Geza Kanitz, a devout Jewish merchant who won fame as a duelist in the period before the World War, died here at the age of seventy-one.
Recognized as a Hungarian patriot and a man of unbending chivalry, Kanitz was a popular figure during the romantic days of the reign of the Hapsburg Emperor Franz Josef.
Many anecdotes are told about his gallantry. It is related that one day, as he was about to leave Budapest on important business, he noticed a man staring impudently at a bride who was sitting with her husband in the railroad station restaurant, where the couple were waiting to leave on their wedding trip.
When Kanitz asked the young newlywed why he tolerated this insult, the man explained he was unwilling to mar his honeymoon with a disturbance of any kind.
The Jewish merchant thereupon offered to act for him, walked over to the offending restaurant patron, boxed his ears and gave him his card. During the duel which followed Kanitz wounded his opponent but missed his urgent business appointment.
Kanitz was a participant in many other exploits in defense of the honor of Hungary, which his touchy countrymen always were regarding as under challenge by insolent officers in the Imperial and Royal Army, many of whom made use of the privilege of their position to exhibit their violent anti-Hungarian prejudices. The duelist remained true to Judaism until his death.
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
