Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1882-09-09
SIGHTS IN GERMANY.
The Hard Lot Of the Women and the

Correspondence Cincinnati Commercial.
And nobody in this region seems to work any
but women and dogs. The harvest hands,
as they are called at home were with the fewest
exceptions, women. They were working like
oxen. In shape they are short and wide out
Centuries of carrying heavy burdens upon their
heads and shoulders have stunted their height
and broadened them out. This minute-5S0 in
the mornng-at Cologne, hear the measured
tramp Of soldiers in the street outside. I
look out squad OF good-sized, well-formed
young soldiers are passing with a lieutenant.
They hold their heads up in a spirited way and
march along timber and elastic. Immediately
behind them follow three etawny, sauatty wo-
men. carrying upon their headsl loads which look
awful. 1t is enough to crush their skulls in
one would think. The picture tells the whole
story of life among the lower Classes i'm this
country. 1t is barbarism as complete as
reigns among the Indian savages of America.
where the squaws do the drudgery and tine men
fight and hunt. Men in uniform fairly swarm.
They waddle about the country railway sta
tiOns in caps green, white blue and black-fat.
lazy-lookng fellOws-while out in the adjoining
fields women lug and tug at the bundles of hay
and grain, and bend their backs in the turnip
fields plying heavy hoes, horny handed and
stiff. with weary, weather-beaten, scanned.
stupid faces. 1t is not an agreeable sight or an
encouraging one for the future progress of one
OF the most civilized nations In the world.
Everywhere are soldiers, soldiers, soldiers
L
you of those we saw before o'clock this morn
ing. At we went out to look at some sort of
ancient rubbish, and a splendid cavalry COM
pany passed us. fully 100 strong Horse and
rider seemed all one piece, and the animals
feet seemed to move by cock-work, SO perfectly
trained were they. 1t was fine sight But
the most magnifcently disciplined standing
army in the world is maintained at cost which
cannot fail to tell on those people in the wears
to come. The men are drawn off to fight, and
the women do the mems work. At this day in
Germany women backsmiths are not very I'M
common. What is to become Ofthe retinements
OF social life, the sweet sacredness of home?
But felt sorrier. II possible. for the poor little
dogs than even for the women. They have a
dogs Lire indeed. They are not very big-nO
larger than the common dcspised yellow dog
OF America-yet two of them draw loads which
seem heavy enough for horse The little
things are harnessed underneath sort of long.
heavy barrow upon wheels; this holds the load
man or woman holds the handles of the
thing, and the dogs trot along beneath. The
ribs stick out. ill-padded with flesh as though
they were not very well fed Their painting
sides, loing tongues and sorrowful. appealing
eyes would touch the heart Of a stone. Every
thing hereabCutS. too. seems done by sheer
brute strength. There Is no saving of labor.
either by machinery or by the application of
common-sense. In the field we saw no Ameri-
can agricultural machinery, as in England and
Scotland. Where in America a load of bag
gage, trunks, valises and boxes would be piled
high upon dray or great truck, and trans
ferred at one gulp for short distances, here
your porter takes it upon his head or arm as
the case may be, and lugs it off slowly and
painfully one piece at time. We have had
more fuss and trouble to keep from losing our
baggage coming from London to Cologne,
than we should have had at home in going from
New York to San Francisco and back again.
Strange country this where women and dogs
do the hard work, and where they have no
checks for baggage. Stockings are knit by
hand instead of by machinery. and in Antwerp
and Brussels the women are so Industrious that
they knit running along the streets going on
CrranlS.