Diaries: 1944 July 3-1944 August 19; 1944 August 20-1944 September 13; Loose material from diaries

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on our radio, simultaneously west and north-east. My favourite date for war’s end approaches, it will be tomorrow, but I begin to loose faith. No, the war will not end with tomorrow, but I still believe and I am right, I know, that these are a sort of turning point in the course of war.

Allied planes seem to have their Sunday stroll all over our country. There is no part, from where disturbing flights [strikethrough] are [/strikethrough] were not announced. Sopron, Rahó, Gyergyó, Veszprém, Pécs, Ungvár, Győr, Miskolc, Szamos, Baja, Eger, Bpest, Kolozs, Gyöngyös, Várad, what is left? Coming and going all the time, alarms on and off. 1103 a.m. the radio returns [strikethrough] the [/strikethrough] to normal program. 12 10 p.m. Short waves on the radio give terrible crackling noises. Was the purpose of all these disturbing flights to disturb radio location? Is something going to happen in these hours? It is exactly a week, leaflets dropped promised [strikethrough] the [/strikethrough] raids over our railway stations.

Afternoon. Radio several times off the air. – I am told, that Ali & Co, at least, the majority

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of the fourty and odd members of the family are [strikethrough] at [/strikethrough] out at last in Lisbon but four out of them, Ali, one Mauthner boy and two others have to stay in Germany as hostages. They are staying as “Aryans,” without stars, allegedly near Berchtesgaden. Of course, this is but talk, whether it is true or not, who could tell?

The funny aspects of these days: a little girl, not quite two years old, heard thunder from the distance a few days ago. She complained: well, the sirens were not yet sounded and here are the bombs again!

It is terrible hot, my flowers are [strikethrough] fading [/strikethrough] wilting on their stems, no use the best of care, I can give them. There is a promising zinnia coming out, copper coloured (the Hungarian language calls them copper-flowers), [strikethrough] she [/strikethrough] the only one who can [strikethrough] best [/strikethrough] endure this heat.

I often wonder, how people form their opinions, as they do it. Now, there is some insinuation, that our radio, where all foreign programs are taken down and put into strictly

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confidential (szigoruan bizalmas) reports, works like this: some, very few reports are sent to some of the more important cabinet ministers (not all of them) as they were taken down. In other reports several items are [strikethrough] repressed [/strikethrough] suppressed and items from the propaganda office put in. These reports are circulated in considerable larger numbers, among all high ranking civil servants, marked: strictly confidential! So they really believe, they get the [strikethrough] exact [/strikethrough] truth.

Mamuci and Péter are going to the Balaton tomorrow for three weeks, I hope, they will be out of the bad times, ahead of us.

I spent a few hours with the Horchlers on special invitation. A friend of Ancy, Kláry Istvánffy was there, Heinzi, Elza, Teri too. Elza talking [strikethrough] all [/strikethrough] the usual newspaper stuff all the time. – Just before 10 p.m. radio off the air. Disturbing flights over Rahó – Beszterce – Naszód – Várad –Kolozs -Karcag are announced. I seems to be the regular Titobus. I am told the morning's

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event was a big scale attack upon Ploesti.

It is stated, we are in war to defend our frontiers. Yesterday’s G. communiqué announces Hungarian troups fighting at Baranowiczi. It is a bit far from our frontiers.

Since last Friday rumours are in town, that Endre and Baky, both secretaries of state for the Home Office, would be out of the picture. I told you last week, how many troups of the gendarmery were commanded to Bpest from the countryside – they could hardly get on the streetcars – the fact is, they are out of the city again. The school lbuilding of Cukor utca was full with them, Saturday no one was left there.

[?] July 10 Monday.

It should be a sad date for me, as I hoped so much – just personal lunacy – the war to end this day. Still I am hopeful. My next promise towards myself was: next Xmas we shall have letters, may be, cables. Not to mention telephon calls!

As soon as I got home, after having met Emil,

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Anny Pravda came here. She sat until 7 p.m, meantime Maria Pató called, ó, dearest, whenever I shall be able to join you, promise me, I shall have a room, where I can be undisturbed for a month. People are so communicative and my misfortune seems to be, they believe me a good receptacle for all their troubles. I should like to be left alone.

At 830 p.m. Dr Németh came for a visit, ten minutes later Klári Bálint and an hour later Mrs Székely. All from the same house, I am living in, Alone at 10 30 p.m. Left alone for a short while with Klári, we had much to talk. She has seen her fiancé today, as she has strongly believed for months, against all probabilities.

May be, I told you already, I never used to listen to radio Bpest these days. Alarms I can hear through other people’s radios from the street and else I read several papers thoroughly. So I missed an interesting item, many people heard all Saturday afternoon repeated in short intervals. It was about a letter of Monsignore Angelo Rotta,