Juozapas Albinas Herbačiauskas ir lietuviškosios spaudos draudimas

ENA lot of Lithuanian cultural and public workers at the beginning of the 20th century were formed as personalities during the period of Lithuanian press prohibition. Gabrielius Landsbergis-Žemkalnis, Juozas Tumas-Vaižgantas, Gabriele Petkevičaite-Bitė, Petras Rimša and Juozapas Albinas Herbačiauskas belong to such people. This significant historical period influenced their world outlooks, further life and work. Juozapas Albinas Herbačiauskas was a Lithuanian-Polish cultural worker, who wrote his works in Lithuanian and Polish languages. He was born on October 20, 1876, in Suvalkai, the territory of Lithuania. In 1894, Herbačiauskas moved to Poland, after he was accused of possessing a Lithuanian calendar printed in Latin letters and persecuted by Tsarist policemen. In Krakow, where cultural life was very active, Herbačiauskas wrote articles to Polish newspapers on cultural, literary and political issues concerning the national revival in Lithuania. He also collected prohibited Lithuanian press and maintained close contacts with groups in support to the Lithuanian national revival in Tilsit. On February 27, 1904, Herbačiauskas and a number of Lithuanian students at University of Krakow established the Lithuanian-Polish public scientific organization Rūta. It aimed at reviving national feelings of Lithuanians living in Krakow, encouraged their cultural activities and relations with Lithuania, informed them about cultural life in Lithuania.The major work done by the members of the organization Rūta was preparation and publishing of the first Lithuanian literary almanac Gabija, which appeared soon after removal of prohibition of Lithuanian press. The almanac was published to commemorate the death of famous Lithuanian poet and Bishop Antanas Baranauskas in 1907. In 1905, Herbačiauskas edited a book The Revival in Lithuania from the Perspective of the Polish Idea ("Odrodzenie Litwy wobec idei polskiej"). It analyzed the relations between the Lithuanian nobility and masses, their role in formation of idea of democratic Lithuania and importance of Lithuanian press to the revival process in Lithuania. In his opinion, the process of revival started when the newspaper Aušra was first released in Tilsit and when "the will of masses so passive in the past and wrapped in romantic suffering began to participate actively in their own life". All in all, at the beginning of 20th century, Herbačiauskas gathered together Lithuanians living in Krakow in the organization Rtifa. He also published the first Lithuanian literary almanac. He participated in the process of regain of Lithuanian press not only theoretically, but also practically.