AUSTRO-HUNGARIAN MONARCHY. 



61 



eral of the Lemberg-Czernowitz road, Ofen- 

 heiin, which began at Vienna in January, 1875. 

 The indictment charges Ofenheim with ten 

 separate frauds, and maintains that all the af- 

 fairs of the company were in his hands ; that 

 he was absolute master, and that, therefore, 

 nothing occurred without his knowledge. His 

 personal influence is, moreover, traced by the 

 indictment in every particular on which the 

 charges are founded. Ofenheim, in his de- 

 fense, stated that by assisting Brassey's finan- 

 cial operations he acted in the company's in- 

 terest. By hurrying on the construction of 

 the line on Roumanian territory during the 

 French and German War he obeyed the ex- 

 press wishes of the highest quarters in Vienna. 

 The accused was subjected to a general exami- 

 nation, in the course of which he gave an ac- 

 count of his former life. He stated that pre- 

 vious to the financial crisis he was possessed 

 of 2,250,000 florins, his fortune now amounted 

 to 850,000 florins, and this he owed to the 

 reputation he had gained by the manner in 

 which he had accomplished the difficult task of 

 the construction of the Lemberg-Czernowitz 

 Railway. Through this he was brought into 

 connection with lucrative undertakings. The 

 accused alleged that he only obtained the com- 

 mission to construct the railway in 1864, after 

 he had succeeded in interesting the English 

 firm of Brassey in the undertaking, and he was 

 appointed director-general after the formation 

 of the joint-stock company, with a salary of 

 150,000 florins. In the interest of a speedy com- 

 pletion of the line, he supported Mr. Brassey by 

 advice and acts in connection with difficulties 

 occurring respecting the laying of the foundation 

 of the work, the supplies, and certain financial 

 operations. He did so also at the construction 

 of the Czernowitz-Suczawa line, yet he asked as 

 builder from the contractors only strictly what 

 he was entitled to. The conflict with the Gov- 

 ernment the accused stated to have been of a 

 purely personal character, because he did not 

 agree with the railway policy of the Minister 

 of Commerce, and he declared that at the time 

 of his resignation the company held the best 

 possible position. Replying to an observation 

 of the President of the Tribunal, that the com- 

 pany had been compelled, notwithstanding, to 

 issue a preference loan, the accused said that 

 was done under brilliant conditions. He showed 

 that 190,000 had been really paid to Messrs. 

 Brassey. He could, however, give no explana- 

 tion as to what was done with this sum. He 

 received a present of 5,000 for his trouble. 

 With regard to another question of the presi- 

 dent, the accused said that the shareholders 

 did not suffer by the transactions, since they 

 knew the burdens that had to be undertaken 



S'evious to subscribing. On January 28th the 

 inister of Commerce Banhaus was called to 

 give an account on his relations to several rail- 

 road and banking companies previous to his 

 entering the cabinet. The counsel for Ofen- 

 heim threatened to prove by means of a receipt 



that Banhaus was as deeply involved in rail- 

 road speculations as Ofenheim. The proof was 

 not conclusive, but nevertheless an impression 

 very unfavorable to the Minister of Commerce 

 was produced. The trial was brought to a con- 

 clusion on February 27th, and ended in the ac- 

 quittal of Ofenheim. The result was partly 

 ascribed to the superior intelligence of Ofen- 

 heim, who produced a powerful impression upon 

 the jury and public opinion when he declared 

 that by his enterprises he had drawn to Aus- 

 tria more than 176,000,000 florins, that he was 

 giving steady employment and regular pay to 

 thousands of working-men, and in case of his 

 acquittal he would give 100,000 florins to the 

 poor of Vienna. The Minister of Commerce 

 deemed it best to leave Vienna " for reasons 

 of health," and a few months later the resig- 

 nation offered by him was accepted by the Ern- 

 peror. 



The centenary of the incorporation of the 

 Bukowina with the Austrian dominions was 

 solemnly celebrated at Czernowitz October 4th. 

 Deputations from all the towns and rural com- 

 munities, numbering in all about 1,200 persons, 

 were in attendance, and all the nationalities 

 represented in this province indulged in their 

 peculiar popular festivities. The centenary 

 celebration began with a procession of all the 

 deputies of the town and communities to the 

 residence of the Governor, to whom a commit- 

 tee of deputies, headed by the President of 

 the Provincial Diet, officially rendered the 

 homage of the province. The Governor read 

 to the deputies an imperial rescript which was 

 received with great enthusiasm. Then fol- 

 lowed the unveiling of the Austria monument, 

 the work of Prof. Peckary, in Czernowitz, 

 on the Austria place, with an address by the 

 Burgomaster of Czernowitz, Dr. Ambros von 

 Rechtenberg. The opening of the new uni- 

 versity, which has been founded by the Aus- 

 trian Government in honor of the centenary, 

 began with a speech by the Minister of Public 

 Instruction, Dr. Stremayr, which was followed 

 by addresses from the first rector of the uni- 

 versity, Dr. Tomaszczuk and Prof. Schuler-Lib- 

 loy. All the Austrian universities, as well as 

 Strasburg and Gottingen, had sent special dep- 

 uties to this celebration, and numerous letters 

 of gratulation were received from learned insti- 

 tutions in all parts of Europe. The new uni- 

 versity is the only one in Austria which has 

 a theological faculty of the Orthodox Orien- 

 tal (non-united Greek) Church. Besides the 

 theological faculty, it has. for the present only 

 two others, one of law and polical economy 

 and one of philosophy. Most of the lectures 

 will be given in the German language. In 

 Roumania, the festivities of Czernowitz gave 

 great offense to all classes of the population. 

 The Roumanians look upon the Bukowina as 

 a province which, being chiefly inhabited by 

 Roumanians and torn from them by violence, 

 should be reunited with them in course of 

 time. A member of the Roumanian House of 



