Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1898-02-03

all articles sold for FOOD and adulter-
alton is well nigh unknown.
think the most striking instance
of the paternal government, to us, is
the compulsory insurance for poor
people. Every person, male or fe-
male, who works for another person
and whose salary is not over 1925 a
year, is obliged to take out an insur-
ance against old age. II is worked
in the form of stamps, like postage
stamps, which are sold by the gov
/ ernment, and must be affixed TO Il
card, which is also prov ided, and
when the card is full it is returned
/ to the proper office. There are four
/ classes and they are rather compli-
Gated, but | will describe one. The
/ employee has to stick a two-and-a-
half cent stamp on his or her card
weeSly Y and the employer has to do
! the same. ii it is a washerwoman,
who works for varies persons, then
! the woman who has her washing
| done Monday has to pay the insur
ance for that week. The government
pays an amount about equal to am
other two-and- a-half cents and keeps
all the money. If the insured il dis
able and unable to earn Il living mot
because of sickness, which comes
under another class he can draw a
small amount weekly. When he is
40 years old the entire income is
available. 1t may be only S25 TO 500
a year, but that amount means much
TO Il poor person here, and it is an in
vestment and not Il charity. 1t is
sometimes aked why these things,
which work well, cannot be Inflated
by our people. They can, but with
Us they must be done by the people,
while here they are done Jorthe peo-
pie. Broadly speaking, our country
is governed from below while Ger
many is governed from above, and
we would not submit to many things
which pass unquestloned here. An
instance of this Just before me. Since
writing the last paragraph my land
lady brought IN the paper which she
Is required To havetilled out 10y every
guest for the police, These are the
questions in their order: Your name,
surname, age birthplace and year,,
and religion? Are you single, mar
ried or widowed? GIVE the names
and profession ui your parents? Give
the city, state and land OF your birth?
Your present home, cily and country?
For what purpose are You here? How
long Will you remain? Have you a
passport? Have you been here be-
lore? Have you Il wife or chiid with
you? III you have servant she must
make a report for herself.
The questions at Il hotci are Fewer
in number and vary in different cit
les. Here in Munich we have a lur-
nished room IN a private house, and
SO have to answer the questions
which come under that class. No
travelling man stops over night at "A
hotel, no stranger hires a room Tor n
hours. without the fact being re-
ported to the police, together With
at least the name, home, professions,
and usually the name Oi The last
place visited, and II we move across
the street tomorrow another paper
has to be written up for the ponce.
A young man, IA loyal German. SAID
to me one day, Tine fact Is, we are
poiIced TO DEATH But all this goes
with patcrnal form of government.
O. course there are many things
which hook strange To our American
eyes. Often the people anuse Us,
and | think we alnuse them Just as
often. We see some things which
our people might well initiate, ana
also some l. which they would 40
well 10 copy US. Nowhere are these
differences more noticeable tldh III
the railway system. The depots are
literally immense. Places ul from
TWO to three hnndfed thousand pop"
ulatlOn have uepOts larger tnan any
in Chicago. As far as possible one
central station is used lur all lncUln-
ing ana outgoing trains. The usual
style II to have one or TWO or three
great arches made ui steel ana COW
cred with glass, under which from
twenty TO forty trains can iuh at
once. At the station, whether large
or smail, none bat cmp4uEta are al
lowed to cross the tracks. Wherever
ii is necessary that passengers SHAH
cross. even iiUm one platform 10 atl-
other, the crossing Is Dy tunnel uu-
dcrneatu, ana passenger ls ilueu Il
he takes the short cut overhead. In
fact there are no grade crossings
anywhere except iu The country, dnu
those are protected by gates; aud a
long chapter Oi American accidents
Is cut snort Iu Germany. 10 return
10 the ueputs; IN no pace where We
have beeu - anyone allowed &" 80 to
the car platform unless "a ticket Isl
shown, ana IA some places II Is ini-
pusaiOIr even 10 90 utu a waiting
room without a ticket II you WISH
to go iu 90 Wait Tor q irlenu you can
buy a waiting room ticket Ihe sta
lions are fenced or walled, ana az
USED iur Dusmos. purposes only. L.
the gIrl- want 90 go down 10 7ee tht
uut cluch tram come ul tliry nave