Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1888-01-19
In the Salzammergut.

We plunged into the dark, stone,
tunnel-like entrance. 1t looked more
like q passageWay to a stable than the
hallway of a famous hostelry, and
might have led to one Of the famous
riding-schools of Salzburg, close at
hand. The hallway was lined with
peasants. The great faring, warlike
head-dresses of the women made them
2ok at first like huge bats in the
gloom. But as we became accus-
toned to the light, or, rather the dark
ness, the oXlike patience of the peas
ants eye defined itself from out the
shadows of the Golf, and we saw men
sandwiched in between, with the in
evitable feather and flower in their
hats.
They bring their own black bread
and sausage, now and then a bit of
cake for an extra treat-for a sweet
tooth always goes with a strong Ger
man guttural-and spread their feast
out on the tables when they buy their
wine. One is as likely to sit cheek by
joWl with prince as a peasant in the
''stift-keller," but for the most part the
peasants like to huddle together in
the hallway, where their humble
spreads will not be criticized by more
lordly wine-drinkers.
The stone tunnel leads into round,
open room, lighted from above by a
kind of Well-hole, and gives Immediate
ly upon the cellar itself, into which
one might look and see literally miles
of bottle shelves and casks if the day
light penetrated. As it is, lights are
flashing through what appears to be
endless darkness, and now and then the
lanterns will flash on one of the lay
monkS-not so fat or SO merry as the
twain we met outside-as they serve
the wine to the kellners who bring it
to us; for the holy men do not serve
their clientele with their own hands.
Perhaps there is just little too much
registering sometimes in the ''stift-
keller to make it decorous or seemly,
although there is no better conducted
crowd in all the world than a lot of
Germans enjoying themselves. One
says Germans, even in Austria. where
they do not resent the term, though
there is a subtitle difference, even in
the German language, from the mo-
ment you cross the frontier-line.
The oberkellner invited us to climb
the steep stairway to an upper ap-
artment, which, he told US, and made
a deep obeisance as he spoke, was re-
served for eccelenzas. But we chose
rather to mix with the gay and COM
Portable throngs who were slipping
wine at the crowded tables in the round
room. 1t is true, it was redolent of
every grade of tobacco under the sun,
from Havana, which a rich-looking
Spaniard was smoking in one corner,
through all the grades of German
pipes, and down to the long, thin
Italian cigar, which looks like lean
and discouraged little breakfast saul
sage with straw stuck IN the end,
presumably to carry off the flavor.
But every face cleaned through this
haze of smoke alight with calm, lazy
pleasure. Officers, students, priests,
travellers, doctors of everything under
the sun, and members of various So
cieties for the protection of the MEM
DRY of Mozart and the archbishops,
were taking their afternoon comfort,
which is part of the practical religion
of a German, in the cool, grotto-like
rotunda of the ''stift-keller. The
Argoad1tt.