Democratic messenger. [volume] (Snow Hill, Md.) 1869-1973, 1881-08-20
A GERMAN VILLAGE.


The little village of Gross Tabarz lies
on the northern slope of the long ridge
of the Thuringian Mountains, about ten
miles from its northwestern end. It's
economic state, which is only type of
many others in the district, is decidedly
primitive. Every well-to-do family has
its little strip of ground, or sometimes
several such strips have been accumu-
lated in one family by inheritance or
intermarriages. The village butcher,
with whose family ours was soon on
tolerably intimate terms, was the owner,
or at least the cultiyator, with perpetual
rights, of many little fields situated in
almost as many parishes. On these
fields they raise the corn of which their
bread is made, the potatoes, turnips,
beet-root, etc., which help to provide
them with food, and the flax which
forms the raw material of their linen
underclothing. The fax is spun at
home by the women during the winter
months when field-work is impossible,
and is woven into long pieces of linen
by village weayers in old-fashioned
looms, such as could be seen fifty or
sixty years ago in the homes of manu-
featuring villages in England. Each
family also has its cow and its three or
four geese. The latter, in addition to
the profit derived by selling or eating
their flesh, furnish perennial source
of reuenue from their feathers, which
are plucked at regular intervals from
the living beasts, and sold for the pur-
pose of making pillows and feather beds
for the inhabitants of more luxurious
climes.
After the second crop of hay has been
all gathered in, which is supposed to be
achieved by the beginning of September,
aud for the gathering in of which the
village schools have special holiday,
the meadows are open to the cattle and
geese of all the inhabitants, and the
Hirten have no longer such an arduous
task. The pasture-land becomes again
for the time the property of the Com
mune, the common land which it
originally was, and is dotted with red
oxen or snow-white geese. During the
months of July and August the whole
population, male and female, are for the
most part occupied in getting in the
crops of different kinds, which seem to
form continuous series. beginning with
the first crop of hay, at the beginning of
July, and ending with the Grunan,et, or
second crop, early in September. The
women are by no means behind the men
in the severity of their labors. During
this time work begins at 4 q. M, and
lasts till dusk. The crops are gathered
without the assistance of the machinery
which an American or English farmer
would consider essential A very short
scythe, of primitive shape and make, is
used for the grass and corn. The men
employ a great part of their evenings in
hammering these scythes, so as to give
them harder and sharper edge, and
the continuous clang of the hammers is
by no means an attractive or soothing
feature of life in a German peasant.p pro-
prietor village to stranger in search of
quiet. Moving, We may notice, ap-
pears to be the one dignified agricultural
work which a woman can not do. Oc-
casionally have seen a woman use the
scythe for few minutes, but it was al
ways with sort of apology on the part
of the woman for intruding on mascu-
line functions, and seemed to be regard
ed by the men with compassionate toll
Grafton. Women and girls are compe-
tent in Thuringia to carry burdens of
sixty, eighty, or even a hundred pounds
weight, in great baskets, for miles, to
the nearest market town, but they can
not NOV, or at least public opinion de-
crees that they shall not.
The produce of the small strips of
land is taken to the poorer homes either
in curious baskets suspended like a
knapsack by two straps passed over the
shoulders, and carried always by women
or children, or on wheelbarrows, which
have the advantage of taking rather
larger quantity at once. The Weather
inhabitants employ rudely constructed
wagons, and generally in this case the
men superintend the operation. The
whole process of gathering in the har-
vest is carried on by each family for
itself. A few hired laborers there are,
but very few, and these can not be got
to work for so long hours or so energet-
ically as the farmers themselves.
Of course any volunteer assistance is
eagerly welcomed. During our stay in
the village regiment of infantry pass
ing through on its way to some autumn
manguvers was eifquGrtirt in the viii
lage. Each house-owner had to enter
tain with bed and board so many Man
ner. and sometimes Pferd as well, the
number of each being chalked up osten-
tationsly ON the doors of the houses a
day or two previously by commissariat
officer, who had come on in advance.
There was some grumbling at the pros
pect on the part of the villagers, many
of whom thought sixpence day scarce
ly sufficient remuneration for feeding
and housing stalwart soldier. How
ever, the day was fine. and the soldiers,
as soon as their necessary military duty
was done, set to work to assist their
hosts in getting the harvest in. There
was little grumbling in the village the
next day, but only regrets that the regi-
ment could not stop still longer.