nbending
Croat--hindered his advancement. The party in possession of the town
council, the Autonomist party, would have none of him. At last he, in
disgust, threw up his post and went into his father's office. He was
entitled, after ten years' service, to a pension; the Autonomists
refused to grant it for the reason that he was so dour a Croat. Very
often, talking with his friends, did Dr. Vio mention this. He made a
successful appeal to the Court at Buda-Pest and a certain yearly sum was
conceded to him, which he may or may not be still obtaining. Then, to
the amazement of the Croats, he renounced his nationality and
became--no, not an Italian--a Magyar. He was now one of those who called
Hungary his "Madre Patria," and as a weapon of the ruling Hungarian
party he was employed against the Italianists. In the year 1913 the
deputy for Rieka died and Dr. Vio was a candidate, his opponent being
one of the Italianist party, Professor Zanella. Dr. Vio had the support
of the Government officials, railway officials and so forth, and was
elected. Now he was a Magyar of the Magyars: Hungarian police officials
were introduced, and Magyar, disregarding the town statutes, was
employed by them as sole official language. The citizens still speak of
those police.... The War broke out, and Dr. Vio donned a uniform,
serving chiefly on the railway line between Rieka and Zagreb. Gradually
he seems to have acquired the feeling that it was unnatural for him to
be a Magyar of the Magyars, even though he was compelled, like so many
others, to wear this uniform. But one day in 1916 when his friend and
fellow-officer, Fran [vS]ojat, teacher at the High School at Su[vs]ak,
walked into his room at Meja, when he happened to be putting little
flags upon a map, he prophesied--King Peter and the Tzar would have been
glad to hear him. Presently, he had himself elected as the mayor, which
enabled him to leave an army so distasteful to him. How long would he
wait until he publicly became a Croat once again? He did not doubt that
the Entente would win, and told that same friend [vS]ojat that Rieka on
the next day would be Croat. To another gentleman in June of 1918 he
said he hoped that he would be the first Yugoslav mayor of the town, and
on that day, out hunting, he sang endless Croat songs. In September, to
the mayor of Su[vs]ak, "You will see," he said, "how well we two as
mayors will work together." When the Croat National Council entered into
office