The Cecil Whig. [volume] (Elkton, Md.) 1841-current, 1874-02-28
For The Cecil Wing
EXTRACTS FROM PRIVATE LETTERS
OF A YOUNG AMERICAN GIRL.
No. V.

EXTRACTS FROM PklFAIE LETTERS
OF A YOUNG AMERICAN GIRL.
No. V.
WALKENHAUsEN, Germany.
1t would make you angry to see how the
women are treated here. They have the
hardest of everything. If man and his
wife go to market the woman carries the
market basket and the man the portemon-
naie. There is club house here where
some gentlemen 60 to read, play games,
and take their meals. On Sunday after
noon the wives and daughters of these
gentlemen, are allowed to go int one Of
the rooms and work, talk and drink coffee:
but they can't even as much as peep into the
room where their husbands and fathers are
playing games. Whist and euchre are con-
sidered entirely too deep for the fe male
mind to comprehend, and so the ladies sit
down gravely to game Of old maid. l
would play that game all my life sooner
than marry a German; indeed l would
much sooner 60 out to service and be some
body's cook or chamb ermaid; for then
should be paid for my work and if didn't
like my ma ster could leave him for anoth-
er. hope all Germans are not like those
here in Cassel; and Miss Ida says that in
large cities and other provinces they are
very different. Miss Ida seldom rides in
the 'buss because the gentlemen smoke and
the smoke makes her throat sore. But the
other evening as it was raining she got in.
Just as the 'buss was going to start three
male creatures, smoking away like CHM
neys, got in also. AS they sat down one of
them said, Hope you don't object to
smoke, ladies' Miss Ida answered, cit
makes me sick and if it is not asking too
much, must request you not to smoke.
They did not reply, but evidently thought
it asking too much as they kept on smok-
ing all the way until the air was SO thick
and blue one could scarcely see the opposite
side of the 'buss. l have been in the 'buss
with seven of these creatures who were all
smoking and have been spoken TO by one
of them, who didn't take the nouble to
remove his cigar from his mouth but who
mumbled at me with it between his teeth.
We are having very disgusting weather
now; wet, raw, gloomy and muddy. I
believe l told you that Herr Wigand lives
in the village of Wallershausan, and as
there are no sidewalks, it is almost impos-
sible to get about now, because of the mud.
In this village live great many peas
ants, and l have been into the houses of
several. Usually two or three families live
in the same house, one end of which serves
for stable. There are two outside doors,
one opening into the part of the house oc-
cupied by people, the other opening into the
horses and cows. The chickens and geese
are treated just as the children are, they
live and eat and sleep together. And I
should think when the people eat their
poultry they would feel as if they were
eating their relatives; but they raise them
to sell and seldom taste them themselves.
In Heidelberg I bought the cunningest
little clock you ever saw. 1t cost less than
two dollars, but then it is very small. Its
face is very fair and outside the dial is a
band of bright blue, with pink roses scat
tered over it. 1t ticks very loud for such a
little thing and is great deal of company
for me. To be sure it isn't very valuable
as time-keeper, reminding me very often
of "Captain Cuttles," watch, but it is a
real little "cricket on the HEARTH" and
keeps me quite busy, for every little while
it stops and l am constantly thinking,
"when get this sentence written, or have
finished reading this page, will start my
clock" l never set it, but every few days
it works around to the right time, and
sometimes stays right for several hours
To-day is the thanksgiving Of the Hes
slams. What they give thanks for have
failed to find out; no body seems to know;
so suppose they do it on general prin-
ciples." At any rate l mean to have my
thanksgiving with them to-day, as was
cheated out of the real one. We are to
have goose for dinner, stuffed with apples
and raisins. l like goose cooked in this
manner very much, but they tell me it is
still better stuffed with chestnuts The
chestnut goose they serve at Christmas
This is the manner of preparing and cook
ing the goose. Having removed all the fat
from the inside, fill i: with quarters of ap
pies, with a plentiful sprinkling of raisins
and slight sprinkling of sugar. Then
parboil the goose in very little water
until it begins to be tender. Then the
goose goes to the dripping pan and is laid
on sticks to keep it from resting in the
water. The fat taken from the goose is
melted and used to haste the fowl during
process of roasting.
Almost opposite here lives the Oberamt-
mann, Mr.. Thome, and this morning while
we were at breakfast, we heard crash that
sounded like breaking glass. We looked
out and saw Mr.. Thome standing by the
window, throwing dishes out They say
this is not an uncommon occurrence, for
whenever his breakfast fails to please him
he throws it out of the window; bread,
butter, coffee and dishes; his rage spares
nothing that he can lay hands on. This
same passionate man is quite proud of his
English, and when he meets me he always
speaks to me in my own language. Quite
often he is in the 'buss when get in to go
to town, and then he always greets me with
"good bee Miss" l can hardly help
laughing but am afraid to, lest he throw
me out of the window, as he does his
breakfast. l did once mildly suggest to
him that if he said "good bee" when
got out of the 'buss instead of when got
in, it would be little better, but he said
he didn't see what difference it could make
and seemed provoked, so l didn't dare say
any more.
This is the order of our meals: at half
past seven we have coffee, bread and but