2019, Vol. 20, No. 4 (79) ISSN 2451-1617

The Local Press in Rzeszow in the First Years of the Second Polish Republic (1918–1924)

Jakub Czopek University of Rzeszów [email protected] ORCID: 0000-0002-8009-6852

ABSTRACT The paper concerns the development of the local press in Rzeszow after Poland regained its independence in 1918. Scientifi c objective: The presentation of the nature of periodicals and the press market in Rzeszow in the fi rst years of the Second Polish Republic (1918–1924). Research methods: Description and analysis of the content of the periodicals published in 1918–1924 in Rzeszow. Results and conclusions: Despite its provincial nature at that time and the relatively underdeveloped press market, several important periodicals were published in Rzeszow. Cognitive value: The paper supplements the image of the local Polish press after 1918 through a more detailed view of the local press published in Rzeszow than it was in previous publications on this topic.

KEYWORDS history of Polish press, local press, press of the Second Polish Republic, Rzeszow 343

Jakub Czopek • The Local Press in Rzeszow in the First Years of the Second Polish Republic (1918–1924)

he century of regaining independence by Poland seems to be an ideal opportunity to look Tback at the local press in Rzeszow and indicate the most important periodicals that appeared in the fi rst years of the Second Polish Republic. The author focuses on the periodicals that appeared in Rzeszow in the years 1918–1924, and this choice of such a temporal scope was dictated primarily by the intention of presenting changes on the local publishing market in the fi rst period after Poland regained its independence. This period was extremely turbulent, as evidenced by the number of periodicals that were closed down, as well as their relatively short (with only a few exceptions) existence, which indicates a quite limited city’s press market at that time. Similar, though not so intense tendencies occurred also in the subsequent years of the Second Polish Republic. The focus on all the inter-war periodicals in Rzeszow would involve a rather detailed and, as a consequence, extended paper, going far beyond the framework of this relatively synthetic study. In the paper the author used archival collections of periodicals published in Rzeszow, gathered in the library of the Regional Museum in Rzeszow.

Current Research on the Local Press in Rzeszow The aforementioned look seems to be of great importance because the periodicals published in Rzeszow have never been in the center of interest of Polish researchers (Kolasa, 2011; see: Mielczarek, 2009; Paczkowski, 1971; Paczkowski, 1980). The author can indicate several reasons for this, and the main is the character of Rzeszow — it is a city located on the sidelines not only in the geographical sense, but also in terms of importance on the national arena. While today this perception is changing, this provincialism is clearly visible in the historical, statistical, and demographic data. After World War I and the related war activities, emigration, and the natural decrease, the number of people living in the city did not exceed 25.000 inhabitants and was only slightly smaller than before the war (Bonusiak, 2001, p. 89). The inhabitants of the city were mainly engaged in agriculture and trade. Only investments related to the establishment of the Central Industrial District allowed creating an emerging labor market in the city and revive its development, increasing the population to over 41.000 in 1939 (Bonusiak, 2001, p. 92). Such a character of the city leads directly to the second of the mentioned reasons. There is also no doubt that periodicals issued in a city of relatively small importance could not compete with periodicals from more signifi cant centers — their infl uence was not limited only to the home region, but also affected neighboring regions, and often the entire territory of Poland. For this reason, a number of periodicals issued in Krakow, Silesia, and Lviv can be easily found (see: Brzoza, 1990; Lachendro, 2006; Długajczyk, 1990; Jarowiecki & Góra, 1994). It is worth noting that several cities in today’s south-eastern Poland have longer tradition of publishing periodicals than Rzeszow. The most famous in this regard was Przemysl, at the beginning of the 20th century, with almost twice as many inhabitants as Rzeszow. The fi rst periodical, Zabawa Literatów (English: The Littérateurs’ Fun) was published there between 1794 and 1798. For comparison, the fi rst permanent periodical in Rzeszow was Przegląd Rzeszowski, debuting on January 6, 1883. In total, in the period from 1883 to 1914, 19 periodicals were published in Rzeszow on various topics: general information (including Tygodnik Rzeszowski, 1885–1888, Rzeszowianin, 1908, Gazeta Rzeszowska, 1899–1900), representing the interests of the Jewish minority (Postęp, 1895), and professional magazines (including Przewodnik ogrodniczy, 1895–1898, Gazeta mleczarska, 1907–1909, Filatelista, 1908–1911). The vast majority of them, however, did not manage to last on the market anymore and after only a few years they were closed down. The notable exception was Głos Rzeszowski, which debuted in 1897 and functioned for the next

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23 years. A quantitative ranking of periodicals also does not speak in favor of Rzeszow, because more periodicals were published before World War I in both Przemysl and Tarnow. Another fact that signifi cantly limited the research on the local press in Rzeszow was the lack of a local center dealing with such analyzes. The research facilities existing in other regions, if they are conducting a research on the local press in Rzeszow at all, are mostly interested in the most popular and signifi cant periodicals (Myśliński, 1966, pp. 168– 173). The lack of a general look at the history of the local press in Rzeszow is visible. The modest achievements of the local press experts in the historical view of the press of today’s capital of the Sub-Carpathian region (Darłakowa, 1966, 2001; Jagusztyn, 1974, 2001; Sokół, 1985; Zieliński, 2000, pp. 122–126) provide detailed information on the number and dates of publishing some periodicals. However, it lacks more detailed characteristics of the periodicals, which would enable a more accurate presentation of Rzeszow as a publishing center in the fi rst years of the Second Polish Republic.

The Local Press in Rzeszow at the Beginning of the Second Polish Republic At the beginning of 1918 there were three periodicals published in Rzeszow. These were: Dziennik Urzędowy c.k. Starostwa i c.k. Rady Szkolnej Okręgowej (English: Offi cial Journal of k.k. Starostwo and k.k. District School Council, issued from July 1917 on the 1st, 10th, and 20th day of the month), Wiadomości Parafi alne Rzeszowskie (English: Parish News of Rzeszow, with the fi rst issue in January 1918) and Głos Rzeszowski (English: The Voice of Rzeszow, present on the market from 1897). The fi rst two periodicals should be considered as characteristic for their types of representations. Due to their specialized character and relatively narrow subject matter, they were limited to providing local information without deeply referring to the main events of national policy. Dziennik Urzędowy was a newspaper with only eight pages of orders, ordinances, and announcements of the Starostwo, concerning both Rzeszow and the entire poviat. Circulars and orders for school directors and school councils in the poviat were also published there. The place of offi cial messages of the Austrian authorities was taken up by the Polish Liquidation Commission announcements with time. There were also more and more types of calls related to military operations, regarding loans and collecting clothing. In Fig. 1. Dziennik Urzędowy c.k. Starostwa i c.k. 1919 the publishing cycle of the newspaper Rady Szkolnej Okręgowej, No 30, October 20, has been changed to “appears as needed” 1918 (English: Offi cial Journal k.k. Starostwo after publishing the issue No 3. It was also and k.k. District School Council)

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Jakub Czopek • The Local Press in Rzeszow in the First Years of the Second Polish Republic (1918–1924) connected with the limitation of the number of pages to four, and in some cases even to two. The last issue of Dziennik Urzędowy, which appeared less and less frequently, was published on February 28, 1920. Wiadomości Parafi alne Rzeszowskie, in turn, was a newspaper and it contained four pages. It was published monthly in the A5 format by Fr. Michał Tokarski, a parish priest of the Parish Church in Rzeszow. The newspaper primarily informed about the life of the parish (a relatively large one, numbering over 20.000 believers). The content of particular issues consisted of religious articles, reports on the activities of brotherhoods and Catholic societies, and the parish chronicle. The idea of publishing this newspaper is well refl ected in the text of the blessing of Bishop of Przemysl J.S. Pelczar, posted in the fi rst issue: “Let [Wiadomości Parafi alne Rzeszowskie] bring God’s light to their [parishioners] houses, let them be a consolation for parishioners, strengthening in faith” (Wiadomości Fig. 2. Głos Rzeszowski, No 39, September 29, Parafi alne Rzeszowskie, 1918, No. 1, p. 1). 1918 (English: The Voice of Rzeszów) Although Fr. Tokarski in the same issue announced “politics are completely excluded” in the newspaper’s articles, it was a year later, in January 1919, that Wiadomości Parafi alne Rzeszowskie posted a text entitled “Elections” (1919), which is an answer (affi rmative) to the question — should the Church interfere with the policy and the upcoming elections to the Legislative Sejm. As noted by Dutka, a typical publication cycle for the parish press of 1918–1939 was the weekly, mainly due to the weekly life cycle of the parish and the possibility of combining pastoral activities with current information (Dutka, 2008, pp. 35–56). In the case of Wiadomości Parafi alne Rzeszowskie, the fi rst aspect defi nitely dominated. After 25 issues, due to the growing costs of printing and lack of suffi cient funds (the monthly newspaper was free, but people could pay voluntary donations) the issue of Wiadomości Parafi alne Rzeszowskie was suspended. The newspaper was reopened in 1925 and was published until February 1939. The appetite of the local community for information and journalism was provided by Głos Rzeszowski. It was at that time the longest-appearing periodical in the city, issued every week since October 1897. It must be admitted, however, that in 1918 the glory years were already behind it, which was caused primarily by the economic crisis related to warfare (Darłakowa 2001, p. 229). Initially printed on four pages, later on even eight pages (40 cm x 27.5 cm), from 1918 it appeared only on two pages. It involved the necessity of liquidating a few fi xed sections and limiting the next ones. And so, such sections as “Political Week,” “From All Over the World,” “The Sports Chronicle,” “The Correspondence from the Poviat,” “From the Literature” gradually disappeared. Nevertheless, it was the most important newspaper issued in Rzeszow. It was possible to fi nd in it not only general or political messages related to the ongoing events of

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World War I, but also articles on the history of the city, architecture, and cultural and artistic life. The articles were mostly anonymous or signed with only initials. The limitation of the volume of the newspaper was related to the limitation of its role to the chronicle of the most important events (in the column “Rzeszow’s Calendar”), with sporadically appearing journalistic themes, mainly concerning the economic situation. The two main periodicals of this type, which reappeared after 1918, were appeals for the creation of a new province with the capital in Rzeszow during the period of establishing a new administrative division of Poland in 1919–1920 (“W sprawie stolicy województwa w Rzeszowie,” 1919), and distributed over several issues from June and July 1919, a polemic with the text “Disinherited” from Głos Narodu on the status of the Polish intelligentsia in the new political reality. A detailed description of the congress of the Fig. 3. Komunikat Organizacyi Obrony Naro- Polish Provincial Press in Warsaw in May dowej w Rzeszowie, No 1, November 1, 1918 1919 in Głos Rzeszowski was given as well (English: Statement of the National Defense Or- (“Zjazd Prasy Prowincyonalnej,” 1919). The ganization in Rzeszow) delegate of Rzeszow to the congress was the editor-in-chief of Głos Rzeszowski — Edward Arvay. The reports from the congress were kept in a solemn tone, testifying to the signifi cance of the described event. One of the effects of the congress, apart from offi cial appeals and appeals to state authorities, was the establishment of the Central Administration of Announcements of the Provincial Press — an ad agency serving 37 periodicals from all over Poland. A detailed description of the visit of Gen. Haller in Rzeszow in May 1919 was also provided (“Generał Haller w Rzeszowie,” 1919). A number of articles were devoted to the redemption of a state loan for the war of 1920, while publishing the lists of people who incurred such a loan (including its amount). The last issue of the weekly appeared on September 19, 1920 with the note “the publishing house of Głos Rzeszowski for reasons beyond the editorial offi ce is withheld for some time since today” (1920). However, these vaguely outlined transitional diffi culties proved too diffi cult to overcome and this periodical did not reappear.

New Periodicals on the Market after Regaining Independence For three months at the turn of 1918 and 1919, another offi cial periodical appeared. Komunikat Organizacyi Obrony Narodowej w Rzeszowie (English: Statement of the National Defense Organization in Rzeszow) appeared for the fi rst time on November 1, 1918, as the press organ of the National Defense Organization in Rzeszow. It published primarily the resolutions of National Defense Organization, military orders, and appeals, and later also the orders of the delegates of the Polish Liquidation Commission. By January 12, 1919, 16 issues of the Komunikat Organizacyi Obrony Narodowej w Rzeszowie were published. It is worth noting that the fi rst

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7 issues were released between November 1 and 12, making this newspaper the fi rst daily published in Rzeszow. Subsequent editions appeared less frequently. With time, more and more appeals to the local community began to appear, both to the male part, interested in actively participating in the fi ght for independent Poland (1918) (as encouragement to join the army ranks, creation of the regiment in Rzeszow) and to women — “Why did not the Women of Rzeszow, for example, the Ladies’ Association, think of a banner for the regiment in Rzeszow?! (“Apel,” 1918). In the issues published in December, one can fi nd several texts dedicated to the defense of Lviv, in the form of a glimpse, as well as letters of soldiers, of pupils of the First Grammar School to the director Dezydery Ostrowski (1918). On July 19, 1919, the fi rst issue of Ziemia Rzeszowska (English: The Land of Rzeszow) Fig. 4. Ziemia Rzeszowska, No 1, July 18, 1919 appeared, published every Friday, with the (English: The Land of Rzeszow) subtitle “national newspaper.” The fi rst editor -in-chief was Franciszek Stążkiewicz; in 1924 he was replaced by Józef Liwo, PhD. The periodical was initially printed in Przemysl, but the issue No 16 and subsequent issues were printed in Rzeszow. Anonymous articles were divided into irregularly appearing sections the “Chronicle,” “Provincial Chronicle,” “Jewish Chronicle,” “From the Stage,” “From the Committee to Combat Usury in Rzeszow.” Much space was initially devoted to economic and social matters. However, in subsequent issues of Ziemia Rzeszowska there was more and more about politics, despite the initial declarations of non- engagement with this subject (“We will not deal too much with politics, neither big nor small. In turn, we will devote the attention to the social and economic issues of Rzeszow…” 1919). Thus, the fact of representing the interests of the National Democracy became more and more distinct (Darłakowa, 2001, p. 230). The nationwide events (work on the Constitution of 1921) and international (the Treaty of Riga, which was described in a critical tone) were widely discussed. The main focus was on the activities of the National Democracy, but also on the activities of other parties, both the Polish Socialist Party and the peasant party were often discussed. However, anyone who did not belong to the “national camp” could expect a critical review of his or her actions in Ziemia Rzeszowska, regardless of his or her political affi liation. This is where the column “Received” was present in almost every issue, where people who received the publications of Ziemia Rzeszowska as manipulative or even false, published their corrections or explanations of the matters described. Another thing that catches the eye even after a cursory reading of the headlines in subsequent issues of this newspaper, was more and more powerful anti-Semitism. From the initially subdued criticism of usurers and black marketers, the newspaper quickly went into stronger and serious attack against the Jewish community, as evidenced by, among others, some texts “The Jews Declare a Public War Against the Polish State” (1920), “Rzeszow

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Jakub Czopek • The Local Press in Rzeszow in the First Years of the Second Polish Republic (1918–1924) is Flooded with Jews” (1921) (about the growing percentage of Jews among the city’s inhabitants and the consequences of this phenomenon), or reprints from Myśl Narodowa (English: The National Thought; “Jewishing Polish Names,” 1923) and Gazeta Warszawska (English: Warsaw Newspaper; “Emotional Anti-Semitism,” 1925 — the article’s author understands it as the virtue of a real Pole). Perhaps it was the harsh tone of the publication and the open story on one side of the political dispute that allowed Ziemia Rzeszowska to appear until 1934. Between 1922 (from the issue No 42) and 1926, the weekly appeared as Ziemia Rzeszowska i Jaroslawska. This was dictated by technical considerations and the integration of the newspaper with its free appendix Ziemia Jaroslawska, which the editorial staff reported in the issue No 41 from 1922. Not without signifi cance was also the fact of November parliamentary elections and election geography, according Fig. 5. Kurjer Rzeszowski, No 2, October 28, to which the inhabitants of Rzeszow, 1922 (English: The Rzeszow Courier) Jaroslaw, and neighboring communes voted for candidates within one district. After 1926, the newspaper returned to its original name, to reappear in 1932–1934 as Ziemia Rzeszowska i Jaroslawska. Until 1926, the newspaper was published on 8 pages for 60 Hellers, with format 30x23 cm. Just before the parliamentary elections of November 5, 1922, a new newspaper Kurjer Rzeszowski appeared briefl y. It was issued on Saturdays from October 1 with the subtitle “Weekly Newspaper Devoted to the Affairs of the Polish Bourgeoisie.” Strongly involved politically, it agitated for voting for representatives from the list No 14 and the Townspeople Center. Franciszek Sadlik was the editor-in-chief. All anonymous articles on the four pages of the newspaper boiled down to pre-election agitation and convincing readers that “not from the left, not from the right, but in the center, in a bourgeois reunifi cation” (“W którem stronnictwie przyszłość Polski?” 1922) will fi nd their best representatives to the Sejm. The postulates of the Townspeople Association in Rzeszow, such as cheap loans for small trade and industry or the construction of the Rzeszow-Tarnobrzeg railway, were widely presented in Kurjer Rzeszowski (English: The Daily of Rzeszow). The editions in the 29×22,5 cm format cost 60 Polish groszy. Both Kurjer Rzeszowski and the next newspaper, which appeared in Rzeszow, Trybuna Rzeszowska (English: The Tribune of Rzeszow) confi rm cited by W. Pepliński (2011, p. 32) thesis of a strong politicization of the press of the Second Polish Republic. The four-page issues of Trybuna Rzeszowska were edited by Józef Nadzieja, and this periodical was published on the 10th, 20th, and 30th day of each month, and its fi rst issue appeared on December 3, 1924. Anonymous articles attacked national democracy, and the supporters were often called the “matadors of national democracy.” The greediness of the “black mafi a” of the Catholic Church was also criticized. The publications of Ziemia Rzeszowska and the community of the supporters

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Fig. 6. Gazeta Rzeszowska, No 2, June 12, Fig. 7. Trybuna Rzeszowska, No 1, Decem- 1925 (English: The Rzeszow Newspaper) ber 3, 1924 (English: The Tribune of Rzeszow) of national democracy were kept under special supervision (Darłakowa, 2001, p. 233). In virtually every issue, one can fi nd a reference to the articles published there, usually with a fairly harsh, negative review. The culmination of this “press review” was the section “It Takes One to Know One: Do Not Offer Your Hand to a Rat” with the note “A Place Reserved Exclusively for Editors of Ziemia Rzeszowska.” It presents not only polemics with the journalism of the authors of this journal, but also descriptions of business interests and transactions (implicitly speculative and unethical) of the editorial supporters. The enrichment of state assets and all activities that, in the opinion of the editorial staff, did not serve the public good were criticized. The City Council’s activities and its fi nancial management were discussed in detail, as well as issues related to the city’s budget and investments to raise the standard of living of the population. An interesting fact of the workshop is combining the headlines of the longest articles with something between the subtitle and the lead. It was a few describing the content of the equivalents of sentences connected by dashes. From February 22, 1925, after the transfer from Rzeszow to Tarnow, the name of the newspaper was shortened to Trybuna and the frequency of publishing per week was changed, explaining it with greater universality and opening of correspondence from Sanok, Nowy Sącz, Tarnow, and Krosno. In this formula, however, the newspaper survived only a month and ceased to appear at the end of March. A year and a half later, J. Nadzieja co-branded a new biweekly Nowy Głos, the organ of the Union of Repairs of the Republic of Poland, issued from September 26, 1926. However, this press initiative was closed down after a few months, in June 1927. The periodical had 4 pages in 40×28 cm format, each copy cost 20 Polish groszy. At the same time, the Jewish community also had its periodical in accordance with the census of 1921, which constituted almost a half, as much as 45.5% of the city’s inhabitants (Bonusiak,

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2001, p. 94). On May 23, 1924, the fi rst issue of Gazeta Rzeszowska (English: The Rzeszow Newspaper), a non-partisan information and social weekly, as the subtitle tabled, primarily discussed the Jewish population, appeared. However, this was not the fi rst initiative. In 1895, the weekly Postęp (English: The Progress) was addressed to the same group, which, however, ended its existence on 19 issues. The editor-in-chief of Gazeta Rzeszowska was Leon Sperber. A lot of space was devoted to among others, the issue of elections to the Jewish Religious Community — Qahal. Also, social and economic themes and a chronicle of current events were present (see Ożóg, 1994, Ożóg, 1996). In editorial journalism one can also notice the desire to defend against charges made by Ziemia Rzeszowska. The newspaper went out for a year, until May 1925. The press issued by and for the Jewish community of Rzeszow returned in 1927 in the form of Przegląd Rzeszowski, a biweekly, which remained on the market only for about half a year (Uljasz, 2016, p. 141), but it returned to the identical format (44×32 cm) and price (20 Polish groszy) in 1932 (Darłakowa, 2001, p. 238). The name Gazeta Rzeszowska was used yet in 1928 for the new weekly — the organ of the Nonpartisan Bloc for Cooperation with the Government, no longer focusing on the Jewish community. The landscape of the local press in Rzeszow in the fi rst years of the Second Polish Republic was supplemented by a professional press in the form of Przegląd Mleczarski. This bi-weekly magazine, issued from January 1, 1924, was the organ of the Union of Dairy and Eggs Cooperatives in Warsaw. As a magazine, it primarily informed about the achievements and needs of the dairy industry as well as related industries. Those interested could fi nd there trade fair reports and professional advice. As the only magazine described in this paper, Przegląd Mleczarski was illustrated from the beginning of its second year of publishing, and in some issues one could fi nd, for example, a photograph of the interior of a Dutch cheese workshop or a map with the size of cattle breeding in a given area. The magazine also had the continuous numbering of pages within the year, i.e. 1–12 in the fi rst issue, 13–24 in the second, 25–36 in the third, etc., which may suggest that all numbers should be collected by readers in the form of annual. The last issue, however, appeared rather quickly, because in July 1925 the magazine fi rst appeared in the 24×16 cm format and the price of 150,000 Polish marka, in the second year of publishing — 29×20,5 cm and 30 groszy respectively.

Newspaper Circulation of the Local Press in Rzeszow It was not possible to determine the exact newspaper circulation for each of the periodicals presented in the paper. The largest one, Wiadomości Parafi alne Rzeszowskie, could boast of about 1000 copies, in a similar number Głos Rzeszowski was printed in its best years, in 1911 and 1912 (Jagusztyn, 1974, pp. 80 and 85). Ziemia Rzeszowska and Gazeta Mleczarska appeared in 300– 400 copies (Darłakowa, 1966, pp. 38 and 69). The remaining periodicals were probably issued in similar numbers, defi nitely it was less than 1000 copies. This is confi rmed by the calculations of A. Notkowski, who determined the average one-off circulation of one provincial periodical in West Galicia in 1913 — it was 685 copies (Notkowski, 1982, pp. 431–432). Considering the more diffi cult economic situation in the fi rst years after the war and the rather limited reading market in the provincial city that Rzeszow was at that time, it is possible to estimate these fi gures for approximately 300 copies of each periodical.

Rzeszow as a Publishing Center A look at Rzeszow as a publishing center in the interwar period is possible mainly thanks to the bibliographic list of S. Darłakowa, several times quoted in this paper. It shows that the number of periodicals published in the city has been subject to changes over the years, however,

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Jakub Czopek • The Local Press in Rzeszow in the First Years of the Second Polish Republic (1918–1924) throughout this period it was relatively low, in the best period (1932–34), reaching a maximum of 6–7 periodicals. In total, in the years 1918–1939, 26 periodicals were published, usually with a weekly frequency of appearing. Detailed data is presented in Table 1.

Table 1. The Number of Magazines and Newspapers Published in Rzeszow in the Years 1918–1939 Number Number Number Year Year Year of periodicals of periodicals of periodicals 1918 4 1926 2 1933 6 1919 5 1927 5 1934 7 1920 4 1928 3 1935 5 1921 1 1929 3 1936 2 1922 2 1930 4 1937 2 1923 1 1931 5 1938 2 1924 4 1932 7 1939 2 1925 5 Source: own study based on: S. Darłakowa, Prasa Rzeszowa XIX i XX wieku, Rzeszow 1966.

Two conclusions follow from the above table. First of all, the variability of the number of periodicals in Rzeszow is striking. In principle, each year was associated with the collapse of a periodical or the emergence of a new one. A relative stability only at the end of the 1930s is noticeable. As for the fi rst years of the Second Polish Republic, the year 1919 was the most abundant in issuing periodicals in Rzeszow. The political reasons lie at the root of this fact. The revival of independent Poland was associated with the abolition of restrictions imposed by the invaders. This is due to the increased political activity of many social groups seeking support for their views on the shape of an independent homeland. It is worth noting that also A. Notkowski in his study on the local press in the Second Republic considers 1919 the most favorable year for the development of the provincial press in the interwar period (Notkowski, 1982, pp. 587– 588). While the decline of 1920/1921 can be explained by the diffi cult economic situation in the country and raging infl ation, which did not facilitate publishing activities, the fl uctuations from the next years testify primarily to the still undeveloped press market and diffi culties in acquiring a constant and faithful readership. Secondly, the number of periodicals published in this city has never been relatively high. The list includes all the periodicals published in the city, and therefore not only the opinion-forming press, but also parish and offi cial newspapers. Without considering them, the fi gures presented in the table would be even more modest. It is also worth noting that the relatively high result in the fi rst post-war years consists of such periodicals as Wiadomości Parafi alne Rzeszowskie and offi cial newspapers. Counting them we will receive 1–2 periodicals appearing in the city each year, which makes us qualify Rzeszow as a small publishing center. For comparison, 5 or more periodicals were published in Przemysl as early as 1919 (Notkowski, 1982, p. 163). The periodicals appearing in Rzeszow in the years 1918–1926 were printed mostly on the spot (except for the already mentioned Trybuna). In the described period of the fi rst post-war years, there were three printing houses in Rzeszow — the oldest in the city, operating since 1848, a printing house founded by Jan Andrzej Pelar (from 1886 in the hands of Henryk Czerny, who in 1925 let Jan Uzarski to join the company, and he changed company name to JA Pelar Inc.), functioning since 1883, the printing house of Edward Franciszek Arvay (in 1923 bought

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Jakub Czopek • The Local Press in Rzeszow in the First Years of the Second Polish Republic (1918–1924) by activists of the Organization of Agricultural Associations/Składnica Kółek Rolniczych and renamed to the Printing House) and the printing house of Mojżesz Goldberg, which despite its specialization also printed Gazeta Rzeszowska (Jagusztyn, 2001, pp. 249–250). Importantly, none of the periodicals published in the city was a daily newspaper. In the Lviv province, no provincial daily was published in Polish during the period of the Second Polish Republic. For comparison, in the Poznan province there were 71 of them (Władyka, 1975, pp. 495–527).

Summary Andrzej Paczkowski in his interesting study (1972, pp. 49–88) included in statistical data all periodicals of the Second Polish Republic, basing not only on the Central Statistical Offi ce’s data and Statystika Druków, but also on the work of pre-war researchers. While the local press in Rzeszow and the Rzeszow poviat does not appear in it directly, it is possible to fi nd data on the Lviv region (of which the Rzeszow poviat was a part) on the degree of decentralization of publishing centers in individual provinces. Due to the limited amount of source documents (and a different methodology used in them), such data is available only for 1927 and 1930. In 1927, the percentage ratio of the number of cities issuing newspapers to the total number of cities in a given province, in the Lviv province was 16.4%. Worse results were obtained only by the Tarnopolskie, Stanislawowskie and Bialostockie province. On the opposite were the Pomeranian (72.7%), Silesian (61.1%) and Nowogrodzkie (62.5%) province. In 1930, on 28 poviats of the Lviv province only 7 had their own periodicals, which gives a ratio of 25%. Three provinces had the same index for their poviats (Kielce, Vilnius, and Stanislawow), and the next three — lower (Polesie and Volhynia 22% each, Tarnopol 12%). The highest result was achieved by the Pomeranian (90%) and Poznan (72%) province. The above sets show that both the entire province and the Rzeszow poviat were not among the most prolifi c publishing regions in Poland. It resulted, among others, from Galicia’s civilizational backwardness in relation to areas previously under the jurisdiction of other partitioners, and also from the lack of long-term journalistic traditions in Rzeszow. The press initiatives that the Rzeszow community undertook during the fi rst years of the Second Polish Republic deserve more recognition. They have greatly contributed to the development of the city and the integration of its inhabitants (Error, 2012, pp. 49–64). It is also worth noting that the publishers of these newspapers were aware of the infl uence they had in the local community. The press issued in Rzeszow was not only read in this city, but also in nearby towns (Woźny, 2015). Cases regarding Ropczyce, Sedziszow, and Przeworsk found their place in the pages of the periodicals in Rzeszow. It allowed not only to build a sense of community, but also gave the inhabitants of these smaller towns a sense of presenting their problems in a wider forum. After a short break in the publication of Głos Rzeszowski caused by the strike of the typesetters, the role of the press was emphasized: “It is unfortunate for a city like Rzeszow, when it stays without its organs for a long time, it remains without the publication of local things, but of general importance and this weekly newspaper team that connects the minds of citizenship in matters that concern us together. This is a kind of lack of a certain Rzeszow synthesis, synthesis of public work, various units, and collegial bodies, necessary in the life of cultural people” (1914). One can only consider a more comprehensive development of the region’s press from the 1950s, when as a result of political decisions and the location of several large plants in the city, the role of Rzeszow increased, which began to absorb the infl ux of rural population and thus expanded at a fairly rapid pace.

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Source Papers Antysemityzm uczuciowy. (1925, No. 12). Ziemia Rzeszowska i Jarosławska, p. 3. Apel. (1918, No. 7). Komunikat Organizacji Obrony Narodowej w Rzeszowie, p. 2. Pod adresem polskiej inteligencyi. (1920, No. 12). Głos Rzeszowski, p. 1. Samopomoc inteligencyi. (1920, No. 51). Głos Rzeszowski, p. 1. W którem stronnictwie przyszłość Polski? (1922, No. 1). Kurjer Rzeszowski, p. 1. W sprawie stolicy województwa w Rzeszowie. (1919, No. 35). Głos Rzeszowski, p. 1. Wybory. (1919, No. 1). Wiadomości Parafi alne Rzeszowskie, p. 1. Zalew Rzeszowa przez Żydów. (1921, No. 39). Ziemia Rzeszowska, p. 1. Zalew Rzeszowa przez Żydów. (1921, No. 40). Ziemia Rzeszowska, p. 1. Zażydzanie polskich nazwisk. (1923, No. 27). Ziemia Rzeszowska i Jarosławska, p. 2. Zjazd prasy prowincjonalnej. (1919, No. 30). Głos Rzeszowski, p. 1. Zjazd prasy prowincjonalnej. (1919, No. 31). Głos Rzeszowski, p. 1. Żydzi wypowiadają jawną wojnę państwu polskiemu. (1920, No. 28). Ziemia Rzeszowska, p. 3.

Articles with No Author and Title Głos Rzeszowski 1914, No. 1, p. 1. Głos Rzeszowski 1919, No. 18, p. 1. Głos Rzeszowski 1919, No. 26, p. 1. Głos Rzeszowski 1919, No. 27, p. 1. Głos Rzeszowski 1919, No. 28, p.1. Głos Rzeszowski 1920, No. 29, p. 1. Głos Rzeszowski 1919, No. 30, p. 1. Głos Rzeszowski 1919, No. 31, p. 1. Głos Rzeszowski 1920, No. 31, p. 1–2. Głos Rzeszowski 1920, No. 32, p.1. Głos Rzeszowski 1920, No. 38, p. 1. Komunikat Organizacji Obrony Narodowej w Rzeszowie 1918, No. 7, p. 1. Komunikat Organizacji Obrony Narodowej w Rzeszowie 1918, No. 12, p. 1. Komunikat Organizacji Obrony Narodowej w Rzeszowie 1918, No. 13, p. 1. Wiadomości Parafi alne Rzeszowskie, 1918, No. 1, p. 1. Ziemia Rzeszowska 1919, No. 1, p. 1.

The Press Sources Dziennik Urzędowy c.k. Starostwa i c.k. Rady Szkolnej Okręgowej 1917, No. 5–18; 1918, No. 1–31; 1919, No. 1–7; 1920, No. 1. Wiadomości Parafi alne Rzeszowskie 1918, No. 1–12; 1919, No. 1–12; 1920, No. 1; 1925, No. 1–12; 1926, No. 1–12. Głos Rzeszowski 1918, No. 1–52; 1919, No. 1–52; 1920, No. 1–38. Komunikat Organizacji Obrony Narodowej w Rzeszowie 1918, No. 1–15; 1919, No. 16. Ziemia Rzeszowska 1919, No. 1–24; 1920, No. 1–53; 1921, No. 1–51; 1922, No. 1–41; 1926, No. 1–52. Ziemia Rzeszowska i Jarosławska 1922 No. 42–52; 1923, No. 1–51; 1924, No. 1–52; 1925, No. 1–52. Kurjer Rzeszowski 1922, No. 1–3. Trybuna Rzeszowska 1924, No. 1–2; 1925, No. 1–6. Gazeta Rzeszowska 1924, No. 1–2; 1925, No. 2, 20. Przegląd Mleczarski 1924, No. 1–24; 1925, No. 1–14.

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