A History of Bohemian LiteratureLützow, Francis, hrabe
History
A History of Bohemian Literature
Lützow, Francis, hrabe
Czech literature -- History and criticism
"are very angry with the newspapers, because they always--so they
say--mention the Russians as if they were everything. This war has
been advantageous to the Slav world, and has contributed in no slight
degree to its advancement. Not in vain has Europe learned to know the
Slavs and they Europe. I think the Slav languages will become better
known than they are now. It is already certain, now that the Muses are
establishing their realm in the North. I must endeavour to obtain a few
Russian books.... Perhaps Count Waldstein[147] will be favourable to
the Bohemians, as he knows Slavic languages. God be praised there is
another nobleman who is not a German!"
When more peaceful times began, Jungmann's correspondence deals mainly
with literary matters, but he continues to uphold the principle of
solidarity or mutual intercourse (_vzájemnost Slovanská_) between
the Slavs. On January 3, 1827, Jungmann writes to Marek: "Of what
else should I write but of the subject which we both carry in our
hearts--Slavic literature. Yes, Slavic literature, I say, for I
may at least name in writing to my friend what in print we can
scarcely mention. So low have we fallen through the misdeeds of our
countrymen,[148] that we scarcely dare openly to profess that we are
Slavs.... They treat even the word 'Slav' with great suspicion at the
censure-office, and Palacký has made it a rule to mention the Slavs
as little as possible in the journal of the Museum.... How little
they love us can be seen by the fact that the censors at Vienna only
gave permission to print an ancient Bohemian chronicle on condition
that it should be printed in Latin characters and published at a high
price, that it may come into the hands of but few, and of none that
are 'unholy' (_i.e._ whom the Government distrusts).[149] ... We have
pleasanter news from the East. According to a letter of Šafařik, the
treaty of Akjerman between Russia and Turkey guarantees freedom to the
Servian nationality; so a new epoch for that nation and its literature
may begin. At four Russian universities--Petersburg, Moscow, Kazan, and
Charkov--professorships of general Slavic literature will be founded,
and one at Warsaw is also in contemplation. There, then, the Bohemian
language will be heard and its best works published. The Englishman
Povring,[150] is translating Servian songs into English, and,
stimulated by Šafařik, he will also translate the MS. of Königinhof.
In England very many are learning Slavic languages, particularly
Russian. Whenever a learned Englishman acquires a taste for one Slavic
dialect, he wishes to learn a second," &c.[151] As a last quotation
from Jungmann's letters, I shall give a short extract from one written
in 1837, which is curious as referring to Count Kolovrat, one of the
founders of the Bohemian Museum, who was then one of the principal
members of the Austrian cabinet. It proves that Jungmann was by no
means hostile to the Austrian Government, except when that Government
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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