This book was published in 1925 in New York at by Boni and Liveright Publishers and that means that it reflects the times as well the author's opinion. It includes travel to Ezhorod, the Ruthenian Capital, and mentions Rahova, Bodan, Maramos Sziget, and other locations. Ruthenians are called Ruthenes. (Previously in posts I mentioned that there are three tribe or clan groups and the ones in Southern Poland and Northern Slovakia, once Hungary, are of the Lemko group. I also mentioned these people are also called Rusyns and are of an East Slavic group, while Polish people are of the West Slavic group. The book is now considered a classic and has been reprinted.
At first I thought I was going to be prejudiced against this book when I read early on that the "real" Magyars (verus people who became Hungarian because Hungary was the country where they lived) were "gentleman so lofty that they were not wont to have personal commerce with the aboriginals" meaning the Ruthens. (page 9) I stuck with it, however, and was glad I did, for truly the way the people were living at some point close to 1925 is so interesting and there were characters - real people the traveler encountered - who were also entertaining and revealing. One of them is a man who has been to America to work in the mines four times but was injured and worries that the Americans won't let him in if he tried again because of that.
One always wonders when people who came to America the gave up their "national costume" (i.e. daily wear clothing) and why. We have images of immigrants coming into New York Harbor - Ellis Island - some in national dress, many not, and we wonder what they left behind. The people in Ruthenia are depicted wearing their national dress - embroideries - white pants with fringe - boots containing a cushion of straw that remain on the feet for months - and capes that don't seem to be warm enough to keep out the mountain mists or the snow.
The forests and weather conditions, the lonely homesteads of one room and high plateaus, the issues over grazing grounds, the hospitality of the people, all these things are brought to light in this book. Also what comes forth is that the people seem(ed) to feel satisfied with their lives or their lot in life without many of the material things that are thought to be needed by outsiders. The author admires the Czechoslovakian forest keepers but reports that the people don't like that the Hungarians want a count of cattle so they can be taxed.
The traveler's accommodations are well below what we would expect of a bed and breakfast or a student hostel these days. Travelers are given food, maybe sausage and onions and white wine or a bit of cornbread, generously, but without a lot of fanfare. They find themselves in someone's one room house where the oven takes up much of the space and a shelf on top of it is the warmest place. Travelers sleep on the (dirt) floor or on carpets or on a wood bench and sometimes everyone just lays down where they find themselves in the outdoors to sleep, without any tent or special gear.
Rusyn women are portrayed as having an old custom in which they would not be considered hospitable if they did not gently offer themselves to a traveler, so when more than one man shows up, that creates a dilemma. (Baerlein resists any temptation.) The wife has two men to keep company with that night already, and now there are three. I did have to wonder about this because I think taking the chance of pregnancy with a stranger would go against strong orthodox Catholic beliefs but he reports it. On the other hand the isolation of these people makes me wonder if perhaps this was understood as a rare opportunity rather than a duty?
Baerlein mentions people going on pilgrimages where they walk for days, day and night, to reach a church where they say a Mass and then walk back the way they came. Wild boars as well as well as tricky spirits are in the beech and sycamore forests. Fields with maize and sunflowers and sweet peppers and geese that are Jewish geese because they are fed a different diet so their livers will taste good to Jewish people; all of it brings the readers to their senses.
When an itinerant peddler decides to walk with him, we see that the peddler, with his tray of ribbons, combs, buttons and whatnot enthusiastically welcomed. He tries not to sell everything he has in one spot so others will have a chance, making me wonder why he didn't bring more. There are horses and carriages but also railway stations with phones.
The traveler however does have interactions with people who are not forested Carpathian Rusenes and reports on the attitudes between classes and ethnic groups. We learn that "Russian Count Bobrikow" ***was once an important player in the scene and that Count Shonborn once owned half of Ruthenia. Hungary with its educational system wants to turn everyone into Hungarians through education but Ruthen youth can't get down from the mountains to attend and the parents wonder about boarding schools. Hungarian nobility is seen as in two categories. Before Esterhazy and Apponyi there were those who bore no patent known as THE ARISTOCRACY OF THE SUN!
So, I wholeheartedly recommend this book!
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*** "Russian Count Bobrikow : there is a village in Southern Poland, Podkarpakie province with a name similar to this.
