The troubles in Austria have not been brought to a close by the downfall of Count Badeni and the appointment of Baron von Gautsch.
Count Badeni was, as you will remember, particularly obnoxious to the German element in Austria, and many people thought that his dismissal would restore harmony. Instead, it has given rise to some very serious rioting in Bohemia.
We explained to you in a former number that Austro-Hungary is composed of a number of states and provinces.
The leading races in this much-disturbed country are the Germans, the Slavs, and the Magyars.
The Germans number about ten and a half millions; the Slavs, who comprise about nine distinct races, about twenty millions; and the Magyars about seven and a half millions.
The most important of the Slavs are the Czechs, or Bohemians, who number about five and a half of the total twenty millions.
While, as you can readily see, the Slavonic races considerably outnumber the Germans and the Magyars, the government is vested in these two latter races, and therefore the Slavs are forced to obey the will of the governing people. They do so, as we have seen, with a very bad grace.
Between the Magyars and the Germans there is no great friendliness, but the Hungarians have their own parliament, and are independent in many things. Between the Austrians and the Czechs there is an intense and undying antipathy, which it seems impossible to overcome.
The Bohemians would like to be as independent as the Hungarians, but their desires are not heeded, and they are forced to submit to the government of the Austrian Reichsrath or parliament.
In this assembly, however, they can show their true sentiments, and the friction between the rival races is extraordinary. If the Bohemians want any special laws made, the Germans oppose them. If the Germans try to get a measure through the parliament that is for their benefit alone, the Czechs combine to defeat it.
When, therefore, the German party succeeded in ousting Count Badeni, the Czechs were furious.
The German Austrians foolishly celebrated their victory with bonfires and illuminations, making a fête of the success which was so hateful to the Czechs.
The angry Bohemians sought revenge in riot.
In Prague, the capital of Bohemia, there were fierce anti-German risings.
The houses of the Germans were bombarded with stones, the German theatre and German restaurants were attacked and damaged, and the German Quarter, or portion of the city where most of the Germans live, was visited by an angry mob which plundered the houses and shops.
All persons speaking the German language were subject to attack, and for this reason the unfortunate and harmless Jews came in for their share of the popular hatred. The majority of them do not speak Czech, and many of the signs over their shops are in the hated German language. Many of them were therefore robbed, beaten, and cruelly ill-treated.
The riots grew so serious that they almost amounted to a rebellion.
Thousands of Czechs streamed into Prague to assist the rioters. The streets were filled with furious men, who attacked and beat any person using words of German. The very women on their way to market were not safe. They were obliged to wear the Bohemian national colors to save themselves from attack.
One poor old woman was severely beaten because she could not speak Czech. About three hundred Germans were taken to the hospitals, suffering from wounds they had received.
The disturbances having assumed such a serious character, the troops were ordered out to restore order.
They were greeted with showers of stones, broken glass, or any missile that came handy. The soldiers were finally obliged to fire on the mob, and in consequence many persons were injured.
The riots continuing, Prague was put under martial law, and regiments were drafted from Vienna to assist in quelling them. Twelve thousand in all have been massed in the city of Prague. It is evident that the Government considers the situation grave, as the men have been sent out armed as for war, and furnished with the various necessaries as for a regular campaign.
When martial law is proclaimed in a district, it means that all persons within a certain limit are to be subject to the rules and regulations in use in times of war.
These rules are very strict. Persons who resist are arrested, tried, and severely punished. Sometimes if they cannot give a good account of themselves they are hanged as spies.
The law that has been proclaimed in Prague is known as the Standrecht, and is not exactly martial law. Instead of the military officers sitting in judgment on suspected persons, the civil judges of the law courts are given military powers. They try and sentence people with military haste, and their sentences are put into effect within a few hours after they have been passed.
There is no appeal from the judgments of the Standrecht; and so quickly are they carried out, that if a person is ordered to be hanged, and the regular executioner is busy, the judge can call on the soldiers to carry out the sentence.
No sooner were these severe measures enforced in Prague, than the wrath of the people began to calm down.
Four men were handed over to the mercy of the judges; each received a sentence of twenty years' imprisonment, and was immediately taken away without time for farewells.
The hand of the law is very heavy in Prague at this moment, and for this reason her citizens are gradually returning to their senses.
Throughout the length and breadth of this great city the people are forced to live by military rules. Among other orders, the commanding officer insists that the house doors must be closed at seven every evening. Shops have to be closed at five, cafés must have their lights out and doors closed at nine, and every person in the city has to give an account of himself whenever it is required.
Under these laws the people of Prague will continue to live until peace is restored. The condition of the city is very pitiable. The schools are closed, the hotels are empty, and the tradespeople declare that bankruptcy lies before them.
Amazing stories are told of the dreadful things done by the rioters in their hatred of everything German. It is said that the Children's Hospital was attacked, and pelted with stones until all the windows were broken. The poor little invalids were for hours subjected to the freezing cold, and all because the doctors and nurses were Austrian Germans. In another part of the city an ambulance with a sick man in it was attacked by the mob, because the doctor riding with the patient was known to be a German.
While these horrors have been going forward in Prague, matters have not improved much in Vienna.
The two parties are more furious against each other than ever. It is asserted that if the Reichsrath reassembles with the same president, the previous disgraceful riots will be repeated.
It is said, however, that there is a chance of an understanding on the language question, but it is thought that it will be impossible to pass the Austro-Hungarian Compromise Bill in the Reichsrath.
This bill is the contract which holds Austria and Hungary together as one country, and which, as we have told you, expires on December 31st of this year.
If it is not renewed, Austria and Hungary must be separated.
As it has been impossible for the two nations to agree as to the terms of the new contract, it has, as we have told you, been suggested to make a temporary one for one year, which will bind the kingdoms while the permanent contract is being prepared.
It is this one-year agreement which it is supposed cannot be passed by the Reichsrath.
If it becomes evident that the Reichsrath will not pass this necessary bill, it is thought that the Emperor will finally take advantage of his right under the constitution, and, dissolving the Reichsrath, act on his own authority, and accept a one-year's agreement with Hungary.
If Francis Joseph is forced to take such a step it is likely that he may not call a new parliament for some time, but govern the country himself.
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