Nagy Gyula: Parasztélet a vásárhelyi pusztán (A Békés Megyei Múzeumok Közleményei 4. Békéscsaba, 1975)
Idegennyelvű kivonatok, képaláírások, képek
because of the plain was quite far away from the town itself, its inhabitants tried to get rid of it. The buyers came mostly from Orosháza as there was a higher agrarian population and also they run a more intensive agriculture. Their infusion was continuous till the middle of the 20 th century. By that time they owned most of the territory near to Orosháza while the western part remained mainly in the hands of the citisens of the other town. Naturally it is impossible to speak of sharp boarder-lines. So these inhabitants with two different cultural and historical backgrounds changed the plain into a culture area except a small part and the surrounding of a sodic-lake that is a peaceful hiding-place of the wildfowls. Comparing to the others the first chapter shows a difference as the nature of soil, the climate, the nature conservation areas, the history of population, the system of local administration and geographic toponyms are described here by authors of different qualification. What they say in essence is sumed up in the foregoing abstract. The second chapter is still initiative with a largely informing feature. But while the first one is speaking about the plain as a natural formation here its population is reflected in the mirror of sociographic literature. Béla Simándi, a local teacher and writer organized a meeting for a group of village explorer writers in 1935. After this numerous reports and analytical studies were written. Several of these are collected in this chapter preceeded by an introducing study. Before this meeting one of the 20 th century's greatest Hungarian novelist Zsigmond Móricz had visited here and wrote more articles on his experiences. Two of these can also be read in this chapter. Besides these there is a report of the most famous participants of the meeting e.g.: Gyula Illyés, Géza Féja leaders of the village explorer movement and Lajos Nagy the outstanding novelist of his time. Note that the agility of the organizátor was the only reason that this meeting was held exactly here having a magnetic power of the vivid cultural life of Hódmezővásárhely and of the colourful and compound aspects of the life in the plain known from earlier reports. This area had been a centre of the radical agrarian movements for ages. There was a wide layer of landless day-wage men, navvies and farmhand servants facing a numerous group of large farmers (kulaks) as a result of a strong social stratification. The country had no industry. There was a great number of reformers who initiated new farming methods among the large and small farmers. Although there was a great many valuable and exemplary reforms pointing towards an intensive agriculture in the "puszta" but at the same time all the difficulties occured that characterize a sporadic settlement. The hard economic circumstances that especially came upon the Hungarian peasantry between the two world wars brought a wide social background for the writers with sociological interest who fought for radical agrarian reforms and fundamental social change. The aims of this group had been put into shape here. They approached from many sides and more or less revealed the problems and difficulties of the peasantry. One can get acquainted with those people here who will be better described in chapter 2 nd . The title of chapter 3 rd is "Man, Property, Labour" and it summarizes historical and linguistic problems and questions of work organization, of propriety rights and of the social system. Summary can be read about the extensive animal breeding in transitional period of the second half of the 19 th century when the former pasture-fields had not been ploughed yet. This type of animal breeding was overshadowed by intensive, stabling method till the end of the last century, the period still traceble by the memory of the informators. The difference between the populations of different origins is also discussed here. Physical anthropological differences are not very significant but still noticable the higher figure, the darker pigmentation and aquiline profile of the people from Hódmezővásárhely. These women are more violent and men's sexual need is higher. The main difference roots in their mentality. The population that came from Orosháza is characterized by diligency and toughness; 632
