Martinsburg weekly independent. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1873-1875, 1874-07-04
VILLAGE LIFE IN GERMANY,


Tue Rev. Dr.. Bttenger, writing
the Presbyterian, gives an interesting ac
count Of his visit To Sux. Ia the beam
tiful valley Of the Neckar.
"Now we are at Sulz. The depot ii d
mile from the village, and considering
the stable character OF German villages
It will always bea mile The valley
is so narrow that yoC feel you could
throw stone across it, The foot hills
Of the Alps almost crowd the town into
the river | was the only Snlz passen-
ger and as followed my guide. who
was the postboy, / heard the ringing Of
bells aud the firing Of guns, What did
it mean7 There was wedding. and
these were the salvos need not say
at Sulz -Four thousand miles and the
mdrete,aebrosuna passed over made my
friends face beam with inexpressiblc
delight. OF course he brought ont
wine and cake Then we went out in
TO the compact village. Of twenty-onc
hundred people on the smallest possiS
bic area Narrow streets.no sidewalky
and the little square, 10 which was the
village fountain. shared IN common b.
the cows the geese and the villagers,
and, because Of this mclange. not very
tidy, told very plainly, that land was
scarce, and men, women and children
plenty You Myo some things bet
ter Ia America, said he, half APOLOGIZE
cally, as he looked at the mire, AMI
half in protest, as be spread out hi
arms to give significance to the words
you have freedom
I'VE climbed tho steep hillside to see
the church. The sexton.a little dassic-
Gated man, a sort ofrumote emanation
from the Herr Pfarr + unbarrod tho
heavy doors to us The interior vas
cold and cheerless The stark whitewasb
renewed through centuries, and here
and there falling Off in irregular patches
added to the chiliuess. The aisles are
tloored with stone. Huge beams lie
on these stones, aud upon these the seat
which are logs, are Misunderstanding nos
unlike one Of onr floors turned upside
down, where the jaists would DO the seats
aud the girders would correspond with
the huge beam. The church VS. bull
u 1913; il is Lutheran but it aas buitli
before Luther was heard Of Ia getting
to these benches, the worshipers must
step over these end stringers, an.
generations Of feet have worn down the
hard oak half way To the floor. AID
this, too, by the lighter feet Of women
and children; for the men, except the
town council, are banished to the gall
leries The seat seem to be private prop
pcrty. They are in every variety Of forms
OF every degree Of discomfort. Soma
were on hinges, like the chair Of our the
ores and opera houses. Some We
.oftened With straw mats, here and there
was one with thread bar custom Of red
.rblack cloth altogether 80 thin and
skeletou-like as to suggest hardness
rather than sofrness. Operations Of
boys while not listening to the preacher
as he reasoned high ! in his wine-glass
shaped pulpit
"Of Providence, fereknowledge, will
fate
Fixed fate, Ere viii, forek nowledge
absolue-
And found no end, IN wandering
maze lost,
generations OF these boys were swing
ing their feet uneasily, aud scooping
out the stone floor in troughs, the
whole length Of the benches. This is
boy nature, the world over, saw the
evidences of II in the village church Of
Niederlingweller. Tho red sandstone,
which has held up the Strasbnrg minis
ter aud old Basic for centuries, has nok
been proof against the feet ofthe chill
dren YEARLY beating time to the monor-
ony or untelligiblencss Of the sermon.
We dined with our friend the Professor
1t is no breach ofprivacy to tell what
it was. First came vermicelli soup--a5
fine andeveotly cut as Italian fedelinE
Then boiled beef. cold ham and potato
cakes. Radishes, lettuce, bread, but no
butter, and for desert kind Of custard,
poured patriotcally called Rhein bund
covenant Of the Rhine) composed Of
toasted bread with custard poured over
it, and whipped cream for ornament.