to her daughter and said she
appreciated my having given her two days of my valuable time;--all of
which she did in so gracious and charming a manner that I not only was
not embarrassed, but felt it was reward enough for any _two_ trips to
the front.

Nearly all my conversations since entering Austria-Hungary have been
carried on in French, since it is spoken by virtually everyone with
whom I have come in contact. In Hungary all the people of consequence
speak four languages, Hungarian, German, French, and English, but
French is generally preferred to English by all except those to whom
English is the native tongue.

I left Bekescsaba at nine this morning and arrived in Budapest early
in the afternoon.

* * * * *

_Budapest, Friday, January 8th._ I lunched today with Consul-General
Coffin and dined with Countess Sigray.

* * * * *

_Saturday, January 9th._ Yesterday on my arrival in Budapest I found
awaiting me an invitation from Count Albert Apponyi to visit him at
his castle at Eberhard, near Pozsony. I left Budapest at eight,
reached Pozsony about eleven, and drove to Eberhard, where I was
received by the Count.

I was extremely impressed on meeting Count Apponyi. I had anticipated
something unusual, but he was quite beyond my expectations. He is
about six feet three inches tall, has a splendidly erect carriage, and
is a most impressively handsome man. He has a broad well-shaped
forehead sloping back steeply, splendid blue-gray eyes, the biggest
thinnest nose in the world, enormous nostrils, a strong sensitive
mouth, and a grayish square-cut beard. The "grand old man of Hungary"
looked up to his title.

He has been a member of the Hungarian Parliament for forty-two years
and has several times held ministerial portfolios. His progressive
ideas have usually landed him in the position of leader of the
opposition. He has invariably been Hungary's representative at all
international meetings, peace conferences, and inter-parliamentary
unions. He is a decade ahead of his day and generation, being probably
the most progressive man in all Hungary. This, coupled with his
blood, his magnificent appearance, and his wonderful education, make
him an extraordinary power in the affairs of the kingdom. He has twice
been in America. He has several times visited ex-President Roosevelt
at the White House and at Sagamore Hill, and the Colonel has been a
guest her