Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1880-09-02
ADOPTED THE AMERICAN PLAN.


beer, nor eat too many green apples, and
does not travel very far in day, he can
get along very comfortably, but will GER
talnIy retain poor opinion of the luxu.
ries and comforts of foreign railway
travelling.
The common highways are every.
where perfect, and models for our imita.
ton. They do not exceed twenty feet in
width of track, bat are almost uniformly
paved with broken stone, except the
steep places, which are sometimes paved
with small cobble stones, with two lines
OF long flags for the wheels of vehicles To
run on. These roads are hard and
smooth as q floor, kept in perfect repair,
ana can never be muddy. On each side,
altern ately, about ten feet apart, are little
granite posts, standing about two feet
above the surface, for what purpose is
not apparent, but possibly to designate
the track more readily when there is
snow on the ground. At every kilome-
tres distance larger granite post records
the distance to the passed and the coming
town, and at crossings, other solid posts
record the distances and places in all di-
rections on the several roads Twenty
feet on either side grow stately trees,
which unite their branches on both sides
and across the track, sheltering it, as
A BEAUTIFUL ARBoR
from the sun and weather; and so these
magnificent roads, seen from a height,
look like little fringed ribbons stretching
through the country. One misses,
however, the rod or two on each
side of waxweed, mustard and
Canada thistles, so necessary 10
the completeness Of an American high
way. | am solemnly impressed with the
opinion that there is not a decent wagon
road in the United States, and that we
ought to inaugurate the system so long in
use here and gradually construct and
complete our roads, so that they be substaa-
tisl, smooth and reliable at all seasons OF
the year, instead OF the muddy, ever-slushy
quagmires that they are half OF the time
& little money annually, Systematically
and intelligently devoted, would in few
years do the business, and the repairs
would cost but a tritle. Our people are,
In all respects, much better able to have
such roads than the people here, and
would use them ten times as often. | wish
the path-mssters of Wisconsin, whose
business appears to be to annually squan-
der the poll tax, would come over here
and take few lessons in road making.
GERMANY IS A CURIOUS COUNTRY,
things. The women carry almost every.
thing on their heads in baskets about
three feet high and two feet across at the
top, sloping to one foot at the bottom
The men seem never to do it, ] suppose
their heads ere occupied with weightier
matters. 1t is common sight to see
women bearing on their heads baskets full
OF manure, with the fork sticking in the
tops; and, hundreds come to town with
basket loads, on their heads, of potatoes,
caobages turnips, butter, eggs and other
produce. Here they will sit on their
launches, in the street, all day long if ne
cessary, rain or shine, waiting for custom
ere, and, suppose, return home happy at
night with the little money received for
the load. Pretty much all the planting,
hoeing and weed-pulling in the fields and
gardens is done by the women, and a
large share OF the hsying and harvesting
also. They seem to work in droves. They
never squat down to pull weeds, as | be
Iieve an American woman would be sure
to do, but bend over, head and feet down,
sort of half shut up like jack knife, and
toll away as if their lives depended on it,
and guess they do.
| have not yet seen modern
AGRICULTURAL IMPLEMENT
Of any sort, here. Their scythes are short
and broad and the spsths straight
Their hoes are more like an adze,
weigh several pounds, and the handles
are short. One must stoop over incon.
veniently TO use them. and have muscle
ike Hercules. If there are oxen in this
country | have not seen them, and but
few horses outside of the cities. The
cows, mich or farrow alike, are used in
stead. Here, again the female gets the
advantage. They are not yoked, as with