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THE OCTOBER REVOLUTION
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that a revolution was only possible in Hungary in face of a ruler who violated the laws and broke his oath. This, at any rate, had been the case in the whole of our history. At present, however, there was no excuse for a revolution. It was not a question of fighting for peace, because no one desired peace more heartily than the King. There was also no necessity of a fight for an administrative union, because this had already been sanctioned, and, what is more, it was an inevitable consequence of the situation. Furthermore, there were now no impediments in the way of democratic electoral reform. Finally, no revolution was necessary in order to put the revolutionary leaders into power, because they already occupied that position.

This revolution, therefore, was only the revolution of hysteria, the product of the neuroticism of the war. The cause of its success was not to be found in the organization of the revolutionary party, its military power, or the correct sequence of its actions, but in the nervousness of the whole of society and the fear of all those who protected law and order. The last-named saw no way out of the terrible situation of the country, and they did not have confidence in an advantageous peace or any hopeful result of any kind. The energy to accept the terrible responsibility of power deserted them utterly. As the best men of the nation were unable to produce a satisfactory solution, they were glad at heart that other people pressed their claims. If in the battle of life anyone is opposed to those who strive for advancement regardlessly, the former will