Tárogató, 1943-1944 (6. évfolyam, 3-12. szám)
1943-12-01 / 6. szám
16 TÁROGATÓ always be so good to us. Today the reductions in our food make us contrast our lot with those of the peoples of Europe and the British Isles and, while actually having less than formerly, we realize what a great deal we have for which to say “Thanks.” Butter on our bread, sugar to sweeten our meals, milk and other vital foods in abundance are no longer things to be taken for granted. They are blessings for which to be very thankful. In comparison to wartorn Europe we live on the very fat of the land. Let’s hope this thought will remain with us and make us, whether silently or out loud, say “Thank you, God,” every time we raise a spoonful of food to our lips. —Onward. ANNIE LAURIE FOR RUSSIA It is not an unimportant piece of news that ten British songs have just been translated into Russian by the State music-publishing house of Moscow. “Annie Laurie” is one of the songs, and this too is important, for the words and music of that charming ballad are alike very near to the Russian spirit, with its sweetness and sadness. Russia and Britain have been two world apart for longer than is good for mankind. They are much nearer in many ways than either nation realized, and now mutual admiration for bravery and constancy, not confined to a section here and there, but spread throughout each whole nation, is making them kin. As we and the Russians come to know each other better, as we hope we shall when we visit each other’s countries after the war and see more of each other at home, we shall make some amazing discoveries. We shall realize, for example, what only a few discerning travellers have hitherto pointed out, namely, that there is an extraordinary community of taste and feeling and outlook between the British and the Russian working man and woman. When Liudmilla Pavlichenko, history student and Soviet warrior, visited our universities and factories not long ago, many of her admirers said, “Why, she might be an English girl.” And so she might. The Germans penetrated deeply into Russian life throughout the last century, but they were always alien to its spirit. This we know from the works of the great Russian writers. The chief factor which made and kept the Germans alien was their deadly leack of humour. It is very significant that for years, alike under the Tsars and after the Revolution, the works of Dickens, Jerome K. Jerome and W. W. Jacobs, three outstanding British humourists, have been immensely popular with Russian readers. The Russians have lately, on more than one occasion, paid tribute to British music They admire many writers, great and small, and are beginning to realize that British art is worthy of more attention than they have hitherto accorded it. All these things will help them to a wider understanding of that which is beginning to interest them very deeply, the British way of life. —From A British Newspaper. THE NEW VISION Men are 'wondering just what the world will be like after the war is over, and they are wishfully planning that it shall be better than it has ever been. In an address to the delegates of the International Labour Office, President Roosevelt voiced this purpose in the following words: “There must be no place in the post-war world for special privilege for either individuals or nations. All States, great or small, victor or vanquished, must have access on equal terms, to the trade and to the raw materials of the world which are needed for their economic prosperity.” It will be apparent to the most casual reader that this is a most pronounced step forward for both individuals and nations, and, even if it cannot be fully implemented at once, it will certainly offer a goal towards which all statesmen may well strive. But it is clear that the abolition of “special privilege” will mean a most radical reconstruction of society as it stands at present. —Onward. In days of yore, if anybody missed a stagecoach he was contented to wait two or three days for the next one. Now he lets out a squawk if he misses one section of a revolving door. Marta (putting up pictures): “I can’t find a single pin. Where do they all go, anyway?” Matty: “It’s hard to tell, because they’re pointed in one direction and they’re headed in another.” ■ ..
