The daily exchange. [volume] (Baltimore, Md.) 1858-1861, 1859-08-05
TILE PENNSYLVANIA GERMANS.
THEIR HoUsES-DEGRADATIoN OF THE WoMEN-THE
MISUNDERSTANDING CAss's LETTER, AND WHAT
THE PEOPLE THINK OF IT, &C., &C.

MISUNDERSTANDING CAsss LETTER, WHAT
THE PEOPLE THINK OF IT, &C., &c.
Correspondence Of the Evening Post.l
New GRANADA, July &c, 1859.
1t is strange that in the United States region
should exist which belongs entirely to another
world and another time. But such is the case with
the eastern or German counties of the great state
of Pennsylvania. These counties settled by
the Germans, and they still remain German. No
change has taken place among the people; they
speak, live and act nothing but Low German. In
the last few days have walked from the Delaware
river to the Susquehanna, and during that journey
have spoken to almost every one that | met on the
road, have stopped in at the houses, and did not
find more than dozen persons who were able to
speak English. | took the road through the noun
tains passing the Water Gap, and travelled through
some of the most beautiful scenery on the CONT
nent, following the windngs of the streams and
stopping night in little hamlets covered up in
the hills.
The mountains rise up on either side of the road
clothed in pines and chesnuts, and their tops for
some days made the only horizon, cutting off some
time from the length of the days. The rich bottom
lands of the valleys are peoped by German farmers,
with here and there village gathered about
tavern. These farmers, Judging from their barns,
are well to do in the world; for such barns never
were seen, even on model farms, in the Eastern
| States On the journey have seen some enormous
ones, from fifty to hundred feet in length, and
from forty to sixty feet deep. The ends are built
of worked limestone, about three feet thick while
| the faces all of wood, and built with glass
windows. The large barns stand three stories high,
| with basement, the windows are all sashed and
| glazed. The woodwork of these mammoth stables
is painted red, and is adorned with all manner of
| devices, stars, suns, crosses, and with rather
| strange shaped monster, over which | paused half
| day until | was told that it was an anchor.
| never should have known if had not been told.
All the great barns have the names of the owner
| and builder painted on them the central win
| dow, and many OF them have some MOTTO generally
| as inappropriate as possible But the horses are
| III their nalatial stables for how
| very large, and look as il they finely kept.
The houses in which the people themselves live are
| in direct and striking contrast with the barns.
| They are poor log huts, plastered up with mud
| never more than and half stories high and
will average about twelve feet by fifteen; they are
overlooking with children and vermin, and the
| floors not as clean those of the stables
These people have lost trace of what part of the
fatherland they came from. All the information
that could gather was, that they came from Ger
many. But what part of Germany? 30, from
Germany" further than this they either
| would or could not tell me. They still retain some
of the old country customs, not at all improved BY
tralspanting over the sea, for bad wbiskey has
taken the place of weak beer. Their frolics (bier
squirts, they call them,) marriages, funerals and
christenings, without priest are attended by the
that the effects of whskey oftentimes unpeas-
antly noticed.
In this country, Germany, as the inhabitants
call it, wives and daughters very useful in a
household. The do field work with the men, and
are nottroubed with consumption. Large, strong,
masculine women, with faces buried and hair tan
gled, they seem to enjoy life full as much their
more delicate sisters in the city. Families, how
ever well off they may be, are not at all annoyed
with their Irish help. The women of the house do
everything and keep everything in order, rather
disorder. But with all their usefulness and real
value they have very little respect paid them, and
no pleasant attention whatever, and am informed
that, compared with the men, very few of them are
able to read write Stopping along the road to
eat and sleep, ate with the father and sons, but
we were waited on by the mother and daughters
who were ordered about in a very careless and
coarse way, and who contented themselves with
what remained of the meal when we had finished.
The little children look as if they had never beer
washed, and | am sure that they never have their
heads combed. The same dirt spots were on their
faces in the morning that were there the night be-
fore, and the scratching of heads ominous.
All this is in the.richest agricultural counties in
the State, amid farms of the highest cultivation,
and with mountain and sky so beautiful that one
would think they must have some influence upon
the minds of the inhabitants. Contrary to the
usual taste, the Germans here have very little ap
probation of music. / heard some wild German
songs which must have been imported from the ia
therand by the first settlers; the music consisted Of
a certain number of words run off in rapid recita
tive, and nterspread with long, dismal howl. The
language which is spoken is mixture of several Of
the old German Dialects crossed with English: this
last having caused the dropping of most of the noun
and many of the verb case endings; recently i'm
ported Germans are unable to understand the
tongue and call it very hard names.
The coal measures occur in the mountains through
the district, and have driven the Dutch out in
spots as the mines are worked by English, Welsh
and Irish under American engineers but dark
ness closes in around these bright spots although
it seems paradox to call coal bright, and the little
civilization extends no further than in the imme
date region of the mines There are, however
some few iron FORCES in the hills, worked by the
Germans, in the same manner as those in the Hart7
mountains, making, at great waste of labor, very
good iron. The FORCES burn charcoal, and cart
the product to the nearest outlet in farm wagons
The inhabitants appear perfectly contented, every
face is round, and has either pleasant expression
or at ALL principally the latter. did not see
single illnatured look on the whole trip, except
one man who was talking loud to his wife in the
unknown tongue.
The German county newspapers are pretty gene
rally taken through their respective countless and
have had the good effect o. turning the people
against the Administration. The papers are now
discussing the lie Clerc letter of General Cass
which seems to create considerable excitement here
the general impression being that the German gov.
ernments are going to send over here and impress
into their armies all persons who have Dutch
blood in their veins. This letter is the most NOM
lar topic in the newspapers, although notice ir
one of them something like the following: awe
will now re-commence from the very beginning the
argument on national and county politics with oul
despised democratic Tor republican, ] forge