Journey in North America


Journey in North America is a book by Sándor Bölöni Farkas published in 1834. The author, travelling in the United States of America and in Canada paid special attention to the social relations of these countries, which he put as an example to the feudalistic Hungary of that time.
The book was a big success in the Hungarian Reform Era, being read by the young reformers of the parliament of 1832–36 at Pozsony. István Széchenyi expressed his thanks to the author in a letter, calling his work the most useful and most beautiful gift. In 1835 the book was banned and could be read only by special permission. The book inspired several young reformers to travel and to write about their experiencies abroad.

Publication

In 1830–1831 the author, as the secretary of count Ferenc Béldi, traveled to Western Europe, the United States of America, and Canada. He prepared for the trip by reading up on the geography, economy and laws of the respective countries, and he studied their languages. In his book he cites about fifty of the journals, books, statistical publications and political writings he read before and during his journey.
After his return, he finished his book at the end of 1833 and beginning of 1834, and sent it to his friends Gábor Döbrentei and Miklós Wesselényi. On the advice of friends, he tried to publish it in Leipzig, but on December 20, 1833, he got the answer that the German censors were told to stop at the border every Hungarian book published abroad, to examine it, and give it back to the owner only if the content was not subject to censorship. As this procedure could take more than half a year, it represented a financial risk to the publisher who did not want to tie up his capital and risk losing it. Therefore, the author asked permission from the Transylvanian censorship office which he considered more lenient. The censorship office asked the opinion of Sámuel Méhes, a Calvinist professor, who after reading the book asked that an additional censor be appointed. The Catholic bishop Miklós Kovács responsible for the censorship named the Catholic abbot János Szabó from the Kolozsmonostor Abbey. These two censors deleted some parts of the text and declared the work eligible to be published.
On April 24, 1834, Bölöni Farkas agreed with the bookseller János Tilsch to publish the book with the following conditions: the fee for the author would be 260 silver forints, half of which payable at the beginning of printing, the other half at the end of it – latest in August; maximum 1,100 copies could be printed, of which 25 were to be given to the author; the book could not be sold for a price higher than two forints; and the name of the author could not be posted outside the bookshop. The printing was executed between 30 June and 25 July 1834, and for the second edition between 2 and 23 March 1835.
In September 1835 the Government of Transylvania received the list of prohibited books in which the work of Bölöni Farkas was classified as "readable only by special permission." The author commented in his diary: "Great honour for my work! After all, it might contain something which had an effect. But it's too late - I assume the poison has had its effect, and it will only be worse with the prohibition."
Archduke Ferdinand Karl Joseph of Austria-Este, governor of Transylvania, started an investigation on 26 April 1836 at the command of the Habsburg emperor to determine how the publishing of the work had been possible under the control of the Transylvanian Censorship. Bishop Miklós Kovács argued that the prohibition arrived only on 25 November 1835 and the censors were informed on 11 December about it. Professor Sámuel Méhes stated that he executed several deletions in the text and the final approval was given by the censorship office. Abbot János Szabó excused himself saying that he read only the parts proposed for deletion by professor Méhes and on that basis gave his opinion to the office. The investigation had no consequence to the author.

Content

The first two chapters describe briefly the travel to Western Europe and the crossing of the ocean. From the third chapter on, the events of the journey are presented together with the description and history of the notable places visited, and a specific social or economical issue. Several statistical data are presented as well. The author constantly compares the United States with his own country; for example when arriving in New York City he realizes two important differences: no passport needed to enter the States and the customs officer accepts the declaration of the traveller and does not check the luggage. The description is completed in some cases by the translation of documents: chapter 8 contains the Declaration of Independence, chapter 13 the Constitution of New Hampshire, and chapter 25 Article Two of the United States Constitution. The content of each chapter is shown in the table below. The 29th chapter describes the trip back to Europe.
ChapterStatePlaceSightsOther issues
3.New YorkNew YorkBroadway, City Hallconditions for entering the country, idea of equality, public associations, school system, lack of noble class
4.New YorkNew YorkNew York Harbornumber of steamboats
4.New YorkSing Singprison
4.New YorkPeekskillnumber of newspapers, the role of press, invention of steamboat
5.New YorkWest Pointmilitary schooleducational system
5.New YorkAlbanyNew York State Capitol, Erie Canaljurisdiction, cause of population increase
6.New YorkNew LebanonShakers and Methodists
7.Massachusettsthe first colonists, the Tea Act and Boston Tea Party, the battles of Lexington and Concord
8.MassachusettsAmherstcollege and academylodging houses, the Declaration of Independence
9.MassachusettsBostonBoston Athenæum, City Hall, harboursocial behaviour, shipbuilding, siege of Boston
10.MassachusettsCharlestownprisonprison system
11.MassachusettsCambridgeHarvard Universityschools, theological semiaries
12.MassachusettsLowelltextile factorytravel books about America, religions
13.New HampshireConcordConstitution of New Hampshire
14.VermontMontpelierthe population of the United States by states
14.QuebecLa Prairiemonastery of the grey nuns
15.QuebecMontreal
15.QuebecQuebec CityCitadelle of Quebecgovernment, economy and population of Canada
15.QuebecSaint Lawrence Riverindigenous peoples of the Americas, emigration
15.OntarioLake Ontario
15.OntarioYorkBritish benefits for settlers in Canada
16.Ontario / New YorkNiagara FallsGoat Island
17.New YorkBuffalocondition of the indigenous people, population, reservations; life of Lafayette
18.New YorkLake Erie, Dunkirk
18.PennsylvaniaEriefreedom of religion, various faiths
19.PennsylvaniaSpringfield electoral system
19.Ohionewspaper distribution, population of Cincinnati
19.Pennsylvanianumber of steamboats on the Ohio River
20.PennsylvaniaEconomytextile factory, museumHarmony Society, George Rapp, movement of Robert Owen
21.PennsylvaniaPittsburghfactories, bridges
21.Marylandslavery in the United States
22.MarylandBaltimoreWashington Monumentlibrariers, railway, black people
23.District of ColumbiaWashington, D.C.United States Capitol, White House
24.District of ColumbiaWashington, D.C.White HouseAndrew Jackson; the legal status and powers of the President of the United States and of the United States Congress
25.budget of the United States, Armed Forces and National Guard, Fleet
26.VirginiaMount VernonWashington's TombJohn Smith and Pocahontas
27.MarylandBaltimorehorse races
28.PennsylvaniaPhiladelphiabanks, City Hall, museum, Philadelphia Mintphilanthropic and scientific associations; hydroelectric power plant; Quakers, statistical data about different confessions

Point of view

The work, which appeared before Alexis de Tocqueville's Democracy in America in most cases idealizes American society as one based on social equality and justice, the realization of the ideas of Classical liberalism, an example worth following. The praise of American society is at once a critique of the Hungarian one. Bölöni Farkas attributes great importance to public education, to the press and non-governmental organizations.
In some cases Bölöni included his own liberal thoughts as if they were translations, probably to evade censorship. An example is the speech on the freedom of religion attributed in chapter 18 to President Monroe. In several cases he showed his republicanist views. He considered strange the utopian socialist experiment of the Harmony Society in Economy, Pennsylvania, but appreciated the altruism which created it.
He attacked slavery vehemently and had bitter words about the treatment of the indigenous people. Similar to Tocqueville, he arrived at the conclusion that freeing the slaves in the future would result in racial conflicts.

Style

The part about Europe is like a diary characterized by the chronological enumeration of the facts, while the American part is dominated by a thematic approach for which the author made use of several sources of statistical data. The style of the book is characterized by the flexibility of the live speech. In an effort to meet readers' expectations he did not use foreign words, replacing them in some cases with Hungarian expressions of his own invention. Next to expressions describing things specific to America, he showed the original English names in parentheses. The descriptions are sometimes colored by romantic elements. Speaking about American society his style is enthusiastic.

Reactions

The book was a huge success: the 1,100 copies of the first edition were soon sold out, and in short time it had another two editions. In the library of the Kolozsvár Unitarian College, which was open to the public as well, it was the most borrowed book. It was read by the students at the Eastern Catholic theological seminary in Balázsfalva as well. The journal Jelenkor published the part about George Washington and his home, and recommended the book to the readers in a special note. On 10 September 1834 István Széchenyi wrote a letter to the author, in which he called the Journey his most useful and most beautiful gift, and expressed his thanks to the author for it. For the politicians of the Hungarian Reform Era it served as a handbook; among others Lajos Kossuth was reading it, and it was widely known by the young reformers of the 1832–36 parliament at Pozsony. A bit later the young Balázs Orbán knew it almost by heart.
On 8 November 1834 the author was elected a corresponding member of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences, and in 1835 he was given the Academic Prize for the best book of the year.
From the few contemporary critics, Canon Károly Somogyi took exception not to the book itself but the ideas of the religious sects presented in it. In 1842 the advocate István Éllássy attacked the author, asking "how far will the nation be dragged by the venom of reformism if the followers of the vainglorious North American traveler are permitted to impact the essence of the country's laws?"
The travel of Bölöni Farkas ‑ together with the travel of Miklós Wesselényi to England in 1822 ‑ encouraged several young reformers to travel and to write about their experiences abroad Ferenc Pulszky, Ágoston Trefort, László Szalay, Pál Hunfalvy, Bertalan Szemere, István Gorove, Lőrinc Tóth, József Irinyi. They primarily described the social, legal and economical systems and not the geography or art history of the respective countries.
After its initial success, the book was republished only one hundred years later, in 1935, followed by three additional editions, the last one appearing in 1984 in 8,500 copies.

Editions