Page:Gregor The story of Bohemia.pdf/488

 continual disturbances. The young people charivaried persons obnoxious to them, and the rabble, as usual, turned against the Jews, who only escaped being plundered, by the protection of the National Guard. The press, in the excitement of the times left free, abused its newly-gained liberty, indulging in all manner of lampoons, especially against the hated officials. The country people soon caught the spirit of the cities, and sought redress for many petty grievances by unlawful and violent measures.

The efforts of the Frankfort Parliament to form a union of all the Germanic States, absorbing within them the various Slavonic nations of Central Europe, gave rise to a counter assembly; viz., the Slavonic Congress.

The National Committee, seeing that the government at Vienna was either unable or unwilling to protect them from the insults of the German emissaries, issued a proclamation to the Slavonic nations in the Austrian dominions to meet at Prague to discuss matters of general interest. The government, to make better provision for preserving order, appointed, in the place of Count Stadion, Count Leo Thun as chairman of the Executive Committee governing Bohemia. Count Thun, before this a member of the Executive Committee in Galicia, was a highly-popular man on account of his zeal for the national cause; consequently the people rejoiced at his appointment; but he disappointed the hopes placed in him. Neither he nor Mayor Strobach possessed that elasticity of mind that would enable them to adapt themselves to the solution of questions coming up every day from the excited populace. Strobach, becoming