment of I.W.W. tactics. The Jednota condemned the I. W. W.'s socialist tendencies and opposition to the American Federation of Labor. 117 �SLOVAKIA 57 Still these defects of the union did not blind the First Catholic Slovak Union to the needs of the strikers, many of whom were Slovaks. 118 For five months the leadership of the I. W. W. kept the strikers' ranks intact, but lack of funds and loss of morale at last broke the strike. After twenty one weeks of bitter struggle the strike was settled without any gains for the workers. The J ednota laid the blame on the socialists. 119 Both newspapers were strong supporters of unions. They considered it the duty of every Slovak to belong to the unions, especially the American Federation of Labor. After all, it was the unions that improved the worker's lot and gave labor a position of influence in the world. 120 The strike-breaker and the "scab" were excluded from Slovak organizations. 121 In their attitude toward socialism the two newspapers differed. The Narodne Noviny showed itself definitely hospitable to socialist ideas. Articles were featured insisting that there could be no friendly contacts between capitalists and workers; workers were urged to abandon the Democratic and Republican parties and to join the party of the working class! 122 The Jednota unreservedly repudiated socialism. It condemned socialist anti-religious tactics and ridicule of Catholics. 123 Socialism was anti-Christian in its very essence, and had been consistently opposed to religion. The only agency that did in fact transform slave labor into free human labor was the Catholic Church. 124 As the first decade of the twentieth century ended and another began, the dawn of new interests appeared on the horizon. In 1911 Count Albert Apponyi, who has been mentioned before, returned to the United States on behalf of Hungary which he described as "an island of freedom" in central Europe. Slovak publicity about Hungarian mistreatment of Slovaks caused the mission of Count Apponyi to fail.1 25 Hard upon the heels of this came the Balkan wars. Slovak efforts at war relief were conditioned by nationalism. Within the months from November 21, 1912 to June 19, 1913, the Narodne Noviny collected $1,547.95 for the Slavonic Red Cross; and it was made clear that this collection was only for the Slavs. 126 By January 22, 1913 the Jednota had collected $2,350.00 for the same cause. 127 With regard to the "Slovak question," which was on the verge of becoming the paramouth one for the Slovaks, opinion among the American Slovaks had undergone quite a change. �58 SLOVAKIA Almost up to 1914 Slovaks sought concessions from Hungary for Slovakia; but these concessions of political and cultural rights wer-e understood within the existing framework of government. However, in April, 1914, when Count Michael Karolyi came to the United States to win Slovak favor for a Slovak and Hungarian union in a completely independent Hungary, the Slovaks questioned the sincerity of the Count and the government. In New York, on May 24, 1914, a debate took place on the question: "Can the Slovaks trust the Hungarian government in its movement for general suffrage in Hungary and with complete Hungarian independence?" The debate solved no real problem, but stated clearly the issues: what was to be the Slovaks' future relation to Hungary? The Slovak League arranged several protest meetings, and on April 28, 1914 issued a Memorandum, which was practically a declaration of independence and demanded autonomy for Slovakia. The League did not explain the kind of autonomy Slovakia should have, whether within Austro-Hungary or with Hungary as an independent state or complete independence for Slovakia for the Slovaks in America themselves disagreed on what they wanted. In order to clarify their position, a Congress of the Slovak League was held in Pittsburgh, September 10, 1914. After everybody had aired their views, it appeared that in 1914, as late as September of that year, the American Slovaks had not generally accepted political plans for Slovakia. 128 They were divided into three camps: one demanded complete independence for Slovakia, another wanted autonomy within Hungary, and a third desired the creation of a new state in which Czechs and Slovaks would be united. 129 With the coming of the World War, Slovak attention was diverted from the creation of Slovak institutions here in America to the creation of Slovakia. The World War found the Slovaks anti-German and anti-Habsburg. 130 The Jednota printed German atrocity stories and even went so far as to charge that German Protestantism was serving German mili'tarism.131 The Slovak League managed to chanel the desire for a better Slovakia and the anti-Habsburg feeling into an extensive Slovak nationalist movement. Through the Slovak League over a million dollars was poured into the cause of Slovak freedom. 132 By 1914 the Slovak immigrants had made themselves �SLOVAKIA 59 economically secure as far as a group of working people could in the American economy. Socially they had made progress in organizing national fraternal organizations, establishing Slovak schools, creating Slovak parishes. Their nationalism, manifested in efforts to form distinct Slovak institutions and their interest in European Slovakia, prevented their complete integration with American life; but the Slovak institutions seemed foredoomed to failure. The explanation for much of this lies outside the special character of the Slovaks. After 1890, the close of the frontier, the new industrial city became the characteristic of American life ; it became the center of production, the leader in social and cultural lif.e, and great center of communication. By the very fact that Slovaks were immersed in industrial and eventually city rather than farm life, they were exposed to the influence of this most Americanizing force. The problems of new city life, the economic opportunities offered them in industry, and economic competition made the attempt to establish particularly Slovak institutions a struggle against the current. The attempted settlement on ,t he farms was also against the trends of the times which led toward the city. The crucial factor in American Slovak social history seems to be their engaging in industry and their settlement in industrial centers. Slovak nationalism attempted to modify the influence of this industrial city, and in so far as it did, it hindered progress among the Slovak immigrants in America. FOOTNOTES 1. Francis Sasinek, "Myslienky o stave nabozenstva medzi Slovakmi," Kalendar Jednota (1897 ) , II, 139. 2. M. Jankola, " Nase Skoly," Kalendar Jedno ta ( 1900), V, 135-136. 3. Molchan, "Development of the Slovak Community," pp. 69-70. 4. Culen, Slovaci v Ameri ke, p. 394; Jednota, June 18, 1913, September 3, 1913. 5. Yurchak, The Slovaks, p. 187; Hrusovsky, This i s Slovakia, p. 50. 6. Molchan, "Development of the Slovak Community," pp. 82-83 ; Yurchak, .The ,Slovaks, p . 190. 7. Yurchak, The Slovaks, pp. 229-230. 8. Karol Sidor, Andrej Hlinka 1864-1938 (Bratislava, 1934), pp. 186191 ; Bokes, Dejiny Slovenska, pp. 313-315; Yurchak, The Slovaks, pp. 230-232. 9. Molchan, "Development of the Slovak Community," p. 81. 10. John S. Bradac, "Slovenski Evanjelici-Lutherani v Spojenych Statoch Arnerickych," World's Fair Memorial, pp. 81-82. 11. "The Slovak Sokol," Sborni k Slovenskeho Katoli ckeho Sokola na rok 1942, XXVIII, 242-243 . 12. Culen, Dejiny, II, 80-81, 93-94. �60 SLOVAKIA 13. J ednota, February 5, 1913. The pastor told the organist " the Slovak language was nothing." The organist quit. 14. Jednota, July 8, 1914. After the Slovaks had brought a priest from Slovakia and paid his way, the bishop refused to let him be their pastor. 15. Narodne Noviny, September 15, 1910; Kushner, Slovaci, p . 32. 16. Molchan, "Development of the Slovak Community," p. 94-95. 17. Andrew J. Shipman, " Slavs in America," Th e Catholic Encyclop edia ( 1912), XIV, p. 55. 18. Culen, Dejiny, I. 114-115. 19. M. Jankola, " Pokladnica sv. Antona v Amerike," Kalendar Jedn ota (1908), XIII, 177-178. 20. Jednota, February 12, 1913. 21. Culen Slovaci v A merike, p . 418; " Slovenska zenska rehol'a ssv. Cyrilla i Me thoda v Amerike ," Ka lendar J ednot a ( 1911 ), XVI, 97-98 ; M. Jankola , " Prvotiny pr vej slovenskej zenskej rehole" , Ka lendar Jednot a (1909), XIV, 17-176; "Dcery ssv. Cyrilla i Methoda", Kalendar J ednota (1914 ), XIX, 194-195. 22. Kushner, Slovaci, pp. 150-152. 23. Culen, Slovaci v Amerike, pp. 408-409. 24. Ibi d., 418,424. 25. Narodne Noviny, August 15, 1913, August 29,1913. 26. Narodne Noviny, October 3, 1912. 27. Kushner, Slovaci, pp. 156-157. 28. Culen, Slovaci v A merike, p. 401. 29. Narodne Noviny, June 9, 1910, April 27, 1911 ; September 5, 1912; August 29, 1912; Jednota, July 2, 1913. 30. Narodne Noviny, June 23, 1910, February 15, 1913 ; Jednota, April 1, 1914. 31. J ednota, March 4, 1913, March 12, 1913. 32. Stephan Furdek, "Dlfobny upis a ucastina," Kalendar Jednota (1909 ), XIV, pp. 192-195; "Ako povstal svet," Kalendar Jednota (1910), XV, pp. 141-145; J. Porubsky, "Ako volia v Amerike prezidenta," Kalendar J ednota (1913) , XVII, pp. 97-103; I. G., "Ako stat' sa obcanom Spoj. Statov," Kalendar Narodneho Slov enskeho Spolku (1913 ), XX, pp. 83-96. 33. Nar odne Noviny, June 12, 1913 ; Jednota, November 19, 1913. 34. N arodne Noviny, April 25, 1912; Jednota, June 11, 1913. 35. Narodne Noviny , August 10, 1911. 36. J . A. F ., " Pokrok," Sborni k (1915) , I, 43. 37. N arodne Noviny, April 4, 1912. 38. Narodne Noviny, July 11, 1912. 39. Narodne Noviny, July 25, 1912. 40. Narodne Noviny, August 8, 1912, September 19, 1912. 41. Narodne Noviny, November 12, 1914. 42. Jednota, January 1, 1913, February 12, 1913, May 7, 1913. 43. Culen, Slovaci v A m erike, pp. 175-190. 44. Ibi d., pp. 236-237. 45. Ibid. , p. 266. 46. Ibi d., p. 267. 47. Ibid., pp. 294-296. 48. Ibi d., pp. 297-305. 49. Ibid., pp. 306-337. 50. N arodne Noviny, February 3, 1910. �SLOVAKIA 61 51. Narodne Noviny, March 27, 1913. 52. Narodne Noviny, February 10, 1910, October 24, 1912. 53. Jednota, January 8, 1913, February 19, 1913, June 18, 1913, July 16, 1913. 54. Culen, Slovaci v Amerike, p. 191. 55. Narodne Noviny, July 7, 1910, June 27, 1912, April 17, 1913 ; Jednota, November 4, 1914, December 23, 1914. 56. Narodne Noviny, October 3, 1912. 57. Narodne Noviny, October 6, 1910. 58. Narodne Noviny, January 27, 1910; Jednota, May 14, 1913, December 31, 1913 ; Kalendar Jednota (1915), XX, 75. 59. Narodne Noviny, March 7, 1912. 60. Amerikansko-Slovenske Noviny, August 19, 1897. 61. Joseph Pauco, ~udovychorn u Sturovcov (Turciansky Sv. Martin, 1943) , pp. 107-108. 62. Ibid. , pp. 137-140. 63. Jednota, February 5, 1913. 64. Narodne Noviny, April 28, 1910, April 4, 1912, March 21, 1912. 65. Narodne Noviny, April 4, 1912; Paul Jamarik, " Opojny a krcma, " Kalendar Narodneho Slovenskeho Spolku ( 1914), XXII, 198-206 ; Jednota, February 19, 1913, June 25, 1913. 66. !1udomil, "Zakladajme spolky uplnej striezlivosti," Kalendar Jednota, (1911), XVI, 41-42. 67. Jednota, March 5, 1913. 68. Narodne Noviny, February 24, 1910, August 4, 1910; Jednota, January 29, 1913. 69. Jednota, July 30, 1913. 70. Narodne Noviny, April 25, 1912. 71. Narodne Noviny, January 13, 1910, May 12, 1912, August 25, 1910. 72. Narodne Noviny, November 2, 1911. 73. Narodne Noviny, November 9, 1911. 74. Narodne Noviny, January 25, 1912. 75. Narodne Noviny, June 6, 1912. 76. Narodne Noviny, September 18, 1913. 77. Narodne Noviny, October 1, 1914. 78. Narodne Noviny, November 16, 1911. 79. Jednota, September 17, 1913 ; Narodne Noviny, May 25, 1911. 80. Jednota, February 4, 1914; Narodne Noviny , March 19, 1914, June 11, 1914. 81. Jednota, February 19, 1913. 82. Narodne Noviny, October 7, 1910. 83. Jednota, July 9, 1913 Narodne Noviny, May 11, 1912. 84. Jednota, January 1, 1913 ; January 21, 1914. 85. Narodne Noviny, March 19, 1914, April 25, 1912. 86. Jednota, January 21, 1914, January 28, 1914. 87. Jednota, February 12, 1913, August 13, 1913. 88. Jednota, August 13, 1913; Narodne Noviny, March 19, 1914; Jednota, September 17, 1913, January 21 , 1914. 89. Jednota, December 9, 1914, October 14, 1914, December 30, 1914. 90. Narodne Noviny, April 25, 1912. 91. Narodne Noviny, August 8, 1912. 92. Narodne Noviny, February 17, 1910, April 27, 1911. 93 . Narodne Noviny, February 29, 1914; Jednota, July 1, 1914; Narodne Noviny, May 14, 1914. 94. Jednota, July 1, 1914. �62 SLOVAKIA 95. N<irodne Noviny, December 28, 1911, September 12, 1912, October 12, 1911, June 11, 1914. 96. N<irodne Noviny, March 7, 1912; Jednota, May 21, 1913. 97. A. V. Kozak, "Ustav I . Katolickej Slovenskej Jednoty," Kalend<ir Jednota (1912) , XVII, 22. 98. " Ustav I. Katolickej Slovenskej Jednoty," Kalend<ir Jednota ( 1915), xx, 163-164. 99. N<irodne Noviny, July 14, 1910. 100. N<irodne Noviny, July 13, 1911. 101. N<irodne Noviny, October 13, 1913. 102. N<irodne Noviny, January 8, 1914. 103. N<irodne Noviny, January 29, 1914. 104. N<irodne Noviny, April 16, 1914. 105. N<irodne Noviny, September 17, 1914. 106. Pamiitnica k zlatemu Jubileu N<irodneho Slov enskeho Spolku v U .S.A . (Pittsburgh, 1940) , p. 47. 107. N<irodne Noviny, March 13, 1913. 108. N<irodne Noviny, January 16, 1913. 109. N <irodn e Noviny, March 24, 1910, April 28, 1910, June 30, 1910. 110. Jednota, January 1, 1913. 111. "Prorocke slova dp. Matufa Jankolu o novom systeme," Sbornik Slovenskeho Katolickeho Sokola na rok 1942, XXIX, 82; Jednota, January 1, 1913. 112. Culen, Dejiny, I, 125. 113. Ibid., I, 122-123. 114. N<irodne Noviny, March 23 , 1911. 115. N<irodn e Noviny, March 16, 1911. 116. N<irodne Noviny, September 22, 1910. 117. Jednota, May 14, 1913, May 21, 1913, July 2, 1913, September 10. 1913. 118. Jednota, June 18, 1913. 119. Jednot a, July 30, 1913. 120. N<irodn e Noviny, August 22, 1912, October 23, 1913 ; S. F., "Robotnicka otazka," Ka lend<ir J ednota (1906 ), XIII, 56. 121. Culen, Deji ny, I, 123-124; N<irodne Noviny, February 24, 1913. 122. N<irodne Noviny, January 15, 1914, February 12, 1914, February 26, 1914, June 11, 1914. 123. Jednota, January 1, 1913. 124. Jednota, May 7, 1913, July 2, 1913, May 14, 1913. 125. Yurchak, The Slovaks, p. 187. 126. N<irodne Noviny, November 21, 1912, June 19, 1913. 127. J ednota, January 22, 1913. 128. Molchan, "Development of the Slovak Community," pp. 99-102. 129. Yurchak, The Slovaks, p. 190. 130. Jednota, September 30, 1914, October 14, 1914. 131. Jednot a, October 21, 1914, November 4, 1914. 132. Yurchak, The Slovaks, p . 191. � SLOVAKIA 41 New Interests 1900-1914 SLOVAKS IN THE U.S.A. By James J. Zatk o, Ph. D ., University of Notre D ame By 1900 growing Slovak nationalism had begun to grip the Slovak immigrants, and during the next decade and a half the Slovaks agitated for distinotly Slovak institutions, for Slovak education, and for Slovak liberation overseas from Hungarian control. What seemed the most important need of the Slovak immigrants to many thinking minds was Slovak education. Some Catholics found the cause of religious decline in the non-confessional Slovak schools that others advocated and established. Public schools seemed equally pernicious to their mind as being Protestant schools. Too much Americanization injured faith and morals. To them the great answer was Slovak Catholic schools; but these were practically non-existent. Some pastors just were not interested in schools, Slovak or Catholic. The debts resulting from building churches weighted down the parishes and blocked any ambitious program of school construction. Often Slovaks were too scattered throughout a region to support their own church and school.1 However, the crucial obstacle was a lack of Slovak teachers. Even if schools were built, they might be Catholic schools, but they would not be Slovak schools, for there were not enough Slovak teachers. As early as 1900 Rev. M. Jankola, a Catholic priest, suggested a solution, Slovak nuns to teach in Slovak schools, but this suggestion took almost ten years to mature. 2 Nevertheless, schools were not entirely neglected during these first years of the twentieth century. In 1900 the Rev. Bartholomew Kvitek, a Catholic priest, organized the Slovak school of St. Michael's parish in Chicago; and in 1902 the first Vincentian Sisters of Charity arrived from Slovakia to serve in St. Michael's parish in Braddock, Pa., where they took charge of the parochial school's 65 students. 3 Plans for non-confessional schools never came to very much, because the Slovaks were opposed to education without religion. 4 In 1900 the Slovaks won a local victory over the Hungarians when their protests blocked the erection of Louis Kossuth's statue in the public square of Cleveland. When Count �42 SLOVAKIA Albert Apponyi and forty delegates arrived in America during the World's Fair at St. Louis in 1904, the Slovaks presented a Memorandum recounting their objections against the electoral system in Hungary and Magyarization. Although the Count refused even to discuss Slovak grievances, ,the Memorandum at least informed public opinion about undemocratic election procedures and anti-Slovak schools. 5 However, all anti-Magyar agitation was focussed by the creation in 1907 of the Slovak League of America on May 26, in Cleveland, Ohio, by seven thousand delegates. The League became an alliance of Slovak educational, fraternal, and religious groups in this country. The purposes of the League were to educate Slovaks everywhere, to uplift them here in America and elsewhere morally, economically, socially and politically. 6 It became the leader in the drive to alleviate political conditions in Slovakia, but its efforts might have been still-born had not the Massacre of Cernova on the 27th of October, 1907 aroused not only Slovaks but world opinion. To understand this ev,e nt some facts need to be reviewed. The Rev. Andrew Hlinka, a Catholic priest both pious and devoted to the political and social welfare of the Slovaks, in 1897 became editor of The People's News and fought the Magyarization program of the gov,e rnment; his speeches and writings helped elect seven Slovaks to the Hungarian Parliament in 1906. He and fifteen other Slovaks were arrested and tried for "agitation against Hungarian nationality". Hlinka was fined 1500 crowns and costs of 680 crowns and sentenced to two years in prison. In a farewell message to his parishioners he declared thart he would gladly suffer imprisonment to secure recognition of the Slovak nation. For this he received another eighteen months and a fine of 400 crowns. 7 Prior to this the Rev. A. Hlinka had been appointed pastor in his native city, Ruzomberok; in the quarter known as Cernova he had begun building a new church for which he collected funds from all over Slovakia. He had in the meantime been suspended by Bishop Parvy, an ardent pro-Magyar. When the church in Cernova was to be dedicated, the parishioners refused to permit the blessing, unless their pastor returned to them. On October 27, 1907 gendarmes marched into Cernova to help keep order, and they lined the streets leading to the church. That morning coaches arrived bringing the Rev. Pazurik from Llkavka and other visitors to conduct the dedi- �SLOVAKIA 43 cation. When the people blockaded the road, the coachman began to lay about his whip in order to drive his horses through the crowd ; some men seized the horses' bridles to turn them around. An order was given to the gendarmes to open fire. Instantly nine people fell dead, men, women, and children, and six more died of their wounds later. 8 The National Slovak Society immediately took in hand the problem of aid for the widows and orphans that resulted from the Cernova Massacre and voted $2,000 for r•elief.9 While political nationalism received immense stimulus from the Massacre, nationalism began to play a greater role in the sphere of religion after 1900. Under the influence of their nationalism, the Slovaks began to feel their unity as a group and their need of exclusivness as a nation. This led to organization on a unique national basis in religion and to demands for r•ecognizing the "rights of Slovaks" in religious matters, like organization of synods for the Lutherans, Catholic action groups for the Slovak Catholics, and teaching of Slovak in the schools. The Slovak Lutherans formed the Slovak Evangelical Lutheran Synod of the United States of America with headquarters in Whiting, Indiana. This Synod was founded in the church of St. Peter, September 2, 1902, at Connellsville, Pa. A beginning had been made in Mahanoy City, Pa., but more definite steps were taken at conferences in Wilkes-Barre, Pa., and Braddock, Pa.; in the actual founding all the Slovak ministers and congregations cooperated. The Synod used the Slovak language in services and sermons, except where unusual circumstances required the use of English. Even the children wer,e taught their religion in Slovak. The Synod obtained its funds from prescribed contributions of the various parishes belonging to it. In Cleveland it owned a considerable prope1;ty intended for a Lutheran orphanage. The of.ficial organ was the Svedo k, which began in 1906 and was published twice a month.10 The troubled relations of Catholicism with Slovak nationalism continued to split various groups. A National Slovak Sokol had been established to include all Sokol activities in the United States; but discrimination against Catholics led to the creation of the Slovak Catholic Sokol in 1905; the headquarters of this group were in Passaic, N. J. The Slovak Catholic Sokol began publishing its own paper, the Katolicky �44 SLOVAKIA Sokol, and launched an extensive program to attract Slovak youth in gymnastics, athletics, and social activities. 11 The most violent conflict among Slovaks of the first decade of the twentieth century involved Slovak nationalism, but it was a conflict within the Catholic group between Catholic Nationalists and the Madarones. The founder of the First Catholic Slovak Union, the Rev. Stephen Furdek, called for an annual Slovak day that was to renew the Catholic spirit and attachment to Slovak nationality. The first Slovak day was to be called the Catholic Congress. This evoked bitter opposition in letters and even a telegram to Bishop Michael J . Hoban of Scranton from the Rev. Kossalko who denounced the whole project as "pan-slavistic" and as an attempt to set up a national church. When Bishop Hoban sanctioned the Slovak Day or Catholic Congress in Wilkes-Barre, Pa., by addressing it on September 3, 1906, Kossalko's rage knew no bounds. He addressed a Memorandum, signed by a large number of Madarone Slovak clergy, to the Apostolic Delegate and the archbishops of the United States. He demanded a condemnation of the affair. The Memorandum expressed fear for the unity of the church and the salvation of 500,000 souls, and accused the Slovak Catholics of working for "panslavism", which was inimical to Hungary, Germany, and the United States. However, Bishop Hoban's influence shielded the Catholic Slovak clergy and no action was taken.12 This event discredited the Madarones. Within the framework of the Catholic Church in the United States Slovak Catholics became involved in a struggle to preserve what they considered their national rights. There were arguments with non-Slovak pastors over hiring organists who would be able to teach Slovak to the children. 13 At other times Slovak Catholic efforts to obtain Slovak priests who could minister to them in their own language conflicted with bishops who did not always agree on Slovak "rights" .14 One bitter quarrel led to a schism in the Slovak settlement of Masontown, Pa. In Leckrone, Pa., a settlement of Irish and Slovaks, the Church of Our Lady of Perpetual help was blessed by Bishop Richard Phelan of Pittsburgh on October 9, 1904. In 1907 the church burned down, but a hall was built in which religious services were held. The Slovaks by this time had a Slovak pastor, but they still wanted a parish all their own. Bishop �SLOVAKIA 45 Francis R. Canevin of Pittsburgh requested the Rev. Charles Janda to look for a suitable location ; Rev. C. Janda sugg,ested Masontown. Since the Irish Catholics also wanted to have a parish in Masontown, the Slovaks were told to take the church in Leckrone for their use; but the Slovaks in Masontown were not satisfied. They went ahead and built their own church, and when the bishop would not cooperate with them, they cast about for a priest who might be willing to serve their church. Eventually they found an "independent" priest and so fell into schism.15 In sptte of such trouble, the Slovak Catholic body remained generally healthy. On February 22, 1911 a Slovak Catholic Priest and inventor, the Rev. Joseph Murgas, led in forming The Slovak Catholic Federation in America in Wilkes-Barre, Pa. Und,e r the control of Slovak Catholic priests this group was to spread and coordinate Catholic action among Slovaks in America; until this year Slovak Catholic activities had been unorganized and subordinated to political and social ends.16 Exact religious statistics for ·t he Slovak immigrant group for that time are not available, but the best estimate suggests that of the 560,000 Slovak immigrants in America in 1911, 450,000 were Roman Catholics. The Slovak Catholics had 134 parishes in the United States. Protestants among the Slovaks numbered 95,000 .17 Of this Protestant group, Calvinists are estimated to run about 15,000. 18 After 1905 the development of Slovak Catholic elementary schools gained momentum. A system both Slovak and Catholic had been impossible without Slovak Catholic teachers. The Rev. M. Jankola, a Catholic priest, organized the Priests' Society of St. Anthony's Burse in the United States of America in Wilkes-Barre, Pa. , in 1903 and it was chartered in 1905. In the Kalendar Jednota of 1908 Rev. M. Jankola proposed the Burse of St. Anthony for Catholics generally to support students preparing to be teachers and Slovak girls preparing to be teaching nuns. 19 Although the Slovak Catholics supported this program generously with frequent collections and donations 20 , the fund proved insufficient for the purpose. Three Slovak girls who had been sent to the novitiate of the Sisters of the Immaculate Heart of Mary in 1906 were the nucleus of a Slovak sisterhood. In 1909 interested Slovak priests petitioned for the foundation of a distinctly �46 SLOVAKIA Slovak sisterhood, the Sisters of SS. Cyril and Methodius. On June 26, 1909 the Congregation for Religious approved this project, and the motherhouse of the new Slovak congregation was established in Danville, Pa.21 In the year 1911 the Most Reverend Joseph Koudelka, the bishop of Superior sent a request to the general motherhouse of the Congregation of School Sisters of the Third Order of St. Francis in Prague. He asked the sisters to come to his diocese to work. Mother General M. Xavier sent Sister M. Georgia and Sister M. Hyacinth to look over the possibilities. These sisters stopped in Pittsburgh, where the Rev. J. Vrana persuaded them that the Pittsburgh diocese offered them greater opportunities and had greater need. When Sister M. Hyacinth took sick and died on March 10, 1912, the Mother General herself came to Pittsburgh. Rev. Ferdinand Prikazky, who at the moment was struggling to get nuns to teach in his St. Gabriel's parochial school, convinc,e d the sisters to settle in Pittsburgh. This was the beginning. By 1914 twenty three sisters of this congregation were teaching 579 children in three Slovak Catholic parishes.22 Progress had been made in solving the problem of elementary school education; schools were built in the parishes almost as quickly as teachers could be provided. The question of secondary school education also began to agitate Slovak circles. Very early, the Rev. Stephen Furdek suggested the idea of a Slovak high school for boys; he was seconded in this by the Rev. M. Jankola. However, nothing came of the idea until 1921 when it revived and resulted in the Benedictine High School in Cleveland in 1927.23 The Sisters of SS. Cyril and Methodius opened a high school for girls at Danville in 1922, and the Sisters of St. Francis opened one at Bellevue, Pa., in 1927. 24 There was continuous agitation for a college. A Slovak business college was suggested to improve the Slovak economic position.25 P. J . Kunovsky worked out a whole scheme for a Slovak school on a higher level. He argued that $100,000 would put up a building, and then he suggested that each fraternal organization ought to support a professor. This school was to include business and technical courses. As to religious affiliation, the school would be non-confessional, but the Oatholics could have a lecturer on the Catholic Faith and the Lutherans could support one to lecture on the Lutheran faith. This in- �SLOVAKIA 47 stitution was to be coeducational. Nothing came of this project.2s Very few Slovak children of the first immigrants had a chance to go to college, but those who did go generally took advantag,e of existing colleges. In 1901 the Czech Benedictines had established St. Procopius College at Lisle, Ill., and by 1907 there were ten Slovak youths studying there. They organized the "Literary Society of Stephen Moyses" and issued a monthly multigraphed little paper, Horlivost'. The club and the paper lasted for four years. The Slovaks also owed a special debt to the College and Seminary of St. Vincent's Archabbey in Latrobe, Pa., for in this college and seminary almost all the Catholic Slovak priests and many Slovak young men were trained. 27 During the years between 1902 and 1936 545 Slovak students attended St. Vincent's. 28 Informal education made most progress among the Slovaks. Clubs, multiplied, political, social, cultural, and literary. The political club seems to have been the most popular. It had a variety of purposes: to fighrt political apathy among the Slovaks, to help the Slovaks gain their political rights, and to help Slovaks become American citizens. In one year a club in Rankin, Pa., succeeded in getting thirteen Slovaks to obtain their citizenship papers. 29 Literary clubs also became popular among the Slovaks as a mean of self- improvement. 30 Both the newspapers and the almanacs were also instrumental in educating the Slovak immigrants. The Jednota discussed Darwinism, the "higher criticism" and socialism. 31 The almanacs explained the procedure of becoming citizens, American electoral system, stocks and bonds, and even discussed the origin of the world. 32 One of the complaints about the Slovaks made by their own leaders is their lack of interest in books and good reading. To make the Slovaks book-lovers, Slovak political and literary clubs founded Slovak libraries. 33 The national fraternal organizations sometimes contributed money to help in the acquisition of a building, or, if the Slovaks already possessed a lodge hall, to aid in the purchase of books. 34 That a demand actually developed for Slovak books is suggested by the special sections for Slovak readers in public libraries, as for instance, the Oarnegie Library in Homestead, Pa., 35 and the public library in Cleveland. 36 The most ambitious project launched to interest the Slo- �48 SLOVAKIA vaks in reading was a book club. P. J. Kunovsky suggested in 1912 the formation of a book club to consist of 5,000 Slovaks. This number would enable the club to sell four books for a dollar. 37 By July 11, 1912 a literary committee to choose books had been elected. 38 Even this cultural project could not move along without factions; for there were some objections to the composition of the literary committee. Only "one side" was represented. 39 There were complaints by Kunovsky that progress was slow; in fact, after six months of vigorous propaganda, there were not even 1,000 members, and the club needed 5,000 members in one year. 40 By November, 1914, the "Four Books for a Dollar" was still going and growing somewhat, 41 but the Slovaks were apparently still not too interested in books. One book promotion was quite successful. The Rev. J. Murgas led a drive to get 3,000 subscribers for a Cathechetical Encyclopedia, written by Rev. Vaclav Melchior, C. Ss. R. 42 Enough subscribers undertook to buy the book. It was a project more adapted to Slovak ideas; it seemed worthwhile to invest in a book on religion. The taste of Slovaks in reading was quite varied. We cannot judge from actual reports of reading, but the types of books published for them may serve as an indication of their reading tast,e. There were romances dealing with the Janosik cycle, a Slovak Robin Hood; others dealt with the adventures of a likeable thief, Rinaldo Rinaldini; sensational stories included Dracula, Harry Tracy, Most Desperate Criminal of Our Time , and World Detective Romances and Novel series.43 Other books published dealt with Slovak history and Magyar oppression. 44 One anti-clerical work was Z dejin Cirkvi by A. M. Spera, an anti-Catholic church history: 45 there was even a socialist work, Socialisti idu. 46 Publications included readers and catechisms, 47 dictionaries and grammars, 48 and devotional works. 49 The translations printed in the Narodne Noviny from American literature included Edgar A. Poe's The Black Cat 50 and Washington Irving's The Legend of Sleepy Hollow.51 Whatever reading may have been done by the Slovaks besides the almanacs and newspapers, these books are a suggestion of its type. Another form of informal education proposed was a Slovak Chautauqua. The Rev. W. Regnemer, a Calvinist minister, suggested that a fraternal organization hire a pleasure �SLOVAKIA 49 park during the summer for one day, prepare a cultural and entertaining program and charge an admission of twenty fiv,e or fifty cents. 52 This idea was still-born. Theatrical productions were very common among the Slovaks, 53 but the drama was not on a very high level. Most popular were plays in Slovak portraying Slovakia and Slovak life. There was no attempt to translate the English classics of the stage into Slovak. 54 Both the Narodne Noviny and the Jednota encouraged the staging of plays by publishing a large number of them in their columns, 55 for plays portraying Slovak life served to arouse national consciousness, besides being good entertainment. 56 One complaint about the theatrical entertainment was the bad conduct of the audience, which frequently shouted to their friends on the stage, whistled, stamped their feet. Mothers brought very young children or babies who disturbed the performance with their crying. 57 The Slovaks organized bands and choirs ;58 popular music was also encouraged by the publication of songs in the almanacs. Some of the choirs advanced so rapidly that they were able to stage small operettas. 59 One obstacle to further Slovak progress was intemperance. The drink problem, its source in poverty, was an old one for the Slovaks. All sources agree that drink, especially whisk,ey, was the curse of Slovakia and helped impoverish the country. 60 During the 1840',s Rev. Stephan Zavodnik, a Catholic priest, influenced by Father Matthew, inaugurated the struggle against intemperance in Slovakia. Father Matthew's influence had trav,elled through Germany, Bohemia, Poland, and finally reached Slovakia. 61 Temperance societies were first organized in Orava in 1845 and in half a year had 20,000 members. The city councils assisted the societies; the ecclesiastical authorities put their prestige behind the movement. In 1847 the bishop of Banska Bystrica asked his clergy to publicize these societies during Lent ; the bishop of Roznava issued a pastoral letter on the subject in 1846. The Lutherans too supported the movement. 62 The nationalistic agitation and revolution in 1848 disrupted the growth of these societies, but by 1870 the fight against drink revived. 63 When the Slovaks came to America, they brought their weakness for drink with them. Still there were Slovaks who understood the pernicious effect of over-indulgence in strong �50 SLOVAKIA drink. Saloon keepers were attacked for disrupting family life. Slovak saloon keepers were urged to remove the national disgrace by going into another line of business. 64 The agitation against the use and abuse of alcohol filled many a column in the N arodne N oviny and J ednota. Alcohol was the cause of disease, for example, tuberculosis, of many economic and social losses ; whiskey was the root of all social evils.65 The most eff.ective agitation against intemperance was the total abstinence society. The best reason for creating such societies was their need. There were such sodeties already in existence in 1911 for example, in Hazleton, Pa., McAdoo, Pa. , St. Clair, Pa., and Mahanoy City, Pa.66 When the temperance club was organized in Wilkes-Barre, Pa., forty five prospective members attended the meeting; but only eight were willing to take the pledge and join the society. Eventually twenty women and girls joined; since then five or six members were added at each meeting, and the number finally grew to forty five! 67 Hand in hand with the progress in religious organization, in education, and political action, went the bettering of the Slovak economic conditions. As with the other activities, economic life among the Slovaks began to be colored by nationalism. The Slovaks set up Slovak grocery stores and Slovak banks. Surprisingly enough, a farm movement among the Slovaks developed from many causes. The success of the Slovaktown venture was continually reported in the newspapers: news of hay selling for $7 a ton, in November, 1912, seven weddings, good markets, freedom from the bleak life of a miners' town and from strikes. 68 To some life on the farm meant a life less dangerous to the faith and a healthier family life;69 to others it meant protection against too quick an assimilation to American ways, especially American morals.70 In 1910 the National Slovak Society embarked on a considerable farm colonization venture. The Society's national convention had voted in 1909 that not less than 1,000 acres of farm land should be bought for an orphanage. A committee investigated real estate in Prince George, Calvert, and St. Mary's counties in Maryland; enough land was to be bought to build an orphanage and to form a Slovak settlement to help in the upkeep of the orphanage. After considerable debate on whether the primary purpose was a settlement �SLOVAKIA 51 or an orphanage, 2,813 acres of land were purchased for F 0,000 in St. Mary's county, near St. Mary's, Maryland. One thousand one hundred acres were arable and the rest was woodland ; there was a three mile frontage on St. Mary's River. 71 Eight hundred acres were to be set aside for the orphanage and old folks ' home, and two thousand acres were to be put up for sale.72 The land was divided into thirty nine farms, ranging in size from 33 acres to 132, and classified in value thus: class A farms at $40-$50 an acre, class B farms at $25-$40 an acre, and Class C at $10-$25 an acre. The price of the farms varied from $600 to $3,100.73 The land sales went so well that the National Slovak Society decided to reserve only 500 acres for the orphanage and to sell 2,300 acres for farms.74 Such was the venture's success that by June, 1912, the Slovak Farmers Association was chartered in Maryland with a capitalization of $25,000. First class stock was to get 5% dividend; and as soon as the second class stock reached 5%, the rate of the first class was to jump to 7%. The organization's purpose was to settle Slovaks on good farms, especially in Maryland. The association also had a hotel where Slovaks might disport themselves in the summer for longer or shorter periods of time. 75 Behind the scenes, however, some financial skulduggery was afoot and the exposure of "commission-masters" definitely dampened enthusiasm for the project. A. S. Ambrose, the president of the National Slovak Society, had taken a ten percent commission on $48,735 worth of land sales and netted himself a tidy $4,875.30. Of the sales themselves $16,156.70 in cash had been placed into the Society's treasury, while $28,580 had been mortgaged to the Society. 76 On this transaction the Society was estimated to have lost nearly $20,000 through various "commissions." 77 At least on paper in 1911 the Slovak American Colonization Company was organized with an intended Capitalization of $50,000 at $50 a share. It planned the erection of houses, business structures, saw-mills, and other needed buildings. It remained a paper organization. 78 In spite of the publicity giv,en these projects, the influx of Slovaks onto the land came from individual initiative for most part. Small colonies of Slovak farmers grew up around Denmark, Maine, 79 Phillips, Wisconsin, 80 Tabor, Minnesota,81 Louisiana and Mississippi,82 Callahan and Pine Land, Flo- �52 SLOVAKIA rida,83 Michigan,84 and North Emporia and Antioch, Virginia.a5 If the Slovak farmer struck upon land already cleared, he did not have too difficult a time making a success of farming; but if he bought land that had yet to be cleared, like the second growth timberlands in Wisconsin, the first few years on the "blessed" land were murderous in their demands of labor and capital. For instance, two brothers and their families, having read accounts of successful farming in Wisconsin, used their savings to buy a farm in northern Wisconsin. The land had to be cleared, and ,even the women were put to work carrying away the heavy wood. Besides, the brothers had to build a log house big enough to shelter the two families. During the winter months, the men worked as lumberjacks, and in order to have enough capital to begin farming in spring had to borrow at six percent. After plowing and buying seed, the two new farmers were without money. One of them went to work in a glass mill in Illinois, while the other continued the back-breaking work clearing the land and farming. To add to their troubles, the nearby creek dried up in the summer, and the water could be brought in only from a distant spring. A horse had to be bought ! The beginning of farming was bitter for the Slovaks in northern Wisconsin.86 Although the Slovak farmers did organize locally, they did not form any national Slovak farmer societies. In Moquah, Wis. , for instance, a special farmers' society was established in 1911. The two national fraternal organizations served their social purposes sufficiently. One farmer from Tabor, Minn., did suggest that the Slovak farmers in the west needed a "clearing house" in a city like Pittsburgh, where they could sell their products, especially, grain, directly to the consumer. This would save the farmer some of his profits and the workingman some of his hard earned money. This remained only a suggestion. 87 Generally the new farmers were quite successful. The land was good, profits were high, and there were no strikes. 88 In Slovaktown hay was sold for $7 a ton in 1913; a Slovak farmer in Virginia made $1 ,100 on peanuts and $220 on cotton on a 220 acre farm . Still there were failures . A considerable number of advertisements announcing the farm sales appeared in the Jednota and the Narodne Noviny. 89 Some- �SLOVAKIA 53 times the reason was the mortgag,e ;90 at other times the family found the life too difficult and drab.9 1 While some Slovaks managed to escape to the farm from the hard life of mine and mill, most Slovaks remained city-dwellers. One of the problems of the city-dweller was the high cost of living as compared with wages. 92 The high prices led to a large number of cooperative ventures on a nationality basis. Most frequently this was a meat and grocery store. The enterprise resembled a corporation more than a cooperative. A share might cost $10 and a board of directors headed and managed the enterprise. Sometimes a limit was placed on the number of shares an individual might hold, lest any one person should capture control of the corporation.93 In Yukon, Pa., for instance, 200 families established a share-holding grocery store which was successful despite the opposition of some Slovaks. The corporation charter provided that any man could belong, but no one was allowed to invest more than $1 ,000! In 9 months a dividend of $4.85 was paid for each share. The cooperative enterprise could save a working man about fifteen cents a day on his food bill. In spite of considerable propaganda in the papers heralding these ventures, the Slovaks did not support these "Slovak stores" universally. The proprietors complained that Slovaks continued to patronize non-Slovak businesses. 9 4 There were many suggestions for Slovak enterprise: the organization of all Slovak businessmen in America, a law firm to take care of Slovak interests, a hospital for Slovak immigrants, a shoe factory to be built by the National Slovak Society or the Slovak League. 95 Of all the ephemeral proposals made, one did become actual. A Slovak bank to handle Slovak business was considered a necessity; but the idea was only gingerly approached after the failure of Peter V. Rovnianek's Bank in Pittsburgh, in 1907. Michael Bosak founded the State Slovak Bank in Wilkes-Barre, Pa.; the bank opened for business on December 2, 1912, and in its first five months showed a profit of $7,250. 96 Progress was also the keynote of the First Catholic Slovak Union. In 1910 the Union established its own printery in Middletown, Pa. This was a two story red brick building, one hundred twenty feet long and forty feet wide. The equipment included Duplex printing press and a linotype machine. The blessing of the printery took place on October 27, 1910.97 �54 SLOVAKIA In 1914 the Union also opened an orphanage, which the Sisters of Ss. Cyril and Methodius took under their supervision. The building itself cost $97,000, and the total cost was about $110,000. The chapel had an altar of Vermont marble worth $1,200 and a seating capacity of 150. 98 This orphanage was located in Middletown, Pa. The Slovak Catholics wer,e justly very proud of this achievement, especially when they remembered how poor they had been when they landed in the United States. The National Slovak Society showed its energy by creating an official newspaper for its own use, the Narodne Noviny, in 1910; this paper replaced the Amerikansko-Slovenske Noviny which had spoken for the National Slovak Society but had never been adopted as the official organ of the Society. This new newspaper became definitely anti-clerical and sometimes anti-Catholic. In 1910 an editorial defended the modernists and attacked the Catholic Church as being an Italian and Roman Church, and not truly Catholic. 99 Any clerical scandal was written up with glee, and cartoons were not only anti-clerical but in very bad taste. These attacks and insults became so violent that the Bishop of Altoona, Eugene A. Garvey, banned the newspaper from his diocese on the grounds that it was written and published by "Jews, unbelievers, and heretics," spreading anarchism, unbelief, and socialism.100 The National Slovak Society did more constructive work when it organized the Youth Circles of the National Slovak Society in 1913. The chief purpose of these circles was educational. The elder and chief gymnast had to be total abstainers and men of sound general educa:tion. 101 The official language was Slovak. Dues were to be twenty cents a month for each child; of this amount fifteen cents were to be forwarded to the treasurer of the National Slovak Society. All meetings were to begin with Slovak and American patriotic songs; the American songs were to be translated into Slovak.102 Besides one official meeting a month to transact business, there were frequent meetings for lectures, study, and general education. 103 These circles presented programs which featured recitation of poems in Slovak, Slovak songs sung as solos and in chorus, instrumental solos, lectures by visitors. 104 The circles were beneficial to young Slovaks, and their growth �SLOVAKIA 55 was very rapid. By September, 1914, sixty nine circles had been established. 105 In spite of all the discussion of an orphanage, the National Slovak Society finally abandoned the plan. The matter was dropped because of the religious problem. The Society consisted of members belonging to various religious sects and claimed that it could not without showing favoritism provide for religious instruction. An orphanage without religious instruction and education was unacceptable to the Slovaks. 106 The fraternal organizations during this time suffered somewhat from embezzlement and swindling. Joseph Joscak, an editor of the Narodne Noviny , had taken a $19,000 "commission" from the National Slovak Society but was caught up with in 1913. 107 During the same years a William Vokolek swindled the Slovak fraternal organizations to the extent of $300,000. 108 Of course, A. S. Amrose's "commission" on the St. Mary's settlement must also be recalled here. Another common feature of fraternal life in this period was the construction of lodge halls, which were built almost in every settlement. These lodge halls became the centers of social life; they provided places for lodge meetings, theatrical productions, dances, gymnastic exercises, and quarters for the political and literary clubs. 109 One of the storms that troubled the fraternal organizations was the debate on the "old system" as against the "new system." Almost any issue of the Jednota after 1906 and the Narodne Noviny after 1910 contained letters with arguments on both sides of the question. 110 While operating under the older method of assessment, the organizations failed to build up a reserve for times of special demand; they were merely collecting agencies. For instance, if the organization needed $3,000 and had 12,000 members, each member was obliged to pay twenty five cents, which were collected to meet the cost. The new system involved paying dues r,e gularly, determined according to age. As early as 1906 the Rev. S. Furdek, the Rev. M. Jankola, and A. S. Ambrose pointed out the advantages of the new system, but there was much opposition. By 1914 both the First Catholic Slovak Union and the National Slovak Society had adopted the modern method. m Although progress was considerable among the Slovak immigrants in education, business enterprise, and farming , in many ways the lot of the workingman remained a hard �56 SLOVAKIA one. For instance, mine disasters continued to take lives. At Fernie, Pa. , in June, 1902, 200 miners perished, 50 of them Slovaks. Forty two Slovak miners were killed at Cambria, Pa. , during July, 1902. 112 Strikes still plagued the coal fields in which Slovaks were working. In Westmoreland county a strike began at Greensburg, Pa., on March 10, 1910 over union recognition and as a protest against the company store system. It spread to the neighboring mining centers of K,eystone, Irwin, Latrobe, and Westmoreland. Then in the confusion a mine guard shot an eighteen year old youth, and 15,000 miners went on strike. Eleven thousand wer•e said to be Slovaks. They joined the union to show their defiance and to emphasize their demands. As a counter-measure, the company called in the Pinkerton detectives, and the striking miners were blacklisted.113 During the strike the miners had very little to subsist upon, and that little came from the United Mine Workers of America. The union provided $2.50 a week for each man, $1.00 a week for each woman dependent, and $0 .50 a week for each child. 114 The president of the National Slovak Society, Mr. A. S. Ambrose, visited the strike-bound coal-fields. In his newspaper articles he estimated that about 20,000 men were on strike ; about 95 % were Slavs, and of this latter group about 60 % were Slovaks. The striking miners lived in shacks that could not protect them against the bitter cold, the children went about bare-foot and hungry. 115 Since 500 strikers were members of the National Slovak Society, the Society published appeals for help and even began a collection for relief of the strikers in Westmoreland county.116 Gradually the strike was broken and nothing substantial was won. Another strike in which many Slovaks were involved began in 1913, led by the Industrial Workers of the World. It started in the broad-loom silk mills of Patterson, N. J. , on February 25, 1913. Over twenty five thousand workers were affected. There were two factors that prolonged the bitter strife. One was the introduction of the three and four loom system; this involved the question of whether Patterson should invade the cheap silk field in opposition to the Pennsylvania mills. Fear of lower wages and loss of work followed as a consequence. The second factor was resentment of I.W.W. tactics. The Jednota condemned the I. W. W.'s socialist tendencies and opposition to the American Federation of Labor. 117 �SLOVAKIA 57 Still these defects of the union did not blind the First Catholic Slovak Union to the needs of the strikers, many of whom were Slovaks. 118 For five months the leadership of the I. W. W. kept the strikers' ranks intact, but lack of funds and loss of morale at last broke the strike. After twenty one weeks of bitter struggle the strike was settled without any gains for the workers. The J ednota laid the blame on the socialists. 119 Both newspapers were strong supporters of unions. They considered it the duty of every Slovak to belong to the unions, especially the American Federation of Labor. After all, it was the unions that improved the worker's lot and gave labor a position of influence in the world. 120 The strike-breaker and the "scab" were excluded from Slovak organizations. 121 In their attitude toward socialism the two newspapers differed. The Narodne Noviny showed itself definitely hospitable to socialist ideas. Articles were featured insisting that there could be no friendly contacts between capitalists and workers; workers were urged to abandon the Democratic and Republican parties and to join the party of the working class! 122 The Jednota unreservedly repudiated socialism. It condemned socialist anti-religious tactics and ridicule of Catholics. 123 Socialism was anti-Christian in its very essence, and had been consistently opposed to religion. The only agency that did in fact transform slave labor into free human labor was the Catholic Church. 124 As the first decade of the twentieth century ended and another began, the dawn of new interests appeared on the horizon. In 1911 Count Albert Apponyi, who has been mentioned before, returned to the United States on behalf of Hungary which he described as "an island of freedom" in central Europe. Slovak publicity about Hungarian mistreatment of Slovaks caused the mission of Count Apponyi to fail.1 25 Hard upon the heels of this came the Balkan wars. Slovak efforts at war relief were conditioned by nationalism. Within the months from November 21, 1912 to June 19, 1913, the Narodne Noviny collected $1,547.95 for the Slavonic Red Cross; and it was made clear that this collection was only for the Slavs. 126 By January 22, 1913 the Jednota had collected $2,350.00 for the same cause. 127 With regard to the "Slovak question," which was on the verge of becoming the paramouth one for the Slovaks, opinion among the American Slovaks had undergone quite a change. �58 SLOVAKIA Almost up to 1914 Slovaks sought concessions from Hungary for Slovakia; but these concessions of political and cultural rights wer-e understood within the existing framework of government. However, in April, 1914, when Count Michael Karolyi came to the United States to win Slovak favor for a Slovak and Hungarian union in a completely independent Hungary, the Slovaks questioned the sincerity of the Count and the government. In New York, on May 24, 1914, a debate took place on the question: "Can the Slovaks trust the Hungarian government in its movement for general suffrage in Hungary and with complete Hungarian independence?" The debate solved no real problem, but stated clearly the issues: what was to be the Slovaks' future relation to Hungary? The Slovak League arranged several protest meetings, and on April 28, 1914 issued a Memorandum, which was practically a declaration of independence and demanded autonomy for Slovakia. The League did not explain the kind of autonomy Slovakia should have, whether within Austro-Hungary or with Hungary as an independent state or complete independence for Slovakia for the Slovaks in America themselves disagreed on what they wanted. In order to clarify their position, a Congress of the Slovak League was held in Pittsburgh, September 10, 1914. After everybody had aired their views, it appeared that in 1914, as late as September of that year, the American Slovaks had not generally accepted political plans for Slovakia. 128 They were divided into three camps: one demanded complete independence for Slovakia, another wanted autonomy within Hungary, and a third desired the creation of a new state in which Czechs and Slovaks would be united. 129 With the coming of the World War, Slovak attention was diverted from the creation of Slovak institutions here in America to the creation of Slovakia. The World War found the Slovaks anti-German and anti-Habsburg. 130 The Jednota printed German atrocity stories and even went so far as to charge that German Protestantism was serving German mili'tarism.131 The Slovak League managed to chanel the desire for a better Slovakia and the anti-Habsburg feeling into an extensive Slovak nationalist movement. Through the Slovak League over a million dollars was poured into the cause of Slovak freedom. 132 By 1914 the Slovak immigrants had made themselves �SLOVAKIA 59 economically secure as far as a group of working people could in the American economy. Socially they had made progress in organizing national fraternal organizations, establishing Slovak schools, creating Slovak parishes. Their nationalism, manifested in efforts to form distinct Slovak institutions and their interest in European Slovakia, prevented their complete integration with American life; but the Slovak institutions seemed foredoomed to failure. The explanation for much of this lies outside the special character of the Slovaks. After 1890, the close of the frontier, the new industrial city became the characteristic of American life ; it became the center of production, the leader in social and cultural lif.e, and great center of communication. By the very fact that Slovaks were immersed in industrial and eventually city rather than farm life, they were exposed to the influence of this most Americanizing force. The problems of new city life, the economic opportunities offered them in industry, and economic competition made the attempt to establish particularly Slovak institutions a struggle against the current. The attempted settlement on ,t he farms was also against the trends of the times which led toward the city. The crucial factor in American Slovak social history seems to be their engaging in industry and their settlement in industrial centers. Slovak nationalism attempted to modify the influence of this industrial city, and in so far as it did, it hindered progress among the Slovak immigrants in America. FOOTNOTES 1. Francis Sasinek, "Myslienky o stave nabozenstva medzi Slovakmi," Kalendar Jednota (1897 ) , II, 139. 2. M. Jankola, " Nase Skoly," Kalendar Jedno ta ( 1900), V, 135-136. 3. Molchan, "Development of the Slovak Community," pp. 69-70. 4. Culen, Slovaci v Ameri ke, p. 394; Jednota, June 18, 1913, September 3, 1913. 5. Yurchak, The Slovaks, p. 187; Hrusovsky, This i s Slovakia, p. 50. 6. Molchan, "Development of the Slovak Community," pp. 82-83 ; Yurchak, .The ,Slovaks, p . 190. 7. Yurchak, The Slovaks, pp. 229-230. 8. Karol Sidor, Andrej Hlinka 1864-1938 (Bratislava, 1934), pp. 186191 ; Bokes, Dejiny Slovenska, pp. 313-315; Yurchak, The Slovaks, pp. 230-232. 9. Molchan, "Development of the Slovak Community," p. 81. 10. John S. Bradac, "Slovenski Evanjelici-Lutherani v Spojenych Statoch Arnerickych," World's Fair Memorial, pp. 81-82. 11. "The Slovak Sokol," Sborni k Slovenskeho Katoli ckeho Sokola na rok 1942, XXVIII, 242-243 . 12. Culen, Dejiny, II, 80-81, 93-94. �60 SLOVAKIA 13. J ednota, February 5, 1913. The pastor told the organist " the Slovak language was nothing." The organist quit. 14. Jednota, July 8, 1914. After the Slovaks had brought a priest from Slovakia and paid his way, the bishop refused to let him be their pastor. 15. Narodne Noviny, September 15, 1910; Kushner, Slovaci, p . 32. 16. Molchan, "Development of the Slovak Community," p. 94-95. 17. Andrew J. Shipman, " Slavs in America," Th e Catholic Encyclop edia ( 1912), XIV, p. 55. 18. Culen, Dejiny, I. 114-115. 19. M. Jankola, " Pokladnica sv. Antona v Amerike," Kalendar Jedn ota (1908), XIII, 177-178. 20. Jednota, February 12, 1913. 21. Culen Slovaci v A merike, p . 418; " Slovenska zenska rehol'a ssv. Cyrilla i Me thoda v Amerike ," Ka lendar J ednot a ( 1911 ), XVI, 97-98 ; M. Jankola , " Prvotiny pr vej slovenskej zenskej rehole" , Ka lendar Jednot a (1909), XIV, 17-176; "Dcery ssv. Cyrilla i Methoda", Kalendar J ednota (1914 ), XIX, 194-195. 22. Kushner, Slovaci, pp. 150-152. 23. Culen, Slovaci v Amerike, pp. 408-409. 24. Ibi d., 418,424. 25. Narodne Noviny, August 15, 1913, August 29,1913. 26. Narodne Noviny, October 3, 1912. 27. Kushner, Slovaci, pp. 156-157. 28. Culen, Slovaci v A merike, p. 401. 29. Narodne Noviny, June 9, 1910, April 27, 1911 ; September 5, 1912; August 29, 1912; Jednota, July 2, 1913. 30. Narodne Noviny, June 23, 1910, February 15, 1913 ; Jednota, April 1, 1914. 31. J ednota, March 4, 1913, March 12, 1913. 32. Stephan Furdek, "Dlfobny upis a ucastina," Kalendar Jednota (1909 ), XIV, pp. 192-195; "Ako povstal svet," Kalendar Jednota (1910), XV, pp. 141-145; J. Porubsky, "Ako volia v Amerike prezidenta," Kalendar J ednota (1913) , XVII, pp. 97-103; I. G., "Ako stat' sa obcanom Spoj. Statov," Kalendar Narodneho Slov enskeho Spolku (1913 ), XX, pp. 83-96. 33. Nar odne Noviny, June 12, 1913 ; Jednota, November 19, 1913. 34. N arodne Noviny, April 25, 1912; Jednota, June 11, 1913. 35. Narodne Noviny , August 10, 1911. 36. J . A. F ., " Pokrok," Sborni k (1915) , I, 43. 37. N arodne Noviny, April 4, 1912. 38. Narodne Noviny, July 11, 1912. 39. Narodne Noviny, July 25, 1912. 40. Narodne Noviny, August 8, 1912, September 19, 1912. 41. Narodne Noviny, November 12, 1914. 42. Jednota, January 1, 1913, February 12, 1913, May 7, 1913. 43. Culen, Slovaci v A m erike, pp. 175-190. 44. Ibi d., pp. 236-237. 45. Ibid. , p. 266. 46. Ibi d., p. 267. 47. Ibid., pp. 294-296. 48. Ibi d., pp. 297-305. 49. Ibid., pp. 306-337. 50. N arodne Noviny, February 3, 1910. �SLOVAKIA 61 51. Narodne Noviny, March 27, 1913. 52. Narodne Noviny, February 10, 1910, October 24, 1912. 53. Jednota, January 8, 1913, February 19, 1913, June 18, 1913, July 16, 1913. 54. Culen, Slovaci v Amerike, p. 191. 55. Narodne Noviny, July 7, 1910, June 27, 1912, April 17, 1913 ; Jednota, November 4, 1914, December 23, 1914. 56. Narodne Noviny, October 3, 1912. 57. Narodne Noviny, October 6, 1910. 58. Narodne Noviny, January 27, 1910; Jednota, May 14, 1913, December 31, 1913 ; Kalendar Jednota (1915), XX, 75. 59. Narodne Noviny, March 7, 1912. 60. Amerikansko-Slovenske Noviny, August 19, 1897. 61. Joseph Pauco, ~udovychorn u Sturovcov (Turciansky Sv. Martin, 1943) , pp. 107-108. 62. Ibid. , pp. 137-140. 63. Jednota, February 5, 1913. 64. Narodne Noviny, April 28, 1910, April 4, 1912, March 21, 1912. 65. Narodne Noviny, April 4, 1912; Paul Jamarik, " Opojny a krcma, " Kalendar Narodneho Slovenskeho Spolku ( 1914), XXII, 198-206 ; Jednota, February 19, 1913, June 25, 1913. 66. !1udomil, "Zakladajme spolky uplnej striezlivosti," Kalendar Jednota, (1911), XVI, 41-42. 67. Jednota, March 5, 1913. 68. Narodne Noviny, February 24, 1910, August 4, 1910; Jednota, January 29, 1913. 69. Jednota, July 30, 1913. 70. Narodne Noviny, April 25, 1912. 71. Narodne Noviny, January 13, 1910, May 12, 1912, August 25, 1910. 72. Narodne Noviny, November 2, 1911. 73. Narodne Noviny, November 9, 1911. 74. Narodne Noviny, January 25, 1912. 75. Narodne Noviny, June 6, 1912. 76. Narodne Noviny, September 18, 1913. 77. Narodne Noviny, October 1, 1914. 78. Narodne Noviny, November 16, 1911. 79. Jednota, September 17, 1913 ; Narodne Noviny, May 25, 1911. 80. Jednota, February 4, 1914; Narodne Noviny , March 19, 1914, June 11, 1914. 81. Jednota, February 19, 1913. 82. Narodne Noviny, October 7, 1910. 83. Jednota, July 9, 1913 Narodne Noviny, May 11, 1912. 84. Jednota, January 1, 1913 ; January 21, 1914. 85. Narodne Noviny, March 19, 1914, April 25, 1912. 86. Jednota, January 21, 1914, January 28, 1914. 87. Jednota, February 12, 1913, August 13, 1913. 88. Jednota, August 13, 1913; Narodne Noviny, March 19, 1914; Jednota, September 17, 1913, January 21 , 1914. 89. Jednota, December 9, 1914, October 14, 1914, December 30, 1914. 90. Narodne Noviny, April 25, 1912. 91. Narodne Noviny, August 8, 1912. 92. Narodne Noviny, February 17, 1910, April 27, 1911. 93 . Narodne Noviny, February 29, 1914; Jednota, July 1, 1914; Narodne Noviny, May 14, 1914. 94. Jednota, July 1, 1914. �62 SLOVAKIA 95. N<irodne Noviny, December 28, 1911, September 12, 1912, October 12, 1911, June 11, 1914. 96. N<irodne Noviny, March 7, 1912; Jednota, May 21, 1913. 97. A. V. Kozak, "Ustav I . Katolickej Slovenskej Jednoty," Kalend<ir Jednota (1912) , XVII, 22. 98. " Ustav I. Katolickej Slovenskej Jednoty," Kalend<ir Jednota ( 1915), xx, 163-164. 99. N<irodne Noviny, July 14, 1910. 100. N<irodne Noviny, July 13, 1911. 101. N<irodne Noviny, October 13, 1913. 102. N<irodne Noviny, January 8, 1914. 103. N<irodne Noviny, January 29, 1914. 104. N<irodne Noviny, April 16, 1914. 105. N<irodne Noviny, September 17, 1914. 106. Pamiitnica k zlatemu Jubileu N<irodneho Slov enskeho Spolku v U .S.A . (Pittsburgh, 1940) , p. 47. 107. N<irodne Noviny, March 13, 1913. 108. N<irodne Noviny, January 16, 1913. 109. N <irodn e Noviny, March 24, 1910, April 28, 1910, June 30, 1910. 110. Jednota, January 1, 1913. 111. "Prorocke slova dp. Matufa Jankolu o novom systeme," Sbornik Slovenskeho Katolickeho Sokola na rok 1942, XXIX, 82; Jednota, January 1, 1913. 112. Culen, Dejiny, I, 125. 113. Ibid., I, 122-123. 114. N<irodne Noviny, March 23 , 1911. 115. N<irodn e Noviny, March 16, 1911. 116. N<irodne Noviny, September 22, 1910. 117. Jednota, May 14, 1913, May 21, 1913, July 2, 1913, September 10. 1913. 118. Jednota, June 18, 1913. 119. Jednot a, July 30, 1913. 120. N<irodn e Noviny, August 22, 1912, October 23, 1913 ; S. F., "Robotnicka otazka," Ka lend<ir J ednota (1906 ), XIII, 56. 121. Culen, Deji ny, I, 123-124; N<irodne Noviny, February 24, 1913. 122. N<irodne Noviny, January 15, 1914, February 12, 1914, February 26, 1914, June 11, 1914. 123. Jednota, January 1, 1913. 124. Jednota, May 7, 1913, July 2, 1913, May 14, 1913. 125. Yurchak, The Slovaks, p. 187. 126. N<irodne Noviny, November 21, 1912, June 19, 1913. 127. J ednota, January 22, 1913. 128. Molchan, "Development of the Slovak Community," pp. 99-102. 129. Yurchak, The Slovaks, p. 190. 130. Jednota, September 30, 1914, October 14, 1914. 131. Jednot a, October 21, 1914, November 4, 1914. 132. Yurchak, The Slovaks, p . 191. � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource 1966, Vol. 16 Description An account of the resource Vol. 16 (No. 39), 1966. Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available The Slovak League of America Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1966 Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Text Any textual data included in the document SLOVAKIA 41 New Interests 1900-1914 SLOVAKS IN THE U.S.A. By James J. Zatk o, Ph. D ., University of Notre D ame By 1900 growing Slovak nationalism had begun to grip the Slovak immigrants, and during the next decade and a half the Slovaks agitated for distinotly Slovak institutions, for Slovak education, and for Slovak liberation overseas from Hungarian control. What seemed the most important need of the Slovak immigrants to many thinking minds was Slovak education. Some Catholics found the cause of religious decline in the non-confessional Slovak schools that others advocated and established. Public schools seemed equally pernicious to their mind as being Protestant schools. Too much Americanization injured faith and morals. To them the great answer was Slovak Catholic schools; but these were practically non-existent. Some pastors just were not interested in schools, Slovak or Catholic. The debts resulting from building churches weighted down the parishes and blocked any ambitious program of school construction. Often Slovaks were too scattered throughout a region to support their own church and school.1 However, the crucial obstacle was a lack of Slovak teachers. Even if schools were built, they might be Catholic schools, but they would not be Slovak schools, for there were not enough Slovak teachers. As early as 1900 Rev. M. Jankola, a Catholic priest, suggested a solution, Slovak nuns to teach in Slovak schools, but this suggestion took almost ten years to mature. 2 Nevertheless, schools were not entirely neglected during these first years of the twentieth century. In 1900 the Rev. Bartholomew Kvitek, a Catholic priest, organized the Slovak school of St. Michael's parish in Chicago; and in 1902 the first Vincentian Sisters of Charity arrived from Slovakia to serve in St. Michael's parish in Braddock, Pa., where they took charge of the parochial school's 65 students. 3 Plans for non-confessional schools never came to very much, because the Slovaks were opposed to education without religion. 4 In 1900 the Slovaks won a local victory over the Hungarians when their protests blocked the erection of Louis Kossuth's statue in the public square of Cleveland. When Count 42 SLOVAKIA Albert Apponyi and forty delegates arrived in America during the World's Fair at St. Louis in 1904, the Slovaks presented a Memorandum recounting their objections against the electoral system in Hungary and Magyarization. Although the Count refused even to discuss Slovak grievances, ,the Memorandum at least informed public opinion about undemocratic election procedures and anti-Slovak schools. 5 However, all anti-Magyar agitation was focussed by the creation in 1907 of the Slovak League of America on May 26, in Cleveland, Ohio, by seven thousand delegates. The League became an alliance of Slovak educational, fraternal, and religious groups in this country. The purposes of the League were to educate Slovaks everywhere, to uplift them here in America and elsewhere morally, economically, socially and politically. 6 It became the leader in the drive to alleviate political conditions in Slovakia, but its efforts might have been still-born had not the Massacre of Cernova on the 27th of October, 1907 aroused not only Slovaks but world opinion. To understand this ev,e nt some facts need to be reviewed. The Rev. Andrew Hlinka, a Catholic priest both pious and devoted to the political and social welfare of the Slovaks, in 1897 became editor of The People's News and fought the Magyarization program of the gov,e rnment; his speeches and writings helped elect seven Slovaks to the Hungarian Parliament in 1906. He and fifteen other Slovaks were arrested and tried for "agitation against Hungarian nationality". Hlinka was fined 1500 crowns and costs of 680 crowns and sentenced to two years in prison. In a farewell message to his parishioners he declared thart he would gladly suffer imprisonment to secure recognition of the Slovak nation. For this he received another eighteen months and a fine of 400 crowns. 7 Prior to this the Rev. A. Hlinka had been appointed pastor in his native city, Ruzomberok; in the quarter known as Cernova he had begun building a new church for which he collected funds from all over Slovakia. He had in the meantime been suspended by Bishop Parvy, an ardent pro-Magyar. When the church in Cernova was to be dedicated, the parishioners refused to permit the blessing, unless their pastor returned to them. On October 27, 1907 gendarmes marched into Cernova to help keep order, and they lined the streets leading to the church. That morning coaches arrived bringing the Rev. Pazurik from Llkavka and other visitors to conduct the dedi- SLOVAKIA 43 cation. When the people blockaded the road, the coachman began to lay about his whip in order to drive his horses through the crowd ; some men seized the horses' bridles to turn them around. An order was given to the gendarmes to open fire. Instantly nine people fell dead, men, women, and children, and six more died of their wounds later. 8 The National Slovak Society immediately took in hand the problem of aid for the widows and orphans that resulted from the Cernova Massacre and voted $2,000 for r•elief.9 While political nationalism received immense stimulus from the Massacre, nationalism began to play a greater role in the sphere of religion after 1900. Under the influence of their nationalism, the Slovaks began to feel their unity as a group and their need of exclusivness as a nation. This led to organization on a unique national basis in religion and to demands for r•ecognizing the "rights of Slovaks" in religious matters, like organization of synods for the Lutherans, Catholic action groups for the Slovak Catholics, and teaching of Slovak in the schools. The Slovak Lutherans formed the Slovak Evangelical Lutheran Synod of the United States of America with headquarters in Whiting, Indiana. This Synod was founded in the church of St. Peter, September 2, 1902, at Connellsville, Pa. A beginning had been made in Mahanoy City, Pa., but more definite steps were taken at conferences in Wilkes-Barre, Pa., and Braddock, Pa.; in the actual founding all the Slovak ministers and congregations cooperated. The Synod used the Slovak language in services and sermons, except where unusual circumstances required the use of English. Even the children wer,e taught their religion in Slovak. The Synod obtained its funds from prescribed contributions of the various parishes belonging to it. In Cleveland it owned a considerable prope1;ty intended for a Lutheran orphanage. The of.ficial organ was the Svedo k, which began in 1906 and was published twice a month.10 The troubled relations of Catholicism with Slovak nationalism continued to split various groups. A National Slovak Sokol had been established to include all Sokol activities in the United States; but discrimination against Catholics led to the creation of the Slovak Catholic Sokol in 1905; the headquarters of this group were in Passaic, N. J. The Slovak Catholic Sokol began publishing its own paper, the Katolicky 44 SLOVAKIA Sokol, and launched an extensive program to attract Slovak youth in gymnastics, athletics, and social activities. 11 The most violent conflict among Slovaks of the first decade of the twentieth century involved Slovak nationalism, but it was a conflict within the Catholic group between Catholic Nationalists and the Madarones. The founder of the First Catholic Slovak Union, the Rev. Stephen Furdek, called for an annual Slovak day that was to renew the Catholic spirit and attachment to Slovak nationality. The first Slovak day was to be called the Catholic Congress. This evoked bitter opposition in letters and even a telegram to Bishop Michael J . Hoban of Scranton from the Rev. Kossalko who denounced the whole project as "pan-slavistic" and as an attempt to set up a national church. When Bishop Hoban sanctioned the Slovak Day or Catholic Congress in Wilkes-Barre, Pa., by addressing it on September 3, 1906, Kossalko's rage knew no bounds. He addressed a Memorandum, signed by a large number of Madarone Slovak clergy, to the Apostolic Delegate and the archbishops of the United States. He demanded a condemnation of the affair. The Memorandum expressed fear for the unity of the church and the salvation of 500,000 souls, and accused the Slovak Catholics of working for "panslavism", which was inimical to Hungary, Germany, and the United States. However, Bishop Hoban's influence shielded the Catholic Slovak clergy and no action was taken.12 This event discredited the Madarones. Within the framework of the Catholic Church in the United States Slovak Catholics became involved in a struggle to preserve what they considered their national rights. There were arguments with non-Slovak pastors over hiring organists who would be able to teach Slovak to the children. 13 At other times Slovak Catholic efforts to obtain Slovak priests who could minister to them in their own language conflicted with bishops who did not always agree on Slovak "rights" .14 One bitter quarrel led to a schism in the Slovak settlement of Masontown, Pa. In Leckrone, Pa., a settlement of Irish and Slovaks, the Church of Our Lady of Perpetual help was blessed by Bishop Richard Phelan of Pittsburgh on October 9, 1904. In 1907 the church burned down, but a hall was built in which religious services were held. The Slovaks by this time had a Slovak pastor, but they still wanted a parish all their own. Bishop SLOVAKIA 45 Francis R. Canevin of Pittsburgh requested the Rev. Charles Janda to look for a suitable location ; Rev. C. Janda sugg,ested Masontown. Since the Irish Catholics also wanted to have a parish in Masontown, the Slovaks were told to take the church in Leckrone for their use; but the Slovaks in Masontown were not satisfied. They went ahead and built their own church, and when the bishop would not cooperate with them, they cast about for a priest who might be willing to serve their church. Eventually they found an "independent" priest and so fell into schism.15 In sptte of such trouble, the Slovak Catholic body remained generally healthy. On February 22, 1911 a Slovak Catholic Priest and inventor, the Rev. Joseph Murgas, led in forming The Slovak Catholic Federation in America in Wilkes-Barre, Pa. Und,e r the control of Slovak Catholic priests this group was to spread and coordinate Catholic action among Slovaks in America; until this year Slovak Catholic activities had been unorganized and subordinated to political and social ends.16 Exact religious statistics for ·t he Slovak immigrant group for that time are not available, but the best estimate suggests that of the 560,000 Slovak immigrants in America in 1911, 450,000 were Roman Catholics. The Slovak Catholics had 134 parishes in the United States. Protestants among the Slovaks numbered 95,000 .17 Of this Protestant group, Calvinists are estimated to run about 15,000. 18 After 1905 the development of Slovak Catholic elementary schools gained momentum. A system both Slovak and Catholic had been impossible without Slovak Catholic teachers. The Rev. M. Jankola, a Catholic priest, organized the Priests' Society of St. Anthony's Burse in the United States of America in Wilkes-Barre, Pa. , in 1903 and it was chartered in 1905. In the Kalendar Jednota of 1908 Rev. M. Jankola proposed the Burse of St. Anthony for Catholics generally to support students preparing to be teachers and Slovak girls preparing to be teaching nuns. 19 Although the Slovak Catholics supported this program generously with frequent collections and donations 20 , the fund proved insufficient for the purpose. Three Slovak girls who had been sent to the novitiate of the Sisters of the Immaculate Heart of Mary in 1906 were the nucleus of a Slovak sisterhood. In 1909 interested Slovak priests petitioned for the foundation of a distinctly 46 SLOVAKIA Slovak sisterhood, the Sisters of SS. Cyril and Methodius. On June 26, 1909 the Congregation for Religious approved this project, and the motherhouse of the new Slovak congregation was established in Danville, Pa.21 In the year 1911 the Most Reverend Joseph Koudelka, the bishop of Superior sent a request to the general motherhouse of the Congregation of School Sisters of the Third Order of St. Francis in Prague. He asked the sisters to come to his diocese to work. Mother General M. Xavier sent Sister M. Georgia and Sister M. Hyacinth to look over the possibilities. These sisters stopped in Pittsburgh, where the Rev. J. Vrana persuaded them that the Pittsburgh diocese offered them greater opportunities and had greater need. When Sister M. Hyacinth took sick and died on March 10, 1912, the Mother General herself came to Pittsburgh. Rev. Ferdinand Prikazky, who at the moment was struggling to get nuns to teach in his St. Gabriel's parochial school, convinc,e d the sisters to settle in Pittsburgh. This was the beginning. By 1914 twenty three sisters of this congregation were teaching 579 children in three Slovak Catholic parishes.22 Progress had been made in solving the problem of elementary school education; schools were built in the parishes almost as quickly as teachers could be provided. The question of secondary school education also began to agitate Slovak circles. Very early, the Rev. Stephen Furdek suggested the idea of a Slovak high school for boys; he was seconded in this by the Rev. M. Jankola. However, nothing came of the idea until 1921 when it revived and resulted in the Benedictine High School in Cleveland in 1927.23 The Sisters of SS. Cyril and Methodius opened a high school for girls at Danville in 1922, and the Sisters of St. Francis opened one at Bellevue, Pa., in 1927. 24 There was continuous agitation for a college. A Slovak business college was suggested to improve the Slovak economic position.25 P. J . Kunovsky worked out a whole scheme for a Slovak school on a higher level. He argued that $100,000 would put up a building, and then he suggested that each fraternal organization ought to support a professor. This school was to include business and technical courses. As to religious affiliation, the school would be non-confessional, but the Oatholics could have a lecturer on the Catholic Faith and the Lutherans could support one to lecture on the Lutheran faith. This in- SLOVAKIA 47 stitution was to be coeducational. Nothing came of this project.2s Very few Slovak children of the first immigrants had a chance to go to college, but those who did go generally took advantag,e of existing colleges. In 1901 the Czech Benedictines had established St. Procopius College at Lisle, Ill., and by 1907 there were ten Slovak youths studying there. They organized the "Literary Society of Stephen Moyses" and issued a monthly multigraphed little paper, Horlivost'. The club and the paper lasted for four years. The Slovaks also owed a special debt to the College and Seminary of St. Vincent's Archabbey in Latrobe, Pa., for in this college and seminary almost all the Catholic Slovak priests and many Slovak young men were trained. 27 During the years between 1902 and 1936 545 Slovak students attended St. Vincent's. 28 Informal education made most progress among the Slovaks. Clubs, multiplied, political, social, cultural, and literary. The political club seems to have been the most popular. It had a variety of purposes: to fighrt political apathy among the Slovaks, to help the Slovaks gain their political rights, and to help Slovaks become American citizens. In one year a club in Rankin, Pa., succeeded in getting thirteen Slovaks to obtain their citizenship papers. 29 Literary clubs also became popular among the Slovaks as a mean of self- improvement. 30 Both the newspapers and the almanacs were also instrumental in educating the Slovak immigrants. The Jednota discussed Darwinism, the "higher criticism" and socialism. 31 The almanacs explained the procedure of becoming citizens, American electoral system, stocks and bonds, and even discussed the origin of the world. 32 One of the complaints about the Slovaks made by their own leaders is their lack of interest in books and good reading. To make the Slovaks book-lovers, Slovak political and literary clubs founded Slovak libraries. 33 The national fraternal organizations sometimes contributed money to help in the acquisition of a building, or, if the Slovaks already possessed a lodge hall, to aid in the purchase of books. 34 That a demand actually developed for Slovak books is suggested by the special sections for Slovak readers in public libraries, as for instance, the Oarnegie Library in Homestead, Pa., 35 and the public library in Cleveland. 36 The most ambitious project launched to interest the Slo- 48 SLOVAKIA vaks in reading was a book club. P. J. Kunovsky suggested in 1912 the formation of a book club to consist of 5,000 Slovaks. This number would enable the club to sell four books for a dollar. 37 By July 11, 1912 a literary committee to choose books had been elected. 38 Even this cultural project could not move along without factions; for there were some objections to the composition of the literary committee. Only "one side" was represented. 39 There were complaints by Kunovsky that progress was slow; in fact, after six months of vigorous propaganda, there were not even 1,000 members, and the club needed 5,000 members in one year. 40 By November, 1914, the "Four Books for a Dollar" was still going and growing somewhat, 41 but the Slovaks were apparently still not too interested in books. One book promotion was quite successful. The Rev. J. Murgas led a drive to get 3,000 subscribers for a Cathechetical Encyclopedia, written by Rev. Vaclav Melchior, C. Ss. R. 42 Enough subscribers undertook to buy the book. It was a project more adapted to Slovak ideas; it seemed worthwhile to invest in a book on religion. The taste of Slovaks in reading was quite varied. We cannot judge from actual reports of reading, but the types of books published for them may serve as an indication of their reading tast,e. There were romances dealing with the Janosik cycle, a Slovak Robin Hood; others dealt with the adventures of a likeable thief, Rinaldo Rinaldini; sensational stories included Dracula, Harry Tracy, Most Desperate Criminal of Our Time , and World Detective Romances and Novel series.43 Other books published dealt with Slovak history and Magyar oppression. 44 One anti-clerical work was Z dejin Cirkvi by A. M. Spera, an anti-Catholic church history: 45 there was even a socialist work, Socialisti idu. 46 Publications included readers and catechisms, 47 dictionaries and grammars, 48 and devotional works. 49 The translations printed in the Narodne Noviny from American literature included Edgar A. Poe's The Black Cat 50 and Washington Irving's The Legend of Sleepy Hollow.51 Whatever reading may have been done by the Slovaks besides the almanacs and newspapers, these books are a suggestion of its type. Another form of informal education proposed was a Slovak Chautauqua. The Rev. W. Regnemer, a Calvinist minister, suggested that a fraternal organization hire a pleasure SLOVAKIA 49 park during the summer for one day, prepare a cultural and entertaining program and charge an admission of twenty fiv,e or fifty cents. 52 This idea was still-born. Theatrical productions were very common among the Slovaks, 53 but the drama was not on a very high level. Most popular were plays in Slovak portraying Slovakia and Slovak life. There was no attempt to translate the English classics of the stage into Slovak. 54 Both the Narodne Noviny and the Jednota encouraged the staging of plays by publishing a large number of them in their columns, 55 for plays portraying Slovak life served to arouse national consciousness, besides being good entertainment. 56 One complaint about the theatrical entertainment was the bad conduct of the audience, which frequently shouted to their friends on the stage, whistled, stamped their feet. Mothers brought very young children or babies who disturbed the performance with their crying. 57 The Slovaks organized bands and choirs ;58 popular music was also encouraged by the publication of songs in the almanacs. Some of the choirs advanced so rapidly that they were able to stage small operettas. 59 One obstacle to further Slovak progress was intemperance. The drink problem, its source in poverty, was an old one for the Slovaks. All sources agree that drink, especially whisk,ey, was the curse of Slovakia and helped impoverish the country. 60 During the 1840',s Rev. Stephan Zavodnik, a Catholic priest, influenced by Father Matthew, inaugurated the struggle against intemperance in Slovakia. Father Matthew's influence had trav,elled through Germany, Bohemia, Poland, and finally reached Slovakia. 61 Temperance societies were first organized in Orava in 1845 and in half a year had 20,000 members. The city councils assisted the societies; the ecclesiastical authorities put their prestige behind the movement. In 1847 the bishop of Banska Bystrica asked his clergy to publicize these societies during Lent ; the bishop of Roznava issued a pastoral letter on the subject in 1846. The Lutherans too supported the movement. 62 The nationalistic agitation and revolution in 1848 disrupted the growth of these societies, but by 1870 the fight against drink revived. 63 When the Slovaks came to America, they brought their weakness for drink with them. Still there were Slovaks who understood the pernicious effect of over-indulgence in strong 50 SLOVAKIA drink. Saloon keepers were attacked for disrupting family life. Slovak saloon keepers were urged to remove the national disgrace by going into another line of business. 64 The agitation against the use and abuse of alcohol filled many a column in the N arodne N oviny and J ednota. Alcohol was the cause of disease, for example, tuberculosis, of many economic and social losses ; whiskey was the root of all social evils.65 The most eff.ective agitation against intemperance was the total abstinence society. The best reason for creating such societies was their need. There were such sodeties already in existence in 1911 for example, in Hazleton, Pa., McAdoo, Pa. , St. Clair, Pa., and Mahanoy City, Pa.66 When the temperance club was organized in Wilkes-Barre, Pa., forty five prospective members attended the meeting; but only eight were willing to take the pledge and join the society. Eventually twenty women and girls joined; since then five or six members were added at each meeting, and the number finally grew to forty five! 67 Hand in hand with the progress in religious organization, in education, and political action, went the bettering of the Slovak economic conditions. As with the other activities, economic life among the Slovaks began to be colored by nationalism. The Slovaks set up Slovak grocery stores and Slovak banks. Surprisingly enough, a farm movement among the Slovaks developed from many causes. The success of the Slovaktown venture was continually reported in the newspapers: news of hay selling for $7 a ton, in November, 1912, seven weddings, good markets, freedom from the bleak life of a miners' town and from strikes. 68 To some life on the farm meant a life less dangerous to the faith and a healthier family life;69 to others it meant protection against too quick an assimilation to American ways, especially American morals.70 In 1910 the National Slovak Society embarked on a considerable farm colonization venture. The Society's national convention had voted in 1909 that not less than 1,000 acres of farm land should be bought for an orphanage. A committee investigated real estate in Prince George, Calvert, and St. Mary's counties in Maryland; enough land was to be bought to build an orphanage and to form a Slovak settlement to help in the upkeep of the orphanage. After considerable debate on whether the primary purpose was a settlement SLOVAKIA 51 or an orphanage, 2,813 acres of land were purchased for F 0,000 in St. Mary's county, near St. Mary's, Maryland. One thousand one hundred acres were arable and the rest was woodland ; there was a three mile frontage on St. Mary's River. 71 Eight hundred acres were to be set aside for the orphanage and old folks ' home, and two thousand acres were to be put up for sale.72 The land was divided into thirty nine farms, ranging in size from 33 acres to 132, and classified in value thus: class A farms at $40-$50 an acre, class B farms at $25-$40 an acre, and Class C at $10-$25 an acre. The price of the farms varied from $600 to $3,100.73 The land sales went so well that the National Slovak Society decided to reserve only 500 acres for the orphanage and to sell 2,300 acres for farms.74 Such was the venture's success that by June, 1912, the Slovak Farmers Association was chartered in Maryland with a capitalization of $25,000. First class stock was to get 5% dividend; and as soon as the second class stock reached 5%, the rate of the first class was to jump to 7%. The organization's purpose was to settle Slovaks on good farms, especially in Maryland. The association also had a hotel where Slovaks might disport themselves in the summer for longer or shorter periods of time. 75 Behind the scenes, however, some financial skulduggery was afoot and the exposure of "commission-masters" definitely dampened enthusiasm for the project. A. S. Ambrose, the president of the National Slovak Society, had taken a ten percent commission on $48,735 worth of land sales and netted himself a tidy $4,875.30. Of the sales themselves $16,156.70 in cash had been placed into the Society's treasury, while $28,580 had been mortgaged to the Society. 76 On this transaction the Society was estimated to have lost nearly $20,000 through various "commissions." 77 At least on paper in 1911 the Slovak American Colonization Company was organized with an intended Capitalization of $50,000 at $50 a share. It planned the erection of houses, business structures, saw-mills, and other needed buildings. It remained a paper organization. 78 In spite of the publicity giv,en these projects, the influx of Slovaks onto the land came from individual initiative for most part. Small colonies of Slovak farmers grew up around Denmark, Maine, 79 Phillips, Wisconsin, 80 Tabor, Minnesota,81 Louisiana and Mississippi,82 Callahan and Pine Land, Flo- 52 SLOVAKIA rida,83 Michigan,84 and North Emporia and Antioch, Virginia.a5 If the Slovak farmer struck upon land already cleared, he did not have too difficult a time making a success of farming; but if he bought land that had yet to be cleared, like the second growth timberlands in Wisconsin, the first few years on the "blessed" land were murderous in their demands of labor and capital. For instance, two brothers and their families, having read accounts of successful farming in Wisconsin, used their savings to buy a farm in northern Wisconsin. The land had to be cleared, and ,even the women were put to work carrying away the heavy wood. Besides, the brothers had to build a log house big enough to shelter the two families. During the winter months, the men worked as lumberjacks, and in order to have enough capital to begin farming in spring had to borrow at six percent. After plowing and buying seed, the two new farmers were without money. One of them went to work in a glass mill in Illinois, while the other continued the back-breaking work clearing the land and farming. To add to their troubles, the nearby creek dried up in the summer, and the water could be brought in only from a distant spring. A horse had to be bought ! The beginning of farming was bitter for the Slovaks in northern Wisconsin.86 Although the Slovak farmers did organize locally, they did not form any national Slovak farmer societies. In Moquah, Wis. , for instance, a special farmers' society was established in 1911. The two national fraternal organizations served their social purposes sufficiently. One farmer from Tabor, Minn., did suggest that the Slovak farmers in the west needed a "clearing house" in a city like Pittsburgh, where they could sell their products, especially, grain, directly to the consumer. This would save the farmer some of his profits and the workingman some of his hard earned money. This remained only a suggestion. 87 Generally the new farmers were quite successful. The land was good, profits were high, and there were no strikes. 88 In Slovaktown hay was sold for $7 a ton in 1913; a Slovak farmer in Virginia made $1 ,100 on peanuts and $220 on cotton on a 220 acre farm . Still there were failures . A considerable number of advertisements announcing the farm sales appeared in the Jednota and the Narodne Noviny. 89 Some- SLOVAKIA 53 times the reason was the mortgag,e ;90 at other times the family found the life too difficult and drab.9 1 While some Slovaks managed to escape to the farm from the hard life of mine and mill, most Slovaks remained city-dwellers. One of the problems of the city-dweller was the high cost of living as compared with wages. 92 The high prices led to a large number of cooperative ventures on a nationality basis. Most frequently this was a meat and grocery store. The enterprise resembled a corporation more than a cooperative. A share might cost $10 and a board of directors headed and managed the enterprise. Sometimes a limit was placed on the number of shares an individual might hold, lest any one person should capture control of the corporation.93 In Yukon, Pa., for instance, 200 families established a share-holding grocery store which was successful despite the opposition of some Slovaks. The corporation charter provided that any man could belong, but no one was allowed to invest more than $1 ,000! In 9 months a dividend of $4.85 was paid for each share. The cooperative enterprise could save a working man about fifteen cents a day on his food bill. In spite of considerable propaganda in the papers heralding these ventures, the Slovaks did not support these "Slovak stores" universally. The proprietors complained that Slovaks continued to patronize non-Slovak businesses. 9 4 There were many suggestions for Slovak enterprise: the organization of all Slovak businessmen in America, a law firm to take care of Slovak interests, a hospital for Slovak immigrants, a shoe factory to be built by the National Slovak Society or the Slovak League. 95 Of all the ephemeral proposals made, one did become actual. A Slovak bank to handle Slovak business was considered a necessity; but the idea was only gingerly approached after the failure of Peter V. Rovnianek's Bank in Pittsburgh, in 1907. Michael Bosak founded the State Slovak Bank in Wilkes-Barre, Pa.; the bank opened for business on December 2, 1912, and in its first five months showed a profit of $7,250. 96 Progress was also the keynote of the First Catholic Slovak Union. In 1910 the Union established its own printery in Middletown, Pa. This was a two story red brick building, one hundred twenty feet long and forty feet wide. The equipment included Duplex printing press and a linotype machine. The blessing of the printery took place on October 27, 1910.97 54 SLOVAKIA In 1914 the Union also opened an orphanage, which the Sisters of Ss. Cyril and Methodius took under their supervision. The building itself cost $97,000, and the total cost was about $110,000. The chapel had an altar of Vermont marble worth $1,200 and a seating capacity of 150. 98 This orphanage was located in Middletown, Pa. The Slovak Catholics wer,e justly very proud of this achievement, especially when they remembered how poor they had been when they landed in the United States. The National Slovak Society showed its energy by creating an official newspaper for its own use, the Narodne Noviny, in 1910; this paper replaced the Amerikansko-Slovenske Noviny which had spoken for the National Slovak Society but had never been adopted as the official organ of the Society. This new newspaper became definitely anti-clerical and sometimes anti-Catholic. In 1910 an editorial defended the modernists and attacked the Catholic Church as being an Italian and Roman Church, and not truly Catholic. 99 Any clerical scandal was written up with glee, and cartoons were not only anti-clerical but in very bad taste. These attacks and insults became so violent that the Bishop of Altoona, Eugene A. Garvey, banned the newspaper from his diocese on the grounds that it was written and published by "Jews, unbelievers, and heretics," spreading anarchism, unbelief, and socialism.100 The National Slovak Society did more constructive work when it organized the Youth Circles of the National Slovak Society in 1913. The chief purpose of these circles was educational. The elder and chief gymnast had to be total abstainers and men of sound general educa:tion. 101 The official language was Slovak. Dues were to be twenty cents a month for each child; of this amount fifteen cents were to be forwarded to the treasurer of the National Slovak Society. All meetings were to begin with Slovak and American patriotic songs; the American songs were to be translated into Slovak.102 Besides one official meeting a month to transact business, there were frequent meetings for lectures, study, and general education. 103 These circles presented programs which featured recitation of poems in Slovak, Slovak songs sung as solos and in chorus, instrumental solos, lectures by visitors. 104 The circles were beneficial to young Slovaks, and their growth SLOVAKIA 55 was very rapid. By September, 1914, sixty nine circles had been established. 105 In spite of all the discussion of an orphanage, the National Slovak Society finally abandoned the plan. The matter was dropped because of the religious problem. The Society consisted of members belonging to various religious sects and claimed that it could not without showing favoritism provide for religious instruction. An orphanage without religious instruction and education was unacceptable to the Slovaks. 106 The fraternal organizations during this time suffered somewhat from embezzlement and swindling. Joseph Joscak, an editor of the Narodne Noviny , had taken a $19,000 "commission" from the National Slovak Society but was caught up with in 1913. 107 During the same years a William Vokolek swindled the Slovak fraternal organizations to the extent of $300,000. 108 Of course, A. S. Amrose's "commission" on the St. Mary's settlement must also be recalled here. Another common feature of fraternal life in this period was the construction of lodge halls, which were built almost in every settlement. These lodge halls became the centers of social life; they provided places for lodge meetings, theatrical productions, dances, gymnastic exercises, and quarters for the political and literary clubs. 109 One of the storms that troubled the fraternal organizations was the debate on the "old system" as against the "new system." Almost any issue of the Jednota after 1906 and the Narodne Noviny after 1910 contained letters with arguments on both sides of the question. 110 While operating under the older method of assessment, the organizations failed to build up a reserve for times of special demand; they were merely collecting agencies. For instance, if the organization needed $3,000 and had 12,000 members, each member was obliged to pay twenty five cents, which were collected to meet the cost. The new system involved paying dues r,e gularly, determined according to age. As early as 1906 the Rev. S. Furdek, the Rev. M. Jankola, and A. S. Ambrose pointed out the advantages of the new system, but there was much opposition. By 1914 both the First Catholic Slovak Union and the National Slovak Society had adopted the modern method. m Although progress was considerable among the Slovak immigrants in education, business enterprise, and farming , in many ways the lot of the workingman remained a hard 56 SLOVAKIA one. For instance, mine disasters continued to take lives. At Fernie, Pa. , in June, 1902, 200 miners perished, 50 of them Slovaks. Forty two Slovak miners were killed at Cambria, Pa. , during July, 1902. 112 Strikes still plagued the coal fields in which Slovaks were working. In Westmoreland county a strike began at Greensburg, Pa., on March 10, 1910 over union recognition and as a protest against the company store system. It spread to the neighboring mining centers of K,eystone, Irwin, Latrobe, and Westmoreland. Then in the confusion a mine guard shot an eighteen year old youth, and 15,000 miners went on strike. Eleven thousand wer•e said to be Slovaks. They joined the union to show their defiance and to emphasize their demands. As a counter-measure, the company called in the Pinkerton detectives, and the striking miners were blacklisted.113 During the strike the miners had very little to subsist upon, and that little came from the United Mine Workers of America. The union provided $2.50 a week for each man, $1.00 a week for each woman dependent, and $0 .50 a week for each child. 114 The president of the National Slovak Society, Mr. A. S. Ambrose, visited the strike-bound coal-fields. In his newspaper articles he estimated that about 20,000 men were on strike ; about 95 % were Slavs, and of this latter group about 60 % were Slovaks. The striking miners lived in shacks that could not protect them against the bitter cold, the children went about bare-foot and hungry. 115 Since 500 strikers were members of the National Slovak Society, the Society published appeals for help and even began a collection for relief of the strikers in Westmoreland county.116 Gradually the strike was broken and nothing substantial was won. Another strike in which many Slovaks were involved began in 1913, led by the Industrial Workers of the World. It started in the broad-loom silk mills of Patterson, N. J. , on February 25, 1913. Over twenty five thousand workers were affected. There were two factors that prolonged the bitter strife. One was the introduction of the three and four loom system; this involved the question of whether Patterson should invade the cheap silk field in opposition to the Pennsylvania mills. Fear of lower wages and loss of work followed as a consequence. The second factor was resentment of I.W.W. tactics. The Jednota condemned the I. W. W.'s socialist tendencies and opposition to the American Federation of Labor. 117 SLOVAKIA 57 Still these defects of the union did not blind the First Catholic Slovak Union to the needs of the strikers, many of whom were Slovaks. 118 For five months the leadership of the I. W. W. kept the strikers' ranks intact, but lack of funds and loss of morale at last broke the strike. After twenty one weeks of bitter struggle the strike was settled without any gains for the workers. The J ednota laid the blame on the socialists. 119 Both newspapers were strong supporters of unions. They considered it the duty of every Slovak to belong to the unions, especially the American Federation of Labor. After all, it was the unions that improved the worker's lot and gave labor a position of influence in the world. 120 The strike-breaker and the "scab" were excluded from Slovak organizations. 121 In their attitude toward socialism the two newspapers differed. The Narodne Noviny showed itself definitely hospitable to socialist ideas. Articles were featured insisting that there could be no friendly contacts between capitalists and workers; workers were urged to abandon the Democratic and Republican parties and to join the party of the working class! 122 The Jednota unreservedly repudiated socialism. It condemned socialist anti-religious tactics and ridicule of Catholics. 123 Socialism was anti-Christian in its very essence, and had been consistently opposed to religion. The only agency that did in fact transform slave labor into free human labor was the Catholic Church. 124 As the first decade of the twentieth century ended and another began, the dawn of new interests appeared on the horizon. In 1911 Count Albert Apponyi, who has been mentioned before, returned to the United States on behalf of Hungary which he described as "an island of freedom" in central Europe. Slovak publicity about Hungarian mistreatment of Slovaks caused the mission of Count Apponyi to fail.1 25 Hard upon the heels of this came the Balkan wars. Slovak efforts at war relief were conditioned by nationalism. Within the months from November 21, 1912 to June 19, 1913, the Narodne Noviny collected $1,547.95 for the Slavonic Red Cross; and it was made clear that this collection was only for the Slavs. 126 By January 22, 1913 the Jednota had collected $2,350.00 for the same cause. 127 With regard to the "Slovak question," which was on the verge of becoming the paramouth one for the Slovaks, opinion among the American Slovaks had undergone quite a change. 58 SLOVAKIA Almost up to 1914 Slovaks sought concessions from Hungary for Slovakia; but these concessions of political and cultural rights wer-e understood within the existing framework of government. However, in April, 1914, when Count Michael Karolyi came to the United States to win Slovak favor for a Slovak and Hungarian union in a completely independent Hungary, the Slovaks questioned the sincerity of the Count and the government. In New York, on May 24, 1914, a debate took place on the question: "Can the Slovaks trust the Hungarian government in its movement for general suffrage in Hungary and with complete Hungarian independence?" The debate solved no real problem, but stated clearly the issues: what was to be the Slovaks' future relation to Hungary? The Slovak League arranged several protest meetings, and on April 28, 1914 issued a Memorandum, which was practically a declaration of independence and demanded autonomy for Slovakia. The League did not explain the kind of autonomy Slovakia should have, whether within Austro-Hungary or with Hungary as an independent state or complete independence for Slovakia for the Slovaks in America themselves disagreed on what they wanted. In order to clarify their position, a Congress of the Slovak League was held in Pittsburgh, September 10, 1914. After everybody had aired their views, it appeared that in 1914, as late as September of that year, the American Slovaks had not generally accepted political plans for Slovakia. 128 They were divided into three camps: one demanded complete independence for Slovakia, another wanted autonomy within Hungary, and a third desired the creation of a new state in which Czechs and Slovaks would be united. 129 With the coming of the World War, Slovak attention was diverted from the creation of Slovak institutions here in America to the creation of Slovakia. The World War found the Slovaks anti-German and anti-Habsburg. 130 The Jednota printed German atrocity stories and even went so far as to charge that German Protestantism was serving German mili'tarism.131 The Slovak League managed to chanel the desire for a better Slovakia and the anti-Habsburg feeling into an extensive Slovak nationalist movement. Through the Slovak League over a million dollars was poured into the cause of Slovak freedom. 132 By 1914 the Slovak immigrants had made themselves SLOVAKIA 59 economically secure as far as a group of working people could in the American economy. Socially they had made progress in organizing national fraternal organizations, establishing Slovak schools, creating Slovak parishes. Their nationalism, manifested in efforts to form distinct Slovak institutions and their interest in European Slovakia, prevented their complete integration with American life; but the Slovak institutions seemed foredoomed to failure. The explanation for much of this lies outside the special character of the Slovaks. After 1890, the close of the frontier, the new industrial city became the characteristic of American life ; it became the center of production, the leader in social and cultural lif.e, and great center of communication. By the very fact that Slovaks were immersed in industrial and eventually city rather than farm life, they were exposed to the influence of this most Americanizing force. The problems of new city life, the economic opportunities offered them in industry, and economic competition made the attempt to establish particularly Slovak institutions a struggle against the current. The attempted settlement on ,t he farms was also against the trends of the times which led toward the city. The crucial factor in American Slovak social history seems to be their engaging in industry and their settlement in industrial centers. Slovak nationalism attempted to modify the influence of this industrial city, and in so far as it did, it hindered progress among the Slovak immigrants in America. FOOTNOTES 1. Francis Sasinek, "Myslienky o stave nabozenstva medzi Slovakmi," Kalendar Jednota (1897 ) , II, 139. 2. M. Jankola, " Nase Skoly," Kalendar Jedno ta ( 1900), V, 135-136. 3. Molchan, "Development of the Slovak Community," pp. 69-70. 4. Culen, Slovaci v Ameri ke, p. 394; Jednota, June 18, 1913, September 3, 1913. 5. Yurchak, The Slovaks, p. 187; Hrusovsky, This i s Slovakia, p. 50. 6. Molchan, "Development of the Slovak Community," pp. 82-83 ; Yurchak, .The ,Slovaks, p . 190. 7. Yurchak, The Slovaks, pp. 229-230. 8. Karol Sidor, Andrej Hlinka 1864-1938 (Bratislava, 1934), pp. 186191 ; Bokes, Dejiny Slovenska, pp. 313-315; Yurchak, The Slovaks, pp. 230-232. 9. Molchan, "Development of the Slovak Community," p. 81. 10. John S. Bradac, "Slovenski Evanjelici-Lutherani v Spojenych Statoch Arnerickych," World's Fair Memorial, pp. 81-82. 11. "The Slovak Sokol," Sborni k Slovenskeho Katoli ckeho Sokola na rok 1942, XXVIII, 242-243 . 12. Culen, Dejiny, II, 80-81, 93-94. 60 SLOVAKIA 13. J ednota, February 5, 1913. The pastor told the organist " the Slovak language was nothing." The organist quit. 14. Jednota, July 8, 1914. After the Slovaks had brought a priest from Slovakia and paid his way, the bishop refused to let him be their pastor. 15. Narodne Noviny, September 15, 1910; Kushner, Slovaci, p . 32. 16. Molchan, "Development of the Slovak Community," p. 94-95. 17. Andrew J. Shipman, " Slavs in America," Th e Catholic Encyclop edia ( 1912), XIV, p. 55. 18. Culen, Dejiny, I. 114-115. 19. M. Jankola, " Pokladnica sv. Antona v Amerike," Kalendar Jedn ota (1908), XIII, 177-178. 20. Jednota, February 12, 1913. 21. Culen Slovaci v A merike, p . 418; " Slovenska zenska rehol'a ssv. Cyrilla i Me thoda v Amerike ," Ka lendar J ednot a ( 1911 ), XVI, 97-98 ; M. Jankola , " Prvotiny pr vej slovenskej zenskej rehole" , Ka lendar Jednot a (1909), XIV, 17-176; "Dcery ssv. Cyrilla i Methoda", Kalendar J ednota (1914 ), XIX, 194-195. 22. Kushner, Slovaci, pp. 150-152. 23. Culen, Slovaci v Amerike, pp. 408-409. 24. Ibi d., 418,424. 25. Narodne Noviny, August 15, 1913, August 29,1913. 26. Narodne Noviny, October 3, 1912. 27. Kushner, Slovaci, pp. 156-157. 28. Culen, Slovaci v A merike, p. 401. 29. Narodne Noviny, June 9, 1910, April 27, 1911 ; September 5, 1912; August 29, 1912; Jednota, July 2, 1913. 30. Narodne Noviny, June 23, 1910, February 15, 1913 ; Jednota, April 1, 1914. 31. J ednota, March 4, 1913, March 12, 1913. 32. Stephan Furdek, "Dlfobny upis a ucastina," Kalendar Jednota (1909 ), XIV, pp. 192-195; "Ako povstal svet," Kalendar Jednota (1910), XV, pp. 141-145; J. Porubsky, "Ako volia v Amerike prezidenta," Kalendar J ednota (1913) , XVII, pp. 97-103; I. G., "Ako stat' sa obcanom Spoj. Statov," Kalendar Narodneho Slov enskeho Spolku (1913 ), XX, pp. 83-96. 33. Nar odne Noviny, June 12, 1913 ; Jednota, November 19, 1913. 34. N arodne Noviny, April 25, 1912; Jednota, June 11, 1913. 35. Narodne Noviny , August 10, 1911. 36. J . A. F ., " Pokrok," Sborni k (1915) , I, 43. 37. N arodne Noviny, April 4, 1912. 38. Narodne Noviny, July 11, 1912. 39. Narodne Noviny, July 25, 1912. 40. Narodne Noviny, August 8, 1912, September 19, 1912. 41. Narodne Noviny, November 12, 1914. 42. Jednota, January 1, 1913, February 12, 1913, May 7, 1913. 43. Culen, Slovaci v A m erike, pp. 175-190. 44. Ibi d., pp. 236-237. 45. Ibid. , p. 266. 46. Ibi d., p. 267. 47. Ibid., pp. 294-296. 48. Ibi d., pp. 297-305. 49. Ibid., pp. 306-337. 50. N arodne Noviny, February 3, 1910. SLOVAKIA 61 51. Narodne Noviny, March 27, 1913. 52. Narodne Noviny, February 10, 1910, October 24, 1912. 53. Jednota, January 8, 1913, February 19, 1913, June 18, 1913, July 16, 1913. 54. Culen, Slovaci v Amerike, p. 191. 55. Narodne Noviny, July 7, 1910, June 27, 1912, April 17, 1913 ; Jednota, November 4, 1914, December 23, 1914. 56. Narodne Noviny, October 3, 1912. 57. Narodne Noviny, October 6, 1910. 58. Narodne Noviny, January 27, 1910; Jednota, May 14, 1913, December 31, 1913 ; Kalendar Jednota (1915), XX, 75. 59. Narodne Noviny, March 7, 1912. 60. Amerikansko-Slovenske Noviny, August 19, 1897. 61. Joseph Pauco, ~udovychorn u Sturovcov (Turciansky Sv. Martin, 1943) , pp. 107-108. 62. Ibid. , pp. 137-140. 63. Jednota, February 5, 1913. 64. Narodne Noviny, April 28, 1910, April 4, 1912, March 21, 1912. 65. Narodne Noviny, April 4, 1912; Paul Jamarik, " Opojny a krcma, " Kalendar Narodneho Slovenskeho Spolku ( 1914), XXII, 198-206 ; Jednota, February 19, 1913, June 25, 1913. 66. !1udomil, "Zakladajme spolky uplnej striezlivosti," Kalendar Jednota, (1911), XVI, 41-42. 67. Jednota, March 5, 1913. 68. Narodne Noviny, February 24, 1910, August 4, 1910; Jednota, January 29, 1913. 69. Jednota, July 30, 1913. 70. Narodne Noviny, April 25, 1912. 71. Narodne Noviny, January 13, 1910, May 12, 1912, August 25, 1910. 72. Narodne Noviny, November 2, 1911. 73. Narodne Noviny, November 9, 1911. 74. Narodne Noviny, January 25, 1912. 75. Narodne Noviny, June 6, 1912. 76. Narodne Noviny, September 18, 1913. 77. Narodne Noviny, October 1, 1914. 78. Narodne Noviny, November 16, 1911. 79. Jednota, September 17, 1913 ; Narodne Noviny, May 25, 1911. 80. Jednota, February 4, 1914; Narodne Noviny , March 19, 1914, June 11, 1914. 81. Jednota, February 19, 1913. 82. Narodne Noviny, October 7, 1910. 83. Jednota, July 9, 1913 Narodne Noviny, May 11, 1912. 84. Jednota, January 1, 1913 ; January 21, 1914. 85. Narodne Noviny, March 19, 1914, April 25, 1912. 86. Jednota, January 21, 1914, January 28, 1914. 87. Jednota, February 12, 1913, August 13, 1913. 88. Jednota, August 13, 1913; Narodne Noviny, March 19, 1914; Jednota, September 17, 1913, January 21 , 1914. 89. Jednota, December 9, 1914, October 14, 1914, December 30, 1914. 90. Narodne Noviny, April 25, 1912. 91. Narodne Noviny, August 8, 1912. 92. Narodne Noviny, February 17, 1910, April 27, 1911. 93 . Narodne Noviny, February 29, 1914; Jednota, July 1, 1914; Narodne Noviny, May 14, 1914. 94. Jednota, July 1, 1914. 62 SLOVAKIA 95. N<irodne Noviny, December 28, 1911, September 12, 1912, October 12, 1911, June 11, 1914. 96. N<irodne Noviny, March 7, 1912; Jednota, May 21, 1913. 97. A. V. Kozak, "Ustav I . Katolickej Slovenskej Jednoty," Kalend<ir Jednota (1912) , XVII, 22. 98. " Ustav I. Katolickej Slovenskej Jednoty," Kalend<ir Jednota ( 1915), xx, 163-164. 99. N<irodne Noviny, July 14, 1910. 100. N<irodne Noviny, July 13, 1911. 101. N<irodne Noviny, October 13, 1913. 102. N<irodne Noviny, January 8, 1914. 103. N<irodne Noviny, January 29, 1914. 104. N<irodne Noviny, April 16, 1914. 105. N<irodne Noviny, September 17, 1914. 106. Pamiitnica k zlatemu Jubileu N<irodneho Slov enskeho Spolku v U .S.A . (Pittsburgh, 1940) , p. 47. 107. N<irodne Noviny, March 13, 1913. 108. N<irodne Noviny, January 16, 1913. 109. N <irodn e Noviny, March 24, 1910, April 28, 1910, June 30, 1910. 110. Jednota, January 1, 1913. 111. "Prorocke slova dp. Matufa Jankolu o novom systeme," Sbornik Slovenskeho Katolickeho Sokola na rok 1942, XXIX, 82; Jednota, January 1, 1913. 112. Culen, Dejiny, I, 125. 113. Ibid., I, 122-123. 114. N<irodne Noviny, March 23 , 1911. 115. N<irodn e Noviny, March 16, 1911. 116. N<irodne Noviny, September 22, 1910. 117. Jednota, May 14, 1913, May 21, 1913, July 2, 1913, September 10. 1913. 118. Jednota, June 18, 1913. 119. Jednot a, July 30, 1913. 120. N<irodn e Noviny, August 22, 1912, October 23, 1913 ; S. F., "Robotnicka otazka," Ka lend<ir J ednota (1906 ), XIII, 56. 121. Culen, Deji ny, I, 123-124; N<irodne Noviny, February 24, 1913. 122. N<irodne Noviny, January 15, 1914, February 12, 1914, February 26, 1914, June 11, 1914. 123. Jednota, January 1, 1913. 124. Jednota, May 7, 1913, July 2, 1913, May 14, 1913. 125. Yurchak, The Slovaks, p. 187. 126. N<irodne Noviny, November 21, 1912, June 19, 1913. 127. J ednota, January 22, 1913. 128. Molchan, "Development of the Slovak Community," pp. 99-102. 129. Yurchak, The Slovaks, p. 190. 130. Jednota, September 30, 1914, October 14, 1914. 131. Jednot a, October 21, 1914, November 4, 1914. 132. Yurchak, The Slovaks, p . 191.  Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Slovaks in the U.S.A. Description An account of the resource James J. Zatko, Ph.D. Slovakia, Vol. 16 (No. 39), 1966 pp. 41-62 Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Zatko, James J. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1966 LCNAF https://slovakia.wordsofpassage.net/files/original/5d85595f4b7c2b959ee29d06a2fe5ef1.pdf 660c5204a16b4cb09eba283c166adb88 PDF Text Text SLOVAKIA 63 AMIDRIO.AN SLOV:.A.KiS AND '.DHE BEJG]NNJNGS OF 02'JIDOHO-SLOVAKI.A. By Joseph Pauco, Ph.D. In 1907 there was founded in Cleveland, Ohio, an organiiization ,ca:lled the Slovaik LeaJgue of America. This orga'Illization represented a coailition of aiH 1:Jhe existing Slovaik fraite:m al and r~i:giou:s organizations in the United States, and rallied besides, the support of t'he Slovaik clergy, both OatJholic amd Evangelka!l (Lutheran), as well as t!he suipport of the then--e:ristiing Slov:aik-American periodicals. The Slova!k League set as its major goail tJhe lilberation of the SllovaJk nation in its homelaind. For t!his reason it toO!k a srtand for t!he dismaintlement of tJhe .Austro-Hiungarian Empire and e:,oplo;z-ed possiibi'lities for political cooperation wit:Jh the Czech nation. Thiis cooperation reached formal expression in 1:Jhe signing of the Pi'Ubsburgh Pad of May 30, 1918, parties to which were 11epresentatives of the Silova'k Leaigue of America on the one side, and the represenrtatives of the Czech Natriona:l .Alliance and the Union of Czech Ca1fuolics, on the otJher. The Czechs were led by Thomas G. Masaryik, who prepared both .p arties for the aJgreement, aind wiho later became the first president of the O.zechoSlovaik Republiic. The text of tJhe Pittsburgh Paict reads as foHows: The representatives of the Slovak and Czech organizations in the United States-the Slovak League, the Czech National Alliance, and the Union of Czech Catholics-have deliberated, in the presence of the Chairman of the Czecho•Slovak National Council, Professor Masa• ryk, on the Czecho•Slovak question and on our previous program mani• festations, and have resolved as follows: We favor a political program whose purpose it shall be to unite the Czechs and Slovaks into an autonomous state comprising the Czech lands and Slovakia. Slovakia shall have her own administration, her own assembly, and her own courts. The Slovak language shall be the official language in the schools, in public offices, and in the public life in general. The Czecho•Slovak State shall be a republic; its constitution shall be democratic. The cooperation of the Czechs and the Slovaks in the United States shall be intensified and regulated by mutual consent, according to need and changing situations. Detailed provisions relating to the organization of the Czecho· Slovak State shall be left to the liberated Czechs and Slovaks and their legal representatives. �64 SLOVAKIA It is interesting to tmce the early evolution in the attitude of tJhe Prague government, under T. G. Masaryk, to the Pittsburgh Pact, and to the movement of Andrej HLinika, the eminent Slovak politicail leader, wtho adopted the progra:m of the Paiet. And it is no less interesting to review the thirnlkinig on this matter among American Sfoviaks, a faction of wihom rejected the program and succeeded for a short time in leading astray even the Slova:k League of America. On Maroh 7, 1919 Joseph Rusek left for Slova;kii1a. He was sent by t!he Slovak Lea:gue a;g one of a five-member mission, and the supreme of.ficers of the First Oatholic Slovaik Un:ion, too, at their annual meeting in New York, charged "brother Joseph Husek, editor of our organ 'Jedinota', in the name of 70,000 SlovaJk Catholics organized in tlhe FCSU, as a competent ma:n, to represent us illl the o1d country in matters both ecclesiastical aJild national, and to keep us informed on the state of SioV18lk ailfairs." 1 This was the first important mission of the American Siovruks to the continent after the overthrow of the old order. Joseph Huisek spent ten weeks in Slov&kia and urpon his return presented a comprehen,s ive report of his impressions. He analyzed the times and r!Jhe peop{e, circumstances and events, with great perspicacity, in the newspruper Jednotia and the a,lmainac of the same name. 2 It had been Husek's intention to a:cquaint SlloviaJk leaders with the Ame rican Slovaks' interpretation of the program emlbodied in the Pittsrburg,h Pruct. But in Bratislava his voice fell on deaf ears, because "the government was controlled by individuals, as it is to this day, who saw in the new ord€r an excellent opportunity to acihieve their ideal: the Czechizabiorn of S,l ova kia curlturaHy, economically and politic,ally. And by a standing imposition of martial law they envisioned the possi1bi11rity of intilmida;ting not only elemenrts inimi,ca:l to the Republic, hut also elements inimical to tJhis ideal." These people did not acknowledge the reservations of the American-SlovaJk emissaries. "'Dhey only smirled artfully, as if they pittied me for my naive fai'bh in the fitness of tihe Slovaik nation," wrote Joseph Rusek, ·b y way of commentary to •his conversations in Bratislava, for he saw clearly that the ruling c8iste in Srlova:kia was interested "ilil a com1 1 �SLOVAKIA 65 rtsko-~lo1ttll!lk11JQgbl~.. tnmtrettri ll i)ittsbnr9htt. l}n.. bntt ,;o. tndjR. l9ltl • .,ifrr~sttw iMio ~lottttt!ikvch uo ., ll ~kiich o~nnisocif . t •~ ~,P"J•. -'-:t't ~ ll om. - . •~htu t1tsatj 1J~\!~~tho ]Ttlll)~ni.ho.$bttittnfu. . ll ~\!i)!ll frsj1.1,h.~ . " · P•'l"<'lh'1.•,1li t.i pnl.-niu,•;;ti ~~~~t-.'u e,1-1t .... $l..:.•m:-tt,_i "~1Jr.-..1' .,,'!4• ~r,"'f.~h,; ..,1-yh,, . ., ~1-ft,,~Jlct.,i:niok~j ,.....\,h, ,1 ..... th1$i,·b {~\t~:ti:b pr~~;!~l\'?'?Cl•~i.·b pr('_i~-:1.,,'1! r.\ usnt,--.l~-,.l~~,,.a.•\'\.: ! -.. s~b'M !u_irn,~ pditi,·h:i pr.:-~r.t~ uii\ll~U,"\ ~l •' Sp.:-j.:ni~ e.:~h~,i• lt $\i."li,Jk,.. ~ \t ~.,m,;•att1o1hl,'\1' 1ttit, 1. f~-,p.l\lf~-b 1nnl,, Sl\"l\tti:t!th~\~ 4 } ' ,"~""-~ .. :·.:-tc;•~n . . lt.• l;tt~~ mut -..~•-~iu L•l<l1-fn1'.i.)mitliih·..muu.1i,,j ~\j,:·\!1 "~ i,\••:\~ $'UL~~ . ,_S\ci.•(t-:ftn,, ru~..: ,fr,~~n!'t1! j,,iyb.~ t•~\i~l~. ~· Ut",,~~ ,, t,~., t tNi 1"'"'\'\1 !\t, ...,t..! t,;_;~-:-.c. · "€.:~t.,-;,(.,,,,-u1-l,{';;l,1t l-ub.: tt}'u~lik,,u, j~l,..,~.:-1Wtittici" bu ..'-: ~~m""kr"tti4!k-.\. _ ··~•l\'li'!-.i,'t,'\ fp,•lupr.{.:~ e.:cb,"t•" $\.;,i•,tlwv t•c Sp...i. -.:: ., • t1 L • • ·t ' . · ~ ·. '~ ~t-1,t ..--..,h Lru,,,, P•'t. :'"- f"' t r~..,~ ,, mcnt,\~~.t :'1o'\ fl u-1~\<.pn ~}'-' I ..,~o~"t\11 ~~'r-"'?tnn(n\. pr.:hl~~t:..\ ,, '-'}'TOt•~n..i. ·. t: .~ · 1 ~ ,-~ ..... ._\t,.. ~nl t.1,st..,n-:'t~ni~, c- t..\t't'1,'.:1Ul.:-5k~~,l~,tC"Ot~~k~~ ;,1,1tu }'-'ll~.:b,ll.•,i.iu ;," •'!W••r,•~~nym €.i.:!icm ,, Sl,'l C1hcm "icb _ prJi,,•pl.ltni1m pN,'11-t,wit.:l,'tlt." 1 ====---- I w -{. . L_._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _J Photographic reproduction of the original copy of the Pittsburgh Pact ("Pittsburghska Dohoda") plete merging of 1Jhe Slmr31k nart~on wi1:!h tlhe Czeoh." Burt on the 01:!her hand he also ascertained tihat "Masary,k's ideology of tJhe nationa,,l unity of Slovaks and Czecihs was completely foreign to the ordinary Slovaik person." 3 And it did not escape Husek's observation that ''the �oe SLOVAKIA Slov~s !have no desire fo:r the kind of democraitic wwk that haJS to be performed in the shadow of Czech bayonets!" He 01Scertained that the Czeoho-Slovaik Pairliament was gravely deficient in point of "ropresenrta'tion for the SlovaJk nation. Agriculture and the triades haid not a single representative firom among tJhei'r own rarrk!s, and in any case, members of pairliaiment were nominated and a,ppointed by the regime ibselif, whicih ma!kes no seoret of its intentions to consolidate its power at every cost, and whfoh pursues a poli~ica[, cu1tural and economic course that ha,s bhe support of only a smaifil minority of bhe Slovak nation." He noted that bhe policies of bhli s government ran oouniter to the interests of bhe Slovia'k people. Husek verified tllrough his own Olbservations tJhat "in PraJgue many influential pdlitidans want aJbsolurtely no tr,uok with the idea tJhait Slovakia belongs to tJhe Slovaks and that the Slova:ks have no need to go to Piriague for tutelage in the management of bheir own land and nation. Indeed, Pra,gue is completely at a loss as to what to do in its own bailiwick. Politioal chaos reigns in Bohemia. 'flhe national assemlbly speaJks with twenty tongues. Not one faction aictua'lly knows what it wants . .A!I1d in the maisses tJhe most prevalent pdlitic'al orientatfon is Bollshevism." Of suoh stuf.f, too, were the OzechlS who cMne to Slov,a,kia. Hrusek oharaoteri!.zed them aJS fol!lows : "The arrogance am.d domineering attitude of some Czeclhs in Slov.akia was indeed Ml af:firont. And I encountered these maniifestation,s, in per,son, frequently during my stay i'n the old country. I e,cperienced them on tJhe tr,aJirnis and in tlhe restaiurants. On the trams you were comfuaintly being jostled aside for some Ozedh dignilbairy, while in tJhe restaiurants your order WaJS taiken only after 1:Jhe Ozooh had reccived his ... It is a major fault witih many of OUT Czeoh brethren, and not tihe leaist with men of culrttvalbi.on, that tlley do not ,consider the ,Slova,k an equa•l citizen of the Republic." In the political sphere Husek saw cleair signs tJhait the rulling regime in Slov,ailcia haJd no desire to even hear of aultonomy. 'Dhe regime considered tihe autonom:i!sts traitors. It WaJS Huook's finding that a great gaip separated the policie'S of 1:Jhe Slova!k LeaJgue of Amerioa fram the tJhmktmg of tihe current rulers in Slovakia. �6i SLOVAKIA On tJhe subject of autQIIlomy, writes Joseph Husek, "Hlirrrka aJlone g,ave me a clear...oot srtatement - he liives and dies for the American pa,dt . . . Hli'nlka stamds for autooomy antd a Ohrisitian world-view. He stamlds for autonomy becaiuse he sees in it the assu:rainrce of a better future for Ms naJtion, and a gual'amtee of the firee growt:Jh of its natio n.1aJl cu1lture and economy, as weJ1l as a bai:rder to Ozeoh materialilsm and atheism ... Hlmka stand1s for •autonomy because he is Slov,aJk, not Ozeclho-Slovaik ! . . . And besides, it mmt be said of H]i[llka tJhat he loves his naltion warriznrly, truly and entirely seMllessly; he is ready to sacl'ifice evecytlhing for it - whircih is something I camnot in good con,s cience say a!bout many of his opponents." In regard to Joseph Husek'is trirp as "a:n emliss,rury of the Amwican Sfovakis" A. J. Pirha!11a, president of the F1irrist Catholic Slovak Union, commented: "'he accomplished a ,g reat deal of wortJhwhile wo"Pk. His detailed rerport gave us an accurate, clear and specific rev-iew of the situation in Slova,kia. " 4 Hrusek and MH'an Gettilllg presented the reports on tJhcir Slo'ViaJkian trirp at the 12'1:Jh Oongress of tihe SlovaJk Le•ague of America, wh~-c'h todk plaice on May 29, 1919 ilil Scranton, Pennsylva,nia. Getting ,prorposed that the League send the "Slovak Administration" a printing press vail ued at $50,000.00, and in addit-ilon, to Mr. Sirobar, finamcirail a:ssistance in tihe amount of $10,000.00. 'Dhe Congress rupproved t'he proposal, and a•l so moved to send sixty-thousamd dollar3 wO'!'th of clothing to Slovaikia. 5 Husek wrote after tJhe congress: "HHnika is the forunder, president amd guiding spitrit of tlhe SloWJk People's Party, wihldh wiH play a great, if ndt decishre, role in the history of Slovaik'ia, and whiiC'h claims the loyalty of ahnost a'1.!l the patriotiic S'lov~k clergy, even of those who do not approve m ,i:nka'·s -bi'tter anrd unrestrai,ned critilcism of 1:Jh~ administration i01 Braitirs]ra va." 6 In th±s vein Joseph Husek filled tlhe columTIJS Olf · the newspaper Jednota through the year 1919. He subjected the Prrugue regime and its functionaries in Bratislava to shar,p criticism. He believed fifflllly tJhiat ''oniy through aiutonomy wou'ld it be poss~ble to purt Slovaikila finmly on its feet! . . . 'Dhe Slovaks need aiutanomy mairrrly to preserve their national existence. But without srpecific leg~si.ation 1 �68 SLOVAKIA there will be no self-rule of any kiJnid." The sel!f-ru[e "that Slov:aikia has today its not only worbhiless, but even positively pernrjlciou1s. Suoh 'selrf..1rule' demoraJl.ilzes pulbJi.c Hfe in Sloviaikia aind stirs the natiQIIl to open revoU.'' 7 On October 24, 1919, the execubi.ive committtee of tJhe SlovaJk League of Arm.edoa approved a memoramtdurm. addressed to the "policy-rm.1a;king fundt,iana11ieis" ( of t'he Czeoho-Slovaik gavernrrnent), in wihi'clh it oaUed for tJhe implementatiton of the Pit'tsburglh P.aiot. 8 A concentrated fig,ht agiainst Hilinka got under way. The fig,ht WaJS OO'gani.ized on two fronts: in Sfovakia, and in America; •a nd the f.ight gmdruaHy gained ground even ilil tJhe SfovaJk League. As H'linlka was returrning :6rom the peruce conference in Parris, on the evening of October 12, 1919, he wais arrested and spirited away to Mirrov prison. The baJSiis for hiJS arrest waJs hlis 1Jr1p to Piari.is and his a:ttempt there to place before the pea;ce conference, Sfo.viak demands as contaJitned in tJhe P,iUsburr1gih Pact. "If HHn:ka had gone to Pari.is, tJhougih the wa:y hakl led through Budapest, for the purpose of protesting the Bad - let's put the matter squarely on the taJble - the Ozecho..,Slovak ,press iand the Czeoho~SlovaJk gov,ernment would today be prarsing Hli!n!ka to the highest heaven, and everywhere he would be hera:lded as the future rurchb1shop of S'lovaikfa ! . . . Hliillka, therefore, witl!l face tria•l on behaJlf of our P,ruct, aJnd in effoct it will be our P.ruct tJhat will be on trial . . . And because this Pact, whloh ts to go on t'l'ial ~n Olom,o uc, 1s ours, in effect it will be we American Slovaks wiho wi'l'l face trila:l - ()lllT con'triburtion to the revolutionary struggle." 9 To the Uruted StaJrtes oa;me Hltinka's representath,es, Rev. Joseipfri Rudrnisiky and Joseph KU!bala, wiho called a meeting of S'1ovalk Crut:Jholic priests irn Piit1:Jsbu'I"gh 01I1 November 19, 1919, an1d om the following day, a meeting of the represen1ia.1t!ives of Slovak Oaitholiic org,anii!zations, loldiges and newspa;pers. Rerv. Joseph Du'lik of Olyphant, Penn!sy<lw.nia, pres•i!ded at the meeting of 1:Jhe clergy, and Atrrdrew J. Birha!&, presildent of the FiTlst Ca1Jholic S1l0Vlalk Union, at the second meetiinig. Both meet:Jing,s devei~oped g,uideliines for aiction by Slovruk Catholics of America, aJnd issued in a spontaneous determination to defend Aindrew Hlilillkia. Pla;n:s well"e made to expoiSe to the pub]i!c ruH fille events surround!ing Hlinlka's trip to Paris and his subsequent imprisonment. 1 1 �SLOVAKIA 69 The pu11pose of the Pittsburg,h meeting was: "1. To lay a foundation for wide 8Jl1d e:fifective publi<city and a:gitation for Sriovalkian 0Jutonomy within the frame-worik of the Ozeciho-,S,lovaJk Republic; 2. To 13/Un'Ch a movement for the creation of a OatJholic press fund, for the Sll.llpport of Catholi:c l<iterature ... Arrnerica,n S·1nVia1ks do nro t cornsiider the Paict a scrap of pruper: tfuey wr~l underibake everyrtlhilng irn theirr power to whieve its recogndltion. And tn a,ddiition to this, aifter so ma,ny disruppoi1nitment:Js from both tihe SIOVaJk Lea,g,ue, and spokesmen for tfue Ozeehio-S lov,aik goveirnment, they have ehosern t!he only proper courne: tlhey demand th1at the Pact be incorporated in the provi'81ion:s of the P.aris Pea.ice Treaty." 10 1 1 These meetings received an eX!tension, in effect, in the convention of the S~ov·a k Ca1:lho'lic Federation, held in Scranton, Pennsylv,ania, on December 18, 1919. This organization's delegate, Rev. Anton Gmdk, ha.id just returned from Slovaikioa, and he confirmed tJhe coniolusion,s of Hooek, Rudinsky, and K111ba1a. 'J.'1he conventiOIIl, therefoTe, moved to support, in full, Hilin:ka's activities and tJhe Pittsbuirgih Pact. 11 lniaJSmuc'h a.is the leadersthiilp of the S'lov:alk Leag,ue ha:d entetred the services of ''anti.,SiloviaJk and aniti-Ohristian poli,cies," 12 the SlovaJk CatJholic Federation beg,ain to taike noltdce of the politkail si tu ation in SJ.ovaikia. Srrovalk Catho4iics begam taking a heig,htened internst in t,h e n1ationa:l program because the Prague regime had proved itselif not on!ly anti-S1lovaik, but also amti-Oat!ho•l k. "The beMigerent merusuires undeI'balken by the Ozeicihs agairnst the Catholli,c Church a,nd the reH:gions sentiments of believing Slovalks" 13 ciolrld su1c1ceed only in arousing everyfbody. Rev. GraJcik, speaking from hi,s personal observa,tions in Slovakia, dec'l aired: "\Religion hars complete freedom in the Ozecho-Slo'W!Jk Republic, guaranteed by law. But filris f.reedom in only on paper. Nort erven 20 % of the p111blic sti:H be'l~eves in thi s reli•gio1rns freedom. Power rest:Js m 1Jhe han'd s of Sodail-De mocratk atheists, nom.--!believeris; and these people are aJbusing 1!heir power in an attempt to per;pe1tnmte their pairtisan conrtiro1l, and to entren,c h tJheir posirbions. ThU!s, re'ligious :fireedOIJll exists only on pruper and tJhe Ohuircih ooduires cons~deraJble suffering . . . Ln S10V1all da, except for prlimera and bi:bles, no Catlholi1c literaiture is cmrently being publ'islhed. The Ozeciho-SlovaJk government 1hrus completeily stopped 1 1 1 1 �70 SLOVAKIA Catlhol~c presses, suppressed ail OaltJhiolic per'iodicaJ1'S. The Catholic sohool youth is prohilbiited :f.irom organi1z ing in defence of its religficntJS sentiments." 14 Towarids the en!d of 1919 tJhe president of tJhe Sli0W1Jk League, Albert Mamaitej, tiriaveled to S1ovaJkia, 0JI1d returned wiifu a letter from Dr. Mfillan Hoooa, a SlavaJk pol.ritircian on 1:Jhe side of tJhe Ozecfus, wlhi!dh promrlised a definite, sart:isfactory stabi'liz,ati:on of the relaitionlsihiiip between the Ozeoos amid Slo'V'aikls. HoweveT, the resulits of MaJmatej's journey "could be desori:bed, on bailance, only as negative." 15 For the Amerioam SlovaJks, he brought baok more promi:ses from the Ptmgue regime; for himseJrf, he broug,ht badk a committment from Prague that he would be awarded tJhe post of Ozedho-SlovaJk conS'l.1!1 in Bittsburgh. His aJppointment caJme through in Septem1ber 1920. The XII]tJh Congress of the Slova1k Leagure of America, whidh took p'lace at the end of J'll!l1e 1920 in MiilwaJUlkee, Wisconsin, transpired in a ,c ompletely di:£ferent atmosphere from thait of its predecessoI'S. On J1Une 16 Joseph Husek puibiJJioly announced his withd<rawaJl from the League, whose leaJdeirshi!p "is moraHy amd finandaiHy supporting agitation and opposition to the PiittJs'lmrgh PaJct." 16 'Dhe SlovaJk League haJd joined battle witlh t!he wtonmni,stls in America, and bJaJd even given tadd assenlt to the waJgin:g of sUJoh a battle in Slovaklia, at a time that WaJS oritiicaJl, since the na'tiornai election1s Olf 1920 were drawilng neaT. For 1:Jhis reaJson not one S'lav,aJk CaJt:lholic organization in America sent de'leg,ates to 1:Jhe XIILtih Congress, and Husek, after t he Oong,ress warned: 1 ..'Tihe League has ceased to be the mOTal and offioiail representative of the AmeI'icam-Sloviaik colony." 17 RepresentaJtives of Slovak CaJthidlics, under the leaJdership af the S1ovaik OatholJ.i<c Federation and tlhe ot!her orgaJI1izations working in C'1ose ooopera'tion with it, began to taJke over the League's erat-w:hile role in the defence of SllOV1aJk nationaJl rights. On Ja.nuaJry 14, 1920, the cenwail committee of the SlovaJk Catholic Federat•i on "voted 100,000 crowns as a personal girft to the Rev. Andrew HEmlka, our leader, t!he imprisoned SlavaJk martyr. It also rupproved a Clheok in the amownt �SLOVAKIA 71 of $5,000.00 as a stop-gap aid to old-country Catholics, for Catholic aiction. l1t furrtiher passed a motion to issue memoria1 staimps bearing the i'mage of H!lliJ11lm and an inrsm"ilption of his motto ... Dr. Joseph Rudinsky was aippoonted to t'he position of organizer in the Slovak Oa:tholic Fedwarbion, arnd MT. Joseph KUJba:11a was nirumed a,siistanrt to the comptTolileT." 18 The president of the Slovak Oathol1k FedeTation, Rev. Joseph :Dulik, reminded t'he memlbershilp tJhat tJhe basic provisions of the co,nstitution of the Ozeoho-Slovaik Repulblric remaJined inadequate ilil the opinlion of tJhe Federation, and that tJhe lrust ooniverition haJd taiken a position "in suipport of S1ova!kiam aJUtonomy, as g,ururanteed to tJhe Slovruk nation in tJhe PlilftsbuTgh Pact." 19 And in the same vein, the Rev. :DuHk exip:ressed his view on the issue: "We aire foT the Ozecihio.,Slovruk Repufb'li<:, 'body and sou[ - but only on condition tJhat we receive in it what is ouT due." 20 From 1:Jhis standpoint 1fuere was great va:lue in the message of the SIJ:ovak Cathollic Fedevation to "ouir brothers in SfovaJkia", by which historic realities concerning American SfovaJks were put in proper fomis, and a demand was registered "for the incorpOTaltion of tJhe suibstamce of the Pittsburg,h Pact in the basic 11aw of tJhe Repuibl~c." 21 '.Dhe stand of the FedeTation inspired tJhe Slova:k-American community. At its conrvention of 13 and 14 OctO'beT, 1920, in Chicago, the recoros revealed t!hat the Slovalk CartJholic Federation "numbered 17'5 strong men's brandhes, and 14 women's brancihes; and its membership haJd risen to close to twenty thousand. This g,rowfu dated from onily ten months ba;ck." 22 '.Dhe pr,ogram of the Federation with respect to nationaEty matters remained unchanged: autonomy a:s set for!Jh and defined in the Pittsburgh Pact. 23 To the United States came ort!her emissaries, too. These were tlhe agents of tJhe Brague regime, Rev. LaJdis1aiv Moys, a Catlholiic priest, rund the Sooiial..,Democvat Jiohrn Pocislk, whose assignment wa;s to swing pu!b'lic opinion among American Slovaks to tJhe side of 1Jhe Ozeciho-,Slovruks and rugaJinst the SlovaJk People's Party. But American Silovaikrs were not swayed by the mission, despite its ecclesiasticaJl traJppings, because they knew it traveled rubout the country on funds �72 SLOVAKIA provided by Prague. 'l'hey gave no credence to Moys becaruse "he associates and cooperates, works hand in hand, with Socia'li,s ts." 24 Nor were Slovruk Catho'lios shiaJken by Maisrurytk's cli!savowa:l of his sigrrature on t!he Plirttsbmg1h Pact, or by his deo}ruration that 1fue Pa;ct wrus inrva!lid.25 They reaJCted with dignity, becaJU!se their chief concern was to "remain tirue to the honor of t!he SlovaJk nation." 26 In t!he uneven battJle between Andirew Hlinika and fue organized power of Prague and its SUipporting p<jli.tical prurties, the assistaJnce of American Sloviaks was extraordinari1ly wekome. Andrew H1inlka sat innocently in a Oze0h ja:il for seven months. Fior a long time his ja;iiloirs even wi'tfuheld his marl from him; and as he sat in helplessness and isO'}a'bion, tJhe mi,nions of the new state's power structuire tried to disrupt the ranks of the 1P eople's Party. 27 In the me:antiline caJIDe the elections. A!bout t!hem Hlinlka gave the foHowing testimony: "Unfortunately, the elections did not produce the spectacular results for the Peqp'le's Party that we had every reruson to expect. The People's Party did not receive the ma:jority that it should have received. Reasons for this development run to the hun1drreds: t!h:ey locked us urp, tlhey branded us tra!itor,s, they unlerushed a;gainst us tiheiir soildiers, gen1damnerie, sheriffs and professors . . . Agaiinst us was turned every power - and every means was perm~ss~ble. 'Dhe :riig,ht of assembly was denied uiS: and wihen granted, our meetings were diispersed. 'I'he starved and pauperized Slova;k populace threw itselif into the em/brace of the SocialDemocratic Party, whidh ha;d pre~ously been little known in SlovaJlcia. Two-iliuindred tJhous and soldiers were transfer.red to Sfovaikia - to vote. Ozeoh Olfficia;ls, teachers and function airies were for,ced UipOil us; and these people, numbering ~rmcimately fifty th01.1<s'a.nd, voted against Slo"W!Jk autonomy. Where hunger ~atled, the s<jldiier anid official produced t!he de's1red resulit." 28 The Socialists were not, 8Jild could not be, the sa!lvation of S1wa!kia. On the contrary, the sociia.Uistic "Ozech regi,me in Slova;kfa enstranged Slovakia from Bohemia. It created cha,os, because it drove the people witlh fa.:1se prom~ses in'to the airms of the Internationa!le." 29 1 1 1 1 �SLOVAKIA 73 American S~ovaJks exipected the worst in S1lovaJkia. They envisioned the sprea!d of Somallism and its oo!lrrninabon in Coarumrunii.sm - uniless refor,ms were introdUJced in time. In this context CaJt:Jholic organi!za1Jion-s, in particufar, intensified their ef1forts and soug,ht new ways to help Hlinlka win his objectives. 30 FOOTNOTES 1. Minutes of the annual meeting of the supreme officers of the First Catholic Slovak Union, New York City, January 6-9, 1919, page 73. Husek was a member of the Reconstruction Committee of the Slovak League of America, chairman of which was Dr. Miroslav Francisci, and the other members, John Matlocha, Edward Kovac, and Milan Getting. 2. Joseph Husek wrote several articles about his trip to Slovakia, but the most comprehensive was his contribution to the almanac Jednota for 1920, titled "Co som videl, pocul a skusil na Slovensku." (What I Saw, Heard and Experienced in Slovakia.), pages 33-60. All of the above quotes on Husek's mission are taken from this source. 3. This was a group that styled itself "Mlade Slovensko" (Young Slovakia). Hlas (The Voice) was its journal, and the forum from which it expounded views on literature and life, social and political, all heavily influenced by Masaryk. 4. Minutes of the annual meeting of the supreme officers of the First Catholic Slovak Union, Cleveland, Ohio, January 19-22, 1920, page 8. 5. Cover story on this Congress in the newspaper Jednota, June 4, 1919, page 1. The Congress approved a motion to establish a scholarship fund in memory of General Stefanik for "the support of students and writers in Slovakia and America. The Slovak League will contribute $10,000.00 to this fund, and school-fund collections by various organizations and newspapers are also to be turned over to it." 6. "Prestante!" (Desist!). Jednota, June 4, 1919, page 4. 7. "Eppur si muove." Jednota, October 22, 1919, page 4. 8. See the actual text in the Jednota, October 29, 1919, page 1. 9. " Dohoda, Hlinka a Masaryk" (The Pact, Hlinka and Masaryk). Jednota, November 19, 1919, page 4. 10. "Za krest'anske a autonomne Slovensko" (For a Christian and Autonomous Slovakia). Jednota, November 26, 1919, page 4. Also compare with the story of the meetings in the same issue of the Jednota on page one. Inasmuch as the convention of the Slovak Catholic Federation was postponed, a Slovak Catholic Council was elected from among the delegates in Pittsburgh, which however only served till the convention, and then merged with the Federation. Time moved quickly, and the liberal and Czecho-Slovak oriented groups began to break up local branches of the Slovak League, and to scatter accusations against sympathizers with Hlinka's movement. For this reason Slovak Catholics rallied to the cause. Anti-Slovak activities are touched upon in the article "Za auton6miu"' (For Autonomy) in the Jednota, December 3, 1919, page 4, and in subsequent issues. 11. Compare with the coverage of the Convention of the Slovak Catholic Federation in the Jednota, December 24, 1919, on page one. The article "Z konvencie Sdruzenia slovenskych katolikov" (From �74 SLOVAKIA the Convention of the Slovak Catholic Federation) , in the same edition of the Jednota, page 5, notes that all Slovak Catholic organizations were represented at this convention. 12. "Sdruzenie slovenskych katolikov" (The Slovak Catholic Federation ). Jednota, December 31, 1919, page 4. 13. From a letter by the Rev. Andrew Dor{msky, a pastor in Hladovka, Slovakia, dated August 12, 1919, published in the Jednota, September 17, 1919, page 1. 14. "Prednaska Rev. Gracika" (A Lecture by the Rev. Gracik). Jednota, December 10, 1919, page 1. 15. Culen, K. "Strucne dejiny Slovenskej ligy" (A Short History of the Slovak League) . Jednota, August 27, 1958, page 2. 16. "Vystupujem zo Slovenskej ligy" (I am Withdrawing from the Slovak League) . Jedn ota, June 16, 1920, page 4. 17. "Po kongrese" (After the Congress) . Jednota, July 7, 1920, page 4. 18. "Vaznejsie uznesenia Sdruzenia slovenskych katolikov" (Some Important Decisions of the Slovak Catholic Federation) . Jednota, January 28, 1920, page 1. 19. "Nase stanovisko" (Our Standpoint). Jednota, March 17, 1920, page 4. 20. "Este raz Rev. Moysovi" ( Once Again to the Rev. Moys). Jednota, April 21, 1920, page 4. Joseph Husek remained an unswerving adherent of the autonomist idea: "From the standpoint of the enemies of Slovak national distinctivness, Slovak autonomy would constitute virtual suicide-suicide for the idea of Czecho-Slovak national unity! Only a fool could believe that Slovak truth, were it to have behind it the full power of a state, courts, bureau, schools, and the moral and material support of the highly cultured Czech nation, could not successfully resist an immoral and politically bankrupt Magyaronismonly a fool, or someone who considers the Slovak nation a morally debilitated, nationally paralyzed rabble of near-idiots! " "To nie je to prave" (This Isn't the Real Thing) . Jednota, February 18, 1920, page 4. Also see the article "Matez" (Turmoil) , Jednota, March 24, 1920, page 5; and the article "Salus reipublicae suprema lex", Jednota, April 14, 1920, page 4. Among other things, this article states: "For the Slovak politician, the good of the Slovak nation must take precedence over the good of the Republic, or as the case may be, the government. The vital interests of the nation, its natural rights, its national character, may not be sacrificed to the good of the state, the Republic, or the regime. The Republic exists for the nation, not the reverse. The nation is an end, the Republic only a means. The idea of the supremacy of the state (government) must yield to the idea of the supremacy of the nation. Only in monolinguistic democratic states, where the concept of nationality is synonymous with the concept of state, where nationality in reality equates with state and vice versa, can the good of the nation be equated with the good of the state." Husek returns to this theme frequently on the pages of the Jednota in signed and anonymous articles, as well as editorials and remarks. 21. The complete text appears in the Jednota, May 26, 1920, page 5. 22. "Konvencia Sdruzenia slovenskych katolikov" (The Convention of the Slovak Catholic Federation). Jednota, October 20, 1920, page 1. 23. "The Slovak Catholic Federation still favors an autonomous Slovakia and will continue to do so until at last. the banner of Slovak autonomy within the framework of a Czecho-Slovak Republic, will �SLOVAKIA 75 wave over our Tatra mountains." Rev. C. K. Vaniscak, O.S.B.: "Po konvencii Sdruzenia slovenskych katolikov" (After the Convention of the Slovak Catholic Federation) , Jednota, October 20, 1920, page 4. 24. Hrtanek, Klemo. "Koho chcete, abych vam prepustil, Hlinku alebo Moysa?" (Whom Do You Wish I Release to You, Hlinka or Moy~?). Jednota, April 28, 1920, page 4. "Priest or no-priest, come down from the cherry-tree . . . Any Slovak priest who does not fight with us for the martyr Hlinka and his democratic idea, has no right to be called one of us; any priest who favors the Socialists in Prague defeats the legitimate efforts of the Slovaks." 25. The Jednota, in its issue of March 17, 1920, page one, published a letter from Masaryk to his prime minister, Tusar, on the subject of "the so-called Pittsburgh Agreement." Translated from the original Czech, Masaryk's letter reads as follows : "Representatives of American Slovak and Czech organizations resolved in this agreement to combat agitation against a union of the Czechs and Slovaks. The pact was made, it seems to me, largely by American citizens. The Pittsburgh program is one of many pre-revolutionary programs formulated abroad. It has an historical value. The Pittsburgh Pact was contracted between Slovaks and Czechs, and were it to have any validity at all, surely this validity would be predicated on the condition that both parties still agreed on its contents. In the pact itself, toward the end, there is a stipulation that detailed provisions for the organization of the Czecho-Slovak state were to be left to the Czechs and Slovaks and their legal representatives ; this stipulation was entered because the Czechs and Slovaks at the Pittsburgh meeting understood that Ame· rican citizens had no right to make decisions concerning the definitive organization of the Czecho-Slovak state." Husek, who immediately published the letter in the Jednota, alongside the text of the Pittsburgh Pact enclosed in a black frame, took an entirely different view of the matter, and in commentary, remarked among other things : "the Pittsburgh Pact is valid because it rests on the eternally valid natural rights of nations." (Ibid.) 26. "Za Pittsburghsku dohodu 'kavova nahrazka' " (Instead of the Pittsburgh Pact "ersatz coffee"). Jednota, March 31, 1920, page 4. And the Rev. Dulik comments: "To contract an agreement and then not care whether it is observed or not, amounts to making oneself ridiculous before the world." "Rev. Moysovi" (To the Rev. Moy~). Jednota, March 31, 1920, page 4. 27. Karol Sidor gives a detailed description in his book "Andrej Hlinka", Bratislava 1934. 28. "Apel Hlinkov na Slovakov v Amerike" (Hlinka's Appeal to American Slovaks). Jednota, July 21, 1920, page 4. The Jednota expressed the conviction, even after the defeat of the People's Party, that the national idea "will be stopped by nothing and nobody in its victorious advance." "Vol'by na Slovensku" (The Elections in Slo• vakia). Jednota, May 12, 1920, page 4. 29. "Statarium na Slovensku" (Martial Law in Slovakia) . Jed.nota, August 11, 1920, page 1. "But martial law will not preserve Slovakia for the Czechs! Czech bayonets will not preserve Slovakia for the Czecho-Slovak Republic ... Prague is blind, it does not see the writing on the wall ... " 30. Compare with the article by the president of the Slovak Catholic Federation, Rev. Joseph Dulik: "My netratime nadej" (We are not losing Hope), Jednota, August 11, 1920, page 4, and others. � SLOVAKIA 63 AMIDRIO.AN SLOV:.A.KiS AND '.DHE BEJG]NNJNGS OF 02'JIDOHO-SLOVAKI.A. By Joseph Pauco, Ph.D. In 1907 there was founded in Cleveland, Ohio, an organiiization ,ca:lled the Slovaik LeaJgue of America. This orga'Illization represented a coailition of aiH 1:Jhe existing Slovaik fraite:m al and r~i:giou:s organizations in the United States, and rallied besides, the support of t'he Slovaik clergy, both OatJholic amd Evangelka!l (Lutheran), as well as t!he suipport of the then--e:ristiing Slov:aik-American periodicals. The Slova!k League set as its major goail tJhe lilberation of the SllovaJk nation in its homelaind. For t!his reason it toO!k a srtand for t!he dismaintlement of tJhe .Austro-Hiungarian Empire and e:,oplo;z-ed possiibi'lities for political cooperation wit:Jh the Czech nation. Thiis cooperation reached formal expression in 1:Jhe signing of the Pi'Ubsburgh Pad of May 30, 1918, parties to which were 11epresentatives of the Silova'k Leaigue of America on the one side, and the represenrtatives of the Czech Natriona:l .Alliance and the Union of Czech Ca1fuolics, on the otJher. The Czechs were led by Thomas G. Masaryik, who prepared both .p arties for the aJgreement, aind wiho later became the first president of the O.zechoSlovaik Republiic. The text of tJhe Pittsburgh Paict reads as foHows: The representatives of the Slovak and Czech organizations in the United States-the Slovak League, the Czech National Alliance, and the Union of Czech Catholics-have deliberated, in the presence of the Chairman of the Czecho•Slovak National Council, Professor Masa• ryk, on the Czecho•Slovak question and on our previous program mani• festations, and have resolved as follows: We favor a political program whose purpose it shall be to unite the Czechs and Slovaks into an autonomous state comprising the Czech lands and Slovakia. Slovakia shall have her own administration, her own assembly, and her own courts. The Slovak language shall be the official language in the schools, in public offices, and in the public life in general. The Czecho•Slovak State shall be a republic; its constitution shall be democratic. The cooperation of the Czechs and the Slovaks in the United States shall be intensified and regulated by mutual consent, according to need and changing situations. Detailed provisions relating to the organization of the Czecho· Slovak State shall be left to the liberated Czechs and Slovaks and their legal representatives. �64 SLOVAKIA It is interesting to tmce the early evolution in the attitude of tJhe Prague government, under T. G. Masaryk, to the Pittsburgh Pact, and to the movement of Andrej HLinika, the eminent Slovak politicail leader, wtho adopted the progra:m of the Paiet. And it is no less interesting to review the thirnlkinig on this matter among American Sfoviaks, a faction of wihom rejected the program and succeeded for a short time in leading astray even the Slova:k League of America. On Maroh 7, 1919 Joseph Rusek left for Slova;kii1a. He was sent by t!he Slovak Lea:gue a;g one of a five-member mission, and the supreme of.ficers of the First Oatholic Slovaik Un:ion, too, at their annual meeting in New York, charged "brother Joseph Husek, editor of our organ 'Jedinota', in the name of 70,000 SlovaJk Catholics organized in tlhe FCSU, as a competent ma:n, to represent us illl the o1d country in matters both ecclesiastical aJild national, and to keep us informed on the state of SioV18lk ailfairs." 1 This was the first important mission of the American Siovruks to the continent after the overthrow of the old order. Joseph Huisek spent ten weeks in Slov&kia and urpon his return presented a comprehen,s ive report of his impressions. He analyzed the times and r!Jhe peop{e, circumstances and events, with great perspicacity, in the newspruper Jednotia and the a,lmainac of the same name. 2 It had been Husek's intention to a:cquaint SlloviaJk leaders with the Ame rican Slovaks' interpretation of the program emlbodied in the Pittsrburg,h Pruct. But in Bratislava his voice fell on deaf ears, because "the government was controlled by individuals, as it is to this day, who saw in the new ord€r an excellent opportunity to acihieve their ideal: the Czechizabiorn of S,l ova kia curlturaHy, economically and politic,ally. And by a standing imposition of martial law they envisioned the possi1bi11rity of intilmida;ting not only elemenrts inimi,ca:l to the Republic, hut also elements inimical to tJhis ideal." These people did not acknowledge the reservations of the American-SlovaJk emissaries. "'Dhey only smirled artfully, as if they pittied me for my naive fai'bh in the fitness of tihe Slovaik nation," wrote Joseph Rusek, ·b y way of commentary to •his conversations in Bratislava, for he saw clearly that the ruling c8iste in Srlova:kia was interested "ilil a com1 1 �SLOVAKIA 65 rtsko-~lo1ttll!lk11JQgbl~.. tnmtrettri ll i)ittsbnr9htt. l}n.. bntt ,;o. tndjR. l9ltl • .,ifrr~sttw iMio ~lottttt!ikvch uo ., ll ~kiich o~nnisocif . t •~ ~,P"J•. -'-:t't ~ ll om. - . •~htu t1tsatj 1J~\!~~tho ]Ttlll)~ni.ho.$bttittnfu. . ll ~\!i)!ll frsj1.1,h.~ . " · P•'l"<'lh'1.•,1li t.i pnl.-niu,•;;ti ~~~~t-.'u e,1-1t .... $l..:.•m:-tt,_i "~1Jr.-..1' .,,'!4• ~r,"'f.~h,; ..,1-yh,, . ., ~1-ft,,~Jlct.,i:niok~j ,.....\,h, ,1 ..... th1$i,·b {~\t~:ti:b pr~~;!~l\'?'?Cl•~i.·b pr('_i~-:1.,,'1! r.\ usnt,--.l~-,.l~~,,.a.•\'\.: ! -.. s~b'M !u_irn,~ pditi,·h:i pr.:-~r.t~ uii\ll~U,"\ ~l •' Sp.:-j.:ni~ e.:~h~,i• lt $\i."li,Jk,.. ~ \t ~.,m,;•att1o1hl,'\1' 1ttit, 1. f~-,p.l\lf~-b 1nnl,, Sl\"l\tti:t!th~\~ 4 } ' ,"~""-~ .. :·.:-tc;•~n . . lt.• l;tt~~ mut -..~•-~iu L•l<l1-fn1'.i.)mitliih·..muu.1i,,j ~\j,:·\!1 "~ i,\••:\~ $'UL~~ . ,_S\ci.•(t-:ftn,, ru~..: ,fr,~~n!'t1! j,,iyb.~ t•~\i~l~. ~· Ut",,~~ ,, t,~., t tNi 1"'"'\'\1 !\t, ...,t..! t,;_;~-:-.c. · "€.:~t.,-;,(.,,,,-u1-l,{';;l,1t l-ub.: tt}'u~lik,,u, j~l,..,~.:-1Wtittici" bu ..'-: ~~m""kr"tti4!k-.\. _ ··~•l\'li'!-.i,'t,'\ fp,•lupr.{.:~ e.:cb,"t•" $\.;,i•,tlwv t•c Sp...i. -.:: ., • t1 L • • ·t ' . · ~ ·. '~ ~t-1,t ..--..,h Lru,,,, P•'t. :'"- f"' t r~..,~ ,, mcnt,\~~.t :'1o'\ fl u-1~\<.pn ~}'-' I ..,~o~"t\11 ~~'r-"'?tnn(n\. pr.:hl~~t:..\ ,, '-'}'TOt•~n..i. ·. t: .~ · 1 ~ ,-~ ..... ._\t,.. ~nl t.1,st..,n-:'t~ni~, c- t..\t't'1,'.:1Ul.:-5k~~,l~,tC"Ot~~k~~ ;,1,1tu }'-'ll~.:b,ll.•,i.iu ;," •'!W••r,•~~nym €.i.:!icm ,, Sl,'l C1hcm "icb _ prJi,,•pl.ltni1m pN,'11-t,wit.:l,'tlt." 1 ====---- I w -{. . L_._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _J Photographic reproduction of the original copy of the Pittsburgh Pact ("Pittsburghska Dohoda") plete merging of 1Jhe Slmr31k nart~on wi1:!h tlhe Czeoh." Burt on the 01:!her hand he also ascertained tihat "Masary,k's ideology of tJhe nationa,,l unity of Slovaks and Czecihs was completely foreign to the ordinary Slovaik person." 3 And it did not escape Husek's observation that ''the �oe SLOVAKIA Slov~s !have no desire fo:r the kind of democraitic wwk that haJS to be performed in the shadow of Czech bayonets!" He 01Scertained that the Czeoho-Slovaik Pairliament was gravely deficient in point of "ropresenrta'tion for the SlovaJk nation. Agriculture and the triades haid not a single representative firom among tJhei'r own rarrk!s, and in any case, members of pairliaiment were nominated and a,ppointed by the regime ibselif, whicih ma!kes no seoret of its intentions to consolidate its power at every cost, and whfoh pursues a poli~ica[, cu1tural and economic course that ha,s bhe support of only a smaifil minority of bhe Slovak nation." He noted that bhe policies of bhli s government ran oouniter to the interests of bhe Slovia'k people. Husek verified tllrough his own Olbservations tJhat "in PraJgue many influential pdlitidans want aJbsolurtely no tr,uok with the idea tJhait Slovakia belongs to tJhe Slovaks and that the Slova:ks have no need to go to Piriague for tutelage in the management of bheir own land and nation. Indeed, Pra,gue is completely at a loss as to what to do in its own bailiwick. Politioal chaos reigns in Bohemia. 'flhe national assemlbly speaJks with twenty tongues. Not one faction aictua'lly knows what it wants . .A!I1d in the maisses tJhe most prevalent pdlitic'al orientatfon is Bollshevism." Of suoh stuf.f, too, were the OzechlS who cMne to Slov,a,kia. Hrusek oharaoteri!.zed them aJS fol!lows : "The arrogance am.d domineering attitude of some Czeclhs in Slov.akia was indeed Ml af:firont. And I encountered these maniifestation,s, in per,son, frequently during my stay i'n the old country. I e,cperienced them on tJhe tr,aJirnis and in tlhe restaiurants. On the trams you were comfuaintly being jostled aside for some Ozedh dignilbairy, while in tJhe restaiurants your order WaJS taiken only after 1:Jhe Ozooh had reccived his ... It is a major fault witih many of OUT Czeoh brethren, and not tihe leaist with men of culrttvalbi.on, that tlley do not ,consider the ,Slova,k an equa•l citizen of the Republic." In the political sphere Husek saw cleair signs tJhait the rulling regime in Slov,ailcia haJd no desire to even hear of aultonomy. 'Dhe regime considered tihe autonom:i!sts traitors. It WaJS Huook's finding that a great gaip separated the policie'S of 1:Jhe Slova!k LeaJgue of Amerioa fram the tJhmktmg of tihe current rulers in Slovakia. �6i SLOVAKIA On tJhe subject of autQIIlomy, writes Joseph Husek, "Hlirrrka aJlone g,ave me a clear...oot srtatement - he liives and dies for the American pa,dt . . . Hli'nlka stamds for autooomy antd a Ohrisitian world-view. He stamlds for autonomy becaiuse he sees in it the assu:rainrce of a better future for Ms naJtion, and a gual'amtee of the firee growt:Jh of its natio n.1aJl cu1lture and economy, as weJ1l as a bai:rder to Ozeoh materialilsm and atheism ... Hlmka stand1s for •autonomy because he is Slov,aJk, not Ozeclho-Slovaik ! . . . And besides, it mmt be said of H]i[llka tJhat he loves his naltion warriznrly, truly and entirely seMllessly; he is ready to sacl'ifice evecytlhing for it - whircih is something I camnot in good con,s cience say a!bout many of his opponents." In regard to Joseph Husek'is trirp as "a:n emliss,rury of the Amwican Sfovakis" A. J. Pirha!11a, president of the F1irrist Catholic Slovak Union, commented: "'he accomplished a ,g reat deal of wortJhwhile wo"Pk. His detailed rerport gave us an accurate, clear and specific rev-iew of the situation in Slova,kia. " 4 Hrusek and MH'an Gettilllg presented the reports on tJhcir Slo'ViaJkian trirp at the 12'1:Jh Oongress of tihe SlovaJk Le•ague of America, wh~-c'h todk plaice on May 29, 1919 ilil Scranton, Pennsylva,nia. Getting ,prorposed that the League send the "Slovak Administration" a printing press vail ued at $50,000.00, and in addit-ilon, to Mr. Sirobar, finamcirail a:ssistance in tihe amount of $10,000.00. 'Dhe Congress rupproved t'he proposal, and a•l so moved to send sixty-thousamd dollar3 wO'!'th of clothing to Slovaikia. 5 Husek wrote after tJhe congress: "HHnika is the forunder, president amd guiding spitrit of tlhe SloWJk People's Party, wihldh wiH play a great, if ndt decishre, role in the history of Slovaik'ia, and whiiC'h claims the loyalty of ahnost a'1.!l the patriotiic S'lov~k clergy, even of those who do not approve m ,i:nka'·s -bi'tter anrd unrestrai,ned critilcism of 1:Jh~ administration i01 Braitirs]ra va." 6 In th±s vein Joseph Husek filled tlhe columTIJS Olf · the newspaper Jednota through the year 1919. He subjected the Prrugue regime and its functionaries in Bratislava to shar,p criticism. He believed fifflllly tJhiat ''oniy through aiutonomy wou'ld it be poss~ble to purt Slovaikila finmly on its feet! . . . 'Dhe Slovaks need aiutanomy mairrrly to preserve their national existence. But without srpecific leg~si.ation 1 �68 SLOVAKIA there will be no self-rule of any kiJnid." The sel!f-ru[e "that Slov:aikia has today its not only worbhiless, but even positively pernrjlciou1s. Suoh 'selrf..1rule' demoraJl.ilzes pulbJi.c Hfe in Sloviaikia aind stirs the natiQIIl to open revoU.'' 7 On October 24, 1919, the execubi.ive committtee of tJhe SlovaJk League of Arm.edoa approved a memoramtdurm. addressed to the "policy-rm.1a;king fundt,iana11ieis" ( of t'he Czeoho-Slovaik gavernrrnent), in wihi'clh it oaUed for tJhe implementatiton of the Pit'tsburglh P.aiot. 8 A concentrated fig,ht agiainst Hilinka got under way. The fig,ht WaJS OO'gani.ized on two fronts: in Sfovakia, and in America; •a nd the f.ight gmdruaHy gained ground even ilil tJhe SfovaJk League. As H'linlka was returrning :6rom the peruce conference in Parris, on the evening of October 12, 1919, he wais arrested and spirited away to Mirrov prison. The baJSiis for hiJS arrest waJs hlis 1Jr1p to Piari.is and his a:ttempt there to place before the pea;ce conference, Sfo.viak demands as contaJitned in tJhe P,iUsburr1gih Pact. "If HHn:ka had gone to Pari.is, tJhougih the wa:y hakl led through Budapest, for the purpose of protesting the Bad - let's put the matter squarely on the taJble - the Ozecho..,Slovak ,press iand the Czeoho~SlovaJk gov,ernment would today be prarsing Hli!n!ka to the highest heaven, and everywhere he would be hera:lded as the future rurchb1shop of S'lovaikfa ! . . . Hliillka, therefore, witl!l face tria•l on behaJlf of our P,ruct, aJnd in effoct it will be our P.ruct tJhat will be on trial . . . And because this Pact, whloh ts to go on t'l'ial ~n Olom,o uc, 1s ours, in effect it will be we American Slovaks wiho wi'l'l face trila:l - ()lllT con'triburtion to the revolutionary struggle." 9 To the Uruted StaJrtes oa;me Hltinka's representath,es, Rev. Joseipfri Rudrnisiky and Joseph KU!bala, wiho called a meeting of S'1ovalk Crut:Jholic priests irn Piit1:Jsbu'I"gh 01I1 November 19, 1919, an1d om the following day, a meeting of the represen1ia.1t!ives of Slovak Oaitholiic org,anii!zations, loldiges and newspa;pers. Rerv. Joseph Du'lik of Olyphant, Penn!sy<lw.nia, pres•i!ded at the meeting of 1:Jhe clergy, and Atrrdrew J. Birha!&, presildent of the FiTlst Ca1Jholic S1l0Vlalk Union, at the second meetiinig. Both meet:Jing,s devei~oped g,uideliines for aiction by Slovruk Catholics of America, aJnd issued in a spontaneous determination to defend Aindrew Hlilillkia. Pla;n:s well"e made to expoiSe to the pub]i!c ruH fille events surround!ing Hlinlka's trip to Paris and his subsequent imprisonment. 1 1 �SLOVAKIA 69 The pu11pose of the Pittsburg,h meeting was: "1. To lay a foundation for wide 8Jl1d e:fifective publi<city and a:gitation for Sriovalkian 0Jutonomy within the frame-worik of the Ozeciho-,S,lovaJk Republic; 2. To 13/Un'Ch a movement for the creation of a OatJholic press fund, for the Sll.llpport of Catholi:c l<iterature ... Arrnerica,n S·1nVia1ks do nro t cornsiider the Paict a scrap of pruper: tfuey wr~l underibake everyrtlhilng irn theirr power to whieve its recogndltion. And tn a,ddiition to this, aifter so ma,ny disruppoi1nitment:Js from both tihe SIOVaJk Lea,g,ue, and spokesmen for tfue Ozeehio-S lov,aik goveirnment, they have ehosern t!he only proper courne: tlhey demand th1at the Pact be incorporated in the provi'81ion:s of the P.aris Pea.ice Treaty." 10 1 1 These meetings received an eX!tension, in effect, in the convention of the S~ov·a k Ca1:lho'lic Federation, held in Scranton, Pennsylv,ania, on December 18, 1919. This organization's delegate, Rev. Anton Gmdk, ha.id just returned from Slovaikioa, and he confirmed tJhe coniolusion,s of Hooek, Rudinsky, and K111ba1a. 'J.'1he conventiOIIl, therefoTe, moved to support, in full, Hilin:ka's activities and tJhe Pittsbuirgih Pact. 11 lniaJSmuc'h a.is the leadersthiilp of the S'lov:alk Leag,ue ha:d entetred the services of ''anti.,SiloviaJk and aniti-Ohristian poli,cies," 12 the SlovaJk CatJholic Federation beg,ain to taike noltdce of the politkail si tu ation in SJ.ovaikia. Srrovalk Catho4iics begam taking a heig,htened internst in t,h e n1ationa:l program because the Prague regime had proved itselif not on!ly anti-S1lovaik, but also amti-Oat!ho•l k. "The beMigerent merusuires undeI'balken by the Ozeicihs agairnst the Catholli,c Church a,nd the reH:gions sentiments of believing Slovalks" 13 ciolrld su1c1ceed only in arousing everyfbody. Rev. GraJcik, speaking from hi,s personal observa,tions in Slovakia, dec'l aired: "\Religion hars complete freedom in the Ozecho-Slo'W!Jk Republic, guaranteed by law. But filris f.reedom in only on paper. Nort erven 20 % of the p111blic sti:H be'l~eves in thi s reli•gio1rns freedom. Power rest:Js m 1Jhe han'd s of Sodail-De mocratk atheists, nom.--!believeris; and these people are aJbusing 1!heir power in an attempt to per;pe1tnmte their pairtisan conrtiro1l, and to entren,c h tJheir posirbions. ThU!s, re'ligious :fireedOIJll exists only on pruper and tJhe Ohuircih ooduires cons~deraJble suffering . . . Ln S10V1all da, except for prlimera and bi:bles, no Catlholi1c literaiture is cmrently being publ'islhed. The Ozeciho-SlovaJk government 1hrus completeily stopped 1 1 1 1 �70 SLOVAKIA Catlhol~c presses, suppressed ail OaltJhiolic per'iodicaJ1'S. The Catholic sohool youth is prohilbiited :f.irom organi1z ing in defence of its religficntJS sentiments." 14 Towarids the en!d of 1919 tJhe president of tJhe Sli0W1Jk League, Albert Mamaitej, tiriaveled to S1ovaJkia, 0JI1d returned wiifu a letter from Dr. Mfillan Hoooa, a SlavaJk pol.ritircian on 1:Jhe side of tJhe Ozecfus, wlhi!dh promrlised a definite, sart:isfactory stabi'liz,ati:on of the relaitionlsihiiip between the Ozeoos amid Slo'V'aikls. HoweveT, the resulits of MaJmatej's journey "could be desori:bed, on bailance, only as negative." 15 For the Amerioam SlovaJks, he brought baok more promi:ses from the Ptmgue regime; for himseJrf, he broug,ht badk a committment from Prague that he would be awarded tJhe post of Ozedho-SlovaJk conS'l.1!1 in Bittsburgh. His aJppointment caJme through in Septem1ber 1920. The XII]tJh Congress of the Slova1k Leagure of America, whidh took p'lace at the end of J'll!l1e 1920 in MiilwaJUlkee, Wisconsin, transpired in a ,c ompletely di:£ferent atmosphere from thait of its predecessoI'S. On J1Une 16 Joseph Husek puibiJJioly announced his withd<rawaJl from the League, whose leaJdeirshi!p "is moraHy amd finandaiHy supporting agitation and opposition to the PiittJs'lmrgh PaJct." 16 'Dhe SlovaJk League haJd joined battle witlh t!he wtonmni,stls in America, and bJaJd even given tadd assenlt to the waJgin:g of sUJoh a battle in Slovaklia, at a time that WaJS oritiicaJl, since the na'tiornai election1s Olf 1920 were drawilng neaT. For 1:Jhis reaJson not one S'lav,aJk CaJt:lholic organization in America sent de'leg,ates to 1:Jhe XIILtih Congress, and Husek, after t he Oong,ress warned: 1 ..'Tihe League has ceased to be the mOTal and offioiail representative of the AmeI'icam-Sloviaik colony." 17 RepresentaJtives of Slovak CaJthidlics, under the leaJdership af the S1ovaik OatholJ.i<c Federation and tlhe ot!her orgaJI1izations working in C'1ose ooopera'tion with it, began to taJke over the League's erat-w:hile role in the defence of SllOV1aJk nationaJl rights. On Ja.nuaJry 14, 1920, the cenwail committee of the SlovaJk Catholic Federat•i on "voted 100,000 crowns as a personal girft to the Rev. Andrew HEmlka, our leader, t!he imprisoned SlavaJk martyr. It also rupproved a Clheok in the amownt �SLOVAKIA 71 of $5,000.00 as a stop-gap aid to old-country Catholics, for Catholic aiction. l1t furrtiher passed a motion to issue memoria1 staimps bearing the i'mage of H!lliJ11lm and an inrsm"ilption of his motto ... Dr. Joseph Rudinsky was aippoonted to t'he position of organizer in the Slovak Oa:tholic Fedwarbion, arnd MT. Joseph KUJba:11a was nirumed a,siistanrt to the comptTolileT." 18 The president of the Slovak Oathol1k FedeTation, Rev. Joseph :Dulik, reminded t'he memlbershilp tJhat tJhe basic provisions of the co,nstitution of the Ozeoho-Slovaik Repulblric remaJined inadequate ilil the opinlion of tJhe Federation, and that tJhe lrust ooniverition haJd taiken a position "in suipport of S1ova!kiam aJUtonomy, as g,ururanteed to tJhe Slovruk nation in tJhe PlilftsbuTgh Pact." 19 And in the same vein, the Rev. :DuHk exip:ressed his view on the issue: "We aire foT the Ozecihio.,Slovruk Repufb'li<:, 'body and sou[ - but only on condition tJhat we receive in it what is ouT due." 20 From 1:Jhis standpoint 1fuere was great va:lue in the message of the SIJ:ovak Cathollic Fedevation to "ouir brothers in SfovaJkia", by which historic realities concerning American SfovaJks were put in proper fomis, and a demand was registered "for the incorpOTaltion of tJhe suibstamce of the Pittsburg,h Pact in the basic 11aw of tJhe Repuibl~c." 21 '.Dhe stand of the FedeTation inspired tJhe Slova:k-American community. At its conrvention of 13 and 14 OctO'beT, 1920, in Chicago, the recoros revealed t!hat the Slovalk CartJholic Federation "numbered 17'5 strong men's brandhes, and 14 women's brancihes; and its membership haJd risen to close to twenty thousand. This g,rowfu dated from onily ten months ba;ck." 22 '.Dhe pr,ogram of the Federation with respect to nationaEty matters remained unchanged: autonomy a:s set for!Jh and defined in the Pittsburgh Pact. 23 To the United States came ort!her emissaries, too. These were tlhe agents of tJhe Brague regime, Rev. LaJdis1aiv Moys, a Catlholiic priest, rund the Sooiial..,Democvat Jiohrn Pocislk, whose assignment wa;s to swing pu!b'lic opinion among American Slovaks to tJhe side of 1Jhe Ozeciho-,Slovruks and rugaJinst the SlovaJk People's Party. But American Silovaikrs were not swayed by the mission, despite its ecclesiasticaJl traJppings, because they knew it traveled rubout the country on funds �72 SLOVAKIA provided by Prague. 'l'hey gave no credence to Moys becaruse "he associates and cooperates, works hand in hand, with Socia'li,s ts." 24 Nor were Slovruk Catho'lios shiaJken by Maisrurytk's cli!savowa:l of his sigrrature on t!he Plirttsbmg1h Pact, or by his deo}ruration that 1fue Pa;ct wrus inrva!lid.25 They reaJCted with dignity, becaJU!se their chief concern was to "remain tirue to the honor of t!he SlovaJk nation." 26 In t!he uneven battJle between Andirew Hlinika and fue organized power of Prague and its SUipporting p<jli.tical prurties, the assistaJnce of American Sloviaks was extraordinari1ly wekome. Andrew H1inlka sat innocently in a Oze0h ja:il for seven months. Fior a long time his ja;iiloirs even wi'tfuheld his marl from him; and as he sat in helplessness and isO'}a'bion, tJhe mi,nions of the new state's power structuire tried to disrupt the ranks of the 1P eople's Party. 27 In the me:antiline caJIDe the elections. A!bout t!hem Hlinlka gave the foHowing testimony: "Unfortunately, the elections did not produce the spectacular results for the Peqp'le's Party that we had every reruson to expect. The People's Party did not receive the ma:jority that it should have received. Reasons for this development run to the hun1drreds: t!h:ey locked us urp, tlhey branded us tra!itor,s, they unlerushed a;gainst us tiheiir soildiers, gen1damnerie, sheriffs and professors . . . Agaiinst us was turned every power - and every means was perm~ss~ble. 'Dhe :riig,ht of assembly was denied uiS: and wihen granted, our meetings were diispersed. 'I'he starved and pauperized Slova;k populace threw itselif into the em/brace of the SocialDemocratic Party, whidh ha;d pre~ously been little known in SlovaJlcia. Two-iliuindred tJhous and soldiers were transfer.red to Sfovaikia - to vote. Ozeoh Olfficia;ls, teachers and function airies were for,ced UipOil us; and these people, numbering ~rmcimately fifty th01.1<s'a.nd, voted against Slo"W!Jk autonomy. Where hunger ~atled, the s<jldiier anid official produced t!he de's1red resulit." 28 The Socialists were not, 8Jild could not be, the sa!lvation of S1wa!kia. On the contrary, the sociia.Uistic "Ozech regi,me in Slova;kfa enstranged Slovakia from Bohemia. It created cha,os, because it drove the people witlh fa.:1se prom~ses in'to the airms of the Internationa!le." 29 1 1 1 1 �SLOVAKIA 73 American S~ovaJks exipected the worst in S1lovaJkia. They envisioned the sprea!d of Somallism and its oo!lrrninabon in Coarumrunii.sm - uniless refor,ms were introdUJced in time. In this context CaJt:Jholic organi!za1Jion-s, in particufar, intensified their ef1forts and soug,ht new ways to help Hlinlka win his objectives. 30 FOOTNOTES 1. Minutes of the annual meeting of the supreme officers of the First Catholic Slovak Union, New York City, January 6-9, 1919, page 73. Husek was a member of the Reconstruction Committee of the Slovak League of America, chairman of which was Dr. Miroslav Francisci, and the other members, John Matlocha, Edward Kovac, and Milan Getting. 2. Joseph Husek wrote several articles about his trip to Slovakia, but the most comprehensive was his contribution to the almanac Jednota for 1920, titled "Co som videl, pocul a skusil na Slovensku." (What I Saw, Heard and Experienced in Slovakia.), pages 33-60. All of the above quotes on Husek's mission are taken from this source. 3. This was a group that styled itself "Mlade Slovensko" (Young Slovakia). Hlas (The Voice) was its journal, and the forum from which it expounded views on literature and life, social and political, all heavily influenced by Masaryk. 4. Minutes of the annual meeting of the supreme officers of the First Catholic Slovak Union, Cleveland, Ohio, January 19-22, 1920, page 8. 5. Cover story on this Congress in the newspaper Jednota, June 4, 1919, page 1. The Congress approved a motion to establish a scholarship fund in memory of General Stefanik for "the support of students and writers in Slovakia and America. The Slovak League will contribute $10,000.00 to this fund, and school-fund collections by various organizations and newspapers are also to be turned over to it." 6. "Prestante!" (Desist!). Jednota, June 4, 1919, page 4. 7. "Eppur si muove." Jednota, October 22, 1919, page 4. 8. See the actual text in the Jednota, October 29, 1919, page 1. 9. " Dohoda, Hlinka a Masaryk" (The Pact, Hlinka and Masaryk). Jednota, November 19, 1919, page 4. 10. "Za krest'anske a autonomne Slovensko" (For a Christian and Autonomous Slovakia). Jednota, November 26, 1919, page 4. Also compare with the story of the meetings in the same issue of the Jednota on page one. Inasmuch as the convention of the Slovak Catholic Federation was postponed, a Slovak Catholic Council was elected from among the delegates in Pittsburgh, which however only served till the convention, and then merged with the Federation. Time moved quickly, and the liberal and Czecho-Slovak oriented groups began to break up local branches of the Slovak League, and to scatter accusations against sympathizers with Hlinka's movement. For this reason Slovak Catholics rallied to the cause. Anti-Slovak activities are touched upon in the article "Za auton6miu"' (For Autonomy) in the Jednota, December 3, 1919, page 4, and in subsequent issues. 11. Compare with the coverage of the Convention of the Slovak Catholic Federation in the Jednota, December 24, 1919, on page one. The article "Z konvencie Sdruzenia slovenskych katolikov" (From �74 SLOVAKIA the Convention of the Slovak Catholic Federation) , in the same edition of the Jednota, page 5, notes that all Slovak Catholic organizations were represented at this convention. 12. "Sdruzenie slovenskych katolikov" (The Slovak Catholic Federation ). Jednota, December 31, 1919, page 4. 13. From a letter by the Rev. Andrew Dor{msky, a pastor in Hladovka, Slovakia, dated August 12, 1919, published in the Jednota, September 17, 1919, page 1. 14. "Prednaska Rev. Gracika" (A Lecture by the Rev. Gracik). Jednota, December 10, 1919, page 1. 15. Culen, K. "Strucne dejiny Slovenskej ligy" (A Short History of the Slovak League) . Jednota, August 27, 1958, page 2. 16. "Vystupujem zo Slovenskej ligy" (I am Withdrawing from the Slovak League) . Jedn ota, June 16, 1920, page 4. 17. "Po kongrese" (After the Congress) . Jednota, July 7, 1920, page 4. 18. "Vaznejsie uznesenia Sdruzenia slovenskych katolikov" (Some Important Decisions of the Slovak Catholic Federation) . Jednota, January 28, 1920, page 1. 19. "Nase stanovisko" (Our Standpoint). Jednota, March 17, 1920, page 4. 20. "Este raz Rev. Moysovi" ( Once Again to the Rev. Moys). Jednota, April 21, 1920, page 4. Joseph Husek remained an unswerving adherent of the autonomist idea: "From the standpoint of the enemies of Slovak national distinctivness, Slovak autonomy would constitute virtual suicide-suicide for the idea of Czecho-Slovak national unity! Only a fool could believe that Slovak truth, were it to have behind it the full power of a state, courts, bureau, schools, and the moral and material support of the highly cultured Czech nation, could not successfully resist an immoral and politically bankrupt Magyaronismonly a fool, or someone who considers the Slovak nation a morally debilitated, nationally paralyzed rabble of near-idiots! " "To nie je to prave" (This Isn't the Real Thing) . Jednota, February 18, 1920, page 4. Also see the article "Matez" (Turmoil) , Jednota, March 24, 1920, page 5; and the article "Salus reipublicae suprema lex", Jednota, April 14, 1920, page 4. Among other things, this article states: "For the Slovak politician, the good of the Slovak nation must take precedence over the good of the Republic, or as the case may be, the government. The vital interests of the nation, its natural rights, its national character, may not be sacrificed to the good of the state, the Republic, or the regime. The Republic exists for the nation, not the reverse. The nation is an end, the Republic only a means. The idea of the supremacy of the state (government) must yield to the idea of the supremacy of the nation. Only in monolinguistic democratic states, where the concept of nationality is synonymous with the concept of state, where nationality in reality equates with state and vice versa, can the good of the nation be equated with the good of the state." Husek returns to this theme frequently on the pages of the Jednota in signed and anonymous articles, as well as editorials and remarks. 21. The complete text appears in the Jednota, May 26, 1920, page 5. 22. "Konvencia Sdruzenia slovenskych katolikov" (The Convention of the Slovak Catholic Federation). Jednota, October 20, 1920, page 1. 23. "The Slovak Catholic Federation still favors an autonomous Slovakia and will continue to do so until at last. the banner of Slovak autonomy within the framework of a Czecho-Slovak Republic, will �SLOVAKIA 75 wave over our Tatra mountains." Rev. C. K. Vaniscak, O.S.B.: "Po konvencii Sdruzenia slovenskych katolikov" (After the Convention of the Slovak Catholic Federation) , Jednota, October 20, 1920, page 4. 24. Hrtanek, Klemo. "Koho chcete, abych vam prepustil, Hlinku alebo Moysa?" (Whom Do You Wish I Release to You, Hlinka or Moy~?). Jednota, April 28, 1920, page 4. "Priest or no-priest, come down from the cherry-tree . . . Any Slovak priest who does not fight with us for the martyr Hlinka and his democratic idea, has no right to be called one of us; any priest who favors the Socialists in Prague defeats the legitimate efforts of the Slovaks." 25. The Jednota, in its issue of March 17, 1920, page one, published a letter from Masaryk to his prime minister, Tusar, on the subject of "the so-called Pittsburgh Agreement." Translated from the original Czech, Masaryk's letter reads as follows : "Representatives of American Slovak and Czech organizations resolved in this agreement to combat agitation against a union of the Czechs and Slovaks. The pact was made, it seems to me, largely by American citizens. The Pittsburgh program is one of many pre-revolutionary programs formulated abroad. It has an historical value. The Pittsburgh Pact was contracted between Slovaks and Czechs, and were it to have any validity at all, surely this validity would be predicated on the condition that both parties still agreed on its contents. In the pact itself, toward the end, there is a stipulation that detailed provisions for the organization of the Czecho-Slovak state were to be left to the Czechs and Slovaks and their legal representatives ; this stipulation was entered because the Czechs and Slovaks at the Pittsburgh meeting understood that Ame· rican citizens had no right to make decisions concerning the definitive organization of the Czecho-Slovak state." Husek, who immediately published the letter in the Jednota, alongside the text of the Pittsburgh Pact enclosed in a black frame, took an entirely different view of the matter, and in commentary, remarked among other things : "the Pittsburgh Pact is valid because it rests on the eternally valid natural rights of nations." (Ibid.) 26. "Za Pittsburghsku dohodu 'kavova nahrazka' " (Instead of the Pittsburgh Pact "ersatz coffee"). Jednota, March 31, 1920, page 4. And the Rev. Dulik comments: "To contract an agreement and then not care whether it is observed or not, amounts to making oneself ridiculous before the world." "Rev. Moysovi" (To the Rev. Moy~). Jednota, March 31, 1920, page 4. 27. Karol Sidor gives a detailed description in his book "Andrej Hlinka", Bratislava 1934. 28. "Apel Hlinkov na Slovakov v Amerike" (Hlinka's Appeal to American Slovaks). Jednota, July 21, 1920, page 4. The Jednota expressed the conviction, even after the defeat of the People's Party, that the national idea "will be stopped by nothing and nobody in its victorious advance." "Vol'by na Slovensku" (The Elections in Slo• vakia). Jednota, May 12, 1920, page 4. 29. "Statarium na Slovensku" (Martial Law in Slovakia) . Jed.nota, August 11, 1920, page 1. "But martial law will not preserve Slovakia for the Czechs! Czech bayonets will not preserve Slovakia for the Czecho-Slovak Republic ... Prague is blind, it does not see the writing on the wall ... " 30. Compare with the article by the president of the Slovak Catholic Federation, Rev. Joseph Dulik: "My netratime nadej" (We are not losing Hope), Jednota, August 11, 1920, page 4, and others. � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource 1966, Vol. 16 Description An account of the resource Vol. 16 (No. 39), 1966. Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available The Slovak League of America Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1966 Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Text Any textual data included in the document SLOVAKIA 63 AMIDRIO.AN SLOV:.A.KiS AND '.DHE BEJG]NNJNGS OF 02'JIDOHO-SLOVAKI.A. By Joseph Pauco, Ph.D. In 1907 there was founded in Cleveland, Ohio, an organiiization ,ca:lled the Slovaik LeaJgue of America. This orga'Illization represented a coailition of aiH 1:Jhe existing Slovaik fraite:m al and r~i:giou:s organizations in the United States, and rallied besides, the support of t'he Slovaik clergy, both OatJholic amd Evangelka!l (Lutheran), as well as t!he suipport of the then--e:ristiing Slov:aik-American periodicals. The Slova!k League set as its major goail tJhe lilberation of the SllovaJk nation in its homelaind. For t!his reason it toO!k a srtand for t!he dismaintlement of tJhe .Austro-Hiungarian Empire and e:,oplo;z-ed possiibi'lities for political cooperation wit:Jh the Czech nation. Thiis cooperation reached formal expression in 1:Jhe signing of the Pi'Ubsburgh Pad of May 30, 1918, parties to which were 11epresentatives of the Silova'k Leaigue of America on the one side, and the represenrtatives of the Czech Natriona:l .Alliance and the Union of Czech Ca1fuolics, on the otJher. The Czechs were led by Thomas G. Masaryik, who prepared both .p arties for the aJgreement, aind wiho later became the first president of the O.zechoSlovaik Republiic. The text of tJhe Pittsburgh Paict reads as foHows: The representatives of the Slovak and Czech organizations in the United States-the Slovak League, the Czech National Alliance, and the Union of Czech Catholics-have deliberated, in the presence of the Chairman of the Czecho•Slovak National Council, Professor Masa• ryk, on the Czecho•Slovak question and on our previous program mani• festations, and have resolved as follows: We favor a political program whose purpose it shall be to unite the Czechs and Slovaks into an autonomous state comprising the Czech lands and Slovakia. Slovakia shall have her own administration, her own assembly, and her own courts. The Slovak language shall be the official language in the schools, in public offices, and in the public life in general. The Czecho•Slovak State shall be a republic; its constitution shall be democratic. The cooperation of the Czechs and the Slovaks in the United States shall be intensified and regulated by mutual consent, according to need and changing situations. Detailed provisions relating to the organization of the Czecho· Slovak State shall be left to the liberated Czechs and Slovaks and their legal representatives. 64 SLOVAKIA It is interesting to tmce the early evolution in the attitude of tJhe Prague government, under T. G. Masaryk, to the Pittsburgh Pact, and to the movement of Andrej HLinika, the eminent Slovak politicail leader, wtho adopted the progra:m of the Paiet. And it is no less interesting to review the thirnlkinig on this matter among American Sfoviaks, a faction of wihom rejected the program and succeeded for a short time in leading astray even the Slova:k League of America. On Maroh 7, 1919 Joseph Rusek left for Slova;kii1a. He was sent by t!he Slovak Lea:gue a;g one of a five-member mission, and the supreme of.ficers of the First Oatholic Slovaik Un:ion, too, at their annual meeting in New York, charged "brother Joseph Husek, editor of our organ 'Jedinota', in the name of 70,000 SlovaJk Catholics organized in tlhe FCSU, as a competent ma:n, to represent us illl the o1d country in matters both ecclesiastical aJild national, and to keep us informed on the state of SioV18lk ailfairs." 1 This was the first important mission of the American Siovruks to the continent after the overthrow of the old order. Joseph Huisek spent ten weeks in Slov&kia and urpon his return presented a comprehen,s ive report of his impressions. He analyzed the times and r!Jhe peop{e, circumstances and events, with great perspicacity, in the newspruper Jednotia and the a,lmainac of the same name. 2 It had been Husek's intention to a:cquaint SlloviaJk leaders with the Ame rican Slovaks' interpretation of the program emlbodied in the Pittsrburg,h Pruct. But in Bratislava his voice fell on deaf ears, because "the government was controlled by individuals, as it is to this day, who saw in the new ord€r an excellent opportunity to acihieve their ideal: the Czechizabiorn of S,l ova kia curlturaHy, economically and politic,ally. And by a standing imposition of martial law they envisioned the possi1bi11rity of intilmida;ting not only elemenrts inimi,ca:l to the Republic, hut also elements inimical to tJhis ideal." These people did not acknowledge the reservations of the American-SlovaJk emissaries. "'Dhey only smirled artfully, as if they pittied me for my naive fai'bh in the fitness of tihe Slovaik nation," wrote Joseph Rusek, ·b y way of commentary to •his conversations in Bratislava, for he saw clearly that the ruling c8iste in Srlova:kia was interested "ilil a com1 1 SLOVAKIA 65 rtsko-~lo1ttll!lk11JQgbl~.. tnmtrettri ll i)ittsbnr9htt. l}n.. bntt ,;o. tndjR. l9ltl • .,ifrr~sttw iMio ~lottttt!ikvch uo ., ll ~kiich o~nnisocif . t •~ ~,P"J•. -'-:t't ~ ll om. - . •~htu t1tsatj 1J~\!~~tho ]Ttlll)~ni.ho.$bttittnfu. . ll ~\!i)!ll frsj1.1,h.~ . " · P•'l"<'lh'1.•,1li t.i pnl.-niu,•;;ti ~~~~t-.'u e,1-1t .... $l..:.•m:-tt,_i "~1Jr.-..1' .,,'!4• ~r,"'f.~h,; ..,1-yh,, . ., ~1-ft,,~Jlct.,i:niok~j ,.....\,h, ,1 ..... th1$i,·b {~\t~:ti:b pr~~;!~l\'?'?Cl•~i.·b pr('_i~-:1.,,'1! r.\ usnt,--.l~-,.l~~,,.a.•\'\.: ! -.. s~b'M !u_irn,~ pditi,·h:i pr.:-~r.t~ uii\ll~U,"\ ~l •' Sp.:-j.:ni~ e.:~h~,i• lt $\i."li,Jk,.. ~ \t ~.,m,;•att1o1hl,'\1' 1ttit, 1. f~-,p.l\lf~-b 1nnl,, Sl\"l\tti:t!th~\~ 4 } ' ,"~""-~ .. :·.:-tc;•~n . . lt.• l;tt~~ mut -..~•-~iu L•l<l1-fn1'.i.)mitliih·..muu.1i,,j ~\j,:·\!1 "~ i,\••:\~ $'UL~~ . ,_S\ci.•(t-:ftn,, ru~..: ,fr,~~n!'t1! j,,iyb.~ t•~\i~l~. ~· Ut",,~~ ,, t,~., t tNi 1"'"'\'\1 !\t, ...,t..! t,;_;~-:-.c. · "€.:~t.,-;,(.,,,,-u1-l,{';;l,1t l-ub.: tt}'u~lik,,u, j~l,..,~.:-1Wtittici" bu ..'-: ~~m""kr"tti4!k-.\. _ ··~•l\'li'!-.i,'t,'\ fp,•lupr.{.:~ e.:cb,"t•" $\.;,i•,tlwv t•c Sp...i. -.:: ., • t1 L • • ·t ' . · ~ ·. '~ ~t-1,t ..--..,h Lru,,,, P•'t. :'"- f"' t r~..,~ ,, mcnt,\~~.t :'1o'\ fl u-1~\<.pn ~}'-' I ..,~o~"t\11 ~~'r-"'?tnn(n\. pr.:hl~~t:..\ ,, '-'}'TOt•~n..i. ·. t: .~ · 1 ~ ,-~ ..... ._\t,.. ~nl t.1,st..,n-:'t~ni~, c- t..\t't'1,'.:1Ul.:-5k~~,l~,tC"Ot~~k~~ ;,1,1tu }'-'ll~.:b,ll.•,i.iu ;," •'!W••r,•~~nym €.i.:!icm ,, Sl,'l C1hcm "icb _ prJi,,•pl.ltni1m pN,'11-t,wit.:l,'tlt." 1 ====---- I w -{. . L_._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _J Photographic reproduction of the original copy of the Pittsburgh Pact ("Pittsburghska Dohoda") plete merging of 1Jhe Slmr31k nart~on wi1:!h tlhe Czeoh." Burt on the 01:!her hand he also ascertained tihat "Masary,k's ideology of tJhe nationa,,l unity of Slovaks and Czecihs was completely foreign to the ordinary Slovaik person." 3 And it did not escape Husek's observation that ''the oe SLOVAKIA Slov~s !have no desire fo:r the kind of democraitic wwk that haJS to be performed in the shadow of Czech bayonets!" He 01Scertained that the Czeoho-Slovaik Pairliament was gravely deficient in point of "ropresenrta'tion for the SlovaJk nation. Agriculture and the triades haid not a single representative firom among tJhei'r own rarrk!s, and in any case, members of pairliaiment were nominated and a,ppointed by the regime ibselif, whicih ma!kes no seoret of its intentions to consolidate its power at every cost, and whfoh pursues a poli~ica[, cu1tural and economic course that ha,s bhe support of only a smaifil minority of bhe Slovak nation." He noted that bhe policies of bhli s government ran oouniter to the interests of bhe Slovia'k people. Husek verified tllrough his own Olbservations tJhat "in PraJgue many influential pdlitidans want aJbsolurtely no tr,uok with the idea tJhait Slovakia belongs to tJhe Slovaks and that the Slova:ks have no need to go to Piriague for tutelage in the management of bheir own land and nation. Indeed, Pra,gue is completely at a loss as to what to do in its own bailiwick. Politioal chaos reigns in Bohemia. 'flhe national assemlbly speaJks with twenty tongues. Not one faction aictua'lly knows what it wants . .A!I1d in the maisses tJhe most prevalent pdlitic'al orientatfon is Bollshevism." Of suoh stuf.f, too, were the OzechlS who cMne to Slov,a,kia. Hrusek oharaoteri!.zed them aJS fol!lows : "The arrogance am.d domineering attitude of some Czeclhs in Slov.akia was indeed Ml af:firont. And I encountered these maniifestation,s, in per,son, frequently during my stay i'n the old country. I e,cperienced them on tJhe tr,aJirnis and in tlhe restaiurants. On the trams you were comfuaintly being jostled aside for some Ozedh dignilbairy, while in tJhe restaiurants your order WaJS taiken only after 1:Jhe Ozooh had reccived his ... It is a major fault witih many of OUT Czeoh brethren, and not tihe leaist with men of culrttvalbi.on, that tlley do not ,consider the ,Slova,k an equa•l citizen of the Republic." In the political sphere Husek saw cleair signs tJhait the rulling regime in Slov,ailcia haJd no desire to even hear of aultonomy. 'Dhe regime considered tihe autonom:i!sts traitors. It WaJS Huook's finding that a great gaip separated the policie'S of 1:Jhe Slova!k LeaJgue of Amerioa fram the tJhmktmg of tihe current rulers in Slovakia. 6i SLOVAKIA On tJhe subject of autQIIlomy, writes Joseph Husek, "Hlirrrka aJlone g,ave me a clear...oot srtatement - he liives and dies for the American pa,dt . . . Hli'nlka stamds for autooomy antd a Ohrisitian world-view. He stamlds for autonomy becaiuse he sees in it the assu:rainrce of a better future for Ms naJtion, and a gual'amtee of the firee growt:Jh of its natio n.1aJl cu1lture and economy, as weJ1l as a bai:rder to Ozeoh materialilsm and atheism ... Hlmka stand1s for •autonomy because he is Slov,aJk, not Ozeclho-Slovaik ! . . . And besides, it mmt be said of H]i[llka tJhat he loves his naltion warriznrly, truly and entirely seMllessly; he is ready to sacl'ifice evecytlhing for it - whircih is something I camnot in good con,s cience say a!bout many of his opponents." In regard to Joseph Husek'is trirp as "a:n emliss,rury of the Amwican Sfovakis" A. J. Pirha!11a, president of the F1irrist Catholic Slovak Union, commented: "'he accomplished a ,g reat deal of wortJhwhile wo"Pk. His detailed rerport gave us an accurate, clear and specific rev-iew of the situation in Slova,kia. " 4 Hrusek and MH'an Gettilllg presented the reports on tJhcir Slo'ViaJkian trirp at the 12'1:Jh Oongress of tihe SlovaJk Le•ague of America, wh~-c'h todk plaice on May 29, 1919 ilil Scranton, Pennsylva,nia. Getting ,prorposed that the League send the "Slovak Administration" a printing press vail ued at $50,000.00, and in addit-ilon, to Mr. Sirobar, finamcirail a:ssistance in tihe amount of $10,000.00. 'Dhe Congress rupproved t'he proposal, and a•l so moved to send sixty-thousamd dollar3 wO'!'th of clothing to Slovaikia. 5 Husek wrote after tJhe congress: "HHnika is the forunder, president amd guiding spitrit of tlhe SloWJk People's Party, wihldh wiH play a great, if ndt decishre, role in the history of Slovaik'ia, and whiiC'h claims the loyalty of ahnost a'1.!l the patriotiic S'lov~k clergy, even of those who do not approve m ,i:nka'·s -bi'tter anrd unrestrai,ned critilcism of 1:Jh~ administration i01 Braitirs]ra va." 6 In th±s vein Joseph Husek filled tlhe columTIJS Olf · the newspaper Jednota through the year 1919. He subjected the Prrugue regime and its functionaries in Bratislava to shar,p criticism. He believed fifflllly tJhiat ''oniy through aiutonomy wou'ld it be poss~ble to purt Slovaikila finmly on its feet! . . . 'Dhe Slovaks need aiutanomy mairrrly to preserve their national existence. But without srpecific leg~si.ation 1 68 SLOVAKIA there will be no self-rule of any kiJnid." The sel!f-ru[e "that Slov:aikia has today its not only worbhiless, but even positively pernrjlciou1s. Suoh 'selrf..1rule' demoraJl.ilzes pulbJi.c Hfe in Sloviaikia aind stirs the natiQIIl to open revoU.'' 7 On October 24, 1919, the execubi.ive committtee of tJhe SlovaJk League of Arm.edoa approved a memoramtdurm. addressed to the "policy-rm.1a;king fundt,iana11ieis" ( of t'he Czeoho-Slovaik gavernrrnent), in wihi'clh it oaUed for tJhe implementatiton of the Pit'tsburglh P.aiot. 8 A concentrated fig,ht agiainst Hilinka got under way. The fig,ht WaJS OO'gani.ized on two fronts: in Sfovakia, and in America; •a nd the f.ight gmdruaHy gained ground even ilil tJhe SfovaJk League. As H'linlka was returrning :6rom the peruce conference in Parris, on the evening of October 12, 1919, he wais arrested and spirited away to Mirrov prison. The baJSiis for hiJS arrest waJs hlis 1Jr1p to Piari.is and his a:ttempt there to place before the pea;ce conference, Sfo.viak demands as contaJitned in tJhe P,iUsburr1gih Pact. "If HHn:ka had gone to Pari.is, tJhougih the wa:y hakl led through Budapest, for the purpose of protesting the Bad - let's put the matter squarely on the taJble - the Ozecho..,Slovak ,press iand the Czeoho~SlovaJk gov,ernment would today be prarsing Hli!n!ka to the highest heaven, and everywhere he would be hera:lded as the future rurchb1shop of S'lovaikfa ! . . . Hliillka, therefore, witl!l face tria•l on behaJlf of our P,ruct, aJnd in effoct it will be our P.ruct tJhat will be on trial . . . And because this Pact, whloh ts to go on t'l'ial ~n Olom,o uc, 1s ours, in effect it will be we American Slovaks wiho wi'l'l face trila:l - ()lllT con'triburtion to the revolutionary struggle." 9 To the Uruted StaJrtes oa;me Hltinka's representath,es, Rev. Joseipfri Rudrnisiky and Joseph KU!bala, wiho called a meeting of S'1ovalk Crut:Jholic priests irn Piit1:Jsbu'I"gh 01I1 November 19, 1919, an1d om the following day, a meeting of the represen1ia.1t!ives of Slovak Oaitholiic org,anii!zations, loldiges and newspa;pers. Rerv. Joseph Du'lik of Olyphant, Penn!sy<lw.nia, pres•i!ded at the meeting of 1:Jhe clergy, and Atrrdrew J. Birha!&, presildent of the FiTlst Ca1Jholic S1l0Vlalk Union, at the second meetiinig. Both meet:Jing,s devei~oped g,uideliines for aiction by Slovruk Catholics of America, aJnd issued in a spontaneous determination to defend Aindrew Hlilillkia. Pla;n:s well"e made to expoiSe to the pub]i!c ruH fille events surround!ing Hlinlka's trip to Paris and his subsequent imprisonment. 1 1 SLOVAKIA 69 The pu11pose of the Pittsburg,h meeting was: "1. To lay a foundation for wide 8Jl1d e:fifective publi<city and a:gitation for Sriovalkian 0Jutonomy within the frame-worik of the Ozeciho-,S,lovaJk Republic; 2. To 13/Un'Ch a movement for the creation of a OatJholic press fund, for the Sll.llpport of Catholi:c l<iterature ... Arrnerica,n S·1nVia1ks do nro t cornsiider the Paict a scrap of pruper: tfuey wr~l underibake everyrtlhilng irn theirr power to whieve its recogndltion. And tn a,ddiition to this, aifter so ma,ny disruppoi1nitment:Js from both tihe SIOVaJk Lea,g,ue, and spokesmen for tfue Ozeehio-S lov,aik goveirnment, they have ehosern t!he only proper courne: tlhey demand th1at the Pact be incorporated in the provi'81ion:s of the P.aris Pea.ice Treaty." 10 1 1 These meetings received an eX!tension, in effect, in the convention of the S~ov·a k Ca1:lho'lic Federation, held in Scranton, Pennsylv,ania, on December 18, 1919. This organization's delegate, Rev. Anton Gmdk, ha.id just returned from Slovaikioa, and he confirmed tJhe coniolusion,s of Hooek, Rudinsky, and K111ba1a. 'J.'1he conventiOIIl, therefoTe, moved to support, in full, Hilin:ka's activities and tJhe Pittsbuirgih Pact. 11 lniaJSmuc'h a.is the leadersthiilp of the S'lov:alk Leag,ue ha:d entetred the services of ''anti.,SiloviaJk and aniti-Ohristian poli,cies," 12 the SlovaJk CatJholic Federation beg,ain to taike noltdce of the politkail si tu ation in SJ.ovaikia. Srrovalk Catho4iics begam taking a heig,htened internst in t,h e n1ationa:l program because the Prague regime had proved itselif not on!ly anti-S1lovaik, but also amti-Oat!ho•l k. "The beMigerent merusuires undeI'balken by the Ozeicihs agairnst the Catholli,c Church a,nd the reH:gions sentiments of believing Slovalks" 13 ciolrld su1c1ceed only in arousing everyfbody. Rev. GraJcik, speaking from hi,s personal observa,tions in Slovakia, dec'l aired: "\Religion hars complete freedom in the Ozecho-Slo'W!Jk Republic, guaranteed by law. But filris f.reedom in only on paper. Nort erven 20 % of the p111blic sti:H be'l~eves in thi s reli•gio1rns freedom. Power rest:Js m 1Jhe han'd s of Sodail-De mocratk atheists, nom.--!believeris; and these people are aJbusing 1!heir power in an attempt to per;pe1tnmte their pairtisan conrtiro1l, and to entren,c h tJheir posirbions. ThU!s, re'ligious :fireedOIJll exists only on pruper and tJhe Ohuircih ooduires cons~deraJble suffering . . . Ln S10V1all da, except for prlimera and bi:bles, no Catlholi1c literaiture is cmrently being publ'islhed. The Ozeciho-SlovaJk government 1hrus completeily stopped 1 1 1 1 70 SLOVAKIA Catlhol~c presses, suppressed ail OaltJhiolic per'iodicaJ1'S. The Catholic sohool youth is prohilbiited :f.irom organi1z ing in defence of its religficntJS sentiments." 14 Towarids the en!d of 1919 tJhe president of tJhe Sli0W1Jk League, Albert Mamaitej, tiriaveled to S1ovaJkia, 0JI1d returned wiifu a letter from Dr. Mfillan Hoooa, a SlavaJk pol.ritircian on 1:Jhe side of tJhe Ozecfus, wlhi!dh promrlised a definite, sart:isfactory stabi'liz,ati:on of the relaitionlsihiiip between the Ozeoos amid Slo'V'aikls. HoweveT, the resulits of MaJmatej's journey "could be desori:bed, on bailance, only as negative." 15 For the Amerioam SlovaJks, he brought baok more promi:ses from the Ptmgue regime; for himseJrf, he broug,ht badk a committment from Prague that he would be awarded tJhe post of Ozedho-SlovaJk conS'l.1!1 in Bittsburgh. His aJppointment caJme through in Septem1ber 1920. The XII]tJh Congress of the Slova1k Leagure of America, whidh took p'lace at the end of J'll!l1e 1920 in MiilwaJUlkee, Wisconsin, transpired in a ,c ompletely di:£ferent atmosphere from thait of its predecessoI'S. On J1Une 16 Joseph Husek puibiJJioly announced his withd<rawaJl from the League, whose leaJdeirshi!p "is moraHy amd finandaiHy supporting agitation and opposition to the PiittJs'lmrgh PaJct." 16 'Dhe SlovaJk League haJd joined battle witlh t!he wtonmni,stls in America, and bJaJd even given tadd assenlt to the waJgin:g of sUJoh a battle in Slovaklia, at a time that WaJS oritiicaJl, since the na'tiornai election1s Olf 1920 were drawilng neaT. For 1:Jhis reaJson not one S'lav,aJk CaJt:lholic organization in America sent de'leg,ates to 1:Jhe XIILtih Congress, and Husek, after t he Oong,ress warned: 1 ..'Tihe League has ceased to be the mOTal and offioiail representative of the AmeI'icam-Sloviaik colony." 17 RepresentaJtives of Slovak CaJthidlics, under the leaJdership af the S1ovaik OatholJ.i<c Federation and tlhe ot!her orgaJI1izations working in C'1ose ooopera'tion with it, began to taJke over the League's erat-w:hile role in the defence of SllOV1aJk nationaJl rights. On Ja.nuaJry 14, 1920, the cenwail committee of the SlovaJk Catholic Federat•i on "voted 100,000 crowns as a personal girft to the Rev. Andrew HEmlka, our leader, t!he imprisoned SlavaJk martyr. It also rupproved a Clheok in the amownt SLOVAKIA 71 of $5,000.00 as a stop-gap aid to old-country Catholics, for Catholic aiction. l1t furrtiher passed a motion to issue memoria1 staimps bearing the i'mage of H!lliJ11lm and an inrsm"ilption of his motto ... Dr. Joseph Rudinsky was aippoonted to t'he position of organizer in the Slovak Oa:tholic Fedwarbion, arnd MT. Joseph KUJba:11a was nirumed a,siistanrt to the comptTolileT." 18 The president of the Slovak Oathol1k FedeTation, Rev. Joseph :Dulik, reminded t'he memlbershilp tJhat tJhe basic provisions of the co,nstitution of the Ozeoho-Slovaik Repulblric remaJined inadequate ilil the opinlion of tJhe Federation, and that tJhe lrust ooniverition haJd taiken a position "in suipport of S1ova!kiam aJUtonomy, as g,ururanteed to tJhe Slovruk nation in tJhe PlilftsbuTgh Pact." 19 And in the same vein, the Rev. :DuHk exip:ressed his view on the issue: "We aire foT the Ozecihio.,Slovruk Repufb'li<:, 'body and sou[ - but only on condition tJhat we receive in it what is ouT due." 20 From 1:Jhis standpoint 1fuere was great va:lue in the message of the SIJ:ovak Cathollic Fedevation to "ouir brothers in SfovaJkia", by which historic realities concerning American SfovaJks were put in proper fomis, and a demand was registered "for the incorpOTaltion of tJhe suibstamce of the Pittsburg,h Pact in the basic 11aw of tJhe Repuibl~c." 21 '.Dhe stand of the FedeTation inspired tJhe Slova:k-American community. At its conrvention of 13 and 14 OctO'beT, 1920, in Chicago, the recoros revealed t!hat the Slovalk CartJholic Federation "numbered 17'5 strong men's brandhes, and 14 women's brancihes; and its membership haJd risen to close to twenty thousand. This g,rowfu dated from onily ten months ba;ck." 22 '.Dhe pr,ogram of the Federation with respect to nationaEty matters remained unchanged: autonomy a:s set for!Jh and defined in the Pittsburgh Pact. 23 To the United States came ort!her emissaries, too. These were tlhe agents of tJhe Brague regime, Rev. LaJdis1aiv Moys, a Catlholiic priest, rund the Sooiial..,Democvat Jiohrn Pocislk, whose assignment wa;s to swing pu!b'lic opinion among American Slovaks to tJhe side of 1Jhe Ozeciho-,Slovruks and rugaJinst the SlovaJk People's Party. But American Silovaikrs were not swayed by the mission, despite its ecclesiasticaJl traJppings, because they knew it traveled rubout the country on funds 72 SLOVAKIA provided by Prague. 'l'hey gave no credence to Moys becaruse "he associates and cooperates, works hand in hand, with Socia'li,s ts." 24 Nor were Slovruk Catho'lios shiaJken by Maisrurytk's cli!savowa:l of his sigrrature on t!he Plirttsbmg1h Pact, or by his deo}ruration that 1fue Pa;ct wrus inrva!lid.25 They reaJCted with dignity, becaJU!se their chief concern was to "remain tirue to the honor of t!he SlovaJk nation." 26 In t!he uneven battJle between Andirew Hlinika and fue organized power of Prague and its SUipporting p<jli.tical prurties, the assistaJnce of American Sloviaks was extraordinari1ly wekome. Andrew H1inlka sat innocently in a Oze0h ja:il for seven months. Fior a long time his ja;iiloirs even wi'tfuheld his marl from him; and as he sat in helplessness and isO'}a'bion, tJhe mi,nions of the new state's power structuire tried to disrupt the ranks of the 1P eople's Party. 27 In the me:antiline caJIDe the elections. A!bout t!hem Hlinlka gave the foHowing testimony: "Unfortunately, the elections did not produce the spectacular results for the Peqp'le's Party that we had every reruson to expect. The People's Party did not receive the ma:jority that it should have received. Reasons for this development run to the hun1drreds: t!h:ey locked us urp, tlhey branded us tra!itor,s, they unlerushed a;gainst us tiheiir soildiers, gen1damnerie, sheriffs and professors . . . Agaiinst us was turned every power - and every means was perm~ss~ble. 'Dhe :riig,ht of assembly was denied uiS: and wihen granted, our meetings were diispersed. 'I'he starved and pauperized Slova;k populace threw itselif into the em/brace of the SocialDemocratic Party, whidh ha;d pre~ously been little known in SlovaJlcia. Two-iliuindred tJhous and soldiers were transfer.red to Sfovaikia - to vote. Ozeoh Olfficia;ls, teachers and function airies were for,ced UipOil us; and these people, numbering ~rmcimately fifty th01.1<s'a.nd, voted against Slo"W!Jk autonomy. Where hunger ~atled, the s<jldiier anid official produced t!he de's1red resulit." 28 The Socialists were not, 8Jild could not be, the sa!lvation of S1wa!kia. On the contrary, the sociia.Uistic "Ozech regi,me in Slova;kfa enstranged Slovakia from Bohemia. It created cha,os, because it drove the people witlh fa.:1se prom~ses in'to the airms of the Internationa!le." 29 1 1 1 1 SLOVAKIA 73 American S~ovaJks exipected the worst in S1lovaJkia. They envisioned the sprea!d of Somallism and its oo!lrrninabon in Coarumrunii.sm - uniless refor,ms were introdUJced in time. In this context CaJt:Jholic organi!za1Jion-s, in particufar, intensified their ef1forts and soug,ht new ways to help Hlinlka win his objectives. 30 FOOTNOTES 1. Minutes of the annual meeting of the supreme officers of the First Catholic Slovak Union, New York City, January 6-9, 1919, page 73. Husek was a member of the Reconstruction Committee of the Slovak League of America, chairman of which was Dr. Miroslav Francisci, and the other members, John Matlocha, Edward Kovac, and Milan Getting. 2. Joseph Husek wrote several articles about his trip to Slovakia, but the most comprehensive was his contribution to the almanac Jednota for 1920, titled "Co som videl, pocul a skusil na Slovensku." (What I Saw, Heard and Experienced in Slovakia.), pages 33-60. All of the above quotes on Husek's mission are taken from this source. 3. This was a group that styled itself "Mlade Slovensko" (Young Slovakia). Hlas (The Voice) was its journal, and the forum from which it expounded views on literature and life, social and political, all heavily influenced by Masaryk. 4. Minutes of the annual meeting of the supreme officers of the First Catholic Slovak Union, Cleveland, Ohio, January 19-22, 1920, page 8. 5. Cover story on this Congress in the newspaper Jednota, June 4, 1919, page 1. The Congress approved a motion to establish a scholarship fund in memory of General Stefanik for "the support of students and writers in Slovakia and America. The Slovak League will contribute $10,000.00 to this fund, and school-fund collections by various organizations and newspapers are also to be turned over to it." 6. "Prestante!" (Desist!). Jednota, June 4, 1919, page 4. 7. "Eppur si muove." Jednota, October 22, 1919, page 4. 8. See the actual text in the Jednota, October 29, 1919, page 1. 9. " Dohoda, Hlinka a Masaryk" (The Pact, Hlinka and Masaryk). Jednota, November 19, 1919, page 4. 10. "Za krest'anske a autonomne Slovensko" (For a Christian and Autonomous Slovakia). Jednota, November 26, 1919, page 4. Also compare with the story of the meetings in the same issue of the Jednota on page one. Inasmuch as the convention of the Slovak Catholic Federation was postponed, a Slovak Catholic Council was elected from among the delegates in Pittsburgh, which however only served till the convention, and then merged with the Federation. Time moved quickly, and the liberal and Czecho-Slovak oriented groups began to break up local branches of the Slovak League, and to scatter accusations against sympathizers with Hlinka's movement. For this reason Slovak Catholics rallied to the cause. Anti-Slovak activities are touched upon in the article "Za auton6miu"' (For Autonomy) in the Jednota, December 3, 1919, page 4, and in subsequent issues. 11. Compare with the coverage of the Convention of the Slovak Catholic Federation in the Jednota, December 24, 1919, on page one. The article "Z konvencie Sdruzenia slovenskych katolikov" (From 74 SLOVAKIA the Convention of the Slovak Catholic Federation) , in the same edition of the Jednota, page 5, notes that all Slovak Catholic organizations were represented at this convention. 12. "Sdruzenie slovenskych katolikov" (The Slovak Catholic Federation ). Jednota, December 31, 1919, page 4. 13. From a letter by the Rev. Andrew Dor{msky, a pastor in Hladovka, Slovakia, dated August 12, 1919, published in the Jednota, September 17, 1919, page 1. 14. "Prednaska Rev. Gracika" (A Lecture by the Rev. Gracik). Jednota, December 10, 1919, page 1. 15. Culen, K. "Strucne dejiny Slovenskej ligy" (A Short History of the Slovak League) . Jednota, August 27, 1958, page 2. 16. "Vystupujem zo Slovenskej ligy" (I am Withdrawing from the Slovak League) . Jedn ota, June 16, 1920, page 4. 17. "Po kongrese" (After the Congress) . Jednota, July 7, 1920, page 4. 18. "Vaznejsie uznesenia Sdruzenia slovenskych katolikov" (Some Important Decisions of the Slovak Catholic Federation) . Jednota, January 28, 1920, page 1. 19. "Nase stanovisko" (Our Standpoint). Jednota, March 17, 1920, page 4. 20. "Este raz Rev. Moysovi" ( Once Again to the Rev. Moys). Jednota, April 21, 1920, page 4. Joseph Husek remained an unswerving adherent of the autonomist idea: "From the standpoint of the enemies of Slovak national distinctivness, Slovak autonomy would constitute virtual suicide-suicide for the idea of Czecho-Slovak national unity! Only a fool could believe that Slovak truth, were it to have behind it the full power of a state, courts, bureau, schools, and the moral and material support of the highly cultured Czech nation, could not successfully resist an immoral and politically bankrupt Magyaronismonly a fool, or someone who considers the Slovak nation a morally debilitated, nationally paralyzed rabble of near-idiots! " "To nie je to prave" (This Isn't the Real Thing) . Jednota, February 18, 1920, page 4. Also see the article "Matez" (Turmoil) , Jednota, March 24, 1920, page 5; and the article "Salus reipublicae suprema lex", Jednota, April 14, 1920, page 4. Among other things, this article states: "For the Slovak politician, the good of the Slovak nation must take precedence over the good of the Republic, or as the case may be, the government. The vital interests of the nation, its natural rights, its national character, may not be sacrificed to the good of the state, the Republic, or the regime. The Republic exists for the nation, not the reverse. The nation is an end, the Republic only a means. The idea of the supremacy of the state (government) must yield to the idea of the supremacy of the nation. Only in monolinguistic democratic states, where the concept of nationality is synonymous with the concept of state, where nationality in reality equates with state and vice versa, can the good of the nation be equated with the good of the state." Husek returns to this theme frequently on the pages of the Jednota in signed and anonymous articles, as well as editorials and remarks. 21. The complete text appears in the Jednota, May 26, 1920, page 5. 22. "Konvencia Sdruzenia slovenskych katolikov" (The Convention of the Slovak Catholic Federation). Jednota, October 20, 1920, page 1. 23. "The Slovak Catholic Federation still favors an autonomous Slovakia and will continue to do so until at last. the banner of Slovak autonomy within the framework of a Czecho-Slovak Republic, will SLOVAKIA 75 wave over our Tatra mountains." Rev. C. K. Vaniscak, O.S.B.: "Po konvencii Sdruzenia slovenskych katolikov" (After the Convention of the Slovak Catholic Federation) , Jednota, October 20, 1920, page 4. 24. Hrtanek, Klemo. "Koho chcete, abych vam prepustil, Hlinku alebo Moysa?" (Whom Do You Wish I Release to You, Hlinka or Moy~?). Jednota, April 28, 1920, page 4. "Priest or no-priest, come down from the cherry-tree . . . Any Slovak priest who does not fight with us for the martyr Hlinka and his democratic idea, has no right to be called one of us; any priest who favors the Socialists in Prague defeats the legitimate efforts of the Slovaks." 25. The Jednota, in its issue of March 17, 1920, page one, published a letter from Masaryk to his prime minister, Tusar, on the subject of "the so-called Pittsburgh Agreement." Translated from the original Czech, Masaryk's letter reads as follows : "Representatives of American Slovak and Czech organizations resolved in this agreement to combat agitation against a union of the Czechs and Slovaks. The pact was made, it seems to me, largely by American citizens. The Pittsburgh program is one of many pre-revolutionary programs formulated abroad. It has an historical value. The Pittsburgh Pact was contracted between Slovaks and Czechs, and were it to have any validity at all, surely this validity would be predicated on the condition that both parties still agreed on its contents. In the pact itself, toward the end, there is a stipulation that detailed provisions for the organization of the Czecho-Slovak state were to be left to the Czechs and Slovaks and their legal representatives ; this stipulation was entered because the Czechs and Slovaks at the Pittsburgh meeting understood that Ame· rican citizens had no right to make decisions concerning the definitive organization of the Czecho-Slovak state." Husek, who immediately published the letter in the Jednota, alongside the text of the Pittsburgh Pact enclosed in a black frame, took an entirely different view of the matter, and in commentary, remarked among other things : "the Pittsburgh Pact is valid because it rests on the eternally valid natural rights of nations." (Ibid.) 26. "Za Pittsburghsku dohodu 'kavova nahrazka' " (Instead of the Pittsburgh Pact "ersatz coffee"). Jednota, March 31, 1920, page 4. And the Rev. Dulik comments: "To contract an agreement and then not care whether it is observed or not, amounts to making oneself ridiculous before the world." "Rev. Moysovi" (To the Rev. Moy~). Jednota, March 31, 1920, page 4. 27. Karol Sidor gives a detailed description in his book "Andrej Hlinka", Bratislava 1934. 28. "Apel Hlinkov na Slovakov v Amerike" (Hlinka's Appeal to American Slovaks). Jednota, July 21, 1920, page 4. The Jednota expressed the conviction, even after the defeat of the People's Party, that the national idea "will be stopped by nothing and nobody in its victorious advance." "Vol'by na Slovensku" (The Elections in Slo• vakia). Jednota, May 12, 1920, page 4. 29. "Statarium na Slovensku" (Martial Law in Slovakia) . Jed.nota, August 11, 1920, page 1. "But martial law will not preserve Slovakia for the Czechs! Czech bayonets will not preserve Slovakia for the Czecho-Slovak Republic ... Prague is blind, it does not see the writing on the wall ... " 30. Compare with the article by the president of the Slovak Catholic Federation, Rev. Joseph Dulik: "My netratime nadej" (We are not losing Hope), Jednota, August 11, 1920, page 4, and others.  Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource American Slovaks and the Beginning of Czecho-Slovakia Description An account of the resource Joseph Paučo, Ph.D. Slovakia, Vol. 16 (No. 39), 1966 pp. 63-75 Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Paučo, Jozef, 1914-1975 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1966 SNK https://slovakia.wordsofpassage.net/files/original/2a34a75b82806f8fb6c5ae06baf89887.pdf b5aa7b80770b815331f27df2848c047f PDF Text Text SLOVAKIA 76 THE SILOVAK ~GE By Joseph R. Kristofik On March 26, 1966 a second wave of protest marchers demonstrated in some of the world's capitals and in major American cities protesting United States policy in Viet Nam. Among the demonstrators were college students expounding a belief in the principle of self determination for the Viet Namese people. To those who have studied the problems of the Slovak people and the Slovak nation, this statement appears to be most insincere. There have been many opportunities in the past to demonstrate this expressed interest in the self determination of nations in behalf of many Eastern European nations, notably Slovakia, but to date no tangible expression of interest in Eastern European self determination has been shown by these self same groups. 1 The Slovaks in America have for many years advocated and pursued the policy of self determination for the people of Slovakia. In striving to meet this objective, however, a very serious error was made by the American Slovaks as in their eagerness to help establish an independent Slovak state, they failed to establish and extend the vast limits of their Slovak culture in America, and as a result suffer today from this lack of a so called "Slovak Image". In an effort to overcome this deficiency of the past, an attempt is being made to make the Slovaks aware not only of the quickest way in achieving positive results in projecting this "Slovak image", in America, but also a means of obtaining quicker recognition of Slovak objectives on an international level. One of the more complex problems with which the Slovaks have been confronted since the turn of the century has been •the inability to project the distinctive S 1 o v a k character or influence in either the area of American politics, OT to any significant degree in civic affairs. This is a most regrettable situation, since there are many outst,anding leaders in industry, in the field of education, and in the arts and sciences who not only have a Slovaik background, but are proud of their Central European heritage. So the question that must be asked is why, despite thi,s wealth of competent, educated people throughout the United States, �SLOVAKIA 77 we have as an ethnic group, faHed to project this Slovak image. One of the basic answers to this prOiblem lies in the use of more effective public and press relations. Another answer lies in more active participation in civic affairs. But probably the most effective method in making rapid strides in projecting this Slovak image is through the field of partisan politics, where the wants, the needs, the desires, and the ambitions of an ethnic group are not only recognized, but evaluated on the basis of compatibility with our foreign policy and national interest. This year we are commemorating the 27th Anniversary of Slovak Independence. This is a very memorable diate in the history of the Slovak people, as it was on March 14, 1939 that the Slovaks as a united people , carved their own independent state, in the world of freedom loving and self governing nations. Yet it is disheartening, that despite the fact that we are here today, twenty seven years later, celebrating the anniversary of the birth of the modern Slova,k state, a majority of Americans do not even recognize Slovaks as an independent, separaJte, Central Europe ethnic group. Thi:s is not too surprising however, when one realizes that the average American really knows very little about Central European affairs, and is doubly confused when confronted with t:Jhe compounded problems presented by the Siovaks. Even as late as four weeks ago there a,ppeared in the Detroit News a column by the well known and wideily read columnist Bob Considine, whose coiumn I know many of you read regularly. Despite Mr. Considine's wehl versed baokground, despite his constant attention to world affairs, despite his periodic visits to the worltl''S capita•ls, he stiQiJ. refer,s to Czedho-S•lovalkia as the 1kiingdom of bhe SeI1biaJn s, the Croatians, and the Slovenes. And yet we all here know that Czeoho-SilovBJkia is a land inhabited principaH.y by the Slovaks and the Czeohs. It is no wonder then that the national ambitions of the Slovaks have been so high misconstrued over the years, and the road to ethnic recognition so difficult. A moment ago I expressed the opinion that the quickest, surest, and most direct route to recognition as an ethnic group is through partisan politics. Many of you may recall a statement made by Republioan National Chairman Ray C. Bliss, in which he stated that it was time for the 1 �78 SLOVAKIA Republican Party to realize that the American electorate was not composed solely of white, Anglo-Saxon, Protestants, but a mixture of all races, colors, and creeds. As a result of Mr. Bliss' conviction, more attention is being given to the ethnic groups, and thankfully also to the Slovak community. The DemoCTatic Party recogni~ed many years ago the need to evaluate the wants of the ethnic groups, and to respond accordingly. I would like to review briefly some of the recently accomplishments of your Michigan leaders in obtaining recognitions of the S,lovaks and for Slovak objectives not only here in Michigan, but throughout the United States. Within the past two years, in both major political parties, a complete separation has been made in the ethnic identification of the Czech and Slovak peoples. In each political party there exists a separate Siovak Division on the State Level, and in each political party there exists a Slovak Division on the National Level. We have in Michigan at the present time a Democratic Slovak Chaivman in almost every one of Michigan's nineteen congressional districts, and we expect before all programs are completed, to have a Slovak Chairman in each congressional district of every state in whic,h we have able, competent, and interested Slovak leadership. We want to express for once and for all time that there is a Slovak ethnic growp in America, that this ethnic group is interested in specific objectives such as an independent Slovak section at the Voice of America, that we are interested in the re-establishment of an independent Slovak state, and that we are not only interested in, and capable of, but desirous of holding elective offices. Every American President from Woodrow W i 1son through John F. Kennedy has reaffirmed the American conviction that all the people of the world have the right to their own self determination. Many of you will remember the words of the then Attorney General of the United States Robert Kennedy in Youngstown, Ohio on July 14, 1963 when he stated, "The President has asked me to tell you that the United States Government will continue to support the just aspirations of all people in the world for independence and liberty - aspirations which the Slovaks share today with many other of the captive nations." But in striving to meet any objectives we must never lose sight �SLOVAKIA 79 of the fact that there can be no accomplishment without the blessing of a power far greater than any here on earth. The Slova:ks have recognized this ever since the day,s of the Saints Cyril and Method}us, Patron Saints of Slovakia who first introduced Ohristi!anity to Central Europe over 1100 yeruris ago, and in the Sfavoniic rt01I1g1Ue. A!S ,a personal testimony to this deep Christian character of the Slovaks, I can recall that during my grade school days when a child, or even an adult first entered the home, the very firnt wo:ros to be spoken were "PochvMen bud' Pan Jezi s Kristus" (Praised Be Jesus Christ) . And I can recall a framed picture which hung on the wa11 in the kitohen of our home, and alongside the picture were inscribed these wOTlds, "Kde Boh hospodad, tam sa dobre dari" (Whe,r e God Rules, All is Well). And these words are just as true today as they were when I first had the good grace to read and understand their meaning. And I know that if we heed these words as we move forward, and work with tihese words as guidance, there will be no Slovak hope, there wHl be no Slovak desire, there will be no Slovak objective whioh will not be ultimately fulfilled. 1 There is throughout the United States a young, educated, and interested group of Slovaks who can be classif,i ed as a part of the army of 'angry young men'. Angry because of the failure to resolve Slovak problems which it appears should have been resolved over a quarter century ago. Angry because of the factionalism which has kept the Slovaks a house divided for too many years. Angry because of the loss of prestige suffered through failure to be associated with the culture of Slovak artists, professional and industrial people, social and economic leaders. It is hoped that this outlook on the Slovak problem will in some small way contribute to its eventual resolution. "After Benes concluded the 'Czechoslovak-Soviet Treaty' in Moscow, on December 12, 1943, the left-wing Slovak Agrarians (Lettrich's group) joined the Slovak communists (the Schmidke-Husak group) to conclude the 'Christmas Agreement' of 1943. They created a 'common political leadership' and declared 'eternal friendship' for each other." - Gilbert L. Oddo: Slovakia and Its People. � SLOVAKIA 76 THE SILOVAK ~GE By Joseph R. Kristofik On March 26, 1966 a second wave of protest marchers demonstrated in some of the world's capitals and in major American cities protesting United States policy in Viet Nam. Among the demonstrators were college students expounding a belief in the principle of self determination for the Viet Namese people. To those who have studied the problems of the Slovak people and the Slovak nation, this statement appears to be most insincere. There have been many opportunities in the past to demonstrate this expressed interest in the self determination of nations in behalf of many Eastern European nations, notably Slovakia, but to date no tangible expression of interest in Eastern European self determination has been shown by these self same groups. 1 The Slovaks in America have for many years advocated and pursued the policy of self determination for the people of Slovakia. In striving to meet this objective, however, a very serious error was made by the American Slovaks as in their eagerness to help establish an independent Slovak state, they failed to establish and extend the vast limits of their Slovak culture in America, and as a result suffer today from this lack of a so called "Slovak Image". In an effort to overcome this deficiency of the past, an attempt is being made to make the Slovaks aware not only of the quickest way in achieving positive results in projecting this "Slovak image", in America, but also a means of obtaining quicker recognition of Slovak objectives on an international level. One of the more complex problems with which the Slovaks have been confronted since the turn of the century has been •the inability to project the distinctive S 1 o v a k character or influence in either the area of American politics, OT to any significant degree in civic affairs. This is a most regrettable situation, since there are many outst,anding leaders in industry, in the field of education, and in the arts and sciences who not only have a Slovaik background, but are proud of their Central European heritage. So the question that must be asked is why, despite thi,s wealth of competent, educated people throughout the United States, �SLOVAKIA 77 we have as an ethnic group, faHed to project this Slovak image. One of the basic answers to this prOiblem lies in the use of more effective public and press relations. Another answer lies in more active participation in civic affairs. But probably the most effective method in making rapid strides in projecting this Slovak image is through the field of partisan politics, where the wants, the needs, the desires, and the ambitions of an ethnic group are not only recognized, but evaluated on the basis of compatibility with our foreign policy and national interest. This year we are commemorating the 27th Anniversary of Slovak Independence. This is a very memorable diate in the history of the Slovak people, as it was on March 14, 1939 that the Slovaks as a united people , carved their own independent state, in the world of freedom loving and self governing nations. Yet it is disheartening, that despite the fact that we are here today, twenty seven years later, celebrating the anniversary of the birth of the modern Slova,k state, a majority of Americans do not even recognize Slovaks as an independent, separaJte, Central Europe ethnic group. Thi:s is not too surprising however, when one realizes that the average American really knows very little about Central European affairs, and is doubly confused when confronted with t:Jhe compounded problems presented by the Siovaks. Even as late as four weeks ago there a,ppeared in the Detroit News a column by the well known and wideily read columnist Bob Considine, whose coiumn I know many of you read regularly. Despite Mr. Considine's wehl versed baokground, despite his constant attention to world affairs, despite his periodic visits to the worltl''S capita•ls, he stiQiJ. refer,s to Czedho-S•lovalkia as the 1kiingdom of bhe SeI1biaJn s, the Croatians, and the Slovenes. And yet we all here know that Czeoho-SilovBJkia is a land inhabited principaH.y by the Slovaks and the Czeohs. It is no wonder then that the national ambitions of the Slovaks have been so high misconstrued over the years, and the road to ethnic recognition so difficult. A moment ago I expressed the opinion that the quickest, surest, and most direct route to recognition as an ethnic group is through partisan politics. Many of you may recall a statement made by Republioan National Chairman Ray C. Bliss, in which he stated that it was time for the 1 �78 SLOVAKIA Republican Party to realize that the American electorate was not composed solely of white, Anglo-Saxon, Protestants, but a mixture of all races, colors, and creeds. As a result of Mr. Bliss' conviction, more attention is being given to the ethnic groups, and thankfully also to the Slovak community. The DemoCTatic Party recogni~ed many years ago the need to evaluate the wants of the ethnic groups, and to respond accordingly. I would like to review briefly some of the recently accomplishments of your Michigan leaders in obtaining recognitions of the S,lovaks and for Slovak objectives not only here in Michigan, but throughout the United States. Within the past two years, in both major political parties, a complete separation has been made in the ethnic identification of the Czech and Slovak peoples. In each political party there exists a separate Siovak Division on the State Level, and in each political party there exists a Slovak Division on the National Level. We have in Michigan at the present time a Democratic Slovak Chaivman in almost every one of Michigan's nineteen congressional districts, and we expect before all programs are completed, to have a Slovak Chairman in each congressional district of every state in whic,h we have able, competent, and interested Slovak leadership. We want to express for once and for all time that there is a Slovak ethnic growp in America, that this ethnic group is interested in specific objectives such as an independent Slovak section at the Voice of America, that we are interested in the re-establishment of an independent Slovak state, and that we are not only interested in, and capable of, but desirous of holding elective offices. Every American President from Woodrow W i 1son through John F. Kennedy has reaffirmed the American conviction that all the people of the world have the right to their own self determination. Many of you will remember the words of the then Attorney General of the United States Robert Kennedy in Youngstown, Ohio on July 14, 1963 when he stated, "The President has asked me to tell you that the United States Government will continue to support the just aspirations of all people in the world for independence and liberty - aspirations which the Slovaks share today with many other of the captive nations." But in striving to meet any objectives we must never lose sight �SLOVAKIA 79 of the fact that there can be no accomplishment without the blessing of a power far greater than any here on earth. The Slova:ks have recognized this ever since the day,s of the Saints Cyril and Method}us, Patron Saints of Slovakia who first introduced Ohristi!anity to Central Europe over 1100 yeruris ago, and in the Sfavoniic rt01I1g1Ue. A!S ,a personal testimony to this deep Christian character of the Slovaks, I can recall that during my grade school days when a child, or even an adult first entered the home, the very firnt wo:ros to be spoken were "PochvMen bud' Pan Jezi s Kristus" (Praised Be Jesus Christ) . And I can recall a framed picture which hung on the wa11 in the kitohen of our home, and alongside the picture were inscribed these wOTlds, "Kde Boh hospodad, tam sa dobre dari" (Whe,r e God Rules, All is Well). And these words are just as true today as they were when I first had the good grace to read and understand their meaning. And I know that if we heed these words as we move forward, and work with tihese words as guidance, there will be no Slovak hope, there wHl be no Slovak desire, there will be no Slovak objective whioh will not be ultimately fulfilled. 1 There is throughout the United States a young, educated, and interested group of Slovaks who can be classif,i ed as a part of the army of 'angry young men'. Angry because of the failure to resolve Slovak problems which it appears should have been resolved over a quarter century ago. Angry because of the factionalism which has kept the Slovaks a house divided for too many years. Angry because of the loss of prestige suffered through failure to be associated with the culture of Slovak artists, professional and industrial people, social and economic leaders. It is hoped that this outlook on the Slovak problem will in some small way contribute to its eventual resolution. "After Benes concluded the 'Czechoslovak-Soviet Treaty' in Moscow, on December 12, 1943, the left-wing Slovak Agrarians (Lettrich's group) joined the Slovak communists (the Schmidke-Husak group) to conclude the 'Christmas Agreement' of 1943. They created a 'common political leadership' and declared 'eternal friendship' for each other." - Gilbert L. Oddo: Slovakia and Its People. � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource 1966, Vol. 16 Description An account of the resource Vol. 16 (No. 39), 1966. Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available The Slovak League of America Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1966 Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Text Any textual data included in the document SLOVAKIA 76 THE SILOVAK ~GE By Joseph R. Kristofik On March 26, 1966 a second wave of protest marchers demonstrated in some of the world's capitals and in major American cities protesting United States policy in Viet Nam. Among the demonstrators were college students expounding a belief in the principle of self determination for the Viet Namese people. To those who have studied the problems of the Slovak people and the Slovak nation, this statement appears to be most insincere. There have been many opportunities in the past to demonstrate this expressed interest in the self determination of nations in behalf of many Eastern European nations, notably Slovakia, but to date no tangible expression of interest in Eastern European self determination has been shown by these self same groups. 1 The Slovaks in America have for many years advocated and pursued the policy of self determination for the people of Slovakia. In striving to meet this objective, however, a very serious error was made by the American Slovaks as in their eagerness to help establish an independent Slovak state, they failed to establish and extend the vast limits of their Slovak culture in America, and as a result suffer today from this lack of a so called "Slovak Image". In an effort to overcome this deficiency of the past, an attempt is being made to make the Slovaks aware not only of the quickest way in achieving positive results in projecting this "Slovak image", in America, but also a means of obtaining quicker recognition of Slovak objectives on an international level. One of the more complex problems with which the Slovaks have been confronted since the turn of the century has been •the inability to project the distinctive S 1 o v a k character or influence in either the area of American politics, OT to any significant degree in civic affairs. This is a most regrettable situation, since there are many outst,anding leaders in industry, in the field of education, and in the arts and sciences who not only have a Slovaik background, but are proud of their Central European heritage. So the question that must be asked is why, despite thi,s wealth of competent, educated people throughout the United States, SLOVAKIA 77 we have as an ethnic group, faHed to project this Slovak image. One of the basic answers to this prOiblem lies in the use of more effective public and press relations. Another answer lies in more active participation in civic affairs. But probably the most effective method in making rapid strides in projecting this Slovak image is through the field of partisan politics, where the wants, the needs, the desires, and the ambitions of an ethnic group are not only recognized, but evaluated on the basis of compatibility with our foreign policy and national interest. This year we are commemorating the 27th Anniversary of Slovak Independence. This is a very memorable diate in the history of the Slovak people, as it was on March 14, 1939 that the Slovaks as a united people , carved their own independent state, in the world of freedom loving and self governing nations. Yet it is disheartening, that despite the fact that we are here today, twenty seven years later, celebrating the anniversary of the birth of the modern Slova,k state, a majority of Americans do not even recognize Slovaks as an independent, separaJte, Central Europe ethnic group. Thi:s is not too surprising however, when one realizes that the average American really knows very little about Central European affairs, and is doubly confused when confronted with t:Jhe compounded problems presented by the Siovaks. Even as late as four weeks ago there a,ppeared in the Detroit News a column by the well known and wideily read columnist Bob Considine, whose coiumn I know many of you read regularly. Despite Mr. Considine's wehl versed baokground, despite his constant attention to world affairs, despite his periodic visits to the worltl''S capita•ls, he stiQiJ. refer,s to Czedho-S•lovalkia as the 1kiingdom of bhe SeI1biaJn s, the Croatians, and the Slovenes. And yet we all here know that Czeoho-SilovBJkia is a land inhabited principaH.y by the Slovaks and the Czeohs. It is no wonder then that the national ambitions of the Slovaks have been so high misconstrued over the years, and the road to ethnic recognition so difficult. A moment ago I expressed the opinion that the quickest, surest, and most direct route to recognition as an ethnic group is through partisan politics. Many of you may recall a statement made by Republioan National Chairman Ray C. Bliss, in which he stated that it was time for the 1 78 SLOVAKIA Republican Party to realize that the American electorate was not composed solely of white, Anglo-Saxon, Protestants, but a mixture of all races, colors, and creeds. As a result of Mr. Bliss' conviction, more attention is being given to the ethnic groups, and thankfully also to the Slovak community. The DemoCTatic Party recogni~ed many years ago the need to evaluate the wants of the ethnic groups, and to respond accordingly. I would like to review briefly some of the recently accomplishments of your Michigan leaders in obtaining recognitions of the S,lovaks and for Slovak objectives not only here in Michigan, but throughout the United States. Within the past two years, in both major political parties, a complete separation has been made in the ethnic identification of the Czech and Slovak peoples. In each political party there exists a separate Siovak Division on the State Level, and in each political party there exists a Slovak Division on the National Level. We have in Michigan at the present time a Democratic Slovak Chaivman in almost every one of Michigan's nineteen congressional districts, and we expect before all programs are completed, to have a Slovak Chairman in each congressional district of every state in whic,h we have able, competent, and interested Slovak leadership. We want to express for once and for all time that there is a Slovak ethnic growp in America, that this ethnic group is interested in specific objectives such as an independent Slovak section at the Voice of America, that we are interested in the re-establishment of an independent Slovak state, and that we are not only interested in, and capable of, but desirous of holding elective offices. Every American President from Woodrow W i 1son through John F. Kennedy has reaffirmed the American conviction that all the people of the world have the right to their own self determination. Many of you will remember the words of the then Attorney General of the United States Robert Kennedy in Youngstown, Ohio on July 14, 1963 when he stated, "The President has asked me to tell you that the United States Government will continue to support the just aspirations of all people in the world for independence and liberty - aspirations which the Slovaks share today with many other of the captive nations." But in striving to meet any objectives we must never lose sight SLOVAKIA 79 of the fact that there can be no accomplishment without the blessing of a power far greater than any here on earth. The Slova:ks have recognized this ever since the day,s of the Saints Cyril and Method}us, Patron Saints of Slovakia who first introduced Ohristi!anity to Central Europe over 1100 yeruris ago, and in the Sfavoniic rt01I1g1Ue. A!S ,a personal testimony to this deep Christian character of the Slovaks, I can recall that during my grade school days when a child, or even an adult first entered the home, the very firnt wo:ros to be spoken were "PochvMen bud' Pan Jezi s Kristus" (Praised Be Jesus Christ) . And I can recall a framed picture which hung on the wa11 in the kitohen of our home, and alongside the picture were inscribed these wOTlds, "Kde Boh hospodad, tam sa dobre dari" (Whe,r e God Rules, All is Well). And these words are just as true today as they were when I first had the good grace to read and understand their meaning. And I know that if we heed these words as we move forward, and work with tihese words as guidance, there will be no Slovak hope, there wHl be no Slovak desire, there will be no Slovak objective whioh will not be ultimately fulfilled. 1 There is throughout the United States a young, educated, and interested group of Slovaks who can be classif,i ed as a part of the army of 'angry young men'. Angry because of the failure to resolve Slovak problems which it appears should have been resolved over a quarter century ago. Angry because of the factionalism which has kept the Slovaks a house divided for too many years. Angry because of the loss of prestige suffered through failure to be associated with the culture of Slovak artists, professional and industrial people, social and economic leaders. It is hoped that this outlook on the Slovak problem will in some small way contribute to its eventual resolution. "After Benes concluded the 'Czechoslovak-Soviet Treaty' in Moscow, on December 12, 1943, the left-wing Slovak Agrarians (Lettrich's group) joined the Slovak communists (the Schmidke-Husak group) to conclude the 'Christmas Agreement' of 1943. They created a 'common political leadership' and declared 'eternal friendship' for each other." - Gilbert L. Oddo: Slovakia and Its People.  Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource The Slovak Image Description An account of the resource Joseph R. Kristofik Slovakia, Vol. 16 (No. 39), 1966 pp. 76-79 Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Kristofik, Joseph R. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1966 name https://slovakia.wordsofpassage.net/files/original/029b05234f5a25049959a9fda8fc9c6b.pdf 230cc702cf86b348ecf193f160110b9a PDF Text Text 80 SLOVAKIA "SONS OF HUNKIES: MEN WITH A PAST?" A few years ago a book entitled The American Style appeared which attempted to analyze and define the cunent American temper. It was subtitled Essays in Value and Performance. Widely known scholars from a variety of fields, particularly history and anthropology, offered their impressions, or better, diagnoses of this nation's problems. While remedies varied, they all agreed that a general sickness had afflicted the American people. A feeling of uncertainty, loss of direction, and lack of purpose had controlled the behavior of the population for about the past decade. Agreeing in part with sociologist David Riesman, one of the participants, these students noted that the campaigns of old, the Armageddons of another day, the taming of the pioneer west, making the world safe for democracy in 1917, and the "Crusade in Europe", as General Eisenhower put it, had been won. In place of these challenges no new frontiers had appeared. America was trying to adjust to a new anxious era where old values were disappearing. Now the state was guaranteeing minimum security and abroad we were enduring a continual stalemate and compromise with our enemies. The exhilaration of clear victory was unattainable because there was no "solution" to our problems. Instead, as the discussants pointed to Korea and could well have done so later with Vietnam, our policy was not to vanquish our foes as before but merely contain them. The realization of this indecisive situation led to the present mood of confusion, frustration, and "drift." Even a commission begun to formulate and enunciate national goals under the Eisenhower administration was not able to dispell the agonizing transition; in fact, its ,e stablishment was evidence of it. Such a loss of commitment to ideals seems to apply particularly to descendants of this country's minority groups. Ethnic historians and sociologists can discern that same search for principles among our newer nationalities. As this writer sees it, present generation Slovak, Jewish, Italian and non-white Americans labor heavily not only under the general psychological malady but an additional, even more upsetting disability, an embarrassment over their past. Theirs is a history they are usually trying to dismiss, forget, and ignore. The few who do actively cultivate ethnic history really know �SLOVAKIA 81 only a small part, in any case a distorted and even fanciful version. The effect on the younger generation is unfortunate. Maturing East European Americans particularly are, as individuals, desperately striving to assimilate their way of life to the Anglo-American middle class stereotype. Such an overpowering acculturative urge is forcing far too rapid psychological changes for a well-balanced adjustment and instead has created a pervasive discomfort in the form of a massive inferiority. The feeling is entirely unwarranted as this paper will show. It is to this disturbed neurosis that trained nationality historians can supply a remedy-the needed measure of selfconfidence. While this therapeutic function of ethnic scholars will be stressed here, one should understand that the major task of historians of immigration and race is not sociological. They are not social workers. Immigration historians are generally concerned with analyzing American culture through its ,effects on its subgroups. Nevertheless, at the very same time that nationality group scholars are investigating our society, they will also assist in lifting the mental cross that minorities bear. By suggesting a sophisticated picture of subgroups' past, trained ethnic historians will offer a mo!'e comfortable position from which these people can base present life on past experience. Nevertheless, as of quite recently if history does not provide any foundation at all for what is, or supplies that very necessary continuity with the present, Catholics, Jews, Negroes, and especially Slovaks have not yet found it. Of course everyone of us has some idea of what has been as defective as our picture may be. No matter how much men try to forget yesterday, only the few amnesiacs can do it successfully and they, too, suffer psychologically. For the non-Anglo-American particularly the question of the past haunts his every activity. His recollections of foregoing generations are painful. To the modern descendant the status of the father or grandfather seems hardly one to ennoble progeny: the unskilled Slovak brutalized in the steel mill, coal mine, or slaughterhouse; the Italian ragpicker earning his bread by combing garbage dumps of our larger cities; the Jewish sweatshop worker slaving in an overcrowded, �82 SLOVAKIA filthy New York tenement fifteen hours a day; or the illiterate Negro sharecropper suffering from centuries of pellagra and persecution. Even if the present minority member has no first-hand contact with such figures, one can be sure that he knows them through images. Most Slovak Americans still live in Pittsburgh, Cleveland, Gary, Chicago, Youngstown, Bridgeport, and Detroit where they can see the smokestack that ordered their for,ebears to their job. If by chance personal recollection does not create a sense of inadequacy, the little historical work that has been done on these groups will. Such written profiles for the most part make descendants extremely self-conscious of their heritage. The published studies are products either of well-meaning advocat,es who want to list the group's achievements in terms of "contributions" or of ingroup writers who concentrate their attention on pre-1800 American origins or the cultural connection with medieval Europe. In either case the result has been to intensify the inferiority. What does it mean to a grandson trying hard to obtain an education that his heritage stems from the grandeur of Rome or that he and Toscannini have something in common; or to a descendant of a Polish peasant that his countryman Kosciuszko helped Washington win the American Revolution; or to today's Negro that Phillis Wheatley was writing good poetry in 1760? Such "history" only reminds readers of the extraordinary distance which they have to travel to be accepted as just another American. In essence such nationality "personalities" have little real connection with or relevance to their own circumstance. In fact, many celebrities have not associated with their group at all although some have. Of all this country's minorities it is likely that the Slovak Americans have the greatest difficulty in orientation. For what is there available to dispel their ignorance and describe the aotivity of their father and grandfather when they left Spis to come to Pittsburgh? Unfortunately not a great deal of literature. Certainly with almost a million inhabitants tracing their heritage back to the foothills of the Carpathians, it is tragic that there is not one complete history of what the emigrants did which their descendants can read. Of course, there are publications on Slovaks in the United States but these ar,e usually inaccessible to the young as well as non- �SLOVAKIA 83 Slavs. The many parish histories give a part of the tale and most of the other works are either hidden away as university theses, like Rev. Zatlm's "Social History of the Slovaks in America" or Rev. Buc's "Slovak Nationalism" or they are in Slovak, as Rovnianek's autobiography, Dr. Hrusovsky's history of the Slovak religious orders, Culen's history of American Slovaks, Hrobak's edited notes of Furdek, or the most complete study of all, Dr. Pauco's jubilee history of Jednota. Thus the dilemma in having to live in two worlds remains. Minorities members are the "marginal men, " as E. V. Stonequist described them, attempting to adjust to a majority culture yet never able to divest themselves of what they believe a foreign, un-American family life. It is my point that such a transition need not be uncomfortable and irritating and in fact American historians are just now providing a solvent. Very recently scholarly interest in our sub-cultures has heightened. Starting in the 1920's among social workers and a rare professional historian and quickened by the recent pressure of non-whites for equality, investigators of our society have begun to recognize the necessity of including Catholics, Jews, and non-whites in any generalization about our past. Late publications on the Negroes, Greeks, and Jews; the formation of an Immigration History Group; and the success of an immigrant archival collection at the University of Minnesota are tangible manifestations of the growing recognition of the subject. If the trend continues, Americans of minority descent will be major beneficiaries. The tale of their own forebears, not Benovsky, Bernolak, or Stur as great as these men were, will take a place along side that of Anglo-American life as a fit subject for scholarship. The as yet literally unknown period of the recent, mass immigration after 1870 will be illuminated. And when it is, the insecurity of the minority member over his heritage will disappear. He need not cower at the imagined tale of the slum, poverty, ignorance, and demoralization. Such a tradition was his background but only a part of it. From preliminary research this writer has done on all Slavic Americans, he would emphasize rather the surprising viability and substance of their immigrant �84 SLOVAKIA community. These newcomers, so-called greenhorns, culturally deprived, largely unlettered masses traveled thousands of miles to a vastly different environment and fashioned a complete social life, including parishes, social centers, fraternals, newspapers, even dramatic and musical societies. Such institutions may not have equalled their American counterpart in support or quality but these associations certainly represented a significant economic and cultural advance from what they had in the Old Country. To help ease the lot of maturing Slovak Americans and assist students of American culture some steps have already been taken, as Jednota's scholarship awards and the agreements made with the University of Minnesota. This writer would like to make an additional proposal. Actually this suggestion is a renewal of an appeal made by Rev. Mlynarovic several decades ago, the formation of a Slovak American Historical Association. Such a cultural society would offer permanent encouragement to those interested in the history of Slovaks in America. At the start it could interest and assist students to gather, organize and publish materials on the nationality. Anyone who has visited the Institute, Middletown, Pittsburgh, and Chicago realizes the necessity of ordering and preserving annuals, newspapers and manuscript collections. The Association would also communicate with other nationality historical societies which have proven their own value and keep in contact with immigrant historians in general. The major drawback to such an organization is the same that has plagued Slovak Americans as a whole-factionalism. Slovaks are of many persuasions, from Protestants to Orthodox, and these subdivisions have confounded and retarded any all-inclusive body. But such an obstacle may well be overcome by including all Slovak groups in its formation and as a r,esult of the urgency of the situation. This writer would like to initiate action by suggesting a Slovak American Newsletter and he solicits advice from readers. This paper, has been both an analysis of the problem and a suggestion for solution. It sees a process whereby other minorities will grow in self-confidence but fears that Slovak Americans may not have a recognizable past for some time to come unless action is taken soon. The call, however, �SLOVAKIA 85 does not seek to instill ethnic pride in the hearts and minds of disillusioned descendants. This identity-attachment will result and expand when more of the entire past is exposed. Any research subject, whether sensitive or not, should be encouraged to help explain the reality of a group's adjustment. Certainly out of this academic pursuit, sons will sense a more substantial basis for knowing themselves. One need not guess at the profound satisfaction that all minorities will experience when they form societies that deal with academicians. The recognition of scholarship can do much to ease an inferiority. With such a relationship ethnic leaders must be cautioned that encouraging historical scholarship will not pr,e vent assimilation, "drowning in an Anglo-American sea," as some have termed it. Most sociologists agree that homogenization is inevitable and amalgamation appears as an American trend. But this process of change will be less demoralizing for group members who really are interested in honoring their past. Maria Mrazik will change her name to Mary More and even marry a Robert Smith but the transition will not necessarily indicate a rejection of her Slovak heritage. She still will likely support the examination of the internal and external problems which her forebears encountered in building their institutions. Nevertheless the minority member's trauma is still the order of the day. The pervasive and depressing syndrome can be observed most closely by first-hand testimony, the lament of a young Halian boy, named John Fante, who sought to erase his heritage. The nationality here is really irrelevant; he could just as well have been a Slovak or of any other minority. As he says, he takes solace in his name as he could be mistaken for a more American nationality. Yet he could not escape his family where conflict was constant and tragic. His confession appeared several decades ago in a 1933 article entitled, "The Odyssey of a Wop," but his discomfort typifies that of a Hunlde's son as well: I enter the . .. school with an awful fear that I a Wop. As soon as I find out why people have such names, I match my own against such typically ltalian Bianci, Borello, Pacelli-the names of other students. I relieved by the comparison. After all, I think, people French. will be called things as surcognomens as am pleasantly will say I am �86 SLOVAKIA Doesn't my name sound French? Sure! So thereafter, when people ask me my nationality, I tell them I am French. A few boys begin calling me Frenchy. I like that. It feels fine. Thus I begin to loathe my heritage. I avoid Italian boys and girls who try to be friendly. I thank God for · my light skin and hair, and I choose my companions by the Anglo-Saxon ring of their names. If a boy's name is Whitney, Browne, or Smythe, then he's my pal; but I'm always a little breathless when I am with him; he may find me out. At the lunch hour I huddle over my lunch pail, for my mother doesn't wrap my sandwiches in wax paper, ... she makes them too large and the lettuce leaves protrude. Worse, the bread is home-made; not bakery bread, not "American" bread. I make a great fuss because I can't have mayonnaise and other "American" things ... I am nervous when I bring friends to my house; the place looks so Italian. Here hangs a picture of Victor Emmanuel, and over there is one of the cathedral of Milan, and next to it, one of St. Peter's, and on the buffet stands a wine-pitcher of medieval design; it's forever brimming, forever red and brilliant with wine. These things are heirlooms belonging to my father, and no matter who may come to our house, he likes to stand under them and brag. So I begin to shout at him. I tell him to cut out being a Wop and to be an American once in a while . Immediately he gets his razor-strap and whales hell out of me, clouting me from room to room and finally out the back door. I go into the woodshed and puH down my pants and stretch my neck to examine the blue slices across my rump. A Wop! that's what my father is! Nowhere is there an American father who beats his son this way. Well, he's not going to get away with it; some day I'll get even with him ... My grandmother has taught me to speak her native tongue. By seven, I know it pretty well, and I always address her in it. But when friends are with me, when I am twelve and thirteen, I pretend to ignorance of what she says, and smirk stiffly; my friends daren't know that I can speak any language but English. Sometimes this infuriates her. She bristles, the loose skin at her throat knits hard, and she blasphemes with a mighty blasphemy.• As Fante said, he was always a little breathless for he may have been found out. With more professional attention given to his group's history, the time will come when he and all minority members will catch their breath and assume their composure. In the process both minority and majority may then discover a new sense of compatibility. The omnipresent "drift" and purposeless will vanish as together they strive to attain the so-called Amerioan Dream. Victor R. Greene Kansas State University Manhattan, Kansas • The American Mercury, XXX (September, 1939), 91-93, quoted in Maurice Davie, World Immigration (New York, 1936), 279-279. � 80 SLOVAKIA "SONS OF HUNKIES: MEN WITH A PAST?" A few years ago a book entitled The American Style appeared which attempted to analyze and define the cunent American temper. It was subtitled Essays in Value and Performance. Widely known scholars from a variety of fields, particularly history and anthropology, offered their impressions, or better, diagnoses of this nation's problems. While remedies varied, they all agreed that a general sickness had afflicted the American people. A feeling of uncertainty, loss of direction, and lack of purpose had controlled the behavior of the population for about the past decade. Agreeing in part with sociologist David Riesman, one of the participants, these students noted that the campaigns of old, the Armageddons of another day, the taming of the pioneer west, making the world safe for democracy in 1917, and the "Crusade in Europe", as General Eisenhower put it, had been won. In place of these challenges no new frontiers had appeared. America was trying to adjust to a new anxious era where old values were disappearing. Now the state was guaranteeing minimum security and abroad we were enduring a continual stalemate and compromise with our enemies. The exhilaration of clear victory was unattainable because there was no "solution" to our problems. Instead, as the discussants pointed to Korea and could well have done so later with Vietnam, our policy was not to vanquish our foes as before but merely contain them. The realization of this indecisive situation led to the present mood of confusion, frustration, and "drift." Even a commission begun to formulate and enunciate national goals under the Eisenhower administration was not able to dispell the agonizing transition; in fact, its ,e stablishment was evidence of it. Such a loss of commitment to ideals seems to apply particularly to descendants of this country's minority groups. Ethnic historians and sociologists can discern that same search for principles among our newer nationalities. As this writer sees it, present generation Slovak, Jewish, Italian and non-white Americans labor heavily not only under the general psychological malady but an additional, even more upsetting disability, an embarrassment over their past. Theirs is a history they are usually trying to dismiss, forget, and ignore. The few who do actively cultivate ethnic history really know �SLOVAKIA 81 only a small part, in any case a distorted and even fanciful version. The effect on the younger generation is unfortunate. Maturing East European Americans particularly are, as individuals, desperately striving to assimilate their way of life to the Anglo-American middle class stereotype. Such an overpowering acculturative urge is forcing far too rapid psychological changes for a well-balanced adjustment and instead has created a pervasive discomfort in the form of a massive inferiority. The feeling is entirely unwarranted as this paper will show. It is to this disturbed neurosis that trained nationality historians can supply a remedy-the needed measure of selfconfidence. While this therapeutic function of ethnic scholars will be stressed here, one should understand that the major task of historians of immigration and race is not sociological. They are not social workers. Immigration historians are generally concerned with analyzing American culture through its ,effects on its subgroups. Nevertheless, at the very same time that nationality group scholars are investigating our society, they will also assist in lifting the mental cross that minorities bear. By suggesting a sophisticated picture of subgroups' past, trained ethnic historians will offer a mo!'e comfortable position from which these people can base present life on past experience. Nevertheless, as of quite recently if history does not provide any foundation at all for what is, or supplies that very necessary continuity with the present, Catholics, Jews, Negroes, and especially Slovaks have not yet found it. Of course everyone of us has some idea of what has been as defective as our picture may be. No matter how much men try to forget yesterday, only the few amnesiacs can do it successfully and they, too, suffer psychologically. For the non-Anglo-American particularly the question of the past haunts his every activity. His recollections of foregoing generations are painful. To the modern descendant the status of the father or grandfather seems hardly one to ennoble progeny: the unskilled Slovak brutalized in the steel mill, coal mine, or slaughterhouse; the Italian ragpicker earning his bread by combing garbage dumps of our larger cities; the Jewish sweatshop worker slaving in an overcrowded, �82 SLOVAKIA filthy New York tenement fifteen hours a day; or the illiterate Negro sharecropper suffering from centuries of pellagra and persecution. Even if the present minority member has no first-hand contact with such figures, one can be sure that he knows them through images. Most Slovak Americans still live in Pittsburgh, Cleveland, Gary, Chicago, Youngstown, Bridgeport, and Detroit where they can see the smokestack that ordered their for,ebears to their job. If by chance personal recollection does not create a sense of inadequacy, the little historical work that has been done on these groups will. Such written profiles for the most part make descendants extremely self-conscious of their heritage. The published studies are products either of well-meaning advocat,es who want to list the group's achievements in terms of "contributions" or of ingroup writers who concentrate their attention on pre-1800 American origins or the cultural connection with medieval Europe. In either case the result has been to intensify the inferiority. What does it mean to a grandson trying hard to obtain an education that his heritage stems from the grandeur of Rome or that he and Toscannini have something in common; or to a descendant of a Polish peasant that his countryman Kosciuszko helped Washington win the American Revolution; or to today's Negro that Phillis Wheatley was writing good poetry in 1760? Such "history" only reminds readers of the extraordinary distance which they have to travel to be accepted as just another American. In essence such nationality "personalities" have little real connection with or relevance to their own circumstance. In fact, many celebrities have not associated with their group at all although some have. Of all this country's minorities it is likely that the Slovak Americans have the greatest difficulty in orientation. For what is there available to dispel their ignorance and describe the aotivity of their father and grandfather when they left Spis to come to Pittsburgh? Unfortunately not a great deal of literature. Certainly with almost a million inhabitants tracing their heritage back to the foothills of the Carpathians, it is tragic that there is not one complete history of what the emigrants did which their descendants can read. Of course, there are publications on Slovaks in the United States but these ar,e usually inaccessible to the young as well as non- �SLOVAKIA 83 Slavs. The many parish histories give a part of the tale and most of the other works are either hidden away as university theses, like Rev. Zatlm's "Social History of the Slovaks in America" or Rev. Buc's "Slovak Nationalism" or they are in Slovak, as Rovnianek's autobiography, Dr. Hrusovsky's history of the Slovak religious orders, Culen's history of American Slovaks, Hrobak's edited notes of Furdek, or the most complete study of all, Dr. Pauco's jubilee history of Jednota. Thus the dilemma in having to live in two worlds remains. Minorities members are the "marginal men, " as E. V. Stonequist described them, attempting to adjust to a majority culture yet never able to divest themselves of what they believe a foreign, un-American family life. It is my point that such a transition need not be uncomfortable and irritating and in fact American historians are just now providing a solvent. Very recently scholarly interest in our sub-cultures has heightened. Starting in the 1920's among social workers and a rare professional historian and quickened by the recent pressure of non-whites for equality, investigators of our society have begun to recognize the necessity of including Catholics, Jews, and non-whites in any generalization about our past. Late publications on the Negroes, Greeks, and Jews; the formation of an Immigration History Group; and the success of an immigrant archival collection at the University of Minnesota are tangible manifestations of the growing recognition of the subject. If the trend continues, Americans of minority descent will be major beneficiaries. The tale of their own forebears, not Benovsky, Bernolak, or Stur as great as these men were, will take a place along side that of Anglo-American life as a fit subject for scholarship. The as yet literally unknown period of the recent, mass immigration after 1870 will be illuminated. And when it is, the insecurity of the minority member over his heritage will disappear. He need not cower at the imagined tale of the slum, poverty, ignorance, and demoralization. Such a tradition was his background but only a part of it. From preliminary research this writer has done on all Slavic Americans, he would emphasize rather the surprising viability and substance of their immigrant �84 SLOVAKIA community. These newcomers, so-called greenhorns, culturally deprived, largely unlettered masses traveled thousands of miles to a vastly different environment and fashioned a complete social life, including parishes, social centers, fraternals, newspapers, even dramatic and musical societies. Such institutions may not have equalled their American counterpart in support or quality but these associations certainly represented a significant economic and cultural advance from what they had in the Old Country. To help ease the lot of maturing Slovak Americans and assist students of American culture some steps have already been taken, as Jednota's scholarship awards and the agreements made with the University of Minnesota. This writer would like to make an additional proposal. Actually this suggestion is a renewal of an appeal made by Rev. Mlynarovic several decades ago, the formation of a Slovak American Historical Association. Such a cultural society would offer permanent encouragement to those interested in the history of Slovaks in America. At the start it could interest and assist students to gather, organize and publish materials on the nationality. Anyone who has visited the Institute, Middletown, Pittsburgh, and Chicago realizes the necessity of ordering and preserving annuals, newspapers and manuscript collections. The Association would also communicate with other nationality historical societies which have proven their own value and keep in contact with immigrant historians in general. The major drawback to such an organization is the same that has plagued Slovak Americans as a whole-factionalism. Slovaks are of many persuasions, from Protestants to Orthodox, and these subdivisions have confounded and retarded any all-inclusive body. But such an obstacle may well be overcome by including all Slovak groups in its formation and as a r,esult of the urgency of the situation. This writer would like to initiate action by suggesting a Slovak American Newsletter and he solicits advice from readers. This paper, has been both an analysis of the problem and a suggestion for solution. It sees a process whereby other minorities will grow in self-confidence but fears that Slovak Americans may not have a recognizable past for some time to come unless action is taken soon. The call, however, �SLOVAKIA 85 does not seek to instill ethnic pride in the hearts and minds of disillusioned descendants. This identity-attachment will result and expand when more of the entire past is exposed. Any research subject, whether sensitive or not, should be encouraged to help explain the reality of a group's adjustment. Certainly out of this academic pursuit, sons will sense a more substantial basis for knowing themselves. One need not guess at the profound satisfaction that all minorities will experience when they form societies that deal with academicians. The recognition of scholarship can do much to ease an inferiority. With such a relationship ethnic leaders must be cautioned that encouraging historical scholarship will not pr,e vent assimilation, "drowning in an Anglo-American sea," as some have termed it. Most sociologists agree that homogenization is inevitable and amalgamation appears as an American trend. But this process of change will be less demoralizing for group members who really are interested in honoring their past. Maria Mrazik will change her name to Mary More and even marry a Robert Smith but the transition will not necessarily indicate a rejection of her Slovak heritage. She still will likely support the examination of the internal and external problems which her forebears encountered in building their institutions. Nevertheless the minority member's trauma is still the order of the day. The pervasive and depressing syndrome can be observed most closely by first-hand testimony, the lament of a young Halian boy, named John Fante, who sought to erase his heritage. The nationality here is really irrelevant; he could just as well have been a Slovak or of any other minority. As he says, he takes solace in his name as he could be mistaken for a more American nationality. Yet he could not escape his family where conflict was constant and tragic. His confession appeared several decades ago in a 1933 article entitled, "The Odyssey of a Wop," but his discomfort typifies that of a Hunlde's son as well: I enter the . .. school with an awful fear that I a Wop. As soon as I find out why people have such names, I match my own against such typically ltalian Bianci, Borello, Pacelli-the names of other students. I relieved by the comparison. After all, I think, people French. will be called things as surcognomens as am pleasantly will say I am �86 SLOVAKIA Doesn't my name sound French? Sure! So thereafter, when people ask me my nationality, I tell them I am French. A few boys begin calling me Frenchy. I like that. It feels fine. Thus I begin to loathe my heritage. I avoid Italian boys and girls who try to be friendly. I thank God for · my light skin and hair, and I choose my companions by the Anglo-Saxon ring of their names. If a boy's name is Whitney, Browne, or Smythe, then he's my pal; but I'm always a little breathless when I am with him; he may find me out. At the lunch hour I huddle over my lunch pail, for my mother doesn't wrap my sandwiches in wax paper, ... she makes them too large and the lettuce leaves protrude. Worse, the bread is home-made; not bakery bread, not "American" bread. I make a great fuss because I can't have mayonnaise and other "American" things ... I am nervous when I bring friends to my house; the place looks so Italian. Here hangs a picture of Victor Emmanuel, and over there is one of the cathedral of Milan, and next to it, one of St. Peter's, and on the buffet stands a wine-pitcher of medieval design; it's forever brimming, forever red and brilliant with wine. These things are heirlooms belonging to my father, and no matter who may come to our house, he likes to stand under them and brag. So I begin to shout at him. I tell him to cut out being a Wop and to be an American once in a while . Immediately he gets his razor-strap and whales hell out of me, clouting me from room to room and finally out the back door. I go into the woodshed and puH down my pants and stretch my neck to examine the blue slices across my rump. A Wop! that's what my father is! Nowhere is there an American father who beats his son this way. Well, he's not going to get away with it; some day I'll get even with him ... My grandmother has taught me to speak her native tongue. By seven, I know it pretty well, and I always address her in it. But when friends are with me, when I am twelve and thirteen, I pretend to ignorance of what she says, and smirk stiffly; my friends daren't know that I can speak any language but English. Sometimes this infuriates her. She bristles, the loose skin at her throat knits hard, and she blasphemes with a mighty blasphemy.• As Fante said, he was always a little breathless for he may have been found out. With more professional attention given to his group's history, the time will come when he and all minority members will catch their breath and assume their composure. In the process both minority and majority may then discover a new sense of compatibility. The omnipresent "drift" and purposeless will vanish as together they strive to attain the so-called Amerioan Dream. Victor R. Greene Kansas State University Manhattan, Kansas • The American Mercury, XXX (September, 1939), 91-93, quoted in Maurice Davie, World Immigration (New York, 1936), 279-279. � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource 1966, Vol. 16 Description An account of the resource Vol. 16 (No. 39), 1966. Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available The Slovak League of America Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1966 Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Text Any textual data included in the document 80 SLOVAKIA "SONS OF HUNKIES: MEN WITH A PAST?" A few years ago a book entitled The American Style appeared which attempted to analyze and define the cunent American temper. It was subtitled Essays in Value and Performance. Widely known scholars from a variety of fields, particularly history and anthropology, offered their impressions, or better, diagnoses of this nation's problems. While remedies varied, they all agreed that a general sickness had afflicted the American people. A feeling of uncertainty, loss of direction, and lack of purpose had controlled the behavior of the population for about the past decade. Agreeing in part with sociologist David Riesman, one of the participants, these students noted that the campaigns of old, the Armageddons of another day, the taming of the pioneer west, making the world safe for democracy in 1917, and the "Crusade in Europe", as General Eisenhower put it, had been won. In place of these challenges no new frontiers had appeared. America was trying to adjust to a new anxious era where old values were disappearing. Now the state was guaranteeing minimum security and abroad we were enduring a continual stalemate and compromise with our enemies. The exhilaration of clear victory was unattainable because there was no "solution" to our problems. Instead, as the discussants pointed to Korea and could well have done so later with Vietnam, our policy was not to vanquish our foes as before but merely contain them. The realization of this indecisive situation led to the present mood of confusion, frustration, and "drift." Even a commission begun to formulate and enunciate national goals under the Eisenhower administration was not able to dispell the agonizing transition; in fact, its ,e stablishment was evidence of it. Such a loss of commitment to ideals seems to apply particularly to descendants of this country's minority groups. Ethnic historians and sociologists can discern that same search for principles among our newer nationalities. As this writer sees it, present generation Slovak, Jewish, Italian and non-white Americans labor heavily not only under the general psychological malady but an additional, even more upsetting disability, an embarrassment over their past. Theirs is a history they are usually trying to dismiss, forget, and ignore. The few who do actively cultivate ethnic history really know SLOVAKIA 81 only a small part, in any case a distorted and even fanciful version. The effect on the younger generation is unfortunate. Maturing East European Americans particularly are, as individuals, desperately striving to assimilate their way of life to the Anglo-American middle class stereotype. Such an overpowering acculturative urge is forcing far too rapid psychological changes for a well-balanced adjustment and instead has created a pervasive discomfort in the form of a massive inferiority. The feeling is entirely unwarranted as this paper will show. It is to this disturbed neurosis that trained nationality historians can supply a remedy-the needed measure of selfconfidence. While this therapeutic function of ethnic scholars will be stressed here, one should understand that the major task of historians of immigration and race is not sociological. They are not social workers. Immigration historians are generally concerned with analyzing American culture through its ,effects on its subgroups. Nevertheless, at the very same time that nationality group scholars are investigating our society, they will also assist in lifting the mental cross that minorities bear. By suggesting a sophisticated picture of subgroups' past, trained ethnic historians will offer a mo!'e comfortable position from which these people can base present life on past experience. Nevertheless, as of quite recently if history does not provide any foundation at all for what is, or supplies that very necessary continuity with the present, Catholics, Jews, Negroes, and especially Slovaks have not yet found it. Of course everyone of us has some idea of what has been as defective as our picture may be. No matter how much men try to forget yesterday, only the few amnesiacs can do it successfully and they, too, suffer psychologically. For the non-Anglo-American particularly the question of the past haunts his every activity. His recollections of foregoing generations are painful. To the modern descendant the status of the father or grandfather seems hardly one to ennoble progeny: the unskilled Slovak brutalized in the steel mill, coal mine, or slaughterhouse; the Italian ragpicker earning his bread by combing garbage dumps of our larger cities; the Jewish sweatshop worker slaving in an overcrowded, 82 SLOVAKIA filthy New York tenement fifteen hours a day; or the illiterate Negro sharecropper suffering from centuries of pellagra and persecution. Even if the present minority member has no first-hand contact with such figures, one can be sure that he knows them through images. Most Slovak Americans still live in Pittsburgh, Cleveland, Gary, Chicago, Youngstown, Bridgeport, and Detroit where they can see the smokestack that ordered their for,ebears to their job. If by chance personal recollection does not create a sense of inadequacy, the little historical work that has been done on these groups will. Such written profiles for the most part make descendants extremely self-conscious of their heritage. The published studies are products either of well-meaning advocat,es who want to list the group's achievements in terms of "contributions" or of ingroup writers who concentrate their attention on pre-1800 American origins or the cultural connection with medieval Europe. In either case the result has been to intensify the inferiority. What does it mean to a grandson trying hard to obtain an education that his heritage stems from the grandeur of Rome or that he and Toscannini have something in common; or to a descendant of a Polish peasant that his countryman Kosciuszko helped Washington win the American Revolution; or to today's Negro that Phillis Wheatley was writing good poetry in 1760? Such "history" only reminds readers of the extraordinary distance which they have to travel to be accepted as just another American. In essence such nationality "personalities" have little real connection with or relevance to their own circumstance. In fact, many celebrities have not associated with their group at all although some have. Of all this country's minorities it is likely that the Slovak Americans have the greatest difficulty in orientation. For what is there available to dispel their ignorance and describe the aotivity of their father and grandfather when they left Spis to come to Pittsburgh? Unfortunately not a great deal of literature. Certainly with almost a million inhabitants tracing their heritage back to the foothills of the Carpathians, it is tragic that there is not one complete history of what the emigrants did which their descendants can read. Of course, there are publications on Slovaks in the United States but these ar,e usually inaccessible to the young as well as non- SLOVAKIA 83 Slavs. The many parish histories give a part of the tale and most of the other works are either hidden away as university theses, like Rev. Zatlm's "Social History of the Slovaks in America" or Rev. Buc's "Slovak Nationalism" or they are in Slovak, as Rovnianek's autobiography, Dr. Hrusovsky's history of the Slovak religious orders, Culen's history of American Slovaks, Hrobak's edited notes of Furdek, or the most complete study of all, Dr. Pauco's jubilee history of Jednota. Thus the dilemma in having to live in two worlds remains. Minorities members are the "marginal men, " as E. V. Stonequist described them, attempting to adjust to a majority culture yet never able to divest themselves of what they believe a foreign, un-American family life. It is my point that such a transition need not be uncomfortable and irritating and in fact American historians are just now providing a solvent. Very recently scholarly interest in our sub-cultures has heightened. Starting in the 1920's among social workers and a rare professional historian and quickened by the recent pressure of non-whites for equality, investigators of our society have begun to recognize the necessity of including Catholics, Jews, and non-whites in any generalization about our past. Late publications on the Negroes, Greeks, and Jews; the formation of an Immigration History Group; and the success of an immigrant archival collection at the University of Minnesota are tangible manifestations of the growing recognition of the subject. If the trend continues, Americans of minority descent will be major beneficiaries. The tale of their own forebears, not Benovsky, Bernolak, or Stur as great as these men were, will take a place along side that of Anglo-American life as a fit subject for scholarship. The as yet literally unknown period of the recent, mass immigration after 1870 will be illuminated. And when it is, the insecurity of the minority member over his heritage will disappear. He need not cower at the imagined tale of the slum, poverty, ignorance, and demoralization. Such a tradition was his background but only a part of it. From preliminary research this writer has done on all Slavic Americans, he would emphasize rather the surprising viability and substance of their immigrant 84 SLOVAKIA community. These newcomers, so-called greenhorns, culturally deprived, largely unlettered masses traveled thousands of miles to a vastly different environment and fashioned a complete social life, including parishes, social centers, fraternals, newspapers, even dramatic and musical societies. Such institutions may not have equalled their American counterpart in support or quality but these associations certainly represented a significant economic and cultural advance from what they had in the Old Country. To help ease the lot of maturing Slovak Americans and assist students of American culture some steps have already been taken, as Jednota's scholarship awards and the agreements made with the University of Minnesota. This writer would like to make an additional proposal. Actually this suggestion is a renewal of an appeal made by Rev. Mlynarovic several decades ago, the formation of a Slovak American Historical Association. Such a cultural society would offer permanent encouragement to those interested in the history of Slovaks in America. At the start it could interest and assist students to gather, organize and publish materials on the nationality. Anyone who has visited the Institute, Middletown, Pittsburgh, and Chicago realizes the necessity of ordering and preserving annuals, newspapers and manuscript collections. The Association would also communicate with other nationality historical societies which have proven their own value and keep in contact with immigrant historians in general. The major drawback to such an organization is the same that has plagued Slovak Americans as a whole-factionalism. Slovaks are of many persuasions, from Protestants to Orthodox, and these subdivisions have confounded and retarded any all-inclusive body. But such an obstacle may well be overcome by including all Slovak groups in its formation and as a r,esult of the urgency of the situation. This writer would like to initiate action by suggesting a Slovak American Newsletter and he solicits advice from readers. This paper, has been both an analysis of the problem and a suggestion for solution. It sees a process whereby other minorities will grow in self-confidence but fears that Slovak Americans may not have a recognizable past for some time to come unless action is taken soon. The call, however, SLOVAKIA 85 does not seek to instill ethnic pride in the hearts and minds of disillusioned descendants. This identity-attachment will result and expand when more of the entire past is exposed. Any research subject, whether sensitive or not, should be encouraged to help explain the reality of a group's adjustment. Certainly out of this academic pursuit, sons will sense a more substantial basis for knowing themselves. One need not guess at the profound satisfaction that all minorities will experience when they form societies that deal with academicians. The recognition of scholarship can do much to ease an inferiority. With such a relationship ethnic leaders must be cautioned that encouraging historical scholarship will not pr,e vent assimilation, "drowning in an Anglo-American sea," as some have termed it. Most sociologists agree that homogenization is inevitable and amalgamation appears as an American trend. But this process of change will be less demoralizing for group members who really are interested in honoring their past. Maria Mrazik will change her name to Mary More and even marry a Robert Smith but the transition will not necessarily indicate a rejection of her Slovak heritage. She still will likely support the examination of the internal and external problems which her forebears encountered in building their institutions. Nevertheless the minority member's trauma is still the order of the day. The pervasive and depressing syndrome can be observed most closely by first-hand testimony, the lament of a young Halian boy, named John Fante, who sought to erase his heritage. The nationality here is really irrelevant; he could just as well have been a Slovak or of any other minority. As he says, he takes solace in his name as he could be mistaken for a more American nationality. Yet he could not escape his family where conflict was constant and tragic. His confession appeared several decades ago in a 1933 article entitled, "The Odyssey of a Wop," but his discomfort typifies that of a Hunlde's son as well: I enter the . .. school with an awful fear that I a Wop. As soon as I find out why people have such names, I match my own against such typically ltalian Bianci, Borello, Pacelli-the names of other students. I relieved by the comparison. After all, I think, people French. will be called things as surcognomens as am pleasantly will say I am 86 SLOVAKIA Doesn't my name sound French? Sure! So thereafter, when people ask me my nationality, I tell them I am French. A few boys begin calling me Frenchy. I like that. It feels fine. Thus I begin to loathe my heritage. I avoid Italian boys and girls who try to be friendly. I thank God for · my light skin and hair, and I choose my companions by the Anglo-Saxon ring of their names. If a boy's name is Whitney, Browne, or Smythe, then he's my pal; but I'm always a little breathless when I am with him; he may find me out. At the lunch hour I huddle over my lunch pail, for my mother doesn't wrap my sandwiches in wax paper, ... she makes them too large and the lettuce leaves protrude. Worse, the bread is home-made; not bakery bread, not "American" bread. I make a great fuss because I can't have mayonnaise and other "American" things ... I am nervous when I bring friends to my house; the place looks so Italian. Here hangs a picture of Victor Emmanuel, and over there is one of the cathedral of Milan, and next to it, one of St. Peter's, and on the buffet stands a wine-pitcher of medieval design; it's forever brimming, forever red and brilliant with wine. These things are heirlooms belonging to my father, and no matter who may come to our house, he likes to stand under them and brag. So I begin to shout at him. I tell him to cut out being a Wop and to be an American once in a while . Immediately he gets his razor-strap and whales hell out of me, clouting me from room to room and finally out the back door. I go into the woodshed and puH down my pants and stretch my neck to examine the blue slices across my rump. A Wop! that's what my father is! Nowhere is there an American father who beats his son this way. Well, he's not going to get away with it; some day I'll get even with him ... My grandmother has taught me to speak her native tongue. By seven, I know it pretty well, and I always address her in it. But when friends are with me, when I am twelve and thirteen, I pretend to ignorance of what she says, and smirk stiffly; my friends daren't know that I can speak any language but English. Sometimes this infuriates her. She bristles, the loose skin at her throat knits hard, and she blasphemes with a mighty blasphemy.• As Fante said, he was always a little breathless for he may have been found out. With more professional attention given to his group's history, the time will come when he and all minority members will catch their breath and assume their composure. In the process both minority and majority may then discover a new sense of compatibility. The omnipresent "drift" and purposeless will vanish as together they strive to attain the so-called Amerioan Dream. Victor R. Greene Kansas State University Manhattan, Kansas • The American Mercury, XXX (September, 1939), 91-93, quoted in Maurice Davie, World Immigration (New York, 1936), 279-279.  Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource "Sons of Hunkies: Men with a Past?" Description An account of the resource Victor R. Greene Slovakia, Vol. 16 (No. 39), 1966 pp. 80-86 Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Greene, Victor R. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1966 LCNAF https://slovakia.wordsofpassage.net/files/original/89fef06fff45e630883f6912b72e5997.pdf 686916407a14a21d309fc7be8b3da25d PDF Text Text SLOVAKIA 87 A GLIM!PSE OF GOTHI'C SLOVA!KI:A By Tino Berko Every country has its hrilght side ,a s well as its shadows. '11he qualities that set it apart are rfatrly numerous, and !'Un the gamut :iirom tihe mrugniifiroent to the ·badkwa'l'.'ld aJilld booris'h . In the past, similar epithets a:lso aipplied to a land in the Carpathian Basin, - S'lovakra. Some of these adjectives are relatively new, having made thei-r appearance after 1918 when the Slovaks freed t!hemselves from the !Hungarian yoke and were a·b le to form Czeoho--lS'lovaki,a in common with tlhe Czeelhs. During the years from 1939-1945 when Slovakia ibecame a sovereign state, it acquired still other qualifying titles, good and not so good. Depending on whether they were to invest the Slovruk Republic with approval or lend it a false imruge, the words "fascist" or "nazi" were a'P'Plied. When Slovakia lost its political independence in 1945, it was reduced by the Ozeclhs to the status of an occupational province. Yet in the list of political epithets that we seek to recaH, there is no such name. On the contrary: '.Dhose in command of Slovakia today, the Czecihs, call the :plight of the enslaved Slovaks "people's democracy", "communistic"; since 1960, "socialistic" . The world is told by the voice of Czech propaganda that Slovakia did not win its independence until 1945 and that since then it has been a model of socialism. Out of "backward" Slovakia !has allegedly developed a " highly industria:lized" country. Thus another new epithet for Slova:kia. But in leafing baok through the catalog of Slovakia's a ttributes, the word "wonderful" still applies. Slovrukia today is still a -land that every nature-lover will readily endorse as " an immense natural park in Central Europe". In regard to its historic works of rurt, Slovakia is still a "ha:ribaric" country. But if we •b ear in mind 1:Jhat to the early Italian ear the word "Gothic" and "barbarian" were synonymous, the presence in Slovakia of many Gothic master-wo:riks of art makes thiat land indeed one replete with '~barbaric" treasures. This is just tJhe opposite to tlhe origina:l idea of Gothic meaning "uncivilized" (used in t!he ancient world to designate any person or thiJllg that was non-Greek �Gothic entrance to the fortress in Bratislava, Slovakia. (Photo Berka) �SLOVAKIA 89 or non-Roman), for the history of art has long since rehabilitated the Gothic style, 1:Jhe most perfect in unity and harrmony. Gothic Slovakia, which covers the entire country of 49,000 square kilometers, is a vast Eden of art where castles and !forts, churohes ,a nd chapels radiate a unique fascination. We know that this Gothic garden in Slovaikia was landscaped witJh the 1he}p of German settlers in the 13th and 14tJh Centuries; enlarged in the 15th Century and the beginning of the 16th, as ,a Late Gothic variation of the architectural style that lhad its birth in northern France. It is sad to reflect that it was not spared the ravages of war. Many of the forts crumbled in ruins when Hussit-es from Boihemi•a stormed Slovakia, or tJhe Turks, during the 16th Century, advanced as far as south and central Slovrukia and from their outposts struged wild plundering raids. 'Dhat is why today these Got!hic forts, once the a bode of counts and grandees, or places of asylum for the threatened populace in times of siege, are today in rack and ruin, looted and plundered and scarred by the raviages of time. Indeed, only a few of tJhe fortresses were spared this tragic fate. Slovakia's historic forts have been restored at great cost and rebuilt as museums of Sloviak history. Favored have ibeen the Gothic residences and forts of Bratislava, Nitra, Orava, Smolenke, Zvolen and, to some extent, Trencin. Very many, among them tJhe !fortresses of Strecno and Spis, see tJheir proud past reflected in wild ruins and twisted rocky ravines. They are documents in stone of the merciless inlI'oaJds 111pan their Gothic style, tJhe attack of re•a l barbarians. In contemplating Gothic Sloviakia, we must first mention tJhe numerous churcihes and sacred works of art, for they embody the strongest heritage of tJhe Slovak Gothic style, which has been preserved to this day, imparting to the faithful wibhin a sea of atheism, a theologica:l reply to the eternal "to be or not to lbe". Seen externally, the Gothic churches in Slovakia are not ostentatious, but plain. 'Dhey lack tJhe splendor and magnificent form reflected, for example, by the Cathedrals of Notre Dame in Chartres and Rheims. What one notes in pairticular is the imperrfect execution of the Gothic spires. Many cathedrals have towers that run counter to form or �Portal of the Cathedral in Kosice, Slovakia, seen from town-hall arcades. (Photo Berko > �SLOVAKIA 91 are in need of towers to conform in style. An example is tJhe Cathedrnl of Kosice. The upper parts have towers of Baroque or conkal roofs, but of different heights. At most, the parish cihurch in Spisska Nova Ves can he considered a prize in competition with other churc'hes in Slovakia. It suffered a disastrous fire in 1849 and acquired a tower 87 meters hi:gh, the highest in all Slovaki,a. The Gothic towers of Slovrukia form a contrast to t hose in Germany. For example, the spires of Regensburg are 105 and 107 meters, those of Fretburig Cathedral are 115 meters and those of the Cathedral at Ulm, 162 meters high. Again historical factors were responsiible for the lesser degree of magnificence and external form, as well as the inadequate execution of the Slovak church spires. It is quite understandable and excusable in '1i:g'ht of the turmoil that followed the Hussite and TurkiSlh wars. Furthermore, tihe churc!hes were often struck by disasters, such a:s floods , earthquaik es and fires, that had a hrurmful effect on the Got'hic beauty and style. Albeit the outer Gothic forms were somewhat inconsistent and frequently unfinished, especiaHy the steeples, the interiors possessed great riches. T•he Gothic tripty~hs, woodcarved statues and panei frescoes, a veritable feast for the eye, can claim for Slova•kia international primacy, for tihey merit the admiration of the most /fastidious fancier of art. Striking examples are to be found in: St. Martin's Cathedral and tihe Franciscan Church in Bratislava, the Bishop's Cathedrnls of Trnava, Banrska Bystrica and Spisska Kapitula; also the churches in Hronsky •B enadik, Zehra, Kezmarok, Spisska Sobota, Spissky Stvrtok, S'pisske Vlachy, L iptovsky Mikulas, Bardejov and Presov. A:11 are outstanding ecclesiastical edifices from the High and Late Got'hic periods 13th, 14th and 15th Centuries whose masters are not always known. Unique amonig tJhe Gothic structures of Slovakia, however, are the houses of worshiip in Levoca or Leutsdhau (•a n area settled by Germans in tihe 12th and 13th Centuries) in the northeastern part of Slovakia. They reach the zenitJh in the works of Master Paul .o f Levoca (1455-1530 ?) , principally in the main altar of St. James' Church, and in the metropolis of Kosice in East Slovakia, where the greatest �Gothic Cathedral of Kosice, Slovakia. Note Baroque roof on tower. (Photo Berka) �SLOVAKIA 93 Gothi,c structure in the country stands on a plot of giround 1,200 meters square. The main altar, 18.62 meters higih, is the largest altar, with ,s ide wings, in the Got:Jhic ,w orld. It is Paul of Levoca's masterpiece, erected in the mighty three-apse pseudo-'b asilica in 1508, lbut not completed until the end of 1,518. 'I'he altar is magnificent, not only because of its heig1ht, but due to the tectonic, composition and stylistic harmony. In creating this masterwork, Paul of Levoca merits a niche in the hall of fame alongside ot:Jher great Gothic architects and wood-carvers, that include Tilman Riemenschneider, Hans Multsclher, Veit Stoss, Hans Leinberger, Gregor Et1hart, Albrecht Dlirer, Lucas Crarnach, Hans Holbein and many other masters of the late Middle Ages. The altar with side wings of Paul of Levoca "is rooted in the familiar traditions of plastic art of the Sloviak historic landscape. If we put him with all his artistic and estJhetic qualities alongside similar works of other great masters of that period, we see that he forms a link in a chain extending across the peaks of European art of the XV and XVI Centuries.* 'Dhe bold execution of the ihigh altar in Lev,oca, is a work carved out of linden, or basswood, which made it susceptible early to worm damage. From 1952-54, it was treated and renovated to preserve it from further destructive forces, restoring the greatest specimen of Gothic art in Europe to manifest, in all its glory, the spirit of European solidarity and unity. Thus it mirrored the spirit of German-<8lavic cooperation, ,a s it was manifested in the Middle Ages in keeping with the Gothic spirit. In that same church of 'St. James, whose tower rburned down at the end of the 18th Century and was not rebuilt until 1858 - only 70 meters high this time and counter to style - there are six other Gothic altars with wings. They, too, are a creation of the famous Master Paul and his pupils, whose work was imitated throughout 1:Jhe Spis area and in fact, all of Slovrukia. Also, the wwks of Paul are the oarved figures of BetMehem on the altar of the Nativity in Levoca, and the statues of the Crucifixion in Lomnicka, of St. Barbar,a in Oko1i<cne, and the triptyclhs in tJhe churches of Banska Byst•rica, Sasova and Spisska Sdbota. Levoca a!lso has Gothic frescoes in the aforementioned sanctuary, datini5 �Largest Gothic Altar of its kind is this masterpiece by Paul of Levoca in the Church of St. James, Levoca, Slovakia. (Photo Berko) �SLOVAKIA from the 14th Century, plus several panel frescoes, a unique lava·bo and other art trea:sures that have made the town a verita,b le repository CYf superb sacred Gofilric art. Moving toward the Eaistern !Slovak cities of Bardejov and Kosice, one finds a verita:ble Gothic feast for t:Jhe eyes. Both these historic sites are proud of their ohurohes and many tripty~hs, woodca•r vings and panel frescoes that date from the 14tih and 1'5th Oenturies. In Bardejov is 1:Jhe Church of St. Aegidius, in the 12th Century the site of a Cistercian cloister, 1:Jhat invites the photographer's eye. The architects were Nicholas of Bardejov, Stefan L•apicid of Kosice, Master Urban and Franklin Stemraseg .CYf Ansba:ch who completed the steeple in 1486. This spire, too, was tfue victim of an earthquaJke, the la-st time in 1725, as weH as several fires in 1640, 1669 and 1836. Irts sp1re was but 78 meters h~gh and was not lb uilt in Gothic style. 'Dhe ohurch has pure lineation, crowned by an altar 17.5 meters hig,h in the main nave, wmoh is 24 meters high. Along with the otfuer side a1tars, 11 in all, one finds the famous triptych of the Nativity, tlhe work of an unknown artist from 1460, and the altar Vir dolorum, dating to 1505. No other cathedral in ,Slovakia can compare with that of Kosice, which enohants even the most fastidious eye with its grandeur •a nd ,b rilliance. 'Dhe cathedral's perfect Gobhic form, covering some 1,200 squaire meters ta:kes on gigantic proportions. It was bui'1t in the 14th and 151:Jh Centuries and practicaHy completed by 1436 as a 3-nave basilica. It is 60 meters long, 35.50 meters wide, 24 meters hi,g'h inside and 32.70 meters high outside, with a transept, whose interior length measures 42.20 meters. Several artists, among them the architect and stonecutter, Stefan Lapicid of Kosiice, and Mikulas Erom,pholz, were responsi<ble for the Gothic interior. The cathedral has 12 side-altars and a main altar 11 meters h ~gili. and 8 meters wide, and a triiptyoh from 1477. The 16 meter high pastoforium is ailso attri:buted to tlhat period. A unique stone sculpture of Master Stefan dating from the Late Gothic period. The crises that this CatJhedria:l CYf St. Eli'za!beth had to weather, come to the fore when one fooks at tfue spires. The four-sided one to the north, that becomes octagonal aJfter tlhree stories, is but 59 meters and runs counter to the general style, with a Baroque-Rococo roof from the �Apostle partaking of the "Last Supper", from the wood-carved Altar in St. James' Church , Levoca, Slovakia. (Photo Berko) �SLOVAKIA 97 yeair 1775. The second, or Matthew's spire, to the south, just about reaches 1Jhe roof of the nave. In 1902-04 it acquired a strange conical top. Tihe entire st11ucture laibors under the uneven proportions and varying roofs and seems to want in the fact tJhat the Kosicania (,t he people of Kosice) could lbe so neglectful and expeot the church to endure 1Jhis misshapen form so long. In other WOTds, if one may hold a brief for the cathedral of Kosice, it has not relinquished the hope that one day it will have Gothic spires of an aippropriate he1ght. We, too, !hope t!his dream will be fulfilled and that it will ·b ecome a concern of the city of Kosice and the experts on Slovak cultural edifices, especially since the "socialist regime" is very generous witJh funds for such purpose, and, where possible, provides ''highly developed" artistic workmen. * Meister P avol v on Levoca. Slowaki scher Ve rl ag der ,s chonen Liteiraitur, B raitislava 1964 , p. 165. We ,sirncerely cong;ratullate the 1Iargest and most ipopula'r Americain-61lovaJk newspaiper in America, J 1EDiNOTA (The Union), ofificia!l OTgan oif , tlhe First Ca<bholic S'1ovaJk Uniion (Jednoba) , whiclh celeJbrated itJs 75th Annivernairy on May 12, 1966. 'Dhe Crutholi,c Weekily waJs founded in Cleveland, Ohio, by the Rev. St~phern. Furxlek, who also founded the fraterna l society, and, be's ides F\t'I'idek, tbhere were suoh renowned editors and recognized leaJders of the American Slorvaikis as the Rev. Mait1:!h w Janikola, Joseph Husak, and Pihilip A. Hrobruk. 1 For orver the pa.1st two yearrs, Joseph C. Krajsa has been editor oft~ J·IDDiNOTA. The assistamt editor of 1:Jhe JIDDNOT A for the ,pa:st sixteen yearn i s the presenlt secreta,ry of tJhe Slova!k Leaigme of Ameriioa, Dr. Joseph Pa'lico. 1 The Fi,v st Catlho1ic SlorvaJk Union and its pwb1ication JEIDNOTA have s1U1pported the aims amd objectives of the Slovruk Lerugue of America since the League wa's foU111dedand they stm do today. Tihe JIDDNOTA hais /kept the Slovaik press al'ive and we wislh it continued success in its service to AmericaJn-Slovruk journaEsm. �The church and town-hall in Levoca, Spis, Slovakia. (Photo Berko) � SLOVAKIA 87 A GLIM!PSE OF GOTHI'C SLOVA!KI:A By Tino Berko Every country has its hrilght side ,a s well as its shadows. '11he qualities that set it apart are rfatrly numerous, and !'Un the gamut :iirom tihe mrugniifiroent to the ·badkwa'l'.'ld aJilld booris'h . In the past, similar epithets a:lso aipplied to a land in the Carpathian Basin, - S'lovakra. Some of these adjectives are relatively new, having made thei-r appearance after 1918 when the Slovaks freed t!hemselves from the !Hungarian yoke and were a·b le to form Czeoho--lS'lovaki,a in common with tlhe Czeelhs. During the years from 1939-1945 when Slovakia ibecame a sovereign state, it acquired still other qualifying titles, good and not so good. Depending on whether they were to invest the Slovruk Republic with approval or lend it a false imruge, the words "fascist" or "nazi" were a'P'Plied. When Slovakia lost its political independence in 1945, it was reduced by the Ozeclhs to the status of an occupational province. Yet in the list of political epithets that we seek to recaH, there is no such name. On the contrary: '.Dhose in command of Slovakia today, the Czecihs, call the :plight of the enslaved Slovaks "people's democracy", "communistic"; since 1960, "socialistic" . The world is told by the voice of Czech propaganda that Slovakia did not win its independence until 1945 and that since then it has been a model of socialism. Out of "backward" Slovakia !has allegedly developed a " highly industria:lized" country. Thus another new epithet for Slova:kia. But in leafing baok through the catalog of Slovakia's a ttributes, the word "wonderful" still applies. Slovrukia today is still a -land that every nature-lover will readily endorse as " an immense natural park in Central Europe". In regard to its historic works of rurt, Slovakia is still a "ha:ribaric" country. But if we •b ear in mind 1:Jhat to the early Italian ear the word "Gothic" and "barbarian" were synonymous, the presence in Slovakia of many Gothic master-wo:riks of art makes thiat land indeed one replete with '~barbaric" treasures. This is just tJhe opposite to tlhe origina:l idea of Gothic meaning "uncivilized" (used in t!he ancient world to designate any person or thiJllg that was non-Greek �Gothic entrance to the fortress in Bratislava, Slovakia. (Photo Berka) �SLOVAKIA 89 or non-Roman), for the history of art has long since rehabilitated the Gothic style, 1:Jhe most perfect in unity and harrmony. Gothic Slovakia, which covers the entire country of 49,000 square kilometers, is a vast Eden of art where castles and !forts, churohes ,a nd chapels radiate a unique fascination. We know that this Gothic garden in Slovaikia was landscaped witJh the 1he}p of German settlers in the 13th and 14tJh Centuries; enlarged in the 15th Century and the beginning of the 16th, as ,a Late Gothic variation of the architectural style that lhad its birth in northern France. It is sad to reflect that it was not spared the ravages of war. Many of the forts crumbled in ruins when Hussit-es from Boihemi•a stormed Slovakia, or tJhe Turks, during the 16th Century, advanced as far as south and central Slovrukia and from their outposts struged wild plundering raids. 'Dhat is why today these Got!hic forts, once the a bode of counts and grandees, or places of asylum for the threatened populace in times of siege, are today in rack and ruin, looted and plundered and scarred by the raviages of time. Indeed, only a few of tJhe fortresses were spared this tragic fate. Slovakia's historic forts have been restored at great cost and rebuilt as museums of Sloviak history. Favored have ibeen the Gothic residences and forts of Bratislava, Nitra, Orava, Smolenke, Zvolen and, to some extent, Trencin. Very many, among them tJhe !fortresses of Strecno and Spis, see tJheir proud past reflected in wild ruins and twisted rocky ravines. They are documents in stone of the merciless inlI'oaJds 111pan their Gothic style, tJhe attack of re•a l barbarians. In contemplating Gothic Sloviakia, we must first mention tJhe numerous churcihes and sacred works of art, for they embody the strongest heritage of tJhe Slovak Gothic style, which has been preserved to this day, imparting to the faithful wibhin a sea of atheism, a theologica:l reply to the eternal "to be or not to lbe". Seen externally, the Gothic churches in Slovakia are not ostentatious, but plain. 'Dhey lack tJhe splendor and magnificent form reflected, for example, by the Cathedrals of Notre Dame in Chartres and Rheims. What one notes in pairticular is the imperrfect execution of the Gothic spires. Many cathedrals have towers that run counter to form or �Portal of the Cathedral in Kosice, Slovakia, seen from town-hall arcades. (Photo Berko > �SLOVAKIA 91 are in need of towers to conform in style. An example is tJhe Cathedrnl of Kosice. The upper parts have towers of Baroque or conkal roofs, but of different heights. At most, the parish cihurch in Spisska Nova Ves can he considered a prize in competition with other churc'hes in Slovakia. It suffered a disastrous fire in 1849 and acquired a tower 87 meters hi:gh, the highest in all Slovaki,a. The Gothic towers of Slovrukia form a contrast to t hose in Germany. For example, the spires of Regensburg are 105 and 107 meters, those of Fretburig Cathedral are 115 meters and those of the Cathedral at Ulm, 162 meters high. Again historical factors were responsiible for the lesser degree of magnificence and external form, as well as the inadequate execution of the Slovak church spires. It is quite understandable and excusable in '1i:g'ht of the turmoil that followed the Hussite and TurkiSlh wars. Furthermore, tihe churc!hes were often struck by disasters, such a:s floods , earthquaik es and fires, that had a hrurmful effect on the Got'hic beauty and style. Albeit the outer Gothic forms were somewhat inconsistent and frequently unfinished, especiaHy the steeples, the interiors possessed great riches. T•he Gothic tripty~hs, woodcarved statues and panei frescoes, a veritable feast for the eye, can claim for Slova•kia international primacy, for tihey merit the admiration of the most /fastidious fancier of art. Striking examples are to be found in: St. Martin's Cathedral and tihe Franciscan Church in Bratislava, the Bishop's Cathedrnls of Trnava, Banrska Bystrica and Spisska Kapitula; also the churches in Hronsky •B enadik, Zehra, Kezmarok, Spisska Sobota, Spissky Stvrtok, S'pisske Vlachy, L iptovsky Mikulas, Bardejov and Presov. A:11 are outstanding ecclesiastical edifices from the High and Late Got'hic periods 13th, 14th and 15th Centuries whose masters are not always known. Unique amonig tJhe Gothic structures of Slovakia, however, are the houses of worshiip in Levoca or Leutsdhau (•a n area settled by Germans in tihe 12th and 13th Centuries) in the northeastern part of Slovakia. They reach the zenitJh in the works of Master Paul .o f Levoca (1455-1530 ?) , principally in the main altar of St. James' Church, and in the metropolis of Kosice in East Slovakia, where the greatest �Gothic Cathedral of Kosice, Slovakia. Note Baroque roof on tower. (Photo Berka) �SLOVAKIA 93 Gothi,c structure in the country stands on a plot of giround 1,200 meters square. The main altar, 18.62 meters higih, is the largest altar, with ,s ide wings, in the Got:Jhic ,w orld. It is Paul of Levoca's masterpiece, erected in the mighty three-apse pseudo-'b asilica in 1508, lbut not completed until the end of 1,518. 'I'he altar is magnificent, not only because of its heig1ht, but due to the tectonic, composition and stylistic harmony. In creating this masterwork, Paul of Levoca merits a niche in the hall of fame alongside ot:Jher great Gothic architects and wood-carvers, that include Tilman Riemenschneider, Hans Multsclher, Veit Stoss, Hans Leinberger, Gregor Et1hart, Albrecht Dlirer, Lucas Crarnach, Hans Holbein and many other masters of the late Middle Ages. The altar with side wings of Paul of Levoca "is rooted in the familiar traditions of plastic art of the Sloviak historic landscape. If we put him with all his artistic and estJhetic qualities alongside similar works of other great masters of that period, we see that he forms a link in a chain extending across the peaks of European art of the XV and XVI Centuries.* 'Dhe bold execution of the ihigh altar in Lev,oca, is a work carved out of linden, or basswood, which made it susceptible early to worm damage. From 1952-54, it was treated and renovated to preserve it from further destructive forces, restoring the greatest specimen of Gothic art in Europe to manifest, in all its glory, the spirit of European solidarity and unity. Thus it mirrored the spirit of German-<8lavic cooperation, ,a s it was manifested in the Middle Ages in keeping with the Gothic spirit. In that same church of 'St. James, whose tower rburned down at the end of the 18th Century and was not rebuilt until 1858 - only 70 meters high this time and counter to style - there are six other Gothic altars with wings. They, too, are a creation of the famous Master Paul and his pupils, whose work was imitated throughout 1:Jhe Spis area and in fact, all of Slovrukia. Also, the wwks of Paul are the oarved figures of BetMehem on the altar of the Nativity in Levoca, and the statues of the Crucifixion in Lomnicka, of St. Barbar,a in Oko1i<cne, and the triptyclhs in tJhe churches of Banska Byst•rica, Sasova and Spisska Sdbota. Levoca a!lso has Gothic frescoes in the aforementioned sanctuary, datini5 �Largest Gothic Altar of its kind is this masterpiece by Paul of Levoca in the Church of St. James, Levoca, Slovakia. (Photo Berko) �SLOVAKIA from the 14th Century, plus several panel frescoes, a unique lava·bo and other art trea:sures that have made the town a verita,b le repository CYf superb sacred Gofilric art. Moving toward the Eaistern !Slovak cities of Bardejov and Kosice, one finds a verita:ble Gothic feast for t:Jhe eyes. Both these historic sites are proud of their ohurohes and many tripty~hs, woodca•r vings and panel frescoes that date from the 14tih and 1'5th Oenturies. In Bardejov is 1:Jhe Church of St. Aegidius, in the 12th Century the site of a Cistercian cloister, 1:Jhat invites the photographer's eye. The architects were Nicholas of Bardejov, Stefan L•apicid of Kosice, Master Urban and Franklin Stemraseg .CYf Ansba:ch who completed the steeple in 1486. This spire, too, was tfue victim of an earthquaJke, the la-st time in 1725, as weH as several fires in 1640, 1669 and 1836. Irts sp1re was but 78 meters h~gh and was not lb uilt in Gothic style. 'Dhe ohurch has pure lineation, crowned by an altar 17.5 meters hig,h in the main nave, wmoh is 24 meters high. Along with the otfuer side a1tars, 11 in all, one finds the famous triptych of the Nativity, tlhe work of an unknown artist from 1460, and the altar Vir dolorum, dating to 1505. No other cathedral in ,Slovakia can compare with that of Kosice, which enohants even the most fastidious eye with its grandeur •a nd ,b rilliance. 'Dhe cathedral's perfect Gobhic form, covering some 1,200 squaire meters ta:kes on gigantic proportions. It was bui'1t in the 14th and 151:Jh Centuries and practicaHy completed by 1436 as a 3-nave basilica. It is 60 meters long, 35.50 meters wide, 24 meters hi,g'h inside and 32.70 meters high outside, with a transept, whose interior length measures 42.20 meters. Several artists, among them the architect and stonecutter, Stefan Lapicid of Kosiice, and Mikulas Erom,pholz, were responsi<ble for the Gothic interior. The cathedral has 12 side-altars and a main altar 11 meters h ~gili. and 8 meters wide, and a triiptyoh from 1477. The 16 meter high pastoforium is ailso attri:buted to tlhat period. A unique stone sculpture of Master Stefan dating from the Late Gothic period. The crises that this CatJhedria:l CYf St. Eli'za!beth had to weather, come to the fore when one fooks at tfue spires. The four-sided one to the north, that becomes octagonal aJfter tlhree stories, is but 59 meters and runs counter to the general style, with a Baroque-Rococo roof from the �Apostle partaking of the "Last Supper", from the wood-carved Altar in St. James' Church , Levoca, Slovakia. (Photo Berko) �SLOVAKIA 97 yeair 1775. The second, or Matthew's spire, to the south, just about reaches 1Jhe roof of the nave. In 1902-04 it acquired a strange conical top. Tihe entire st11ucture laibors under the uneven proportions and varying roofs and seems to want in the fact tJhat the Kosicania (,t he people of Kosice) could lbe so neglectful and expeot the church to endure 1Jhis misshapen form so long. In other WOTds, if one may hold a brief for the cathedral of Kosice, it has not relinquished the hope that one day it will have Gothic spires of an aippropriate he1ght. We, too, !hope t!his dream will be fulfilled and that it will ·b ecome a concern of the city of Kosice and the experts on Slovak cultural edifices, especially since the "socialist regime" is very generous witJh funds for such purpose, and, where possible, provides ''highly developed" artistic workmen. * Meister P avol v on Levoca. Slowaki scher Ve rl ag der ,s chonen Liteiraitur, B raitislava 1964 , p. 165. We ,sirncerely cong;ratullate the 1Iargest and most ipopula'r Americain-61lovaJk newspaiper in America, J 1EDiNOTA (The Union), ofificia!l OTgan oif , tlhe First Ca<bholic S'1ovaJk Uniion (Jednoba) , whiclh celeJbrated itJs 75th Annivernairy on May 12, 1966. 'Dhe Crutholi,c Weekily waJs founded in Cleveland, Ohio, by the Rev. St~phern. Furxlek, who also founded the fraterna l society, and, be's ides F\t'I'idek, tbhere were suoh renowned editors and recognized leaJders of the American Slorvaikis as the Rev. Mait1:!h w Janikola, Joseph Husak, and Pihilip A. Hrobruk. 1 For orver the pa.1st two yearrs, Joseph C. Krajsa has been editor oft~ J·IDDiNOTA. The assistamt editor of 1:Jhe JIDDNOT A for the ,pa:st sixteen yearn i s the presenlt secreta,ry of tJhe Slova!k Leaigme of Ameriioa, Dr. Joseph Pa'lico. 1 The Fi,v st Catlho1ic SlorvaJk Union and its pwb1ication JEIDNOTA have s1U1pported the aims amd objectives of the Slovruk Lerugue of America since the League wa's foU111dedand they stm do today. Tihe JIDDNOTA hais /kept the Slovaik press al'ive and we wislh it continued success in its service to AmericaJn-Slovruk journaEsm. �The church and town-hall in Levoca, Spis, Slovakia. (Photo Berko) � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource 1966, Vol. 16 Description An account of the resource Vol. 16 (No. 39), 1966. Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available The Slovak League of America Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1966 Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Text Any textual data included in the document SLOVAKIA 87 A GLIM!PSE OF GOTHI'C SLOVA!KI:A By Tino Berko Every country has its hrilght side ,a s well as its shadows. '11he qualities that set it apart are rfatrly numerous, and !'Un the gamut :iirom tihe mrugniifiroent to the ·badkwa'l'.'ld aJilld booris'h . In the past, similar epithets a:lso aipplied to a land in the Carpathian Basin, - S'lovakra. Some of these adjectives are relatively new, having made thei-r appearance after 1918 when the Slovaks freed t!hemselves from the !Hungarian yoke and were a·b le to form Czeoho--lS'lovaki,a in common with tlhe Czeelhs. During the years from 1939-1945 when Slovakia ibecame a sovereign state, it acquired still other qualifying titles, good and not so good. Depending on whether they were to invest the Slovruk Republic with approval or lend it a false imruge, the words "fascist" or "nazi" were a'P'Plied. When Slovakia lost its political independence in 1945, it was reduced by the Ozeclhs to the status of an occupational province. Yet in the list of political epithets that we seek to recaH, there is no such name. On the contrary: '.Dhose in command of Slovakia today, the Czecihs, call the :plight of the enslaved Slovaks "people's democracy", "communistic"; since 1960, "socialistic" . The world is told by the voice of Czech propaganda that Slovakia did not win its independence until 1945 and that since then it has been a model of socialism. Out of "backward" Slovakia !has allegedly developed a " highly industria:lized" country. Thus another new epithet for Slova:kia. But in leafing baok through the catalog of Slovakia's a ttributes, the word "wonderful" still applies. Slovrukia today is still a -land that every nature-lover will readily endorse as " an immense natural park in Central Europe". In regard to its historic works of rurt, Slovakia is still a "ha:ribaric" country. But if we •b ear in mind 1:Jhat to the early Italian ear the word "Gothic" and "barbarian" were synonymous, the presence in Slovakia of many Gothic master-wo:riks of art makes thiat land indeed one replete with '~barbaric" treasures. This is just tJhe opposite to tlhe origina:l idea of Gothic meaning "uncivilized" (used in t!he ancient world to designate any person or thiJllg that was non-Greek Gothic entrance to the fortress in Bratislava, Slovakia. (Photo Berka) SLOVAKIA 89 or non-Roman), for the history of art has long since rehabilitated the Gothic style, 1:Jhe most perfect in unity and harrmony. Gothic Slovakia, which covers the entire country of 49,000 square kilometers, is a vast Eden of art where castles and !forts, churohes ,a nd chapels radiate a unique fascination. We know that this Gothic garden in Slovaikia was landscaped witJh the 1he}p of German settlers in the 13th and 14tJh Centuries; enlarged in the 15th Century and the beginning of the 16th, as ,a Late Gothic variation of the architectural style that lhad its birth in northern France. It is sad to reflect that it was not spared the ravages of war. Many of the forts crumbled in ruins when Hussit-es from Boihemi•a stormed Slovakia, or tJhe Turks, during the 16th Century, advanced as far as south and central Slovrukia and from their outposts struged wild plundering raids. 'Dhat is why today these Got!hic forts, once the a bode of counts and grandees, or places of asylum for the threatened populace in times of siege, are today in rack and ruin, looted and plundered and scarred by the raviages of time. Indeed, only a few of tJhe fortresses were spared this tragic fate. Slovakia's historic forts have been restored at great cost and rebuilt as museums of Sloviak history. Favored have ibeen the Gothic residences and forts of Bratislava, Nitra, Orava, Smolenke, Zvolen and, to some extent, Trencin. Very many, among them tJhe !fortresses of Strecno and Spis, see tJheir proud past reflected in wild ruins and twisted rocky ravines. They are documents in stone of the merciless inlI'oaJds 111pan their Gothic style, tJhe attack of re•a l barbarians. In contemplating Gothic Sloviakia, we must first mention tJhe numerous churcihes and sacred works of art, for they embody the strongest heritage of tJhe Slovak Gothic style, which has been preserved to this day, imparting to the faithful wibhin a sea of atheism, a theologica:l reply to the eternal "to be or not to lbe". Seen externally, the Gothic churches in Slovakia are not ostentatious, but plain. 'Dhey lack tJhe splendor and magnificent form reflected, for example, by the Cathedrals of Notre Dame in Chartres and Rheims. What one notes in pairticular is the imperrfect execution of the Gothic spires. Many cathedrals have towers that run counter to form or Portal of the Cathedral in Kosice, Slovakia, seen from town-hall arcades. (Photo Berko > SLOVAKIA 91 are in need of towers to conform in style. An example is tJhe Cathedrnl of Kosice. The upper parts have towers of Baroque or conkal roofs, but of different heights. At most, the parish cihurch in Spisska Nova Ves can he considered a prize in competition with other churc'hes in Slovakia. It suffered a disastrous fire in 1849 and acquired a tower 87 meters hi:gh, the highest in all Slovaki,a. The Gothic towers of Slovrukia form a contrast to t hose in Germany. For example, the spires of Regensburg are 105 and 107 meters, those of Fretburig Cathedral are 115 meters and those of the Cathedral at Ulm, 162 meters high. Again historical factors were responsiible for the lesser degree of magnificence and external form, as well as the inadequate execution of the Slovak church spires. It is quite understandable and excusable in '1i:g'ht of the turmoil that followed the Hussite and TurkiSlh wars. Furthermore, tihe churc!hes were often struck by disasters, such a:s floods , earthquaik es and fires, that had a hrurmful effect on the Got'hic beauty and style. Albeit the outer Gothic forms were somewhat inconsistent and frequently unfinished, especiaHy the steeples, the interiors possessed great riches. T•he Gothic tripty~hs, woodcarved statues and panei frescoes, a veritable feast for the eye, can claim for Slova•kia international primacy, for tihey merit the admiration of the most /fastidious fancier of art. Striking examples are to be found in: St. Martin's Cathedral and tihe Franciscan Church in Bratislava, the Bishop's Cathedrnls of Trnava, Banrska Bystrica and Spisska Kapitula; also the churches in Hronsky •B enadik, Zehra, Kezmarok, Spisska Sobota, Spissky Stvrtok, S'pisske Vlachy, L iptovsky Mikulas, Bardejov and Presov. A:11 are outstanding ecclesiastical edifices from the High and Late Got'hic periods 13th, 14th and 15th Centuries whose masters are not always known. Unique amonig tJhe Gothic structures of Slovakia, however, are the houses of worshiip in Levoca or Leutsdhau (•a n area settled by Germans in tihe 12th and 13th Centuries) in the northeastern part of Slovakia. They reach the zenitJh in the works of Master Paul .o f Levoca (1455-1530 ?) , principally in the main altar of St. James' Church, and in the metropolis of Kosice in East Slovakia, where the greatest Gothic Cathedral of Kosice, Slovakia. Note Baroque roof on tower. (Photo Berka) SLOVAKIA 93 Gothi,c structure in the country stands on a plot of giround 1,200 meters square. The main altar, 18.62 meters higih, is the largest altar, with ,s ide wings, in the Got:Jhic ,w orld. It is Paul of Levoca's masterpiece, erected in the mighty three-apse pseudo-'b asilica in 1508, lbut not completed until the end of 1,518. 'I'he altar is magnificent, not only because of its heig1ht, but due to the tectonic, composition and stylistic harmony. In creating this masterwork, Paul of Levoca merits a niche in the hall of fame alongside ot:Jher great Gothic architects and wood-carvers, that include Tilman Riemenschneider, Hans Multsclher, Veit Stoss, Hans Leinberger, Gregor Et1hart, Albrecht Dlirer, Lucas Crarnach, Hans Holbein and many other masters of the late Middle Ages. The altar with side wings of Paul of Levoca "is rooted in the familiar traditions of plastic art of the Sloviak historic landscape. If we put him with all his artistic and estJhetic qualities alongside similar works of other great masters of that period, we see that he forms a link in a chain extending across the peaks of European art of the XV and XVI Centuries.* 'Dhe bold execution of the ihigh altar in Lev,oca, is a work carved out of linden, or basswood, which made it susceptible early to worm damage. From 1952-54, it was treated and renovated to preserve it from further destructive forces, restoring the greatest specimen of Gothic art in Europe to manifest, in all its glory, the spirit of European solidarity and unity. Thus it mirrored the spirit of German-<8lavic cooperation, ,a s it was manifested in the Middle Ages in keeping with the Gothic spirit. In that same church of 'St. James, whose tower rburned down at the end of the 18th Century and was not rebuilt until 1858 - only 70 meters high this time and counter to style - there are six other Gothic altars with wings. They, too, are a creation of the famous Master Paul and his pupils, whose work was imitated throughout 1:Jhe Spis area and in fact, all of Slovrukia. Also, the wwks of Paul are the oarved figures of BetMehem on the altar of the Nativity in Levoca, and the statues of the Crucifixion in Lomnicka, of St. Barbar,a in Oko1i<cne, and the triptyclhs in tJhe churches of Banska Byst•rica, Sasova and Spisska Sdbota. Levoca a!lso has Gothic frescoes in the aforementioned sanctuary, datini5 Largest Gothic Altar of its kind is this masterpiece by Paul of Levoca in the Church of St. James, Levoca, Slovakia. (Photo Berko) SLOVAKIA from the 14th Century, plus several panel frescoes, a unique lava·bo and other art trea:sures that have made the town a verita,b le repository CYf superb sacred Gofilric art. Moving toward the Eaistern !Slovak cities of Bardejov and Kosice, one finds a verita:ble Gothic feast for t:Jhe eyes. Both these historic sites are proud of their ohurohes and many tripty~hs, woodca•r vings and panel frescoes that date from the 14tih and 1'5th Oenturies. In Bardejov is 1:Jhe Church of St. Aegidius, in the 12th Century the site of a Cistercian cloister, 1:Jhat invites the photographer's eye. The architects were Nicholas of Bardejov, Stefan L•apicid of Kosice, Master Urban and Franklin Stemraseg .CYf Ansba:ch who completed the steeple in 1486. This spire, too, was tfue victim of an earthquaJke, the la-st time in 1725, as weH as several fires in 1640, 1669 and 1836. Irts sp1re was but 78 meters h~gh and was not lb uilt in Gothic style. 'Dhe ohurch has pure lineation, crowned by an altar 17.5 meters hig,h in the main nave, wmoh is 24 meters high. Along with the otfuer side a1tars, 11 in all, one finds the famous triptych of the Nativity, tlhe work of an unknown artist from 1460, and the altar Vir dolorum, dating to 1505. No other cathedral in ,Slovakia can compare with that of Kosice, which enohants even the most fastidious eye with its grandeur •a nd ,b rilliance. 'Dhe cathedral's perfect Gobhic form, covering some 1,200 squaire meters ta:kes on gigantic proportions. It was bui'1t in the 14th and 151:Jh Centuries and practicaHy completed by 1436 as a 3-nave basilica. It is 60 meters long, 35.50 meters wide, 24 meters hi,g'h inside and 32.70 meters high outside, with a transept, whose interior length measures 42.20 meters. Several artists, among them the architect and stonecutter, Stefan Lapicid of Kosiice, and Mikulas Erom,pholz, were responsi<ble for the Gothic interior. The cathedral has 12 side-altars and a main altar 11 meters h ~gili. and 8 meters wide, and a triiptyoh from 1477. The 16 meter high pastoforium is ailso attri:buted to tlhat period. A unique stone sculpture of Master Stefan dating from the Late Gothic period. The crises that this CatJhedria:l CYf St. Eli'za!beth had to weather, come to the fore when one fooks at tfue spires. The four-sided one to the north, that becomes octagonal aJfter tlhree stories, is but 59 meters and runs counter to the general style, with a Baroque-Rococo roof from the Apostle partaking of the "Last Supper", from the wood-carved Altar in St. James' Church , Levoca, Slovakia. (Photo Berko) SLOVAKIA 97 yeair 1775. The second, or Matthew's spire, to the south, just about reaches 1Jhe roof of the nave. In 1902-04 it acquired a strange conical top. Tihe entire st11ucture laibors under the uneven proportions and varying roofs and seems to want in the fact tJhat the Kosicania (,t he people of Kosice) could lbe so neglectful and expeot the church to endure 1Jhis misshapen form so long. In other WOTds, if one may hold a brief for the cathedral of Kosice, it has not relinquished the hope that one day it will have Gothic spires of an aippropriate he1ght. We, too, !hope t!his dream will be fulfilled and that it will ·b ecome a concern of the city of Kosice and the experts on Slovak cultural edifices, especially since the "socialist regime" is very generous witJh funds for such purpose, and, where possible, provides ''highly developed" artistic workmen. * Meister P avol v on Levoca. Slowaki scher Ve rl ag der ,s chonen Liteiraitur, B raitislava 1964 , p. 165. We ,sirncerely cong;ratullate the 1Iargest and most ipopula'r Americain-61lovaJk newspaiper in America, J 1EDiNOTA (The Union), ofificia!l OTgan oif , tlhe First Ca<bholic S'1ovaJk Uniion (Jednoba) , whiclh celeJbrated itJs 75th Annivernairy on May 12, 1966. 'Dhe Crutholi,c Weekily waJs founded in Cleveland, Ohio, by the Rev. St~phern. Furxlek, who also founded the fraterna l society, and, be's ides F\t'I'idek, tbhere were suoh renowned editors and recognized leaJders of the American Slorvaikis as the Rev. Mait1:!h w Janikola, Joseph Husak, and Pihilip A. Hrobruk. 1 For orver the pa.1st two yearrs, Joseph C. Krajsa has been editor oft~ J·IDDiNOTA. The assistamt editor of 1:Jhe JIDDNOT A for the ,pa:st sixteen yearn i s the presenlt secreta,ry of tJhe Slova!k Leaigme of Ameriioa, Dr. Joseph Pa'lico. 1 The Fi,v st Catlho1ic SlorvaJk Union and its pwb1ication JEIDNOTA have s1U1pported the aims amd objectives of the Slovruk Lerugue of America since the League wa's foU111dedand they stm do today. Tihe JIDDNOTA hais /kept the Slovaik press al'ive and we wislh it continued success in its service to AmericaJn-Slovruk journaEsm. The church and town-hall in Levoca, Spis, Slovakia. (Photo Berko)  Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource A Glimpse of Gothic Slovakia Description An account of the resource Tino Berko Slovakia, Vol. 16 (No. 39), 1966 pp. 87-98 Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Berko, Tino Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1966 Type The nature or genre of the resource contains illustrations name https://slovakia.wordsofpassage.net/files/original/4ee8bccf87776b5436ecb3ea05c0ef6a.pdf e39480df46c62f5715cc2298fe8e25e9 PDF Text Text SLOVAKIA HEROIC SLOVAK B]SiHiOP - 99 WiCT]M OF COMMUNISM When 'One talks rubout Catholic bishops behind ·t he Iron Ountain - victims of Communist ,persecution - tJhe names of Cardinals Aloysius Stepinac, Joseph Mindszenty amd Joseph Berran usually come to our mind. But there is qruiite an imposing number of other heroic bishops in Communist jails and labor camps, hidden from the eyes of the world. They are som~how forigotten even in the Catholic press, but certia:inly not in t:he eyers orf God for Wlhom they are suffering. One orf these heroic victims of Communism was John Vojrba;sM1,k, bishop of rtilie Sipis Diocese in Slovakia, who died on August 4, 1965, after fifiteen years of imprisonment and confinement. He was the most ,beloved amd revered Slova,k bishop whose martyrdom is a source of inspiraition to t:he WJhole Slova;k nation. Vojtassruk's position in Slovrukia cam be compared to tJhat of Cardinal Stepi:nac in Croaitia. Bishop Vojtassak was !born on November 14, 1877, in Zaikmnenne in Orava, the poorest district orf Slovakia, from poor peasant parenrts. Among tJhe S-Eovak people, to have a son in the priesthood was considered trhe highest ideal and distincti'(){n. To attain that goal they did nOlt hesitate to make it:Jhe greatest sacrifices 0,nd undergo 1:Jhe greatest hardsihiips. To the overwhelmiJng joy of his p3irents Jahn Vojtassaik was ordained a priest on July 1, 1901. It was at a time when Slovakia was suffering under rbhe burden orf imposed magyarization. It was considered harmful and daingerous to one's career t'O ,s how his 1Sfovaik patriotism . .Patriotic priests were l8ibeled by Magyar civil a;nd ecclesiastica:l authorities as Pam-Slavs, and their priestly ,l ives would be spent in 1:lhe poorest and remotest parishes of rbhe diocese. John Vojtassak knew this very well, ibut lhe did not waver. He always remained fairthful to tJhe Slovak people. After working as assistant pastor in several small parishes, he became, in 1911, ,p astor in Veli:cna, a poor vi-llag,e orf Orava, where he stayed until 1919. As a ,p riest, John Vojta;ssak exoolied in pastoral zeal. Besides his regular priesitily duties he wrote articles in Slovak ma:gazines, particularly for the "SVATA RODINA" ('Dhe Holy Family), of whioh he became ediitor. In his articles, Vojtassaik tried to bolster the nationa:l and religious conscientiousness of the Slovruk people. He acquired a nationltl renown throughout all of S'lovrukia. 1 1 �SLOVAKIA His generosity toward Slovak national caiuses was ibotmdless. When as a young ,p riest he did not have any money to contribute for ithe estaiblishment of the Sfovaik National Museum, lhe g,ave his most va,lued treasur,e, his go'lden wa•tclh 01nd -ohain, wlhioh he received a;s a gift ifor his priestly oroinaUon. Tihis gesture became a legendary iHustr,aition of his ardent 'love for his nation. T,he end of World WaT I mea:nt the end of the old Austro-Hungarian Monarchy •a nd the fo11maition of the new Czecho~Slovak Republic. It was aJ1so the end of the imposed ma,gayairization of tJhe Slovak nation. In the Czeoho-Slovaik Republic, the apostolic zeai and work done by John Vojt•a ssak i.for the welfare of the Slova,k people were rewaroed. He W8Js named rector of the Diocesan Seminary in Spisska Kapituila in 1919, and a year later he W8JS arppoiinted bishop of the Spis Diocese by tihe Holy See. With great enthusiasm ihe plunged info the work of reforming his diocese. His primary preoccupation was the Catholirc education of yoUlbh. He founded a Te8ic'her's A:cademy for men in Spisska Kaipitwl.ia and another for women in Levoca. In Levioca he a!1so est8Jbliished a Minor Seminary. The Major Seminary at Spisska KapitJula became a model for a11 other seminaries in Slova!kia. To pr,omote viarious apostolaJtes rbishop Vojt8Jssak supported the religious orders and congregations in his diocese. He ail so iinrkoduced into his diocese School Brotheris as well as Missionaries of the DiviM Word. At the same time Vojtassfuk's concern wiitJh Slovak nrationa1 affairs did not diminish. As his stature among the Slovak !hierarchy grew, so did ,his influence in the political ilife of Slo-vakia. After the war, the Czechs came to Sfovrukia to help in its -administrative a,nd cultural tasks. But from the -beginnin.g the Czechs manifested a certain· a'loofness towaird the S:lovaks. With the ove11t:hrow of the Haibsburg Catholic Monarchy, chauvinistic Czechs tried to overthrow the Crutholic Church in the new Republic and return ito Hu.ssitism. 'I1he Czechs in Slovaikia did not respect Slovak tra,ditions nor their aJttaohment to their priests rand their Catholic reli!gion. Furthermore, bhe S1ov.aks soon realized that Czecih intentiOIJl.S toward · Slovakia in other respects were not the best·eirther. The Ozeoh:s in Slovwkia oocrupied not only positions for. .which -there was not enoug,h q,ua,l ified Slovaik per- �SLOVAKIA 101 soninel, -but even petty clerica:l jobs for which tlhere was more than enough Slovia:k mam,power. Tihe Prague government did not care to develop ·Slovruk industria!l caipacitty, but rather J-iindered it. 'Dhe Czechs did not respect tihe Slovwk language, and tried to engulf the Slovalk s under ,f oe guise of so-called Czechoslovak nation. This irritated Sloviak .p atriots. Msgr. Andrew Hlinka, who during the Magya,r regime ,s uffered prison terms for his Slovak patri<otism, now became the staunohest fighter :rgainst Czech encrooohments ilil 1Sfovakia. The program of his Peoples' Party was the ,culitura!l ,and administrative autonomy of Slovrukia in ithe framework of the Czeoho-S'lovak Republic. 'Dhls •policy was based on 1:Jhe Pittsbu~g,h Pact, conoll\lded between the American Slovaks aind Czechs in P1Usburg,h, ,P a., on May 30, 1918, and signed by Prof. 'Ilhomas G. Masaryk, the first president of the Republic. But Masruryk reneged on Jij,s own words and pursued a ,p olicy of strict centralism toward Slovakia directed from Prague. In the struggle for Slovak autonomy bishop Vojtassak was a dose co-worker of Msgr. Hlinlka. Jin 1939 Adolf Hitler occupied the Czech territories (Bohemia •amd Moravia), and Slovakia ,b ecame independent. After tJhe deait:Jh of :Msgr. Andrew Hlilllka on August 16, 1938, Msgr. Joseph Tiso became •t he head of Hlinlka's SlovaJk Peoples' Party. He was elected president of the Slovak Republic on October 26, 1939. Slova:kia, being in Gemnany's sphere orf influence, could not pur,s ue an independent foreign policy. Neveritheless, in internal a:Hiairs the regi<me of Msgr. Tiso was relatively free and democratic. German efforts to nazi!fy Slovakia were thwarted by Msgr. Tiso. Even the Jewish question, despite German pressure, was solved in a mi'lder manner than in other countries under Germ.'8JI1 influence. During the S<lovak R epublic B1shop Vojtassak brought his diocese to fu:11 blossom. 'Ilhe Retreat Movement, which spread tlhroug,hoUJt Slovakia during the war, was most flourishing in the Spis diocese. Bishop Vojtassak was ,prominent in aH tlhe nationia!l Catholic enterpdses. Through his efforts the S:lovaik Cait:Jholic Oharities was organized on a national basis. He was instrumental in founding the Catholic Press Bureau and the ,Slovia:k Catholic Academy, comprising aU 8-lova,k soholars of distinction. Bishop Vojtassak became the �102 SLOVAKIA first military bishop of the .Slova:k Republi-c and a member of the State Council, an advisory body to ,bhe .President of the Republic. 'I'he Slov'8Jk Republic was of a shor.t duration. In the spring of 1945 the Russian a:rmies ovel"I"an SlovaJkia. 'Dhe Allied Power.s agreed to the restoration of the Czecho-Slovak Republic. By the Ya.'lta Agreement, the new Cz.oohoSlovarkia was to be under Soviet _politioal influence. The communi:uation of Czecho-Slovaiki!a began to some degree immediately after the Second World War. fu the new Ozeoho..:Slovaik Republic thou.sands of Slovak patriots were sentenced to long terms of imprisonment for alleged c0Ha1boration witJh the Nazis. iMsgr. Joseph Tiso and scores of others were executed. Bishop Vojtassak was imprisoned for the firist time in May, 1945, and was confined for seven months. Further trirbulatio:ns for the S1ovruk nation were to come after February 25, 1948, when the Commuinists took full control of 0:uedho-Slovakia. Since June 1949, all the bishops were under constant police surveillance and detained in their residences. Those considered as most opposed to the Conummist regime were imprisoned. Bi<Slhop Vojtassaik was i,mprisoned in Braitislav,a in September 1950. After months of brainwashing in the Bratislava police prison, on Janua:ry 15, 1951, togetfuer with Paul Gojdic, bishop of the Presov Byzantine rite Diocese, and Michael Buzalk!a, auxiliary ,bishop of the Trnava Apostolic Admiinistratu~e, ihe was sentenced to 24 yeacrs of imprisonment, his properties were confiscated, and he was deprived of aU civil. rights. Bishop Vojta,ssaik was 73 years old at the time of hi!s triral. Conspiracy and treason against the Czecho-Slova:k Republic were 'his alleged crimes. Only those witnesses who testified against him were admitted to the trirul. The ·l awyer assigned for •his defense by the Communist regime made no plea for his client. The whole trial hinged on the "confession" of the defendant which had been extorted by the weH-known methods of Communist police mvestigation. We do not know all the detJails of the torments Bishop Vojtassak ,s uffered in various prisons where he spent more than seven years. Prison life is ·h ar.sh in any cir.cumstances, parti•c ularly irn Communi!st dungeons. 'Db.ere acre reports, smuggled through the Iron Curta:irn, tJhat in the case of Bish- �103 SLOVAKIA op Vojtassivk there were instances of s•adistic torture. Brutal Communist jaHers occasionally poured out their hatred of God on the aged Bishop. They .malig:ned him in the presence of other ,prisoners. At one time, they kept him in a cell witlh a feeble-minded inmate. At other times they assigned him the most repulsive jobs. Yet, Bishop Vojtassivk never lost ,h is composure and dignity, being always aware of the fact that he was suffering for Christ at the hands of his cruellest enemies. The rea:l reason for sentencing Bishop Vojtassivk was his unoompromi,sing loyalty to God, the Church and the Slovaik people. 'Dhe Communists were aware of Bishop VojtJassak's unique position in tihe '8'1-0vak nation. By destroying him tJhey intended to destroy t:Jhe resistance of the priests and the Slovak Catholic to their regime. But they achieved just the opposite reslrlrts. The Slovak people regard their imprisoned bishops and priests a,s martyrs of Christ. The heroic resistance of these witnesses of Obrist serves as Ml inspiration to them in t:Jhei,r resistamce to Communism. Wihen Bishop Vojitassak was about 80 yeairs old, the Communists released 1him from prison. BUit they kept him under constant surveillance in the 'house of detention in Bohemia. His .p leas to be permitted to live in Slovrukia wiit:Jh his relaitives were rejected. He died in exile, in Seno'hraby in Bohemia, on August 4, 1965, . almost 88 years old. His funeral at hi,s native viliage of Zakamenne was a maiss demonstraJtion of the Slovaik people for the beloved Bishop and a protest against Communist brutality. It is reported from Slova:kia that even a young 'SlovaJk Communist who was Sl\.l!pposed to ta.1!k at the ifuneraJl aibout the alleged "crimes" of the deceased Bishop spoke aJbout the injustice committed on an innocent man amd a,boUJt an imminent accounting for this crime. T. J. Zubek, O.F.M. LITERATURE Joseph M. Kirschbaum, Slovakia - Nation at the Crossroads of Central Europe . New York, 1960. Joseph A. Mikus, Slovakia - A political History (1918-1950). Milwaukee, Wis., 1963. Gilbert L. Oddo, Slovakia and Its People. Cleveland, Ohio, 1960. T. J . Zubek, O.F.M. , The Church of Silence in Slovakia, Whiting, Ind., 1956. T. J . Zubek, O.F.M., Slovak Bishops - Martyrs of Christ. Toronto, Ont., 1963. � SLOVAKIA HEROIC SLOVAK B]SiHiOP - 99 WiCT]M OF COMMUNISM When 'One talks rubout Catholic bishops behind ·t he Iron Ountain - victims of Communist ,persecution - tJhe names of Cardinals Aloysius Stepinac, Joseph Mindszenty amd Joseph Berran usually come to our mind. But there is qruiite an imposing number of other heroic bishops in Communist jails and labor camps, hidden from the eyes of the world. They are som~how forigotten even in the Catholic press, but certia:inly not in t:he eyers orf God for Wlhom they are suffering. One orf these heroic victims of Communism was John Vojrba;sM1,k, bishop of rtilie Sipis Diocese in Slovakia, who died on August 4, 1965, after fifiteen years of imprisonment and confinement. He was the most ,beloved amd revered Slova,k bishop whose martyrdom is a source of inspiraition to t:he WJhole Slova;k nation. Vojtassruk's position in Slovrukia cam be compared to tJhat of Cardinal Stepi:nac in Croaitia. Bishop Vojtassak was !born on November 14, 1877, in Zaikmnenne in Orava, the poorest district orf Slovakia, from poor peasant parenrts. Among tJhe S-Eovak people, to have a son in the priesthood was considered trhe highest ideal and distincti'(){n. To attain that goal they did nOlt hesitate to make it:Jhe greatest sacrifices 0,nd undergo 1:Jhe greatest hardsihiips. To the overwhelmiJng joy of his p3irents Jahn Vojtassaik was ordained a priest on July 1, 1901. It was at a time when Slovakia was suffering under rbhe burden orf imposed magyarization. It was considered harmful and daingerous to one's career t'O ,s how his 1Sfovaik patriotism . .Patriotic priests were l8ibeled by Magyar civil a;nd ecclesiastica:l authorities as Pam-Slavs, and their priestly ,l ives would be spent in 1:lhe poorest and remotest parishes of rbhe diocese. John Vojtassak knew this very well, ibut lhe did not waver. He always remained fairthful to tJhe Slovak people. After working as assistant pastor in several small parishes, he became, in 1911, ,p astor in Veli:cna, a poor vi-llag,e orf Orava, where he stayed until 1919. As a ,p riest, John Vojta;ssak exoolied in pastoral zeal. Besides his regular priesitily duties he wrote articles in Slovak ma:gazines, particularly for the "SVATA RODINA" ('Dhe Holy Family), of whioh he became ediitor. In his articles, Vojtassaik tried to bolster the nationa:l and religious conscientiousness of the Slovruk people. He acquired a nationltl renown throughout all of S'lovrukia. 1 1 �SLOVAKIA His generosity toward Slovak national caiuses was ibotmdless. When as a young ,p riest he did not have any money to contribute for ithe estaiblishment of the Sfovaik National Museum, lhe g,ave his most va,lued treasur,e, his go'lden wa•tclh 01nd -ohain, wlhioh he received a;s a gift ifor his priestly oroinaUon. Tihis gesture became a legendary iHustr,aition of his ardent 'love for his nation. T,he end of World WaT I mea:nt the end of the old Austro-Hungarian Monarchy •a nd the fo11maition of the new Czecho~Slovak Republic. It was aJ1so the end of the imposed ma,gayairization of tJhe Slovak nation. In the Czeoho-Slovaik Republic, the apostolic zeai and work done by John Vojt•a ssak i.for the welfare of the Slova,k people were rewaroed. He W8Js named rector of the Diocesan Seminary in Spisska Kapituila in 1919, and a year later he W8JS arppoiinted bishop of the Spis Diocese by tihe Holy See. With great enthusiasm ihe plunged info the work of reforming his diocese. His primary preoccupation was the Catholirc education of yoUlbh. He founded a Te8ic'her's A:cademy for men in Spisska Kaipitwl.ia and another for women in Levoca. In Levioca he a!1so est8Jbliished a Minor Seminary. The Major Seminary at Spisska KapitJula became a model for a11 other seminaries in Slova!kia. To pr,omote viarious apostolaJtes rbishop Vojt8Jssak supported the religious orders and congregations in his diocese. He ail so iinrkoduced into his diocese School Brotheris as well as Missionaries of the DiviM Word. At the same time Vojtassfuk's concern wiitJh Slovak nrationa1 affairs did not diminish. As his stature among the Slovak !hierarchy grew, so did ,his influence in the political ilife of Slo-vakia. After the war, the Czechs came to Sfovrukia to help in its -administrative a,nd cultural tasks. But from the -beginnin.g the Czechs manifested a certain· a'loofness towaird the S:lovaks. With the ove11t:hrow of the Haibsburg Catholic Monarchy, chauvinistic Czechs tried to overthrow the Crutholic Church in the new Republic and return ito Hu.ssitism. 'I1he Czechs in Slovaikia did not respect Slovak tra,ditions nor their aJttaohment to their priests rand their Catholic reli!gion. Furthermore, bhe S1ov.aks soon realized that Czecih intentiOIJl.S toward · Slovakia in other respects were not the best·eirther. The Ozeoh:s in Slovwkia oocrupied not only positions for. .which -there was not enoug,h q,ua,l ified Slovaik per- �SLOVAKIA 101 soninel, -but even petty clerica:l jobs for which tlhere was more than enough Slovia:k mam,power. Tihe Prague government did not care to develop ·Slovruk industria!l caipacitty, but rather J-iindered it. 'Dhe Czechs did not respect tihe Slovwk language, and tried to engulf the Slovalk s under ,f oe guise of so-called Czechoslovak nation. This irritated Sloviak .p atriots. Msgr. Andrew Hlinka, who during the Magya,r regime ,s uffered prison terms for his Slovak patri<otism, now became the staunohest fighter :rgainst Czech encrooohments ilil 1Sfovakia. The program of his Peoples' Party was the ,culitura!l ,and administrative autonomy of Slovrukia in ithe framework of the Czeoho-S'lovak Republic. 'Dhls •policy was based on 1:Jhe Pittsbu~g,h Pact, conoll\lded between the American Slovaks aind Czechs in P1Usburg,h, ,P a., on May 30, 1918, and signed by Prof. 'Ilhomas G. Masaryk, the first president of the Republic. But Masruryk reneged on Jij,s own words and pursued a ,p olicy of strict centralism toward Slovakia directed from Prague. In the struggle for Slovak autonomy bishop Vojtassak was a dose co-worker of Msgr. Hlinlka. Jin 1939 Adolf Hitler occupied the Czech territories (Bohemia •amd Moravia), and Slovakia ,b ecame independent. After tJhe deait:Jh of :Msgr. Andrew Hlilllka on August 16, 1938, Msgr. Joseph Tiso became •t he head of Hlinlka's SlovaJk Peoples' Party. He was elected president of the Slovak Republic on October 26, 1939. Slova:kia, being in Gemnany's sphere orf influence, could not pur,s ue an independent foreign policy. Neveritheless, in internal a:Hiairs the regi<me of Msgr. Tiso was relatively free and democratic. German efforts to nazi!fy Slovakia were thwarted by Msgr. Tiso. Even the Jewish question, despite German pressure, was solved in a mi'lder manner than in other countries under Germ.'8JI1 influence. During the S<lovak R epublic B1shop Vojtassak brought his diocese to fu:11 blossom. 'Ilhe Retreat Movement, which spread tlhroug,hoUJt Slovakia during the war, was most flourishing in the Spis diocese. Bishop Vojtassak was ,prominent in aH tlhe nationia!l Catholic enterpdses. Through his efforts the S:lovaik Cait:Jholic Oharities was organized on a national basis. He was instrumental in founding the Catholic Press Bureau and the ,Slovia:k Catholic Academy, comprising aU 8-lova,k soholars of distinction. Bishop Vojtassak became the �102 SLOVAKIA first military bishop of the .Slova:k Republi-c and a member of the State Council, an advisory body to ,bhe .President of the Republic. 'I'he Slov'8Jk Republic was of a shor.t duration. In the spring of 1945 the Russian a:rmies ovel"I"an SlovaJkia. 'Dhe Allied Power.s agreed to the restoration of the Czecho-Slovak Republic. By the Ya.'lta Agreement, the new Cz.oohoSlovarkia was to be under Soviet _politioal influence. The communi:uation of Czecho-Slovaiki!a began to some degree immediately after the Second World War. fu the new Ozeoho..:Slovaik Republic thou.sands of Slovak patriots were sentenced to long terms of imprisonment for alleged c0Ha1boration witJh the Nazis. iMsgr. Joseph Tiso and scores of others were executed. Bishop Vojtassak was imprisoned for the firist time in May, 1945, and was confined for seven months. Further trirbulatio:ns for the S1ovruk nation were to come after February 25, 1948, when the Commuinists took full control of 0:uedho-Slovakia. Since June 1949, all the bishops were under constant police surveillance and detained in their residences. Those considered as most opposed to the Conummist regime were imprisoned. Bi<Slhop Vojtassaik was i,mprisoned in Braitislav,a in September 1950. After months of brainwashing in the Bratislava police prison, on Janua:ry 15, 1951, togetfuer with Paul Gojdic, bishop of the Presov Byzantine rite Diocese, and Michael Buzalk!a, auxiliary ,bishop of the Trnava Apostolic Admiinistratu~e, ihe was sentenced to 24 yeacrs of imprisonment, his properties were confiscated, and he was deprived of aU civil. rights. Bishop Vojta,ssaik was 73 years old at the time of hi!s triral. Conspiracy and treason against the Czecho-Slova:k Republic were 'his alleged crimes. Only those witnesses who testified against him were admitted to the trirul. The ·l awyer assigned for •his defense by the Communist regime made no plea for his client. The whole trial hinged on the "confession" of the defendant which had been extorted by the weH-known methods of Communist police mvestigation. We do not know all the detJails of the torments Bishop Vojtassak ,s uffered in various prisons where he spent more than seven years. Prison life is ·h ar.sh in any cir.cumstances, parti•c ularly irn Communi!st dungeons. 'Db.ere acre reports, smuggled through the Iron Curta:irn, tJhat in the case of Bish- �103 SLOVAKIA op Vojtassivk there were instances of s•adistic torture. Brutal Communist jaHers occasionally poured out their hatred of God on the aged Bishop. They .malig:ned him in the presence of other ,prisoners. At one time, they kept him in a cell witlh a feeble-minded inmate. At other times they assigned him the most repulsive jobs. Yet, Bishop Vojtassivk never lost ,h is composure and dignity, being always aware of the fact that he was suffering for Christ at the hands of his cruellest enemies. The rea:l reason for sentencing Bishop Vojtassivk was his unoompromi,sing loyalty to God, the Church and the Slovaik people. 'Dhe Communists were aware of Bishop VojtJassak's unique position in tihe '8'1-0vak nation. By destroying him tJhey intended to destroy t:Jhe resistance of the priests and the Slovak Catholic to their regime. But they achieved just the opposite reslrlrts. The Slovak people regard their imprisoned bishops and priests a,s martyrs of Christ. The heroic resistance of these witnesses of Obrist serves as Ml inspiration to them in t:Jhei,r resistamce to Communism. Wihen Bishop Vojitassak was about 80 yeairs old, the Communists released 1him from prison. BUit they kept him under constant surveillance in the 'house of detention in Bohemia. His .p leas to be permitted to live in Slovrukia wiit:Jh his relaitives were rejected. He died in exile, in Seno'hraby in Bohemia, on August 4, 1965, . almost 88 years old. His funeral at hi,s native viliage of Zakamenne was a maiss demonstraJtion of the Slovaik people for the beloved Bishop and a protest against Communist brutality. It is reported from Slova:kia that even a young 'SlovaJk Communist who was Sl\.l!pposed to ta.1!k at the ifuneraJl aibout the alleged "crimes" of the deceased Bishop spoke aJbout the injustice committed on an innocent man amd a,boUJt an imminent accounting for this crime. T. J. Zubek, O.F.M. LITERATURE Joseph M. Kirschbaum, Slovakia - Nation at the Crossroads of Central Europe . New York, 1960. Joseph A. Mikus, Slovakia - A political History (1918-1950). Milwaukee, Wis., 1963. Gilbert L. Oddo, Slovakia and Its People. Cleveland, Ohio, 1960. T. J . Zubek, O.F.M. , The Church of Silence in Slovakia, Whiting, Ind., 1956. T. J . Zubek, O.F.M., Slovak Bishops - Martyrs of Christ. Toronto, Ont., 1963. � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource 1966, Vol. 16 Description An account of the resource Vol. 16 (No. 39), 1966. Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available The Slovak League of America Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1966 Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Text Any textual data included in the document SLOVAKIA HEROIC SLOVAK B]SiHiOP - 99 WiCT]M OF COMMUNISM When 'One talks rubout Catholic bishops behind ·t he Iron Ountain - victims of Communist ,persecution - tJhe names of Cardinals Aloysius Stepinac, Joseph Mindszenty amd Joseph Berran usually come to our mind. But there is qruiite an imposing number of other heroic bishops in Communist jails and labor camps, hidden from the eyes of the world. They are som~how forigotten even in the Catholic press, but certia:inly not in t:he eyers orf God for Wlhom they are suffering. One orf these heroic victims of Communism was John Vojrba;sM1,k, bishop of rtilie Sipis Diocese in Slovakia, who died on August 4, 1965, after fifiteen years of imprisonment and confinement. He was the most ,beloved amd revered Slova,k bishop whose martyrdom is a source of inspiraition to t:he WJhole Slova;k nation. Vojtassruk's position in Slovrukia cam be compared to tJhat of Cardinal Stepi:nac in Croaitia. Bishop Vojtassak was !born on November 14, 1877, in Zaikmnenne in Orava, the poorest district orf Slovakia, from poor peasant parenrts. Among tJhe S-Eovak people, to have a son in the priesthood was considered trhe highest ideal and distincti'(){n. To attain that goal they did nOlt hesitate to make it:Jhe greatest sacrifices 0,nd undergo 1:Jhe greatest hardsihiips. To the overwhelmiJng joy of his p3irents Jahn Vojtassaik was ordained a priest on July 1, 1901. It was at a time when Slovakia was suffering under rbhe burden orf imposed magyarization. It was considered harmful and daingerous to one's career t'O ,s how his 1Sfovaik patriotism . .Patriotic priests were l8ibeled by Magyar civil a;nd ecclesiastica:l authorities as Pam-Slavs, and their priestly ,l ives would be spent in 1:lhe poorest and remotest parishes of rbhe diocese. John Vojtassak knew this very well, ibut lhe did not waver. He always remained fairthful to tJhe Slovak people. After working as assistant pastor in several small parishes, he became, in 1911, ,p astor in Veli:cna, a poor vi-llag,e orf Orava, where he stayed until 1919. As a ,p riest, John Vojta;ssak exoolied in pastoral zeal. Besides his regular priesitily duties he wrote articles in Slovak ma:gazines, particularly for the "SVATA RODINA" ('Dhe Holy Family), of whioh he became ediitor. In his articles, Vojtassaik tried to bolster the nationa:l and religious conscientiousness of the Slovruk people. He acquired a nationltl renown throughout all of S'lovrukia. 1 1 SLOVAKIA His generosity toward Slovak national caiuses was ibotmdless. When as a young ,p riest he did not have any money to contribute for ithe estaiblishment of the Sfovaik National Museum, lhe g,ave his most va,lued treasur,e, his go'lden wa•tclh 01nd -ohain, wlhioh he received a;s a gift ifor his priestly oroinaUon. Tihis gesture became a legendary iHustr,aition of his ardent 'love for his nation. T,he end of World WaT I mea:nt the end of the old Austro-Hungarian Monarchy •a nd the fo11maition of the new Czecho~Slovak Republic. It was aJ1so the end of the imposed ma,gayairization of tJhe Slovak nation. In the Czeoho-Slovaik Republic, the apostolic zeai and work done by John Vojt•a ssak i.for the welfare of the Slova,k people were rewaroed. He W8Js named rector of the Diocesan Seminary in Spisska Kapituila in 1919, and a year later he W8JS arppoiinted bishop of the Spis Diocese by tihe Holy See. With great enthusiasm ihe plunged info the work of reforming his diocese. His primary preoccupation was the Catholirc education of yoUlbh. He founded a Te8ic'her's A:cademy for men in Spisska Kaipitwl.ia and another for women in Levoca. In Levioca he a!1so est8Jbliished a Minor Seminary. The Major Seminary at Spisska KapitJula became a model for a11 other seminaries in Slova!kia. To pr,omote viarious apostolaJtes rbishop Vojt8Jssak supported the religious orders and congregations in his diocese. He ail so iinrkoduced into his diocese School Brotheris as well as Missionaries of the DiviM Word. At the same time Vojtassfuk's concern wiitJh Slovak nrationa1 affairs did not diminish. As his stature among the Slovak !hierarchy grew, so did ,his influence in the political ilife of Slo-vakia. After the war, the Czechs came to Sfovrukia to help in its -administrative a,nd cultural tasks. But from the -beginnin.g the Czechs manifested a certain· a'loofness towaird the S:lovaks. With the ove11t:hrow of the Haibsburg Catholic Monarchy, chauvinistic Czechs tried to overthrow the Crutholic Church in the new Republic and return ito Hu.ssitism. 'I1he Czechs in Slovaikia did not respect Slovak tra,ditions nor their aJttaohment to their priests rand their Catholic reli!gion. Furthermore, bhe S1ov.aks soon realized that Czecih intentiOIJl.S toward · Slovakia in other respects were not the best·eirther. The Ozeoh:s in Slovwkia oocrupied not only positions for. .which -there was not enoug,h q,ua,l ified Slovaik per- SLOVAKIA 101 soninel, -but even petty clerica:l jobs for which tlhere was more than enough Slovia:k mam,power. Tihe Prague government did not care to develop ·Slovruk industria!l caipacitty, but rather J-iindered it. 'Dhe Czechs did not respect tihe Slovwk language, and tried to engulf the Slovalk s under ,f oe guise of so-called Czechoslovak nation. This irritated Sloviak .p atriots. Msgr. Andrew Hlinka, who during the Magya,r regime ,s uffered prison terms for his Slovak patri<otism, now became the staunohest fighter :rgainst Czech encrooohments ilil 1Sfovakia. The program of his Peoples' Party was the ,culitura!l ,and administrative autonomy of Slovrukia in ithe framework of the Czeoho-S'lovak Republic. 'Dhls •policy was based on 1:Jhe Pittsbu~g,h Pact, conoll\lded between the American Slovaks aind Czechs in P1Usburg,h, ,P a., on May 30, 1918, and signed by Prof. 'Ilhomas G. Masaryk, the first president of the Republic. But Masruryk reneged on Jij,s own words and pursued a ,p olicy of strict centralism toward Slovakia directed from Prague. In the struggle for Slovak autonomy bishop Vojtassak was a dose co-worker of Msgr. Hlinlka. Jin 1939 Adolf Hitler occupied the Czech territories (Bohemia •amd Moravia), and Slovakia ,b ecame independent. After tJhe deait:Jh of :Msgr. Andrew Hlilllka on August 16, 1938, Msgr. Joseph Tiso became •t he head of Hlinlka's SlovaJk Peoples' Party. He was elected president of the Slovak Republic on October 26, 1939. Slova:kia, being in Gemnany's sphere orf influence, could not pur,s ue an independent foreign policy. Neveritheless, in internal a:Hiairs the regi<me of Msgr. Tiso was relatively free and democratic. German efforts to nazi!fy Slovakia were thwarted by Msgr. Tiso. Even the Jewish question, despite German pressure, was solved in a mi'lder manner than in other countries under Germ.'8JI1 influence. During the S<lovak R epublic B1shop Vojtassak brought his diocese to fu:11 blossom. 'Ilhe Retreat Movement, which spread tlhroug,hoUJt Slovakia during the war, was most flourishing in the Spis diocese. Bishop Vojtassak was ,prominent in aH tlhe nationia!l Catholic enterpdses. Through his efforts the S:lovaik Cait:Jholic Oharities was organized on a national basis. He was instrumental in founding the Catholic Press Bureau and the ,Slovia:k Catholic Academy, comprising aU 8-lova,k soholars of distinction. Bishop Vojtassak became the 102 SLOVAKIA first military bishop of the .Slova:k Republi-c and a member of the State Council, an advisory body to ,bhe .President of the Republic. 'I'he Slov'8Jk Republic was of a shor.t duration. In the spring of 1945 the Russian a:rmies ovel"I"an SlovaJkia. 'Dhe Allied Power.s agreed to the restoration of the Czecho-Slovak Republic. By the Ya.'lta Agreement, the new Cz.oohoSlovarkia was to be under Soviet _politioal influence. The communi:uation of Czecho-Slovaiki!a began to some degree immediately after the Second World War. fu the new Ozeoho..:Slovaik Republic thou.sands of Slovak patriots were sentenced to long terms of imprisonment for alleged c0Ha1boration witJh the Nazis. iMsgr. Joseph Tiso and scores of others were executed. Bishop Vojtassak was imprisoned for the firist time in May, 1945, and was confined for seven months. Further trirbulatio:ns for the S1ovruk nation were to come after February 25, 1948, when the Commuinists took full control of 0:uedho-Slovakia. Since June 1949, all the bishops were under constant police surveillance and detained in their residences. Those considered as most opposed to the Conummist regime were imprisoned. Bi<Slhop Vojtassaik was i,mprisoned in Braitislav,a in September 1950. After months of brainwashing in the Bratislava police prison, on Janua:ry 15, 1951, togetfuer with Paul Gojdic, bishop of the Presov Byzantine rite Diocese, and Michael Buzalk!a, auxiliary ,bishop of the Trnava Apostolic Admiinistratu~e, ihe was sentenced to 24 yeacrs of imprisonment, his properties were confiscated, and he was deprived of aU civil. rights. Bishop Vojta,ssaik was 73 years old at the time of hi!s triral. Conspiracy and treason against the Czecho-Slova:k Republic were 'his alleged crimes. Only those witnesses who testified against him were admitted to the trirul. The ·l awyer assigned for •his defense by the Communist regime made no plea for his client. The whole trial hinged on the "confession" of the defendant which had been extorted by the weH-known methods of Communist police mvestigation. We do not know all the detJails of the torments Bishop Vojtassak ,s uffered in various prisons where he spent more than seven years. Prison life is ·h ar.sh in any cir.cumstances, parti•c ularly irn Communi!st dungeons. 'Db.ere acre reports, smuggled through the Iron Curta:irn, tJhat in the case of Bish- 103 SLOVAKIA op Vojtassivk there were instances of s•adistic torture. Brutal Communist jaHers occasionally poured out their hatred of God on the aged Bishop. They .malig:ned him in the presence of other ,prisoners. At one time, they kept him in a cell witlh a feeble-minded inmate. At other times they assigned him the most repulsive jobs. Yet, Bishop Vojtassivk never lost ,h is composure and dignity, being always aware of the fact that he was suffering for Christ at the hands of his cruellest enemies. The rea:l reason for sentencing Bishop Vojtassivk was his unoompromi,sing loyalty to God, the Church and the Slovaik people. 'Dhe Communists were aware of Bishop VojtJassak's unique position in tihe '8'1-0vak nation. By destroying him tJhey intended to destroy t:Jhe resistance of the priests and the Slovak Catholic to their regime. But they achieved just the opposite reslrlrts. The Slovak people regard their imprisoned bishops and priests a,s martyrs of Christ. The heroic resistance of these witnesses of Obrist serves as Ml inspiration to them in t:Jhei,r resistamce to Communism. Wihen Bishop Vojitassak was about 80 yeairs old, the Communists released 1him from prison. BUit they kept him under constant surveillance in the 'house of detention in Bohemia. His .p leas to be permitted to live in Slovrukia wiit:Jh his relaitives were rejected. He died in exile, in Seno'hraby in Bohemia, on August 4, 1965, . almost 88 years old. His funeral at hi,s native viliage of Zakamenne was a maiss demonstraJtion of the Slovaik people for the beloved Bishop and a protest against Communist brutality. It is reported from Slova:kia that even a young 'SlovaJk Communist who was Sl\.l!pposed to ta.1!k at the ifuneraJl aibout the alleged "crimes" of the deceased Bishop spoke aJbout the injustice committed on an innocent man amd a,boUJt an imminent accounting for this crime. T. J. Zubek, O.F.M. LITERATURE Joseph M. Kirschbaum, Slovakia - Nation at the Crossroads of Central Europe . New York, 1960. Joseph A. Mikus, Slovakia - A political History (1918-1950). Milwaukee, Wis., 1963. Gilbert L. Oddo, Slovakia and Its People. Cleveland, Ohio, 1960. T. J . Zubek, O.F.M. , The Church of Silence in Slovakia, Whiting, Ind., 1956. T. J . Zubek, O.F.M., Slovak Bishops - Martyrs of Christ. Toronto, Ont., 1963.  Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Heroic Slovak Bishop - Victim of Communism Description An account of the resource T. J. Zubek, O.F.M. Slovakia, Vol. 16 (No. 39), 1966 pp. 99-103 Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Zúbek, Teodorik J., 1914-1988 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1966 SNK https://slovakia.wordsofpassage.net/files/original/4b70563c26e3df62ff5e179b48253864.pdf f720ff9f14720f917cb2336afd39bb5e PDF Text Text 104 SLOVAKIA UUDOVfT STUR AND THE PANSLAVIC MOVEMENT By Suzanna Mikula, B.A. Slovaks have long recognized the achievements of Uudovit Stur (1815-1856) in promoting Slovak unity, culture, and independence. He is a great national figure, revered as the "Father of Modern Slovak Nationa1ism". Stur was a man of many talents, literary, pedagogical, and political. He was an ardent patriot among people who had been without a nation for a thousand years, a Protestant in an area predominantly Catholic. Stur was also the author of a number of books, poems, and pamphlets, all in a strong patriotic vein. His most famous work even though not the best is Slavdom and the World of the Future, wrUten in the early 1850's in the German language, but not published until 1867 in Russia. Stur's contributions to the Slovak nation are quite known. But what of his place in the history of Slavs at his time? The third, fourth, and fifth decades of the 19th century saw a · tremendous national revival of the Slavic world. This revival led to a Panslavic movement, received enthusiastically by the Slavic world and fearfully by western Europe. Stur had an active role in the Panslavic Movement, and with his work at the Prague Congress of 1848 as well as with his book, Slavdom and the World of the Future, introduced the concept of poHtical panslavism. Slovakia can be called the mother of the Panslavic Movement, for a Slovak writer named John Herkel first used the word "panslavic" in a Latin treatise published in 1826. Furthermore the main leaders and writers of the Panslavic Movement of the 19th century were Slovaks; the poet Jan Kollar and scholar P. J. Safarik may even be regarded as the fathers of Panslavism. 1 The success of panslavism among the Slovaks was due to the fact that the Slovaks occupy the central position (geographically) in the Slavic world. Also since the Slovak language is the purest of the Slavic tongues, they believed they were the original Slav nation. In fact, the Slovaks seem to have some resemblance to nearly all of the Slavic nations, further strengthening the "mother-of-the-Slavs" concept which the Slovaks cherish. Thus it seems that from the heart �SLOVAKIA 105 of Slavdom, the Slovaks were chosen to lead the separated brothers. 2 Furthermore, the Slovaks had been dominated by other nations for nearly a thousand years; now the activities of the panslavists gave leadership and direction to the long suppressed desires of the Slovaks for their own nation.3 These factors help explain why Slovakia became "the classic country of the Slavic idea." 4 However, the Panslavic Movement was not limited to Slovakia, but spread throughout the Slavic world, taking deeper root in some areas than in others. There had been an early attempt at achieving some type of Slavic unity in the 17th century. Juraj Krizanic (1618-1683), a Croatian, was a forerunner of Panslavism in that he sought the adoption of a single Slavic language for all Slavic nations. He also advocated agreement to political unity under Russia, but little attention was paid to him.5 The idea of Slavic unity had no success in the 17th century, but by the 19th century, events in Europe offered more hope for its acceptance. The French Revolution and Napoleonic Wars caused a political awakening of intellectuals in central and Eastern Europe. 6 Jin Austria, the enlightened reigns of Maria Theresa, Joseph II and Leopold II improved the economic and social conditions of the Slav subjects, who now for the first time found opportunity for education and intellectual activity. And finally, the great success and power of Russia offered a shining example to the downtrodden Slavic nations of what a brother nation could achieve. A far greater influence on the intellectual thought leading to Panslavism was linguistic and political Pangermanism, especially as interpreted by Johann Herder. According to Herder, the national language was regarded as a determining factor for men's loyalty. 7 But even more than this, Herder believed, and proclaimed in his writings, that the Slavic race was the future leader of Europe. The decadent8 Romanic and Germanic tribes would of nesessity yield to the peace-loving, moral, and primitively democratic Slavs. He urged them not to abandon their language, but to cultivate it carefully and consistently, for it was a precious g,ift from their fathers. Thus Panslavism rested on the two principles of a common language and a kind nebulous unity created by the existence of a widespread, primitive, but untainted Slavic civilization. �106 SLOVAJOA Panslavism was a sign of the national awakening of central and eastern Europe, and as such its primary emphasis was on language, literature, and culture. Having been subjugated for so many centuries, the Slavic people needed support in formulating a national consciousness, a national vernacular literature, and they sought this support in each other. Panslavism arose at first more as a defensive movement among the western Slavs than as a political movement with the aim of replacing western dominance in Europe. However for many years, even to this day, the word panslavism has a political connotation for the Romance and Germanic nations, implying a belligerent attempt to replace their civilization with the Slavic civilization.!) This connotation was attached to the Panslavic movement from the very beginning, largely because of a slight resemblanc e to a pangerman movement, but also because of the subjugated position of the various Slavic nations. This gave rise to the fear that they would attempt to recover their former independen ce, and thus disturb the surface-peace of Europe. Individual Slavic nations could hardly create a problem for the rest of Europe, except Russia. But once unified, the Slavic race far outnumbered the other two, and could quite possibly overpower them. This fear never materialized. Panslavism , throughout the 19th century, remained the primary concern of poets, newspaper writers, literary scholars, philologists , and historians.10 Unlike western European nations, where national awakening came as a result of the activities of politicians and statesmen, Slavic nationalism was removed from the political plan and situated in the literary field . The panslavic poets and writers expressed, in a period when such feelings were dominant, an optomistic belief in man's inevitable progress, in a great spiritual rejuvenatio n, which would result in the establishme nt of liberty, peace, and happiness.11 The Slavs were far removed from the conflicts of the older nations ; perhaps they were the heralds of this new era? Certainly the Slavic writers offered promises that this was so. The Panslavic movement was also used as a protest against the dominant position of the German and Magyar tongues within the Slavic world. The Slavs used the appeal of ethnograph ic nationality, so much a part of the thinking of this age that it was regarded as a national right, against their two major oppressors. �SLOVAKIA 107 There were three stages in the Panslavic movement: literary, scientific, and political, with literary panslavism being the primary and most successful. The Slovak poet Jan Kollar was the spokesman for literary panslavism. His chief goal was the literary and cultural union of Slavic nations. According to Kollar, there is only one Slavic nation, and only one Slavric language. He did not feel that a single political state was necessary, nor even a single spoken language. The various dialects were to be respected, but in literature, only the one common Slavic language should prevail. 12 Kollar was against political union of Slavric nations because he felt agitation for such union would result in disorder and catastrophe for the Slavs. 13 What Kollar hoped to attain was a state of literary reciprocity, whereby the writings of one nation would be the property and treasure of every other Slav nation. Kollar tried to awaken within the Slavs their sense of unity, their glorsious destiny and bright future. He stressed the need of self-recognition and inter-communication, but without any conflicts with existing political structures. Yet in spite of his dislike of political agitation, it was his impassioned and imaginative writing which led the Slavic people to action. Scientific panslavism was chiefly the result of the efforts of Pavel Jozef Safarik, who was the first to pursue a scholarly and systematic study of the background and origins of the Slavic nations and language. He provided the foundation upon which the panslavists might build Slavic unity and destiny, and his work gave authenticity to the poems of Kollar and the writings of Stur. His book Slavic Antiquities became famous throughout Europe, stimu}ating an interest in the early history and culture of the Slav peoples. Safarik may be regarded as the founder of a whole school of scientific writers, and his book had a very direct influence on subsequent developments in the Slav world. 14 His studies of the Slavic languages substantiated the early belief that all the Slavic languages were quite closely related; Safarik provided a rational foundation for the emotional appeal of Kollar. The literary and scientif,ic panslavism of Kollar and Safarik succeeded in creating a strong national spirit among the Slavs, the Czechs and Slovaks in particular. It is only natural that this cry for national unity and for self-recognition should be heard and taken to its logical conclusion, namely �108 SLOVAKIA political panslavism. And this had been done by Uudovit Stur, who saw in which direction panslavism must now go. Literary and cultural unity was not enough. To achieve their glorious destiny, the destiny to which both Kollar and Safari.k alluded, the Slavic peoples had to attain a measure of political unity. There were two paths that political panslavism could follow: Austroslavism, which meant maintaining a form of Austrian political influence, and which Stur advocated at the Prague Congress of 1848, the first great manifestation of Panslavism, and Pan-Russianism, which Stur adopted after the failure of the Prague Congress. The Prague Congress of 1848 was the natural result of the Panslavic movement. It was apparent that a true spirit of panslavism would necessitate a dialog between the Slavs, a dialog not only literary but political as well. Several events which occured in the years 1846-1848 made such a meeting desireable. The Polish uprisings in Galicia and Cracow in 1846, the national agitation in Italy when Cardinal Terretto became Pope, the United Landtag in Prussia, the elections to the Hungarian Diet in 1847, to which Stur was elected, and most immediately, the February, 1848, Revolution in Paris, and the Congress of Germ,an deputies (members of Parliament) in Frankfurt discussing the unification of an Germans, all these events served to stir the Slavic people to action. The spirit of revolution and nationalism was in the arir, dominating the writings and conversations of the year. 15 The Czechs and Slovaks, especially felt that immediate action of some sort was necessary. In Austria, there was the threat of German expansion under the leadership of Prussia. Hungary, under the leadership of Louis Kossuth was pursuing a policy of complete magyarization. The Slovak language was to be suppressed, with Magyar the official language of education and government. It seemed almost paradoxical that the Magyars sought to suppress the national spirit of the Slovaks in order to achieve the same for themselves. Stur saw this paradox, and said in this respect: "Each nation is only one pa1t of humanity and no nation can claim for itself that it alone has comprehended the best human evolution and possible perfection. Therefore, no nation has a right to force upon another nation its way of life when that nation wants to move itself and educate itself as it sees fit. 16 The time seemed opportune for action on the part of �SLOVAKIA 109 the Slavs as well. Stur offered the idea of proclaiming a Slavic Congress, 17 and on May 31, 1848, it was called by Stur and the Czech writers. Prague was chosen for the Congress, and a total of 362 delegates from the various Slavic nations arrived. The delegates were largely from among the Slavs under the Hapsburg rule, but the Poles and Russians also were represented. The avowed objective of the meeting was the establishment of periodic relations between the Slav peoples and the drawing up of a program of action for such peoples subject to Austrian and/ or Hungarian domination. 18 At the Congress Stur offered a program for federalizing Central Europe. In spite of his antagonism to the idea that a non-Slav nation should have any say in the affairs of a Slav nation, he realized that total independence was impossible. The Czechs, being far more realistic than the Slovaks, had realized this, and were consistent supporters of Austroslavism. Thus at the conference the problem narrowed down to a definition of terms: the objective of the Congress was either to save Austria, for with her lay the best chances of maintaining Slavic identity, or the primary concern were the needs of the Slavic people living under Austria. 19 Stur passionately declared at the Congress: Our aim should be to save ourselves, not to save Austria. First we must work for ourselves, then for others. Thus far Austria has been existing but we have been perishing. What wo.u ld the world say to us if we stood for nothing but the preservation of Austria? Let us say that we want to stand as independent Slavonic communities under the government of Austria . . . this will give our work a Slavonic accent.20 Stur felt the program of the congress should be: (1) the creation of independent Slavic united states within Austria, and (2) prompt agreement to this, so that the Austrian armies might destroy Magyar encroachments into Slovakia. 21 Stur could not place enough stress on the need for Slavic independence: "So that we might take over the spot in history which belongs to us according to our strength and abilities, we must once and for all time free ourselves from this unbearable foreign thraldom and gain state independence for ourselves." 22 Stur fully understood the necessity of remaining within the Austrian framework. But his Austroslavism was very �110 SLOVAKIA tepid, and he carefully pointed out that it (Austroslavism) existed only because of sheer necessity. Stur made no attempt to hide his distrust of Austria and his distaste with certain features of the regime. It was otherwise with the Czechs. They had not suffered the same suppressions under the Austrians as the Slovaks had under the Magyars. Hence they were ready to accept the vague promises of the Austrian Emperor that Slavic rights would be recognized and respected. In return, the delegates of the Congress decided to give Austria full support in helping to subdue the Magyars. Futhermore, they adopted a "Manifesto to the European Nations" which called for the following objectives: 1. 2. 3. 4. The freeing of the Slavic people under Turkish rule. That the Magyars acknowledge the rights of the Slovak nation, including the right to its own language. That Croatian autonomy be maintained. That the Slovenians be permitted to possess their land. 23 It would seem then, that the Prague Congress reduced the Panslavic movement to an attempt to reorganize Austria so as to satisfy the nationalism of the Slavs.24 So it must have seemed to Stur, for he felt that the Congress had been a failure. Then too the attempted insurrection in 1848 against the Magyars also failed. Stur was greatly despondent. He had had great faith in the panslavic movement and felt Slavic independence was not an impossible goal. Yet the two expressions of this political panslavism certainly did not succeed. In his despair and disillusionment, Stur concluded that a small nation could not seek its freedom alone, or in the frame of Austroslavism. There was only one alternative left: Russia, for Russia alone of the Slavic nations was powerful enough to lead others to independence. This was the basic idea expressed throughout his book SLavdom and the World of the Future, an exceptional tribute to the cultural, moral, and political forces of the Russian Empire. It also presented a detailed and complete program for the union of Slavs with Russia. Stu.r's book had little impact on his own people. The book was published for the Congress of 1867, when a group of Russians discovered it and translated it. It was the major �SLOVAKIA 111 work studied and examined at the Congress, and was regarded as a complete and perfect program of panrussianism. Stur set out to accomplish four basic tasks in his book. First of all he wished to determine whether the Slavs had a role of their own to fulfill in world history. 25 A close review of the Slavic past ought to yield the answer. Stur of course, was certain of the answer even before he began his examination, for this belief had been the basic reason for the entire panslavic movement. The Slavs were to be the leaders of a "new" Europe. They were at this point in no position to do anything, but history was a progression of spent nations being replaced by young ones, and Slavic emancipation and self-realization would eventually occur. The second task of the book is to describe the Slavic mission in universal history against the background of the cultural difference between Western and Eastern Europe.26 In the west, Stur could see only moral, political, and social dissolution, the ruination of the peasants (true guardians of democracy), and finally the schism between religion and daily life. It was no use looking to the West for salvation, when they were already on the downward path. Nor was there any use in imitating the society and institutions of the West since they were contributing to the very decline of the West. The Western civilization had deteriorated; the Slavs could only look to themselves for help. In the third part Stur presents a highly romantic picture of the Slavic people. The Slavs are people of extraordinary virtue; their only vices were those which had crept in from the influence of the west. The Slavs were naturally good of heart, patient, humble, kind, and democratic. These virtues were the characteristic of all Slavs, but especially the Russians. The Russians were the embodiment of all the best and noble features of the entire Slav nation. Stur had never been in Russia, nor had any prolonged contact with Russians. He based his notion merely on the fact that this had to be logically so, for of the Russians were to be the leaders of the Slavs, they had to be the best among the Slavs. The last section of Slavdom and the World of the Future deals with the problems of Slavic political unification. Unity was an absolute necessity if the Slavs were to achieve their historic mission. But what type of unity? �112 SLOVAKIA There were three possibilities. The first one that he considered was a Slavic Federation without Russia. This he rejected because such a federation could never succeed due to internal dissention among the various Slavic peoples. So union of so many Slavic nations of about equal strength would destroy the possibility of the emergence of a leader. Yet a leader was absolutely necessary if the Slavs were to jointly work for their destiny. A second possibility was the transformation of Austria into a Slavic Empire. Any type of unity with Austria was an illusion that could never gain substance. Attempts at cooperation with Austria had failed once before, and Stur believed Austria was doomed to destruction ; Austroslavism should not even be considered. The only remaining alternative was union with Russia. Russia was powerful enough to unite all the Slavic nations ; she was the leader the Slavs needed . Stur was proud of Russia's vastness and power, but it was a Slavic pride. Should the Slavic peoples unite under Russia, their equal could not be found in all of Europe. This is an amazing document to come from the hands of I..:udovit Stur. And yet, given the circumstances he faced in the 1850's, it is not so hard to understand. Stur's primary goal, for which he had worked all his life, was a Slavic nationalism, a Slavic unity. Austroslavism had failed; there was only one place left to turn: to Russia. Stur did not reject independence for the individual Slavic nations; he was not willing to replace Austrian domination with Russian. He hoped for the creation of a federation of independent Slavic states under Russian leadership, substantially the same as he urged in 1848 under Austrian leadership. Stur's book was greatly praised by the Russian Slavophils, for it was so closely atuned to their ideas. However, the book was an expression of Stur's ideas which he arrived at independently of any noticeable influence from the Russians.27 Stur died in 1856, and hence, having never set foot in Russia, had little contact with the Slavophils. He did carry on a correspondence with several Russians, but not enough to permit the statement that his book was an expression of their views. Stur was interested in panslavism, in unity for �SLOVAKIA 113 all Slavic nations; his interest in Russia came only as a result of this. The Panslavic Movement did not, during Stu.r's time, achieve any notable results. In fact, by the time of his death, the whole movement was pretty much a failure. Panslavism failed because the very nationalism that it promoted led to its defeat. By urging Slavic national consciousness, panslavism created dissent among the various Slav nations. The more the people became aware of their individuality, their historical traditions, and their own language, the less they wanted to sacrifice them for a non-existent Slav federation. Secondly, the centuries-old and traditional antagonism between various Slavic nations, such as Poles and Russians, Czechs and Slovaks, Croatians and Serbians, prevented any success for a plan that would unite them. These two factors prevented Panslavism from exercising any dominant or stable influence on European political thought at that time. Yet Panslavism has an inherent value in that it revealed for the first time to the rest of Europe the Slavic mind. This is especially important in the light of the present role which the Slavs play in Europe. The Prague Congress too, could be regarded as a failure, for there was little change in the situation of the Slavic people after it. But the Prague Congress was the first expression of Slavic unity, of Slavic identity, separate from the Hapsburg rule. As such, it gave the Slavs confidence and a guide for future actions. Slavdom and the World of the Future is relatively unknown, even in the Slavic world. Yet it had a strong influence on Russian thinking in the 1870's and was in fact a forerunner of their program and goals. :Cudovit Stur was the author of political panslavism. He initiated the Prague Congress of 1848, and through his book, spread his influence beyond the confines of the Austrian Empire. He revealed to the West the Slavic mind and the Slavic desires ; he deserves a place in the 19th century intellectual and national thought and doctrine. FOOTNOTES 1. Hans Kohn, Panslavism, Notre Dame University Press, p. 18. 2. Ernest Denis, Les Slovaques, Paris, p. 14. 3. As Jan Kollar, great Slovak poet, stated: "The Tatra Slavs had �SLOVAKIA 114 so far almost no literature of their own, therefore they first opened their arms to embrace all Slavs . . . the Tatra mountains are the nest and cradle of all Slavs. Therefore the idea of solidarity ... took root there faster and deeper than anywhere else." (Kohn, p. 17) 4. Ibid., p. 44. 5. Jozef Kirschbaum, Nas boj o samostatnost' Slovenska, Slovak Institute, p. 233. 6. Kohn, p. 1. 7. Ibid., 8. It is hard to say why the west was considered to be decadent. Possibly because, after the nationalistic hopes aroused by Napoleon, Europe was successfully forced to return to the status quo ante Napoleon, to the despair of liberals and nationalists. Even with the political panslavism of Stur, the aim was Slavic independence, not Slavic control of Europe in the immediate future. 10. Kirschbaum, Nas boj, p. 231, and Jan Kollar - Slovak Poet of Panslavism, Slavistica, No. 56, Slovak Institute, Cleveland, 0., 1965. 11. Kohn, p. 18. 12. Kirschbaum, p. 235. 13. Ibid. 14. H. Seton-Watson, A History of the Czechs and Slovaks, p. 175, and Kirschbaum, Pavol J. Safarik and His Contribution to Slavic Studies, Slavistica No. 43, Cleveland, 0., 1962. 15. Kohn, p. 62. 16. Marian 2iar, " Stur: Father of Modern Slovak Nationalism", Slovakia, Vol. VI, March 1956, Middletown, Pa., p. 9. 17. Zdenek Tobolka, Slovanskii Sjezd v Praze roku 1848, Prague, p. 51. 18. A. Mouset, Le Monde Slave, Paris, p. 14. 9. 19. Karol Galan, " Sturove reci na slovanskom sjazde roku 1848", Slovenske pohl'ady, cislo 8-9, aug.-sept. 1936, p. 422. The difference in the two positions lay mostly in their emphasis; the one put Austria first, the other put the Slavs first. Stur of course, was in favor of the second phraseology. 20. Ibid. 21. Ibid., p. 423. 22. Jozef Kirschbaum, Slovakia: Nation at the Crossroads of Central Europe, Robert Speller Co., p. 73. 23. Kirschbaum, N<is boj, pp. 247-48. 24. Waclaw Lednicki, "Panslavism". European Ideologies, ed. Felix Gross, New York, p. 869. 25. M. Petrovich, "I:udovit Stur and Russian Panslavism", Journal of Central European Affairs, Vol. 12, April 1952, p. 6. 26. Ibid., p. 9. �SLOVAKIA 27. 115 Jozef Kirschbaum, "Uudovit Stur and His Place in the Slavic World", Slavistica, No. 32, 1958, Slovak Institute p. 12. BIBLIOGRAPHY Denis, Ernest, La Question d'Autriche Delagrave: Paris) , 1917. Les Slovaques. (Librairie Galan, Karol, "Sturove reci na slovanskom sjazde roku 1848". Slovenske pohi'ady, cislo 8-9, aug.-sept. 1936, Bratislava. Kirschbaum, Jozef, Nas boj o samostatnosf Slovenska. (Slovak Institute: Cleveland, Ohio), 1958. Slovakia: Nation at the Crossroads of Central Europe. (Robert Speller and Sons Co.: New York), 1960. "Uudovit Stur and His Place in the Slavic World". siavistica No .32, (Slovak Institute: Cleve1and), 1958. Kohn, Hans, Pansfovism. (University of Notre Dame Press: South Bend, Ind.), 1953. Lednicki, Waclaw, "Panslavism" European Ideologies. ed. Feliks Gross (Philosophical Library: New York), 1948. Miku~. Joseph, Slovakia, a Political History . (Marquette University Press: Milwaukee, Wis.), 1963. Mousset, Albert, Le Monde siave. Paris, 1946. Oddo, Gilbert, Slovakia and Its People . (Robert Speller and Sons Co.: New York), 1960. Pauco, Jozef, r.udovychova u sturovcov. Matiea slovenska, Turc. Sv. Martin, 1943. Petrovich, Michael, "Uudovit Stur and Russian Panslavism" Journal of Central European Affairs, Vol. 12, April, 1952. Seton-Watson, R. H., A History of the Czechs and Slovaks. London: 1943. Stur, L'udovit, Listy I?.udovita Stura, ed. Dr. Jozef Ambru~ (Slovenska Akademia Vied: Bratislava), 1956. Tobolka, Zdenek, Slovansky sjezd v Praze roku 1848. (F. Simacek Co.: Prague), 1901. Vlcek, Jaroslav, Dejiny literatury slovenskej (Matica slovenska: Turciansky Sv. Martin), 1923. 2iar, Marian, "Stur: Father of Modem Slovak Nationalism". Slovakia, Vol. VI, March 1956, (Jednota Press: Middletown, Pa.) � 104 SLOVAKIA UUDOVfT STUR AND THE PANSLAVIC MOVEMENT By Suzanna Mikula, B.A. Slovaks have long recognized the achievements of Uudovit Stur (1815-1856) in promoting Slovak unity, culture, and independence. He is a great national figure, revered as the "Father of Modern Slovak Nationa1ism". Stur was a man of many talents, literary, pedagogical, and political. He was an ardent patriot among people who had been without a nation for a thousand years, a Protestant in an area predominantly Catholic. Stur was also the author of a number of books, poems, and pamphlets, all in a strong patriotic vein. His most famous work even though not the best is Slavdom and the World of the Future, wrUten in the early 1850's in the German language, but not published until 1867 in Russia. Stur's contributions to the Slovak nation are quite known. But what of his place in the history of Slavs at his time? The third, fourth, and fifth decades of the 19th century saw a · tremendous national revival of the Slavic world. This revival led to a Panslavic movement, received enthusiastically by the Slavic world and fearfully by western Europe. Stur had an active role in the Panslavic Movement, and with his work at the Prague Congress of 1848 as well as with his book, Slavdom and the World of the Future, introduced the concept of poHtical panslavism. Slovakia can be called the mother of the Panslavic Movement, for a Slovak writer named John Herkel first used the word "panslavic" in a Latin treatise published in 1826. Furthermore the main leaders and writers of the Panslavic Movement of the 19th century were Slovaks; the poet Jan Kollar and scholar P. J. Safarik may even be regarded as the fathers of Panslavism. 1 The success of panslavism among the Slovaks was due to the fact that the Slovaks occupy the central position (geographically) in the Slavic world. Also since the Slovak language is the purest of the Slavic tongues, they believed they were the original Slav nation. In fact, the Slovaks seem to have some resemblance to nearly all of the Slavic nations, further strengthening the "mother-of-the-Slavs" concept which the Slovaks cherish. Thus it seems that from the heart �SLOVAKIA 105 of Slavdom, the Slovaks were chosen to lead the separated brothers. 2 Furthermore, the Slovaks had been dominated by other nations for nearly a thousand years; now the activities of the panslavists gave leadership and direction to the long suppressed desires of the Slovaks for their own nation.3 These factors help explain why Slovakia became "the classic country of the Slavic idea." 4 However, the Panslavic Movement was not limited to Slovakia, but spread throughout the Slavic world, taking deeper root in some areas than in others. There had been an early attempt at achieving some type of Slavic unity in the 17th century. Juraj Krizanic (1618-1683), a Croatian, was a forerunner of Panslavism in that he sought the adoption of a single Slavic language for all Slavic nations. He also advocated agreement to political unity under Russia, but little attention was paid to him.5 The idea of Slavic unity had no success in the 17th century, but by the 19th century, events in Europe offered more hope for its acceptance. The French Revolution and Napoleonic Wars caused a political awakening of intellectuals in central and Eastern Europe. 6 Jin Austria, the enlightened reigns of Maria Theresa, Joseph II and Leopold II improved the economic and social conditions of the Slav subjects, who now for the first time found opportunity for education and intellectual activity. And finally, the great success and power of Russia offered a shining example to the downtrodden Slavic nations of what a brother nation could achieve. A far greater influence on the intellectual thought leading to Panslavism was linguistic and political Pangermanism, especially as interpreted by Johann Herder. According to Herder, the national language was regarded as a determining factor for men's loyalty. 7 But even more than this, Herder believed, and proclaimed in his writings, that the Slavic race was the future leader of Europe. The decadent8 Romanic and Germanic tribes would of nesessity yield to the peace-loving, moral, and primitively democratic Slavs. He urged them not to abandon their language, but to cultivate it carefully and consistently, for it was a precious g,ift from their fathers. Thus Panslavism rested on the two principles of a common language and a kind nebulous unity created by the existence of a widespread, primitive, but untainted Slavic civilization. �106 SLOVAJOA Panslavism was a sign of the national awakening of central and eastern Europe, and as such its primary emphasis was on language, literature, and culture. Having been subjugated for so many centuries, the Slavic people needed support in formulating a national consciousness, a national vernacular literature, and they sought this support in each other. Panslavism arose at first more as a defensive movement among the western Slavs than as a political movement with the aim of replacing western dominance in Europe. However for many years, even to this day, the word panslavism has a political connotation for the Romance and Germanic nations, implying a belligerent attempt to replace their civilization with the Slavic civilization.!) This connotation was attached to the Panslavic movement from the very beginning, largely because of a slight resemblanc e to a pangerman movement, but also because of the subjugated position of the various Slavic nations. This gave rise to the fear that they would attempt to recover their former independen ce, and thus disturb the surface-peace of Europe. Individual Slavic nations could hardly create a problem for the rest of Europe, except Russia. But once unified, the Slavic race far outnumbered the other two, and could quite possibly overpower them. This fear never materialized. Panslavism , throughout the 19th century, remained the primary concern of poets, newspaper writers, literary scholars, philologists , and historians.10 Unlike western European nations, where national awakening came as a result of the activities of politicians and statesmen, Slavic nationalism was removed from the political plan and situated in the literary field . The panslavic poets and writers expressed, in a period when such feelings were dominant, an optomistic belief in man's inevitable progress, in a great spiritual rejuvenatio n, which would result in the establishme nt of liberty, peace, and happiness.11 The Slavs were far removed from the conflicts of the older nations ; perhaps they were the heralds of this new era? Certainly the Slavic writers offered promises that this was so. The Panslavic movement was also used as a protest against the dominant position of the German and Magyar tongues within the Slavic world. The Slavs used the appeal of ethnograph ic nationality, so much a part of the thinking of this age that it was regarded as a national right, against their two major oppressors. �SLOVAKIA 107 There were three stages in the Panslavic movement: literary, scientific, and political, with literary panslavism being the primary and most successful. The Slovak poet Jan Kollar was the spokesman for literary panslavism. His chief goal was the literary and cultural union of Slavic nations. According to Kollar, there is only one Slavic nation, and only one Slavric language. He did not feel that a single political state was necessary, nor even a single spoken language. The various dialects were to be respected, but in literature, only the one common Slavic language should prevail. 12 Kollar was against political union of Slavric nations because he felt agitation for such union would result in disorder and catastrophe for the Slavs. 13 What Kollar hoped to attain was a state of literary reciprocity, whereby the writings of one nation would be the property and treasure of every other Slav nation. Kollar tried to awaken within the Slavs their sense of unity, their glorsious destiny and bright future. He stressed the need of self-recognition and inter-communication, but without any conflicts with existing political structures. Yet in spite of his dislike of political agitation, it was his impassioned and imaginative writing which led the Slavic people to action. Scientific panslavism was chiefly the result of the efforts of Pavel Jozef Safarik, who was the first to pursue a scholarly and systematic study of the background and origins of the Slavic nations and language. He provided the foundation upon which the panslavists might build Slavic unity and destiny, and his work gave authenticity to the poems of Kollar and the writings of Stur. His book Slavic Antiquities became famous throughout Europe, stimu}ating an interest in the early history and culture of the Slav peoples. Safarik may be regarded as the founder of a whole school of scientific writers, and his book had a very direct influence on subsequent developments in the Slav world. 14 His studies of the Slavic languages substantiated the early belief that all the Slavic languages were quite closely related; Safarik provided a rational foundation for the emotional appeal of Kollar. The literary and scientif,ic panslavism of Kollar and Safarik succeeded in creating a strong national spirit among the Slavs, the Czechs and Slovaks in particular. It is only natural that this cry for national unity and for self-recognition should be heard and taken to its logical conclusion, namely �108 SLOVAKIA political panslavism. And this had been done by Uudovit Stur, who saw in which direction panslavism must now go. Literary and cultural unity was not enough. To achieve their glorious destiny, the destiny to which both Kollar and Safari.k alluded, the Slavic peoples had to attain a measure of political unity. There were two paths that political panslavism could follow: Austroslavism, which meant maintaining a form of Austrian political influence, and which Stur advocated at the Prague Congress of 1848, the first great manifestation of Panslavism, and Pan-Russianism, which Stur adopted after the failure of the Prague Congress. The Prague Congress of 1848 was the natural result of the Panslavic movement. It was apparent that a true spirit of panslavism would necessitate a dialog between the Slavs, a dialog not only literary but political as well. Several events which occured in the years 1846-1848 made such a meeting desireable. The Polish uprisings in Galicia and Cracow in 1846, the national agitation in Italy when Cardinal Terretto became Pope, the United Landtag in Prussia, the elections to the Hungarian Diet in 1847, to which Stur was elected, and most immediately, the February, 1848, Revolution in Paris, and the Congress of Germ,an deputies (members of Parliament) in Frankfurt discussing the unification of an Germans, all these events served to stir the Slavic people to action. The spirit of revolution and nationalism was in the arir, dominating the writings and conversations of the year. 15 The Czechs and Slovaks, especially felt that immediate action of some sort was necessary. In Austria, there was the threat of German expansion under the leadership of Prussia. Hungary, under the leadership of Louis Kossuth was pursuing a policy of complete magyarization. The Slovak language was to be suppressed, with Magyar the official language of education and government. It seemed almost paradoxical that the Magyars sought to suppress the national spirit of the Slovaks in order to achieve the same for themselves. Stur saw this paradox, and said in this respect: "Each nation is only one pa1t of humanity and no nation can claim for itself that it alone has comprehended the best human evolution and possible perfection. Therefore, no nation has a right to force upon another nation its way of life when that nation wants to move itself and educate itself as it sees fit. 16 The time seemed opportune for action on the part of �SLOVAKIA 109 the Slavs as well. Stur offered the idea of proclaiming a Slavic Congress, 17 and on May 31, 1848, it was called by Stur and the Czech writers. Prague was chosen for the Congress, and a total of 362 delegates from the various Slavic nations arrived. The delegates were largely from among the Slavs under the Hapsburg rule, but the Poles and Russians also were represented. The avowed objective of the meeting was the establishment of periodic relations between the Slav peoples and the drawing up of a program of action for such peoples subject to Austrian and/ or Hungarian domination. 18 At the Congress Stur offered a program for federalizing Central Europe. In spite of his antagonism to the idea that a non-Slav nation should have any say in the affairs of a Slav nation, he realized that total independence was impossible. The Czechs, being far more realistic than the Slovaks, had realized this, and were consistent supporters of Austroslavism. Thus at the conference the problem narrowed down to a definition of terms: the objective of the Congress was either to save Austria, for with her lay the best chances of maintaining Slavic identity, or the primary concern were the needs of the Slavic people living under Austria. 19 Stur passionately declared at the Congress: Our aim should be to save ourselves, not to save Austria. First we must work for ourselves, then for others. Thus far Austria has been existing but we have been perishing. What wo.u ld the world say to us if we stood for nothing but the preservation of Austria? Let us say that we want to stand as independent Slavonic communities under the government of Austria . . . this will give our work a Slavonic accent.20 Stur felt the program of the congress should be: (1) the creation of independent Slavic united states within Austria, and (2) prompt agreement to this, so that the Austrian armies might destroy Magyar encroachments into Slovakia. 21 Stur could not place enough stress on the need for Slavic independence: "So that we might take over the spot in history which belongs to us according to our strength and abilities, we must once and for all time free ourselves from this unbearable foreign thraldom and gain state independence for ourselves." 22 Stur fully understood the necessity of remaining within the Austrian framework. But his Austroslavism was very �110 SLOVAKIA tepid, and he carefully pointed out that it (Austroslavism) existed only because of sheer necessity. Stur made no attempt to hide his distrust of Austria and his distaste with certain features of the regime. It was otherwise with the Czechs. They had not suffered the same suppressions under the Austrians as the Slovaks had under the Magyars. Hence they were ready to accept the vague promises of the Austrian Emperor that Slavic rights would be recognized and respected. In return, the delegates of the Congress decided to give Austria full support in helping to subdue the Magyars. Futhermore, they adopted a "Manifesto to the European Nations" which called for the following objectives: 1. 2. 3. 4. The freeing of the Slavic people under Turkish rule. That the Magyars acknowledge the rights of the Slovak nation, including the right to its own language. That Croatian autonomy be maintained. That the Slovenians be permitted to possess their land. 23 It would seem then, that the Prague Congress reduced the Panslavic movement to an attempt to reorganize Austria so as to satisfy the nationalism of the Slavs.24 So it must have seemed to Stur, for he felt that the Congress had been a failure. Then too the attempted insurrection in 1848 against the Magyars also failed. Stur was greatly despondent. He had had great faith in the panslavic movement and felt Slavic independence was not an impossible goal. Yet the two expressions of this political panslavism certainly did not succeed. In his despair and disillusionment, Stur concluded that a small nation could not seek its freedom alone, or in the frame of Austroslavism. There was only one alternative left: Russia, for Russia alone of the Slavic nations was powerful enough to lead others to independence. This was the basic idea expressed throughout his book SLavdom and the World of the Future, an exceptional tribute to the cultural, moral, and political forces of the Russian Empire. It also presented a detailed and complete program for the union of Slavs with Russia. Stu.r's book had little impact on his own people. The book was published for the Congress of 1867, when a group of Russians discovered it and translated it. It was the major �SLOVAKIA 111 work studied and examined at the Congress, and was regarded as a complete and perfect program of panrussianism. Stur set out to accomplish four basic tasks in his book. First of all he wished to determine whether the Slavs had a role of their own to fulfill in world history. 25 A close review of the Slavic past ought to yield the answer. Stur of course, was certain of the answer even before he began his examination, for this belief had been the basic reason for the entire panslavic movement. The Slavs were to be the leaders of a "new" Europe. They were at this point in no position to do anything, but history was a progression of spent nations being replaced by young ones, and Slavic emancipation and self-realization would eventually occur. The second task of the book is to describe the Slavic mission in universal history against the background of the cultural difference between Western and Eastern Europe.26 In the west, Stur could see only moral, political, and social dissolution, the ruination of the peasants (true guardians of democracy), and finally the schism between religion and daily life. It was no use looking to the West for salvation, when they were already on the downward path. Nor was there any use in imitating the society and institutions of the West since they were contributing to the very decline of the West. The Western civilization had deteriorated; the Slavs could only look to themselves for help. In the third part Stur presents a highly romantic picture of the Slavic people. The Slavs are people of extraordinary virtue; their only vices were those which had crept in from the influence of the west. The Slavs were naturally good of heart, patient, humble, kind, and democratic. These virtues were the characteristic of all Slavs, but especially the Russians. The Russians were the embodiment of all the best and noble features of the entire Slav nation. Stur had never been in Russia, nor had any prolonged contact with Russians. He based his notion merely on the fact that this had to be logically so, for of the Russians were to be the leaders of the Slavs, they had to be the best among the Slavs. The last section of Slavdom and the World of the Future deals with the problems of Slavic political unification. Unity was an absolute necessity if the Slavs were to achieve their historic mission. But what type of unity? �112 SLOVAKIA There were three possibilities. The first one that he considered was a Slavic Federation without Russia. This he rejected because such a federation could never succeed due to internal dissention among the various Slavic peoples. So union of so many Slavic nations of about equal strength would destroy the possibility of the emergence of a leader. Yet a leader was absolutely necessary if the Slavs were to jointly work for their destiny. A second possibility was the transformation of Austria into a Slavic Empire. Any type of unity with Austria was an illusion that could never gain substance. Attempts at cooperation with Austria had failed once before, and Stur believed Austria was doomed to destruction ; Austroslavism should not even be considered. The only remaining alternative was union with Russia. Russia was powerful enough to unite all the Slavic nations ; she was the leader the Slavs needed . Stur was proud of Russia's vastness and power, but it was a Slavic pride. Should the Slavic peoples unite under Russia, their equal could not be found in all of Europe. This is an amazing document to come from the hands of I..:udovit Stur. And yet, given the circumstances he faced in the 1850's, it is not so hard to understand. Stur's primary goal, for which he had worked all his life, was a Slavic nationalism, a Slavic unity. Austroslavism had failed; there was only one place left to turn: to Russia. Stur did not reject independence for the individual Slavic nations; he was not willing to replace Austrian domination with Russian. He hoped for the creation of a federation of independent Slavic states under Russian leadership, substantially the same as he urged in 1848 under Austrian leadership. Stur's book was greatly praised by the Russian Slavophils, for it was so closely atuned to their ideas. However, the book was an expression of Stur's ideas which he arrived at independently of any noticeable influence from the Russians.27 Stur died in 1856, and hence, having never set foot in Russia, had little contact with the Slavophils. He did carry on a correspondence with several Russians, but not enough to permit the statement that his book was an expression of their views. Stur was interested in panslavism, in unity for �SLOVAKIA 113 all Slavic nations; his interest in Russia came only as a result of this. The Panslavic Movement did not, during Stu.r's time, achieve any notable results. In fact, by the time of his death, the whole movement was pretty much a failure. Panslavism failed because the very nationalism that it promoted led to its defeat. By urging Slavic national consciousness, panslavism created dissent among the various Slav nations. The more the people became aware of their individuality, their historical traditions, and their own language, the less they wanted to sacrifice them for a non-existent Slav federation. Secondly, the centuries-old and traditional antagonism between various Slavic nations, such as Poles and Russians, Czechs and Slovaks, Croatians and Serbians, prevented any success for a plan that would unite them. These two factors prevented Panslavism from exercising any dominant or stable influence on European political thought at that time. Yet Panslavism has an inherent value in that it revealed for the first time to the rest of Europe the Slavic mind. This is especially important in the light of the present role which the Slavs play in Europe. The Prague Congress too, could be regarded as a failure, for there was little change in the situation of the Slavic people after it. But the Prague Congress was the first expression of Slavic unity, of Slavic identity, separate from the Hapsburg rule. As such, it gave the Slavs confidence and a guide for future actions. Slavdom and the World of the Future is relatively unknown, even in the Slavic world. Yet it had a strong influence on Russian thinking in the 1870's and was in fact a forerunner of their program and goals. :Cudovit Stur was the author of political panslavism. He initiated the Prague Congress of 1848, and through his book, spread his influence beyond the confines of the Austrian Empire. He revealed to the West the Slavic mind and the Slavic desires ; he deserves a place in the 19th century intellectual and national thought and doctrine. FOOTNOTES 1. Hans Kohn, Panslavism, Notre Dame University Press, p. 18. 2. Ernest Denis, Les Slovaques, Paris, p. 14. 3. As Jan Kollar, great Slovak poet, stated: "The Tatra Slavs had �SLOVAKIA 114 so far almost no literature of their own, therefore they first opened their arms to embrace all Slavs . . . the Tatra mountains are the nest and cradle of all Slavs. Therefore the idea of solidarity ... took root there faster and deeper than anywhere else." (Kohn, p. 17) 4. Ibid., p. 44. 5. Jozef Kirschbaum, Nas boj o samostatnost' Slovenska, Slovak Institute, p. 233. 6. Kohn, p. 1. 7. Ibid., 8. It is hard to say why the west was considered to be decadent. Possibly because, after the nationalistic hopes aroused by Napoleon, Europe was successfully forced to return to the status quo ante Napoleon, to the despair of liberals and nationalists. Even with the political panslavism of Stur, the aim was Slavic independence, not Slavic control of Europe in the immediate future. 10. Kirschbaum, Nas boj, p. 231, and Jan Kollar - Slovak Poet of Panslavism, Slavistica, No. 56, Slovak Institute, Cleveland, 0., 1965. 11. Kohn, p. 18. 12. Kirschbaum, p. 235. 13. Ibid. 14. H. Seton-Watson, A History of the Czechs and Slovaks, p. 175, and Kirschbaum, Pavol J. Safarik and His Contribution to Slavic Studies, Slavistica No. 43, Cleveland, 0., 1962. 15. Kohn, p. 62. 16. Marian 2iar, " Stur: Father of Modern Slovak Nationalism", Slovakia, Vol. VI, March 1956, Middletown, Pa., p. 9. 17. Zdenek Tobolka, Slovanskii Sjezd v Praze roku 1848, Prague, p. 51. 18. A. Mouset, Le Monde Slave, Paris, p. 14. 9. 19. Karol Galan, " Sturove reci na slovanskom sjazde roku 1848", Slovenske pohl'ady, cislo 8-9, aug.-sept. 1936, p. 422. The difference in the two positions lay mostly in their emphasis; the one put Austria first, the other put the Slavs first. Stur of course, was in favor of the second phraseology. 20. Ibid. 21. Ibid., p. 423. 22. Jozef Kirschbaum, Slovakia: Nation at the Crossroads of Central Europe, Robert Speller Co., p. 73. 23. Kirschbaum, N<is boj, pp. 247-48. 24. Waclaw Lednicki, "Panslavism". European Ideologies, ed. Felix Gross, New York, p. 869. 25. M. Petrovich, "I:udovit Stur and Russian Panslavism", Journal of Central European Affairs, Vol. 12, April 1952, p. 6. 26. Ibid., p. 9. �SLOVAKIA 27. 115 Jozef Kirschbaum, "Uudovit Stur and His Place in the Slavic World", Slavistica, No. 32, 1958, Slovak Institute p. 12. BIBLIOGRAPHY Denis, Ernest, La Question d'Autriche Delagrave: Paris) , 1917. Les Slovaques. (Librairie Galan, Karol, "Sturove reci na slovanskom sjazde roku 1848". Slovenske pohi'ady, cislo 8-9, aug.-sept. 1936, Bratislava. Kirschbaum, Jozef, Nas boj o samostatnosf Slovenska. (Slovak Institute: Cleveland, Ohio), 1958. Slovakia: Nation at the Crossroads of Central Europe. (Robert Speller and Sons Co.: New York), 1960. "Uudovit Stur and His Place in the Slavic World". siavistica No .32, (Slovak Institute: Cleve1and), 1958. Kohn, Hans, Pansfovism. (University of Notre Dame Press: South Bend, Ind.), 1953. Lednicki, Waclaw, "Panslavism" European Ideologies. ed. Feliks Gross (Philosophical Library: New York), 1948. Miku~. Joseph, Slovakia, a Political History . (Marquette University Press: Milwaukee, Wis.), 1963. Mousset, Albert, Le Monde siave. Paris, 1946. Oddo, Gilbert, Slovakia and Its People . (Robert Speller and Sons Co.: New York), 1960. Pauco, Jozef, r.udovychova u sturovcov. Matiea slovenska, Turc. Sv. Martin, 1943. Petrovich, Michael, "Uudovit Stur and Russian Panslavism" Journal of Central European Affairs, Vol. 12, April, 1952. Seton-Watson, R. H., A History of the Czechs and Slovaks. London: 1943. Stur, L'udovit, Listy I?.udovita Stura, ed. Dr. Jozef Ambru~ (Slovenska Akademia Vied: Bratislava), 1956. Tobolka, Zdenek, Slovansky sjezd v Praze roku 1848. (F. Simacek Co.: Prague), 1901. Vlcek, Jaroslav, Dejiny literatury slovenskej (Matica slovenska: Turciansky Sv. Martin), 1923. 2iar, Marian, "Stur: Father of Modem Slovak Nationalism". Slovakia, Vol. VI, March 1956, (Jednota Press: Middletown, Pa.) � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource 1966, Vol. 16 Description An account of the resource Vol. 16 (No. 39), 1966. Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available The Slovak League of America Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1966 Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Text Any textual data included in the document 104 SLOVAKIA UUDOVfT STUR AND THE PANSLAVIC MOVEMENT By Suzanna Mikula, B.A. Slovaks have long recognized the achievements of Uudovit Stur (1815-1856) in promoting Slovak unity, culture, and independence. He is a great national figure, revered as the "Father of Modern Slovak Nationa1ism". Stur was a man of many talents, literary, pedagogical, and political. He was an ardent patriot among people who had been without a nation for a thousand years, a Protestant in an area predominantly Catholic. Stur was also the author of a number of books, poems, and pamphlets, all in a strong patriotic vein. His most famous work even though not the best is Slavdom and the World of the Future, wrUten in the early 1850's in the German language, but not published until 1867 in Russia. Stur's contributions to the Slovak nation are quite known. But what of his place in the history of Slavs at his time? The third, fourth, and fifth decades of the 19th century saw a · tremendous national revival of the Slavic world. This revival led to a Panslavic movement, received enthusiastically by the Slavic world and fearfully by western Europe. Stur had an active role in the Panslavic Movement, and with his work at the Prague Congress of 1848 as well as with his book, Slavdom and the World of the Future, introduced the concept of poHtical panslavism. Slovakia can be called the mother of the Panslavic Movement, for a Slovak writer named John Herkel first used the word "panslavic" in a Latin treatise published in 1826. Furthermore the main leaders and writers of the Panslavic Movement of the 19th century were Slovaks; the poet Jan Kollar and scholar P. J. Safarik may even be regarded as the fathers of Panslavism. 1 The success of panslavism among the Slovaks was due to the fact that the Slovaks occupy the central position (geographically) in the Slavic world. Also since the Slovak language is the purest of the Slavic tongues, they believed they were the original Slav nation. In fact, the Slovaks seem to have some resemblance to nearly all of the Slavic nations, further strengthening the "mother-of-the-Slavs" concept which the Slovaks cherish. Thus it seems that from the heart SLOVAKIA 105 of Slavdom, the Slovaks were chosen to lead the separated brothers. 2 Furthermore, the Slovaks had been dominated by other nations for nearly a thousand years; now the activities of the panslavists gave leadership and direction to the long suppressed desires of the Slovaks for their own nation.3 These factors help explain why Slovakia became "the classic country of the Slavic idea." 4 However, the Panslavic Movement was not limited to Slovakia, but spread throughout the Slavic world, taking deeper root in some areas than in others. There had been an early attempt at achieving some type of Slavic unity in the 17th century. Juraj Krizanic (1618-1683), a Croatian, was a forerunner of Panslavism in that he sought the adoption of a single Slavic language for all Slavic nations. He also advocated agreement to political unity under Russia, but little attention was paid to him.5 The idea of Slavic unity had no success in the 17th century, but by the 19th century, events in Europe offered more hope for its acceptance. The French Revolution and Napoleonic Wars caused a political awakening of intellectuals in central and Eastern Europe. 6 Jin Austria, the enlightened reigns of Maria Theresa, Joseph II and Leopold II improved the economic and social conditions of the Slav subjects, who now for the first time found opportunity for education and intellectual activity. And finally, the great success and power of Russia offered a shining example to the downtrodden Slavic nations of what a brother nation could achieve. A far greater influence on the intellectual thought leading to Panslavism was linguistic and political Pangermanism, especially as interpreted by Johann Herder. According to Herder, the national language was regarded as a determining factor for men's loyalty. 7 But even more than this, Herder believed, and proclaimed in his writings, that the Slavic race was the future leader of Europe. The decadent8 Romanic and Germanic tribes would of nesessity yield to the peace-loving, moral, and primitively democratic Slavs. He urged them not to abandon their language, but to cultivate it carefully and consistently, for it was a precious g,ift from their fathers. Thus Panslavism rested on the two principles of a common language and a kind nebulous unity created by the existence of a widespread, primitive, but untainted Slavic civilization. 106 SLOVAJOA Panslavism was a sign of the national awakening of central and eastern Europe, and as such its primary emphasis was on language, literature, and culture. Having been subjugated for so many centuries, the Slavic people needed support in formulating a national consciousness, a national vernacular literature, and they sought this support in each other. Panslavism arose at first more as a defensive movement among the western Slavs than as a political movement with the aim of replacing western dominance in Europe. However for many years, even to this day, the word panslavism has a political connotation for the Romance and Germanic nations, implying a belligerent attempt to replace their civilization with the Slavic civilization.!) This connotation was attached to the Panslavic movement from the very beginning, largely because of a slight resemblanc e to a pangerman movement, but also because of the subjugated position of the various Slavic nations. This gave rise to the fear that they would attempt to recover their former independen ce, and thus disturb the surface-peace of Europe. Individual Slavic nations could hardly create a problem for the rest of Europe, except Russia. But once unified, the Slavic race far outnumbered the other two, and could quite possibly overpower them. This fear never materialized. Panslavism , throughout the 19th century, remained the primary concern of poets, newspaper writers, literary scholars, philologists , and historians.10 Unlike western European nations, where national awakening came as a result of the activities of politicians and statesmen, Slavic nationalism was removed from the political plan and situated in the literary field . The panslavic poets and writers expressed, in a period when such feelings were dominant, an optomistic belief in man's inevitable progress, in a great spiritual rejuvenatio n, which would result in the establishme nt of liberty, peace, and happiness.11 The Slavs were far removed from the conflicts of the older nations ; perhaps they were the heralds of this new era? Certainly the Slavic writers offered promises that this was so. The Panslavic movement was also used as a protest against the dominant position of the German and Magyar tongues within the Slavic world. The Slavs used the appeal of ethnograph ic nationality, so much a part of the thinking of this age that it was regarded as a national right, against their two major oppressors. SLOVAKIA 107 There were three stages in the Panslavic movement: literary, scientific, and political, with literary panslavism being the primary and most successful. The Slovak poet Jan Kollar was the spokesman for literary panslavism. His chief goal was the literary and cultural union of Slavic nations. According to Kollar, there is only one Slavic nation, and only one Slavric language. He did not feel that a single political state was necessary, nor even a single spoken language. The various dialects were to be respected, but in literature, only the one common Slavic language should prevail. 12 Kollar was against political union of Slavric nations because he felt agitation for such union would result in disorder and catastrophe for the Slavs. 13 What Kollar hoped to attain was a state of literary reciprocity, whereby the writings of one nation would be the property and treasure of every other Slav nation. Kollar tried to awaken within the Slavs their sense of unity, their glorsious destiny and bright future. He stressed the need of self-recognition and inter-communication, but without any conflicts with existing political structures. Yet in spite of his dislike of political agitation, it was his impassioned and imaginative writing which led the Slavic people to action. Scientific panslavism was chiefly the result of the efforts of Pavel Jozef Safarik, who was the first to pursue a scholarly and systematic study of the background and origins of the Slavic nations and language. He provided the foundation upon which the panslavists might build Slavic unity and destiny, and his work gave authenticity to the poems of Kollar and the writings of Stur. His book Slavic Antiquities became famous throughout Europe, stimu}ating an interest in the early history and culture of the Slav peoples. Safarik may be regarded as the founder of a whole school of scientific writers, and his book had a very direct influence on subsequent developments in the Slav world. 14 His studies of the Slavic languages substantiated the early belief that all the Slavic languages were quite closely related; Safarik provided a rational foundation for the emotional appeal of Kollar. The literary and scientif,ic panslavism of Kollar and Safarik succeeded in creating a strong national spirit among the Slavs, the Czechs and Slovaks in particular. It is only natural that this cry for national unity and for self-recognition should be heard and taken to its logical conclusion, namely 108 SLOVAKIA political panslavism. And this had been done by Uudovit Stur, who saw in which direction panslavism must now go. Literary and cultural unity was not enough. To achieve their glorious destiny, the destiny to which both Kollar and Safari.k alluded, the Slavic peoples had to attain a measure of political unity. There were two paths that political panslavism could follow: Austroslavism, which meant maintaining a form of Austrian political influence, and which Stur advocated at the Prague Congress of 1848, the first great manifestation of Panslavism, and Pan-Russianism, which Stur adopted after the failure of the Prague Congress. The Prague Congress of 1848 was the natural result of the Panslavic movement. It was apparent that a true spirit of panslavism would necessitate a dialog between the Slavs, a dialog not only literary but political as well. Several events which occured in the years 1846-1848 made such a meeting desireable. The Polish uprisings in Galicia and Cracow in 1846, the national agitation in Italy when Cardinal Terretto became Pope, the United Landtag in Prussia, the elections to the Hungarian Diet in 1847, to which Stur was elected, and most immediately, the February, 1848, Revolution in Paris, and the Congress of Germ,an deputies (members of Parliament) in Frankfurt discussing the unification of an Germans, all these events served to stir the Slavic people to action. The spirit of revolution and nationalism was in the arir, dominating the writings and conversations of the year. 15 The Czechs and Slovaks, especially felt that immediate action of some sort was necessary. In Austria, there was the threat of German expansion under the leadership of Prussia. Hungary, under the leadership of Louis Kossuth was pursuing a policy of complete magyarization. The Slovak language was to be suppressed, with Magyar the official language of education and government. It seemed almost paradoxical that the Magyars sought to suppress the national spirit of the Slovaks in order to achieve the same for themselves. Stur saw this paradox, and said in this respect: "Each nation is only one pa1t of humanity and no nation can claim for itself that it alone has comprehended the best human evolution and possible perfection. Therefore, no nation has a right to force upon another nation its way of life when that nation wants to move itself and educate itself as it sees fit. 16 The time seemed opportune for action on the part of SLOVAKIA 109 the Slavs as well. Stur offered the idea of proclaiming a Slavic Congress, 17 and on May 31, 1848, it was called by Stur and the Czech writers. Prague was chosen for the Congress, and a total of 362 delegates from the various Slavic nations arrived. The delegates were largely from among the Slavs under the Hapsburg rule, but the Poles and Russians also were represented. The avowed objective of the meeting was the establishment of periodic relations between the Slav peoples and the drawing up of a program of action for such peoples subject to Austrian and/ or Hungarian domination. 18 At the Congress Stur offered a program for federalizing Central Europe. In spite of his antagonism to the idea that a non-Slav nation should have any say in the affairs of a Slav nation, he realized that total independence was impossible. The Czechs, being far more realistic than the Slovaks, had realized this, and were consistent supporters of Austroslavism. Thus at the conference the problem narrowed down to a definition of terms: the objective of the Congress was either to save Austria, for with her lay the best chances of maintaining Slavic identity, or the primary concern were the needs of the Slavic people living under Austria. 19 Stur passionately declared at the Congress: Our aim should be to save ourselves, not to save Austria. First we must work for ourselves, then for others. Thus far Austria has been existing but we have been perishing. What wo.u ld the world say to us if we stood for nothing but the preservation of Austria? Let us say that we want to stand as independent Slavonic communities under the government of Austria . . . this will give our work a Slavonic accent.20 Stur felt the program of the congress should be: (1) the creation of independent Slavic united states within Austria, and (2) prompt agreement to this, so that the Austrian armies might destroy Magyar encroachments into Slovakia. 21 Stur could not place enough stress on the need for Slavic independence: "So that we might take over the spot in history which belongs to us according to our strength and abilities, we must once and for all time free ourselves from this unbearable foreign thraldom and gain state independence for ourselves." 22 Stur fully understood the necessity of remaining within the Austrian framework. But his Austroslavism was very 110 SLOVAKIA tepid, and he carefully pointed out that it (Austroslavism) existed only because of sheer necessity. Stur made no attempt to hide his distrust of Austria and his distaste with certain features of the regime. It was otherwise with the Czechs. They had not suffered the same suppressions under the Austrians as the Slovaks had under the Magyars. Hence they were ready to accept the vague promises of the Austrian Emperor that Slavic rights would be recognized and respected. In return, the delegates of the Congress decided to give Austria full support in helping to subdue the Magyars. Futhermore, they adopted a "Manifesto to the European Nations" which called for the following objectives: 1. 2. 3. 4. The freeing of the Slavic people under Turkish rule. That the Magyars acknowledge the rights of the Slovak nation, including the right to its own language. That Croatian autonomy be maintained. That the Slovenians be permitted to possess their land. 23 It would seem then, that the Prague Congress reduced the Panslavic movement to an attempt to reorganize Austria so as to satisfy the nationalism of the Slavs.24 So it must have seemed to Stur, for he felt that the Congress had been a failure. Then too the attempted insurrection in 1848 against the Magyars also failed. Stur was greatly despondent. He had had great faith in the panslavic movement and felt Slavic independence was not an impossible goal. Yet the two expressions of this political panslavism certainly did not succeed. In his despair and disillusionment, Stur concluded that a small nation could not seek its freedom alone, or in the frame of Austroslavism. There was only one alternative left: Russia, for Russia alone of the Slavic nations was powerful enough to lead others to independence. This was the basic idea expressed throughout his book SLavdom and the World of the Future, an exceptional tribute to the cultural, moral, and political forces of the Russian Empire. It also presented a detailed and complete program for the union of Slavs with Russia. Stu.r's book had little impact on his own people. The book was published for the Congress of 1867, when a group of Russians discovered it and translated it. It was the major SLOVAKIA 111 work studied and examined at the Congress, and was regarded as a complete and perfect program of panrussianism. Stur set out to accomplish four basic tasks in his book. First of all he wished to determine whether the Slavs had a role of their own to fulfill in world history. 25 A close review of the Slavic past ought to yield the answer. Stur of course, was certain of the answer even before he began his examination, for this belief had been the basic reason for the entire panslavic movement. The Slavs were to be the leaders of a "new" Europe. They were at this point in no position to do anything, but history was a progression of spent nations being replaced by young ones, and Slavic emancipation and self-realization would eventually occur. The second task of the book is to describe the Slavic mission in universal history against the background of the cultural difference between Western and Eastern Europe.26 In the west, Stur could see only moral, political, and social dissolution, the ruination of the peasants (true guardians of democracy), and finally the schism between religion and daily life. It was no use looking to the West for salvation, when they were already on the downward path. Nor was there any use in imitating the society and institutions of the West since they were contributing to the very decline of the West. The Western civilization had deteriorated; the Slavs could only look to themselves for help. In the third part Stur presents a highly romantic picture of the Slavic people. The Slavs are people of extraordinary virtue; their only vices were those which had crept in from the influence of the west. The Slavs were naturally good of heart, patient, humble, kind, and democratic. These virtues were the characteristic of all Slavs, but especially the Russians. The Russians were the embodiment of all the best and noble features of the entire Slav nation. Stur had never been in Russia, nor had any prolonged contact with Russians. He based his notion merely on the fact that this had to be logically so, for of the Russians were to be the leaders of the Slavs, they had to be the best among the Slavs. The last section of Slavdom and the World of the Future deals with the problems of Slavic political unification. Unity was an absolute necessity if the Slavs were to achieve their historic mission. But what type of unity? 112 SLOVAKIA There were three possibilities. The first one that he considered was a Slavic Federation without Russia. This he rejected because such a federation could never succeed due to internal dissention among the various Slavic peoples. So union of so many Slavic nations of about equal strength would destroy the possibility of the emergence of a leader. Yet a leader was absolutely necessary if the Slavs were to jointly work for their destiny. A second possibility was the transformation of Austria into a Slavic Empire. Any type of unity with Austria was an illusion that could never gain substance. Attempts at cooperation with Austria had failed once before, and Stur believed Austria was doomed to destruction ; Austroslavism should not even be considered. The only remaining alternative was union with Russia. Russia was powerful enough to unite all the Slavic nations ; she was the leader the Slavs needed . Stur was proud of Russia's vastness and power, but it was a Slavic pride. Should the Slavic peoples unite under Russia, their equal could not be found in all of Europe. This is an amazing document to come from the hands of I..:udovit Stur. And yet, given the circumstances he faced in the 1850's, it is not so hard to understand. Stur's primary goal, for which he had worked all his life, was a Slavic nationalism, a Slavic unity. Austroslavism had failed; there was only one place left to turn: to Russia. Stur did not reject independence for the individual Slavic nations; he was not willing to replace Austrian domination with Russian. He hoped for the creation of a federation of independent Slavic states under Russian leadership, substantially the same as he urged in 1848 under Austrian leadership. Stur's book was greatly praised by the Russian Slavophils, for it was so closely atuned to their ideas. However, the book was an expression of Stur's ideas which he arrived at independently of any noticeable influence from the Russians.27 Stur died in 1856, and hence, having never set foot in Russia, had little contact with the Slavophils. He did carry on a correspondence with several Russians, but not enough to permit the statement that his book was an expression of their views. Stur was interested in panslavism, in unity for SLOVAKIA 113 all Slavic nations; his interest in Russia came only as a result of this. The Panslavic Movement did not, during Stu.r's time, achieve any notable results. In fact, by the time of his death, the whole movement was pretty much a failure. Panslavism failed because the very nationalism that it promoted led to its defeat. By urging Slavic national consciousness, panslavism created dissent among the various Slav nations. The more the people became aware of their individuality, their historical traditions, and their own language, the less they wanted to sacrifice them for a non-existent Slav federation. Secondly, the centuries-old and traditional antagonism between various Slavic nations, such as Poles and Russians, Czechs and Slovaks, Croatians and Serbians, prevented any success for a plan that would unite them. These two factors prevented Panslavism from exercising any dominant or stable influence on European political thought at that time. Yet Panslavism has an inherent value in that it revealed for the first time to the rest of Europe the Slavic mind. This is especially important in the light of the present role which the Slavs play in Europe. The Prague Congress too, could be regarded as a failure, for there was little change in the situation of the Slavic people after it. But the Prague Congress was the first expression of Slavic unity, of Slavic identity, separate from the Hapsburg rule. As such, it gave the Slavs confidence and a guide for future actions. Slavdom and the World of the Future is relatively unknown, even in the Slavic world. Yet it had a strong influence on Russian thinking in the 1870's and was in fact a forerunner of their program and goals. :Cudovit Stur was the author of political panslavism. He initiated the Prague Congress of 1848, and through his book, spread his influence beyond the confines of the Austrian Empire. He revealed to the West the Slavic mind and the Slavic desires ; he deserves a place in the 19th century intellectual and national thought and doctrine. FOOTNOTES 1. Hans Kohn, Panslavism, Notre Dame University Press, p. 18. 2. Ernest Denis, Les Slovaques, Paris, p. 14. 3. As Jan Kollar, great Slovak poet, stated: "The Tatra Slavs had SLOVAKIA 114 so far almost no literature of their own, therefore they first opened their arms to embrace all Slavs . . . the Tatra mountains are the nest and cradle of all Slavs. Therefore the idea of solidarity ... took root there faster and deeper than anywhere else." (Kohn, p. 17) 4. Ibid., p. 44. 5. Jozef Kirschbaum, Nas boj o samostatnost' Slovenska, Slovak Institute, p. 233. 6. Kohn, p. 1. 7. Ibid., 8. It is hard to say why the west was considered to be decadent. Possibly because, after the nationalistic hopes aroused by Napoleon, Europe was successfully forced to return to the status quo ante Napoleon, to the despair of liberals and nationalists. Even with the political panslavism of Stur, the aim was Slavic independence, not Slavic control of Europe in the immediate future. 10. Kirschbaum, Nas boj, p. 231, and Jan Kollar - Slovak Poet of Panslavism, Slavistica, No. 56, Slovak Institute, Cleveland, 0., 1965. 11. Kohn, p. 18. 12. Kirschbaum, p. 235. 13. Ibid. 14. H. Seton-Watson, A History of the Czechs and Slovaks, p. 175, and Kirschbaum, Pavol J. Safarik and His Contribution to Slavic Studies, Slavistica No. 43, Cleveland, 0., 1962. 15. Kohn, p. 62. 16. Marian 2iar, " Stur: Father of Modern Slovak Nationalism", Slovakia, Vol. VI, March 1956, Middletown, Pa., p. 9. 17. Zdenek Tobolka, Slovanskii Sjezd v Praze roku 1848, Prague, p. 51. 18. A. Mouset, Le Monde Slave, Paris, p. 14. 9. 19. Karol Galan, " Sturove reci na slovanskom sjazde roku 1848", Slovenske pohl'ady, cislo 8-9, aug.-sept. 1936, p. 422. The difference in the two positions lay mostly in their emphasis; the one put Austria first, the other put the Slavs first. Stur of course, was in favor of the second phraseology. 20. Ibid. 21. Ibid., p. 423. 22. Jozef Kirschbaum, Slovakia: Nation at the Crossroads of Central Europe, Robert Speller Co., p. 73. 23. Kirschbaum, N<is boj, pp. 247-48. 24. Waclaw Lednicki, "Panslavism". European Ideologies, ed. Felix Gross, New York, p. 869. 25. M. Petrovich, "I:udovit Stur and Russian Panslavism", Journal of Central European Affairs, Vol. 12, April 1952, p. 6. 26. Ibid., p. 9. SLOVAKIA 27. 115 Jozef Kirschbaum, "Uudovit Stur and His Place in the Slavic World", Slavistica, No. 32, 1958, Slovak Institute p. 12. BIBLIOGRAPHY Denis, Ernest, La Question d'Autriche Delagrave: Paris) , 1917. Les Slovaques. (Librairie Galan, Karol, "Sturove reci na slovanskom sjazde roku 1848". Slovenske pohi'ady, cislo 8-9, aug.-sept. 1936, Bratislava. Kirschbaum, Jozef, Nas boj o samostatnosf Slovenska. (Slovak Institute: Cleveland, Ohio), 1958. Slovakia: Nation at the Crossroads of Central Europe. (Robert Speller and Sons Co.: New York), 1960. "Uudovit Stur and His Place in the Slavic World". siavistica No .32, (Slovak Institute: Cleve1and), 1958. Kohn, Hans, Pansfovism. (University of Notre Dame Press: South Bend, Ind.), 1953. Lednicki, Waclaw, "Panslavism" European Ideologies. ed. Feliks Gross (Philosophical Library: New York), 1948. Miku~. Joseph, Slovakia, a Political History . (Marquette University Press: Milwaukee, Wis.), 1963. Mousset, Albert, Le Monde siave. Paris, 1946. Oddo, Gilbert, Slovakia and Its People . (Robert Speller and Sons Co.: New York), 1960. Pauco, Jozef, r.udovychova u sturovcov. Matiea slovenska, Turc. Sv. Martin, 1943. Petrovich, Michael, "Uudovit Stur and Russian Panslavism" Journal of Central European Affairs, Vol. 12, April, 1952. Seton-Watson, R. H., A History of the Czechs and Slovaks. London: 1943. Stur, L'udovit, Listy I?.udovita Stura, ed. Dr. Jozef Ambru~ (Slovenska Akademia Vied: Bratislava), 1956. Tobolka, Zdenek, Slovansky sjezd v Praze roku 1848. (F. Simacek Co.: Prague), 1901. Vlcek, Jaroslav, Dejiny literatury slovenskej (Matica slovenska: Turciansky Sv. Martin), 1923. 2iar, Marian, "Stur: Father of Modem Slovak Nationalism". Slovakia, Vol. VI, March 1956, (Jednota Press: Middletown, Pa.)  Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Ľudovít Štúr and the Panslavic Movement Description An account of the resource Suzanna Mikula, B.A. Slovakia, Vol. 16 (No. 39), 1966 pp. 104-115 Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Mikula, Suzanna Maria, 1943- Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1966 LCNAF https://slovakia.wordsofpassage.net/files/original/adf8fc0cc0e4ac0070b8246305efb9af.pdf 20e1dd0a422ba59d9ba8b7ce36e3c7f5 PDF Text Text 116 SLOVAKIA MARTIN SZENTIVANYI, S.J. (1633-1705 ) SLOVAK PHILOSOPHER, POLEMICIST, HISTORIAN B y Dr. John Rekem In previous English studies on the pre-Bernolak period 1 of the Slovak literature, I devoted considerable attention to the Slovak authors, writing either in Latin or Slovak, whose aim it was to arouse and sustain the spirit of Slovak nationalism. Included in these studies were the works of Romuald Hadbavny (Syllabus dictionarii Latino-Slavonicus 1763; Translation of Holy Scriptures into Slovak, 1756-1759) In my analysis of the voluminous publications of the historian, Samuel Timon (1675-1736) special attention was directed to the Slovak nationalism underlying his comprehensive works, his grasp of Slovak history, and specifically the period of the Great Moravian empire. I noted that even his accounts of the Cyril-Methodian era se·r ved to revivify Slovak national consciousness. I pointed out the eminent position of Stephen Dubnicay in religious history and Slovak literature. This author, writing both in Slovak and in Latin, won recognition far beyond the boundaries of Slovakia. His books were read and appreciated not only at home, but in Bohemia and Poland as well, and his work is proof that already in the early 18th century unprejudiced foreigners recognized the Slovaks as an independent national entity, distinct from the Czechs, the Poles, the Moravians and the Silesians. Finally, I analyzed the Apologia of John Balthasar Magin (1682-1735) written by him at the request of the Trencin nobility in defense of the Slovak nation and its political, social, and cultural rights in the territory of Hungary. Furthermore, I singled out for consideration other outstanding Slovak writers, members of the Pazmany Circle of the University of Trnava and of the Camaldolese Society. Both of these organizations were tireless in their efforts to augment Slovak inteUectual life, on both the religious and the national levels. To this select group belonged the Jesuit, Martin Szen- �SLOVAKIA 117 tivanyi (1633-1705) who is rightly considered not only the most prolific, but also the most learned and versatile writer of his time. M. Szentivanyi came from a family of the landed gentry (lower nobility) in Liptov, a family which originally bore the Slovak name of Svatojansky. When the Magyar regime issued orders compelling notaries and registrars to magyarize the names of non-magyar lesser gentry (Madocansky-Madocsanyi, Kubinsky-Kubinyi, Dubnicky-Dubniczay) the name of Svatojansky2 was changed to Szentivanyi, for some families the change of name meant also a reversal in national allegiance. However, in many cases also the original Slovak spirit endured despite the change in name. This is evident in the works of certain authors, among whom Martin Svatojansky-Szentivanyi was outstanding. The name may have been magyarized, but the Slovak spirit remained unbeaten, unsubdued. Martin studied at universities in Vienna and TrnaV1a, both of which exercised a favorable influence upon the national spirit of Slovak students. The Pazmaneum in Vienna reared the finest of Slovak patriots, beginning with Dubnicay and Magin all the way down to the President of the Slovak Republic, Msgr. Joseph Tiso, the diplomat Francis Tiso, etc. In the atmosphere of the University of Trnava (16351777) Szentivanyi's Slovak patriotism was intensified. Later, as teacher and writer, he was to have a great influence on the attitudes and national aspirations of others at the University, notably, S. Timon, S. Dubnicay, J. B. Magin, and others. In the history of Slovak literature and culture, M. Szentivanyi played a threefold role: that of philosopher, historian, and religious controversial writer. 3 He was professor of philosophy and polemics at the Universities in Kosice, Styrsky Hradec (Steier Graz) and Vienna. For a time he was director of the University of Trnava. After 1688 he became the chief censor of books in Hungary. The basic framework of Szentivanyi's philosophical theories was a moderate realism. The universe is a reflection of the ideas of God, which, concretized in creation, were brought into existence for the glory of God. Among the vary- �118 SLOVAKIA ing degrees of creatures on earth man holds the prime position because of his spiritual faculties of intellect and free will, and from these two divine qualities man derives his great natural dignity, which is enhanced by his escalation to the eminently superior dignity of adoption as a child of God. From this basic concept of the dignity of man in the plan of God and in the order of supernatural religion flows that deep appreciation and love of Christ's teachings, which Szentivanyi defended so effectively in his religious literature. In the fiield of natural philosophy also he is a follower of scholasticism. He examines in all its myriad aspects and seeks to probe its meaning. He does not ignore or isolate himself from the world, but takes note of ev•e rything in it and carefully studies the natural sciences. He informs hrimself on the most modern methods of scientific research (systematization, experimentation) , studies the outstanding later philosophers, like Francis Bacon, and does not rest content only with experimentation and the verification of dry facts, but here also, according to speculative Thomistic thought, he delves down deep to the roots of things. He directs his thoughts to the philosophic grasp and underlaying meaning of motion, the transfer of activity from one mode of being to another, the philosophic grasp of corporeal substance, the delineation of living organisms, from vegetative and sensient life to human life and its mysteries. It is necessary to mention that like the majority of his contemporaries he was opposed to the heliocentric theory. As to his vi,ews on human society, one might say that he was thoroughly familiar with Aquinas' teaching on the political community. Like Aquinas he is an advocate of responsible government which directs its efforts toward the common good. He treats various political theories of government, including democracy, however assigning his preference to the monarchy as being the most suitable, and by his view shows himself a child of his age.4 As a speculative theologian, Martin Szentivanyi utilized his theological knowledge for the spreading and stabilizing of God's kingdom in the chaotic y.ears of the Reformation. Using four languages - Latin, Slovak, Magyar, German he preached and wrote in defense of the Catholic faith. His publications comprised a whole library of polemical and apo- �SLOVAKIA 119 logetic works, which achieved great popularity. Even after his death they appeared in repeated editions either as monographs or collectively under the title Opuscula Polemica (Trnava I, 1718; II, 1730; Turris Babel, 1731 ... ) A polemical book of his on Christian dogma, published in Trnava in 1700, was written in Slovak and entitled Cztyri a Dwadcet Pochybovanij. (Twenty-four Hypotheses). It may well be said that in his polemical writings he covered the entire range of Catholic dogma as it was drawn up in the Council of Trent and he endeavored to boil it down to the small coins of simple language for easier comprehension and acceptance by his read,ers. In his work one often encounters evidence that Catholics and non-Catholics followed liturgical practices current today in certain Christian denominations. For example, from his work Lutheranicum, Nihil ad rem, Nihil ad Propositum,5 it is evident that the modern movement of some Protestant denominations to allow women to act as ministers is not so new after all, because, according to Szentivanyi, Lutheran women in various places acted as readers of Holy Scripture in church. He refers to a case in Levoca, where a certain Lutheran woman, who later became a convert to Catholicism, delivered a sermon and celebrated the "Eucharist", or, as she regarded it, "the Lord's Supper". M. Szentivanyi has performed an invaluable service as a historian by furnishing incidental information on Slovakia for Slovak Oatholic scholars. In his Miscellanea he makes frequent references to the topography of Slovakia and presents Slovak history as an integral part of the history of Hungary.6 Thus several references to the exploits of Svatopluk in Great Moravia ,a ppears in his Miscellanea (Decade I. 3. p. x3a. Decade II. 3. p. 265, 277-9). Furthermore, he makes frequent allusions and references to the activities of SS. Cyril and Methodius among the Slovaks (Decade I. 3. p.Hh3a, Decade II. p. 277. Decade III. 1. p. 152, 178.). According to A. A. Banik, it was Szentivanyi who proposed the first known theory in literature about the origin of the Slovaks. This versatile and learned scholar maintains that the Slovak inhabitants of northern Hungary sprang from the ancient Jazygs. He bases his assertion on the geographical boundaries of both nations as well as on the apparently com- �120 SLOVAKIA mon etymological identity of their name: Jazyk (tongue), rec (speech), slovo (word). Moreover, from the fact that the Germans also refer to the Slovaks as Vinden or Venden (e.g. in the names of places: Windirsh Prona, Windschacht, Windschendorf, etc.) Szentivanyi was inclined to believe that the reference was to the descendants of the ancient Slavic Vandals. 7 Concerning the interrelationship between the various Slavic languages and their diffusion throughout the world, he accepts the observation of P. Rewa, namely, that of all languages the Slavic idiom is today the most widespread, inasmuch as in its various branches its use extends from the Adriatic Sea to the Arctic Ocean and that it is spoken by the Istrians, Dalmatians, Croatians, Czechs, Silesians, Lusatians, Poles, Latvfans, Prussians, the inhabitants of Scandinavia, the Russians throughout their vast territory, the Bulgarians and other neighboring countries as far as Constantinople ... 8 In regard to the earliest inhabitants of Hungary, M. Szentivanyi held that the first historically identifiable nation to inhabit the territory of Hungary were a people known as the Pannonians, who spoke the Slovak language. Following the Roman occupation, this territory was again inhabited by Slovaks, the descendants of the Vandali, the Goths, and the Jazygs. 9 Because of the recognized authority of Szentivanyi, subsequent Slovak and Latin historians of Slovak origin accepted his views and often quoted him in their works. For example, J. B. Magin in his Apologia - Defense of the Slovak nation. 10 How could the students have remained immune to their enthusiasm and influence under the capable Jesuit instructors, who imbued them with a keen appreciation of the glorious history of Slovakia and the vast extent of the Slavic world and its culture? Quite the contrary, for gradually and steadily the teachings of M. Szentivanyi and S. Timon fanned into life, a latent national consciousness among their students, and notably among the clerics, which eventually found an outlet in the famous Bernolak movement. It 1-ed the Slovaks to assert themselves and to identify their national individuality in the framework of the Slavic nations. Boldly and without fear of contradiction one is led to assert that the real initiators of the Bernolak movement were �SLOVAKIA 121 Jesuit professors, scholars, and writers. The Bernolak movement received its impetus directly and indirectly from the immense intellectual, moral and cultural resources of the Jesuit scholars of the Universities of Trnava, and to a lesser degree, of Kosice. The following observations will confirm this: 1. Only in its final stages was the education of the rising Bernolak generation received at the general Seminary in Bratislava. The formativ,e years of their training were spent in Trnava, in the Vienna Pazmaneum and at the University of Kosice. This in itself linked them with a powerful Jesuit tradition. 11 2. When they emerged, the Bernolakians already manifested a well-developed tradition of Slovak nationalism. They clung steadfastly to a sense of history, identifying themselves with its cultural rhythm and accepting its logical course. 3. The Bernolakians revived the Cyril-Methodian tradition, impregnating all their activities with it. 4. After the suppression of the Jesuit Order in 1773, many ex-Jesuits extended their sphere of influence by undertaking pastoral duties in Slovak parishes and registering for membership in the Bernolak Association. The Bernolak movement was not in a position at that time openly and expressly to acknowledge any direct affiliation with the Jesuit tradition and its efforts to arouse the Slovaks to national consciousness. Prudenoe and tact would not allow it. The prevailing spirit of Josephinism was strongly prejudiced against the Jesuits and there was danger that such an admission would have been detrimental to the activity of the Bemolak Association. Wisely, therefore, the members decided to remain silent, while they unobtrusively went on developing it: that is, they carried on the work initiated by the Jesuits in the heart and bloodstream of the Slovak nation. FOOTNOTES 1. J. Rekem, The Origin and Development of the Slovak Language. Middletown, Pa. 1962. Slovak Literature and National Consciousness before Bernol<ik (1762-1813). Slovak Institute, Cleveland, Ohio, 1964. 2. Joseph Skultety, Sketches from Slovak History. FCSU, Middletown, Pa., 1930. 99p. �122 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. SLOVAKIA Stanislav Jurovsky, The Philosophy of Martin Szentivanyi. Turc. Sv. Martin, 1944. His views on philosophy, nature, and history are incorporated in his encyclopedic masterpiece, which was issued in Trnava in the decades from 1689 to 1709 under the title ,Curiosaria et Selectiora Variarum Scientiarum Miscellanea, Tyrnaviae, 1689-1709. (Curiosities Compiled from Various Scientific Sources) Trnava, 1703, p. 212. Cf. A. A. Banik, Jan Magin, 1936, p. 251. Miscellanea, Decadis secundae pars prima, 1691, Trnava, p. 344: "Slavos" Qui Vagum et Carpaticorum montium radices incolunt, existimo eundem esse populum, quos antiqui Jazyges Medanastas vocabant, nam et eosdem terminos et limites habent, quos Strabo et veteres Geographi, Jazygitis Metanastis adscribunt. Et utramque nationem Sarmatiae populum fuisse constat. Sarmatici autem populi omnes comprehendebantur sub Slavorum genere. Sed et denominationis ·utriusque idem est fundamentum . Jazyges enim denominabantur a Jazek hoc est lingua, et Slavi a Slovo, hoc est verbum, quod nimirum Slavicorum idioma, et facile pronunciatu sit, et eloqui possit, et ingentem habent copiam verborum, et nullum magis idioma per orbem diffusum sit. Idem sentio de Jazibus, tractum inter Tibiscum et Danubium incolentibus, nam et hos, ex Jazygum Medanastarum gentibus fuisse Geographi testantur, et habuisse proprium idioma, ab Hungarico plane diversum, quod utique aliud non erat, quam Slavonicum. Reliquos vero Slavos, per Hungariam dispersos verisimile est, esse Vandalorum reliquias; nemini enim dubium esse potest, Vandalos Slavonici generis fuisse ... " P. Rewa: De Monarchia et Sacra Corona Regni Hungariae Centuriae Septem . . . quas emendatas et auctas publicabat Comes Franciscus de Nadasd. 1659. Francofurti. The seventh century, p. 146-7: " ... . ac lingua Slavonica seu Illyrica, hodie omnium latissime patet, utpote quae a mari Adriatico, ad Oceanum usque ad Septemtrionalem se extendere videatur: nam ea utuntur lstrii, Dalmatae, Croatae, Bosnenses, Bohemi, Silesii, Lusatii, Polonii, Lithuani, Prutenti, Scandinaviae incolae, et Russi longe lateque imperantes, Bulgari item et multae aliae vicinae regiones, Constantinopolim fere usque : adeo ut toto orbe terrarum sit lingua Slavica qua plurimas gentes alloqui, mutatis tantum dialectis, ob vicinitatem aliorum populorum aliquid peregrini habentibus, licet, ut sit linguarum gloria ab usu, familiaritate et latitudine petenda esset, ipsa Slavonica cum Latina caeteris palmarium eriperet, cujus adminiculo, prope dimidia Europae pars, nonnulla etiam Asiae peragrari potest ... " Miscellanea. First book of the 3rd Decade. Trnava, 1699., p. 204, 206, 234-5. J . B. Magin, Murices , Puchov, 1728., p. 15, 68, etc. J . K. Smalov, Mons. Sti. Martini. Ruzomberok, 1947., p. 66. BIBLIOGRAPHY A. A. Banik, Jan Baltazar Magin a jeho politicka, narodna i kulturna obrana Slovakov roku 1728. SSV., Trnava, 1936. �SLOVAKIA 123 Novsie udaje na poznanie Jana Baltazara Magina, jeho diela a doby, LVO, SSV, Trnava, 1937. J. M. Kirschbaum, Slovakia - Nation at the Crossroads of Central Europe. New York, 1960. J . Kutnik-Smalov, Zastoj katolickej hierarchie v slovenskom narodnom a kulturnom zivote, in Mons Sti. Martini, Ruzomberok, 1947. J . B. Magin, Murices Nobilissimae et Novissimae Diaetae Posoniensis Scriptori sparsi Sive Apologia pro Inclyto Comitatu Trenchiniensi ... , Puchovii, 1728. J . Rekem, Stefan Dubnicay a jeho doba. Trencin, 1944. Z kulturnych dejin trencianskeho Povazia, Trencin, 1943. The Origin and Development of the Slovak Language. Middletown, Pa., 1962. Slovak Literature and National Consciou.sness Before Anton Bernolak (1762-1813) , Cleveland, Ohio, 1964. 1675-1725, Stefan Dubnicay, slovensky polemik a historik - a Slovak Polemist and Historian - polemiste et historien slovaque, Middletown, Pa. 1966. Chronological Table of Bishops of the Diocese of Nitra, Slovakia, Slovak Institute, Cleveland, Ohio, 1966. P. Rewa, De Monarchia et Sacra Corona Regni Hungariae Centuriae Septem . . . quas emendatas et auctas publicabat Comes Franciscus de Nadasd. 1659. Francofurti. Sommervogel C., Dictionaires des orages Anonymes et pseudonymes publie par des religieux de la Campagnie de Jesus. Paris, 1884. Szentivanyi M., Cztyri a Dwadcet Pochibowanj. Tyrnaviae, 1700. Curiosiora et selectiora Variarum Scientiarum Miscellanea. Tyrnaviae, 1689-1709. Lutheranicum Nihil ad Rem Nihil ad Propositum, Tyrnaviae, 1703. Fii.nfzig Ursachen und Bewegungen. Tyrnau, 1702. Dissertatio haeresiologico polemica. Tyrnaviae, 1701. Lutheranicum numquam et nusquam. Tyrnaviae, 1702. .Solutiones non solutiones cujusdam pastoris augustani viginti quatuor dubiorum Catholicorum. Tyrnaviae, 1703. Privata et amica disceptatio. Tyrnaviae, 1704. Forum scrutarium antiquarum haeresum. Tyrnaviae, 1707. Dissertatio theologico polemica. Tyrnaviae, 1730. Motiva Quinguaginta ad praedicandam Romano-Catholicam Religionem. Agriae, 1756. Magnum Chaos, Tyrnaviae, 1704. Turris Babel, Tyrnaviae, 1731. S. Jurovsky, Filozofia Martina Szentivanyiho. Turc. Sv. Martin, 1944. Slovenskej literatury dejiny. Osveta, Bratislava, 1962. Joseph Skultety, Sketches from Slovak History , Middletown, Pa., 1930. A. Zellinger, Pantheon Tyrnaviense, Tyrnaviae, 1931. � 116 SLOVAKIA MARTIN SZENTIVANYI, S.J. (1633-1705 ) SLOVAK PHILOSOPHER, POLEMICIST, HISTORIAN B y Dr. John Rekem In previous English studies on the pre-Bernolak period 1 of the Slovak literature, I devoted considerable attention to the Slovak authors, writing either in Latin or Slovak, whose aim it was to arouse and sustain the spirit of Slovak nationalism. Included in these studies were the works of Romuald Hadbavny (Syllabus dictionarii Latino-Slavonicus 1763; Translation of Holy Scriptures into Slovak, 1756-1759) In my analysis of the voluminous publications of the historian, Samuel Timon (1675-1736) special attention was directed to the Slovak nationalism underlying his comprehensive works, his grasp of Slovak history, and specifically the period of the Great Moravian empire. I noted that even his accounts of the Cyril-Methodian era se·r ved to revivify Slovak national consciousness. I pointed out the eminent position of Stephen Dubnicay in religious history and Slovak literature. This author, writing both in Slovak and in Latin, won recognition far beyond the boundaries of Slovakia. His books were read and appreciated not only at home, but in Bohemia and Poland as well, and his work is proof that already in the early 18th century unprejudiced foreigners recognized the Slovaks as an independent national entity, distinct from the Czechs, the Poles, the Moravians and the Silesians. Finally, I analyzed the Apologia of John Balthasar Magin (1682-1735) written by him at the request of the Trencin nobility in defense of the Slovak nation and its political, social, and cultural rights in the territory of Hungary. Furthermore, I singled out for consideration other outstanding Slovak writers, members of the Pazmany Circle of the University of Trnava and of the Camaldolese Society. Both of these organizations were tireless in their efforts to augment Slovak inteUectual life, on both the religious and the national levels. To this select group belonged the Jesuit, Martin Szen- �SLOVAKIA 117 tivanyi (1633-1705) who is rightly considered not only the most prolific, but also the most learned and versatile writer of his time. M. Szentivanyi came from a family of the landed gentry (lower nobility) in Liptov, a family which originally bore the Slovak name of Svatojansky. When the Magyar regime issued orders compelling notaries and registrars to magyarize the names of non-magyar lesser gentry (Madocansky-Madocsanyi, Kubinsky-Kubinyi, Dubnicky-Dubniczay) the name of Svatojansky2 was changed to Szentivanyi, for some families the change of name meant also a reversal in national allegiance. However, in many cases also the original Slovak spirit endured despite the change in name. This is evident in the works of certain authors, among whom Martin Svatojansky-Szentivanyi was outstanding. The name may have been magyarized, but the Slovak spirit remained unbeaten, unsubdued. Martin studied at universities in Vienna and TrnaV1a, both of which exercised a favorable influence upon the national spirit of Slovak students. The Pazmaneum in Vienna reared the finest of Slovak patriots, beginning with Dubnicay and Magin all the way down to the President of the Slovak Republic, Msgr. Joseph Tiso, the diplomat Francis Tiso, etc. In the atmosphere of the University of Trnava (16351777) Szentivanyi's Slovak patriotism was intensified. Later, as teacher and writer, he was to have a great influence on the attitudes and national aspirations of others at the University, notably, S. Timon, S. Dubnicay, J. B. Magin, and others. In the history of Slovak literature and culture, M. Szentivanyi played a threefold role: that of philosopher, historian, and religious controversial writer. 3 He was professor of philosophy and polemics at the Universities in Kosice, Styrsky Hradec (Steier Graz) and Vienna. For a time he was director of the University of Trnava. After 1688 he became the chief censor of books in Hungary. The basic framework of Szentivanyi's philosophical theories was a moderate realism. The universe is a reflection of the ideas of God, which, concretized in creation, were brought into existence for the glory of God. Among the vary- �118 SLOVAKIA ing degrees of creatures on earth man holds the prime position because of his spiritual faculties of intellect and free will, and from these two divine qualities man derives his great natural dignity, which is enhanced by his escalation to the eminently superior dignity of adoption as a child of God. From this basic concept of the dignity of man in the plan of God and in the order of supernatural religion flows that deep appreciation and love of Christ's teachings, which Szentivanyi defended so effectively in his religious literature. In the fiield of natural philosophy also he is a follower of scholasticism. He examines in all its myriad aspects and seeks to probe its meaning. He does not ignore or isolate himself from the world, but takes note of ev•e rything in it and carefully studies the natural sciences. He informs hrimself on the most modern methods of scientific research (systematization, experimentation) , studies the outstanding later philosophers, like Francis Bacon, and does not rest content only with experimentation and the verification of dry facts, but here also, according to speculative Thomistic thought, he delves down deep to the roots of things. He directs his thoughts to the philosophic grasp and underlaying meaning of motion, the transfer of activity from one mode of being to another, the philosophic grasp of corporeal substance, the delineation of living organisms, from vegetative and sensient life to human life and its mysteries. It is necessary to mention that like the majority of his contemporaries he was opposed to the heliocentric theory. As to his vi,ews on human society, one might say that he was thoroughly familiar with Aquinas' teaching on the political community. Like Aquinas he is an advocate of responsible government which directs its efforts toward the common good. He treats various political theories of government, including democracy, however assigning his preference to the monarchy as being the most suitable, and by his view shows himself a child of his age.4 As a speculative theologian, Martin Szentivanyi utilized his theological knowledge for the spreading and stabilizing of God's kingdom in the chaotic y.ears of the Reformation. Using four languages - Latin, Slovak, Magyar, German he preached and wrote in defense of the Catholic faith. His publications comprised a whole library of polemical and apo- �SLOVAKIA 119 logetic works, which achieved great popularity. Even after his death they appeared in repeated editions either as monographs or collectively under the title Opuscula Polemica (Trnava I, 1718; II, 1730; Turris Babel, 1731 ... ) A polemical book of his on Christian dogma, published in Trnava in 1700, was written in Slovak and entitled Cztyri a Dwadcet Pochybovanij. (Twenty-four Hypotheses). It may well be said that in his polemical writings he covered the entire range of Catholic dogma as it was drawn up in the Council of Trent and he endeavored to boil it down to the small coins of simple language for easier comprehension and acceptance by his read,ers. In his work one often encounters evidence that Catholics and non-Catholics followed liturgical practices current today in certain Christian denominations. For example, from his work Lutheranicum, Nihil ad rem, Nihil ad Propositum,5 it is evident that the modern movement of some Protestant denominations to allow women to act as ministers is not so new after all, because, according to Szentivanyi, Lutheran women in various places acted as readers of Holy Scripture in church. He refers to a case in Levoca, where a certain Lutheran woman, who later became a convert to Catholicism, delivered a sermon and celebrated the "Eucharist", or, as she regarded it, "the Lord's Supper". M. Szentivanyi has performed an invaluable service as a historian by furnishing incidental information on Slovakia for Slovak Oatholic scholars. In his Miscellanea he makes frequent references to the topography of Slovakia and presents Slovak history as an integral part of the history of Hungary.6 Thus several references to the exploits of Svatopluk in Great Moravia ,a ppears in his Miscellanea (Decade I. 3. p. x3a. Decade II. 3. p. 265, 277-9). Furthermore, he makes frequent allusions and references to the activities of SS. Cyril and Methodius among the Slovaks (Decade I. 3. p.Hh3a, Decade II. p. 277. Decade III. 1. p. 152, 178.). According to A. A. Banik, it was Szentivanyi who proposed the first known theory in literature about the origin of the Slovaks. This versatile and learned scholar maintains that the Slovak inhabitants of northern Hungary sprang from the ancient Jazygs. He bases his assertion on the geographical boundaries of both nations as well as on the apparently com- �120 SLOVAKIA mon etymological identity of their name: Jazyk (tongue), rec (speech), slovo (word). Moreover, from the fact that the Germans also refer to the Slovaks as Vinden or Venden (e.g. in the names of places: Windirsh Prona, Windschacht, Windschendorf, etc.) Szentivanyi was inclined to believe that the reference was to the descendants of the ancient Slavic Vandals. 7 Concerning the interrelationship between the various Slavic languages and their diffusion throughout the world, he accepts the observation of P. Rewa, namely, that of all languages the Slavic idiom is today the most widespread, inasmuch as in its various branches its use extends from the Adriatic Sea to the Arctic Ocean and that it is spoken by the Istrians, Dalmatians, Croatians, Czechs, Silesians, Lusatians, Poles, Latvfans, Prussians, the inhabitants of Scandinavia, the Russians throughout their vast territory, the Bulgarians and other neighboring countries as far as Constantinople ... 8 In regard to the earliest inhabitants of Hungary, M. Szentivanyi held that the first historically identifiable nation to inhabit the territory of Hungary were a people known as the Pannonians, who spoke the Slovak language. Following the Roman occupation, this territory was again inhabited by Slovaks, the descendants of the Vandali, the Goths, and the Jazygs. 9 Because of the recognized authority of Szentivanyi, subsequent Slovak and Latin historians of Slovak origin accepted his views and often quoted him in their works. For example, J. B. Magin in his Apologia - Defense of the Slovak nation. 10 How could the students have remained immune to their enthusiasm and influence under the capable Jesuit instructors, who imbued them with a keen appreciation of the glorious history of Slovakia and the vast extent of the Slavic world and its culture? Quite the contrary, for gradually and steadily the teachings of M. Szentivanyi and S. Timon fanned into life, a latent national consciousness among their students, and notably among the clerics, which eventually found an outlet in the famous Bernolak movement. It 1-ed the Slovaks to assert themselves and to identify their national individuality in the framework of the Slavic nations. Boldly and without fear of contradiction one is led to assert that the real initiators of the Bernolak movement were �SLOVAKIA 121 Jesuit professors, scholars, and writers. The Bernolak movement received its impetus directly and indirectly from the immense intellectual, moral and cultural resources of the Jesuit scholars of the Universities of Trnava, and to a lesser degree, of Kosice. The following observations will confirm this: 1. Only in its final stages was the education of the rising Bernolak generation received at the general Seminary in Bratislava. The formativ,e years of their training were spent in Trnava, in the Vienna Pazmaneum and at the University of Kosice. This in itself linked them with a powerful Jesuit tradition. 11 2. When they emerged, the Bernolakians already manifested a well-developed tradition of Slovak nationalism. They clung steadfastly to a sense of history, identifying themselves with its cultural rhythm and accepting its logical course. 3. The Bernolakians revived the Cyril-Methodian tradition, impregnating all their activities with it. 4. After the suppression of the Jesuit Order in 1773, many ex-Jesuits extended their sphere of influence by undertaking pastoral duties in Slovak parishes and registering for membership in the Bernolak Association. The Bernolak movement was not in a position at that time openly and expressly to acknowledge any direct affiliation with the Jesuit tradition and its efforts to arouse the Slovaks to national consciousness. Prudenoe and tact would not allow it. The prevailing spirit of Josephinism was strongly prejudiced against the Jesuits and there was danger that such an admission would have been detrimental to the activity of the Bemolak Association. Wisely, therefore, the members decided to remain silent, while they unobtrusively went on developing it: that is, they carried on the work initiated by the Jesuits in the heart and bloodstream of the Slovak nation. FOOTNOTES 1. J. Rekem, The Origin and Development of the Slovak Language. Middletown, Pa. 1962. Slovak Literature and National Consciousness before Bernol<ik (1762-1813). Slovak Institute, Cleveland, Ohio, 1964. 2. Joseph Skultety, Sketches from Slovak History. FCSU, Middletown, Pa., 1930. 99p. �122 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. SLOVAKIA Stanislav Jurovsky, The Philosophy of Martin Szentivanyi. Turc. Sv. Martin, 1944. His views on philosophy, nature, and history are incorporated in his encyclopedic masterpiece, which was issued in Trnava in the decades from 1689 to 1709 under the title ,Curiosaria et Selectiora Variarum Scientiarum Miscellanea, Tyrnaviae, 1689-1709. (Curiosities Compiled from Various Scientific Sources) Trnava, 1703, p. 212. Cf. A. A. Banik, Jan Magin, 1936, p. 251. Miscellanea, Decadis secundae pars prima, 1691, Trnava, p. 344: "Slavos" Qui Vagum et Carpaticorum montium radices incolunt, existimo eundem esse populum, quos antiqui Jazyges Medanastas vocabant, nam et eosdem terminos et limites habent, quos Strabo et veteres Geographi, Jazygitis Metanastis adscribunt. Et utramque nationem Sarmatiae populum fuisse constat. Sarmatici autem populi omnes comprehendebantur sub Slavorum genere. Sed et denominationis ·utriusque idem est fundamentum . Jazyges enim denominabantur a Jazek hoc est lingua, et Slavi a Slovo, hoc est verbum, quod nimirum Slavicorum idioma, et facile pronunciatu sit, et eloqui possit, et ingentem habent copiam verborum, et nullum magis idioma per orbem diffusum sit. Idem sentio de Jazibus, tractum inter Tibiscum et Danubium incolentibus, nam et hos, ex Jazygum Medanastarum gentibus fuisse Geographi testantur, et habuisse proprium idioma, ab Hungarico plane diversum, quod utique aliud non erat, quam Slavonicum. Reliquos vero Slavos, per Hungariam dispersos verisimile est, esse Vandalorum reliquias; nemini enim dubium esse potest, Vandalos Slavonici generis fuisse ... " P. Rewa: De Monarchia et Sacra Corona Regni Hungariae Centuriae Septem . . . quas emendatas et auctas publicabat Comes Franciscus de Nadasd. 1659. Francofurti. The seventh century, p. 146-7: " ... . ac lingua Slavonica seu Illyrica, hodie omnium latissime patet, utpote quae a mari Adriatico, ad Oceanum usque ad Septemtrionalem se extendere videatur: nam ea utuntur lstrii, Dalmatae, Croatae, Bosnenses, Bohemi, Silesii, Lusatii, Polonii, Lithuani, Prutenti, Scandinaviae incolae, et Russi longe lateque imperantes, Bulgari item et multae aliae vicinae regiones, Constantinopolim fere usque : adeo ut toto orbe terrarum sit lingua Slavica qua plurimas gentes alloqui, mutatis tantum dialectis, ob vicinitatem aliorum populorum aliquid peregrini habentibus, licet, ut sit linguarum gloria ab usu, familiaritate et latitudine petenda esset, ipsa Slavonica cum Latina caeteris palmarium eriperet, cujus adminiculo, prope dimidia Europae pars, nonnulla etiam Asiae peragrari potest ... " Miscellanea. First book of the 3rd Decade. Trnava, 1699., p. 204, 206, 234-5. J . B. Magin, Murices , Puchov, 1728., p. 15, 68, etc. J . K. Smalov, Mons. Sti. Martini. Ruzomberok, 1947., p. 66. BIBLIOGRAPHY A. A. Banik, Jan Baltazar Magin a jeho politicka, narodna i kulturna obrana Slovakov roku 1728. SSV., Trnava, 1936. �SLOVAKIA 123 Novsie udaje na poznanie Jana Baltazara Magina, jeho diela a doby, LVO, SSV, Trnava, 1937. J. M. Kirschbaum, Slovakia - Nation at the Crossroads of Central Europe. New York, 1960. J . Kutnik-Smalov, Zastoj katolickej hierarchie v slovenskom narodnom a kulturnom zivote, in Mons Sti. Martini, Ruzomberok, 1947. J . B. Magin, Murices Nobilissimae et Novissimae Diaetae Posoniensis Scriptori sparsi Sive Apologia pro Inclyto Comitatu Trenchiniensi ... , Puchovii, 1728. J . Rekem, Stefan Dubnicay a jeho doba. Trencin, 1944. Z kulturnych dejin trencianskeho Povazia, Trencin, 1943. The Origin and Development of the Slovak Language. Middletown, Pa., 1962. Slovak Literature and National Consciou.sness Before Anton Bernolak (1762-1813) , Cleveland, Ohio, 1964. 1675-1725, Stefan Dubnicay, slovensky polemik a historik - a Slovak Polemist and Historian - polemiste et historien slovaque, Middletown, Pa. 1966. Chronological Table of Bishops of the Diocese of Nitra, Slovakia, Slovak Institute, Cleveland, Ohio, 1966. P. Rewa, De Monarchia et Sacra Corona Regni Hungariae Centuriae Septem . . . quas emendatas et auctas publicabat Comes Franciscus de Nadasd. 1659. Francofurti. Sommervogel C., Dictionaires des orages Anonymes et pseudonymes publie par des religieux de la Campagnie de Jesus. Paris, 1884. Szentivanyi M., Cztyri a Dwadcet Pochibowanj. Tyrnaviae, 1700. Curiosiora et selectiora Variarum Scientiarum Miscellanea. Tyrnaviae, 1689-1709. Lutheranicum Nihil ad Rem Nihil ad Propositum, Tyrnaviae, 1703. Fii.nfzig Ursachen und Bewegungen. Tyrnau, 1702. Dissertatio haeresiologico polemica. Tyrnaviae, 1701. Lutheranicum numquam et nusquam. Tyrnaviae, 1702. .Solutiones non solutiones cujusdam pastoris augustani viginti quatuor dubiorum Catholicorum. Tyrnaviae, 1703. Privata et amica disceptatio. Tyrnaviae, 1704. Forum scrutarium antiquarum haeresum. Tyrnaviae, 1707. Dissertatio theologico polemica. Tyrnaviae, 1730. Motiva Quinguaginta ad praedicandam Romano-Catholicam Religionem. Agriae, 1756. Magnum Chaos, Tyrnaviae, 1704. Turris Babel, Tyrnaviae, 1731. S. Jurovsky, Filozofia Martina Szentivanyiho. Turc. Sv. Martin, 1944. Slovenskej literatury dejiny. Osveta, Bratislava, 1962. Joseph Skultety, Sketches from Slovak History , Middletown, Pa., 1930. A. Zellinger, Pantheon Tyrnaviense, Tyrnaviae, 1931. � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource 1966, Vol. 16 Description An account of the resource Vol. 16 (No. 39), 1966. Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available The Slovak League of America Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1966 Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Text Any textual data included in the document 116 SLOVAKIA MARTIN SZENTIVANYI, S.J. (1633-1705 ) SLOVAK PHILOSOPHER, POLEMICIST, HISTORIAN B y Dr. John Rekem In previous English studies on the pre-Bernolak period 1 of the Slovak literature, I devoted considerable attention to the Slovak authors, writing either in Latin or Slovak, whose aim it was to arouse and sustain the spirit of Slovak nationalism. Included in these studies were the works of Romuald Hadbavny (Syllabus dictionarii Latino-Slavonicus 1763; Translation of Holy Scriptures into Slovak, 1756-1759) In my analysis of the voluminous publications of the historian, Samuel Timon (1675-1736) special attention was directed to the Slovak nationalism underlying his comprehensive works, his grasp of Slovak history, and specifically the period of the Great Moravian empire. I noted that even his accounts of the Cyril-Methodian era se·r ved to revivify Slovak national consciousness. I pointed out the eminent position of Stephen Dubnicay in religious history and Slovak literature. This author, writing both in Slovak and in Latin, won recognition far beyond the boundaries of Slovakia. His books were read and appreciated not only at home, but in Bohemia and Poland as well, and his work is proof that already in the early 18th century unprejudiced foreigners recognized the Slovaks as an independent national entity, distinct from the Czechs, the Poles, the Moravians and the Silesians. Finally, I analyzed the Apologia of John Balthasar Magin (1682-1735) written by him at the request of the Trencin nobility in defense of the Slovak nation and its political, social, and cultural rights in the territory of Hungary. Furthermore, I singled out for consideration other outstanding Slovak writers, members of the Pazmany Circle of the University of Trnava and of the Camaldolese Society. Both of these organizations were tireless in their efforts to augment Slovak inteUectual life, on both the religious and the national levels. To this select group belonged the Jesuit, Martin Szen- SLOVAKIA 117 tivanyi (1633-1705) who is rightly considered not only the most prolific, but also the most learned and versatile writer of his time. M. Szentivanyi came from a family of the landed gentry (lower nobility) in Liptov, a family which originally bore the Slovak name of Svatojansky. When the Magyar regime issued orders compelling notaries and registrars to magyarize the names of non-magyar lesser gentry (Madocansky-Madocsanyi, Kubinsky-Kubinyi, Dubnicky-Dubniczay) the name of Svatojansky2 was changed to Szentivanyi, for some families the change of name meant also a reversal in national allegiance. However, in many cases also the original Slovak spirit endured despite the change in name. This is evident in the works of certain authors, among whom Martin Svatojansky-Szentivanyi was outstanding. The name may have been magyarized, but the Slovak spirit remained unbeaten, unsubdued. Martin studied at universities in Vienna and TrnaV1a, both of which exercised a favorable influence upon the national spirit of Slovak students. The Pazmaneum in Vienna reared the finest of Slovak patriots, beginning with Dubnicay and Magin all the way down to the President of the Slovak Republic, Msgr. Joseph Tiso, the diplomat Francis Tiso, etc. In the atmosphere of the University of Trnava (16351777) Szentivanyi's Slovak patriotism was intensified. Later, as teacher and writer, he was to have a great influence on the attitudes and national aspirations of others at the University, notably, S. Timon, S. Dubnicay, J. B. Magin, and others. In the history of Slovak literature and culture, M. Szentivanyi played a threefold role: that of philosopher, historian, and religious controversial writer. 3 He was professor of philosophy and polemics at the Universities in Kosice, Styrsky Hradec (Steier Graz) and Vienna. For a time he was director of the University of Trnava. After 1688 he became the chief censor of books in Hungary. The basic framework of Szentivanyi's philosophical theories was a moderate realism. The universe is a reflection of the ideas of God, which, concretized in creation, were brought into existence for the glory of God. Among the vary- 118 SLOVAKIA ing degrees of creatures on earth man holds the prime position because of his spiritual faculties of intellect and free will, and from these two divine qualities man derives his great natural dignity, which is enhanced by his escalation to the eminently superior dignity of adoption as a child of God. From this basic concept of the dignity of man in the plan of God and in the order of supernatural religion flows that deep appreciation and love of Christ's teachings, which Szentivanyi defended so effectively in his religious literature. In the fiield of natural philosophy also he is a follower of scholasticism. He examines in all its myriad aspects and seeks to probe its meaning. He does not ignore or isolate himself from the world, but takes note of ev•e rything in it and carefully studies the natural sciences. He informs hrimself on the most modern methods of scientific research (systematization, experimentation) , studies the outstanding later philosophers, like Francis Bacon, and does not rest content only with experimentation and the verification of dry facts, but here also, according to speculative Thomistic thought, he delves down deep to the roots of things. He directs his thoughts to the philosophic grasp and underlaying meaning of motion, the transfer of activity from one mode of being to another, the philosophic grasp of corporeal substance, the delineation of living organisms, from vegetative and sensient life to human life and its mysteries. It is necessary to mention that like the majority of his contemporaries he was opposed to the heliocentric theory. As to his vi,ews on human society, one might say that he was thoroughly familiar with Aquinas' teaching on the political community. Like Aquinas he is an advocate of responsible government which directs its efforts toward the common good. He treats various political theories of government, including democracy, however assigning his preference to the monarchy as being the most suitable, and by his view shows himself a child of his age.4 As a speculative theologian, Martin Szentivanyi utilized his theological knowledge for the spreading and stabilizing of God's kingdom in the chaotic y.ears of the Reformation. Using four languages - Latin, Slovak, Magyar, German he preached and wrote in defense of the Catholic faith. His publications comprised a whole library of polemical and apo- SLOVAKIA 119 logetic works, which achieved great popularity. Even after his death they appeared in repeated editions either as monographs or collectively under the title Opuscula Polemica (Trnava I, 1718; II, 1730; Turris Babel, 1731 ... ) A polemical book of his on Christian dogma, published in Trnava in 1700, was written in Slovak and entitled Cztyri a Dwadcet Pochybovanij. (Twenty-four Hypotheses). It may well be said that in his polemical writings he covered the entire range of Catholic dogma as it was drawn up in the Council of Trent and he endeavored to boil it down to the small coins of simple language for easier comprehension and acceptance by his read,ers. In his work one often encounters evidence that Catholics and non-Catholics followed liturgical practices current today in certain Christian denominations. For example, from his work Lutheranicum, Nihil ad rem, Nihil ad Propositum,5 it is evident that the modern movement of some Protestant denominations to allow women to act as ministers is not so new after all, because, according to Szentivanyi, Lutheran women in various places acted as readers of Holy Scripture in church. He refers to a case in Levoca, where a certain Lutheran woman, who later became a convert to Catholicism, delivered a sermon and celebrated the "Eucharist", or, as she regarded it, "the Lord's Supper". M. Szentivanyi has performed an invaluable service as a historian by furnishing incidental information on Slovakia for Slovak Oatholic scholars. In his Miscellanea he makes frequent references to the topography of Slovakia and presents Slovak history as an integral part of the history of Hungary.6 Thus several references to the exploits of Svatopluk in Great Moravia ,a ppears in his Miscellanea (Decade I. 3. p. x3a. Decade II. 3. p. 265, 277-9). Furthermore, he makes frequent allusions and references to the activities of SS. Cyril and Methodius among the Slovaks (Decade I. 3. p.Hh3a, Decade II. p. 277. Decade III. 1. p. 152, 178.). According to A. A. Banik, it was Szentivanyi who proposed the first known theory in literature about the origin of the Slovaks. This versatile and learned scholar maintains that the Slovak inhabitants of northern Hungary sprang from the ancient Jazygs. He bases his assertion on the geographical boundaries of both nations as well as on the apparently com- 120 SLOVAKIA mon etymological identity of their name: Jazyk (tongue), rec (speech), slovo (word). Moreover, from the fact that the Germans also refer to the Slovaks as Vinden or Venden (e.g. in the names of places: Windirsh Prona, Windschacht, Windschendorf, etc.) Szentivanyi was inclined to believe that the reference was to the descendants of the ancient Slavic Vandals. 7 Concerning the interrelationship between the various Slavic languages and their diffusion throughout the world, he accepts the observation of P. Rewa, namely, that of all languages the Slavic idiom is today the most widespread, inasmuch as in its various branches its use extends from the Adriatic Sea to the Arctic Ocean and that it is spoken by the Istrians, Dalmatians, Croatians, Czechs, Silesians, Lusatians, Poles, Latvfans, Prussians, the inhabitants of Scandinavia, the Russians throughout their vast territory, the Bulgarians and other neighboring countries as far as Constantinople ... 8 In regard to the earliest inhabitants of Hungary, M. Szentivanyi held that the first historically identifiable nation to inhabit the territory of Hungary were a people known as the Pannonians, who spoke the Slovak language. Following the Roman occupation, this territory was again inhabited by Slovaks, the descendants of the Vandali, the Goths, and the Jazygs. 9 Because of the recognized authority of Szentivanyi, subsequent Slovak and Latin historians of Slovak origin accepted his views and often quoted him in their works. For example, J. B. Magin in his Apologia - Defense of the Slovak nation. 10 How could the students have remained immune to their enthusiasm and influence under the capable Jesuit instructors, who imbued them with a keen appreciation of the glorious history of Slovakia and the vast extent of the Slavic world and its culture? Quite the contrary, for gradually and steadily the teachings of M. Szentivanyi and S. Timon fanned into life, a latent national consciousness among their students, and notably among the clerics, which eventually found an outlet in the famous Bernolak movement. It 1-ed the Slovaks to assert themselves and to identify their national individuality in the framework of the Slavic nations. Boldly and without fear of contradiction one is led to assert that the real initiators of the Bernolak movement were SLOVAKIA 121 Jesuit professors, scholars, and writers. The Bernolak movement received its impetus directly and indirectly from the immense intellectual, moral and cultural resources of the Jesuit scholars of the Universities of Trnava, and to a lesser degree, of Kosice. The following observations will confirm this: 1. Only in its final stages was the education of the rising Bernolak generation received at the general Seminary in Bratislava. The formativ,e years of their training were spent in Trnava, in the Vienna Pazmaneum and at the University of Kosice. This in itself linked them with a powerful Jesuit tradition. 11 2. When they emerged, the Bernolakians already manifested a well-developed tradition of Slovak nationalism. They clung steadfastly to a sense of history, identifying themselves with its cultural rhythm and accepting its logical course. 3. The Bernolakians revived the Cyril-Methodian tradition, impregnating all their activities with it. 4. After the suppression of the Jesuit Order in 1773, many ex-Jesuits extended their sphere of influence by undertaking pastoral duties in Slovak parishes and registering for membership in the Bernolak Association. The Bernolak movement was not in a position at that time openly and expressly to acknowledge any direct affiliation with the Jesuit tradition and its efforts to arouse the Slovaks to national consciousness. Prudenoe and tact would not allow it. The prevailing spirit of Josephinism was strongly prejudiced against the Jesuits and there was danger that such an admission would have been detrimental to the activity of the Bemolak Association. Wisely, therefore, the members decided to remain silent, while they unobtrusively went on developing it: that is, they carried on the work initiated by the Jesuits in the heart and bloodstream of the Slovak nation. FOOTNOTES 1. J. Rekem, The Origin and Development of the Slovak Language. Middletown, Pa. 1962. Slovak Literature and National Consciousness before Bernol<ik (1762-1813). Slovak Institute, Cleveland, Ohio, 1964. 2. Joseph Skultety, Sketches from Slovak History. FCSU, Middletown, Pa., 1930. 99p. 122 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. SLOVAKIA Stanislav Jurovsky, The Philosophy of Martin Szentivanyi. Turc. Sv. Martin, 1944. His views on philosophy, nature, and history are incorporated in his encyclopedic masterpiece, which was issued in Trnava in the decades from 1689 to 1709 under the title ,Curiosaria et Selectiora Variarum Scientiarum Miscellanea, Tyrnaviae, 1689-1709. (Curiosities Compiled from Various Scientific Sources) Trnava, 1703, p. 212. Cf. A. A. Banik, Jan Magin, 1936, p. 251. Miscellanea, Decadis secundae pars prima, 1691, Trnava, p. 344: "Slavos" Qui Vagum et Carpaticorum montium radices incolunt, existimo eundem esse populum, quos antiqui Jazyges Medanastas vocabant, nam et eosdem terminos et limites habent, quos Strabo et veteres Geographi, Jazygitis Metanastis adscribunt. Et utramque nationem Sarmatiae populum fuisse constat. Sarmatici autem populi omnes comprehendebantur sub Slavorum genere. Sed et denominationis ·utriusque idem est fundamentum . Jazyges enim denominabantur a Jazek hoc est lingua, et Slavi a Slovo, hoc est verbum, quod nimirum Slavicorum idioma, et facile pronunciatu sit, et eloqui possit, et ingentem habent copiam verborum, et nullum magis idioma per orbem diffusum sit. Idem sentio de Jazibus, tractum inter Tibiscum et Danubium incolentibus, nam et hos, ex Jazygum Medanastarum gentibus fuisse Geographi testantur, et habuisse proprium idioma, ab Hungarico plane diversum, quod utique aliud non erat, quam Slavonicum. Reliquos vero Slavos, per Hungariam dispersos verisimile est, esse Vandalorum reliquias; nemini enim dubium esse potest, Vandalos Slavonici generis fuisse ... " P. Rewa: De Monarchia et Sacra Corona Regni Hungariae Centuriae Septem . . . quas emendatas et auctas publicabat Comes Franciscus de Nadasd. 1659. Francofurti. The seventh century, p. 146-7: " ... . ac lingua Slavonica seu Illyrica, hodie omnium latissime patet, utpote quae a mari Adriatico, ad Oceanum usque ad Septemtrionalem se extendere videatur: nam ea utuntur lstrii, Dalmatae, Croatae, Bosnenses, Bohemi, Silesii, Lusatii, Polonii, Lithuani, Prutenti, Scandinaviae incolae, et Russi longe lateque imperantes, Bulgari item et multae aliae vicinae regiones, Constantinopolim fere usque : adeo ut toto orbe terrarum sit lingua Slavica qua plurimas gentes alloqui, mutatis tantum dialectis, ob vicinitatem aliorum populorum aliquid peregrini habentibus, licet, ut sit linguarum gloria ab usu, familiaritate et latitudine petenda esset, ipsa Slavonica cum Latina caeteris palmarium eriperet, cujus adminiculo, prope dimidia Europae pars, nonnulla etiam Asiae peragrari potest ... " Miscellanea. First book of the 3rd Decade. Trnava, 1699., p. 204, 206, 234-5. J . B. Magin, Murices , Puchov, 1728., p. 15, 68, etc. J . K. Smalov, Mons. Sti. Martini. Ruzomberok, 1947., p. 66. BIBLIOGRAPHY A. A. Banik, Jan Baltazar Magin a jeho politicka, narodna i kulturna obrana Slovakov roku 1728. SSV., Trnava, 1936. SLOVAKIA 123 Novsie udaje na poznanie Jana Baltazara Magina, jeho diela a doby, LVO, SSV, Trnava, 1937. J. M. Kirschbaum, Slovakia - Nation at the Crossroads of Central Europe. New York, 1960. J . Kutnik-Smalov, Zastoj katolickej hierarchie v slovenskom narodnom a kulturnom zivote, in Mons Sti. Martini, Ruzomberok, 1947. J . B. Magin, Murices Nobilissimae et Novissimae Diaetae Posoniensis Scriptori sparsi Sive Apologia pro Inclyto Comitatu Trenchiniensi ... , Puchovii, 1728. J . Rekem, Stefan Dubnicay a jeho doba. Trencin, 1944. Z kulturnych dejin trencianskeho Povazia, Trencin, 1943. The Origin and Development of the Slovak Language. Middletown, Pa., 1962. Slovak Literature and National Consciou.sness Before Anton Bernolak (1762-1813) , Cleveland, Ohio, 1964. 1675-1725, Stefan Dubnicay, slovensky polemik a historik - a Slovak Polemist and Historian - polemiste et historien slovaque, Middletown, Pa. 1966. Chronological Table of Bishops of the Diocese of Nitra, Slovakia, Slovak Institute, Cleveland, Ohio, 1966. P. Rewa, De Monarchia et Sacra Corona Regni Hungariae Centuriae Septem . . . quas emendatas et auctas publicabat Comes Franciscus de Nadasd. 1659. Francofurti. Sommervogel C., Dictionaires des orages Anonymes et pseudonymes publie par des religieux de la Campagnie de Jesus. Paris, 1884. Szentivanyi M., Cztyri a Dwadcet Pochibowanj. Tyrnaviae, 1700. Curiosiora et selectiora Variarum Scientiarum Miscellanea. Tyrnaviae, 1689-1709. Lutheranicum Nihil ad Rem Nihil ad Propositum, Tyrnaviae, 1703. Fii.nfzig Ursachen und Bewegungen. Tyrnau, 1702. Dissertatio haeresiologico polemica. Tyrnaviae, 1701. Lutheranicum numquam et nusquam. Tyrnaviae, 1702. .Solutiones non solutiones cujusdam pastoris augustani viginti quatuor dubiorum Catholicorum. Tyrnaviae, 1703. Privata et amica disceptatio. Tyrnaviae, 1704. Forum scrutarium antiquarum haeresum. Tyrnaviae, 1707. Dissertatio theologico polemica. Tyrnaviae, 1730. Motiva Quinguaginta ad praedicandam Romano-Catholicam Religionem. Agriae, 1756. Magnum Chaos, Tyrnaviae, 1704. Turris Babel, Tyrnaviae, 1731. S. Jurovsky, Filozofia Martina Szentivanyiho. Turc. Sv. Martin, 1944. Slovenskej literatury dejiny. Osveta, Bratislava, 1962. Joseph Skultety, Sketches from Slovak History , Middletown, Pa., 1930. A. Zellinger, Pantheon Tyrnaviense, Tyrnaviae, 1931.  Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Martin Szentiványi, S.J. (1633-1705): Slovak Philosopher, Polemicist, Historian Description An account of the resource Dr. John Rekem Slovakia, Vol. 16 (No. 39), 1966 pp. 116-123 Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Rekem, Ján, 1917-1989 Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1966 LCNAF https://slovakia.wordsofpassage.net/files/original/c0497e8310c515c60ddab7b58d77b08f.pdf b6d6b6dcade6b3cf558b06c2b98b063f PDF Text Text 124 SLOVAKIA CURRENT ISSUES ADDRESS of the Honorable Michael A. Feighan, United States Representative, Before the Slovak League of Ameri ca, Voyager Motel In n, Youngstown, Ohio, Sunday, May 15, 1966 I have been priviledged many times over the past decades to speak about the history of the Slovak people; to speak about the true facts behind your struggles for independence; and to speak about the present determination of Slovaks all over the world to return freedom and independence once again to their native land. My long interest in, and association with, the inspirations and the aspirations of the Slovak people has brought me to appreciate, and to respect, not only the individual Slovak, but the efforts of such organizations as represented in Slovak League of America. The Slovak,s are a people who have made a continuous struggle for national independence for over unremitting and From the Brother Saints, Cyril and Meyears. thousand one Andrew Hlinka and General Monsignor through thodius, Stefanik, the Slovak history is replete with patriots unswerving in their dedication to God, to freedom and to individual liberty. The Slovaks are a people who are more than one hundred years into the second millenium of Christianity in Slovakia. The Slovaks are a people who, even after more than one thousand years of domination, have not lost their language, their national identity, or their determination for independence; an independence which in this century, was born of democratic principles, weaned all too prematurely by the r avages of war, and all but destroyed by the tyranny of Russian Communism. Slovaks know as well as anyone else the path from freedom to oppression, the path from an independent to a captive nation, and the path from a native people to an exiled people - exiled by communist design from their own country and its inherent rights to freedom. But at the same time, they know that these paths need �SLOVAKIA 125 not be irreversible. They know that the spirit of resistance to tyranny never dies. They know that dedication to freedom and justice is unfettered by geographical boundaries, national origin, race, creed, or circumstance. And it is their knowledge and faith in these ideals which has given the Slovak people the determination never to give up in their goals - as is so aptly proved by the fact that the Slovaks today continue to oppose collectivization more effectively than anyone else in the communist orbit. In this universality of conviction the Slovak League of America is strong and unyielding. And so it is today that I want especially to commend the Slovaks for their efforts to promote dedicated citizenship and to build protectors of American democracy ; for their service to this great country rin public and in private life ; for their works of charity; and for their undiminished opposition to all forms of tyranny in the world. As a large Slovak civic and cultural organization in America the Slovak League can be proud of the spiritual, cultural, social, and charitable contributions it has made to the building of our great nation. The nationally known home for orphans in Middletown, Pennsylvania stands as a tribute to the work of the First Catholic Slovak Union. Homes for the aged in various parts of the country, such as the beautiful home at Beachwood, Ohio, which is a tribute to the work of the First Catholic Slovak Ladies' Union. The internationally famous , Saints Cyril and Methodius Institute at Rome, Italy was made possible by the combined efforts of all Slovak Catholic organizations and parishes throughout the country. Bishop Andrew Grutka with the able assistance of Right Reverend Theodore Kojis and all the clergy of Slovak parishes provided inspiring leadership to create this spiritual center for the preservation of the true Slovak spirit. Churches, elementary schools, convents and high schools, too numerous to recall are future monuments to the faith of Slovaks in America. Within the past year a magnificent chapel to Our Lady of Sorrows - Patron saint of Slovakia - was dedicated in the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception, in our �126 SLOVAKIA nation's capital. This stands as still another great achievement by the First Catholic Slovak Union. American Slovaks have not ignored the plights of others, but have provided a forum to urge the cause of self-determination for all peoples. Every nation has the right to chart its own destiny through self-determination. This is among the most basic American beliefs. Just as the Slovak people hav•e a dedication to the universal principles of freedom and justice - not limited just to their now oppressed native land - so I and our United States of America have a similar dedication to these same universal principles. To this end I recently introduced a resolution on the floor of the United States House of Representatives calling for the establishment of a seven member House Select Committee on Basic Human Rights and Peaceful World Order. It is all too clear that the official and organized denial of basic human rights and freedom by any government to peoples under its control creates international tensions which can prevent the development of a peaceful world order. Such suppression of national and individual identity is tied hand-in-hand with Russian imperialism, and is a matter of official policy aga,inst the many nations federated by force to the Soviet Union. Of all people, we know, that the spread of this doctrine to other lands beyond the Soviet Union has already begun, and unless it is checked, and reversed, it can well plunge the world into a holocaust. I am confident that if and when this select committee ,is established by Congress, it will provide yet another public forum to develop public opinion on an international scale that these vital issues deserve. Such a public forum will complement and up-date such work as that of the Select Committee to investigate communist aggression of the 83rd Congress, and of which I was privileged to be a member. This committee was able to document and to underscore for all the world to see, such tragic stories as the loss of Slovakia's national independence following World War II and its enslavement by imperial Russia. And such a public forum will also complement the contmued work of the Slovak League of America both here and abroad. While the evil hand of Russian Communism continues its attempts to destroy the very spirit of Saints Cyril and Methodius and to reduce the Slovak people to a state of �SLOVAKIA 127 complete servility, the Slovak people refuse to surr,ender that which, over a thousand years, they have continued to fight for - their spirit of independence, of justice and of freedom. To help this spirit in Slovakia, I am also directing my efforts not only just toward expanding the public forum against communistic tyranny, but also toward expanding the coverage of the Voice of America broadcasts in news and information to the Slovaks living under this communist tyranny. It is my hope to see a Slovak desk established in the Voice of America and to thus improve and increase the effectiveness of this communication behind the Iron Curtain. I hav,e been working toward that goal for some years and will not cease my efforts until it is won. In this way, we as a nation can more effectively demonstrate our encouragement and support for the Slovaks now living under virtual foreign occupation in their native land. For I am convinced that one of the best ways to demonstrate friendship for the people of any foreign country is to speak to them in their own language, to recognize their cultural values and to encourage them in their just aspirations for self-government. The God-fearing people of the free world will not fail in this our struggle to preserve human freedom and to erase despotic slavery. We shall not fail in restoring individual liberty and self-determination to a peaceful world. We shall not fail for we shall not falter in our efforts until our goals are won - and so long as a Slovak is alive anywhere in the world, I know that the spirit of Saints Cyril and Methodius shall prevail. To this I add my personal conviction that as the free world approaches these goals, the Slovak nation will once again join the independent and free nations of the world. SIWVAKS HAVE HIGH More than 70 languages are listDEJGREE IN EDUCATION ed. The fi "ures range all the way A 38-page report on the mother tongue of the 9,738,155 persons listed as foreign born in the 1960 Census has just been published by the U.S. Bureau of the Census. The study is based on a question as to what language was spoken in his home before an immigrant came to the United States. from 16 persons whose mother tongue was Tibetan to over a million persons each for those reporting English, German or Italian. A breakdown on the basis of the areas within the United States shows that nearly half of the total foreign born here reside in the northeast part of the country, �SLOVAKIA 128 nearly a 1/4 in the north central states, 10% in the south and 20 % in the west. Other tables show age and the number of years in school for different groups. Schooling completed by the foreign born shows that the English speaking and Japanese had the highest degree of education with an average of about 10 years of school for each. Scandinavian and German along with Chinese, Rumanian , SLOVAK, Yiddish and Arabic all range in the eight year category. While essentiall y statistical , the Report contains valuable information for those interested iFI or working with nationalit y or ethnic groups. It is on sale by the Superintendent of Documen ts, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C. 20402, for 35 cents a copy. - American Council for Nationalities Service Release. NATION .ALISiM To many people, here in the United States, Nationali sm is an ugly word. These people are either ashamed of their national origin or ridicule others for trying to retain the language , customs and traditions that were brought to this country by their forefathe rs. It is true that there are many people today, who can not honestly claim one national origin or the other. Because the marriages of their ancestors were between many different nationalit ies, they may be a mixture of four, five, six, or more nationalit ies and can not truly say they are one or the other. Of these people I do not speak, but in some cases these same persons will not be tolerant of another who knows his national origin and is proud of it. The percentag e of people who have come here to the United States and know what their national origin is, but deny it, is very small. However the children of these people are the main offend- ers, by not taking pride in their nationalit y. As an example, I would like to take the Slovak people. When the Slovak people first started to come to the United States, they were at a disadvant age because they did not know English like some of the other people who migrated here from other European countries which were English speaking. Because of this they found it hard to secure jobs and places to live. At that time there was no television or radio to cover the persecuti on these people endured, both mental and physical. They did not have any organizat ions boycottin g or protesting for them. These people proved themselve s in their place of employm ent by their ability to work and produce. They rented apartmen ts, kept a clean house, spent their money wisely and supported their church. Their accomplishments are many but unsung, because Slovakia and its' people was not well known because it was and still is a nation that is living under foreign rule and tyranny. I have had the experienc e of meeting many young people with Slovak names. Some are college students, ordinary workers and people in profession s. They say "My parents are Slovak or my father is Slovak, but I am an American, not a Slovak." Another excuse for denying their origin is that they say being called a Slovak is putting them in a "ghetto". These and other excuses are all meaningle ss. America is a land made up of many nationalit ies, so in order to be a good American you must be proud of your nationality which helped to build this country. The real American s are the American Indians and there is even doubt as to where they migrated from. The term "ghetto" has been misused in recent years and now is a good excuse for those who are ashamed of their nationality. The term is really being used by those who are too lazy to im- �129 SLOVAKIA prove their own conditions where they now live, and then, try to move elsewhere. Being proud of your Slovak customs, folksongs, language, newspapers, etc., is not to be classified as being in a "ghetto". Rather, it is being a good American in the true sense of the word. The meals, customs, and culture of many lands have gone into making America great. Why shouldn't the Slovaks, who have contributed a lot to America, and continue to do so be proud of themselves. Other groups have their parades and celebrate their saints and hero days'. They are not ashamed to say "I am Irish, Italian or other." Why then are some of the Slovak People tongue-tied, so that they flounder around for every excuse, rather than saying with pride and dignity, "I am an American Slovak!!" We are not trying to prove that we are better than anyone else, but it is about time that some people recognize the fact that we are just as good as another and there is nothing to be ashamed of. If you are weak kneed and ashamed because some donkey is ignorant enough to ridicule you, then you aren't worth much as a Slovak or an American. My father told me that his brother, my late uncle, Rev. John Kuba~ek, pastor of Most Holy Trinity Church in Yonkers, used to say this about those who were ashamed of being known as a Slovak, "It's a poor bird who dirtys his own nest." Think about this and you will see its meaning. The parents of those attending our Slovak schools should insist that Slovak be taught and taught well enough so that the pupil can carry on a conversation by the time he finishes eighth grade. In too many cases our Slovak people give in to the non-Slovaks of the parish , who voice their objections to this. This is a good case where we can be strong. It was our an- cestors hard earned money that built these schools. I am sure that if the diocese ruled that every pupil had to learn Spanish or French, e very o n e would jump. Let's jump and make sure our children in Slovak schools learn to SPEAK Slovak and not just memorize a few words. All of the above ties into our hope that someday Slovakia will be free . When this happens there will be many Slovaks who will come to this country. Will they have to go through the sarrie hardships that the early Slovak immigrants did? What is worse yet, will they have to suffer because their own Slovak brethren here in the United States are too lazy to teach and learn the Slovak language and keep up the customs? If for no other reason, this should be a motive for us to keep our spirit alive, so that we may help our people when the time comes to adjust to the United States and find employment and housing. This can only be done by waking up now. Let's not commit national suicide!! Steve Kubasek, Jr. St. Procopius College Lisle, Illinois Ll!MITED GAINS SOORED IN RENEWED DRINE FOR SLOVAK INDEJPENiDENCE Slovak national aspirations have been staging a come-back in the <".:SSR. This upsurge is not the work of individual writers. It is now supported by higher ranking party functionaries. The impetus for vocalizing these strivings which aim at complete equality with the Czechs, was the 150th birthday of :Cudovit Stur, a man honored in his native land not only as an opponent of Hungarian supremacy but as the father of the Slovak literary language, consummation of which made the separat- �130 SLOVAKIA ion of the Slovaks from the Czechs complete. For the first time well-known personalities like the former land governor Gustav Husak (sentenced to life imprisonment in 1954 as a "bourgeois nationalist" but rehabilitated in 1962) and the historian Daniel Rapant, publicly presented theses condemning the ideas of Marx and Engels from 1848 although these opinions of the fathers of socialism have actually been tabu thus far in all Communist countries. Husak, to whom the Prague government had several times offered a ministerial post in recent years, now accused Marx of having assumed a position of Hungarian nationalism and - without any more profound knowledge of the revolution of 1848 - of having developed an anti-Slovak attitude in which his "German arrogance" was a determining factor. Apart from Prague's and Moscow's still expected reply, Budapest will also have something to say, inasmuch as Rapant described the Kossuth revolution as "tyranny, and not a struggle for internationalism and emancipation". The various articles in Slovak newspapers commemorating Stur ended with the unequivocal demand for genuine equality of the Slovaks with the Czechs. The writer, Vladimir Minac, expressed the thought that if Czech-Slovak coexistence were considered historically necessary, the fate of both peoples must be seen in its "truly dramatic form". Husak even went so far as to call for the creation of state institutions designed to protect the Slovaks - who make up but one-third of the entire population - against "oppression by the privileged and hegemonist nation". About a month after the Stur jubilee the effects of Slovak unrest began to be noticeable. The Prague parliament approved a re- solution providing for the Slovak National Council in Bratislava " in cooperation with the other parliamentary bodies" to concentrate their efforts on increasing Slovak participation in the overall development of the CSSR. Although the Czechs could not bring themselves to empower the Slovak National Council with the competency it once held, they did concede to a certain amount of codetermination of the Slovaks on all-state level. It is to be realized by establishing closer contact in the future between the committees of the Prague National Assembly and the Bratislava National Council. The Slovak land governor, Michal Chudik, in a frank talk before the Prague parliament, pointed out that there were people among the Czechs who saw in the Slovak National Council only a " binding link" betweeen Prague and Bratislava that simply complicated the situation, while among the Slovaks, he claimed, there were trends toward a federalization of the CSSR. Although allying himself with neither of these trends, Chudik obviously felt the centralistic threat emanating from Prague to be the greater danger. This feeling prompted him to say to the Czech side that the Slovak National Council would henceforth appear as the representative of the "Slovak people's independence" and perform within Slovakia the functions of an all-state administrative body. Chudik's criticism that the National Council had so far not succeeded in fulfilling its "norm-establishing" function, was recently supported by an almost revolutionary move on the part of the Slovaks. The juridicial commission of the Bratislava National Council drafted a law proposing the introduction of so-called cooperative apartments. To date there has been �SLOVAKIA only home construction of the state and cooperative type, or building permits for single family houses with limited dwelling space. This new measure would allow ownership of dwellings even in buildings housing several families. They are designed for later sale, including right to inheritance or other type legal transfer to others for tenancy. There would also be opportunity for older dwellings to pass into private ownership. w. o. A STUDY OF ~HiE COMMUNIST PARTY By the end of the war, the Soviet Union and its Communist allies had gained virtually de facto control of Czechoslovakia. The Soviet armies conquered Slovakia (and as in the case of Poland refused to give military aid to an uprising of anti-German Slovak citizens) ; by Allied agreement the Soviets were permitted to liberate Prague; and they annexed SubCarpathian Ruthenia to the Soviet Union, an act formalized in June 1945. Communist-dominated People's Committees controlled the borderlands, and in the interior Communists had more than their share of power in the Committees' apparatus. According to SetonWatson, "The Communist Party could have seized complete power in 1945 had it so wished. It deliberately chose not to do so." In May 1945, Benes and the London Government-in-exile returned to Czechoslovakia, but stopping first at Moscow where further concessions were made to the Czechoslovak Communists whereby they were given key posts in the government. According to Prof. Curt Beck, a specialist on Czechoslovak affairs, these concessions were partly due to the realization that the Allies had already decided that Czechoslovakia would be in the Soviet military zone. 131 Agreements reached by Benes and the Communists in discussions during 1943 and 1945 formed the basis for the Kosice Program, ostensibly an agreement among members of the National Front coalition on polices to be adopted by the new postwar Czechoslovak Government. The most important features of the agreement were the creation of a National Front Coalition government and the formation of People's Committees that were to assume local and regional administrative responsibilities and functions . The Kosice program, proclaimed by the new Czechoslovak Government on March 22, 1945, restored the republic. On April 4, 1945, Benes, as President, named a new government headed by the left-wing Social Democrat Zdenek Fierlinger. The National Front which formed the government was a coalition of independent parties, consisting of the Czechoslovak Communist Parties, the Social Democrats, the National Socialists, the People's Party (Catholic) and the Slovak Democratic Party. Communists held 8 cabinet posts in the new government among which were the important Ministry of Interior (giving them control of the nation's police and security forces ), the Ministry of Agriculture, and the Ministries of Education and Information. In addition to their strength in the cabinet, the Communists controlled the People's Committees; General Ludwig Svoboda, trained in the Soviet Union, led the Army as Minister of Defense; the General Staff and its Intelligence Department were a Communist stronghold ; and in the border regions especially in areas from where the Germans had been expelled, the Communists, as Seton-Watson wrote, created "a party state within the state." According to Professor Beck, by 1947 Communists held 57 percent �132 SLOVAKIA of the chairmanships of local People's Committees, 80 percent of district People's Committees, and 100 percent of Provincial People's Committees. - Committee on the Judiciary, United States Senate, Washington, D.C., 1966. sr...ovA!K LANGUAGE LABORATORY OOUR'SE A modern language course, Slovak Language Laboratory Course, by an illustrious member of the Slovak Franciscan Order and a recognized professor of languages, Fr. Bonaventure S. Bue, O.F.M., Ph. D., is in the process of being published. This Slovak Language Course is patterned according to the modern language series of other languages prepared by Georgetown University. When put into book form it will be on par with the most modern method of teaching a language. For laboratory work, the lessons have already been correlated on tapes and can be purchased from the Slovak Franciscans, 232 South Home Ave., Pittsburgh, Pa., 15202. The 40 minute tapes of 12 lessons can be used on a tape recorder or in a language laboratory. The complete set costs $30.00. Dr. Bue, a man of many talents, has taught Slovak, French, German, and Russian in schools and colleges in Europe, Canada, and the United States. He is also the author of several books. With the Franciscan Order, he taught in Malacky, Slovakia, and received his Ph. D. from the University of Bratislava. He also studied in Munich and Cologne in Germany, and in Paris, France. He held various posts in Canada and the United States and also taught at Duquesne University and Notre Dame High School, Easton, Pa. In 1957, Dr. Bue received a Master's Degree in Political Science at the University of Pittsburgh and wrote as his thesis Slovak Nationalism. It was published by Slovak League of America in 1960. He was working extensively on the contributions Msgr. Andrew Hlinka and Msgr. Joseph Tiso made to the Slovak nation at the time of his death on April 22, 1966. Fr. Bue was not only the pastor of St. Rita's Church in Buffalo, N. Y., but found time to teach Russian at the Calasanctius College Preparatory School. His "Slovak Language Laboratory Course" will be a monument to his greatness. J.C. K. YOU'DH OONFERENCE OF THE SLOVAK LffiAGUE OF AMERICA As a representative of St. Cyril Academy for Girls, Danville, Pa., I was privileged to attend the 40th Congress of the Slovak League of America in Youngstown, Ohio, in May of 1966. The primary reason for my presence at the Congress was to participate in the Youth Conference. Previous to the conference, I was very curious just what would be on the agenda and how many socalled youths would be present. Since I was a new-comer at these affairs in connection with the Slovak League, I thought I would be a 99 % observer, but my estimated statistics had a change of course. The moderator of the Conference was Dr. Peter Hletko of Chicago, Ill., the Honorary President of the League and a recognized American-Slovak leader, whom I had met previously. Attorney Edward Behuncik, Vice President of the League from Bridgeport, Conn., prefaced the discussion with an excellent presentation on the background of the Slovaks as a whole, and their marked status and contribution to the American character. He had a wealth of reference material which he used �SLOVAKIA in his presentation and the noteworthy thing was that his sources were all other than Slovak. A question and answer period followed the initial presentation and there were many interesting topics discussed. The one question that interested me most was, "What is the difference between the Slovaks and Czechs and why don't they just conceive the idea of a Czechoslovak nationality and state?" I must admit I felt and wanted to answer the question myself since at the Academy I had learned the answers through my courses on Slovak history. I knew the many struggles and tribulations of the Slovak people for over eleven centuries and their guest for independence and a position of honor in the family of nations. I knew of their few moments of freedom and what it has meant to them. However, wise and logical answers came swiftly from the members of the panel. Attorney Behuncik was first in line to state various facts and figures from a wide range of books and writers, other than Slovak, that substantiated the Slovak's claim and cause. Fr. Andrew Pier, O.S.B., a prolific writer in this field, spoke in defense of the human rights of the Slovaks. And, the Rt. Rev. Abbot Theodore Kojis, O.S.B., Abbot of St. Andrew's Abbey, Cleveland, Ohio, concluded the responses and put a 'clincher' on the topic that was being discussed. The one who asked the question responded, "I certainly did not know all these points and I must say that I will leave this conference with a different impression and much more informed. " Truth prevailed! Before the Conference had terminated , Dr. Hletko asked if I would comment on how the youth could become more interested and participate in different activities 133 concerning the Slovaks. My response was that the initial promotion of interest must come from the home-the parents must be the ones to talk about their great heritage; they should speak the language more if possible; encourage reading the Slovak newspapers and periodicals; participate in Slovak affairs; continue practicing and cherishing the many Slovak customs ; and most of all, be proud of our ethnic identity. I then continued and mentioned my background which is a loyal Slovak one attributed to my parents. My attitude has been moulded toward the Slovak people-their language, culture, their religious, social, civic, and fraternal activities-as being one of honor and sincere dedication. Concerning my knowledge of the Slovaks, I could not help but mention St. Cyril Academy. I was just finishing my second year of the four-year course in Slovak offered by the Academy. We are not only taught the Slovak language, but we are exposed to and learn Slovak history, culture, and traditions. The famous men in Slovak history are familiar to me like Samo, Rastislav, Svatopluk, SS. Cyril and Methodius, Bernolak, Stur, Hlinka , Furdek, Murgas, Jankola, Tiso, Sidor, and a host of others. I already have experienced the fact that some of the girls who are taking Slovak at St. Cyril's are of non-Slovak families . They want to learn the language and the history because they know they will not have the opportunity at other institutions. These students, indeed, are aware of the potential in the Slovak language and culture. In summation, I repeat that in order to get the youth interested, the parents must set the example as they do for anything else that must be developed in the home. Only there can the love and in- �134 SLOVAKIA terest in the Slovak heritage begin to flourish. My attendance at the Youth Conference of the 40th Congress of the Slovak League of America was very beneficial. In my heart I wished that every youth could have witnessed and taken part in the educational session. This experience was truly one that I will never forget. - Maryagnes Krajsa, '68 St. Cyril Academy, Danville, Pennsylvania. " ... BY THEIR FRUITS YE SHA!LL KNOW THEM." In the Gospel according to St. Matthew we find the words of Our Lord, " ... by their fruit ye shall know them" (7:20). These words summarize a scientific truth. They express a Law that is evidenced in the lives of men and in the lives of nations. A nation is a group of men of psychological affinity, sharing a common heritage and common aspirations. When a nation represents a unity of men under God, to the detriment of no man, it is a vehicle for good. But when a nation covets that which belongs to its neighbors, rejecting the positive teachings of Christ, it becomes a negative vehicle with atrophy of its moral fibre as an inevitable consequence. This consequence is seen clearly by scientific observation, through objective examination of results. An illustration is provided by comparing two neighboring nations in Europe, the Czech and the Slovak. The majority of the Czechs are nominally Catholic. The Slovaks are predominantly, and devotedly, Catholic. No criticism of the Mother Church is intended by this comparison, nor is it for us to judge any man. A comparison of the moral situation in the two nations is the sole intent. The Czechs have developed an overhelming, almost psychotic, de- sire to not only dominate the Slovaks but to absorb them within an artificial entity they call "Czechoslovakia". A "Czechoslovak" nation never existed in the past, does not exist in the present, and cannot be imposed in the future. The Czechs and the Slovaks each have a different heritage and different aspirations. The Slovaks, the challenged, have maintained their faith while defending their identity. The Czechs, as the challengers, have sunk into a spiritual vacuum. In Slovakia the Church has maintained its life, even, where necessary, underground. As in the days of the catacombs, priests are ordained and bishops are consecrated, unknown to the eyes of the new Communist Caesars but known to the Omniscient eye of God. Bishop Paul Hnilica, S.J., is but one example of many Slovak shepherds who have been daily showing the devotion of the earliest disciples of Our Savior. Performing their pastoral duties at the greatest of personal risk and with the greatest of personal sacrifice, the Slovak clergy are fulfilling the Word of Christ, inspiring the Slovak people to meet the challenge which faces them. Through the example set by the Catholic majority in Slovakia the Protesttant Slovak community has also risen to the challenge, :as they share the devotion to the Slovak national heritage and to the Slovak n a ti o n a 1 aspirations. Such spiritual leaders as Bishop Hnilica transcend denominational boundaries. He is a spiritual leader in Christ for Catholic and Protestant Slovaks alike, representing true ecumenical spirit. U n f o rt u n a t e 1 y, among the Czechs one looks for this moral strength in vain. Due to their psychological obsession of attempting to destroy the Slovak national identity they have developed almost a castration complex concerning their own national herit- �SLOVAKIA age. This psychological sickness is a negation of Christianity. It has afflicted Czech Catholics and Protestants alike. Some symptoms of the illness are seen in the words and deeds of Josef Cardinal Ber an, the Czech Archbishop of Prague. Cardinal Beran calls himself a "Czechoslovak", but the Cat ho 1 i c Church in Slovakia was never, and is not now, in any way under the ecclesiastical jurisdiction of Prague. The Slovak Protestants have also rejected any administrative claims of Czech Protestants over their communities. Cardinal Beran and some of his Czech Catholic colleagues, with a number of Czech Protestant clergymen being equally cu 1 pa b 1 e, have chosen to give away their Czech national heritage in exchange for the pottage of unchristian covetousness of that which belongs to their Slovak neighbor. The illness is manifested in many ways: The same Cardinal Beran once signed a declaration stating that "Under the protection of our brother nation, Russia, a happy future is being opened to all Slavs." The only freedom Communist Russia has left the Czechs is the power to enslave the Slovaks. Is that a happy future? The same Cardinal Beran justified the forced expulsion after World War II of over three million Sudeten Germans. During this f o r c e d expulsion over 400,000 men, women and children were reported killed. Can a minister of the Gospel justify such bestiality? The same Cardinal Beran gave solemn "Te Deum" services in Prague's St. Vitus Cathedral in honor of the inauguration of Communist President Gottwald at the same time that the clergy in Slovakia were under the severest of Communist persecution and the Slovak people were fighting the Communist troops with their bare hands. Is that Christian brotherhood? 135 All of these actions by Cardinal Beran exemplify a negative thinking that is multiplied a thousandfold among his fellow Czech Catholic and Protestant clergy. It has borne its fruit. Among all Czech children only 3 % are reported to have received Baptism, the first of Christian sacraments. In Slovakia, the true Christian leadership of such as Bishop Hnilica has also borne its fruit. Approximately 98 % of all Slovak children are baptized, despite the Czech Communist persecutions. These nondenominational figures serve as one among many indices of the moral situation in the two nations. When we compare the fruits of the practice of Christianity among the Slovaks with the fruits of the m e n t a l malpractice among the Czechs we see the attitudes of many individuals projected as the concensus of a larger group. It is up to each of us, as an individual, to direct his thoughts positively_ When we do not, we abdicate our futures , as individuals and as nations. The results cannot be hidden for "by their fruits ye shall know them." - The Reverend Jon P. Speller, D.D., Scientific Prayer Ministry, New York, New York. THE OHRISTIAN OHURCH IN BOHEMIA AND SLOVAKIA When the Communists came to power in Czecho-Slovakia in 1948, there were 8.75 million Roman and 300,000 Greek Catholics in a population of 12.5 million. Since then, about one million Catholics have officially left the church, but this figure gives little idea of the actual leakage which has been caused by persecution and discrimination in every degree - and by disloyalty among the ranks of the priesthood. All church property was confiscated by the state in 1948, and the �136 SLOVAKIA church is not permitted to own anything whatever. Thus, collections taken during Mass have to be handed over to the local branch of the government department for church affairs, and only a bare minimum is returned to the priest for his own requirements and for the upkeep of the church fabric. Voluntary outside contributions are not permitted. And only "reliable" priests who have sworn an oath of loyalty to the Communist state, are allowed to hold office in parishes. Outwardly speaking, such religious life as there is, is confined to the church itself; off the premises it is simply not in evidence. R e 1 i g i o u s instruction in the schools has in practice ceased in Prague and in most towns in Bohemia, and in most of the villages as well, though it survives here and there in Slovakia. But instruction outside school is forbidden and subject to severe sanctions: this throws the whole responsibility on the parents, the majority of whom are not well qualified to give their children any substantial instruction. Any attempt from any quarter to influence young people toward religion is severly frowned on and those who are suspected of such activity or of religious learning will not receive advancement. And where would the parents find books to teach their children, when there are no religious publications? Little or nothing has been published, not even missals, since 1948; what has been issued has a strongly tendentious flavor. In 1948 there were 5,779 secular priests and 1,163 priests in religious orders; now there are about 2,500 in the whole country in 1951 about 3,000 priests were held in various degrees of confinement, from labor camps to "concentration monasteries." By 1958 the number had dropped to below 500, and in 1963 the majority were released, but have to earn their living as best they can, usually in unskilled labor, and are forbidden to work as priests. Today there are still about 15 priests in prison. There are theological students in training, though their number is of course inadequate. What weighs more heavily than numbers is the quality of the future priesthood, as there is an incredible lack of modern theological works available to them. Seminarians, together with the rest of the population, are "sheltered" from all contact with contemporary thought in the Catholic Church today, and in particular have no knowledge of the deliberations of the Vatican Council. They are held back in a nineteenth century climate of thought which has no relevance to the realities of life around them. The only religious periodical available to priesthood and laity is "The Spiritual Shepherd" which an authority on Czecho-Slovak affairs describes as "a mixture of timidity and weakness, full of self-deception and delusion." The reason for this-on the face of it, extraordinary-contrast between Poland and Czecho-Slovakia, is not hard to find. Today, owing to comparative religious indifferentism of the people which is very marked in Bohemia, less so in Slovakia, the Communist regime has no need to respect public opinion. Stella Musulin, correspondent for the London Herald and the St. Louis Review POLICE SEAROH RESIDENCE OF TWO BISHOPS Police searched the residences of two bishops in Czecho-Slovakia after they had been visited by tourists from the West, but found no "subversive material", accord- �SLOVAKIA ing to KNA, German Catholic news agency. The prelates are Auxiliary Bisshop Kajetan Matousek of Prague and Bishop Karel Otcenasek, apostolic administrator of Hradec Kralove, who had been released from confinement in 1963. KNA reported that all bishops who have been confined are under surveillance after their release. The news agency reported also that there are still 16 priests imprisoned in Czecho-Slovakia and that an unknown number of laymen are still in jail there because of their faith and religious activities. It was reported that 25 priests were imprisoned about six months ago. - (NCWC News Service ) HIGH TEENAGE DIVORCE According to a broadcast heard via Radio Prague, too many married couples, especially teenaged ones, are filing for divorce in Czecho-Slovakia. To stem the tide of divorce-seeking couples, a state commission has proposed establishing marriage advisory offices. The lack of savings and the scarcity of housing are given as the chief causes of early marriages ending in failure . In Prague, 28 % of all marriages end in divorce, while one in four goes on the rocks in the industrialized area of Northern Bohemia. In predominantly Catholic Slovakia, the divorce rate is less than 8% . - (NCWC New s Service) liN MiIDMORIAM Mother M . Pius, third Superior General of the Sisters of SS. Cyril and Methodius, who died on Sunday, May 15, 1966, was laid to rest in the community cemetery on Wednesday, May 18. Officiating at the funeral Mass was the Rt. Rev. Abbot Theodore 137 Kojis, O.S.B., M.A., Abbot of St. Andrew's Slovak Benedictine Abbey, Cleveland, Ohio. Mother M. Pius, during whose administration as Superior General of the Sisters of SS. Cyril and Methodius, St. Cyril Academy, Danville, Pa. was opened in 1922, passed away in her sleep on Sunday, May 15, at Maria Joseph Manor. Born in 1894 in Blakely, Pa., and b a p t i z e d in Holy Ghost Church, Olyphant, Pa., Mother M. Pius answered the call of Christ to follow Him in the religious life when she entered M a r y w o o d, Scranton, for the prescribed training. The Congregation of the Sisters of SS. Cyril and Methodius was only two years old at the time of her entrance and its pioneer Sisters received their religious training under the direction of the Sisters, Servants of the Immaculate Heart of Mary in Scranton. Mother M. Pius made her first profession of vows at Marywood in 1913. In the early struggling years of the Congregation, Mother M. Pius held important positions which she discharged with rare wisdom and charm. Despite her youth she was superior of the Jednota Home for orphans in Middletown in the early years when it also served as motherhouse for the Congregation. In 1922, shortly after the purchase of the Castle Grove estate in Danville, Mother M. Pius was elected third Superior General of the Congregation and served in that capacity for 12 years. That same year Villa Sacred Heart opened its doors as a boarding school for girls, known then as the First Catholic Slovak Girls High School. By 1930 it became necessary to expand. The beautiful St. �138 SLOVADA Cyril Academy on the hill was erected and its lofty tower has become a landmark in the montour area. During the administration of Mother M. Pius, St. Cyril Academy was accredited by the State Department of Education and its first commencement in 1926 were honored by the presence of five bishops, four of them from Slovakia. Meanwhile also the Congregation increased in membership and many new schools were opened. In the years that followed Mother M. Pius was principal and teacher in parish schools in New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania. Before her retirement last year Mother M. Pius was again superior at Jednota Home where she celebrated her Golden Jubilee in 1963. I Mother M. Pius was preceded in death by her sister, Sister M. I Philomena, who died at Jednota in 1920 and lies buried in the Community cemetery in Danville. She is mourned by three sisters, Mrs. Margaret Prokopovitsh and Cecile Yakubov, Washington, D.C. and Sister M. Constance, SS.C.M., music instructor at Andrean High School, Gary, Indiana, and many nieces and nephews. What Mother M. Pius has meant to the Sisters of SS. Cyril and Methodius is written not only in stone, but also, and more importantly, in the solid foundation of progress in the Congregation and in countless human hearts, both within the Community and without. Her deeds are recorded in history, the history of the Congregation, of the Church, and of the Slovak nation. May her great soul rest in peace. AS OTHERS SEE IT It was Monsignor Hlinka, who founded the Slovak People's Party and encouraged the Slovaks to strive for national recognition. Slovakia had long been submerged by foreign rule, but the spirit of the nation was preserved by the inspiring work of dedicated men. Monsignor Hlinka rose to prominence in Europe as a leading advocate of selfgovernment for Slovakia and all the other nations of Central-East Europe. The Wilsonian principle of self-determination provided a powerful stimulant to his work and for the cause of the Slovak people. It was in that spirit that he journied to Paris in 1919 with the hope of seeing President Wilson to plead the case of his people. While Monsignor Hlinka's hopes were not realized, his dedication and determination left an indelible mark on the life of the Slovak Congressman Michael nation. Feighan. The long-disputed Prague Pittsburgh Pact of May, 1918, which played a role in the creation of the Republic of Czechoslovakia after World War I, is no longer a political issue per se but the old hostility between Czechs and Slovaks, reflecting in part an alleged invalidation of the pact, continues under communism. The pact was agreed upon by representatives of the Slovak and Czech organizations in this country which met in the Moose Temple on Penn Avenue with T. G. Masaryk, who became the republic's first president. In the 47 years since the Czechoslovak Republic was proclaimed on Oct. 28, 1918, the Slovaks have �SLOVAIIA argued consistently that the terms of the pact were never fulfilled and that they have been unequaled partners in an unhappy political marriage. Of the 14 million people in this country, the Czechs outnumber the Slovaks more than two to one. But, of course, it does the Slovaks no good to complain. For now they are melded with the Czechs in the Czechoslovak Socialist Republic, which is a communist state and a full-fledged member of the Soviet bloc. And the Reds have not the slightest concern for any agreement negotiated in capitalist Pittsburgh. - Frank Hawkins PostGazete, Pittsburgh, Nov. 6, 1965. Czechs drink beer. Slovaks drink wine. And that's one of the instances where your connoisseur touring Slovakia would say, "Viva la difference!" - John F . McLeod, The Washington Daily News, June 15, 1965. It was shocking-three border gates, fences with double barbed wire, guns, brick cubicles and women in officer's uniforms checking cars. The landscape is bleak, devoid of trees, houses, cars. Prague is a gray city. The hotel where we stayed is their pride and joy-it's like a communal concentration camp. Those who protest the war against Communism should come here, and if they find it The Slovaks historically have agreeable, let them stay. - Candy looked of any Prague government Bergen, by Hedda Hopper, Daily with fishy eyes. - Ted Princiotto , News, November 16, 1965. The Plain Dealer, Cleveland, OctAfter the aborted Hungarian ober 17, 1965. Revolution of 1956, things seem to have simmered down in Russia's Zakamenny Klin, Slovakia "You took him away from us alive satelites and one could easily get . . . you have returned him to us the impression that most of the dead. The day of reckoning will anti-Communist yen to revolt has come. Then justice shall prevail." gone. The truth is that it seems quiescent only because it hasn't These were the words of a young found an outlet with any promise "Communist" at the grave of Bish- of success. op Jan Vojtassak and proved a fitIt took years to discover in the ting and dramatic climax in the West to what degree the Poles life and death of the venerated Slo- were ready to cut loose in October, vak warrior for justice, freedom, 1956, a few days before the Hunand truth. garians made their shots heard This unexpected tribute was around the world. Czechoslovakia, heard by 10,000 of Bishop Vojtas- at the time, was supposed to be sak's fellow countrymen. The youth plotting something which misfired. was supposed to list the prelate's Much later we learn that where"crimes." as the Czechs didn't make much of The Communist regime had plan- a fuss at the time, Slovak partisans ned to make the burial service raised Cain. The nation's four milquiet and private - instead, when lions Slovaks represent about one the word got out that the Slovak third of Czechoslovakia's 12 milprelate was to be buried from his lions Slavs. Slovak partisans battled Soviet native village church, the news spread like wildfire and overnight forces near Presov. Slovak partisans fought by the more than 10,000 gathered from all sides to pay their final respects to side of the Hungarian rebels. The C om mu n i s ts suppressed a national martyr who had remained unbowed to the end. - The news of all this at the time. If and Register, October 24, 1965. when the State Department ever �140 SLOVAKIA caught up with it, U. S. spokesmen - always considerate of Red sensibilities never bothered to mention it or rub it in. - Guy Richards, New York Journal-American, July 3, 1965. Mrs. Sloboda comes from Slovakia, which is the Church's stronghold in Czecho-Slovakia and which has shown the greatest resistance to the regime. There 60 per cent of the land is still in private hands, as compared to only 10 per cent in other regions. There, too, church attendance is still strong and there is an active religious tradition. Largely agricultural and mountainous, the remoteness has been an asset to the Church. A Communist functionary from Slovakia recently admitted in despair, "In Prague, they think Catholicism is finished. But in Slovakia, we see things differently. The faith is still strong there. We have to show much more tolerance to the Church. We can't work actively against it. " "You know, " Mrs. Sloboda explained to me, with an apology to her husband, "the Slovaks are quite d i f f e r e n t from the easy-going Czechs, who would rather accommodate themselves to the status quo than get into trouble. The Slovaks are toughened by the hard life in the mountains. " " Oh, yeah," protested her husband , "but don't forget how we threw the bottle-tossing hooligans out of church last Christmas, here in Prague! " Nevertheless, even in Slovakia, interest in religion is beginning to wane, and there has been a decline in church attendance among the youth. The rapid industrialization of the area will inevitably contribute to the secularization and estrangement from a predominantly peasant-orientated Catholicism. "In every village, just as in the rest of Czecho-Slovakia," said Mrs. Sloboda, "there are loudspeakers hanging over the square which are used for p r op a g a n d a purposes." - Adolph Schalk, The Sign, Decem- ber, 1965. Grim , tough, friendless Antonin Novotny of Czecho-Slovakia, detested by many Communists and by the population at large, especially in the chronically restless Slovak region, was already a ranking Party ogre in Stalin's day. He is a prime candidate for de-Stalinization at the first wrong move. Hal Lehrman, before The Committee on the Judiciary, United States Senate, 89th Congress, 1st Session. Planned extermination is facing Slovakia and other captive nations? In Slovakia all their leaders were either hanged, imprisoned, or exiled. 85,000 Slovak citizens were placed in labor and concentration camps. 20,000 known Slovaks were deported to the Soviet Union as slaves. Over 100,000 Slovak citizens of German ancestry were expelled to the Soviet Union. Over 120,000 Slovak citizens of Hungarian ancestry were expatriated. Over 600,000 Slovaks were forced to leave Slovakia and live in Bohemia and Moravia. - Alfred Korn, Jr., President, Americans to Free Captive Nations, Inc. New York, November 27, 1965. I frequently wonder what the people of the captive nations think of what the United States contemplates on doing. Do they sometimes begin to feel that we are abandoning them and that we do not care-that we want them to be subjects of the communists. There is a very interesting aspect about the Slovaks. In 1946 when the first vote was taken in Slovakia as to what type of government they should have, up in the mountain areas and in the land of the Slovaks the vote was about 65 % against the communists. They were the only group in the whole country of Czecho-Slovakia that voted against it. So I say that today you have given voice which should �SLOVAKIA be broadcast by the Voice of America. And the broadcast should be made in the Slovak language so that the Slovaks in the mountains and in the valleys will understand what is happening. We are challenged by the communists. We unhappily and unfortunately have in our midst many who say they are not a challenge to us, but the Slovaks know that they are. There is in the Old Testament in the Bible in the Book of Kings the story of the King who wanted the vineyard of one of his subjects. It is in Chapter 21 and this is how it reads: "And after these things, Naboth the Jezrahelite, who was in J ezrahel, had at that time a vineyard near the palace of Achab, the king of Samaria. And Achab the king spoke unto Naboth saying: Give me thy vineyard, that I may have me a garden of herbs, because it is near to my house, and I will give thee for it a better vineyard : or if you think it more good to thee, I will give thee the worth of it in money. And Naboth the subject said to Achab the king : The Lord forbith me that I should give the inheritance of my fathers unto thee." The Lord forbid that we should give the inheritance of our country and the United States on to the communists. And the Lord forbid the land of the Slovaks should pass unto the communists that now rule in Slovakia. - U.S. Senator Frank 141 freedom is restored to these valiant people and the other captive nations under communism. We must not only observe the historic national days on the floor of the House, but we should establish a Special Committee on Captive Nations to more forcibly bring the present plight of these unfortunate people to world attention. Another effective step the U.S. Government could take to show our interest in the Slovak people and their aspirations for freedom from communism would be lengthier and more effective broadcasts by the Voice of America which would pierce the wall of Communist propaganda and deliver the truth to the Slovak people. In recent years, Mr. Speaker, the Voice of America has cut back both its hours of broadcast in the Slovak language and the nature of these broadcasts. The VOA now has only straight news programs because of the present administration's fear of offending the Soviet Union. The Voice of America should instead be a vehicle for delivering the message of truth to the Slovak people so that they can resist the brainwashing of the constant propaganda from the tyrannical Moscow oppressors. - Edward J. Derwinski on the floor of the House of Representatives, March 14, 1966. Lausche. Mr. Speaker, today is the 27th anniversary of Slovak Independence Day, and on this historic occasion, I would like to pay tribute to the brave Slovak people who suffer today under the yoke of Communist tyranny. They are not permitted by their Red tyrants to publicly celebrate their national holiday. Therefore, we must rededicate ourselves to our efforts to see that Annual SLOVAKIA is published by the Slovak League of America, 313 Ridge Avenue, Middletown, Pennsylvania. Subscription $2.00. Editor: Dr. Joseph Pauco. �142 SLOVAXIA BOOK REVIEWS SLOVAK STUDIES III - CYRILLO-METHODIANA, Published by Slovak Institute, Rome, 1965, p. 224. The eleventh centenary of the arrival of the scholarly missionaries St. Cyril and Methodius among the Slavic tribes, called Sclavi Marahenses in Latin sources and Slovene or Sklavinoj in Eastern sources, was an occasion for Slavs to publish scores of studies in various languages. Slovaks, who claim to be among the heirs of the CyrilloMethodian tradition, were especially active on both sides of the Iron Curtain. Besides organizing huge celebrations in Rome, Canada and the U.S.A. and archeological exhibitions, Slovak scholars took part at the international Cyrillo-Methodian Conference in Salzburg, Austria, and contributed to various symposia either in Slovak or in foreign languages. The symposium under review contains contributions by Slovak scholars and writers who live in the free world. Expecting that the writings in Slovakia will necessary be subject to marxist criteria and political restriction, they undertook the task to present the Cyrillo-Methodian period to the Western scholars as they see it on the basis of Slovak pre-communist and foreign sources. The contributions written in English, French and German, deal with history (F. Hrusovsky, M. Lacko, J . Papin, A. Grebert, liturgy (M. Lacko and M. Rusnak), literature (J. M. Kirschbaum) and with the role of the CyrilloMethodian tradition in Slovak national and political life (J. M. Kirschbaum) . Since the Slovak erudities from the XVIIth century claimed great-Moravia and the activities of the scholarly missionaries for Slovaks and Moravians, the contributions in the symposium not only follow that tradition, but apparently try to substantiate the Slovak claims to the Cyrillo-Methodian heritage by compiling supporting evidence from the works of renown and less known slavists of many nations. The tendency to prove the "slovacity" of the Cyrillo-Methodian period or to defend the Slovak claims to the Great-Moravian heritage is common to all contributors to this third volume of Slovak Studies, but it is mainly the well documented account on the relations of the rulers of Great Moravia with Rome, written by the late Prof. F. Hru!iovsky, the German contribution on the ethnic composition of Great Moravia by A. Grebert and the French and English contribution by Prof. J . M. Kirschbaum on the Cyrillo-Methodian literature and tradition which may be of interest for Slavist who do not specialize in religious aspects. Contributions by Prof. M. Lacko, who is known as an expert in the Cyrillo-Methodian period and the articles by Prof. J. Papin, bishop M. Rusnak and I. Kondratovic are valuable especially from the Slovak point of view. Not all the contributions are of equal scholarly value and the volume is marked by the difficulty to edit a multi-lingual book: not only typographical errors but also linguistic deficiencies appear in the book quite frequently. This does not make, however, the volume without interest or value. Slavists might find it challenging in various aspects and by the same token worth reading. �SLOVAKIA U.3 The editors as well as the Slovak Institute and those who in other ways made the publication of the volume possible, deserve recognition for not allowing pass the 11th centenary of Slovak civilization without a written document. J. P. Jan Kollar-Slovak Poet of Panslavism, J. M. Kirschbaum, LL.D., Ph.D., Published by the Slovak Institute, Cleveland, 1966, 48pp., Ed. J . B. Rudnyc'kyj , Slavistica, LVI(56). Perhaps for the first time the ideas and their practical application in the Pan Slav movement of Jan Kollar, Slovak romantic poet and political philosopher, are presented in understandable language by the prolific historical and political writer, Dr. Joseph Kirschbaum. All students of history of the Slavic nations in central, southern and eastern Europe welcome this clear-cut view and analysis of one of the most complex characters in the Pan Slav movement in the first half of the 19th century. Kollar, the celebrated poet whose 'Slavy dcera' (Daughter of Slava) sonnets made him immortal in Slavdom, for personal and unknown reasons rejected the official central Slovak literary language of Stur and wrote in his own Slovak-Czech dialect he called 'stara slovencina' (the ancient language of the Slovaks). He was, therefore, in some respects both the forerunner of the political union of the Czechs and Slovaks who formed Czecho-Slovakia in 1918 and of the futile attempts of the Czechs to fuse the Slovak language into a synthetic Czechoslovak tongue. Nevertheless, in his day he was an outspoken champion of the Slovak colony in Budapest for many years. Although at first glance, Kollar's views on Panslavism calling for unity among all Slavs may appear to be a basis for a political union of all Slavic nations, a more careful look reveals that he regarded each to be but a tribe, nevertheless an individual ethnic entity with a right to its own language, state, etc., in a family of tribes belonging to one Slav nation! As a poet (Kollar's lyric and romantic works may be criticized from many angles by the experts), he excels in idealism, which is somewhat dimmed by the stark realism and cruelty of Slava, the goddess, who from her golden throne watches demons torturing the enemies and persecutors of the Slavs . . . a la Dante's Inferno. In Canto III of his Sonnet CX, Kollar turned prophet and a mighty good one, for he predicted the expansion of the Slavs like 'a mighty flood' and foresaw the day when the language of the Slavs would be spoken by their foes, and their sciences become manifest, as also their customs, dress and music on both sides of the Seine and the Danube. In the light of current history, we cannot, of course, rejoice in the modern Soviet imperialism that has reached the acme of Slavic power and prestige but only at the price of the enslavement of hundreds of millions of Slavs and non-Slavs, alike. Even for Kollar, who voices his wish to raise from his grave to behold the glory of the Slavs, the present would not be a glorious experience for the Slovak poet who envisioned a far different emergence of the Slavs would have sorrow and regret, not joy, in his heart were he a witness of the sad fate of Slavic nations today. �144 SLOVAKIA Dr. Kirschbaum shows that Kollar's Panslavism was hailed by the Russians, Czechs, Slovaks and the southern Slavs but was not at all acceptable to the Poles or Ukrainians who saw in it a form of Panrussianism . . . and as it has developed, they were right in their suspicions. On the national level, Kollar, writes Dr. Kirschbaum, played an important role in Slovak national revival by his linguistic theories, his poetry, publication of Slovak songs and his ideals of freedom. Undoubtedly, Jan Kollar will be the subject of many studies on the question of his political and linguistic theories, but despite efforts to make him a Czech poet because he wrote in his own pre-fabricated 'stara slovencina' medium which was his own personal invention in an attempt to arrive at a common language, and in spite of his rejection of Stu.r's central Slovak that was destined to become the official language of the Slovak nation, he was a Slovak poet in his own right. If his image as a Slovak poet is not altogether in focus, it is both because he moved in so many directions at one and the same time so that his picture is somewhat distorted, and the disturbing circumstances of his time, his condition, etc. At best, he was an erratic genius, and therefore, very difficult, if not impossible, to fully understand and appreciate. Nevertheless, his stature as a great Slovak poet continues to remain unimpaired. A. P. Frantisek Vnuk, Sedemnast' neurodnych rokov - Nacrt dejin slovenskej literatury v rokoch 1945-62, (Seventeen barren years -A Survey of Slovak Literature 1945-1962), Published by Slovak v Amerike, Middletown, Pa., 1965, p. 304, English summary. Slavists at various universities in the free world will receive in the present volume a first concise look at the postwar Slovak literature, and since there has been nothing published on the subject in English except a few articles in Slavic Studies and the anthology Linden Tree , which is in many ways a biased and unobjective presentation, the volume is longtime overdue. The English summary will make the book accessible also to those who do not read Slovak, which makes it even more welcome. The Slovak part of the book contains a rich source of information and remarkably well written aesthetic judgments on the literary value and ideological regimentation of the Slovak literature since the end of the Second World War. Vnuk places the works of Slovak poets and writers into the context of Slovakia's post-war upheavals, unprecedented persecutions for ideological deviations, censorship and social changes, and measures them against the moral and intellectual duties toward the Slovak people among whom writers and poets were always fighting for justice and national goals. The method used by the author does not follow the usual detached and impersonal ways of literary history and criticism, but it does not make this book less valuable for scholars or anyone interested in Slovak literature under Communism. On the contrary. The book presents a fresh, well written, scholarly sound and sincere look at the literary works and their authors and it is understandable that he condemned his country's deceit and desertion by her poets and writers who were always looked upon as intellectual leaders. �145 SLOVAKIA The seventeen barren years, as the author calls the post-war period in Slovak literature, are divided into four parts: The period of struggles (1945-1948), the period of the victory of socialism (19491951), the period of schematism and dogmatism , and the period of lost years (1956-1962) , In each of these periods Slovak literature was at the mercy of political commissars, who silenced the best writers and dictated literary subjects and criteria, and therefore one cannot but agree with the author that "these years will stand for a period for unheared of degradation in Slovak literary history - a veritable " temps du mepris" - with an unprecented decline in artistic values both qualitatively and quantitatively, when the writer became a stateemployed "engineer of human souls" and his standard was measured by the degree of his dedication to the political party line". (p. 259) . Since 1963, when the Slovak writers finall y dared to " rebel" against the straitjacket of regime's supervision and regimentation, Vnuk's harsh judgments were confirmed even in Slovak literary reviews, and therefore there is no reason to suspect him of "parti pris". Slovak literature was not only cut off the free world, but went also through the worst period of literary history in Slovakia and Vnuk's book intelligently mirrors all the tribulations, struggles, deficiences and intellectual dishonesty of some writers and the positive value of others. Vnuk reviewed in a short addition to his book also the literary works of the Slovak emigre writers and poets which will fill a gap in surveys of Slavic literatures in the free world. If the whole Slovak literature is a sort of "terra incognita" to many people in the West, the literary works of the Slovak emigre writers could not fare much better, though there are exceptions and in some instances Slovakia and her literature became known only through the writings of Slovak exiles. With regard to Slovakia, the author is maybe right when he says that "the 50 odd Slovak men of letters living on this side of the Iron Curtain kept the lights of Slovak culture burning while they went out in the writers' native country. This may sound emotional or sentimental, yet it is a sad truth that in the years 1950-55 there hardly appeared in Slovakia a single book worthy of reading. In those years indeed the emigre literature was the contemporary Slovak literature." The value of the volume is enhanced by a register of names, short bibliography and a brief note on the writer. It is to be regreted that the title of the book does not indicate that it is a survey of Slovak literature, but it is a minor shortcoming and can be repaired in distributing the English summary under a proper title. J . M. K irsc hbaum D ie Slow akei als Mittel europaisches Problem i n Geschichte und Gegenwart, (Slovakia as Central European Problem in the Past and Present) , Lectures at Collegium Carolinum, Verlag Robert Lerche, Mtinchen, 1965, p. 240. The prominent German institution Collegium Carolinum in Munich organized in August 1962 a series of lectures on Slovakia's past and present place in Central Europe, and published six of them in the present volume as a contribution to the research on problems of �146 SLOVAKIA Central Europe. The lectures cover over eleven centuries of Slovakia's history and while they are not of equal scholarly value, they are all shedding a new light on various periods of Slovak history, including the present one under Communism. Three of the lectures were given by Slovak intellectuals living in Western Europe: Prof. F. f>urcansky deals with Pan-Slavism and the role of Slovakia in this movement; Prof. Milan Stan. f>urica of the University of Padova gives the results of his scholarly research into the crisis of March 1939 and on the basis of documents he corrects various misconceptions about the origin of the Slovak republic; Ctibor Pokorny writes about the attitude of Slovaks towards Communism. The lectures by Prof. f>urcansky and Prof. Durica are well documented and scholarly written contributions to two controversial topics of historiography on Slovakia. Abundance of sources referred to, and logical conclusions which characterize both contributions, will perhaps help to clear at least partly the controversy and misconceptions of some Western historians. For students of Central European problems two other lectures might be of great interest: von Gogolak's lecture on Slovakia's social and constitutional history and Kurt Wessely's learned analysis of Slovakia's economic and social problems since World War I. Both authors are experts in their fields, but their contributions are bound to lead to a controversy either from the Slovak or from the Czech side. While Slovaks could be hurt by some of Gogolak's harsh judgements of their leaders in the remote or recent past, the Czechs might oppose the picture which Prof. Wessely has drawn about Slovakia's economic development under the Czech tutelage. The well documented account of the development of the national consciousness among Slovaks by Prof. Gogolak somehow contrasts in his conclusions not only with his previous works on Slovakia, but it also seems to be in clash with the requirements of scholarly impartiality. Except for a few Slovaks of the "Czechoslovak" orientation hardly any educated Slovak would leave unchallenged certain parts of Prof. Gogolak's picture of modern Slovak history. Unfortunately, this is not the place to go into detail or to show where Prof. Gogolak's lecture is marked rather by emotional than by objective analysis, and where the historian wandered into politics. While this is to be regretted, this reviewer is of the opinion that the scholarly lecture might serve on the other hand a very useful purpose, if Slovak intellectuals will properly react. The introductory lecture by Karl Bosl on the mission of Sts. Cyril and Methodius and its place in Rome's Church organization is a learned summary of the older and the most recent research into the GreatMoravian period, with some new hypotheses. Scholarly sound and without bias, the lecture will remain as a tribute from the German side to the 11th centenary of the Cyrillo-Methodian mission among the ancestors of today's Slovakia, which was commemorated in 1963 by Slovaks on both sides of the Iron Curtain. The volume was edited with great care and should be welcome as a valuable contribution to the research into and solution of the unsolved Slovak problem in Central European area. J. M. Kirschbaum �SLOVAKIA 147 National Slovak Society Almanac for the year 1966 - Narodny Americko-Slovensky Kalendar na rok 1966, Vol. 74, Pittsburgh, Pa., 240 pp., Edited by Jan Mihal. The first 70 pages of this year's National Slovak Society annual are in the English language . . . the rest in Slovak. This, then, is an edition designed for both young and old readers in one or both languages. In addition to their duties as members of the NSS Literary Committee, headed by Dr. Peter Hletko, M.D. as president, which compiled the bi-lingual almanac, all (Msgr. M. K. Mlynarovic, K. Belohlavek, John Pankuch [NSS President, and the editor, Jan Mihal] contributed informative and inspiring articles to this year's publication of the oldest Slovak fraternal group in America. Tribute is paid to Peter Rovnianek (1867-1933), NSS founder, on the eve of the centennial of his birth as a great American Slovak humanitarian. The following contributors are found in the English section: John Pankuch, Jan Mihal, Mary Burns, Dr. Peter Hletko, M.D., Dr. Stephen Hletko, DDS., Rosalie Gona, S. Ullman and Karol Kuzmany. Although a major part of the section is devoted to a review of NSS activities, particularly bowling, the rest gives the reader an idea of the possibilities of expanding the subject matter into a more serious sphere for better comprehension of vital issues in American Slovak life. While members of the NSS Literary Committee were called upon to do double duty by contributing articles to the Slovak section, too, the following writers made their contributions of interesting articles to the 1966 NSS Almanac: John Pankuch, E. Vesnin, Lado Demeter, Jozef Steller, Msgr. M. K. Mlynarovic, Dr. Peter Hletko, M.D., K. Holicsky, Peter Klas, Rev. Andrej Rolik, Dr. A. P. Slabey, 0. M. Debnarkin, A. Rybiansky, Dr. Jan Fabianek, Rosalie Gona, Stefan Hassik, Jozo Trnavcan, J. Horsky, J. T. Sulovsky, K. Belohlavek. In some respects the tone of the current Almanac is an ecumenical one, e.g., Dr. Slabey's article on Jan Hus. Hus' successful bid to reverse the 3-1 German preponderance in voting at Charles University to a domestic Czech 3-1 majority was confirmed by royal decree ... this democratic procedure is the only one that will finally bring peace and understanding between the Czech and Slovak nations, namely, the recognition of the right of the Slovak nation to self-rule, for the principle of human and natural rights to freedom is the same today as it was in Hus' time. A. P. Jednota Annual Furdek, 1966, Middletown, Pa., vol. 5, 160 pp., Joseph Krajsa, editor. Inaugurated by the late Philip A. Hrobak, editor of the Jednota weekly, five years ago in an effort to reach the younger generation of American Slovaks, the FURDEK annual is continuing under his successor, Mr. Joseph C. Krajsa. It is a worthwhile effort, inasmuch as our Slovak youth would otherwise lose all interest in its heritage because �148 SLOVAKIA the third and fourth generation no longer speaks or reads the Slovak language. The contents of the current issue cover a variety of subjects from the following writers: Bishop Andrew Grutka, D.D., Abbot Theodore Kojis, O.S.B., J. C. Krajsa, J. Pfeiffer, A. Sarisky, Dr. J. Kirschbaum, Ph.D., LL.D., Very Rev. Theodoric Zubek, O.F.M., S.T.D., C. Petrasek, J . J. Konus, A. Koto, and S. Sencik, S.J. Feature article is 'The Joe Lapchick Story' about the great basketball player and coach from Yonkers, N. Y. The ex-Celtic star and successful coach at St. John's University ranks among the greatest American Slovak athletes. Lead-off review of the Jednota's diamond jubilee in 1965 is given in capsule form by Dr. Jozef Pauco, Ph.D., author of the 560-page history of the First Catholic Slovak Union (75 rokov Prvej Katolickej Slovenskej Jednoty: 1890-1965) is supplemented by pictorial highlights of the jubilee observance, particularly the celebration in Washington, D. C. Oldtimers such as Dr. M. v_ Simko and Rev. A. Pier, O.S.B. have a number of contributions in this 5th issue of the Jednota annual, the Furdek, in the English language. A brief historical review of the Slovak Benedictines in the U. S. and the Slovak Jesuits in Canada completes the 1966 edition of the Furdek. Both foundations constitute only part of the story of the Slovak Religious Orders in the new world. Future issues of this novel publication will undoubtedly cover the history of the others, namely, the Slovak Franciscans, as well as the Sisters of SS. Cyril and Methodius, the Franciscan Sisters, the Dominican Sisters, the Benedictine Sisters, the Sisters of the Most Holy Saviour, the Consolers of the Sacred Heart, and the Vincentian Sisters. A. P. PUBLICATIONS RECEIVED Rekem John, Stefan Dubnicay - Slovak Polemist and Historian (1675-1725), Middletown, Pa., 1966, p. 80. Slovak Literature and National Consciousness before Anton Bernolcik, Jednota Printery, Middletown, Pa. 1964. Kirschbaum, J. M., Jcin Kollar-Slovak Poet of Panslavism, Stavistica No. 56, Slovak Institute, Cleveland, Ohio, 1966, p. 48. The Role of the Cyrillo-Methodian Tradition in Slovak National and Political Life, An Offprint from Slovak Studies Ill. Rome, 1965 La Litterature de la period CyrilLo-Methodienne et la Slovaquie, An Offprint from Slovak Studies III, Rome, 1965. Vnuk, Frantisek, Sedemncist' neurodnych rokov (Ncicrt slov enskej A Survey of Slovak Literature 1945-1962, literatury 1945-1962) Published by Slovak v Amerike, Middletown, Pa., p. 304, English summary, register. �SLOVAKIA 149 CONTRIIBUTORS Prof. Dr. J. M. Kirschbaum. Born in a small Slovak village on March 25, 1913 and lost his father in the First World War. Dr. J. Kirschbaum is a prominent representative of the new Slovak educated class, whose many members made a long way from the Slovak villages to European and American capitals, forei gn universities, diplomatic posts and teaching positions by their own diligence, capabilities and perseverance, fighting against many odds and staunch and unscrupulous adversaries of the Slovak cause. Educated at several European universities, Dr. Kirschbaum attained national prominence already during his university studies as leader of the Slovak student's organizations, Vice-President of the world-wide Catholic organization Pax Romana and speaker for the autonomy of Slovakia on behalf of the young Slovak generation. When only 26 years old, he was appointed by the President of the Slovak Republic and later elected to the responsible post of Secretary-General of the People's Party, founded by Msgr. A. Hlinka . After opposing the introduction of National Socialism into Slovakia, he was ousted in 1940 from Slovak politics and for 18 months kept in military service. In 1941 he was, however, back in public life and, as the youngest head of diplomatic mission, he served his country in Switzerland as Charge d'Affaires of the Slovak Republic. In that capacity he represented Slovakia until the end of the war, fighting relentlessly for Slovakia's right to independence and against the false propaganda of the Czech exiles and their anti-Slovak aspirations. After the war Dr. Kirschbaum very soon became one of the leading personalities of the Slovak movement for a free and independent Slovakia . He moved to Canada , for a short time to the United States and again to Canada , where he dedicated his time and energy to teaching at Canadian Universities writing and fighting for the Slovak cause. Besides a book in Slovak Nas boj o samostatnost' Slovenska, Dr. Kirschbaum published in exile the first scholarly English book on political history and cultural background of Slovakia under the title: Slovakia - Nation at the Crossroads of Central Europe (New York, 1960) . The book was r ~viewed by the foremost academic periodicals in England, U.S.A., Canada and Europe and mostly favorably received by the critics. On cultural problems Dr. Kirschbaum published a series of studies in French and English, four of them (on Bernolak, St11r, Safarik and Kollar) were published in the series Slavistica, edited by the known slavist Prof. J . B. Rudnyckyj from the University of Manitoba. His essays on Slovak language and literature were published in French and English first by University periodicals and later in offprint form . His political writings appeared in English, French , German and Spanish. Altogether Dr. Kirschbaum published 15 writings in foreign languages either in book form or as reprints, and contributed larger articles to Canadian Slavonic Papers (Univ. of Toronto) , Etudes slaves et esteuropeennes (Univ. of Montreal ), Rivista de Estudios politicos (Madrid) , Slovakia (Middletown, Pa.), Slowakei (Munich, Germany). Most ( Cleveland, Ohio) , to various symposia, encyclopedias and newspapers. All the writings of Dr. Kirschbaum are marked, according to the critics, by clarity of style, logic, scholarly objectivity and solid knowledge as well as his �150 SLOVAKIA firm belief in the rightness and victory of the Slovak cause. Once an excellent student of internat• ional law and political science, Dr. Kirschbaum turned in exile to his• tory and culture of his country and Central Europe and defends the right of the Slovak people to independence on account of their old culture and civilization. He presents Slovakia to the free world in a new light and always within a new, democratic organization of Central Europe. For his uncompromising stand towards those who tried or try to deny equal rights to the Slovak people, Dr. Kirsch b a u m was persecuted already during his uni• versity years. A Czech rector of the University of Bratislava refus• ed to give him, for political reasons, the doctor's diploma, even though Kirschbaum finished all his exams with excellent results. The Germans turned against the young Secretary-General as soon as they noticed that he opposed German interference in Slovak politics, and Berlin asked the Slovak Government not only to remove Dr. Kirschbaum from Slovak politics, but his name was not supposed to appear in any newspaper. "If it does", wrote the German Ambassador to Slovakia in 1940, "I shall ask to forbid the publication of the newspaper." ialist newspapers. A new smear campaign was organized against Dr. Kirschbaum when he moved to the United States. The most un• scrupulous and immoral campaign was, however, unleashed against him by Communist Prague and some Czech exiles in Canada dur· ing the Spring and Summer of 1962. In all those smear campaigns, not only in serious Slovak circles, but also the authorities of the countries he lived in, clergy and many newspapers and politicians were on the side of Dr. Kirschbaum, and he was fully vindicated. munist adversaries of the Slovak struggle for independence and de• mocracy turned, however, against Dr. Kirschbaum, especially after the Second World War. Even though he spent the war years in neutral Switzerland and was known to oppose Nazism, the Communist government of Prague requested his extradition from Switzerland. When the Swiss Government refused , the Czech diplomats and propagandists tried to compromise Dr. Kirschbaum by publishing smear and ludicrous accusations in the Swiss Communist and Soc• and Methodius, whose motherhouse is in Danville, Pennsylvania, was a graduate of St. Cyril Academy and obtained her B.A. degree from Marywood College, Scranton, Pa. , and her M.A. from Villanova University, Villanova, Pa. She is the author of two books : Dr. Kirschbaum is married to Magdalena Danihel, daughter of the late Slovak politician and member of Parliament Stefan Danihel, has four children of whom two graduated at Canadian universities and one of them, Stanislav, works on his Ph.D. at the Sorbon• ne, Paris, on scholarship. Dr. Kirschbaum has been since the war leading figure of the Slovak Nat• ional Council Abroad, Slovak Li• beration Council, member of many Slovak cultural and civic organiz. ations in the U.S.A. and Canada, member or officer of leading social clubs and academic organizat• ions and editorial boards. Martina Tybor, Si ster M., B.A., M.A. , of the Sisters of SS. Cyril The furor of the Czech and Com• SS. Cyril and Methodius, the Glory of the Slav s, for young adults, and SS. Cyril and Methodius , Apostles of Great Moravia, for children. She has done outstanding work in Slo• vak-English translations, notably of Slovak classic poetry. Her own poems have appeared in Spirit, �SLOVAKIA publication of the National Catholic Poetry Society. Her odes, written for various Jubilee occasions, have appeared in Fialky, St. Cyril Academy annual. At present Sister M. Martina is head of the English department at Andrean High School, Gary, Indiana. Zatko, James J., Ph.D .., Rev., received an M.A. and Ph.D. from the University of Notre Dame. Under sponsorship of Ford Fellowships he studied at Harvard in 1954-1955 and at the Catholic University of Lublin in 1958. He was also the recipient of an Association of Middle Eastern Studies Fellowship in 1962. He is assistant professor of history at the University of Notre Dame. His book Descent Into Darkness - The Destruction of the Roman Catholic Church in Russia 1917-1923, was published by Notre Dame University. Joseph Pauco, born in 1914 in Slovakia. At the Slovak University in Bratislava he received his Ph.D. in 1942. A journalist by profession, he worked with the influential daily SLOVAK from 1938 to 1945, serving as editor-in-chief from 1942 to 1945. In 1945 fled with his wife and son to Austria, then to West Germany; and finally made his way to New York City in 1950. J. Pauco is serving since 1950 as assistant editor of the weekly JEDNOTA and from 1964 he is the publisher of the oldest Slovak newspaper in this country: SLOVAK V AMERIKE. He is serving for third term as the secretary of the Slovak League of America. J. Pauco is associated with American Academy of Political and Social Science, with Institute of Ethnic Studies at Georgetown University, is a member of the Slovak Institute in Cleveland, 0. 151 and of the Slovak Writers and Artists Association in the USA. He is the author of some 1000 articles, published in Slovakia and in the USA. Dr. Joseph Pauco is the author of these books and studies: .Cudovychova u sturovcov (Stur's Movement - Popular Education ). Matica slovenska. Turciansky Sv. Martin, 1943. Pp. 151. Co po komunizme? (After Communism What?) . Jednota , Middletown, Pa., 1952. Pp. 29. Dr. Jozef Tiso o sebe (Dr. Joseph Tiso About Himself) . Slovensky Katolicky Sokol, Passaic, N. J., 1952. Pp. 359. (Ed.) Tisov odkaz (Tiso's Message). Jednota. Middletown, Pa., 1953. Pp. 89. Stefan Furdek a slovenske prist'ahovalectvo ( Stefan Furdek and Slovak Immigration) . Jednota, Middletown, Pa., 1955. Pp. 190. Slovaci a komunizmus (The Slovaks and Communism) . Rev. Jan Lach. Whiting, Ind., 1957. Pp. 318. Pod zastavou krest'anskej demokracie (Under the Banner of the Christian Democracy) . Slovenski krest'anski demokrati v Spojenych Statoch. Middletown, Pa., 1957. Pp. 30. Slovenskd re hol'a Sestier sv. Cyrila a Metoda (Slovak Order of the Sisters of Ss. Cyril and Methodius) . Slovensky .Zensky Spolok Sv. Anny. Wyoming Valley, Pa., 1957. Pp. 32. Unconquerables. Vantage Press, New York, N. Y., 1958. Pp. 225. Matus Jankola - knaz a narodovec (Matus Jankola - A Priest and Patriot) . Rad Sestier sv. Cyrila a Metoda. Danville, Pa., 1959. Pp. 174. Literarny Almanach Slovaka v Amerike (Literary Almanac of the " Slovak in America") . Middletown, Pa., 1959, 1960, 1961, 1962, 1963, 1964, 1965, 1966. Pp. 160 each, last one pp. 168. (Ed.) �152 SLOVAKIA Christian Slovakia Under ComDr. Victor R. Greene, Professor munism. The Slovak Catholic Fede- of American History at the Kan- ration. Valparaiso, Indiana, 1959. sas State University, Manhattan, Pp. 31. Kansas, received his B.A. degree Pamiatke Jozefa Cigra Hronske- from the University of Harvard in ho (In Memoriam Jozef Ciger 1955; his M.A. degree from the Hronsky) . Literarny Almanach Slo- University of Rochester in 1960; vaka v Amerike. Middletown, Pa., and his Ph.D. from the University of Pennsylvania in 1963. His dis1960. Pp. 46. (Ed.) sertation for his Ph.D. was: A HisLaicky apostol Martin Kopunek tory of East European Immigrants (Lay Apostle - Martin Kop(mek). in the Anthracite Area before Vychodna oblast' Sdruzenia Slo- 1903. It is a study of the contribvenskych Katolikov. Bethlehem, ution Slovaks and others made to Pa., 1961. Pp. 67 (Ed.) the unions in the coal fields and Karol Sidor - politik, novinar, the aid to President Johnny Mitspisovatel' (Karol Sidor - Politi- chell and the United Mine Workers cian, Newspaperman, and Writer). of America. Dr. Greene in his Literarny Almanach Slovaka v thesis elaborates that it was beAmerike. Middletown, Pa., 1962. cause of the loyalty and sacrifice of Slovak mine workers that the Pp. 148 (Ed.) union was permanently establishPat'desiatnik Dr. Jozef Kirsched in the hard coal fields. baum (Dr. Jozef Kirschbaum In his present research, ProfesFifty Years Old). Literarny Almanach Slovaka v Amerike. Middle- sor Greene is making a study of the origins of Slovak and East town, Pa., 1963. Pp. 171. (Ed.) European American self-consciousFlight to Wonderland. Robert ness and why by World War I Speller and Sons, New York, N. Y., every Slovak immigrant realized 1963. Pp. 334. such a strong feeling of his ethnic 75 rokov Prvej Katolickej Slo- heritage. Dr. Greene, who · has learned to venskej Jednoty (75 Years of the First Catholic Slovak Union). Prva read and understand Slovak, is Katolicka Slovenska Jednota, Cle- familiar with the cultural and hisveland, 0., 1965. Pp. 560 & XIV. torical material available at the Jankola Library in Danville, Pa., 80 pages of pictures. the Slovak Institute Library in Slovakia. Slovak League of AmerCleveland, Ohio, and the facilities ica. Middletown, Pa., 1965, 1966. Pp. in Pittsburgh, Pa. and Chicago, 160. (Ed.) Illinois. Joseph R . Kristofik received his B.S. in Science from the University of Pittsburgh in 1949. His education includes several years at the United States Merchant Marine Academy in Kings · Point, N. Y., and at the Detroit College of Law. Mr. Kristofik is presently the Slovak Democratic Chairman for the State of Michigan with the Michigan Democratic Nationalities Division. At its 40th Convention at Youngstown, Ohio, he was elected to the executive committee of the Slovak League of America. Tino Berko was born in Slovakia, fled to the West in 1952. He studied philosophy and the history of music and art at Munich University; is a writer and lecturer; resides in Munich, Germany. Very Rev . Theodoric J. Zubek, O.F.M., S.T.D., Slovak by birth, American by adoption, is presently Delegate Provincial of the Franciscans of the Most Holy Savior Commissariat, popularly known as the Slovak Franciscans. �SLOVAKIA He resides at the motherhouse of the Commissariat, Holy Family Friary, 232 S. Home Avenue, Pittsburgh, Penna. 15202. 153 jects were published during this time in various Slovak periodicals, such as "Serafinsky svet" (The Seraphic World), "Slovensky ucitel'" (The Slovak Teacher), "Smer" Father Theodoric was born in ( Direction), and "Nova praca " Malacky, Slovakia, April 4, 1914, (New Work) . and came to the United States on February 21, 1952; he became an This activity came to an end on American citizen on June 5, 1957. April 13, 1950, when the ComHe received his primary education munist government of Czecho-Sloin the schools of his native Ma- vakia supressed all monasteries. lacky while his secondary studies Father Theodoric was confined were taken at the Gymnasium of with his Franciscan confreres in Bratislava, 1925-1929, and Skalica, the concentration monastery of 1930-1934, in Slovakia. He entered Svaty Benadik nad Hronom. After the Franciscan Order in 1929 and escaping from the concentration made his novitiate in Trnava. He monastery, he remained in hiding took his theological studies at the in Slovakia until February 1951, Seminaries in Zagreb, Croatia, and when he secretly crossed the borin his native Slovakia at Brati- der into Austria. In February, slava. He was ordained to the 1952, he joined his Slovak Amepriesthood in Bratislava on June rican brethren of the Most Holy 26, 1938. After his ordination, Fa- Savior Commissariat, the American ther Theodoric began his studies foundation of the mother province for the doctorate in sacred theo- in Slovakia. logy at the Catholic University of After a short sojourn in TrauFribourg, Switzerland. On October 28, 1940, the Fribourg University ger, Penna., Father Theodoric was conferred on him the degree of stationed for seven years at the Doctor of Sacred Theology with Franciscan parish of SS. Cyril and Methodius in Clifton, New Jersey. the mark "magna cum laude". From 1956 to 1960 he taught SacUpon his return to his home- red Theology at the Newark and land and Franciscan Province in Jersey City divisions of Seton Hall Slovakia, Father Theodoric was University. In 1960 he was named named to the faculty of the Fran- pastor of the Franciscan parish of ciscan Theological Seminary at 2i- St. Rita in Buffalo, N. York, where lina in 1941, a post he held until he stayed till 1964. In 1961, he 1950. During this time he also serv- became Councillor to the Delegate ed at intervals as the Rector of Provincial of the Most Holy Savthe seminary, a Definitor of the ior Commissariat, and in 1964 the Franciscan Province, and Guard- Delegate Provincial of the said ian of the Franciscan Friary in Commissariat. 2ilina. In 1942, he published his doctoral thesis, "Joseph II and the In America, Father Zubek freFriars Minor in Slovakia". In 1945, quently spoke on the persecuted he translated E. Neubert's "Mon Church in Slovakia to various ideal Jesus, fils de Marie" (Moj groups in Slovak and American ideal Jezis, Syn Mariin) into Slo- parishes. He made an appearance vak. With Father Celestin Lepa- before the House Committee on cek, O.F.M., he co-authored a book Un-American Activities conceron the Assumption of the BL Vir- ning the operations of the Comgin, "Nanebevzata" (Mary Assum- munists in Slovakia. In 1956, his ed into Heaven), published in scholarly and well-documented 1947. Numerous articles of his on book on the systematic persecutboth theological and ascetical sub- ion of the Church in Slovakia was �154 SLOVAKIA published by Rev. John Lach. It is entitled "The Church of Silence in Slovakia". Since 1954 he began to contribute articles to leading national Catholic magazines such as "The Homiletic and Pastoral Review", "The American Ecclesiastical Review", "The Jurist, Unitas", "The Catholic Educator" and "The Marian Era". In these articles, he dealt with a variety of subjects, such as, the Communist persecution of the Church in Slovakia and other lands, the theory of Darwin, the morality of nuclear warfare, the possibility of living creatures on other planets, the Blessed Mother and Vatican II. Some of these articles attracted wide attention. In addition, he has contributed articles to such Slovak papers and magazines as "Most" (The Bridge ), "Dobry Pastier" (The Good Shepherd), "Jednota" (The Union), "Katolicky Sokol" (The Catholic Sokol) , "Slovak v Amerike" (The Slovak in America), "Kanadsky Slovak" (The Canadian Slovak) and "Literarny almanach Slovaka v Amerike" (The Literary Almanac of the Slovak in America) . He is a regular writer for the Slovak Franciscan Magazine "Listy sv. Franfilka" (The Leaflets of St. Francis) , for which he served as editor from 1958 to 1962. In 1963 he published a booklet entitled "The Slovak Bishops - Martyrs of Christ", and in 1965, " Rozjimania o tajomstvach sv. ruzenca" (Meditations on the Mysteries of the Holy Rosary) . The Commissariat of the Most Holy Savior, headed presently by Father Theodoric, has fifty members stationed in five monasteries and two parishes. be appropriate to present the views of an American university graduate of Slovak descent. Very Rev. Msgr. John Rekem, S.T .D. , Born December 13, 1917 in Trencianska Tepla, Msgr. John Rekem receited his early education in Trencin rand Nitra. For his philosophical and theological studies he ,w ent to Olomouc in Moravia. This was followed by four years at the Bratislava Istropolitana University. He was ordained in 1941 and two years later he received his doctorate in Sacred Theology. As curate he served in Hricove, Vel'ke Chlievany, Trencin, Pruske, and Varin; in the last named parish he was also administrator. In 1945 he was imprisoned by the Communists for almost eight months in a concentration camp in Trencin. He was released by an order of the People's court (No. T. 29/ 45) in December 1945. Two years later his name was registered for the so-called September liquidations, but he emigrated to Austria, leaving Slovakia on the feast of Our Mother of Sorrows, September 15, 1947. In Salzburg he was spiritual director of the Slovak Catholic refugees, for whom he established the Federation of Slovak Catholics and organized ia series of eight retreats in various cities of Austria. He was spiritual advisor of the League of Slovak Catholic Students in Exile. At home and abro,ad he h e l d Suzanna Mikula is a graduate of membership in leading Slovak or- the University of Detroit, specializing in history of Europe. Since last year not only Slovaks but also slavists of various countries commemorated the 150th birthday of L'udovit Stur, we thought it would ganizations: Society of St. Adalbert and its Literary Division; Matica Slovenska at home and abroad; the First Catholic Slovak Union; Society of Slovak Catholic Intellec- �155 SLOVAKIA tuals in Rome; and for a time he was a member of the Slovak National Council in Exile and of the Liberiation Oommittee. Msgr. Rekem crune to Winnipeg, Canada, in 1949, where he established a Slovak Catholic parish. With the help of his ever-faithful parishioners he built a church, a rectory and a hall in 1952, which were free of debt by 1965. Active in Canadi an public life he has long been associated with the New Canadians Council and the Citizenship Council. He served as chaplain to the Fourth Degree Assembly Tache, St. Boniface, Manitoba, in 1958. At present he is a member and a faithful friar of the Miles McDonnell Fourth Degree Assembly in Winnipeg. In Trencin he was co-editor of Trencan, 1942-1945. He contributed articles to: Slovak, Slovenska Pravda; Trencan; Misijne Hlasy; the Misijny Kalendar of the Society of the Divine Word. He was a contributor also to the periodicals: Smer; 1 Kultura; Duchovny Pastier; Katolicke Kazne; Nova Praca. In Amer- ica his works have appeared in Jednota; Zenska Jednota; Sloven- sky Katolicky Sokol; Slovak v Amerike; Slovenska Obrana; Slo-vaki a; Kalendar Jednota; Literarny Almanach; Rim; Hlasy z Rima; Ave Maria; Kanadsky Slovak; Most; etc. In Canada he wrote for the Manitoba Ensign; Western Sunday Visitor; Sunday Herald; St. Joseph's Residence News. In Winni- peg in 1949 he compiled and issued an English syndicated news and information service twice a week for the local English press. Many of his releases on the Slovaks were printed in the Ensign, Winnipeg Free Press, Winnipeg Citizen, and W i nnipeg Tribune. He is the author of twenty-five short studies on the history of Slovak cultural events of the past, and noteworthy and scholarly works depicting the evolution and growth of the Slovak language. He is a member of the Slovak Institute of Cleveland and th e Bernolak Foundation, and serves as a committee member in each. He was elevated to the rank of Monsignor on March 11, 1964 by His Holiness, Pope Paul VI and is now resident pastor of the Church of the Visitation in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. WHO'S WHO AMONG SLOVAIKiS ]N U.S.A. Rt. Rev. Msgr. Francis J. Dubosh, tion in June to September, 1916, P . A ., was born in Cleveland, Ohio, on September 27, 1890, a son of Charles and Mary Dubosh. There are no close surviving relatives, except for cousins in Cleveland, Pittsburgh, and New York. He was ordained on June 3, 1916 at St. John's Cathedral by the Most Rev. John P. Farrelly. He was in the last class to be ordained which received its complete seminary training at Old St. Mary's Seminary on 1800 Lakeside. Assignments: - From ordina- on temporary assignments; September, 1916, Assistant at St. Wendelin Parish, Cleveland, Ohio; December, 1917, Pastor, Holy Name Parish, Youngstown, Ohio; February, 1922, Pastor, Our Lady of Mercy Parish, Cleveland, 0 hi o; October, 1927, Pastor, SS. Cyril and Methodius Church, Lakewood, Ohio. Positions: - Named a Domestic Prelate with the rank of Rt. Rev. Msgr., on November 11, 1934 the first American-Slovak priest in the United States so honored; October 16, 1955, given rank of �156 SLOVAKIA Protonotary Apostolic - also the first American-Slovak Msgr. in the United States so honored; 19341938, Diocesan Prosynodal Judge; 1938 to date, Diocesan Consultor; 1952 to date, Diocesan Cemetery Board; and 1944-1951, Diocesan Buildin g Commission. Extra parochial and diocesan accomplishments:-Supreme Chaplain of the First Catholic Slovak Union (Jednota), 1932-1937 ; President of the Slovak League of America, 1943-1945; Member of Executive Board of Slovak League of America since 1945; President of the Slovak Catholic Federation of America, 1937-1938; one of the founders of: - Cleveland Slovak Radio Club, Slovak Professional and Businessmen's Association, member of Executive Committee to establish Slovak Culture Garden in Cleveland, Ohio, and instrumental in establishing SS. Cyril and Methodius Parish in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, in 1935; chairman of fund-raising committee for the establishment of Benedictine High School, Cleveland, Ohio; and worked with Catholic Resettlement Council for placing displaced persons in Diocese of Cleveland after post-war years. John Sabol is executive secretary of the First Catholic Slovak Union of the U.S.A. To Slovaks the First Catholic Slovak Union is familiarly known as "Jednota." That means union. Sabol is "Mr. Jednota" to the Jednotars. He has been executive secretary for 40 years. Previously, he served s e v e n years as supreme auditor. Said he: "This has been my career. " Sabol, son of a railroad section hand forman, was born in a shanty in Hillsboro, Pa., on part of what is now the Pennsylvania Turnpike. He received most of his schooling at Lyndora, Pa. At 15 he carried water when the Ft. Wheel Works was built. Later, he was a railroad car builder at McKees Rocks, Pa. He studied accounting at night at Duquesne University, became auditor for the society and was elected secretary in 1926. Sabol and his wife, Elizabeth, had f o u r children: Mrs. Helen Wells of Barberton, O.; Mrs. Joan Lang; Betty, deceased, and John J., a Medical Doctor. Judge John J . Sirotnak, born in Olyphant, Pa., October 12, 1901, of parents Michael and Susanna Sirotnak. Moved to Throop, Pa., in 1903, where he attended public schools and was graduated in June 1917. Worked in coal mines from 1917 to 1919. Attended Mansfield State Teachers' College, Sept. 1919, and graduated in 1921. He taught in Borough Schools of Throop 1921- 1928. Resigned as principal of the Jefferson School to enter University of Illinois in 1928, where he obtained his B. A. degree in 1930 and his Law Degree in 1932. Successfully completed Bar examination on October 24, 1932 and has practiced law in Scranton, Pa. , since. County Solicitor of Lackawanna County Institution District from 1938 to 1960, the first Slovak Attorney to be so honored. General Counsel of the First Catholic Slovak Union from 1944 to 1960. Judge Orphans' Court of Lackawanna County since June 17, 1960, Wife: Susan. Sons: Joseph and John, Medical Doctor and Attorney-at-Law. Member of Executive Committee of the Slovak League of America for several years. �157 SLOVAKIA 'DHE SLOVAK INSTITUTE ]N OI.,EVEILAIN1D, OHIO A cultural society, known as ibhe Slovruk Institute, was foll'l1ded an Ma:roh 4, 1952. Oha,rter memibers of the organization ,w ere: Rt. Rev. Abbot 'Dheodore G. Kojis, O.S.B., iPres,ident, Rev. Mrkulas Sprilil'c, !Rev. Andrej Pir, O.S.iB. , Dr. Fra,ncis Hriusovsky, Dr. Jozef Oindk, and Karol Strmen. The ,President named iDr. Hvusovsky, eminent Slovaik historian, as tJhe fiTst DiTector of the Institute. One of the first duties of tihe .:Institute was ito assume care of tJhe Slovak lilbrary anid museum estalblished at St. Andrew's AJbbey by the coordinated eflforts of the Matica Sioveniska, w'hich donll!ted 1.hrundreds of invaJluable hodkis to the Clevela,nd Slova:ks dUTing the ,M. S. delegation'1s visit to the United States in 1935, and 1:Jhe Slovaik League of Ameriica, which founded 1:Jhe obeginnin1gs of the &lova:k Museum at the Abbey in the Spring of 1943. Besides f'l.Ulfilling its rp rimary function of be1ng a centre of cultural endeavO'I'S for the :Silovalks in America, and t>he free world, the Slovalk Institute ihiais not onily preserved many SlovaJk 'books in i1Js ,Iilbrary but has pulJliShed a 'OJU1JI1iber of wo11k's of its own, notably, tlhe !history of Slovaik Religious institutions in America lb y the laite Dr. Francis Hrusovsky (died on Sept. 9, 1956). In Rome an affiliate of 1:Jhe Slovaik Inis titute wais established a num1ber of yearis ago. lbs main punpose is to sponsor religious a,nd cultura:l ipulblicaitionrs in the free world. The Roman tbranoh of the origin8.!l Olev~land foundation maintains olose contruct wiitJh the American parent orgainization which was ori ginally est8.!blished to carry on bhe work of the Slovaik naition's Matica Slovenska tlhait was swppr~ssed by the communist regime in tlhe ,postwar era. Another ibrancih of t h e Institute is in MuniC'h, Ge11many. Perhrups the most rpopuilar work of tJhe Slovak lnstitwte was the 1publitc1ation of a detailed mrurp of Slovrukia under the direction ()(f Dr. Hrusovsky. Mem1bershilp in the Slovark Institute reaiohes around the world, for leaiding Sfovalk writers and poets, as well. as cultural wor.kers, have been enrolled in this unique American association for tihe Slovarks in the free wonM. A:11 iing,uiries rubout Slovark history and culbure are to be arddressed to: Slovark Institute, 2900 Eia'St Boulevard, Cleveland, Ohio. 1 �158 SLOVAKIA The Slovak League of America - is an AMERICAN INSTITUTION; it was organized May 26, 1907, at Cleveland, 0., by the Rev. Stephen Furdek; is a CULTURAL and CIVIC organi2:ation of Americans of Slovak descent; is interested primarily in promoting the welfare and security of the United States of America; represents an overwhelming majority of organized Americans of Slovak descent; actively affiliated with it are the largest Slovak fraternals, religious organizations, Slovak Clubs and Slovak civic organizations in the United States; is dedicated to American Democracy, the American way of life, and encourages Americans of Slovak descent to be loyal and alert citizens of America; it urges and aids Slovak emigrants to become U. S. citizens by publishing appropriate manuals and brochures in Slovak and English; is dedicated to works of charity, materially and morally aids Slovaks, here and abroad, who may be in need of such aid; it supports the American Red Cross, United Fund Campaigns and other American charitable projects; wants to help Americans of Slovak descent in American political life, in business or professions, in social standing, and along educational lines; through its Ladies Auxiliary, the "VCIELKY" (Bees) , sponsors Slovak cultural displays, concerts, lectures, art exhibits, folk festivals, social evenings, etc. Our aim is to have a "Hive" of our "Vcielky" in every large Slovak community; promotes a better understanding and appreciation of the Slovak nation, its history, culture, traditions, achievements and its long, hard struggle for freedom and independence; firmly believes in the American principle of self-determination of all nations, the inherent and God-given right of every nation, whether large or small, to freedom and independence, the right of every nation to freely choose its own form of government and freely elect persons of its own choice by whom it shall be governed; �SLOVAKIA - 159 condemns and unequivocally opposes all forms of tyranny, every form of totalitarian political system. The Slovak League of America has always recognized the Godless philosophy of materialistic Communism for the dread evil and conspiracy against free humanity that it is, as the political system which threatens mankind with utter enslavement and, therefore, has fought resolutely against it in and out of season and, today, is still determined to fight against it with all the means at its command until the dread plague of Communism is wiped off the face of the earth. firmly believes that the national existence and welfare of the Slovak nation can best be safeguarded by the Slovaks themselves in their own independent Slovak Republic; as a Christian and democratic organization, is resolutely against the domination and exploitation of the Slovak nation by any other nation or political state; the Slovaks did not want to be ruled over by the Magyars and, today, do not want to be subservient to the Czech nation ; heartily commends all efforts of our governmental and other organs to ferret out and unmask all Communists and fellow travellers, as well as all persons and or ganizations who wittingly or unwittingly give aid and comfort to the conspiracy of Communism promoted by t he Soviet Union; stands for :honesty, integrity, industry and justice in government. Join the Local Assembly in your town or contact the Secretary of the Slovak League. Membership dues are only $1.50 per year. Gentlemen : I ----------------- - -------------------- ------Address --------------------- - ----------- - ----Town ----------------------- - ---------- -- ----Desire to join SLOVAK LEAGUE OF AMERICA Endosed find check $---------- �]60 SLOVAKIA Contents The Slovak Language and its Place Among the Slavic Languages - J. M. Kirschbaum - 1 Father of American Slovaks - Sister M. Martina Tybor, 25 SS.C.M. - James J. Zatko, Ph.D. - Slovaks in the U.S. A. - 41 American Slovaks and the Beginning of Czecho-Slovakia - Joseph Pauco, Ph.D. - 63 Joseph R. Kristofik - The Slovak Image - 76 " Sons of Hunkies: Men with a Past?"-Victor R. Greene A Glimpse of Gothic Slovakia Heroic Slovak Bishop - O.F.M. - Tino Berko - Mikula, B.A. - Victim of Communism - Suzanna Dr. John Rekem - 124 Current Issues As Others See It - Contributors - T. J. Zubek, 104 Martin Szentivanyi, S.J. - Book Reviews - 87 99 Eudovit Stur and the Panslavic Movement - 138 142 149 Who's Who Among Slovaks in U. S. A. The Slovak Institute in Cleveland, Ohio The Slovak League of America - 158 155 157 80 116 �PRI NTI D IN U.S. A. JIDN OTA PlllN TER Y, MID DLli TOW N, PA. � 124 SLOVAKIA CURRENT ISSUES ADDRESS of the Honorable Michael A. Feighan, United States Representative, Before the Slovak League of Ameri ca, Voyager Motel In n, Youngstown, Ohio, Sunday, May 15, 1966 I have been priviledged many times over the past decades to speak about the history of the Slovak people; to speak about the true facts behind your struggles for independence; and to speak about the present determination of Slovaks all over the world to return freedom and independence once again to their native land. My long interest in, and association with, the inspirations and the aspirations of the Slovak people has brought me to appreciate, and to respect, not only the individual Slovak, but the efforts of such organizations as represented in Slovak League of America. The Slovak,s are a people who have made a continuous struggle for national independence for over unremitting and From the Brother Saints, Cyril and Meyears. thousand one Andrew Hlinka and General Monsignor through thodius, Stefanik, the Slovak history is replete with patriots unswerving in their dedication to God, to freedom and to individual liberty. The Slovaks are a people who are more than one hundred years into the second millenium of Christianity in Slovakia. The Slovaks are a people who, even after more than one thousand years of domination, have not lost their language, their national identity, or their determination for independence; an independence which in this century, was born of democratic principles, weaned all too prematurely by the r avages of war, and all but destroyed by the tyranny of Russian Communism. Slovaks know as well as anyone else the path from freedom to oppression, the path from an independent to a captive nation, and the path from a native people to an exiled people - exiled by communist design from their own country and its inherent rights to freedom. But at the same time, they know that these paths need �SLOVAKIA 125 not be irreversible. They know that the spirit of resistance to tyranny never dies. They know that dedication to freedom and justice is unfettered by geographical boundaries, national origin, race, creed, or circumstance. And it is their knowledge and faith in these ideals which has given the Slovak people the determination never to give up in their goals - as is so aptly proved by the fact that the Slovaks today continue to oppose collectivization more effectively than anyone else in the communist orbit. In this universality of conviction the Slovak League of America is strong and unyielding. And so it is today that I want especially to commend the Slovaks for their efforts to promote dedicated citizenship and to build protectors of American democracy ; for their service to this great country rin public and in private life ; for their works of charity; and for their undiminished opposition to all forms of tyranny in the world. As a large Slovak civic and cultural organization in America the Slovak League can be proud of the spiritual, cultural, social, and charitable contributions it has made to the building of our great nation. The nationally known home for orphans in Middletown, Pennsylvania stands as a tribute to the work of the First Catholic Slovak Union. Homes for the aged in various parts of the country, such as the beautiful home at Beachwood, Ohio, which is a tribute to the work of the First Catholic Slovak Ladies' Union. The internationally famous , Saints Cyril and Methodius Institute at Rome, Italy was made possible by the combined efforts of all Slovak Catholic organizations and parishes throughout the country. Bishop Andrew Grutka with the able assistance of Right Reverend Theodore Kojis and all the clergy of Slovak parishes provided inspiring leadership to create this spiritual center for the preservation of the true Slovak spirit. Churches, elementary schools, convents and high schools, too numerous to recall are future monuments to the faith of Slovaks in America. Within the past year a magnificent chapel to Our Lady of Sorrows - Patron saint of Slovakia - was dedicated in the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception, in our �126 SLOVAKIA nation's capital. This stands as still another great achievement by the First Catholic Slovak Union. American Slovaks have not ignored the plights of others, but have provided a forum to urge the cause of self-determination for all peoples. Every nation has the right to chart its own destiny through self-determination. This is among the most basic American beliefs. Just as the Slovak people hav•e a dedication to the universal principles of freedom and justice - not limited just to their now oppressed native land - so I and our United States of America have a similar dedication to these same universal principles. To this end I recently introduced a resolution on the floor of the United States House of Representatives calling for the establishment of a seven member House Select Committee on Basic Human Rights and Peaceful World Order. It is all too clear that the official and organized denial of basic human rights and freedom by any government to peoples under its control creates international tensions which can prevent the development of a peaceful world order. Such suppression of national and individual identity is tied hand-in-hand with Russian imperialism, and is a matter of official policy aga,inst the many nations federated by force to the Soviet Union. Of all people, we know, that the spread of this doctrine to other lands beyond the Soviet Union has already begun, and unless it is checked, and reversed, it can well plunge the world into a holocaust. I am confident that if and when this select committee ,is established by Congress, it will provide yet another public forum to develop public opinion on an international scale that these vital issues deserve. Such a public forum will complement and up-date such work as that of the Select Committee to investigate communist aggression of the 83rd Congress, and of which I was privileged to be a member. This committee was able to document and to underscore for all the world to see, such tragic stories as the loss of Slovakia's national independence following World War II and its enslavement by imperial Russia. And such a public forum will also complement the contmued work of the Slovak League of America both here and abroad. While the evil hand of Russian Communism continues its attempts to destroy the very spirit of Saints Cyril and Methodius and to reduce the Slovak people to a state of �SLOVAKIA 127 complete servility, the Slovak people refuse to surr,ender that which, over a thousand years, they have continued to fight for - their spirit of independence, of justice and of freedom. To help this spirit in Slovakia, I am also directing my efforts not only just toward expanding the public forum against communistic tyranny, but also toward expanding the coverage of the Voice of America broadcasts in news and information to the Slovaks living under this communist tyranny. It is my hope to see a Slovak desk established in the Voice of America and to thus improve and increase the effectiveness of this communication behind the Iron Curtain. I hav,e been working toward that goal for some years and will not cease my efforts until it is won. In this way, we as a nation can more effectively demonstrate our encouragement and support for the Slovaks now living under virtual foreign occupation in their native land. For I am convinced that one of the best ways to demonstrate friendship for the people of any foreign country is to speak to them in their own language, to recognize their cultural values and to encourage them in their just aspirations for self-government. The God-fearing people of the free world will not fail in this our struggle to preserve human freedom and to erase despotic slavery. We shall not fail in restoring individual liberty and self-determination to a peaceful world. We shall not fail for we shall not falter in our efforts until our goals are won - and so long as a Slovak is alive anywhere in the world, I know that the spirit of Saints Cyril and Methodius shall prevail. To this I add my personal conviction that as the free world approaches these goals, the Slovak nation will once again join the independent and free nations of the world. SIWVAKS HAVE HIGH More than 70 languages are listDEJGREE IN EDUCATION ed. The fi "ures range all the way A 38-page report on the mother tongue of the 9,738,155 persons listed as foreign born in the 1960 Census has just been published by the U.S. Bureau of the Census. The study is based on a question as to what language was spoken in his home before an immigrant came to the United States. from 16 persons whose mother tongue was Tibetan to over a million persons each for those reporting English, German or Italian. A breakdown on the basis of the areas within the United States shows that nearly half of the total foreign born here reside in the northeast part of the country, �SLOVAKIA 128 nearly a 1/4 in the north central states, 10% in the south and 20 % in the west. Other tables show age and the number of years in school for different groups. Schooling completed by the foreign born shows that the English speaking and Japanese had the highest degree of education with an average of about 10 years of school for each. Scandinavian and German along with Chinese, Rumanian , SLOVAK, Yiddish and Arabic all range in the eight year category. While essentiall y statistical , the Report contains valuable information for those interested iFI or working with nationalit y or ethnic groups. It is on sale by the Superintendent of Documen ts, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C. 20402, for 35 cents a copy. - American Council for Nationalities Service Release. NATION .ALISiM To many people, here in the United States, Nationali sm is an ugly word. These people are either ashamed of their national origin or ridicule others for trying to retain the language , customs and traditions that were brought to this country by their forefathe rs. It is true that there are many people today, who can not honestly claim one national origin or the other. Because the marriages of their ancestors were between many different nationalit ies, they may be a mixture of four, five, six, or more nationalit ies and can not truly say they are one or the other. Of these people I do not speak, but in some cases these same persons will not be tolerant of another who knows his national origin and is proud of it. The percentag e of people who have come here to the United States and know what their national origin is, but deny it, is very small. However the children of these people are the main offend- ers, by not taking pride in their nationalit y. As an example, I would like to take the Slovak people. When the Slovak people first started to come to the United States, they were at a disadvant age because they did not know English like some of the other people who migrated here from other European countries which were English speaking. Because of this they found it hard to secure jobs and places to live. At that time there was no television or radio to cover the persecuti on these people endured, both mental and physical. They did not have any organizat ions boycottin g or protesting for them. These people proved themselve s in their place of employm ent by their ability to work and produce. They rented apartmen ts, kept a clean house, spent their money wisely and supported their church. Their accomplishments are many but unsung, because Slovakia and its' people was not well known because it was and still is a nation that is living under foreign rule and tyranny. I have had the experienc e of meeting many young people with Slovak names. Some are college students, ordinary workers and people in profession s. They say "My parents are Slovak or my father is Slovak, but I am an American, not a Slovak." Another excuse for denying their origin is that they say being called a Slovak is putting them in a "ghetto". These and other excuses are all meaningle ss. America is a land made up of many nationalit ies, so in order to be a good American you must be proud of your nationality which helped to build this country. The real American s are the American Indians and there is even doubt as to where they migrated from. The term "ghetto" has been misused in recent years and now is a good excuse for those who are ashamed of their nationality. The term is really being used by those who are too lazy to im- �129 SLOVAKIA prove their own conditions where they now live, and then, try to move elsewhere. Being proud of your Slovak customs, folksongs, language, newspapers, etc., is not to be classified as being in a "ghetto". Rather, it is being a good American in the true sense of the word. The meals, customs, and culture of many lands have gone into making America great. Why shouldn't the Slovaks, who have contributed a lot to America, and continue to do so be proud of themselves. Other groups have their parades and celebrate their saints and hero days'. They are not ashamed to say "I am Irish, Italian or other." Why then are some of the Slovak People tongue-tied, so that they flounder around for every excuse, rather than saying with pride and dignity, "I am an American Slovak!!" We are not trying to prove that we are better than anyone else, but it is about time that some people recognize the fact that we are just as good as another and there is nothing to be ashamed of. If you are weak kneed and ashamed because some donkey is ignorant enough to ridicule you, then you aren't worth much as a Slovak or an American. My father told me that his brother, my late uncle, Rev. John Kuba~ek, pastor of Most Holy Trinity Church in Yonkers, used to say this about those who were ashamed of being known as a Slovak, "It's a poor bird who dirtys his own nest." Think about this and you will see its meaning. The parents of those attending our Slovak schools should insist that Slovak be taught and taught well enough so that the pupil can carry on a conversation by the time he finishes eighth grade. In too many cases our Slovak people give in to the non-Slovaks of the parish , who voice their objections to this. This is a good case where we can be strong. It was our an- cestors hard earned money that built these schools. I am sure that if the diocese ruled that every pupil had to learn Spanish or French, e very o n e would jump. Let's jump and make sure our children in Slovak schools learn to SPEAK Slovak and not just memorize a few words. All of the above ties into our hope that someday Slovakia will be free . When this happens there will be many Slovaks who will come to this country. Will they have to go through the sarrie hardships that the early Slovak immigrants did? What is worse yet, will they have to suffer because their own Slovak brethren here in the United States are too lazy to teach and learn the Slovak language and keep up the customs? If for no other reason, this should be a motive for us to keep our spirit alive, so that we may help our people when the time comes to adjust to the United States and find employment and housing. This can only be done by waking up now. Let's not commit national suicide!! Steve Kubasek, Jr. St. Procopius College Lisle, Illinois Ll!MITED GAINS SOORED IN RENEWED DRINE FOR SLOVAK INDEJPENiDENCE Slovak national aspirations have been staging a come-back in the <".:SSR. This upsurge is not the work of individual writers. It is now supported by higher ranking party functionaries. The impetus for vocalizing these strivings which aim at complete equality with the Czechs, was the 150th birthday of :Cudovit Stur, a man honored in his native land not only as an opponent of Hungarian supremacy but as the father of the Slovak literary language, consummation of which made the separat- �130 SLOVAKIA ion of the Slovaks from the Czechs complete. For the first time well-known personalities like the former land governor Gustav Husak (sentenced to life imprisonment in 1954 as a "bourgeois nationalist" but rehabilitated in 1962) and the historian Daniel Rapant, publicly presented theses condemning the ideas of Marx and Engels from 1848 although these opinions of the fathers of socialism have actually been tabu thus far in all Communist countries. Husak, to whom the Prague government had several times offered a ministerial post in recent years, now accused Marx of having assumed a position of Hungarian nationalism and - without any more profound knowledge of the revolution of 1848 - of having developed an anti-Slovak attitude in which his "German arrogance" was a determining factor. Apart from Prague's and Moscow's still expected reply, Budapest will also have something to say, inasmuch as Rapant described the Kossuth revolution as "tyranny, and not a struggle for internationalism and emancipation". The various articles in Slovak newspapers commemorating Stur ended with the unequivocal demand for genuine equality of the Slovaks with the Czechs. The writer, Vladimir Minac, expressed the thought that if Czech-Slovak coexistence were considered historically necessary, the fate of both peoples must be seen in its "truly dramatic form". Husak even went so far as to call for the creation of state institutions designed to protect the Slovaks - who make up but one-third of the entire population - against "oppression by the privileged and hegemonist nation". About a month after the Stur jubilee the effects of Slovak unrest began to be noticeable. The Prague parliament approved a re- solution providing for the Slovak National Council in Bratislava " in cooperation with the other parliamentary bodies" to concentrate their efforts on increasing Slovak participation in the overall development of the CSSR. Although the Czechs could not bring themselves to empower the Slovak National Council with the competency it once held, they did concede to a certain amount of codetermination of the Slovaks on all-state level. It is to be realized by establishing closer contact in the future between the committees of the Prague National Assembly and the Bratislava National Council. The Slovak land governor, Michal Chudik, in a frank talk before the Prague parliament, pointed out that there were people among the Czechs who saw in the Slovak National Council only a " binding link" betweeen Prague and Bratislava that simply complicated the situation, while among the Slovaks, he claimed, there were trends toward a federalization of the CSSR. Although allying himself with neither of these trends, Chudik obviously felt the centralistic threat emanating from Prague to be the greater danger. This feeling prompted him to say to the Czech side that the Slovak National Council would henceforth appear as the representative of the "Slovak people's independence" and perform within Slovakia the functions of an all-state administrative body. Chudik's criticism that the National Council had so far not succeeded in fulfilling its "norm-establishing" function, was recently supported by an almost revolutionary move on the part of the Slovaks. The juridicial commission of the Bratislava National Council drafted a law proposing the introduction of so-called cooperative apartments. To date there has been �SLOVAKIA only home construction of the state and cooperative type, or building permits for single family houses with limited dwelling space. This new measure would allow ownership of dwellings even in buildings housing several families. They are designed for later sale, including right to inheritance or other type legal transfer to others for tenancy. There would also be opportunity for older dwellings to pass into private ownership. w. o. A STUDY OF ~HiE COMMUNIST PARTY By the end of the war, the Soviet Union and its Communist allies had gained virtually de facto control of Czechoslovakia. The Soviet armies conquered Slovakia (and as in the case of Poland refused to give military aid to an uprising of anti-German Slovak citizens) ; by Allied agreement the Soviets were permitted to liberate Prague; and they annexed SubCarpathian Ruthenia to the Soviet Union, an act formalized in June 1945. Communist-dominated People's Committees controlled the borderlands, and in the interior Communists had more than their share of power in the Committees' apparatus. According to SetonWatson, "The Communist Party could have seized complete power in 1945 had it so wished. It deliberately chose not to do so." In May 1945, Benes and the London Government-in-exile returned to Czechoslovakia, but stopping first at Moscow where further concessions were made to the Czechoslovak Communists whereby they were given key posts in the government. According to Prof. Curt Beck, a specialist on Czechoslovak affairs, these concessions were partly due to the realization that the Allies had already decided that Czechoslovakia would be in the Soviet military zone. 131 Agreements reached by Benes and the Communists in discussions during 1943 and 1945 formed the basis for the Kosice Program, ostensibly an agreement among members of the National Front coalition on polices to be adopted by the new postwar Czechoslovak Government. The most important features of the agreement were the creation of a National Front Coalition government and the formation of People's Committees that were to assume local and regional administrative responsibilities and functions . The Kosice program, proclaimed by the new Czechoslovak Government on March 22, 1945, restored the republic. On April 4, 1945, Benes, as President, named a new government headed by the left-wing Social Democrat Zdenek Fierlinger. The National Front which formed the government was a coalition of independent parties, consisting of the Czechoslovak Communist Parties, the Social Democrats, the National Socialists, the People's Party (Catholic) and the Slovak Democratic Party. Communists held 8 cabinet posts in the new government among which were the important Ministry of Interior (giving them control of the nation's police and security forces ), the Ministry of Agriculture, and the Ministries of Education and Information. In addition to their strength in the cabinet, the Communists controlled the People's Committees; General Ludwig Svoboda, trained in the Soviet Union, led the Army as Minister of Defense; the General Staff and its Intelligence Department were a Communist stronghold ; and in the border regions especially in areas from where the Germans had been expelled, the Communists, as Seton-Watson wrote, created "a party state within the state." According to Professor Beck, by 1947 Communists held 57 percent �132 SLOVAKIA of the chairmanships of local People's Committees, 80 percent of district People's Committees, and 100 percent of Provincial People's Committees. - Committee on the Judiciary, United States Senate, Washington, D.C., 1966. sr...ovA!K LANGUAGE LABORATORY OOUR'SE A modern language course, Slovak Language Laboratory Course, by an illustrious member of the Slovak Franciscan Order and a recognized professor of languages, Fr. Bonaventure S. Bue, O.F.M., Ph. D., is in the process of being published. This Slovak Language Course is patterned according to the modern language series of other languages prepared by Georgetown University. When put into book form it will be on par with the most modern method of teaching a language. For laboratory work, the lessons have already been correlated on tapes and can be purchased from the Slovak Franciscans, 232 South Home Ave., Pittsburgh, Pa., 15202. The 40 minute tapes of 12 lessons can be used on a tape recorder or in a language laboratory. The complete set costs $30.00. Dr. Bue, a man of many talents, has taught Slovak, French, German, and Russian in schools and colleges in Europe, Canada, and the United States. He is also the author of several books. With the Franciscan Order, he taught in Malacky, Slovakia, and received his Ph. D. from the University of Bratislava. He also studied in Munich and Cologne in Germany, and in Paris, France. He held various posts in Canada and the United States and also taught at Duquesne University and Notre Dame High School, Easton, Pa. In 1957, Dr. Bue received a Master's Degree in Political Science at the University of Pittsburgh and wrote as his thesis Slovak Nationalism. It was published by Slovak League of America in 1960. He was working extensively on the contributions Msgr. Andrew Hlinka and Msgr. Joseph Tiso made to the Slovak nation at the time of his death on April 22, 1966. Fr. Bue was not only the pastor of St. Rita's Church in Buffalo, N. Y., but found time to teach Russian at the Calasanctius College Preparatory School. His "Slovak Language Laboratory Course" will be a monument to his greatness. J.C. K. YOU'DH OONFERENCE OF THE SLOVAK LffiAGUE OF AMERICA As a representative of St. Cyril Academy for Girls, Danville, Pa., I was privileged to attend the 40th Congress of the Slovak League of America in Youngstown, Ohio, in May of 1966. The primary reason for my presence at the Congress was to participate in the Youth Conference. Previous to the conference, I was very curious just what would be on the agenda and how many socalled youths would be present. Since I was a new-comer at these affairs in connection with the Slovak League, I thought I would be a 99 % observer, but my estimated statistics had a change of course. The moderator of the Conference was Dr. Peter Hletko of Chicago, Ill., the Honorary President of the League and a recognized American-Slovak leader, whom I had met previously. Attorney Edward Behuncik, Vice President of the League from Bridgeport, Conn., prefaced the discussion with an excellent presentation on the background of the Slovaks as a whole, and their marked status and contribution to the American character. He had a wealth of reference material which he used �SLOVAKIA in his presentation and the noteworthy thing was that his sources were all other than Slovak. A question and answer period followed the initial presentation and there were many interesting topics discussed. The one question that interested me most was, "What is the difference between the Slovaks and Czechs and why don't they just conceive the idea of a Czechoslovak nationality and state?" I must admit I felt and wanted to answer the question myself since at the Academy I had learned the answers through my courses on Slovak history. I knew the many struggles and tribulations of the Slovak people for over eleven centuries and their guest for independence and a position of honor in the family of nations. I knew of their few moments of freedom and what it has meant to them. However, wise and logical answers came swiftly from the members of the panel. Attorney Behuncik was first in line to state various facts and figures from a wide range of books and writers, other than Slovak, that substantiated the Slovak's claim and cause. Fr. Andrew Pier, O.S.B., a prolific writer in this field, spoke in defense of the human rights of the Slovaks. And, the Rt. Rev. Abbot Theodore Kojis, O.S.B., Abbot of St. Andrew's Abbey, Cleveland, Ohio, concluded the responses and put a 'clincher' on the topic that was being discussed. The one who asked the question responded, "I certainly did not know all these points and I must say that I will leave this conference with a different impression and much more informed. " Truth prevailed! Before the Conference had terminated , Dr. Hletko asked if I would comment on how the youth could become more interested and participate in different activities 133 concerning the Slovaks. My response was that the initial promotion of interest must come from the home-the parents must be the ones to talk about their great heritage; they should speak the language more if possible; encourage reading the Slovak newspapers and periodicals; participate in Slovak affairs; continue practicing and cherishing the many Slovak customs ; and most of all, be proud of our ethnic identity. I then continued and mentioned my background which is a loyal Slovak one attributed to my parents. My attitude has been moulded toward the Slovak people-their language, culture, their religious, social, civic, and fraternal activities-as being one of honor and sincere dedication. Concerning my knowledge of the Slovaks, I could not help but mention St. Cyril Academy. I was just finishing my second year of the four-year course in Slovak offered by the Academy. We are not only taught the Slovak language, but we are exposed to and learn Slovak history, culture, and traditions. The famous men in Slovak history are familiar to me like Samo, Rastislav, Svatopluk, SS. Cyril and Methodius, Bernolak, Stur, Hlinka , Furdek, Murgas, Jankola, Tiso, Sidor, and a host of others. I already have experienced the fact that some of the girls who are taking Slovak at St. Cyril's are of non-Slovak families . They want to learn the language and the history because they know they will not have the opportunity at other institutions. These students, indeed, are aware of the potential in the Slovak language and culture. In summation, I repeat that in order to get the youth interested, the parents must set the example as they do for anything else that must be developed in the home. Only there can the love and in- �134 SLOVAKIA terest in the Slovak heritage begin to flourish. My attendance at the Youth Conference of the 40th Congress of the Slovak League of America was very beneficial. In my heart I wished that every youth could have witnessed and taken part in the educational session. This experience was truly one that I will never forget. - Maryagnes Krajsa, '68 St. Cyril Academy, Danville, Pennsylvania. " ... BY THEIR FRUITS YE SHA!LL KNOW THEM." In the Gospel according to St. Matthew we find the words of Our Lord, " ... by their fruit ye shall know them" (7:20). These words summarize a scientific truth. They express a Law that is evidenced in the lives of men and in the lives of nations. A nation is a group of men of psychological affinity, sharing a common heritage and common aspirations. When a nation represents a unity of men under God, to the detriment of no man, it is a vehicle for good. But when a nation covets that which belongs to its neighbors, rejecting the positive teachings of Christ, it becomes a negative vehicle with atrophy of its moral fibre as an inevitable consequence. This consequence is seen clearly by scientific observation, through objective examination of results. An illustration is provided by comparing two neighboring nations in Europe, the Czech and the Slovak. The majority of the Czechs are nominally Catholic. The Slovaks are predominantly, and devotedly, Catholic. No criticism of the Mother Church is intended by this comparison, nor is it for us to judge any man. A comparison of the moral situation in the two nations is the sole intent. The Czechs have developed an overhelming, almost psychotic, de- sire to not only dominate the Slovaks but to absorb them within an artificial entity they call "Czechoslovakia". A "Czechoslovak" nation never existed in the past, does not exist in the present, and cannot be imposed in the future. The Czechs and the Slovaks each have a different heritage and different aspirations. The Slovaks, the challenged, have maintained their faith while defending their identity. The Czechs, as the challengers, have sunk into a spiritual vacuum. In Slovakia the Church has maintained its life, even, where necessary, underground. As in the days of the catacombs, priests are ordained and bishops are consecrated, unknown to the eyes of the new Communist Caesars but known to the Omniscient eye of God. Bishop Paul Hnilica, S.J., is but one example of many Slovak shepherds who have been daily showing the devotion of the earliest disciples of Our Savior. Performing their pastoral duties at the greatest of personal risk and with the greatest of personal sacrifice, the Slovak clergy are fulfilling the Word of Christ, inspiring the Slovak people to meet the challenge which faces them. Through the example set by the Catholic majority in Slovakia the Protesttant Slovak community has also risen to the challenge, :as they share the devotion to the Slovak national heritage and to the Slovak n a ti o n a 1 aspirations. Such spiritual leaders as Bishop Hnilica transcend denominational boundaries. He is a spiritual leader in Christ for Catholic and Protestant Slovaks alike, representing true ecumenical spirit. U n f o rt u n a t e 1 y, among the Czechs one looks for this moral strength in vain. Due to their psychological obsession of attempting to destroy the Slovak national identity they have developed almost a castration complex concerning their own national herit- �SLOVAKIA age. This psychological sickness is a negation of Christianity. It has afflicted Czech Catholics and Protestants alike. Some symptoms of the illness are seen in the words and deeds of Josef Cardinal Ber an, the Czech Archbishop of Prague. Cardinal Beran calls himself a "Czechoslovak", but the Cat ho 1 i c Church in Slovakia was never, and is not now, in any way under the ecclesiastical jurisdiction of Prague. The Slovak Protestants have also rejected any administrative claims of Czech Protestants over their communities. Cardinal Beran and some of his Czech Catholic colleagues, with a number of Czech Protestant clergymen being equally cu 1 pa b 1 e, have chosen to give away their Czech national heritage in exchange for the pottage of unchristian covetousness of that which belongs to their Slovak neighbor. The illness is manifested in many ways: The same Cardinal Beran once signed a declaration stating that "Under the protection of our brother nation, Russia, a happy future is being opened to all Slavs." The only freedom Communist Russia has left the Czechs is the power to enslave the Slovaks. Is that a happy future? The same Cardinal Beran justified the forced expulsion after World War II of over three million Sudeten Germans. During this f o r c e d expulsion over 400,000 men, women and children were reported killed. Can a minister of the Gospel justify such bestiality? The same Cardinal Beran gave solemn "Te Deum" services in Prague's St. Vitus Cathedral in honor of the inauguration of Communist President Gottwald at the same time that the clergy in Slovakia were under the severest of Communist persecution and the Slovak people were fighting the Communist troops with their bare hands. Is that Christian brotherhood? 135 All of these actions by Cardinal Beran exemplify a negative thinking that is multiplied a thousandfold among his fellow Czech Catholic and Protestant clergy. It has borne its fruit. Among all Czech children only 3 % are reported to have received Baptism, the first of Christian sacraments. In Slovakia, the true Christian leadership of such as Bishop Hnilica has also borne its fruit. Approximately 98 % of all Slovak children are baptized, despite the Czech Communist persecutions. These nondenominational figures serve as one among many indices of the moral situation in the two nations. When we compare the fruits of the practice of Christianity among the Slovaks with the fruits of the m e n t a l malpractice among the Czechs we see the attitudes of many individuals projected as the concensus of a larger group. It is up to each of us, as an individual, to direct his thoughts positively_ When we do not, we abdicate our futures , as individuals and as nations. The results cannot be hidden for "by their fruits ye shall know them." - The Reverend Jon P. Speller, D.D., Scientific Prayer Ministry, New York, New York. THE OHRISTIAN OHURCH IN BOHEMIA AND SLOVAKIA When the Communists came to power in Czecho-Slovakia in 1948, there were 8.75 million Roman and 300,000 Greek Catholics in a population of 12.5 million. Since then, about one million Catholics have officially left the church, but this figure gives little idea of the actual leakage which has been caused by persecution and discrimination in every degree - and by disloyalty among the ranks of the priesthood. All church property was confiscated by the state in 1948, and the �136 SLOVAKIA church is not permitted to own anything whatever. Thus, collections taken during Mass have to be handed over to the local branch of the government department for church affairs, and only a bare minimum is returned to the priest for his own requirements and for the upkeep of the church fabric. Voluntary outside contributions are not permitted. And only "reliable" priests who have sworn an oath of loyalty to the Communist state, are allowed to hold office in parishes. Outwardly speaking, such religious life as there is, is confined to the church itself; off the premises it is simply not in evidence. R e 1 i g i o u s instruction in the schools has in practice ceased in Prague and in most towns in Bohemia, and in most of the villages as well, though it survives here and there in Slovakia. But instruction outside school is forbidden and subject to severe sanctions: this throws the whole responsibility on the parents, the majority of whom are not well qualified to give their children any substantial instruction. Any attempt from any quarter to influence young people toward religion is severly frowned on and those who are suspected of such activity or of religious learning will not receive advancement. And where would the parents find books to teach their children, when there are no religious publications? Little or nothing has been published, not even missals, since 1948; what has been issued has a strongly tendentious flavor. In 1948 there were 5,779 secular priests and 1,163 priests in religious orders; now there are about 2,500 in the whole country in 1951 about 3,000 priests were held in various degrees of confinement, from labor camps to "concentration monasteries." By 1958 the number had dropped to below 500, and in 1963 the majority were released, but have to earn their living as best they can, usually in unskilled labor, and are forbidden to work as priests. Today there are still about 15 priests in prison. There are theological students in training, though their number is of course inadequate. What weighs more heavily than numbers is the quality of the future priesthood, as there is an incredible lack of modern theological works available to them. Seminarians, together with the rest of the population, are "sheltered" from all contact with contemporary thought in the Catholic Church today, and in particular have no knowledge of the deliberations of the Vatican Council. They are held back in a nineteenth century climate of thought which has no relevance to the realities of life around them. The only religious periodical available to priesthood and laity is "The Spiritual Shepherd" which an authority on Czecho-Slovak affairs describes as "a mixture of timidity and weakness, full of self-deception and delusion." The reason for this-on the face of it, extraordinary-contrast between Poland and Czecho-Slovakia, is not hard to find. Today, owing to comparative religious indifferentism of the people which is very marked in Bohemia, less so in Slovakia, the Communist regime has no need to respect public opinion. Stella Musulin, correspondent for the London Herald and the St. Louis Review POLICE SEAROH RESIDENCE OF TWO BISHOPS Police searched the residences of two bishops in Czecho-Slovakia after they had been visited by tourists from the West, but found no "subversive material", accord- �SLOVAKIA ing to KNA, German Catholic news agency. The prelates are Auxiliary Bisshop Kajetan Matousek of Prague and Bishop Karel Otcenasek, apostolic administrator of Hradec Kralove, who had been released from confinement in 1963. KNA reported that all bishops who have been confined are under surveillance after their release. The news agency reported also that there are still 16 priests imprisoned in Czecho-Slovakia and that an unknown number of laymen are still in jail there because of their faith and religious activities. It was reported that 25 priests were imprisoned about six months ago. - (NCWC News Service ) HIGH TEENAGE DIVORCE According to a broadcast heard via Radio Prague, too many married couples, especially teenaged ones, are filing for divorce in Czecho-Slovakia. To stem the tide of divorce-seeking couples, a state commission has proposed establishing marriage advisory offices. The lack of savings and the scarcity of housing are given as the chief causes of early marriages ending in failure . In Prague, 28 % of all marriages end in divorce, while one in four goes on the rocks in the industrialized area of Northern Bohemia. In predominantly Catholic Slovakia, the divorce rate is less than 8% . - (NCWC New s Service) liN MiIDMORIAM Mother M . Pius, third Superior General of the Sisters of SS. Cyril and Methodius, who died on Sunday, May 15, 1966, was laid to rest in the community cemetery on Wednesday, May 18. Officiating at the funeral Mass was the Rt. Rev. Abbot Theodore 137 Kojis, O.S.B., M.A., Abbot of St. Andrew's Slovak Benedictine Abbey, Cleveland, Ohio. Mother M. Pius, during whose administration as Superior General of the Sisters of SS. Cyril and Methodius, St. Cyril Academy, Danville, Pa. was opened in 1922, passed away in her sleep on Sunday, May 15, at Maria Joseph Manor. Born in 1894 in Blakely, Pa., and b a p t i z e d in Holy Ghost Church, Olyphant, Pa., Mother M. Pius answered the call of Christ to follow Him in the religious life when she entered M a r y w o o d, Scranton, for the prescribed training. The Congregation of the Sisters of SS. Cyril and Methodius was only two years old at the time of her entrance and its pioneer Sisters received their religious training under the direction of the Sisters, Servants of the Immaculate Heart of Mary in Scranton. Mother M. Pius made her first profession of vows at Marywood in 1913. In the early struggling years of the Congregation, Mother M. Pius held important positions which she discharged with rare wisdom and charm. Despite her youth she was superior of the Jednota Home for orphans in Middletown in the early years when it also served as motherhouse for the Congregation. In 1922, shortly after the purchase of the Castle Grove estate in Danville, Mother M. Pius was elected third Superior General of the Congregation and served in that capacity for 12 years. That same year Villa Sacred Heart opened its doors as a boarding school for girls, known then as the First Catholic Slovak Girls High School. By 1930 it became necessary to expand. The beautiful St. �138 SLOVADA Cyril Academy on the hill was erected and its lofty tower has become a landmark in the montour area. During the administration of Mother M. Pius, St. Cyril Academy was accredited by the State Department of Education and its first commencement in 1926 were honored by the presence of five bishops, four of them from Slovakia. Meanwhile also the Congregation increased in membership and many new schools were opened. In the years that followed Mother M. Pius was principal and teacher in parish schools in New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania. Before her retirement last year Mother M. Pius was again superior at Jednota Home where she celebrated her Golden Jubilee in 1963. I Mother M. Pius was preceded in death by her sister, Sister M. I Philomena, who died at Jednota in 1920 and lies buried in the Community cemetery in Danville. She is mourned by three sisters, Mrs. Margaret Prokopovitsh and Cecile Yakubov, Washington, D.C. and Sister M. Constance, SS.C.M., music instructor at Andrean High School, Gary, Indiana, and many nieces and nephews. What Mother M. Pius has meant to the Sisters of SS. Cyril and Methodius is written not only in stone, but also, and more importantly, in the solid foundation of progress in the Congregation and in countless human hearts, both within the Community and without. Her deeds are recorded in history, the history of the Congregation, of the Church, and of the Slovak nation. May her great soul rest in peace. AS OTHERS SEE IT It was Monsignor Hlinka, who founded the Slovak People's Party and encouraged the Slovaks to strive for national recognition. Slovakia had long been submerged by foreign rule, but the spirit of the nation was preserved by the inspiring work of dedicated men. Monsignor Hlinka rose to prominence in Europe as a leading advocate of selfgovernment for Slovakia and all the other nations of Central-East Europe. The Wilsonian principle of self-determination provided a powerful stimulant to his work and for the cause of the Slovak people. It was in that spirit that he journied to Paris in 1919 with the hope of seeing President Wilson to plead the case of his people. While Monsignor Hlinka's hopes were not realized, his dedication and determination left an indelible mark on the life of the Slovak Congressman Michael nation. Feighan. The long-disputed Prague Pittsburgh Pact of May, 1918, which played a role in the creation of the Republic of Czechoslovakia after World War I, is no longer a political issue per se but the old hostility between Czechs and Slovaks, reflecting in part an alleged invalidation of the pact, continues under communism. The pact was agreed upon by representatives of the Slovak and Czech organizations in this country which met in the Moose Temple on Penn Avenue with T. G. Masaryk, who became the republic's first president. In the 47 years since the Czechoslovak Republic was proclaimed on Oct. 28, 1918, the Slovaks have �SLOVAIIA argued consistently that the terms of the pact were never fulfilled and that they have been unequaled partners in an unhappy political marriage. Of the 14 million people in this country, the Czechs outnumber the Slovaks more than two to one. But, of course, it does the Slovaks no good to complain. For now they are melded with the Czechs in the Czechoslovak Socialist Republic, which is a communist state and a full-fledged member of the Soviet bloc. And the Reds have not the slightest concern for any agreement negotiated in capitalist Pittsburgh. - Frank Hawkins PostGazete, Pittsburgh, Nov. 6, 1965. Czechs drink beer. Slovaks drink wine. And that's one of the instances where your connoisseur touring Slovakia would say, "Viva la difference!" - John F . McLeod, The Washington Daily News, June 15, 1965. It was shocking-three border gates, fences with double barbed wire, guns, brick cubicles and women in officer's uniforms checking cars. The landscape is bleak, devoid of trees, houses, cars. Prague is a gray city. The hotel where we stayed is their pride and joy-it's like a communal concentration camp. Those who protest the war against Communism should come here, and if they find it The Slovaks historically have agreeable, let them stay. - Candy looked of any Prague government Bergen, by Hedda Hopper, Daily with fishy eyes. - Ted Princiotto , News, November 16, 1965. The Plain Dealer, Cleveland, OctAfter the aborted Hungarian ober 17, 1965. Revolution of 1956, things seem to have simmered down in Russia's Zakamenny Klin, Slovakia "You took him away from us alive satelites and one could easily get . . . you have returned him to us the impression that most of the dead. The day of reckoning will anti-Communist yen to revolt has come. Then justice shall prevail." gone. The truth is that it seems quiescent only because it hasn't These were the words of a young found an outlet with any promise "Communist" at the grave of Bish- of success. op Jan Vojtassak and proved a fitIt took years to discover in the ting and dramatic climax in the West to what degree the Poles life and death of the venerated Slo- were ready to cut loose in October, vak warrior for justice, freedom, 1956, a few days before the Hunand truth. garians made their shots heard This unexpected tribute was around the world. Czechoslovakia, heard by 10,000 of Bishop Vojtas- at the time, was supposed to be sak's fellow countrymen. The youth plotting something which misfired. was supposed to list the prelate's Much later we learn that where"crimes." as the Czechs didn't make much of The Communist regime had plan- a fuss at the time, Slovak partisans ned to make the burial service raised Cain. The nation's four milquiet and private - instead, when lions Slovaks represent about one the word got out that the Slovak third of Czechoslovakia's 12 milprelate was to be buried from his lions Slavs. Slovak partisans battled Soviet native village church, the news spread like wildfire and overnight forces near Presov. Slovak partisans fought by the more than 10,000 gathered from all sides to pay their final respects to side of the Hungarian rebels. The C om mu n i s ts suppressed a national martyr who had remained unbowed to the end. - The news of all this at the time. If and Register, October 24, 1965. when the State Department ever �140 SLOVAKIA caught up with it, U. S. spokesmen - always considerate of Red sensibilities never bothered to mention it or rub it in. - Guy Richards, New York Journal-American, July 3, 1965. Mrs. Sloboda comes from Slovakia, which is the Church's stronghold in Czecho-Slovakia and which has shown the greatest resistance to the regime. There 60 per cent of the land is still in private hands, as compared to only 10 per cent in other regions. There, too, church attendance is still strong and there is an active religious tradition. Largely agricultural and mountainous, the remoteness has been an asset to the Church. A Communist functionary from Slovakia recently admitted in despair, "In Prague, they think Catholicism is finished. But in Slovakia, we see things differently. The faith is still strong there. We have to show much more tolerance to the Church. We can't work actively against it. " "You know, " Mrs. Sloboda explained to me, with an apology to her husband, "the Slovaks are quite d i f f e r e n t from the easy-going Czechs, who would rather accommodate themselves to the status quo than get into trouble. The Slovaks are toughened by the hard life in the mountains. " " Oh, yeah," protested her husband , "but don't forget how we threw the bottle-tossing hooligans out of church last Christmas, here in Prague! " Nevertheless, even in Slovakia, interest in religion is beginning to wane, and there has been a decline in church attendance among the youth. The rapid industrialization of the area will inevitably contribute to the secularization and estrangement from a predominantly peasant-orientated Catholicism. "In every village, just as in the rest of Czecho-Slovakia," said Mrs. Sloboda, "there are loudspeakers hanging over the square which are used for p r op a g a n d a purposes." - Adolph Schalk, The Sign, Decem- ber, 1965. Grim , tough, friendless Antonin Novotny of Czecho-Slovakia, detested by many Communists and by the population at large, especially in the chronically restless Slovak region, was already a ranking Party ogre in Stalin's day. He is a prime candidate for de-Stalinization at the first wrong move. Hal Lehrman, before The Committee on the Judiciary, United States Senate, 89th Congress, 1st Session. Planned extermination is facing Slovakia and other captive nations? In Slovakia all their leaders were either hanged, imprisoned, or exiled. 85,000 Slovak citizens were placed in labor and concentration camps. 20,000 known Slovaks were deported to the Soviet Union as slaves. Over 100,000 Slovak citizens of German ancestry were expelled to the Soviet Union. Over 120,000 Slovak citizens of Hungarian ancestry were expatriated. Over 600,000 Slovaks were forced to leave Slovakia and live in Bohemia and Moravia. - Alfred Korn, Jr., President, Americans to Free Captive Nations, Inc. New York, November 27, 1965. I frequently wonder what the people of the captive nations think of what the United States contemplates on doing. Do they sometimes begin to feel that we are abandoning them and that we do not care-that we want them to be subjects of the communists. There is a very interesting aspect about the Slovaks. In 1946 when the first vote was taken in Slovakia as to what type of government they should have, up in the mountain areas and in the land of the Slovaks the vote was about 65 % against the communists. They were the only group in the whole country of Czecho-Slovakia that voted against it. So I say that today you have given voice which should �SLOVAKIA be broadcast by the Voice of America. And the broadcast should be made in the Slovak language so that the Slovaks in the mountains and in the valleys will understand what is happening. We are challenged by the communists. We unhappily and unfortunately have in our midst many who say they are not a challenge to us, but the Slovaks know that they are. There is in the Old Testament in the Bible in the Book of Kings the story of the King who wanted the vineyard of one of his subjects. It is in Chapter 21 and this is how it reads: "And after these things, Naboth the Jezrahelite, who was in J ezrahel, had at that time a vineyard near the palace of Achab, the king of Samaria. And Achab the king spoke unto Naboth saying: Give me thy vineyard, that I may have me a garden of herbs, because it is near to my house, and I will give thee for it a better vineyard : or if you think it more good to thee, I will give thee the worth of it in money. And Naboth the subject said to Achab the king : The Lord forbith me that I should give the inheritance of my fathers unto thee." The Lord forbid that we should give the inheritance of our country and the United States on to the communists. And the Lord forbid the land of the Slovaks should pass unto the communists that now rule in Slovakia. - U.S. Senator Frank 141 freedom is restored to these valiant people and the other captive nations under communism. We must not only observe the historic national days on the floor of the House, but we should establish a Special Committee on Captive Nations to more forcibly bring the present plight of these unfortunate people to world attention. Another effective step the U.S. Government could take to show our interest in the Slovak people and their aspirations for freedom from communism would be lengthier and more effective broadcasts by the Voice of America which would pierce the wall of Communist propaganda and deliver the truth to the Slovak people. In recent years, Mr. Speaker, the Voice of America has cut back both its hours of broadcast in the Slovak language and the nature of these broadcasts. The VOA now has only straight news programs because of the present administration's fear of offending the Soviet Union. The Voice of America should instead be a vehicle for delivering the message of truth to the Slovak people so that they can resist the brainwashing of the constant propaganda from the tyrannical Moscow oppressors. - Edward J. Derwinski on the floor of the House of Representatives, March 14, 1966. Lausche. Mr. Speaker, today is the 27th anniversary of Slovak Independence Day, and on this historic occasion, I would like to pay tribute to the brave Slovak people who suffer today under the yoke of Communist tyranny. They are not permitted by their Red tyrants to publicly celebrate their national holiday. Therefore, we must rededicate ourselves to our efforts to see that Annual SLOVAKIA is published by the Slovak League of America, 313 Ridge Avenue, Middletown, Pennsylvania. Subscription $2.00. Editor: Dr. Joseph Pauco. �142 SLOVAXIA BOOK REVIEWS SLOVAK STUDIES III - CYRILLO-METHODIANA, Published by Slovak Institute, Rome, 1965, p. 224. The eleventh centenary of the arrival of the scholarly missionaries St. Cyril and Methodius among the Slavic tribes, called Sclavi Marahenses in Latin sources and Slovene or Sklavinoj in Eastern sources, was an occasion for Slavs to publish scores of studies in various languages. Slovaks, who claim to be among the heirs of the CyrilloMethodian tradition, were especially active on both sides of the Iron Curtain. Besides organizing huge celebrations in Rome, Canada and the U.S.A. and archeological exhibitions, Slovak scholars took part at the international Cyrillo-Methodian Conference in Salzburg, Austria, and contributed to various symposia either in Slovak or in foreign languages. The symposium under review contains contributions by Slovak scholars and writers who live in the free world. Expecting that the writings in Slovakia will necessary be subject to marxist criteria and political restriction, they undertook the task to present the Cyrillo-Methodian period to the Western scholars as they see it on the basis of Slovak pre-communist and foreign sources. The contributions written in English, French and German, deal with history (F. Hrusovsky, M. Lacko, J . Papin, A. Grebert, liturgy (M. Lacko and M. Rusnak), literature (J. M. Kirschbaum) and with the role of the CyrilloMethodian tradition in Slovak national and political life (J. M. Kirschbaum) . Since the Slovak erudities from the XVIIth century claimed great-Moravia and the activities of the scholarly missionaries for Slovaks and Moravians, the contributions in the symposium not only follow that tradition, but apparently try to substantiate the Slovak claims to the Cyrillo-Methodian heritage by compiling supporting evidence from the works of renown and less known slavists of many nations. The tendency to prove the "slovacity" of the Cyrillo-Methodian period or to defend the Slovak claims to the Great-Moravian heritage is common to all contributors to this third volume of Slovak Studies, but it is mainly the well documented account on the relations of the rulers of Great Moravia with Rome, written by the late Prof. F. Hru!iovsky, the German contribution on the ethnic composition of Great Moravia by A. Grebert and the French and English contribution by Prof. J . M. Kirschbaum on the Cyrillo-Methodian literature and tradition which may be of interest for Slavist who do not specialize in religious aspects. Contributions by Prof. M. Lacko, who is known as an expert in the Cyrillo-Methodian period and the articles by Prof. J. Papin, bishop M. Rusnak and I. Kondratovic are valuable especially from the Slovak point of view. Not all the contributions are of equal scholarly value and the volume is marked by the difficulty to edit a multi-lingual book: not only typographical errors but also linguistic deficiencies appear in the book quite frequently. This does not make, however, the volume without interest or value. Slavists might find it challenging in various aspects and by the same token worth reading. �SLOVAKIA U.3 The editors as well as the Slovak Institute and those who in other ways made the publication of the volume possible, deserve recognition for not allowing pass the 11th centenary of Slovak civilization without a written document. J. P. Jan Kollar-Slovak Poet of Panslavism, J. M. Kirschbaum, LL.D., Ph.D., Published by the Slovak Institute, Cleveland, 1966, 48pp., Ed. J . B. Rudnyc'kyj , Slavistica, LVI(56). Perhaps for the first time the ideas and their practical application in the Pan Slav movement of Jan Kollar, Slovak romantic poet and political philosopher, are presented in understandable language by the prolific historical and political writer, Dr. Joseph Kirschbaum. All students of history of the Slavic nations in central, southern and eastern Europe welcome this clear-cut view and analysis of one of the most complex characters in the Pan Slav movement in the first half of the 19th century. Kollar, the celebrated poet whose 'Slavy dcera' (Daughter of Slava) sonnets made him immortal in Slavdom, for personal and unknown reasons rejected the official central Slovak literary language of Stur and wrote in his own Slovak-Czech dialect he called 'stara slovencina' (the ancient language of the Slovaks). He was, therefore, in some respects both the forerunner of the political union of the Czechs and Slovaks who formed Czecho-Slovakia in 1918 and of the futile attempts of the Czechs to fuse the Slovak language into a synthetic Czechoslovak tongue. Nevertheless, in his day he was an outspoken champion of the Slovak colony in Budapest for many years. Although at first glance, Kollar's views on Panslavism calling for unity among all Slavs may appear to be a basis for a political union of all Slavic nations, a more careful look reveals that he regarded each to be but a tribe, nevertheless an individual ethnic entity with a right to its own language, state, etc., in a family of tribes belonging to one Slav nation! As a poet (Kollar's lyric and romantic works may be criticized from many angles by the experts), he excels in idealism, which is somewhat dimmed by the stark realism and cruelty of Slava, the goddess, who from her golden throne watches demons torturing the enemies and persecutors of the Slavs . . . a la Dante's Inferno. In Canto III of his Sonnet CX, Kollar turned prophet and a mighty good one, for he predicted the expansion of the Slavs like 'a mighty flood' and foresaw the day when the language of the Slavs would be spoken by their foes, and their sciences become manifest, as also their customs, dress and music on both sides of the Seine and the Danube. In the light of current history, we cannot, of course, rejoice in the modern Soviet imperialism that has reached the acme of Slavic power and prestige but only at the price of the enslavement of hundreds of millions of Slavs and non-Slavs, alike. Even for Kollar, who voices his wish to raise from his grave to behold the glory of the Slavs, the present would not be a glorious experience for the Slovak poet who envisioned a far different emergence of the Slavs would have sorrow and regret, not joy, in his heart were he a witness of the sad fate of Slavic nations today. �144 SLOVAKIA Dr. Kirschbaum shows that Kollar's Panslavism was hailed by the Russians, Czechs, Slovaks and the southern Slavs but was not at all acceptable to the Poles or Ukrainians who saw in it a form of Panrussianism . . . and as it has developed, they were right in their suspicions. On the national level, Kollar, writes Dr. Kirschbaum, played an important role in Slovak national revival by his linguistic theories, his poetry, publication of Slovak songs and his ideals of freedom. Undoubtedly, Jan Kollar will be the subject of many studies on the question of his political and linguistic theories, but despite efforts to make him a Czech poet because he wrote in his own pre-fabricated 'stara slovencina' medium which was his own personal invention in an attempt to arrive at a common language, and in spite of his rejection of Stu.r's central Slovak that was destined to become the official language of the Slovak nation, he was a Slovak poet in his own right. If his image as a Slovak poet is not altogether in focus, it is both because he moved in so many directions at one and the same time so that his picture is somewhat distorted, and the disturbing circumstances of his time, his condition, etc. At best, he was an erratic genius, and therefore, very difficult, if not impossible, to fully understand and appreciate. Nevertheless, his stature as a great Slovak poet continues to remain unimpaired. A. P. Frantisek Vnuk, Sedemnast' neurodnych rokov - Nacrt dejin slovenskej literatury v rokoch 1945-62, (Seventeen barren years -A Survey of Slovak Literature 1945-1962), Published by Slovak v Amerike, Middletown, Pa., 1965, p. 304, English summary. Slavists at various universities in the free world will receive in the present volume a first concise look at the postwar Slovak literature, and since there has been nothing published on the subject in English except a few articles in Slavic Studies and the anthology Linden Tree , which is in many ways a biased and unobjective presentation, the volume is longtime overdue. The English summary will make the book accessible also to those who do not read Slovak, which makes it even more welcome. The Slovak part of the book contains a rich source of information and remarkably well written aesthetic judgments on the literary value and ideological regimentation of the Slovak literature since the end of the Second World War. Vnuk places the works of Slovak poets and writers into the context of Slovakia's post-war upheavals, unprecedented persecutions for ideological deviations, censorship and social changes, and measures them against the moral and intellectual duties toward the Slovak people among whom writers and poets were always fighting for justice and national goals. The method used by the author does not follow the usual detached and impersonal ways of literary history and criticism, but it does not make this book less valuable for scholars or anyone interested in Slovak literature under Communism. On the contrary. The book presents a fresh, well written, scholarly sound and sincere look at the literary works and their authors and it is understandable that he condemned his country's deceit and desertion by her poets and writers who were always looked upon as intellectual leaders. �145 SLOVAKIA The seventeen barren years, as the author calls the post-war period in Slovak literature, are divided into four parts: The period of struggles (1945-1948), the period of the victory of socialism (19491951), the period of schematism and dogmatism , and the period of lost years (1956-1962) , In each of these periods Slovak literature was at the mercy of political commissars, who silenced the best writers and dictated literary subjects and criteria, and therefore one cannot but agree with the author that "these years will stand for a period for unheared of degradation in Slovak literary history - a veritable " temps du mepris" - with an unprecented decline in artistic values both qualitatively and quantitatively, when the writer became a stateemployed "engineer of human souls" and his standard was measured by the degree of his dedication to the political party line". (p. 259) . Since 1963, when the Slovak writers finall y dared to " rebel" against the straitjacket of regime's supervision and regimentation, Vnuk's harsh judgments were confirmed even in Slovak literary reviews, and therefore there is no reason to suspect him of "parti pris". Slovak literature was not only cut off the free world, but went also through the worst period of literary history in Slovakia and Vnuk's book intelligently mirrors all the tribulations, struggles, deficiences and intellectual dishonesty of some writers and the positive value of others. Vnuk reviewed in a short addition to his book also the literary works of the Slovak emigre writers and poets which will fill a gap in surveys of Slavic literatures in the free world. If the whole Slovak literature is a sort of "terra incognita" to many people in the West, the literary works of the Slovak emigre writers could not fare much better, though there are exceptions and in some instances Slovakia and her literature became known only through the writings of Slovak exiles. With regard to Slovakia, the author is maybe right when he says that "the 50 odd Slovak men of letters living on this side of the Iron Curtain kept the lights of Slovak culture burning while they went out in the writers' native country. This may sound emotional or sentimental, yet it is a sad truth that in the years 1950-55 there hardly appeared in Slovakia a single book worthy of reading. In those years indeed the emigre literature was the contemporary Slovak literature." The value of the volume is enhanced by a register of names, short bibliography and a brief note on the writer. It is to be regreted that the title of the book does not indicate that it is a survey of Slovak literature, but it is a minor shortcoming and can be repaired in distributing the English summary under a proper title. J . M. K irsc hbaum D ie Slow akei als Mittel europaisches Problem i n Geschichte und Gegenwart, (Slovakia as Central European Problem in the Past and Present) , Lectures at Collegium Carolinum, Verlag Robert Lerche, Mtinchen, 1965, p. 240. The prominent German institution Collegium Carolinum in Munich organized in August 1962 a series of lectures on Slovakia's past and present place in Central Europe, and published six of them in the present volume as a contribution to the research on problems of �146 SLOVAKIA Central Europe. The lectures cover over eleven centuries of Slovakia's history and while they are not of equal scholarly value, they are all shedding a new light on various periods of Slovak history, including the present one under Communism. Three of the lectures were given by Slovak intellectuals living in Western Europe: Prof. F. f>urcansky deals with Pan-Slavism and the role of Slovakia in this movement; Prof. Milan Stan. f>urica of the University of Padova gives the results of his scholarly research into the crisis of March 1939 and on the basis of documents he corrects various misconceptions about the origin of the Slovak republic; Ctibor Pokorny writes about the attitude of Slovaks towards Communism. The lectures by Prof. f>urcansky and Prof. Durica are well documented and scholarly written contributions to two controversial topics of historiography on Slovakia. Abundance of sources referred to, and logical conclusions which characterize both contributions, will perhaps help to clear at least partly the controversy and misconceptions of some Western historians. For students of Central European problems two other lectures might be of great interest: von Gogolak's lecture on Slovakia's social and constitutional history and Kurt Wessely's learned analysis of Slovakia's economic and social problems since World War I. Both authors are experts in their fields, but their contributions are bound to lead to a controversy either from the Slovak or from the Czech side. While Slovaks could be hurt by some of Gogolak's harsh judgements of their leaders in the remote or recent past, the Czechs might oppose the picture which Prof. Wessely has drawn about Slovakia's economic development under the Czech tutelage. The well documented account of the development of the national consciousness among Slovaks by Prof. Gogolak somehow contrasts in his conclusions not only with his previous works on Slovakia, but it also seems to be in clash with the requirements of scholarly impartiality. Except for a few Slovaks of the "Czechoslovak" orientation hardly any educated Slovak would leave unchallenged certain parts of Prof. Gogolak's picture of modern Slovak history. Unfortunately, this is not the place to go into detail or to show where Prof. Gogolak's lecture is marked rather by emotional than by objective analysis, and where the historian wandered into politics. While this is to be regretted, this reviewer is of the opinion that the scholarly lecture might serve on the other hand a very useful purpose, if Slovak intellectuals will properly react. The introductory lecture by Karl Bosl on the mission of Sts. Cyril and Methodius and its place in Rome's Church organization is a learned summary of the older and the most recent research into the GreatMoravian period, with some new hypotheses. Scholarly sound and without bias, the lecture will remain as a tribute from the German side to the 11th centenary of the Cyrillo-Methodian mission among the ancestors of today's Slovakia, which was commemorated in 1963 by Slovaks on both sides of the Iron Curtain. The volume was edited with great care and should be welcome as a valuable contribution to the research into and solution of the unsolved Slovak problem in Central European area. J. M. Kirschbaum �SLOVAKIA 147 National Slovak Society Almanac for the year 1966 - Narodny Americko-Slovensky Kalendar na rok 1966, Vol. 74, Pittsburgh, Pa., 240 pp., Edited by Jan Mihal. The first 70 pages of this year's National Slovak Society annual are in the English language . . . the rest in Slovak. This, then, is an edition designed for both young and old readers in one or both languages. In addition to their duties as members of the NSS Literary Committee, headed by Dr. Peter Hletko, M.D. as president, which compiled the bi-lingual almanac, all (Msgr. M. K. Mlynarovic, K. Belohlavek, John Pankuch [NSS President, and the editor, Jan Mihal] contributed informative and inspiring articles to this year's publication of the oldest Slovak fraternal group in America. Tribute is paid to Peter Rovnianek (1867-1933), NSS founder, on the eve of the centennial of his birth as a great American Slovak humanitarian. The following contributors are found in the English section: John Pankuch, Jan Mihal, Mary Burns, Dr. Peter Hletko, M.D., Dr. Stephen Hletko, DDS., Rosalie Gona, S. Ullman and Karol Kuzmany. Although a major part of the section is devoted to a review of NSS activities, particularly bowling, the rest gives the reader an idea of the possibilities of expanding the subject matter into a more serious sphere for better comprehension of vital issues in American Slovak life. While members of the NSS Literary Committee were called upon to do double duty by contributing articles to the Slovak section, too, the following writers made their contributions of interesting articles to the 1966 NSS Almanac: John Pankuch, E. Vesnin, Lado Demeter, Jozef Steller, Msgr. M. K. Mlynarovic, Dr. Peter Hletko, M.D., K. Holicsky, Peter Klas, Rev. Andrej Rolik, Dr. A. P. Slabey, 0. M. Debnarkin, A. Rybiansky, Dr. Jan Fabianek, Rosalie Gona, Stefan Hassik, Jozo Trnavcan, J. Horsky, J. T. Sulovsky, K. Belohlavek. In some respects the tone of the current Almanac is an ecumenical one, e.g., Dr. Slabey's article on Jan Hus. Hus' successful bid to reverse the 3-1 German preponderance in voting at Charles University to a domestic Czech 3-1 majority was confirmed by royal decree ... this democratic procedure is the only one that will finally bring peace and understanding between the Czech and Slovak nations, namely, the recognition of the right of the Slovak nation to self-rule, for the principle of human and natural rights to freedom is the same today as it was in Hus' time. A. P. Jednota Annual Furdek, 1966, Middletown, Pa., vol. 5, 160 pp., Joseph Krajsa, editor. Inaugurated by the late Philip A. Hrobak, editor of the Jednota weekly, five years ago in an effort to reach the younger generation of American Slovaks, the FURDEK annual is continuing under his successor, Mr. Joseph C. Krajsa. It is a worthwhile effort, inasmuch as our Slovak youth would otherwise lose all interest in its heritage because �148 SLOVAKIA the third and fourth generation no longer speaks or reads the Slovak language. The contents of the current issue cover a variety of subjects from the following writers: Bishop Andrew Grutka, D.D., Abbot Theodore Kojis, O.S.B., J. C. Krajsa, J. Pfeiffer, A. Sarisky, Dr. J. Kirschbaum, Ph.D., LL.D., Very Rev. Theodoric Zubek, O.F.M., S.T.D., C. Petrasek, J . J. Konus, A. Koto, and S. Sencik, S.J. Feature article is 'The Joe Lapchick Story' about the great basketball player and coach from Yonkers, N. Y. The ex-Celtic star and successful coach at St. John's University ranks among the greatest American Slovak athletes. Lead-off review of the Jednota's diamond jubilee in 1965 is given in capsule form by Dr. Jozef Pauco, Ph.D., author of the 560-page history of the First Catholic Slovak Union (75 rokov Prvej Katolickej Slovenskej Jednoty: 1890-1965) is supplemented by pictorial highlights of the jubilee observance, particularly the celebration in Washington, D. C. Oldtimers such as Dr. M. v_ Simko and Rev. A. Pier, O.S.B. have a number of contributions in this 5th issue of the Jednota annual, the Furdek, in the English language. A brief historical review of the Slovak Benedictines in the U. S. and the Slovak Jesuits in Canada completes the 1966 edition of the Furdek. Both foundations constitute only part of the story of the Slovak Religious Orders in the new world. Future issues of this novel publication will undoubtedly cover the history of the others, namely, the Slovak Franciscans, as well as the Sisters of SS. Cyril and Methodius, the Franciscan Sisters, the Dominican Sisters, the Benedictine Sisters, the Sisters of the Most Holy Saviour, the Consolers of the Sacred Heart, and the Vincentian Sisters. A. P. PUBLICATIONS RECEIVED Rekem John, Stefan Dubnicay - Slovak Polemist and Historian (1675-1725), Middletown, Pa., 1966, p. 80. Slovak Literature and National Consciousness before Anton Bernolcik, Jednota Printery, Middletown, Pa. 1964. Kirschbaum, J. M., Jcin Kollar-Slovak Poet of Panslavism, Stavistica No. 56, Slovak Institute, Cleveland, Ohio, 1966, p. 48. The Role of the Cyrillo-Methodian Tradition in Slovak National and Political Life, An Offprint from Slovak Studies Ill. Rome, 1965 La Litterature de la period CyrilLo-Methodienne et la Slovaquie, An Offprint from Slovak Studies III, Rome, 1965. Vnuk, Frantisek, Sedemncist' neurodnych rokov (Ncicrt slov enskej A Survey of Slovak Literature 1945-1962, literatury 1945-1962) Published by Slovak v Amerike, Middletown, Pa., p. 304, English summary, register. �SLOVAKIA 149 CONTRIIBUTORS Prof. Dr. J. M. Kirschbaum. Born in a small Slovak village on March 25, 1913 and lost his father in the First World War. Dr. J. Kirschbaum is a prominent representative of the new Slovak educated class, whose many members made a long way from the Slovak villages to European and American capitals, forei gn universities, diplomatic posts and teaching positions by their own diligence, capabilities and perseverance, fighting against many odds and staunch and unscrupulous adversaries of the Slovak cause. Educated at several European universities, Dr. Kirschbaum attained national prominence already during his university studies as leader of the Slovak student's organizations, Vice-President of the world-wide Catholic organization Pax Romana and speaker for the autonomy of Slovakia on behalf of the young Slovak generation. When only 26 years old, he was appointed by the President of the Slovak Republic and later elected to the responsible post of Secretary-General of the People's Party, founded by Msgr. A. Hlinka . After opposing the introduction of National Socialism into Slovakia, he was ousted in 1940 from Slovak politics and for 18 months kept in military service. In 1941 he was, however, back in public life and, as the youngest head of diplomatic mission, he served his country in Switzerland as Charge d'Affaires of the Slovak Republic. In that capacity he represented Slovakia until the end of the war, fighting relentlessly for Slovakia's right to independence and against the false propaganda of the Czech exiles and their anti-Slovak aspirations. After the war Dr. Kirschbaum very soon became one of the leading personalities of the Slovak movement for a free and independent Slovakia . He moved to Canada , for a short time to the United States and again to Canada , where he dedicated his time and energy to teaching at Canadian Universities writing and fighting for the Slovak cause. Besides a book in Slovak Nas boj o samostatnost' Slovenska, Dr. Kirschbaum published in exile the first scholarly English book on political history and cultural background of Slovakia under the title: Slovakia - Nation at the Crossroads of Central Europe (New York, 1960) . The book was r ~viewed by the foremost academic periodicals in England, U.S.A., Canada and Europe and mostly favorably received by the critics. On cultural problems Dr. Kirschbaum published a series of studies in French and English, four of them (on Bernolak, St11r, Safarik and Kollar) were published in the series Slavistica, edited by the known slavist Prof. J . B. Rudnyckyj from the University of Manitoba. His essays on Slovak language and literature were published in French and English first by University periodicals and later in offprint form . His political writings appeared in English, French , German and Spanish. Altogether Dr. Kirschbaum published 15 writings in foreign languages either in book form or as reprints, and contributed larger articles to Canadian Slavonic Papers (Univ. of Toronto) , Etudes slaves et esteuropeennes (Univ. of Montreal ), Rivista de Estudios politicos (Madrid) , Slovakia (Middletown, Pa.), Slowakei (Munich, Germany). Most ( Cleveland, Ohio) , to various symposia, encyclopedias and newspapers. All the writings of Dr. Kirschbaum are marked, according to the critics, by clarity of style, logic, scholarly objectivity and solid knowledge as well as his �150 SLOVAKIA firm belief in the rightness and victory of the Slovak cause. Once an excellent student of internat• ional law and political science, Dr. Kirschbaum turned in exile to his• tory and culture of his country and Central Europe and defends the right of the Slovak people to independence on account of their old culture and civilization. He presents Slovakia to the free world in a new light and always within a new, democratic organization of Central Europe. For his uncompromising stand towards those who tried or try to deny equal rights to the Slovak people, Dr. Kirsch b a u m was persecuted already during his uni• versity years. A Czech rector of the University of Bratislava refus• ed to give him, for political reasons, the doctor's diploma, even though Kirschbaum finished all his exams with excellent results. The Germans turned against the young Secretary-General as soon as they noticed that he opposed German interference in Slovak politics, and Berlin asked the Slovak Government not only to remove Dr. Kirschbaum from Slovak politics, but his name was not supposed to appear in any newspaper. "If it does", wrote the German Ambassador to Slovakia in 1940, "I shall ask to forbid the publication of the newspaper." ialist newspapers. A new smear campaign was organized against Dr. Kirschbaum when he moved to the United States. The most un• scrupulous and immoral campaign was, however, unleashed against him by Communist Prague and some Czech exiles in Canada dur· ing the Spring and Summer of 1962. In all those smear campaigns, not only in serious Slovak circles, but also the authorities of the countries he lived in, clergy and many newspapers and politicians were on the side of Dr. Kirschbaum, and he was fully vindicated. munist adversaries of the Slovak struggle for independence and de• mocracy turned, however, against Dr. Kirschbaum, especially after the Second World War. Even though he spent the war years in neutral Switzerland and was known to oppose Nazism, the Communist government of Prague requested his extradition from Switzerland. When the Swiss Government refused , the Czech diplomats and propagandists tried to compromise Dr. Kirschbaum by publishing smear and ludicrous accusations in the Swiss Communist and Soc• and Methodius, whose motherhouse is in Danville, Pennsylvania, was a graduate of St. Cyril Academy and obtained her B.A. degree from Marywood College, Scranton, Pa. , and her M.A. from Villanova University, Villanova, Pa. She is the author of two books : Dr. Kirschbaum is married to Magdalena Danihel, daughter of the late Slovak politician and member of Parliament Stefan Danihel, has four children of whom two graduated at Canadian universities and one of them, Stanislav, works on his Ph.D. at the Sorbon• ne, Paris, on scholarship. Dr. Kirschbaum has been since the war leading figure of the Slovak Nat• ional Council Abroad, Slovak Li• beration Council, member of many Slovak cultural and civic organiz. ations in the U.S.A. and Canada, member or officer of leading social clubs and academic organizat• ions and editorial boards. Martina Tybor, Si ster M., B.A., M.A. , of the Sisters of SS. Cyril The furor of the Czech and Com• SS. Cyril and Methodius, the Glory of the Slav s, for young adults, and SS. Cyril and Methodius , Apostles of Great Moravia, for children. She has done outstanding work in Slo• vak-English translations, notably of Slovak classic poetry. Her own poems have appeared in Spirit, �SLOVAKIA publication of the National Catholic Poetry Society. Her odes, written for various Jubilee occasions, have appeared in Fialky, St. Cyril Academy annual. At present Sister M. Martina is head of the English department at Andrean High School, Gary, Indiana. Zatko, James J., Ph.D .., Rev., received an M.A. and Ph.D. from the University of Notre Dame. Under sponsorship of Ford Fellowships he studied at Harvard in 1954-1955 and at the Catholic University of Lublin in 1958. He was also the recipient of an Association of Middle Eastern Studies Fellowship in 1962. He is assistant professor of history at the University of Notre Dame. His book Descent Into Darkness - The Destruction of the Roman Catholic Church in Russia 1917-1923, was published by Notre Dame University. Joseph Pauco, born in 1914 in Slovakia. At the Slovak University in Bratislava he received his Ph.D. in 1942. A journalist by profession, he worked with the influential daily SLOVAK from 1938 to 1945, serving as editor-in-chief from 1942 to 1945. In 1945 fled with his wife and son to Austria, then to West Germany; and finally made his way to New York City in 1950. J. Pauco is serving since 1950 as assistant editor of the weekly JEDNOTA and from 1964 he is the publisher of the oldest Slovak newspaper in this country: SLOVAK V AMERIKE. He is serving for third term as the secretary of the Slovak League of America. J. Pauco is associated with American Academy of Political and Social Science, with Institute of Ethnic Studies at Georgetown University, is a member of the Slovak Institute in Cleveland, 0. 151 and of the Slovak Writers and Artists Association in the USA. He is the author of some 1000 articles, published in Slovakia and in the USA. Dr. Joseph Pauco is the author of these books and studies: .Cudovychova u sturovcov (Stur's Movement - Popular Education ). Matica slovenska. Turciansky Sv. Martin, 1943. Pp. 151. Co po komunizme? (After Communism What?) . Jednota , Middletown, Pa., 1952. Pp. 29. Dr. Jozef Tiso o sebe (Dr. Joseph Tiso About Himself) . Slovensky Katolicky Sokol, Passaic, N. J., 1952. Pp. 359. (Ed.) Tisov odkaz (Tiso's Message). Jednota. Middletown, Pa., 1953. Pp. 89. Stefan Furdek a slovenske prist'ahovalectvo ( Stefan Furdek and Slovak Immigration) . Jednota, Middletown, Pa., 1955. Pp. 190. Slovaci a komunizmus (The Slovaks and Communism) . Rev. Jan Lach. Whiting, Ind., 1957. Pp. 318. Pod zastavou krest'anskej demokracie (Under the Banner of the Christian Democracy) . Slovenski krest'anski demokrati v Spojenych Statoch. Middletown, Pa., 1957. Pp. 30. Slovenskd re hol'a Sestier sv. Cyrila a Metoda (Slovak Order of the Sisters of Ss. Cyril and Methodius) . Slovensky .Zensky Spolok Sv. Anny. Wyoming Valley, Pa., 1957. Pp. 32. Unconquerables. Vantage Press, New York, N. Y., 1958. Pp. 225. Matus Jankola - knaz a narodovec (Matus Jankola - A Priest and Patriot) . Rad Sestier sv. Cyrila a Metoda. Danville, Pa., 1959. Pp. 174. Literarny Almanach Slovaka v Amerike (Literary Almanac of the " Slovak in America") . Middletown, Pa., 1959, 1960, 1961, 1962, 1963, 1964, 1965, 1966. Pp. 160 each, last one pp. 168. (Ed.) �152 SLOVAKIA Christian Slovakia Under ComDr. Victor R. Greene, Professor munism. The Slovak Catholic Fede- of American History at the Kan- ration. Valparaiso, Indiana, 1959. sas State University, Manhattan, Pp. 31. Kansas, received his B.A. degree Pamiatke Jozefa Cigra Hronske- from the University of Harvard in ho (In Memoriam Jozef Ciger 1955; his M.A. degree from the Hronsky) . Literarny Almanach Slo- University of Rochester in 1960; vaka v Amerike. Middletown, Pa., and his Ph.D. from the University of Pennsylvania in 1963. His dis1960. Pp. 46. (Ed.) sertation for his Ph.D. was: A HisLaicky apostol Martin Kopunek tory of East European Immigrants (Lay Apostle - Martin Kop(mek). in the Anthracite Area before Vychodna oblast' Sdruzenia Slo- 1903. It is a study of the contribvenskych Katolikov. Bethlehem, ution Slovaks and others made to Pa., 1961. Pp. 67 (Ed.) the unions in the coal fields and Karol Sidor - politik, novinar, the aid to President Johnny Mitspisovatel' (Karol Sidor - Politi- chell and the United Mine Workers cian, Newspaperman, and Writer). of America. Dr. Greene in his Literarny Almanach Slovaka v thesis elaborates that it was beAmerike. Middletown, Pa., 1962. cause of the loyalty and sacrifice of Slovak mine workers that the Pp. 148 (Ed.) union was permanently establishPat'desiatnik Dr. Jozef Kirsched in the hard coal fields. baum (Dr. Jozef Kirschbaum In his present research, ProfesFifty Years Old). Literarny Almanach Slovaka v Amerike. Middle- sor Greene is making a study of the origins of Slovak and East town, Pa., 1963. Pp. 171. (Ed.) European American self-consciousFlight to Wonderland. Robert ness and why by World War I Speller and Sons, New York, N. Y., every Slovak immigrant realized 1963. Pp. 334. such a strong feeling of his ethnic 75 rokov Prvej Katolickej Slo- heritage. Dr. Greene, who · has learned to venskej Jednoty (75 Years of the First Catholic Slovak Union). Prva read and understand Slovak, is Katolicka Slovenska Jednota, Cle- familiar with the cultural and hisveland, 0., 1965. Pp. 560 & XIV. torical material available at the Jankola Library in Danville, Pa., 80 pages of pictures. the Slovak Institute Library in Slovakia. Slovak League of AmerCleveland, Ohio, and the facilities ica. Middletown, Pa., 1965, 1966. Pp. in Pittsburgh, Pa. and Chicago, 160. (Ed.) Illinois. Joseph R . Kristofik received his B.S. in Science from the University of Pittsburgh in 1949. His education includes several years at the United States Merchant Marine Academy in Kings · Point, N. Y., and at the Detroit College of Law. Mr. Kristofik is presently the Slovak Democratic Chairman for the State of Michigan with the Michigan Democratic Nationalities Division. At its 40th Convention at Youngstown, Ohio, he was elected to the executive committee of the Slovak League of America. Tino Berko was born in Slovakia, fled to the West in 1952. He studied philosophy and the history of music and art at Munich University; is a writer and lecturer; resides in Munich, Germany. Very Rev . Theodoric J. Zubek, O.F.M., S.T.D., Slovak by birth, American by adoption, is presently Delegate Provincial of the Franciscans of the Most Holy Savior Commissariat, popularly known as the Slovak Franciscans. �SLOVAKIA He resides at the motherhouse of the Commissariat, Holy Family Friary, 232 S. Home Avenue, Pittsburgh, Penna. 15202. 153 jects were published during this time in various Slovak periodicals, such as "Serafinsky svet" (The Seraphic World), "Slovensky ucitel'" (The Slovak Teacher), "Smer" Father Theodoric was born in ( Direction), and "Nova praca " Malacky, Slovakia, April 4, 1914, (New Work) . and came to the United States on February 21, 1952; he became an This activity came to an end on American citizen on June 5, 1957. April 13, 1950, when the ComHe received his primary education munist government of Czecho-Sloin the schools of his native Ma- vakia supressed all monasteries. lacky while his secondary studies Father Theodoric was confined were taken at the Gymnasium of with his Franciscan confreres in Bratislava, 1925-1929, and Skalica, the concentration monastery of 1930-1934, in Slovakia. He entered Svaty Benadik nad Hronom. After the Franciscan Order in 1929 and escaping from the concentration made his novitiate in Trnava. He monastery, he remained in hiding took his theological studies at the in Slovakia until February 1951, Seminaries in Zagreb, Croatia, and when he secretly crossed the borin his native Slovakia at Brati- der into Austria. In February, slava. He was ordained to the 1952, he joined his Slovak Amepriesthood in Bratislava on June rican brethren of the Most Holy 26, 1938. After his ordination, Fa- Savior Commissariat, the American ther Theodoric began his studies foundation of the mother province for the doctorate in sacred theo- in Slovakia. logy at the Catholic University of After a short sojourn in TrauFribourg, Switzerland. On October 28, 1940, the Fribourg University ger, Penna., Father Theodoric was conferred on him the degree of stationed for seven years at the Doctor of Sacred Theology with Franciscan parish of SS. Cyril and Methodius in Clifton, New Jersey. the mark "magna cum laude". From 1956 to 1960 he taught SacUpon his return to his home- red Theology at the Newark and land and Franciscan Province in Jersey City divisions of Seton Hall Slovakia, Father Theodoric was University. In 1960 he was named named to the faculty of the Fran- pastor of the Franciscan parish of ciscan Theological Seminary at 2i- St. Rita in Buffalo, N. York, where lina in 1941, a post he held until he stayed till 1964. In 1961, he 1950. During this time he also serv- became Councillor to the Delegate ed at intervals as the Rector of Provincial of the Most Holy Savthe seminary, a Definitor of the ior Commissariat, and in 1964 the Franciscan Province, and Guard- Delegate Provincial of the said ian of the Franciscan Friary in Commissariat. 2ilina. In 1942, he published his doctoral thesis, "Joseph II and the In America, Father Zubek freFriars Minor in Slovakia". In 1945, quently spoke on the persecuted he translated E. Neubert's "Mon Church in Slovakia to various ideal Jesus, fils de Marie" (Moj groups in Slovak and American ideal Jezis, Syn Mariin) into Slo- parishes. He made an appearance vak. With Father Celestin Lepa- before the House Committee on cek, O.F.M., he co-authored a book Un-American Activities conceron the Assumption of the BL Vir- ning the operations of the Comgin, "Nanebevzata" (Mary Assum- munists in Slovakia. In 1956, his ed into Heaven), published in scholarly and well-documented 1947. Numerous articles of his on book on the systematic persecutboth theological and ascetical sub- ion of the Church in Slovakia was �154 SLOVAKIA published by Rev. John Lach. It is entitled "The Church of Silence in Slovakia". Since 1954 he began to contribute articles to leading national Catholic magazines such as "The Homiletic and Pastoral Review", "The American Ecclesiastical Review", "The Jurist, Unitas", "The Catholic Educator" and "The Marian Era". In these articles, he dealt with a variety of subjects, such as, the Communist persecution of the Church in Slovakia and other lands, the theory of Darwin, the morality of nuclear warfare, the possibility of living creatures on other planets, the Blessed Mother and Vatican II. Some of these articles attracted wide attention. In addition, he has contributed articles to such Slovak papers and magazines as "Most" (The Bridge ), "Dobry Pastier" (The Good Shepherd), "Jednota" (The Union), "Katolicky Sokol" (The Catholic Sokol) , "Slovak v Amerike" (The Slovak in America), "Kanadsky Slovak" (The Canadian Slovak) and "Literarny almanach Slovaka v Amerike" (The Literary Almanac of the Slovak in America) . He is a regular writer for the Slovak Franciscan Magazine "Listy sv. Franfilka" (The Leaflets of St. Francis) , for which he served as editor from 1958 to 1962. In 1963 he published a booklet entitled "The Slovak Bishops - Martyrs of Christ", and in 1965, " Rozjimania o tajomstvach sv. ruzenca" (Meditations on the Mysteries of the Holy Rosary) . The Commissariat of the Most Holy Savior, headed presently by Father Theodoric, has fifty members stationed in five monasteries and two parishes. be appropriate to present the views of an American university graduate of Slovak descent. Very Rev. Msgr. John Rekem, S.T .D. , Born December 13, 1917 in Trencianska Tepla, Msgr. John Rekem receited his early education in Trencin rand Nitra. For his philosophical and theological studies he ,w ent to Olomouc in Moravia. This was followed by four years at the Bratislava Istropolitana University. He was ordained in 1941 and two years later he received his doctorate in Sacred Theology. As curate he served in Hricove, Vel'ke Chlievany, Trencin, Pruske, and Varin; in the last named parish he was also administrator. In 1945 he was imprisoned by the Communists for almost eight months in a concentration camp in Trencin. He was released by an order of the People's court (No. T. 29/ 45) in December 1945. Two years later his name was registered for the so-called September liquidations, but he emigrated to Austria, leaving Slovakia on the feast of Our Mother of Sorrows, September 15, 1947. In Salzburg he was spiritual director of the Slovak Catholic refugees, for whom he established the Federation of Slovak Catholics and organized ia series of eight retreats in various cities of Austria. He was spiritual advisor of the League of Slovak Catholic Students in Exile. At home and abro,ad he h e l d Suzanna Mikula is a graduate of membership in leading Slovak or- the University of Detroit, specializing in history of Europe. Since last year not only Slovaks but also slavists of various countries commemorated the 150th birthday of L'udovit Stur, we thought it would ganizations: Society of St. Adalbert and its Literary Division; Matica Slovenska at home and abroad; the First Catholic Slovak Union; Society of Slovak Catholic Intellec- �155 SLOVAKIA tuals in Rome; and for a time he was a member of the Slovak National Council in Exile and of the Liberiation Oommittee. Msgr. Rekem crune to Winnipeg, Canada, in 1949, where he established a Slovak Catholic parish. With the help of his ever-faithful parishioners he built a church, a rectory and a hall in 1952, which were free of debt by 1965. Active in Canadi an public life he has long been associated with the New Canadians Council and the Citizenship Council. He served as chaplain to the Fourth Degree Assembly Tache, St. Boniface, Manitoba, in 1958. At present he is a member and a faithful friar of the Miles McDonnell Fourth Degree Assembly in Winnipeg. In Trencin he was co-editor of Trencan, 1942-1945. He contributed articles to: Slovak, Slovenska Pravda; Trencan; Misijne Hlasy; the Misijny Kalendar of the Society of the Divine Word. He was a contributor also to the periodicals: Smer; 1 Kultura; Duchovny Pastier; Katolicke Kazne; Nova Praca. In Amer- ica his works have appeared in Jednota; Zenska Jednota; Sloven- sky Katolicky Sokol; Slovak v Amerike; Slovenska Obrana; Slo-vaki a; Kalendar Jednota; Literarny Almanach; Rim; Hlasy z Rima; Ave Maria; Kanadsky Slovak; Most; etc. In Canada he wrote for the Manitoba Ensign; Western Sunday Visitor; Sunday Herald; St. Joseph's Residence News. In Winni- peg in 1949 he compiled and issued an English syndicated news and information service twice a week for the local English press. Many of his releases on the Slovaks were printed in the Ensign, Winnipeg Free Press, Winnipeg Citizen, and W i nnipeg Tribune. He is the author of twenty-five short studies on the history of Slovak cultural events of the past, and noteworthy and scholarly works depicting the evolution and growth of the Slovak language. He is a member of the Slovak Institute of Cleveland and th e Bernolak Foundation, and serves as a committee member in each. He was elevated to the rank of Monsignor on March 11, 1964 by His Holiness, Pope Paul VI and is now resident pastor of the Church of the Visitation in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. WHO'S WHO AMONG SLOVAIKiS ]N U.S.A. Rt. Rev. Msgr. Francis J. Dubosh, tion in June to September, 1916, P . A ., was born in Cleveland, Ohio, on September 27, 1890, a son of Charles and Mary Dubosh. There are no close surviving relatives, except for cousins in Cleveland, Pittsburgh, and New York. He was ordained on June 3, 1916 at St. John's Cathedral by the Most Rev. John P. Farrelly. He was in the last class to be ordained which received its complete seminary training at Old St. Mary's Seminary on 1800 Lakeside. Assignments: - From ordina- on temporary assignments; September, 1916, Assistant at St. Wendelin Parish, Cleveland, Ohio; December, 1917, Pastor, Holy Name Parish, Youngstown, Ohio; February, 1922, Pastor, Our Lady of Mercy Parish, Cleveland, 0 hi o; October, 1927, Pastor, SS. Cyril and Methodius Church, Lakewood, Ohio. Positions: - Named a Domestic Prelate with the rank of Rt. Rev. Msgr., on November 11, 1934 the first American-Slovak priest in the United States so honored; October 16, 1955, given rank of �156 SLOVAKIA Protonotary Apostolic - also the first American-Slovak Msgr. in the United States so honored; 19341938, Diocesan Prosynodal Judge; 1938 to date, Diocesan Consultor; 1952 to date, Diocesan Cemetery Board; and 1944-1951, Diocesan Buildin g Commission. Extra parochial and diocesan accomplishments:-Supreme Chaplain of the First Catholic Slovak Union (Jednota), 1932-1937 ; President of the Slovak League of America, 1943-1945; Member of Executive Board of Slovak League of America since 1945; President of the Slovak Catholic Federation of America, 1937-1938; one of the founders of: - Cleveland Slovak Radio Club, Slovak Professional and Businessmen's Association, member of Executive Committee to establish Slovak Culture Garden in Cleveland, Ohio, and instrumental in establishing SS. Cyril and Methodius Parish in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, in 1935; chairman of fund-raising committee for the establishment of Benedictine High School, Cleveland, Ohio; and worked with Catholic Resettlement Council for placing displaced persons in Diocese of Cleveland after post-war years. John Sabol is executive secretary of the First Catholic Slovak Union of the U.S.A. To Slovaks the First Catholic Slovak Union is familiarly known as "Jednota." That means union. Sabol is "Mr. Jednota" to the Jednotars. He has been executive secretary for 40 years. Previously, he served s e v e n years as supreme auditor. Said he: "This has been my career. " Sabol, son of a railroad section hand forman, was born in a shanty in Hillsboro, Pa., on part of what is now the Pennsylvania Turnpike. He received most of his schooling at Lyndora, Pa. At 15 he carried water when the Ft. Wheel Works was built. Later, he was a railroad car builder at McKees Rocks, Pa. He studied accounting at night at Duquesne University, became auditor for the society and was elected secretary in 1926. Sabol and his wife, Elizabeth, had f o u r children: Mrs. Helen Wells of Barberton, O.; Mrs. Joan Lang; Betty, deceased, and John J., a Medical Doctor. Judge John J . Sirotnak, born in Olyphant, Pa., October 12, 1901, of parents Michael and Susanna Sirotnak. Moved to Throop, Pa., in 1903, where he attended public schools and was graduated in June 1917. Worked in coal mines from 1917 to 1919. Attended Mansfield State Teachers' College, Sept. 1919, and graduated in 1921. He taught in Borough Schools of Throop 1921- 1928. Resigned as principal of the Jefferson School to enter University of Illinois in 1928, where he obtained his B. A. degree in 1930 and his Law Degree in 1932. Successfully completed Bar examination on October 24, 1932 and has practiced law in Scranton, Pa. , since. County Solicitor of Lackawanna County Institution District from 1938 to 1960, the first Slovak Attorney to be so honored. General Counsel of the First Catholic Slovak Union from 1944 to 1960. Judge Orphans' Court of Lackawanna County since June 17, 1960, Wife: Susan. Sons: Joseph and John, Medical Doctor and Attorney-at-Law. Member of Executive Committee of the Slovak League of America for several years. �157 SLOVAKIA 'DHE SLOVAK INSTITUTE ]N OI.,EVEILAIN1D, OHIO A cultural society, known as ibhe Slovruk Institute, was foll'l1ded an Ma:roh 4, 1952. Oha,rter memibers of the organization ,w ere: Rt. Rev. Abbot 'Dheodore G. Kojis, O.S.B., iPres,ident, Rev. Mrkulas Sprilil'c, !Rev. Andrej Pir, O.S.iB. , Dr. Fra,ncis Hriusovsky, Dr. Jozef Oindk, and Karol Strmen. The ,President named iDr. Hvusovsky, eminent Slovaik historian, as tJhe fiTst DiTector of the Institute. One of the first duties of tihe .:Institute was ito assume care of tJhe Slovak lilbrary anid museum estalblished at St. Andrew's AJbbey by the coordinated eflforts of the Matica Sioveniska, w'hich donll!ted 1.hrundreds of invaJluable hodkis to the Clevela,nd Slova:ks dUTing the ,M. S. delegation'1s visit to the United States in 1935, and 1:Jhe Slovaik League of Ameriica, which founded 1:Jhe obeginnin1gs of the &lova:k Museum at the Abbey in the Spring of 1943. Besides f'l.Ulfilling its rp rimary function of be1ng a centre of cultural endeavO'I'S for the :Silovalks in America, and t>he free world, the Slovalk Institute ihiais not onily preserved many SlovaJk 'books in i1Js ,Iilbrary but has pulJliShed a 'OJU1JI1iber of wo11k's of its own, notably, tlhe !history of Slovaik Religious institutions in America lb y the laite Dr. Francis Hrusovsky (died on Sept. 9, 1956). In Rome an affiliate of 1:Jhe Slovaik Inis titute wais established a num1ber of yearis ago. lbs main punpose is to sponsor religious a,nd cultura:l ipulblicaitionrs in the free world. The Roman tbranoh of the origin8.!l Olev~land foundation maintains olose contruct wiitJh the American parent orgainization which was ori ginally est8.!blished to carry on bhe work of the Slovaik naition's Matica Slovenska tlhait was swppr~ssed by the communist regime in tlhe ,postwar era. Another ibrancih of t h e Institute is in MuniC'h, Ge11many. Perhrups the most rpopuilar work of tJhe Slovak lnstitwte was the 1publitc1ation of a detailed mrurp of Slovrukia under the direction ()(f Dr. Hrusovsky. Mem1bershilp in the Slovark Institute reaiohes around the world, for leaiding Sfovalk writers and poets, as well. as cultural wor.kers, have been enrolled in this unique American association for tihe Slovarks in the free wonM. A:11 iing,uiries rubout Slovark history and culbure are to be arddressed to: Slovark Institute, 2900 Eia'St Boulevard, Cleveland, Ohio. 1 �158 SLOVAKIA The Slovak League of America - is an AMERICAN INSTITUTION; it was organized May 26, 1907, at Cleveland, 0., by the Rev. Stephen Furdek; is a CULTURAL and CIVIC organi2:ation of Americans of Slovak descent; is interested primarily in promoting the welfare and security of the United States of America; represents an overwhelming majority of organized Americans of Slovak descent; actively affiliated with it are the largest Slovak fraternals, religious organizations, Slovak Clubs and Slovak civic organizations in the United States; is dedicated to American Democracy, the American way of life, and encourages Americans of Slovak descent to be loyal and alert citizens of America; it urges and aids Slovak emigrants to become U. S. citizens by publishing appropriate manuals and brochures in Slovak and English; is dedicated to works of charity, materially and morally aids Slovaks, here and abroad, who may be in need of such aid; it supports the American Red Cross, United Fund Campaigns and other American charitable projects; wants to help Americans of Slovak descent in American political life, in business or professions, in social standing, and along educational lines; through its Ladies Auxiliary, the "VCIELKY" (Bees) , sponsors Slovak cultural displays, concerts, lectures, art exhibits, folk festivals, social evenings, etc. Our aim is to have a "Hive" of our "Vcielky" in every large Slovak community; promotes a better understanding and appreciation of the Slovak nation, its history, culture, traditions, achievements and its long, hard struggle for freedom and independence; firmly believes in the American principle of self-determination of all nations, the inherent and God-given right of every nation, whether large or small, to freedom and independence, the right of every nation to freely choose its own form of government and freely elect persons of its own choice by whom it shall be governed; �SLOVAKIA - 159 condemns and unequivocally opposes all forms of tyranny, every form of totalitarian political system. The Slovak League of America has always recognized the Godless philosophy of materialistic Communism for the dread evil and conspiracy against free humanity that it is, as the political system which threatens mankind with utter enslavement and, therefore, has fought resolutely against it in and out of season and, today, is still determined to fight against it with all the means at its command until the dread plague of Communism is wiped off the face of the earth. firmly believes that the national existence and welfare of the Slovak nation can best be safeguarded by the Slovaks themselves in their own independent Slovak Republic; as a Christian and democratic organization, is resolutely against the domination and exploitation of the Slovak nation by any other nation or political state; the Slovaks did not want to be ruled over by the Magyars and, today, do not want to be subservient to the Czech nation ; heartily commends all efforts of our governmental and other organs to ferret out and unmask all Communists and fellow travellers, as well as all persons and or ganizations who wittingly or unwittingly give aid and comfort to the conspiracy of Communism promoted by t he Soviet Union; stands for :honesty, integrity, industry and justice in government. Join the Local Assembly in your town or contact the Secretary of the Slovak League. Membership dues are only $1.50 per year. Gentlemen : I ----------------- - -------------------- ------Address --------------------- - ----------- - ----Town ----------------------- - ---------- -- ----Desire to join SLOVAK LEAGUE OF AMERICA Endosed find check $---------- �]60 SLOVAKIA Contents The Slovak Language and its Place Among the Slavic Languages - J. M. Kirschbaum - 1 Father of American Slovaks - Sister M. Martina Tybor, 25 SS.C.M. - James J. Zatko, Ph.D. - Slovaks in the U.S. A. - 41 American Slovaks and the Beginning of Czecho-Slovakia - Joseph Pauco, Ph.D. - 63 Joseph R. Kristofik - The Slovak Image - 76 " Sons of Hunkies: Men with a Past?"-Victor R. Greene A Glimpse of Gothic Slovakia Heroic Slovak Bishop - O.F.M. - Tino Berko - Mikula, B.A. - Victim of Communism - Suzanna Dr. John Rekem - 124 Current Issues As Others See It - Contributors - T. J. Zubek, 104 Martin Szentivanyi, S.J. - Book Reviews - 87 99 Eudovit Stur and the Panslavic Movement - 138 142 149 Who's Who Among Slovaks in U. S. A. The Slovak Institute in Cleveland, Ohio The Slovak League of America - 158 155 157 80 116 �PRI NTI D IN U.S. A. JIDN OTA PlllN TER Y, MID DLli TOW N, PA. � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource 1966, Vol. 16 Description An account of the resource Vol. 16 (No. 39), 1966. Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available The Slovak League of America Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1966 Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Text Any textual data included in the document 124 SLOVAKIA CURRENT ISSUES ADDRESS of the Honorable Michael A. Feighan, United States Representative, Before the Slovak League of Ameri ca, Voyager Motel In n, Youngstown, Ohio, Sunday, May 15, 1966 I have been priviledged many times over the past decades to speak about the history of the Slovak people; to speak about the true facts behind your struggles for independence; and to speak about the present determination of Slovaks all over the world to return freedom and independence once again to their native land. My long interest in, and association with, the inspirations and the aspirations of the Slovak people has brought me to appreciate, and to respect, not only the individual Slovak, but the efforts of such organizations as represented in Slovak League of America. The Slovak,s are a people who have made a continuous struggle for national independence for over unremitting and From the Brother Saints, Cyril and Meyears. thousand one Andrew Hlinka and General Monsignor through thodius, Stefanik, the Slovak history is replete with patriots unswerving in their dedication to God, to freedom and to individual liberty. The Slovaks are a people who are more than one hundred years into the second millenium of Christianity in Slovakia. The Slovaks are a people who, even after more than one thousand years of domination, have not lost their language, their national identity, or their determination for independence; an independence which in this century, was born of democratic principles, weaned all too prematurely by the r avages of war, and all but destroyed by the tyranny of Russian Communism. Slovaks know as well as anyone else the path from freedom to oppression, the path from an independent to a captive nation, and the path from a native people to an exiled people - exiled by communist design from their own country and its inherent rights to freedom. But at the same time, they know that these paths need SLOVAKIA 125 not be irreversible. They know that the spirit of resistance to tyranny never dies. They know that dedication to freedom and justice is unfettered by geographical boundaries, national origin, race, creed, or circumstance. And it is their knowledge and faith in these ideals which has given the Slovak people the determination never to give up in their goals - as is so aptly proved by the fact that the Slovaks today continue to oppose collectivization more effectively than anyone else in the communist orbit. In this universality of conviction the Slovak League of America is strong and unyielding. And so it is today that I want especially to commend the Slovaks for their efforts to promote dedicated citizenship and to build protectors of American democracy ; for their service to this great country rin public and in private life ; for their works of charity; and for their undiminished opposition to all forms of tyranny in the world. As a large Slovak civic and cultural organization in America the Slovak League can be proud of the spiritual, cultural, social, and charitable contributions it has made to the building of our great nation. The nationally known home for orphans in Middletown, Pennsylvania stands as a tribute to the work of the First Catholic Slovak Union. Homes for the aged in various parts of the country, such as the beautiful home at Beachwood, Ohio, which is a tribute to the work of the First Catholic Slovak Ladies' Union. The internationally famous , Saints Cyril and Methodius Institute at Rome, Italy was made possible by the combined efforts of all Slovak Catholic organizations and parishes throughout the country. Bishop Andrew Grutka with the able assistance of Right Reverend Theodore Kojis and all the clergy of Slovak parishes provided inspiring leadership to create this spiritual center for the preservation of the true Slovak spirit. Churches, elementary schools, convents and high schools, too numerous to recall are future monuments to the faith of Slovaks in America. Within the past year a magnificent chapel to Our Lady of Sorrows - Patron saint of Slovakia - was dedicated in the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception, in our 126 SLOVAKIA nation's capital. This stands as still another great achievement by the First Catholic Slovak Union. American Slovaks have not ignored the plights of others, but have provided a forum to urge the cause of self-determination for all peoples. Every nation has the right to chart its own destiny through self-determination. This is among the most basic American beliefs. Just as the Slovak people hav•e a dedication to the universal principles of freedom and justice - not limited just to their now oppressed native land - so I and our United States of America have a similar dedication to these same universal principles. To this end I recently introduced a resolution on the floor of the United States House of Representatives calling for the establishment of a seven member House Select Committee on Basic Human Rights and Peaceful World Order. It is all too clear that the official and organized denial of basic human rights and freedom by any government to peoples under its control creates international tensions which can prevent the development of a peaceful world order. Such suppression of national and individual identity is tied hand-in-hand with Russian imperialism, and is a matter of official policy aga,inst the many nations federated by force to the Soviet Union. Of all people, we know, that the spread of this doctrine to other lands beyond the Soviet Union has already begun, and unless it is checked, and reversed, it can well plunge the world into a holocaust. I am confident that if and when this select committee ,is established by Congress, it will provide yet another public forum to develop public opinion on an international scale that these vital issues deserve. Such a public forum will complement and up-date such work as that of the Select Committee to investigate communist aggression of the 83rd Congress, and of which I was privileged to be a member. This committee was able to document and to underscore for all the world to see, such tragic stories as the loss of Slovakia's national independence following World War II and its enslavement by imperial Russia. And such a public forum will also complement the contmued work of the Slovak League of America both here and abroad. While the evil hand of Russian Communism continues its attempts to destroy the very spirit of Saints Cyril and Methodius and to reduce the Slovak people to a state of SLOVAKIA 127 complete servility, the Slovak people refuse to surr,ender that which, over a thousand years, they have continued to fight for - their spirit of independence, of justice and of freedom. To help this spirit in Slovakia, I am also directing my efforts not only just toward expanding the public forum against communistic tyranny, but also toward expanding the coverage of the Voice of America broadcasts in news and information to the Slovaks living under this communist tyranny. It is my hope to see a Slovak desk established in the Voice of America and to thus improve and increase the effectiveness of this communication behind the Iron Curtain. I hav,e been working toward that goal for some years and will not cease my efforts until it is won. In this way, we as a nation can more effectively demonstrate our encouragement and support for the Slovaks now living under virtual foreign occupation in their native land. For I am convinced that one of the best ways to demonstrate friendship for the people of any foreign country is to speak to them in their own language, to recognize their cultural values and to encourage them in their just aspirations for self-government. The God-fearing people of the free world will not fail in this our struggle to preserve human freedom and to erase despotic slavery. We shall not fail in restoring individual liberty and self-determination to a peaceful world. We shall not fail for we shall not falter in our efforts until our goals are won - and so long as a Slovak is alive anywhere in the world, I know that the spirit of Saints Cyril and Methodius shall prevail. To this I add my personal conviction that as the free world approaches these goals, the Slovak nation will once again join the independent and free nations of the world. SIWVAKS HAVE HIGH More than 70 languages are listDEJGREE IN EDUCATION ed. The fi "ures range all the way A 38-page report on the mother tongue of the 9,738,155 persons listed as foreign born in the 1960 Census has just been published by the U.S. Bureau of the Census. The study is based on a question as to what language was spoken in his home before an immigrant came to the United States. from 16 persons whose mother tongue was Tibetan to over a million persons each for those reporting English, German or Italian. A breakdown on the basis of the areas within the United States shows that nearly half of the total foreign born here reside in the northeast part of the country, SLOVAKIA 128 nearly a 1/4 in the north central states, 10% in the south and 20 % in the west. Other tables show age and the number of years in school for different groups. Schooling completed by the foreign born shows that the English speaking and Japanese had the highest degree of education with an average of about 10 years of school for each. Scandinavian and German along with Chinese, Rumanian , SLOVAK, Yiddish and Arabic all range in the eight year category. While essentiall y statistical , the Report contains valuable information for those interested iFI or working with nationalit y or ethnic groups. It is on sale by the Superintendent of Documen ts, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C. 20402, for 35 cents a copy. - American Council for Nationalities Service Release. NATION .ALISiM To many people, here in the United States, Nationali sm is an ugly word. These people are either ashamed of their national origin or ridicule others for trying to retain the language , customs and traditions that were brought to this country by their forefathe rs. It is true that there are many people today, who can not honestly claim one national origin or the other. Because the marriages of their ancestors were between many different nationalit ies, they may be a mixture of four, five, six, or more nationalit ies and can not truly say they are one or the other. Of these people I do not speak, but in some cases these same persons will not be tolerant of another who knows his national origin and is proud of it. The percentag e of people who have come here to the United States and know what their national origin is, but deny it, is very small. However the children of these people are the main offend- ers, by not taking pride in their nationalit y. As an example, I would like to take the Slovak people. When the Slovak people first started to come to the United States, they were at a disadvant age because they did not know English like some of the other people who migrated here from other European countries which were English speaking. Because of this they found it hard to secure jobs and places to live. At that time there was no television or radio to cover the persecuti on these people endured, both mental and physical. They did not have any organizat ions boycottin g or protesting for them. These people proved themselve s in their place of employm ent by their ability to work and produce. They rented apartmen ts, kept a clean house, spent their money wisely and supported their church. Their accomplishments are many but unsung, because Slovakia and its' people was not well known because it was and still is a nation that is living under foreign rule and tyranny. I have had the experienc e of meeting many young people with Slovak names. Some are college students, ordinary workers and people in profession s. They say "My parents are Slovak or my father is Slovak, but I am an American, not a Slovak." Another excuse for denying their origin is that they say being called a Slovak is putting them in a "ghetto". These and other excuses are all meaningle ss. America is a land made up of many nationalit ies, so in order to be a good American you must be proud of your nationality which helped to build this country. The real American s are the American Indians and there is even doubt as to where they migrated from. The term "ghetto" has been misused in recent years and now is a good excuse for those who are ashamed of their nationality. The term is really being used by those who are too lazy to im- 129 SLOVAKIA prove their own conditions where they now live, and then, try to move elsewhere. Being proud of your Slovak customs, folksongs, language, newspapers, etc., is not to be classified as being in a "ghetto". Rather, it is being a good American in the true sense of the word. The meals, customs, and culture of many lands have gone into making America great. Why shouldn't the Slovaks, who have contributed a lot to America, and continue to do so be proud of themselves. Other groups have their parades and celebrate their saints and hero days'. They are not ashamed to say "I am Irish, Italian or other." Why then are some of the Slovak People tongue-tied, so that they flounder around for every excuse, rather than saying with pride and dignity, "I am an American Slovak!!" We are not trying to prove that we are better than anyone else, but it is about time that some people recognize the fact that we are just as good as another and there is nothing to be ashamed of. If you are weak kneed and ashamed because some donkey is ignorant enough to ridicule you, then you aren't worth much as a Slovak or an American. My father told me that his brother, my late uncle, Rev. John Kuba~ek, pastor of Most Holy Trinity Church in Yonkers, used to say this about those who were ashamed of being known as a Slovak, "It's a poor bird who dirtys his own nest." Think about this and you will see its meaning. The parents of those attending our Slovak schools should insist that Slovak be taught and taught well enough so that the pupil can carry on a conversation by the time he finishes eighth grade. In too many cases our Slovak people give in to the non-Slovaks of the parish , who voice their objections to this. This is a good case where we can be strong. It was our an- cestors hard earned money that built these schools. I am sure that if the diocese ruled that every pupil had to learn Spanish or French, e very o n e would jump. Let's jump and make sure our children in Slovak schools learn to SPEAK Slovak and not just memorize a few words. All of the above ties into our hope that someday Slovakia will be free . When this happens there will be many Slovaks who will come to this country. Will they have to go through the sarrie hardships that the early Slovak immigrants did? What is worse yet, will they have to suffer because their own Slovak brethren here in the United States are too lazy to teach and learn the Slovak language and keep up the customs? If for no other reason, this should be a motive for us to keep our spirit alive, so that we may help our people when the time comes to adjust to the United States and find employment and housing. This can only be done by waking up now. Let's not commit national suicide!! Steve Kubasek, Jr. St. Procopius College Lisle, Illinois Ll!MITED GAINS SOORED IN RENEWED DRINE FOR SLOVAK INDEJPENiDENCE Slovak national aspirations have been staging a come-back in the <".:SSR. This upsurge is not the work of individual writers. It is now supported by higher ranking party functionaries. The impetus for vocalizing these strivings which aim at complete equality with the Czechs, was the 150th birthday of :Cudovit Stur, a man honored in his native land not only as an opponent of Hungarian supremacy but as the father of the Slovak literary language, consummation of which made the separat- 130 SLOVAKIA ion of the Slovaks from the Czechs complete. For the first time well-known personalities like the former land governor Gustav Husak (sentenced to life imprisonment in 1954 as a "bourgeois nationalist" but rehabilitated in 1962) and the historian Daniel Rapant, publicly presented theses condemning the ideas of Marx and Engels from 1848 although these opinions of the fathers of socialism have actually been tabu thus far in all Communist countries. Husak, to whom the Prague government had several times offered a ministerial post in recent years, now accused Marx of having assumed a position of Hungarian nationalism and - without any more profound knowledge of the revolution of 1848 - of having developed an anti-Slovak attitude in which his "German arrogance" was a determining factor. Apart from Prague's and Moscow's still expected reply, Budapest will also have something to say, inasmuch as Rapant described the Kossuth revolution as "tyranny, and not a struggle for internationalism and emancipation". The various articles in Slovak newspapers commemorating Stur ended with the unequivocal demand for genuine equality of the Slovaks with the Czechs. The writer, Vladimir Minac, expressed the thought that if Czech-Slovak coexistence were considered historically necessary, the fate of both peoples must be seen in its "truly dramatic form". Husak even went so far as to call for the creation of state institutions designed to protect the Slovaks - who make up but one-third of the entire population - against "oppression by the privileged and hegemonist nation". About a month after the Stur jubilee the effects of Slovak unrest began to be noticeable. The Prague parliament approved a re- solution providing for the Slovak National Council in Bratislava " in cooperation with the other parliamentary bodies" to concentrate their efforts on increasing Slovak participation in the overall development of the CSSR. Although the Czechs could not bring themselves to empower the Slovak National Council with the competency it once held, they did concede to a certain amount of codetermination of the Slovaks on all-state level. It is to be realized by establishing closer contact in the future between the committees of the Prague National Assembly and the Bratislava National Council. The Slovak land governor, Michal Chudik, in a frank talk before the Prague parliament, pointed out that there were people among the Czechs who saw in the Slovak National Council only a " binding link" betweeen Prague and Bratislava that simply complicated the situation, while among the Slovaks, he claimed, there were trends toward a federalization of the CSSR. Although allying himself with neither of these trends, Chudik obviously felt the centralistic threat emanating from Prague to be the greater danger. This feeling prompted him to say to the Czech side that the Slovak National Council would henceforth appear as the representative of the "Slovak people's independence" and perform within Slovakia the functions of an all-state administrative body. Chudik's criticism that the National Council had so far not succeeded in fulfilling its "norm-establishing" function, was recently supported by an almost revolutionary move on the part of the Slovaks. The juridicial commission of the Bratislava National Council drafted a law proposing the introduction of so-called cooperative apartments. To date there has been SLOVAKIA only home construction of the state and cooperative type, or building permits for single family houses with limited dwelling space. This new measure would allow ownership of dwellings even in buildings housing several families. They are designed for later sale, including right to inheritance or other type legal transfer to others for tenancy. There would also be opportunity for older dwellings to pass into private ownership. w. o. A STUDY OF ~HiE COMMUNIST PARTY By the end of the war, the Soviet Union and its Communist allies had gained virtually de facto control of Czechoslovakia. The Soviet armies conquered Slovakia (and as in the case of Poland refused to give military aid to an uprising of anti-German Slovak citizens) ; by Allied agreement the Soviets were permitted to liberate Prague; and they annexed SubCarpathian Ruthenia to the Soviet Union, an act formalized in June 1945. Communist-dominated People's Committees controlled the borderlands, and in the interior Communists had more than their share of power in the Committees' apparatus. According to SetonWatson, "The Communist Party could have seized complete power in 1945 had it so wished. It deliberately chose not to do so." In May 1945, Benes and the London Government-in-exile returned to Czechoslovakia, but stopping first at Moscow where further concessions were made to the Czechoslovak Communists whereby they were given key posts in the government. According to Prof. Curt Beck, a specialist on Czechoslovak affairs, these concessions were partly due to the realization that the Allies had already decided that Czechoslovakia would be in the Soviet military zone. 131 Agreements reached by Benes and the Communists in discussions during 1943 and 1945 formed the basis for the Kosice Program, ostensibly an agreement among members of the National Front coalition on polices to be adopted by the new postwar Czechoslovak Government. The most important features of the agreement were the creation of a National Front Coalition government and the formation of People's Committees that were to assume local and regional administrative responsibilities and functions . The Kosice program, proclaimed by the new Czechoslovak Government on March 22, 1945, restored the republic. On April 4, 1945, Benes, as President, named a new government headed by the left-wing Social Democrat Zdenek Fierlinger. The National Front which formed the government was a coalition of independent parties, consisting of the Czechoslovak Communist Parties, the Social Democrats, the National Socialists, the People's Party (Catholic) and the Slovak Democratic Party. Communists held 8 cabinet posts in the new government among which were the important Ministry of Interior (giving them control of the nation's police and security forces ), the Ministry of Agriculture, and the Ministries of Education and Information. In addition to their strength in the cabinet, the Communists controlled the People's Committees; General Ludwig Svoboda, trained in the Soviet Union, led the Army as Minister of Defense; the General Staff and its Intelligence Department were a Communist stronghold ; and in the border regions especially in areas from where the Germans had been expelled, the Communists, as Seton-Watson wrote, created "a party state within the state." According to Professor Beck, by 1947 Communists held 57 percent 132 SLOVAKIA of the chairmanships of local People's Committees, 80 percent of district People's Committees, and 100 percent of Provincial People's Committees. - Committee on the Judiciary, United States Senate, Washington, D.C., 1966. sr...ovA!K LANGUAGE LABORATORY OOUR'SE A modern language course, Slovak Language Laboratory Course, by an illustrious member of the Slovak Franciscan Order and a recognized professor of languages, Fr. Bonaventure S. Bue, O.F.M., Ph. D., is in the process of being published. This Slovak Language Course is patterned according to the modern language series of other languages prepared by Georgetown University. When put into book form it will be on par with the most modern method of teaching a language. For laboratory work, the lessons have already been correlated on tapes and can be purchased from the Slovak Franciscans, 232 South Home Ave., Pittsburgh, Pa., 15202. The 40 minute tapes of 12 lessons can be used on a tape recorder or in a language laboratory. The complete set costs $30.00. Dr. Bue, a man of many talents, has taught Slovak, French, German, and Russian in schools and colleges in Europe, Canada, and the United States. He is also the author of several books. With the Franciscan Order, he taught in Malacky, Slovakia, and received his Ph. D. from the University of Bratislava. He also studied in Munich and Cologne in Germany, and in Paris, France. He held various posts in Canada and the United States and also taught at Duquesne University and Notre Dame High School, Easton, Pa. In 1957, Dr. Bue received a Master's Degree in Political Science at the University of Pittsburgh and wrote as his thesis Slovak Nationalism. It was published by Slovak League of America in 1960. He was working extensively on the contributions Msgr. Andrew Hlinka and Msgr. Joseph Tiso made to the Slovak nation at the time of his death on April 22, 1966. Fr. Bue was not only the pastor of St. Rita's Church in Buffalo, N. Y., but found time to teach Russian at the Calasanctius College Preparatory School. His "Slovak Language Laboratory Course" will be a monument to his greatness. J.C. K. YOU'DH OONFERENCE OF THE SLOVAK LffiAGUE OF AMERICA As a representative of St. Cyril Academy for Girls, Danville, Pa., I was privileged to attend the 40th Congress of the Slovak League of America in Youngstown, Ohio, in May of 1966. The primary reason for my presence at the Congress was to participate in the Youth Conference. Previous to the conference, I was very curious just what would be on the agenda and how many socalled youths would be present. Since I was a new-comer at these affairs in connection with the Slovak League, I thought I would be a 99 % observer, but my estimated statistics had a change of course. The moderator of the Conference was Dr. Peter Hletko of Chicago, Ill., the Honorary President of the League and a recognized American-Slovak leader, whom I had met previously. Attorney Edward Behuncik, Vice President of the League from Bridgeport, Conn., prefaced the discussion with an excellent presentation on the background of the Slovaks as a whole, and their marked status and contribution to the American character. He had a wealth of reference material which he used SLOVAKIA in his presentation and the noteworthy thing was that his sources were all other than Slovak. A question and answer period followed the initial presentation and there were many interesting topics discussed. The one question that interested me most was, "What is the difference between the Slovaks and Czechs and why don't they just conceive the idea of a Czechoslovak nationality and state?" I must admit I felt and wanted to answer the question myself since at the Academy I had learned the answers through my courses on Slovak history. I knew the many struggles and tribulations of the Slovak people for over eleven centuries and their guest for independence and a position of honor in the family of nations. I knew of their few moments of freedom and what it has meant to them. However, wise and logical answers came swiftly from the members of the panel. Attorney Behuncik was first in line to state various facts and figures from a wide range of books and writers, other than Slovak, that substantiated the Slovak's claim and cause. Fr. Andrew Pier, O.S.B., a prolific writer in this field, spoke in defense of the human rights of the Slovaks. And, the Rt. Rev. Abbot Theodore Kojis, O.S.B., Abbot of St. Andrew's Abbey, Cleveland, Ohio, concluded the responses and put a 'clincher' on the topic that was being discussed. The one who asked the question responded, "I certainly did not know all these points and I must say that I will leave this conference with a different impression and much more informed. " Truth prevailed! Before the Conference had terminated , Dr. Hletko asked if I would comment on how the youth could become more interested and participate in different activities 133 concerning the Slovaks. My response was that the initial promotion of interest must come from the home-the parents must be the ones to talk about their great heritage; they should speak the language more if possible; encourage reading the Slovak newspapers and periodicals; participate in Slovak affairs; continue practicing and cherishing the many Slovak customs ; and most of all, be proud of our ethnic identity. I then continued and mentioned my background which is a loyal Slovak one attributed to my parents. My attitude has been moulded toward the Slovak people-their language, culture, their religious, social, civic, and fraternal activities-as being one of honor and sincere dedication. Concerning my knowledge of the Slovaks, I could not help but mention St. Cyril Academy. I was just finishing my second year of the four-year course in Slovak offered by the Academy. We are not only taught the Slovak language, but we are exposed to and learn Slovak history, culture, and traditions. The famous men in Slovak history are familiar to me like Samo, Rastislav, Svatopluk, SS. Cyril and Methodius, Bernolak, Stur, Hlinka , Furdek, Murgas, Jankola, Tiso, Sidor, and a host of others. I already have experienced the fact that some of the girls who are taking Slovak at St. Cyril's are of non-Slovak families . They want to learn the language and the history because they know they will not have the opportunity at other institutions. These students, indeed, are aware of the potential in the Slovak language and culture. In summation, I repeat that in order to get the youth interested, the parents must set the example as they do for anything else that must be developed in the home. Only there can the love and in- 134 SLOVAKIA terest in the Slovak heritage begin to flourish. My attendance at the Youth Conference of the 40th Congress of the Slovak League of America was very beneficial. In my heart I wished that every youth could have witnessed and taken part in the educational session. This experience was truly one that I will never forget. - Maryagnes Krajsa, '68 St. Cyril Academy, Danville, Pennsylvania. " ... BY THEIR FRUITS YE SHA!LL KNOW THEM." In the Gospel according to St. Matthew we find the words of Our Lord, " ... by their fruit ye shall know them" (7:20). These words summarize a scientific truth. They express a Law that is evidenced in the lives of men and in the lives of nations. A nation is a group of men of psychological affinity, sharing a common heritage and common aspirations. When a nation represents a unity of men under God, to the detriment of no man, it is a vehicle for good. But when a nation covets that which belongs to its neighbors, rejecting the positive teachings of Christ, it becomes a negative vehicle with atrophy of its moral fibre as an inevitable consequence. This consequence is seen clearly by scientific observation, through objective examination of results. An illustration is provided by comparing two neighboring nations in Europe, the Czech and the Slovak. The majority of the Czechs are nominally Catholic. The Slovaks are predominantly, and devotedly, Catholic. No criticism of the Mother Church is intended by this comparison, nor is it for us to judge any man. A comparison of the moral situation in the two nations is the sole intent. The Czechs have developed an overhelming, almost psychotic, de- sire to not only dominate the Slovaks but to absorb them within an artificial entity they call "Czechoslovakia". A "Czechoslovak" nation never existed in the past, does not exist in the present, and cannot be imposed in the future. The Czechs and the Slovaks each have a different heritage and different aspirations. The Slovaks, the challenged, have maintained their faith while defending their identity. The Czechs, as the challengers, have sunk into a spiritual vacuum. In Slovakia the Church has maintained its life, even, where necessary, underground. As in the days of the catacombs, priests are ordained and bishops are consecrated, unknown to the eyes of the new Communist Caesars but known to the Omniscient eye of God. Bishop Paul Hnilica, S.J., is but one example of many Slovak shepherds who have been daily showing the devotion of the earliest disciples of Our Savior. Performing their pastoral duties at the greatest of personal risk and with the greatest of personal sacrifice, the Slovak clergy are fulfilling the Word of Christ, inspiring the Slovak people to meet the challenge which faces them. Through the example set by the Catholic majority in Slovakia the Protesttant Slovak community has also risen to the challenge, :as they share the devotion to the Slovak national heritage and to the Slovak n a ti o n a 1 aspirations. Such spiritual leaders as Bishop Hnilica transcend denominational boundaries. He is a spiritual leader in Christ for Catholic and Protestant Slovaks alike, representing true ecumenical spirit. U n f o rt u n a t e 1 y, among the Czechs one looks for this moral strength in vain. Due to their psychological obsession of attempting to destroy the Slovak national identity they have developed almost a castration complex concerning their own national herit- SLOVAKIA age. This psychological sickness is a negation of Christianity. It has afflicted Czech Catholics and Protestants alike. Some symptoms of the illness are seen in the words and deeds of Josef Cardinal Ber an, the Czech Archbishop of Prague. Cardinal Beran calls himself a "Czechoslovak", but the Cat ho 1 i c Church in Slovakia was never, and is not now, in any way under the ecclesiastical jurisdiction of Prague. The Slovak Protestants have also rejected any administrative claims of Czech Protestants over their communities. Cardinal Beran and some of his Czech Catholic colleagues, with a number of Czech Protestant clergymen being equally cu 1 pa b 1 e, have chosen to give away their Czech national heritage in exchange for the pottage of unchristian covetousness of that which belongs to their Slovak neighbor. The illness is manifested in many ways: The same Cardinal Beran once signed a declaration stating that "Under the protection of our brother nation, Russia, a happy future is being opened to all Slavs." The only freedom Communist Russia has left the Czechs is the power to enslave the Slovaks. Is that a happy future? The same Cardinal Beran justified the forced expulsion after World War II of over three million Sudeten Germans. During this f o r c e d expulsion over 400,000 men, women and children were reported killed. Can a minister of the Gospel justify such bestiality? The same Cardinal Beran gave solemn "Te Deum" services in Prague's St. Vitus Cathedral in honor of the inauguration of Communist President Gottwald at the same time that the clergy in Slovakia were under the severest of Communist persecution and the Slovak people were fighting the Communist troops with their bare hands. Is that Christian brotherhood? 135 All of these actions by Cardinal Beran exemplify a negative thinking that is multiplied a thousandfold among his fellow Czech Catholic and Protestant clergy. It has borne its fruit. Among all Czech children only 3 % are reported to have received Baptism, the first of Christian sacraments. In Slovakia, the true Christian leadership of such as Bishop Hnilica has also borne its fruit. Approximately 98 % of all Slovak children are baptized, despite the Czech Communist persecutions. These nondenominational figures serve as one among many indices of the moral situation in the two nations. When we compare the fruits of the practice of Christianity among the Slovaks with the fruits of the m e n t a l malpractice among the Czechs we see the attitudes of many individuals projected as the concensus of a larger group. It is up to each of us, as an individual, to direct his thoughts positively_ When we do not, we abdicate our futures , as individuals and as nations. The results cannot be hidden for "by their fruits ye shall know them." - The Reverend Jon P. Speller, D.D., Scientific Prayer Ministry, New York, New York. THE OHRISTIAN OHURCH IN BOHEMIA AND SLOVAKIA When the Communists came to power in Czecho-Slovakia in 1948, there were 8.75 million Roman and 300,000 Greek Catholics in a population of 12.5 million. Since then, about one million Catholics have officially left the church, but this figure gives little idea of the actual leakage which has been caused by persecution and discrimination in every degree - and by disloyalty among the ranks of the priesthood. All church property was confiscated by the state in 1948, and the 136 SLOVAKIA church is not permitted to own anything whatever. Thus, collections taken during Mass have to be handed over to the local branch of the government department for church affairs, and only a bare minimum is returned to the priest for his own requirements and for the upkeep of the church fabric. Voluntary outside contributions are not permitted. And only "reliable" priests who have sworn an oath of loyalty to the Communist state, are allowed to hold office in parishes. Outwardly speaking, such religious life as there is, is confined to the church itself; off the premises it is simply not in evidence. R e 1 i g i o u s instruction in the schools has in practice ceased in Prague and in most towns in Bohemia, and in most of the villages as well, though it survives here and there in Slovakia. But instruction outside school is forbidden and subject to severe sanctions: this throws the whole responsibility on the parents, the majority of whom are not well qualified to give their children any substantial instruction. Any attempt from any quarter to influence young people toward religion is severly frowned on and those who are suspected of such activity or of religious learning will not receive advancement. And where would the parents find books to teach their children, when there are no religious publications? Little or nothing has been published, not even missals, since 1948; what has been issued has a strongly tendentious flavor. In 1948 there were 5,779 secular priests and 1,163 priests in religious orders; now there are about 2,500 in the whole country in 1951 about 3,000 priests were held in various degrees of confinement, from labor camps to "concentration monasteries." By 1958 the number had dropped to below 500, and in 1963 the majority were released, but have to earn their living as best they can, usually in unskilled labor, and are forbidden to work as priests. Today there are still about 15 priests in prison. There are theological students in training, though their number is of course inadequate. What weighs more heavily than numbers is the quality of the future priesthood, as there is an incredible lack of modern theological works available to them. Seminarians, together with the rest of the population, are "sheltered" from all contact with contemporary thought in the Catholic Church today, and in particular have no knowledge of the deliberations of the Vatican Council. They are held back in a nineteenth century climate of thought which has no relevance to the realities of life around them. The only religious periodical available to priesthood and laity is "The Spiritual Shepherd" which an authority on Czecho-Slovak affairs describes as "a mixture of timidity and weakness, full of self-deception and delusion." The reason for this-on the face of it, extraordinary-contrast between Poland and Czecho-Slovakia, is not hard to find. Today, owing to comparative religious indifferentism of the people which is very marked in Bohemia, less so in Slovakia, the Communist regime has no need to respect public opinion. Stella Musulin, correspondent for the London Herald and the St. Louis Review POLICE SEAROH RESIDENCE OF TWO BISHOPS Police searched the residences of two bishops in Czecho-Slovakia after they had been visited by tourists from the West, but found no "subversive material", accord- SLOVAKIA ing to KNA, German Catholic news agency. The prelates are Auxiliary Bisshop Kajetan Matousek of Prague and Bishop Karel Otcenasek, apostolic administrator of Hradec Kralove, who had been released from confinement in 1963. KNA reported that all bishops who have been confined are under surveillance after their release. The news agency reported also that there are still 16 priests imprisoned in Czecho-Slovakia and that an unknown number of laymen are still in jail there because of their faith and religious activities. It was reported that 25 priests were imprisoned about six months ago. - (NCWC News Service ) HIGH TEENAGE DIVORCE According to a broadcast heard via Radio Prague, too many married couples, especially teenaged ones, are filing for divorce in Czecho-Slovakia. To stem the tide of divorce-seeking couples, a state commission has proposed establishing marriage advisory offices. The lack of savings and the scarcity of housing are given as the chief causes of early marriages ending in failure . In Prague, 28 % of all marriages end in divorce, while one in four goes on the rocks in the industrialized area of Northern Bohemia. In predominantly Catholic Slovakia, the divorce rate is less than 8% . - (NCWC New s Service) liN MiIDMORIAM Mother M . Pius, third Superior General of the Sisters of SS. Cyril and Methodius, who died on Sunday, May 15, 1966, was laid to rest in the community cemetery on Wednesday, May 18. Officiating at the funeral Mass was the Rt. Rev. Abbot Theodore 137 Kojis, O.S.B., M.A., Abbot of St. Andrew's Slovak Benedictine Abbey, Cleveland, Ohio. Mother M. Pius, during whose administration as Superior General of the Sisters of SS. Cyril and Methodius, St. Cyril Academy, Danville, Pa. was opened in 1922, passed away in her sleep on Sunday, May 15, at Maria Joseph Manor. Born in 1894 in Blakely, Pa., and b a p t i z e d in Holy Ghost Church, Olyphant, Pa., Mother M. Pius answered the call of Christ to follow Him in the religious life when she entered M a r y w o o d, Scranton, for the prescribed training. The Congregation of the Sisters of SS. Cyril and Methodius was only two years old at the time of her entrance and its pioneer Sisters received their religious training under the direction of the Sisters, Servants of the Immaculate Heart of Mary in Scranton. Mother M. Pius made her first profession of vows at Marywood in 1913. In the early struggling years of the Congregation, Mother M. Pius held important positions which she discharged with rare wisdom and charm. Despite her youth she was superior of the Jednota Home for orphans in Middletown in the early years when it also served as motherhouse for the Congregation. In 1922, shortly after the purchase of the Castle Grove estate in Danville, Mother M. Pius was elected third Superior General of the Congregation and served in that capacity for 12 years. That same year Villa Sacred Heart opened its doors as a boarding school for girls, known then as the First Catholic Slovak Girls High School. By 1930 it became necessary to expand. The beautiful St. 138 SLOVADA Cyril Academy on the hill was erected and its lofty tower has become a landmark in the montour area. During the administration of Mother M. Pius, St. Cyril Academy was accredited by the State Department of Education and its first commencement in 1926 were honored by the presence of five bishops, four of them from Slovakia. Meanwhile also the Congregation increased in membership and many new schools were opened. In the years that followed Mother M. Pius was principal and teacher in parish schools in New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania. Before her retirement last year Mother M. Pius was again superior at Jednota Home where she celebrated her Golden Jubilee in 1963. I Mother M. Pius was preceded in death by her sister, Sister M. I Philomena, who died at Jednota in 1920 and lies buried in the Community cemetery in Danville. She is mourned by three sisters, Mrs. Margaret Prokopovitsh and Cecile Yakubov, Washington, D.C. and Sister M. Constance, SS.C.M., music instructor at Andrean High School, Gary, Indiana, and many nieces and nephews. What Mother M. Pius has meant to the Sisters of SS. Cyril and Methodius is written not only in stone, but also, and more importantly, in the solid foundation of progress in the Congregation and in countless human hearts, both within the Community and without. Her deeds are recorded in history, the history of the Congregation, of the Church, and of the Slovak nation. May her great soul rest in peace. AS OTHERS SEE IT It was Monsignor Hlinka, who founded the Slovak People's Party and encouraged the Slovaks to strive for national recognition. Slovakia had long been submerged by foreign rule, but the spirit of the nation was preserved by the inspiring work of dedicated men. Monsignor Hlinka rose to prominence in Europe as a leading advocate of selfgovernment for Slovakia and all the other nations of Central-East Europe. The Wilsonian principle of self-determination provided a powerful stimulant to his work and for the cause of the Slovak people. It was in that spirit that he journied to Paris in 1919 with the hope of seeing President Wilson to plead the case of his people. While Monsignor Hlinka's hopes were not realized, his dedication and determination left an indelible mark on the life of the Slovak Congressman Michael nation. Feighan. The long-disputed Prague Pittsburgh Pact of May, 1918, which played a role in the creation of the Republic of Czechoslovakia after World War I, is no longer a political issue per se but the old hostility between Czechs and Slovaks, reflecting in part an alleged invalidation of the pact, continues under communism. The pact was agreed upon by representatives of the Slovak and Czech organizations in this country which met in the Moose Temple on Penn Avenue with T. G. Masaryk, who became the republic's first president. In the 47 years since the Czechoslovak Republic was proclaimed on Oct. 28, 1918, the Slovaks have SLOVAIIA argued consistently that the terms of the pact were never fulfilled and that they have been unequaled partners in an unhappy political marriage. Of the 14 million people in this country, the Czechs outnumber the Slovaks more than two to one. But, of course, it does the Slovaks no good to complain. For now they are melded with the Czechs in the Czechoslovak Socialist Republic, which is a communist state and a full-fledged member of the Soviet bloc. And the Reds have not the slightest concern for any agreement negotiated in capitalist Pittsburgh. - Frank Hawkins PostGazete, Pittsburgh, Nov. 6, 1965. Czechs drink beer. Slovaks drink wine. And that's one of the instances where your connoisseur touring Slovakia would say, "Viva la difference!" - John F . McLeod, The Washington Daily News, June 15, 1965. It was shocking-three border gates, fences with double barbed wire, guns, brick cubicles and women in officer's uniforms checking cars. The landscape is bleak, devoid of trees, houses, cars. Prague is a gray city. The hotel where we stayed is their pride and joy-it's like a communal concentration camp. Those who protest the war against Communism should come here, and if they find it The Slovaks historically have agreeable, let them stay. - Candy looked of any Prague government Bergen, by Hedda Hopper, Daily with fishy eyes. - Ted Princiotto , News, November 16, 1965. The Plain Dealer, Cleveland, OctAfter the aborted Hungarian ober 17, 1965. Revolution of 1956, things seem to have simmered down in Russia's Zakamenny Klin, Slovakia "You took him away from us alive satelites and one could easily get . . . you have returned him to us the impression that most of the dead. The day of reckoning will anti-Communist yen to revolt has come. Then justice shall prevail." gone. The truth is that it seems quiescent only because it hasn't These were the words of a young found an outlet with any promise "Communist" at the grave of Bish- of success. op Jan Vojtassak and proved a fitIt took years to discover in the ting and dramatic climax in the West to what degree the Poles life and death of the venerated Slo- were ready to cut loose in October, vak warrior for justice, freedom, 1956, a few days before the Hunand truth. garians made their shots heard This unexpected tribute was around the world. Czechoslovakia, heard by 10,000 of Bishop Vojtas- at the time, was supposed to be sak's fellow countrymen. The youth plotting something which misfired. was supposed to list the prelate's Much later we learn that where"crimes." as the Czechs didn't make much of The Communist regime had plan- a fuss at the time, Slovak partisans ned to make the burial service raised Cain. The nation's four milquiet and private - instead, when lions Slovaks represent about one the word got out that the Slovak third of Czechoslovakia's 12 milprelate was to be buried from his lions Slavs. Slovak partisans battled Soviet native village church, the news spread like wildfire and overnight forces near Presov. Slovak partisans fought by the more than 10,000 gathered from all sides to pay their final respects to side of the Hungarian rebels. The C om mu n i s ts suppressed a national martyr who had remained unbowed to the end. - The news of all this at the time. If and Register, October 24, 1965. when the State Department ever 140 SLOVAKIA caught up with it, U. S. spokesmen - always considerate of Red sensibilities never bothered to mention it or rub it in. - Guy Richards, New York Journal-American, July 3, 1965. Mrs. Sloboda comes from Slovakia, which is the Church's stronghold in Czecho-Slovakia and which has shown the greatest resistance to the regime. There 60 per cent of the land is still in private hands, as compared to only 10 per cent in other regions. There, too, church attendance is still strong and there is an active religious tradition. Largely agricultural and mountainous, the remoteness has been an asset to the Church. A Communist functionary from Slovakia recently admitted in despair, "In Prague, they think Catholicism is finished. But in Slovakia, we see things differently. The faith is still strong there. We have to show much more tolerance to the Church. We can't work actively against it. " "You know, " Mrs. Sloboda explained to me, with an apology to her husband, "the Slovaks are quite d i f f e r e n t from the easy-going Czechs, who would rather accommodate themselves to the status quo than get into trouble. The Slovaks are toughened by the hard life in the mountains. " " Oh, yeah," protested her husband , "but don't forget how we threw the bottle-tossing hooligans out of church last Christmas, here in Prague! " Nevertheless, even in Slovakia, interest in religion is beginning to wane, and there has been a decline in church attendance among the youth. The rapid industrialization of the area will inevitably contribute to the secularization and estrangement from a predominantly peasant-orientated Catholicism. "In every village, just as in the rest of Czecho-Slovakia," said Mrs. Sloboda, "there are loudspeakers hanging over the square which are used for p r op a g a n d a purposes." - Adolph Schalk, The Sign, Decem- ber, 1965. Grim , tough, friendless Antonin Novotny of Czecho-Slovakia, detested by many Communists and by the population at large, especially in the chronically restless Slovak region, was already a ranking Party ogre in Stalin's day. He is a prime candidate for de-Stalinization at the first wrong move. Hal Lehrman, before The Committee on the Judiciary, United States Senate, 89th Congress, 1st Session. Planned extermination is facing Slovakia and other captive nations? In Slovakia all their leaders were either hanged, imprisoned, or exiled. 85,000 Slovak citizens were placed in labor and concentration camps. 20,000 known Slovaks were deported to the Soviet Union as slaves. Over 100,000 Slovak citizens of German ancestry were expelled to the Soviet Union. Over 120,000 Slovak citizens of Hungarian ancestry were expatriated. Over 600,000 Slovaks were forced to leave Slovakia and live in Bohemia and Moravia. - Alfred Korn, Jr., President, Americans to Free Captive Nations, Inc. New York, November 27, 1965. I frequently wonder what the people of the captive nations think of what the United States contemplates on doing. Do they sometimes begin to feel that we are abandoning them and that we do not care-that we want them to be subjects of the communists. There is a very interesting aspect about the Slovaks. In 1946 when the first vote was taken in Slovakia as to what type of government they should have, up in the mountain areas and in the land of the Slovaks the vote was about 65 % against the communists. They were the only group in the whole country of Czecho-Slovakia that voted against it. So I say that today you have given voice which should SLOVAKIA be broadcast by the Voice of America. And the broadcast should be made in the Slovak language so that the Slovaks in the mountains and in the valleys will understand what is happening. We are challenged by the communists. We unhappily and unfortunately have in our midst many who say they are not a challenge to us, but the Slovaks know that they are. There is in the Old Testament in the Bible in the Book of Kings the story of the King who wanted the vineyard of one of his subjects. It is in Chapter 21 and this is how it reads: "And after these things, Naboth the Jezrahelite, who was in J ezrahel, had at that time a vineyard near the palace of Achab, the king of Samaria. And Achab the king spoke unto Naboth saying: Give me thy vineyard, that I may have me a garden of herbs, because it is near to my house, and I will give thee for it a better vineyard : or if you think it more good to thee, I will give thee the worth of it in money. And Naboth the subject said to Achab the king : The Lord forbith me that I should give the inheritance of my fathers unto thee." The Lord forbid that we should give the inheritance of our country and the United States on to the communists. And the Lord forbid the land of the Slovaks should pass unto the communists that now rule in Slovakia. - U.S. Senator Frank 141 freedom is restored to these valiant people and the other captive nations under communism. We must not only observe the historic national days on the floor of the House, but we should establish a Special Committee on Captive Nations to more forcibly bring the present plight of these unfortunate people to world attention. Another effective step the U.S. Government could take to show our interest in the Slovak people and their aspirations for freedom from communism would be lengthier and more effective broadcasts by the Voice of America which would pierce the wall of Communist propaganda and deliver the truth to the Slovak people. In recent years, Mr. Speaker, the Voice of America has cut back both its hours of broadcast in the Slovak language and the nature of these broadcasts. The VOA now has only straight news programs because of the present administration's fear of offending the Soviet Union. The Voice of America should instead be a vehicle for delivering the message of truth to the Slovak people so that they can resist the brainwashing of the constant propaganda from the tyrannical Moscow oppressors. - Edward J. Derwinski on the floor of the House of Representatives, March 14, 1966. Lausche. Mr. Speaker, today is the 27th anniversary of Slovak Independence Day, and on this historic occasion, I would like to pay tribute to the brave Slovak people who suffer today under the yoke of Communist tyranny. They are not permitted by their Red tyrants to publicly celebrate their national holiday. Therefore, we must rededicate ourselves to our efforts to see that Annual SLOVAKIA is published by the Slovak League of America, 313 Ridge Avenue, Middletown, Pennsylvania. Subscription $2.00. Editor: Dr. Joseph Pauco. 142 SLOVAXIA BOOK REVIEWS SLOVAK STUDIES III - CYRILLO-METHODIANA, Published by Slovak Institute, Rome, 1965, p. 224. The eleventh centenary of the arrival of the scholarly missionaries St. Cyril and Methodius among the Slavic tribes, called Sclavi Marahenses in Latin sources and Slovene or Sklavinoj in Eastern sources, was an occasion for Slavs to publish scores of studies in various languages. Slovaks, who claim to be among the heirs of the CyrilloMethodian tradition, were especially active on both sides of the Iron Curtain. Besides organizing huge celebrations in Rome, Canada and the U.S.A. and archeological exhibitions, Slovak scholars took part at the international Cyrillo-Methodian Conference in Salzburg, Austria, and contributed to various symposia either in Slovak or in foreign languages. The symposium under review contains contributions by Slovak scholars and writers who live in the free world. Expecting that the writings in Slovakia will necessary be subject to marxist criteria and political restriction, they undertook the task to present the Cyrillo-Methodian period to the Western scholars as they see it on the basis of Slovak pre-communist and foreign sources. The contributions written in English, French and German, deal with history (F. Hrusovsky, M. Lacko, J . Papin, A. Grebert, liturgy (M. Lacko and M. Rusnak), literature (J. M. Kirschbaum) and with the role of the CyrilloMethodian tradition in Slovak national and political life (J. M. Kirschbaum) . Since the Slovak erudities from the XVIIth century claimed great-Moravia and the activities of the scholarly missionaries for Slovaks and Moravians, the contributions in the symposium not only follow that tradition, but apparently try to substantiate the Slovak claims to the Cyrillo-Methodian heritage by compiling supporting evidence from the works of renown and less known slavists of many nations. The tendency to prove the "slovacity" of the Cyrillo-Methodian period or to defend the Slovak claims to the Great-Moravian heritage is common to all contributors to this third volume of Slovak Studies, but it is mainly the well documented account on the relations of the rulers of Great Moravia with Rome, written by the late Prof. F. Hru!iovsky, the German contribution on the ethnic composition of Great Moravia by A. Grebert and the French and English contribution by Prof. J . M. Kirschbaum on the Cyrillo-Methodian literature and tradition which may be of interest for Slavist who do not specialize in religious aspects. Contributions by Prof. M. Lacko, who is known as an expert in the Cyrillo-Methodian period and the articles by Prof. J. Papin, bishop M. Rusnak and I. Kondratovic are valuable especially from the Slovak point of view. Not all the contributions are of equal scholarly value and the volume is marked by the difficulty to edit a multi-lingual book: not only typographical errors but also linguistic deficiencies appear in the book quite frequently. This does not make, however, the volume without interest or value. Slavists might find it challenging in various aspects and by the same token worth reading. SLOVAKIA U.3 The editors as well as the Slovak Institute and those who in other ways made the publication of the volume possible, deserve recognition for not allowing pass the 11th centenary of Slovak civilization without a written document. J. P. Jan Kollar-Slovak Poet of Panslavism, J. M. Kirschbaum, LL.D., Ph.D., Published by the Slovak Institute, Cleveland, 1966, 48pp., Ed. J . B. Rudnyc'kyj , Slavistica, LVI(56). Perhaps for the first time the ideas and their practical application in the Pan Slav movement of Jan Kollar, Slovak romantic poet and political philosopher, are presented in understandable language by the prolific historical and political writer, Dr. Joseph Kirschbaum. All students of history of the Slavic nations in central, southern and eastern Europe welcome this clear-cut view and analysis of one of the most complex characters in the Pan Slav movement in the first half of the 19th century. Kollar, the celebrated poet whose 'Slavy dcera' (Daughter of Slava) sonnets made him immortal in Slavdom, for personal and unknown reasons rejected the official central Slovak literary language of Stur and wrote in his own Slovak-Czech dialect he called 'stara slovencina' (the ancient language of the Slovaks). He was, therefore, in some respects both the forerunner of the political union of the Czechs and Slovaks who formed Czecho-Slovakia in 1918 and of the futile attempts of the Czechs to fuse the Slovak language into a synthetic Czechoslovak tongue. Nevertheless, in his day he was an outspoken champion of the Slovak colony in Budapest for many years. Although at first glance, Kollar's views on Panslavism calling for unity among all Slavs may appear to be a basis for a political union of all Slavic nations, a more careful look reveals that he regarded each to be but a tribe, nevertheless an individual ethnic entity with a right to its own language, state, etc., in a family of tribes belonging to one Slav nation! As a poet (Kollar's lyric and romantic works may be criticized from many angles by the experts), he excels in idealism, which is somewhat dimmed by the stark realism and cruelty of Slava, the goddess, who from her golden throne watches demons torturing the enemies and persecutors of the Slavs . . . a la Dante's Inferno. In Canto III of his Sonnet CX, Kollar turned prophet and a mighty good one, for he predicted the expansion of the Slavs like 'a mighty flood' and foresaw the day when the language of the Slavs would be spoken by their foes, and their sciences become manifest, as also their customs, dress and music on both sides of the Seine and the Danube. In the light of current history, we cannot, of course, rejoice in the modern Soviet imperialism that has reached the acme of Slavic power and prestige but only at the price of the enslavement of hundreds of millions of Slavs and non-Slavs, alike. Even for Kollar, who voices his wish to raise from his grave to behold the glory of the Slavs, the present would not be a glorious experience for the Slovak poet who envisioned a far different emergence of the Slavs would have sorrow and regret, not joy, in his heart were he a witness of the sad fate of Slavic nations today. 144 SLOVAKIA Dr. Kirschbaum shows that Kollar's Panslavism was hailed by the Russians, Czechs, Slovaks and the southern Slavs but was not at all acceptable to the Poles or Ukrainians who saw in it a form of Panrussianism . . . and as it has developed, they were right in their suspicions. On the national level, Kollar, writes Dr. Kirschbaum, played an important role in Slovak national revival by his linguistic theories, his poetry, publication of Slovak songs and his ideals of freedom. Undoubtedly, Jan Kollar will be the subject of many studies on the question of his political and linguistic theories, but despite efforts to make him a Czech poet because he wrote in his own pre-fabricated 'stara slovencina' medium which was his own personal invention in an attempt to arrive at a common language, and in spite of his rejection of Stu.r's central Slovak that was destined to become the official language of the Slovak nation, he was a Slovak poet in his own right. If his image as a Slovak poet is not altogether in focus, it is both because he moved in so many directions at one and the same time so that his picture is somewhat distorted, and the disturbing circumstances of his time, his condition, etc. At best, he was an erratic genius, and therefore, very difficult, if not impossible, to fully understand and appreciate. Nevertheless, his stature as a great Slovak poet continues to remain unimpaired. A. P. Frantisek Vnuk, Sedemnast' neurodnych rokov - Nacrt dejin slovenskej literatury v rokoch 1945-62, (Seventeen barren years -A Survey of Slovak Literature 1945-1962), Published by Slovak v Amerike, Middletown, Pa., 1965, p. 304, English summary. Slavists at various universities in the free world will receive in the present volume a first concise look at the postwar Slovak literature, and since there has been nothing published on the subject in English except a few articles in Slavic Studies and the anthology Linden Tree , which is in many ways a biased and unobjective presentation, the volume is longtime overdue. The English summary will make the book accessible also to those who do not read Slovak, which makes it even more welcome. The Slovak part of the book contains a rich source of information and remarkably well written aesthetic judgments on the literary value and ideological regimentation of the Slovak literature since the end of the Second World War. Vnuk places the works of Slovak poets and writers into the context of Slovakia's post-war upheavals, unprecedented persecutions for ideological deviations, censorship and social changes, and measures them against the moral and intellectual duties toward the Slovak people among whom writers and poets were always fighting for justice and national goals. The method used by the author does not follow the usual detached and impersonal ways of literary history and criticism, but it does not make this book less valuable for scholars or anyone interested in Slovak literature under Communism. On the contrary. The book presents a fresh, well written, scholarly sound and sincere look at the literary works and their authors and it is understandable that he condemned his country's deceit and desertion by her poets and writers who were always looked upon as intellectual leaders. 145 SLOVAKIA The seventeen barren years, as the author calls the post-war period in Slovak literature, are divided into four parts: The period of struggles (1945-1948), the period of the victory of socialism (19491951), the period of schematism and dogmatism , and the period of lost years (1956-1962) , In each of these periods Slovak literature was at the mercy of political commissars, who silenced the best writers and dictated literary subjects and criteria, and therefore one cannot but agree with the author that "these years will stand for a period for unheared of degradation in Slovak literary history - a veritable " temps du mepris" - with an unprecented decline in artistic values both qualitatively and quantitatively, when the writer became a stateemployed "engineer of human souls" and his standard was measured by the degree of his dedication to the political party line". (p. 259) . Since 1963, when the Slovak writers finall y dared to " rebel" against the straitjacket of regime's supervision and regimentation, Vnuk's harsh judgments were confirmed even in Slovak literary reviews, and therefore there is no reason to suspect him of "parti pris". Slovak literature was not only cut off the free world, but went also through the worst period of literary history in Slovakia and Vnuk's book intelligently mirrors all the tribulations, struggles, deficiences and intellectual dishonesty of some writers and the positive value of others. Vnuk reviewed in a short addition to his book also the literary works of the Slovak emigre writers and poets which will fill a gap in surveys of Slavic literatures in the free world. If the whole Slovak literature is a sort of "terra incognita" to many people in the West, the literary works of the Slovak emigre writers could not fare much better, though there are exceptions and in some instances Slovakia and her literature became known only through the writings of Slovak exiles. With regard to Slovakia, the author is maybe right when he says that "the 50 odd Slovak men of letters living on this side of the Iron Curtain kept the lights of Slovak culture burning while they went out in the writers' native country. This may sound emotional or sentimental, yet it is a sad truth that in the years 1950-55 there hardly appeared in Slovakia a single book worthy of reading. In those years indeed the emigre literature was the contemporary Slovak literature." The value of the volume is enhanced by a register of names, short bibliography and a brief note on the writer. It is to be regreted that the title of the book does not indicate that it is a survey of Slovak literature, but it is a minor shortcoming and can be repaired in distributing the English summary under a proper title. J . M. K irsc hbaum D ie Slow akei als Mittel europaisches Problem i n Geschichte und Gegenwart, (Slovakia as Central European Problem in the Past and Present) , Lectures at Collegium Carolinum, Verlag Robert Lerche, Mtinchen, 1965, p. 240. The prominent German institution Collegium Carolinum in Munich organized in August 1962 a series of lectures on Slovakia's past and present place in Central Europe, and published six of them in the present volume as a contribution to the research on problems of 146 SLOVAKIA Central Europe. The lectures cover over eleven centuries of Slovakia's history and while they are not of equal scholarly value, they are all shedding a new light on various periods of Slovak history, including the present one under Communism. Three of the lectures were given by Slovak intellectuals living in Western Europe: Prof. F. f>urcansky deals with Pan-Slavism and the role of Slovakia in this movement; Prof. Milan Stan. f>urica of the University of Padova gives the results of his scholarly research into the crisis of March 1939 and on the basis of documents he corrects various misconceptions about the origin of the Slovak republic; Ctibor Pokorny writes about the attitude of Slovaks towards Communism. The lectures by Prof. f>urcansky and Prof. Durica are well documented and scholarly written contributions to two controversial topics of historiography on Slovakia. Abundance of sources referred to, and logical conclusions which characterize both contributions, will perhaps help to clear at least partly the controversy and misconceptions of some Western historians. For students of Central European problems two other lectures might be of great interest: von Gogolak's lecture on Slovakia's social and constitutional history and Kurt Wessely's learned analysis of Slovakia's economic and social problems since World War I. Both authors are experts in their fields, but their contributions are bound to lead to a controversy either from the Slovak or from the Czech side. While Slovaks could be hurt by some of Gogolak's harsh judgements of their leaders in the remote or recent past, the Czechs might oppose the picture which Prof. Wessely has drawn about Slovakia's economic development under the Czech tutelage. The well documented account of the development of the national consciousness among Slovaks by Prof. Gogolak somehow contrasts in his conclusions not only with his previous works on Slovakia, but it also seems to be in clash with the requirements of scholarly impartiality. Except for a few Slovaks of the "Czechoslovak" orientation hardly any educated Slovak would leave unchallenged certain parts of Prof. Gogolak's picture of modern Slovak history. Unfortunately, this is not the place to go into detail or to show where Prof. Gogolak's lecture is marked rather by emotional than by objective analysis, and where the historian wandered into politics. While this is to be regretted, this reviewer is of the opinion that the scholarly lecture might serve on the other hand a very useful purpose, if Slovak intellectuals will properly react. The introductory lecture by Karl Bosl on the mission of Sts. Cyril and Methodius and its place in Rome's Church organization is a learned summary of the older and the most recent research into the GreatMoravian period, with some new hypotheses. Scholarly sound and without bias, the lecture will remain as a tribute from the German side to the 11th centenary of the Cyrillo-Methodian mission among the ancestors of today's Slovakia, which was commemorated in 1963 by Slovaks on both sides of the Iron Curtain. The volume was edited with great care and should be welcome as a valuable contribution to the research into and solution of the unsolved Slovak problem in Central European area. J. M. Kirschbaum SLOVAKIA 147 National Slovak Society Almanac for the year 1966 - Narodny Americko-Slovensky Kalendar na rok 1966, Vol. 74, Pittsburgh, Pa., 240 pp., Edited by Jan Mihal. The first 70 pages of this year's National Slovak Society annual are in the English language . . . the rest in Slovak. This, then, is an edition designed for both young and old readers in one or both languages. In addition to their duties as members of the NSS Literary Committee, headed by Dr. Peter Hletko, M.D. as president, which compiled the bi-lingual almanac, all (Msgr. M. K. Mlynarovic, K. Belohlavek, John Pankuch [NSS President, and the editor, Jan Mihal] contributed informative and inspiring articles to this year's publication of the oldest Slovak fraternal group in America. Tribute is paid to Peter Rovnianek (1867-1933), NSS founder, on the eve of the centennial of his birth as a great American Slovak humanitarian. The following contributors are found in the English section: John Pankuch, Jan Mihal, Mary Burns, Dr. Peter Hletko, M.D., Dr. Stephen Hletko, DDS., Rosalie Gona, S. Ullman and Karol Kuzmany. Although a major part of the section is devoted to a review of NSS activities, particularly bowling, the rest gives the reader an idea of the possibilities of expanding the subject matter into a more serious sphere for better comprehension of vital issues in American Slovak life. While members of the NSS Literary Committee were called upon to do double duty by contributing articles to the Slovak section, too, the following writers made their contributions of interesting articles to the 1966 NSS Almanac: John Pankuch, E. Vesnin, Lado Demeter, Jozef Steller, Msgr. M. K. Mlynarovic, Dr. Peter Hletko, M.D., K. Holicsky, Peter Klas, Rev. Andrej Rolik, Dr. A. P. Slabey, 0. M. Debnarkin, A. Rybiansky, Dr. Jan Fabianek, Rosalie Gona, Stefan Hassik, Jozo Trnavcan, J. Horsky, J. T. Sulovsky, K. Belohlavek. In some respects the tone of the current Almanac is an ecumenical one, e.g., Dr. Slabey's article on Jan Hus. Hus' successful bid to reverse the 3-1 German preponderance in voting at Charles University to a domestic Czech 3-1 majority was confirmed by royal decree ... this democratic procedure is the only one that will finally bring peace and understanding between the Czech and Slovak nations, namely, the recognition of the right of the Slovak nation to self-rule, for the principle of human and natural rights to freedom is the same today as it was in Hus' time. A. P. Jednota Annual Furdek, 1966, Middletown, Pa., vol. 5, 160 pp., Joseph Krajsa, editor. Inaugurated by the late Philip A. Hrobak, editor of the Jednota weekly, five years ago in an effort to reach the younger generation of American Slovaks, the FURDEK annual is continuing under his successor, Mr. Joseph C. Krajsa. It is a worthwhile effort, inasmuch as our Slovak youth would otherwise lose all interest in its heritage because 148 SLOVAKIA the third and fourth generation no longer speaks or reads the Slovak language. The contents of the current issue cover a variety of subjects from the following writers: Bishop Andrew Grutka, D.D., Abbot Theodore Kojis, O.S.B., J. C. Krajsa, J. Pfeiffer, A. Sarisky, Dr. J. Kirschbaum, Ph.D., LL.D., Very Rev. Theodoric Zubek, O.F.M., S.T.D., C. Petrasek, J . J. Konus, A. Koto, and S. Sencik, S.J. Feature article is 'The Joe Lapchick Story' about the great basketball player and coach from Yonkers, N. Y. The ex-Celtic star and successful coach at St. John's University ranks among the greatest American Slovak athletes. Lead-off review of the Jednota's diamond jubilee in 1965 is given in capsule form by Dr. Jozef Pauco, Ph.D., author of the 560-page history of the First Catholic Slovak Union (75 rokov Prvej Katolickej Slovenskej Jednoty: 1890-1965) is supplemented by pictorial highlights of the jubilee observance, particularly the celebration in Washington, D. C. Oldtimers such as Dr. M. v_ Simko and Rev. A. Pier, O.S.B. have a number of contributions in this 5th issue of the Jednota annual, the Furdek, in the English language. A brief historical review of the Slovak Benedictines in the U. S. and the Slovak Jesuits in Canada completes the 1966 edition of the Furdek. Both foundations constitute only part of the story of the Slovak Religious Orders in the new world. Future issues of this novel publication will undoubtedly cover the history of the others, namely, the Slovak Franciscans, as well as the Sisters of SS. Cyril and Methodius, the Franciscan Sisters, the Dominican Sisters, the Benedictine Sisters, the Sisters of the Most Holy Saviour, the Consolers of the Sacred Heart, and the Vincentian Sisters. A. P. PUBLICATIONS RECEIVED Rekem John, Stefan Dubnicay - Slovak Polemist and Historian (1675-1725), Middletown, Pa., 1966, p. 80. Slovak Literature and National Consciousness before Anton Bernolcik, Jednota Printery, Middletown, Pa. 1964. Kirschbaum, J. M., Jcin Kollar-Slovak Poet of Panslavism, Stavistica No. 56, Slovak Institute, Cleveland, Ohio, 1966, p. 48. The Role of the Cyrillo-Methodian Tradition in Slovak National and Political Life, An Offprint from Slovak Studies Ill. Rome, 1965 La Litterature de la period CyrilLo-Methodienne et la Slovaquie, An Offprint from Slovak Studies III, Rome, 1965. Vnuk, Frantisek, Sedemncist' neurodnych rokov (Ncicrt slov enskej A Survey of Slovak Literature 1945-1962, literatury 1945-1962) Published by Slovak v Amerike, Middletown, Pa., p. 304, English summary, register. SLOVAKIA 149 CONTRIIBUTORS Prof. Dr. J. M. Kirschbaum. Born in a small Slovak village on March 25, 1913 and lost his father in the First World War. Dr. J. Kirschbaum is a prominent representative of the new Slovak educated class, whose many members made a long way from the Slovak villages to European and American capitals, forei gn universities, diplomatic posts and teaching positions by their own diligence, capabilities and perseverance, fighting against many odds and staunch and unscrupulous adversaries of the Slovak cause. Educated at several European universities, Dr. Kirschbaum attained national prominence already during his university studies as leader of the Slovak student's organizations, Vice-President of the world-wide Catholic organization Pax Romana and speaker for the autonomy of Slovakia on behalf of the young Slovak generation. When only 26 years old, he was appointed by the President of the Slovak Republic and later elected to the responsible post of Secretary-General of the People's Party, founded by Msgr. A. Hlinka . After opposing the introduction of National Socialism into Slovakia, he was ousted in 1940 from Slovak politics and for 18 months kept in military service. In 1941 he was, however, back in public life and, as the youngest head of diplomatic mission, he served his country in Switzerland as Charge d'Affaires of the Slovak Republic. In that capacity he represented Slovakia until the end of the war, fighting relentlessly for Slovakia's right to independence and against the false propaganda of the Czech exiles and their anti-Slovak aspirations. After the war Dr. Kirschbaum very soon became one of the leading personalities of the Slovak movement for a free and independent Slovakia . He moved to Canada , for a short time to the United States and again to Canada , where he dedicated his time and energy to teaching at Canadian Universities writing and fighting for the Slovak cause. Besides a book in Slovak Nas boj o samostatnost' Slovenska, Dr. Kirschbaum published in exile the first scholarly English book on political history and cultural background of Slovakia under the title: Slovakia - Nation at the Crossroads of Central Europe (New York, 1960) . The book was r ~viewed by the foremost academic periodicals in England, U.S.A., Canada and Europe and mostly favorably received by the critics. On cultural problems Dr. Kirschbaum published a series of studies in French and English, four of them (on Bernolak, St11r, Safarik and Kollar) were published in the series Slavistica, edited by the known slavist Prof. J . B. Rudnyckyj from the University of Manitoba. His essays on Slovak language and literature were published in French and English first by University periodicals and later in offprint form . His political writings appeared in English, French , German and Spanish. Altogether Dr. Kirschbaum published 15 writings in foreign languages either in book form or as reprints, and contributed larger articles to Canadian Slavonic Papers (Univ. of Toronto) , Etudes slaves et esteuropeennes (Univ. of Montreal ), Rivista de Estudios politicos (Madrid) , Slovakia (Middletown, Pa.), Slowakei (Munich, Germany). Most ( Cleveland, Ohio) , to various symposia, encyclopedias and newspapers. All the writings of Dr. Kirschbaum are marked, according to the critics, by clarity of style, logic, scholarly objectivity and solid knowledge as well as his 150 SLOVAKIA firm belief in the rightness and victory of the Slovak cause. Once an excellent student of internat• ional law and political science, Dr. Kirschbaum turned in exile to his• tory and culture of his country and Central Europe and defends the right of the Slovak people to independence on account of their old culture and civilization. He presents Slovakia to the free world in a new light and always within a new, democratic organization of Central Europe. For his uncompromising stand towards those who tried or try to deny equal rights to the Slovak people, Dr. Kirsch b a u m was persecuted already during his uni• versity years. A Czech rector of the University of Bratislava refus• ed to give him, for political reasons, the doctor's diploma, even though Kirschbaum finished all his exams with excellent results. The Germans turned against the young Secretary-General as soon as they noticed that he opposed German interference in Slovak politics, and Berlin asked the Slovak Government not only to remove Dr. Kirschbaum from Slovak politics, but his name was not supposed to appear in any newspaper. "If it does", wrote the German Ambassador to Slovakia in 1940, "I shall ask to forbid the publication of the newspaper." ialist newspapers. A new smear campaign was organized against Dr. Kirschbaum when he moved to the United States. The most un• scrupulous and immoral campaign was, however, unleashed against him by Communist Prague and some Czech exiles in Canada dur· ing the Spring and Summer of 1962. In all those smear campaigns, not only in serious Slovak circles, but also the authorities of the countries he lived in, clergy and many newspapers and politicians were on the side of Dr. Kirschbaum, and he was fully vindicated. munist adversaries of the Slovak struggle for independence and de• mocracy turned, however, against Dr. Kirschbaum, especially after the Second World War. Even though he spent the war years in neutral Switzerland and was known to oppose Nazism, the Communist government of Prague requested his extradition from Switzerland. When the Swiss Government refused , the Czech diplomats and propagandists tried to compromise Dr. Kirschbaum by publishing smear and ludicrous accusations in the Swiss Communist and Soc• and Methodius, whose motherhouse is in Danville, Pennsylvania, was a graduate of St. Cyril Academy and obtained her B.A. degree from Marywood College, Scranton, Pa. , and her M.A. from Villanova University, Villanova, Pa. She is the author of two books : Dr. Kirschbaum is married to Magdalena Danihel, daughter of the late Slovak politician and member of Parliament Stefan Danihel, has four children of whom two graduated at Canadian universities and one of them, Stanislav, works on his Ph.D. at the Sorbon• ne, Paris, on scholarship. Dr. Kirschbaum has been since the war leading figure of the Slovak Nat• ional Council Abroad, Slovak Li• beration Council, member of many Slovak cultural and civic organiz. ations in the U.S.A. and Canada, member or officer of leading social clubs and academic organizat• ions and editorial boards. Martina Tybor, Si ster M., B.A., M.A. , of the Sisters of SS. Cyril The furor of the Czech and Com• SS. Cyril and Methodius, the Glory of the Slav s, for young adults, and SS. Cyril and Methodius , Apostles of Great Moravia, for children. She has done outstanding work in Slo• vak-English translations, notably of Slovak classic poetry. Her own poems have appeared in Spirit, SLOVAKIA publication of the National Catholic Poetry Society. Her odes, written for various Jubilee occasions, have appeared in Fialky, St. Cyril Academy annual. At present Sister M. Martina is head of the English department at Andrean High School, Gary, Indiana. Zatko, James J., Ph.D .., Rev., received an M.A. and Ph.D. from the University of Notre Dame. Under sponsorship of Ford Fellowships he studied at Harvard in 1954-1955 and at the Catholic University of Lublin in 1958. He was also the recipient of an Association of Middle Eastern Studies Fellowship in 1962. He is assistant professor of history at the University of Notre Dame. His book Descent Into Darkness - The Destruction of the Roman Catholic Church in Russia 1917-1923, was published by Notre Dame University. Joseph Pauco, born in 1914 in Slovakia. At the Slovak University in Bratislava he received his Ph.D. in 1942. A journalist by profession, he worked with the influential daily SLOVAK from 1938 to 1945, serving as editor-in-chief from 1942 to 1945. In 1945 fled with his wife and son to Austria, then to West Germany; and finally made his way to New York City in 1950. J. Pauco is serving since 1950 as assistant editor of the weekly JEDNOTA and from 1964 he is the publisher of the oldest Slovak newspaper in this country: SLOVAK V AMERIKE. He is serving for third term as the secretary of the Slovak League of America. J. Pauco is associated with American Academy of Political and Social Science, with Institute of Ethnic Studies at Georgetown University, is a member of the Slovak Institute in Cleveland, 0. 151 and of the Slovak Writers and Artists Association in the USA. He is the author of some 1000 articles, published in Slovakia and in the USA. Dr. Joseph Pauco is the author of these books and studies: .Cudovychova u sturovcov (Stur's Movement - Popular Education ). Matica slovenska. Turciansky Sv. Martin, 1943. Pp. 151. Co po komunizme? (After Communism What?) . Jednota , Middletown, Pa., 1952. Pp. 29. Dr. Jozef Tiso o sebe (Dr. Joseph Tiso About Himself) . Slovensky Katolicky Sokol, Passaic, N. J., 1952. Pp. 359. (Ed.) Tisov odkaz (Tiso's Message). Jednota. Middletown, Pa., 1953. Pp. 89. Stefan Furdek a slovenske prist'ahovalectvo ( Stefan Furdek and Slovak Immigration) . Jednota, Middletown, Pa., 1955. Pp. 190. Slovaci a komunizmus (The Slovaks and Communism) . Rev. Jan Lach. Whiting, Ind., 1957. Pp. 318. Pod zastavou krest'anskej demokracie (Under the Banner of the Christian Democracy) . Slovenski krest'anski demokrati v Spojenych Statoch. Middletown, Pa., 1957. Pp. 30. Slovenskd re hol'a Sestier sv. Cyrila a Metoda (Slovak Order of the Sisters of Ss. Cyril and Methodius) . Slovensky .Zensky Spolok Sv. Anny. Wyoming Valley, Pa., 1957. Pp. 32. Unconquerables. Vantage Press, New York, N. Y., 1958. Pp. 225. Matus Jankola - knaz a narodovec (Matus Jankola - A Priest and Patriot) . Rad Sestier sv. Cyrila a Metoda. Danville, Pa., 1959. Pp. 174. Literarny Almanach Slovaka v Amerike (Literary Almanac of the " Slovak in America") . Middletown, Pa., 1959, 1960, 1961, 1962, 1963, 1964, 1965, 1966. Pp. 160 each, last one pp. 168. (Ed.) 152 SLOVAKIA Christian Slovakia Under ComDr. Victor R. Greene, Professor munism. The Slovak Catholic Fede- of American History at the Kan- ration. Valparaiso, Indiana, 1959. sas State University, Manhattan, Pp. 31. Kansas, received his B.A. degree Pamiatke Jozefa Cigra Hronske- from the University of Harvard in ho (In Memoriam Jozef Ciger 1955; his M.A. degree from the Hronsky) . Literarny Almanach Slo- University of Rochester in 1960; vaka v Amerike. Middletown, Pa., and his Ph.D. from the University of Pennsylvania in 1963. His dis1960. Pp. 46. (Ed.) sertation for his Ph.D. was: A HisLaicky apostol Martin Kopunek tory of East European Immigrants (Lay Apostle - Martin Kop(mek). in the Anthracite Area before Vychodna oblast' Sdruzenia Slo- 1903. It is a study of the contribvenskych Katolikov. Bethlehem, ution Slovaks and others made to Pa., 1961. Pp. 67 (Ed.) the unions in the coal fields and Karol Sidor - politik, novinar, the aid to President Johnny Mitspisovatel' (Karol Sidor - Politi- chell and the United Mine Workers cian, Newspaperman, and Writer). of America. Dr. Greene in his Literarny Almanach Slovaka v thesis elaborates that it was beAmerike. Middletown, Pa., 1962. cause of the loyalty and sacrifice of Slovak mine workers that the Pp. 148 (Ed.) union was permanently establishPat'desiatnik Dr. Jozef Kirsched in the hard coal fields. baum (Dr. Jozef Kirschbaum In his present research, ProfesFifty Years Old). Literarny Almanach Slovaka v Amerike. Middle- sor Greene is making a study of the origins of Slovak and East town, Pa., 1963. Pp. 171. (Ed.) European American self-consciousFlight to Wonderland. Robert ness and why by World War I Speller and Sons, New York, N. Y., every Slovak immigrant realized 1963. Pp. 334. such a strong feeling of his ethnic 75 rokov Prvej Katolickej Slo- heritage. Dr. Greene, who · has learned to venskej Jednoty (75 Years of the First Catholic Slovak Union). Prva read and understand Slovak, is Katolicka Slovenska Jednota, Cle- familiar with the cultural and hisveland, 0., 1965. Pp. 560 & XIV. torical material available at the Jankola Library in Danville, Pa., 80 pages of pictures. the Slovak Institute Library in Slovakia. Slovak League of AmerCleveland, Ohio, and the facilities ica. Middletown, Pa., 1965, 1966. Pp. in Pittsburgh, Pa. and Chicago, 160. (Ed.) Illinois. Joseph R . Kristofik received his B.S. in Science from the University of Pittsburgh in 1949. His education includes several years at the United States Merchant Marine Academy in Kings · Point, N. Y., and at the Detroit College of Law. Mr. Kristofik is presently the Slovak Democratic Chairman for the State of Michigan with the Michigan Democratic Nationalities Division. At its 40th Convention at Youngstown, Ohio, he was elected to the executive committee of the Slovak League of America. Tino Berko was born in Slovakia, fled to the West in 1952. He studied philosophy and the history of music and art at Munich University; is a writer and lecturer; resides in Munich, Germany. Very Rev . Theodoric J. Zubek, O.F.M., S.T.D., Slovak by birth, American by adoption, is presently Delegate Provincial of the Franciscans of the Most Holy Savior Commissariat, popularly known as the Slovak Franciscans. SLOVAKIA He resides at the motherhouse of the Commissariat, Holy Family Friary, 232 S. Home Avenue, Pittsburgh, Penna. 15202. 153 jects were published during this time in various Slovak periodicals, such as "Serafinsky svet" (The Seraphic World), "Slovensky ucitel'" (The Slovak Teacher), "Smer" Father Theodoric was born in ( Direction), and "Nova praca " Malacky, Slovakia, April 4, 1914, (New Work) . and came to the United States on February 21, 1952; he became an This activity came to an end on American citizen on June 5, 1957. April 13, 1950, when the ComHe received his primary education munist government of Czecho-Sloin the schools of his native Ma- vakia supressed all monasteries. lacky while his secondary studies Father Theodoric was confined were taken at the Gymnasium of with his Franciscan confreres in Bratislava, 1925-1929, and Skalica, the concentration monastery of 1930-1934, in Slovakia. He entered Svaty Benadik nad Hronom. After the Franciscan Order in 1929 and escaping from the concentration made his novitiate in Trnava. He monastery, he remained in hiding took his theological studies at the in Slovakia until February 1951, Seminaries in Zagreb, Croatia, and when he secretly crossed the borin his native Slovakia at Brati- der into Austria. In February, slava. He was ordained to the 1952, he joined his Slovak Amepriesthood in Bratislava on June rican brethren of the Most Holy 26, 1938. After his ordination, Fa- Savior Commissariat, the American ther Theodoric began his studies foundation of the mother province for the doctorate in sacred theo- in Slovakia. logy at the Catholic University of After a short sojourn in TrauFribourg, Switzerland. On October 28, 1940, the Fribourg University ger, Penna., Father Theodoric was conferred on him the degree of stationed for seven years at the Doctor of Sacred Theology with Franciscan parish of SS. Cyril and Methodius in Clifton, New Jersey. the mark "magna cum laude". From 1956 to 1960 he taught SacUpon his return to his home- red Theology at the Newark and land and Franciscan Province in Jersey City divisions of Seton Hall Slovakia, Father Theodoric was University. In 1960 he was named named to the faculty of the Fran- pastor of the Franciscan parish of ciscan Theological Seminary at 2i- St. Rita in Buffalo, N. York, where lina in 1941, a post he held until he stayed till 1964. In 1961, he 1950. During this time he also serv- became Councillor to the Delegate ed at intervals as the Rector of Provincial of the Most Holy Savthe seminary, a Definitor of the ior Commissariat, and in 1964 the Franciscan Province, and Guard- Delegate Provincial of the said ian of the Franciscan Friary in Commissariat. 2ilina. In 1942, he published his doctoral thesis, "Joseph II and the In America, Father Zubek freFriars Minor in Slovakia". In 1945, quently spoke on the persecuted he translated E. Neubert's "Mon Church in Slovakia to various ideal Jesus, fils de Marie" (Moj groups in Slovak and American ideal Jezis, Syn Mariin) into Slo- parishes. He made an appearance vak. With Father Celestin Lepa- before the House Committee on cek, O.F.M., he co-authored a book Un-American Activities conceron the Assumption of the BL Vir- ning the operations of the Comgin, "Nanebevzata" (Mary Assum- munists in Slovakia. In 1956, his ed into Heaven), published in scholarly and well-documented 1947. Numerous articles of his on book on the systematic persecutboth theological and ascetical sub- ion of the Church in Slovakia was 154 SLOVAKIA published by Rev. John Lach. It is entitled "The Church of Silence in Slovakia". Since 1954 he began to contribute articles to leading national Catholic magazines such as "The Homiletic and Pastoral Review", "The American Ecclesiastical Review", "The Jurist, Unitas", "The Catholic Educator" and "The Marian Era". In these articles, he dealt with a variety of subjects, such as, the Communist persecution of the Church in Slovakia and other lands, the theory of Darwin, the morality of nuclear warfare, the possibility of living creatures on other planets, the Blessed Mother and Vatican II. Some of these articles attracted wide attention. In addition, he has contributed articles to such Slovak papers and magazines as "Most" (The Bridge ), "Dobry Pastier" (The Good Shepherd), "Jednota" (The Union), "Katolicky Sokol" (The Catholic Sokol) , "Slovak v Amerike" (The Slovak in America), "Kanadsky Slovak" (The Canadian Slovak) and "Literarny almanach Slovaka v Amerike" (The Literary Almanac of the Slovak in America) . He is a regular writer for the Slovak Franciscan Magazine "Listy sv. Franfilka" (The Leaflets of St. Francis) , for which he served as editor from 1958 to 1962. In 1963 he published a booklet entitled "The Slovak Bishops - Martyrs of Christ", and in 1965, " Rozjimania o tajomstvach sv. ruzenca" (Meditations on the Mysteries of the Holy Rosary) . The Commissariat of the Most Holy Savior, headed presently by Father Theodoric, has fifty members stationed in five monasteries and two parishes. be appropriate to present the views of an American university graduate of Slovak descent. Very Rev. Msgr. John Rekem, S.T .D. , Born December 13, 1917 in Trencianska Tepla, Msgr. John Rekem receited his early education in Trencin rand Nitra. For his philosophical and theological studies he ,w ent to Olomouc in Moravia. This was followed by four years at the Bratislava Istropolitana University. He was ordained in 1941 and two years later he received his doctorate in Sacred Theology. As curate he served in Hricove, Vel'ke Chlievany, Trencin, Pruske, and Varin; in the last named parish he was also administrator. In 1945 he was imprisoned by the Communists for almost eight months in a concentration camp in Trencin. He was released by an order of the People's court (No. T. 29/ 45) in December 1945. Two years later his name was registered for the so-called September liquidations, but he emigrated to Austria, leaving Slovakia on the feast of Our Mother of Sorrows, September 15, 1947. In Salzburg he was spiritual director of the Slovak Catholic refugees, for whom he established the Federation of Slovak Catholics and organized ia series of eight retreats in various cities of Austria. He was spiritual advisor of the League of Slovak Catholic Students in Exile. At home and abro,ad he h e l d Suzanna Mikula is a graduate of membership in leading Slovak or- the University of Detroit, specializing in history of Europe. Since last year not only Slovaks but also slavists of various countries commemorated the 150th birthday of L'udovit Stur, we thought it would ganizations: Society of St. Adalbert and its Literary Division; Matica Slovenska at home and abroad; the First Catholic Slovak Union; Society of Slovak Catholic Intellec- 155 SLOVAKIA tuals in Rome; and for a time he was a member of the Slovak National Council in Exile and of the Liberiation Oommittee. Msgr. Rekem crune to Winnipeg, Canada, in 1949, where he established a Slovak Catholic parish. With the help of his ever-faithful parishioners he built a church, a rectory and a hall in 1952, which were free of debt by 1965. Active in Canadi an public life he has long been associated with the New Canadians Council and the Citizenship Council. He served as chaplain to the Fourth Degree Assembly Tache, St. Boniface, Manitoba, in 1958. At present he is a member and a faithful friar of the Miles McDonnell Fourth Degree Assembly in Winnipeg. In Trencin he was co-editor of Trencan, 1942-1945. He contributed articles to: Slovak, Slovenska Pravda; Trencan; Misijne Hlasy; the Misijny Kalendar of the Society of the Divine Word. He was a contributor also to the periodicals: Smer; 1 Kultura; Duchovny Pastier; Katolicke Kazne; Nova Praca. In Amer- ica his works have appeared in Jednota; Zenska Jednota; Sloven- sky Katolicky Sokol; Slovak v Amerike; Slovenska Obrana; Slo-vaki a; Kalendar Jednota; Literarny Almanach; Rim; Hlasy z Rima; Ave Maria; Kanadsky Slovak; Most; etc. In Canada he wrote for the Manitoba Ensign; Western Sunday Visitor; Sunday Herald; St. Joseph's Residence News. In Winni- peg in 1949 he compiled and issued an English syndicated news and information service twice a week for the local English press. Many of his releases on the Slovaks were printed in the Ensign, Winnipeg Free Press, Winnipeg Citizen, and W i nnipeg Tribune. He is the author of twenty-five short studies on the history of Slovak cultural events of the past, and noteworthy and scholarly works depicting the evolution and growth of the Slovak language. He is a member of the Slovak Institute of Cleveland and th e Bernolak Foundation, and serves as a committee member in each. He was elevated to the rank of Monsignor on March 11, 1964 by His Holiness, Pope Paul VI and is now resident pastor of the Church of the Visitation in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. WHO'S WHO AMONG SLOVAIKiS ]N U.S.A. Rt. Rev. Msgr. Francis J. Dubosh, tion in June to September, 1916, P . A ., was born in Cleveland, Ohio, on September 27, 1890, a son of Charles and Mary Dubosh. There are no close surviving relatives, except for cousins in Cleveland, Pittsburgh, and New York. He was ordained on June 3, 1916 at St. John's Cathedral by the Most Rev. John P. Farrelly. He was in the last class to be ordained which received its complete seminary training at Old St. Mary's Seminary on 1800 Lakeside. Assignments: - From ordina- on temporary assignments; September, 1916, Assistant at St. Wendelin Parish, Cleveland, Ohio; December, 1917, Pastor, Holy Name Parish, Youngstown, Ohio; February, 1922, Pastor, Our Lady of Mercy Parish, Cleveland, 0 hi o; October, 1927, Pastor, SS. Cyril and Methodius Church, Lakewood, Ohio. Positions: - Named a Domestic Prelate with the rank of Rt. Rev. Msgr., on November 11, 1934 the first American-Slovak priest in the United States so honored; October 16, 1955, given rank of 156 SLOVAKIA Protonotary Apostolic - also the first American-Slovak Msgr. in the United States so honored; 19341938, Diocesan Prosynodal Judge; 1938 to date, Diocesan Consultor; 1952 to date, Diocesan Cemetery Board; and 1944-1951, Diocesan Buildin g Commission. Extra parochial and diocesan accomplishments:-Supreme Chaplain of the First Catholic Slovak Union (Jednota), 1932-1937 ; President of the Slovak League of America, 1943-1945; Member of Executive Board of Slovak League of America since 1945; President of the Slovak Catholic Federation of America, 1937-1938; one of the founders of: - Cleveland Slovak Radio Club, Slovak Professional and Businessmen's Association, member of Executive Committee to establish Slovak Culture Garden in Cleveland, Ohio, and instrumental in establishing SS. Cyril and Methodius Parish in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, in 1935; chairman of fund-raising committee for the establishment of Benedictine High School, Cleveland, Ohio; and worked with Catholic Resettlement Council for placing displaced persons in Diocese of Cleveland after post-war years. John Sabol is executive secretary of the First Catholic Slovak Union of the U.S.A. To Slovaks the First Catholic Slovak Union is familiarly known as "Jednota." That means union. Sabol is "Mr. Jednota" to the Jednotars. He has been executive secretary for 40 years. Previously, he served s e v e n years as supreme auditor. Said he: "This has been my career. " Sabol, son of a railroad section hand forman, was born in a shanty in Hillsboro, Pa., on part of what is now the Pennsylvania Turnpike. He received most of his schooling at Lyndora, Pa. At 15 he carried water when the Ft. Wheel Works was built. Later, he was a railroad car builder at McKees Rocks, Pa. He studied accounting at night at Duquesne University, became auditor for the society and was elected secretary in 1926. Sabol and his wife, Elizabeth, had f o u r children: Mrs. Helen Wells of Barberton, O.; Mrs. Joan Lang; Betty, deceased, and John J., a Medical Doctor. Judge John J . Sirotnak, born in Olyphant, Pa., October 12, 1901, of parents Michael and Susanna Sirotnak. Moved to Throop, Pa., in 1903, where he attended public schools and was graduated in June 1917. Worked in coal mines from 1917 to 1919. Attended Mansfield State Teachers' College, Sept. 1919, and graduated in 1921. He taught in Borough Schools of Throop 1921- 1928. Resigned as principal of the Jefferson School to enter University of Illinois in 1928, where he obtained his B. A. degree in 1930 and his Law Degree in 1932. Successfully completed Bar examination on October 24, 1932 and has practiced law in Scranton, Pa. , since. County Solicitor of Lackawanna County Institution District from 1938 to 1960, the first Slovak Attorney to be so honored. General Counsel of the First Catholic Slovak Union from 1944 to 1960. Judge Orphans' Court of Lackawanna County since June 17, 1960, Wife: Susan. Sons: Joseph and John, Medical Doctor and Attorney-at-Law. Member of Executive Committee of the Slovak League of America for several years. 157 SLOVAKIA 'DHE SLOVAK INSTITUTE ]N OI.,EVEILAIN1D, OHIO A cultural society, known as ibhe Slovruk Institute, was foll'l1ded an Ma:roh 4, 1952. Oha,rter memibers of the organization ,w ere: Rt. Rev. Abbot 'Dheodore G. Kojis, O.S.B., iPres,ident, Rev. Mrkulas Sprilil'c, !Rev. Andrej Pir, O.S.iB. , Dr. Fra,ncis Hriusovsky, Dr. Jozef Oindk, and Karol Strmen. The ,President named iDr. Hvusovsky, eminent Slovaik historian, as tJhe fiTst DiTector of the Institute. One of the first duties of tihe .:Institute was ito assume care of tJhe Slovak lilbrary anid museum estalblished at St. Andrew's AJbbey by the coordinated eflforts of the Matica Sioveniska, w'hich donll!ted 1.hrundreds of invaJluable hodkis to the Clevela,nd Slova:ks dUTing the ,M. S. delegation'1s visit to the United States in 1935, and 1:Jhe Slovaik League of Ameriica, which founded 1:Jhe obeginnin1gs of the &lova:k Museum at the Abbey in the Spring of 1943. Besides f'l.Ulfilling its rp rimary function of be1ng a centre of cultural endeavO'I'S for the :Silovalks in America, and t>he free world, the Slovalk Institute ihiais not onily preserved many SlovaJk 'books in i1Js ,Iilbrary but has pulJliShed a 'OJU1JI1iber of wo11k's of its own, notably, tlhe !history of Slovaik Religious institutions in America lb y the laite Dr. Francis Hrusovsky (died on Sept. 9, 1956). In Rome an affiliate of 1:Jhe Slovaik Inis titute wais established a num1ber of yearis ago. lbs main punpose is to sponsor religious a,nd cultura:l ipulblicaitionrs in the free world. The Roman tbranoh of the origin8.!l Olev~land foundation maintains olose contruct wiitJh the American parent orgainization which was ori ginally est8.!blished to carry on bhe work of the Slovaik naition's Matica Slovenska tlhait was swppr~ssed by the communist regime in tlhe ,postwar era. Another ibrancih of t h e Institute is in MuniC'h, Ge11many. Perhrups the most rpopuilar work of tJhe Slovak lnstitwte was the 1publitc1ation of a detailed mrurp of Slovrukia under the direction ()(f Dr. Hrusovsky. Mem1bershilp in the Slovark Institute reaiohes around the world, for leaiding Sfovalk writers and poets, as well. as cultural wor.kers, have been enrolled in this unique American association for tihe Slovarks in the free wonM. A:11 iing,uiries rubout Slovark history and culbure are to be arddressed to: Slovark Institute, 2900 Eia'St Boulevard, Cleveland, Ohio. 1 158 SLOVAKIA The Slovak League of America - is an AMERICAN INSTITUTION; it was organized May 26, 1907, at Cleveland, 0., by the Rev. Stephen Furdek; is a CULTURAL and CIVIC organi2:ation of Americans of Slovak descent; is interested primarily in promoting the welfare and security of the United States of America; represents an overwhelming majority of organized Americans of Slovak descent; actively affiliated with it are the largest Slovak fraternals, religious organizations, Slovak Clubs and Slovak civic organizations in the United States; is dedicated to American Democracy, the American way of life, and encourages Americans of Slovak descent to be loyal and alert citizens of America; it urges and aids Slovak emigrants to become U. S. citizens by publishing appropriate manuals and brochures in Slovak and English; is dedicated to works of charity, materially and morally aids Slovaks, here and abroad, who may be in need of such aid; it supports the American Red Cross, United Fund Campaigns and other American charitable projects; wants to help Americans of Slovak descent in American political life, in business or professions, in social standing, and along educational lines; through its Ladies Auxiliary, the "VCIELKY" (Bees) , sponsors Slovak cultural displays, concerts, lectures, art exhibits, folk festivals, social evenings, etc. Our aim is to have a "Hive" of our "Vcielky" in every large Slovak community; promotes a better understanding and appreciation of the Slovak nation, its history, culture, traditions, achievements and its long, hard struggle for freedom and independence; firmly believes in the American principle of self-determination of all nations, the inherent and God-given right of every nation, whether large or small, to freedom and independence, the right of every nation to freely choose its own form of government and freely elect persons of its own choice by whom it shall be governed; SLOVAKIA - 159 condemns and unequivocally opposes all forms of tyranny, every form of totalitarian political system. The Slovak League of America has always recognized the Godless philosophy of materialistic Communism for the dread evil and conspiracy against free humanity that it is, as the political system which threatens mankind with utter enslavement and, therefore, has fought resolutely against it in and out of season and, today, is still determined to fight against it with all the means at its command until the dread plague of Communism is wiped off the face of the earth. firmly believes that the national existence and welfare of the Slovak nation can best be safeguarded by the Slovaks themselves in their own independent Slovak Republic; as a Christian and democratic organization, is resolutely against the domination and exploitation of the Slovak nation by any other nation or political state; the Slovaks did not want to be ruled over by the Magyars and, today, do not want to be subservient to the Czech nation ; heartily commends all efforts of our governmental and other organs to ferret out and unmask all Communists and fellow travellers, as well as all persons and or ganizations who wittingly or unwittingly give aid and comfort to the conspiracy of Communism promoted by t he Soviet Union; stands for :honesty, integrity, industry and justice in government. Join the Local Assembly in your town or contact the Secretary of the Slovak League. Membership dues are only $1.50 per year. Gentlemen : I ----------------- - -------------------- ------Address --------------------- - ----------- - ----Town ----------------------- - ---------- -- ----Desire to join SLOVAK LEAGUE OF AMERICA Endosed find check $---------- ]60 SLOVAKIA Contents The Slovak Language and its Place Among the Slavic Languages - J. M. Kirschbaum - 1 Father of American Slovaks - Sister M. Martina Tybor, 25 SS.C.M. - James J. Zatko, Ph.D. - Slovaks in the U.S. A. - 41 American Slovaks and the Beginning of Czecho-Slovakia - Joseph Pauco, Ph.D. - 63 Joseph R. Kristofik - The Slovak Image - 76 " Sons of Hunkies: Men with a Past?"-Victor R. Greene A Glimpse of Gothic Slovakia Heroic Slovak Bishop - O.F.M. - Tino Berko - Mikula, B.A. - Victim of Communism - Suzanna Dr. John Rekem - 124 Current Issues As Others See It - Contributors - T. J. Zubek, 104 Martin Szentivanyi, S.J. - Book Reviews - 87 99 Eudovit Stur and the Panslavic Movement - 138 142 149 Who's Who Among Slovaks in U. S. A. The Slovak Institute in Cleveland, Ohio The Slovak League of America - 158 155 157 80 116 PRI NTI D IN U.S. A. JIDN OTA PlllN TER Y, MID DLli TOW N, PA.  Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Back Matter, Slovakia, Vol. 16 (No. 39) Description An account of the resource includes Current Issues; As Others See It; Book Reviews; Contributors; Who’s Who Among Slovaks in U.S.A.; The Slovak Institute in Cleveland, Ohio; The Slovak League of America Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1966