Through the influence of Trotski, Jews from Hungary who were prisoners of war, became in Russia the dreaded tyrants of lesser towns, the heads of directorates. The Soviet now sends these people back as its agents. Will the government prevent them from coming? Will it arrest them? Probably not. Many believe that during his stay in Switzerland Károlyi came to an agreement with the Bolsheviki and now abets the world-revolutionary aims of the Russian terror. Sinister tales circulate under the walls of the houses of Pest. What madness! An agricultural country like Hungary is no soil for that seed. And yet.... A few days ago an alarming rumour spread. In vain did the government attempt to suppress it. The news leaked out that as soon as it had come to power the government received a wireless message from the Russian Workers’ and Soldiers’ Council, who sent their fraternal greetings and promised that the Russian Soviet would send help and food if only the Hungarian proletariat would join it in its war against the Capitalism of the Allies. For, said the wireless: “The freeing of the toiling masses is possible only through a proletarian world-revolution. Unite, Hungarian proletarians! Long live the world-revolution! Long live the dictatorship of the proletariat! Long live the world’s Soviet-republic!”
This message, kindled by the fire of class hatred, spread its sparks over the Russian swamps, over the Carpathians, and fell glowing into Károlyi’s nefarious camp. Nobody trod on it to extinguish it, it was kept alive, in secret, among them. No wonder they are uneasy.
November 14th.
The days are getting shorter and shorter, and darkness comes earlier every day.
The lamp was lit on my table. Count Emil Dessewffy was telling me about his journey to Eckhardsau. Now and then he fixed his strong single-eyeglass into his orbit, then again he toyed with it between his long, thin fingers, as if it were a shining coin. He was obviously nervous; and he kept crossing and uncrossing his legs.
“Prince Nicolas Eszterhazy, Baron Wlassics, Count Emil Széchényi and I went there. The Cardinal Primate declined at the last moment.”
“How could you bring yourselves to such a step?”
“Our intention was to check Károlyi’s machinations, to obtain the resignation of the King, and to persuade his Majesty to stand aside temporarily. At first the King wouldn’t listen to reason. He said he had taken the oath to the Hungarian people; if others wanted to break their oath towards him, let them arrange that with their conscience; he was not going to perjure himself. We explained to him that as he had already transferred, alas, his supreme command to Károlyi, he would safeguard the interests of poor Hungary and of the dynasty better by standing aside during the period of transition, than by hanging on obstinately to his formal right. By this he might frustrate the attempt of those who are fishing in troubled waters to force the nation to face the fait accompli of a deposition by violence. The King stamped his foot and declared several times that whatever might happen he would not stand aside. We explained the advantages of the step from various points of view, and at last made him understand that after the mistakes that had already been made, no other solution was possible. Wlassics edited the document, but we couldn’t make a final draft because no foolscap paper could be found in the whole castle. We sent out for some paper. Then there was no ink, and we had to search for a pen. Time passed, and meanwhile the King went out shooting....”
“Went out shooting!” The whole tragedy seemed to be becoming a burlesque.