The daily morning journal and courier., 1898-04-16

conservatism that once pervaded the body of students and threatened to suf- locate all new life, all movement in concert with the progressive spirit of the times.
 Moving among the students of Up sala, the American visitor cannot fail to observe and comment on the free dom and regularity with which the young men frequent public cafes and restaurants There are any number of such places to be found in this little town, that has only 10000 inhabitants, and strong drinks form the main stock in trade of them all. They are rarely empty in the morning, although the sensible student frowns on what is deemed early drinking in Upsala. They are well patronized in the afternoon, when many students like to indulge in cup of coffee and a glass of SWe- | dish punch before settling down to an | evening of hard work. They are crowd- l ed at night, when the large majority of youths are seeking relaxation after a | days exertions in the fields of learning. Parents and teachers display good | deal of forebearance toward the youth ful jewellers, provided the studies are I not neglected too much. And on the whole it is considered quite the proper thing for young man to SOW his wild oats at the university, and then to be | done with it. The last quarter of a cen- | tury has witnessed a great improve ment, and yet enough remains of this | free and easy Bohemian life to surprise l the American observer. But before l judging these bacchanalian habits too | Ia l,a J fnftalya intn | consideration the environments by which the Swedish student is surround ed. The climate of Sweden, although not suited to the taste of Polar bears, | seems almost to reuire a moderate | amount of slipping, and it certainly al- ! lows such indulgences to an extent f which would prove utterly incompati- | ble with the climate of these our Uni l ted States.
 Inseparably connected with this cafe life is the habit of drinking thou" as the Swedish expression of "dricka I duskal," may be roughly transcribed. It means that the parties concerned will exchange the formal mi" (yoO or the cumbersome title for the familiar "du" Chou in addressing each other. The habit has all the sacredness of age and tmmemorial usage, and it is abus- ed accordingly. It is not uncommon to see a couple of Swedes meeting for the first time at some drinking bout, pro-
 ceed to discard the titles" or become brothers" as it is called, after a few hours acquaintance. Then they fill their glasses to the brim and drain them to the last drop, shake hands, and say, q thank thee."
 This custom f1ourishes among the students as nowhere else, and under circumstances which tend to make it serve as a leveller and an important factor in maintaining and developing the democratic tendencies of Swedish life. A younger student cannot propose "cup of brotherhood" to an older, nor can he refuse such proposition from the older one unless he desires to inflict a deliberate insult and is ready to stand the consequences. Thus the young nobleman and the tradesman' S son are made to meet on equal terms, and some trace of this equality, once established, will always remain, how ever divergent their routes in after life, for "once a student, always a student
 What kinds of athletics do you practice?" the American visitor will be sure to ask at last, when he has seen seen everything, and yet discovered no trace of baseball, football, rowing, running or jumping.
 'Why, we get through with all that
 in school" his host will probably an- swer. There is some horse back riding among the members of the aristocratic
 set and more bicycling. Swimming is
 in great favor whenever the tempera-
 ture will permit bathing. Physical cul- ture is not entirely neglected, although
 it has no place in the curriculum of the
 university There is an instructor of
 gymnastics, and he is not idle. But
 athletics, such as they are conducted at
 American and English universities,
 urged on by the spirit of competition
 and claiming the interest of even the
 most inveterate bookworm are utterly
 foreign to Upsala-
 There is a far cry from the realm of
 sports and athletics to that of music,
 and yet it might be said that singing
 comes nearer than anything else to oc- cupying a position in Swedish university life that has something in common with the prominence given to athletics
 by the students of the Anglo Saxon
 countries. It is the red thread that
 reaches from the first to the last day of
 the students life, Illuminating it, and
 filling him with host of sweet mem-
 ories that makes his heart pulsate with youthful furry every time he
 hears the old melodies in after life.
 There is splendidly trained and
 well-conducted university chorus, gen
 erally comprising some 200 voices This is the official body that represents sing , ing Upsala before the outer world and
 on all official occasions. There is nc great festivity, no solemn ceremony no important academical function that
 may be considered complete without the presence of the chorus. Its gala
 days are the occasions when the entire
 corps of students unites greet the com ing of spring or to honor the memory
 of the great Kings of Sweden, Gusta- vus Vasa, Gustavus Adolphus, and
 Charles XII. And when, once in Q
 great while, the chorus goes to foreign lands to sing the love of Swedish song into English, French or German hearts
 the old singers of prominence, who graduated years ago, come Hooking from opera stage and office chair, from , pulpit and drill ground, to don the white cap once more and to join their