in vain. We have been destroyed, our country has been torn to pieces, and we have become paupers. The fight against the enemy has been exchanged for a class war. The most cruel class tyranny and other quarrels are bleeding us to death. We may boldly assert that our fate amongst all the belligerent nations is the hardest of all!
How could this happen? What causes have led to this terrible tragedy, in which it was my sad fate to play a part?
The development of Hungary had been under an unfortunate constellation for a long time. In the course of the last half-century, ever since the adjustment of the year 1867, we should have made good the mistakes of centuries, and we should have strengthened and developed ourselves, but unfortunately this did not occur to a sufficient degree.
The tragedy of the past century had been that we had had to seek assistance against the superior power of the Turks, and that the ruler to whom we offered the crown of Stefan in exchange for his help, did not identify himself with the Hungarian nation. The nation and the dynasty did not understand each other sufficiently. The object of the nation was "herself," the object of the dynasty was also "herself." The general interests of the countries dominated by this dynasty did not unfortunately hold together. The nation, goaded by her instincts, sought to establish an independent national life, based upon a protective alliance with other states. The instincts of the dynasty,
