Page:The Czechoslovak Review, vol4, 1920.pdf/94

gram, established good newspapers, created district and town organizations and opened agitation all over Slovakia. The success of the farmers’ party stirred up the leaders of the Slovak national party, and the political cry became the consolidation of political parties. The leaders of St. Martin commenced negotiations about co-operation both with the farmers and with the Hlinka folowers and for a time an understanding between the old party and Hlinka’s men seemed very likely. But in the end the healthy common sense of the majority prevailed, and on December 15 in Pišťany the national party fused with the republican farmers’ party. Judging by what both social democratic and Hlinka papers had to say about the fusion one may confidently say that the new party will become the rallying point for all truly national, non-socialist Slovak elements and will form a strong block in opposition to the Hlinka faction and the friends of the Magyars.

Beside the political situation the school situation also cleared up. In fact schools constitute the most important asset of the first year of Slovak fredom. In the elementary schools of Slovakia there are some 5000 teachers, in the grammar, secondary, technical and university grades there are about 600 Czech professors besides many Slovaks.

Today 42 secondary schools are open in Slovakia; of them 28 are purely Slovak, 5 Magyar, 1 German, 2 Slovak-German and 6 Slovak-Magyar or German-Magyar. Slovak pupils number 4781; that means that the number of educated Slovaks will increase each year by at least 500.

The growth of Slovak press, libraries, theaters and fine arts keeps pace with the development of schools. In Liptovský St. Nicholas and in Trnava there were held exhibits of Slovak and Moravian painters. Even the question of a permanent representative theater is solved. In November 1919 a theatre association was formed at Bratislava which received a concession as the Slovak National Theater. Its operatic branch will begin to play on March 1 in the Municipal Theater of Bratislava, and the season will continue to the end of June. From July till fall operas will be given at Pišt'any. The dramatic section will give plays commencing with February 1 in all important cities of Slovakia.

It is natural that the liberated energies of Slovakia are also making themselves felt in the economic field. Slovak banks have become emancipated from the control of the Magyar-Jewish capital, they have increased in size and spread their activities into all parts of Slovakia, so that they are now ahead of the Jewish-Magyar banks which are paralyzed because their cash was for the most part kept in the big banks of Budapest and is not available to them now.

Consolidation of conditions in Slovakia is making excellent progress. The new year opens with elections as the big feature. Let us hope that the electoral fight will result in victory for the loyal national elements, strengthened by recent fusion.

The deficiency of coal is so serious that it has become our most urgent problem. Without coal we cannot improve our finances and communications, to say nothing of real distress of millions who freeze on streets and at home.

We hear constantly appeals to work harder. All of us, whether socialists or bourgeois, are saying over and over again that the world war subverted the economic foundation of all Europe, that productive capital is being consumed, that our republic has but one treasure, namely creative, productive human labor.

And while we are calling on the nation to work more intensively, one factory after another is being closed because of lack of coal.

Railroad transportation is in the same condition. We lack in comparison with peace times some 60,000 cars, but without coal we cannot make more cars, and when the firemen are compelled to stoke the locomotive boilers with coal dust and shale, the engines have to be sent to repair shops and transportation slows down even more.

I will refrain from speaking of the condition of those poor people who cannot get fuel to cook dinner or keep warm at home; one would need strong language to characterize such a state of affairs.

Looking at the situation without prejudices we come to the conclusion that there are several reasons for this misery, and it is up to us to do away with them. Merely to criticize or blame this or that ministry will get us nowhere. I do not propose to discuss the question from a party viewpoint, but solely as a good republican.

The main cause of the lack of coal is to be sought in my opinion in a decrease of the efficiency of the miners. This is best seen by comparing coal production for 1914 with 1918 and the first half of 1919. I use round numbers covering the production of the entire republic, Slovakia included, and taking in both black and brown coal.