On the west of Hungary lies that mountainous land, rich in minerals, namely Transylvania, which so long stood alone and even now is possessed of a spirit of independence, which is likely to give trouble, though for the time in full legislative and political union with Hungary. The Magyar name for the country is Erdely, meaning forest-land, and is akin to the Latin one with its obvious signification “beyond the woods.” The country contains about 21,000 square miles, and on account of its rugged heights resembles a great natural fortress. The chief peoples, the Wallachians, Saxons, and Roumanians, different as they are among themselves, are united in common discontent against the attempts of Hungary to impose her own language and ideas on the land they share. They cannot forget that for nearly two centuries, from 1538, they were an independent kingdom under a king of their own choosing, and it was not till 1699 that the influence of Austria as suzerain was allowed. The support of the Turks alone rendered this independence possible, it is true, but, however obtained, it gave the people a taste for freedom. In 1849 Transylvania became an Austrian crown-land, but since the settlement of 1867 it has been an integral part of Hungary. The university founded at Klausenburg or Kolozsvar in 1872 is Hungarian, and Magyar is the official language. The hardy race of men called Wallachs are as different from the Magyars as the Magyars are from the Austrians. Besides the Wallachs and Roumanians, which are the two dominant races, there are also Jews, Armenians, Saxons, and Szeklers, who are descended from early Magyar settlers, and have developed on different lines from their brothers in the plain. The Transylvanians are as restless, and as great a thorn in the side of Hungary as she is in that of Austria, and the complete Magyarisation of the country can never be carried out with these opposing elements behind. The State schools teach in Magyar, but in opposition to these a large number of elementary voluntary schools are kept up where Roumanian is the principal tongue. There are passes into the country from the Hungarian side, but toward Russia the mountains are so precipitous and steep that they give the appearance of artificial escarpments made for defence on a giant scale. The highest peaks attain a height of over 8000 feet. The climate varies greatly, the summers being very hot and the winters intensely cold. [Illustration: HARVEST-TIME IN TRANSYLVANIA]