The author, Kálmán Mikszáth, is a follower of Jókai, but without the great master's originality. He has been called the "Mark Twain" of Magyar literature, and is looked upon by his compatriots as their leading humorist. He is a prolific writer of the feuilliton, that peculiar institution of the continental newspaper, and several collections of these have been published. Some of his works have been translated into English, but so far as could be learned, not this story of "Heathen Master Filcsik." His subjects are drawn generally from scenes relating to North Hungarian peasant life, and are told with a directness that makes the action move along rapidly. He also uses the folk lore in his works, the present tale being founded upon older material current in the country districts. Many of the details of his stories are left to the reader's imagination; he touches only the high lights, the shadows must be given form by the reader himself. His humor manifests itself in the most unexpected ways, even in this grim story of the unforgiving cobbler, there are touches of a sly, suggestive humor that brighten the otherwise sombre narrative.
Cleveland, Ohio,
March 17th, 1910.
Heathen Master Filcsik.
There is a foolish rumor current all over Csolt, Majornok and Bodok, that the famous fur cloak of old Filcsik is only a figment of his imagination. He speaks constantly of it; he boasts about it; he claims to wear it somewhere, but, as a matter of fact (so it is said) he has no fur cloak, and in all likelihood never had one.
Yet he did have one. The people of Gozon (he moved into our midst from beyond the Bágy) and especially the older ones recollect it well.
It was a long yellow cloak, with a wide collar of black lambskin from the two ends of which two lamb's feet were hung, hoofs and all, in their natural state. It was buckled in front by two beautiful silver clasps and in the corners below each clasp were embroidered two large green tulips. In addition it was ornamented by the needle worker's art with many kinds of birds in bright colors, while on the back you discovered the city of Miskolcz with its rows of houses and many churches. You could even see plainly a Calvinistic chanticleer on one of the church towers! It was perfect—a masterpiece of furrier's work, on which its maker had spared no labor or material.
True, it was not Master Mocsik, the furrier of Gozon, who made it, but it was the most famous furrier in the city of Miskolcz who had been entrusted with its construction.
Even if Filcsik picked up half a yard of it in buttoning it, the train of this ninth wonder of the world still swept the ground, and all who saw it said that, compared to this fur cloak, that of the muscovite Czar was but a swaddling garment.