ANTI-SEMITISM IN VIENNA.
THE SIGNS OF ITS APPROACHING COLLAPSE
ARE INCREASING.
Vienna correspondence of The London Chronicle.
Vienna is still the stronghold of
anti-Semitism, and Dr. Carl Lueger, the Burgomaster, its most
notorious exponent in Europe. For nearly three years the
administration of the Austrian capital has now been in the hands of
the anti-Semitic party, but the signs of its approaching collapse
are increasing.
Upon the head of Dr. Lueger, that
greatly overestimated man, the shadows of evening are already
beginning to descend. Only a year ago the interesting face and
slender figure of "handsome Carl" were to be seen in a hundred
representations of every kind; women displayed his picture in
brooches and medallions, every barrel organ in the suburban courts
and alleys, and every band in the Prater beer gardens, played the "Lueger
March" amid frantic applause. Today Lueger's portrait is hardly
anywhere to be seen, the notes of the "Lueger March" have ceased to
assail unwilling ears, and the barrel organs have taken out the
Lueger plate. In office anti-Semitism still is, but on the minds of
the befooled million a light has begun to break. Lueger's
lieutenants--Schneider, Gregorig, Gessmann and Vergani---feel this
change even more than their leader himself. Indeed the Christian
Social leaders, who on every opportunity were hailed by the
multitude, now feel no longer even safe; their houses have to be
watched day and night by the police. Now the people's leaders have
to be protected from the people by the police. To any critical
observer it has been clear that the anti-Semitic regime could not
last long. It is a peculiarity of this singular movement that it
soon works itself out. Germany first started it. But the movement
makes no progress there; in fact, it is now less than it was ten
years ago.
But from Germany anti-Semitism,
nevertheless, made its way first to Russia, her Polish provinces,
and to Rumania. There the ground had been well prepared as even
before that time society and legislation had been anything but
favorable to the Jewish race. It had always held an exceptional
position, and been tolerated only. In those countries, the
anti-Semitic doctrine resulted merely in violent but isolated
outbreaks of the mob against the Jews. Such fits repeated twice or
thrice resulted in an influx of pauper Jews into England and
America; but for about ten years little or nothing has been heard
out of this movement.
AN ARTFUL PARTY CRY.
Anti-Semitism made its appearance in France and Austria
simultaneously, and in both countries it now seems to be nearing its
end. In both countries the Roman Catholic Church and the reactionary
party hailed it as an ally, particularly in Austria. Here the ground
had been wonderfully prepared. The lower middle class of the
indigenous Vienna population is light and shallow minded, pleasure
loving, thoughtless. The so-called Liberal party was defeated and
prostrate, the country had just passed through a severe economical
crisis, and all the distress suffered owing to that made the
Austrians, who have so little common sense, only the more stupid and
superstitious. Soon the cry was raised that "it was all the fault of
the Jews." They have the most money--so ran the accusation--they
produce most cheaply, they create hurtful competition, they are
smarter and work longer hours than the Gentiles, they spend less and
are satisfied with small profits. This movement was at once
supported by the ruling aristocracy and the clergy, for the social
question had just then been knocking at the door.
The Socialist agitation was already
beginning to spread in the country, and Anarchist crimes were
following one another in rapid succession. Count Taaffe, a high
Tory, as well as a shrewd and unscrupulous politician, was Prime
Minister. He at once perceived that he could make the movement of
service to the aristocracy and clergy against Liberalism and the
rising Socialism. By clandestinely fostering the anti-Semitic
agitation the clergy and aristocracy succeeded in diverting a large
portion of the Socialist movement, which was naturally directed
against them, and turning it against the Jews. As a consequence
Socialism, which started in Austria with so much promise, has made
comparatively little progress since. Anti-Semitism, under the false
flag of Christian Socialism, rapidly spread in Vienna--shortly
before the very bulwark of Liberalism became almost entirely
anti-Semitic.
In the Vienna Town Council and in the
Provincial Diet of Lower Austria in which the Liberal party used to
predominate, the anti-Semites now have immense majorities. But what
was their programme on getting into office? Not the improvement of
the condition of the working classes, not the abolition of the
prerogatives of the nobility, nor the diminution of the burdens of
militarism, nor the alleviation of the distress among the poor.
Never a word did they say about these things, or about the liberty
of the press or the right of combination. The Government, the
nobility and the Church remain untouched, unblamed! At all the
thousands of noisy meetings, in their daily papers, nothing was said
or written except that the whole abominable Jewish race ought to be
annihilated! But as that could not well be done, these aliens were
to be hunted out of the country which they and their forefathers
have inhabited for the last twelve hundred years! If that, too,
proved impossible they were to be deprived of all the rights of
citizenship. First of all, they were to be excluded from all public
offices, and from the numerous chairs which they occupy at the
universities and other educational institutes. The celebrated Vienna
medical faculty, the anti-Semites complained, was "tainted" by the
Jews! The majority of the professors belong to the Hebrew race; the
greater part of the big daily newspapers are written by Jews; trade,
wholesale and retail, is chiefly in their hands.
BOYCOTTING THE JEWS.
Consequently the watchword constantly
given to the befooled multitude was: "Don't buy of Jews, don't read
Jewish newspapers!" Of the million and a half of inhabitants of this
capital, about 120,000 are Jews. But of the 4,000 physicians half
are Jews, and of something like 1,000 lawyers, some 650 belong to
what Lord Beaconsfield called "The superior race"!
There was a superabundance of the
elements with which to excite the envy and all the low instincts of
the lower classes, and besides that the anti-Semites appeared under
the well sounding and enticing name of "Christian Socialism." The
oppressed were promised help and salvation. It is, however, true
that the large, well organized Social Democratic party, the only
self-reliant and enlightened party in Austria, was not to be misled
and corrupted by the reactionary demagogues. But the mass of the
lower middle class, which is badly off, and which is in a
transitional economic condition, the small tradesmen, who daily
receive new wounds from capitalistic industry, the badly paid lower
officials, the great army of servants and petty folk adopted the
anti-Semitic doctrine with fiery zeal. These people have the
franchise, but the Social Democratic workers have not. When the
elections came, the anti-Semites were victorious, as they desired to
be. Their first act after obtaining the upper hand was to cut out
the municipal budget of 15,000 florins an item of the 9,000 florins
for school requisites for poor children. The items for building new
schools, for the supply of drinking water, for almshouses, for the
feeding and nursing of the sick poor were also considerably reduced.
Now we are threatened with reductions in the salaries of the
teachers, who are already poor enough. Workmen and teachers are
refused the use of the rooms in the Town Hall in which they used to
hold their meetings. The Jewish shorthand writers to the Diet have
been dismissed. Jews cannot get places in the municipal
administration, and they are excluded from supplying goods to the
municipality, from building, and doing other municipal work. The
Vienna Volunteer First Aid Society, a model philanthropic
institution, which has served most towns in Europe as an example,
was refused the customary modest annual subvention of somewhat more
than 5,000 florins because most of the doctors connected with it
were Jews--although they gave their services gratis! On the other
hand, the Town Council has voted some 250,000 florins for churches,
conventual schools and church societies. It is, in short, a struggle
against education and culture that this remarkable party which calls
itself Christian Social has inscribed on its banner.
Against the Society for Popular
Education, which the community has bound itself to assist, they
brought an action in order to withdraw from it the promised
subvention. On the other hand, this year alone four new churches
have been built, and before the close of the year the foundation
stones of six more are to be laid, the cost to be nearly 2,500,000
florins.
Besides all this, next year ten more
churches are to be built or altered! This year a special loan has
been contracted, and guaranteed by both the community and the
Government, to this purpose. The Social Democratic party is holding
one indignation meeting after the other to protest against "Black
Vienna." While thousands of school children are suffering hunger,
the erection of model dwellings for paupers and the subvention of
the Society for Popular Education are obstinately refused, whereas
the anti-Semitic majority on the Town Council is voting from the
rates millions of florins--paid in great part by non-Catholics--for
Catholic churches. But Town Councillor Lucian Brunner, a Jewish
Radical, appealed to the Supreme Court of Administration against
these votes, and the Court has disallowed them. The campaign against
the school teachers forms a special feature in the anti-Semitic
party's hatred of education. When that party first arose, the
underpaid and overworked teachers were also among the malcontents,
and, indeed, belonged to the party. But when it became more and more
evident that the anti-Semites were the mere tools of the clergy and
the reactionary nobility, when their attacks on the existing modern
school system became increasingly palpable, the teachers opposed
them with determination.
In return, dismissal, punitive
transfer and all sorts of other vexations were practiced against the
liberal minded teachers. Against the best of them was directed the
violence of the obscurantist party. Fräulein Fickert, a woman of
unusual refinement, whose character and spirit have won her general
esteem, was insulted in the most outrageous manner in the open
sitting of the Town Council itself, suspicion was cast upon her and
finally she was punished.
With the exception of two or three of
the leaders, the men of this party are completely ignorant and
uncultured persons, filled, moreover, with a burning hatred of
knowledge, and education. The rudeness of the language used in the
Town Council and in the Provincial Diet of Lower Austria passes all
belief. All the associations of teachers have protested at
indignation meetings against the suppression of freedom of speech.
But the anti-Semitic party does not care a straw. And the
reactionary Government, although more observant of the outward forms
of decency, is keeping pace with that party in oppressing the modern
school. In consequence of this, nearly all the celebrated professors
from Germany are abandoning their chairs at Austrian universities,
while most of the professors in Germany who have lately had
important chairs offered them in Austria have refused them. The next
punishment it is proposed to inflict on the liberal minded Viennese
teachers is to incorporate them with an electoral class, in which
their votes will be swamped.
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