Priča iz Njujorka / A tale from New York
iskoristi, kao i visoke ideale“. Ova neverovatna priča počela je na poslednjoj strani nekog ilustrovanog lista i oglasom Parobrodar- skog društva Hamburg–Amerika , koje je nudilo jeftin, nekomforan prevoz do Njujorka za 28 florina (forinti). „Smesta sam se odlučio da okušam svoju sreću u zemlji Frenklina i Linkolna... Prodao sam knjige, sat, odeću, zatim žuti kožuh i crnu šubaru da bih došao do potrebne svote. Na put sam pošao sa jednim odelom na sebi, nekoliko košulja i jednim turskim crvenim fe- som koji niko nije hteo da kupi. I zašto da čovek lupa glavu oko tople odeće kada ide u Njujork? Zar nije Njujork mnogo južnije od Pančeva i zar se može po- misliti da Amerika nije topla zemlja kad se čovek seti
fered cheap, basic transportation to New York for twenty-eight florins. “I immediately decided to try my luck in the land of Franklin and Lincoln... I sold books, my watch, clothing, then a yellow leather and black fur hat to get the sum of money needed. I set off on the journey with a single suit on my back, a couple of shirts and a Turkish red fez hat that nobody had wanted to buy. And why would a man pound his head around warm clothing when go- ing to New York? Isn’t New York a lot further south than Pančevo, and wouldn’t one imagine that America is a warmer country when a man recalls those numerous pictures of naked Indians. These were the thoughts that comforted me, such that I grew so reassured in my coat”, wrote Pupinin his autobiography. The first major victory was the vic-
onih brojnih slika golih Indijanaca. To su bile misli koje su me tešile, te sam se tako umiren rastao od svoga kožuha“, piše Pupin u svojoj autobiografiji. Prva velika pobeda bila je pobe- da nad hladnoćom, koja ga je iznenadi- la već prve noći plovidbe. Grlio je svake noći brodski dimnjak i to mu je pomoglo da uz nadu prvi put pogledom obuhvati grad od kojeg je mnogo očekivao… „Četrnaestog dana, rano izjutra, uka- zala se niska obala Long Ajlenda. U ša- renoj gomili uzbuđenih iseljenika ve- rovatno nije bilo srećnijeg čoveka od mene kada sam ugledao obećanu ze- mlju. Osećao sam se kao neka druga osoba, a svaki novi prizor koji se ukazi- vao sa broda u toku približavanja No- vom svetu kao da mi je nagoveštavao da ću biti dočekan dobrodošlicom. Pri- zor koji se tada ukazao pred mojim oči- ma bio je nov i zadivljujući. Prvi utisci iz Budimpešte i Praga bili su bleda sli- ka prema ovoj veličanstvenoj stvarno- sti koja mi se ukazala u njujorškoj luci… Grad na obe strane obale izgledalo je da vri od raznih poslova.“
tory over the cold, which caught him by surprise on the first night of the voy- age. He hugged the ship’s funnel each night and that helped him, with hope, to first catch sight of the city from which he expected a lot... “On the fourteenth day, early in the morning, the low coast of Long Island emerged. In the colourful crowd of ex- cited immigrants there was probably no happier man than me when I saw the Promised Land. I felt like a differ- ent person, and each new scene which emerged from the ship during the ap- proach to the New World seemed to herald a warm greeting for me. The scene that then appeared in front of my eyes was new and amazing. The first impressions from Budapest and Prague were pale images compared to this majestic reality that appeared to me in the New York harbour... The city on both sides of the coast seemed to bubble with various jobs.”
Mihajlo Pupin
Za mladog doseljenika nije nesreća biti bez novca, pod uslovom da ima dovoljno snage da savlada sve teškoće For a young immigrant it is no misfortune to be without money, provided they have enough strength to overcome all difficulties
When he stood without anywhere and anyone of his own in front of American government officials they asked him if he knew anyone in the Promised Land. He said that he knew Franklin, Lincoln and Harriet Beecher Stowe. It was an answer that opened the door of America to him. “You picked good friends”, said the good customs officer, deciding to release him to pursue a new life in New York. - A young immigrant, as I was then, does not start anything until he spends all the money he has brought. I had brought five cents and I immediately spent that on a slice of plum pie, which in fact was on- ly such by name. It contained little plums and more stones! For a young immigrant it is no misfortune to disembark penniless; for a young man it is not a misfortune at all to be without money, if he has de- cided for himself to take the road to an independent life, provided they have within themselves enough strength to overcome all difficulties with which they will be confronted. His path led through gruelling physical work, un- ending learning and development to Columbia Uni- versity, where he studied and soon became a profes- sor. He was a professor for a full 40 years. He wrote
Kada je sam, bez igde ikog svog, stao pred držav- ne službenike Amerike, pitali su ga zna li koga u obe- ćanoj zemlji. Rekao je da poznaje Frenklina, Linkolna i Harijet Bičer Stou. Bio je to odgovor koji mu je otvo- rio američka vrata. „Dobre si prijatelje izabrao“, rekao je dečaku dobri carinik i odlučio da ga pusti u nov ži- vot u Njujorku. „Mladi doseljenik, kao što sam tada bio ja, i ne po- činje ništa dok ne potroši sav novac koji je poneo. Ja sam doneo pet centi i odmah sam ih potrošio na jedan komad pite od šljiva, što je, u stvari, bila nazovi pita. U njoj je bilo manje šljiva, a više koštica! Za mladog do- seljenika i nije nesreća da se ovde iskrca bez prebije- ne pare; za mladog čoveka uopšte nije nesreća biti bez novca, ako se odlučio da sam sebi krči put samostal- nom životu, pod uslovom da u sebi ima dovoljno sna- ge da savlada sve teškoće sa kojima bi se sukobio.“ Njegov put je vodio preko napornih fizičkih po- slova, neprestanog učenja i usavršavanja do Uni- verziteta Kolumbija, gde je studirao, a ubrzo postao i profesor. Bio je profesor punih 40 godina. Piše da mu je cilj bio da pravi ljude bolje nego što je on sam. Mnogo nobelovaca, mnogo velikih naučnika 20.
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