The courier. (Lincoln, Neb.) 1894-1903, 1900-02-24
Letter From Germany.

These Germans are an extremely ego
ti'ti"al race-a sincere, earnest. plodd'ng
people, on the average. Inclined TO stu
pidity. One often wonders how long
they can keep 90 how long they will
survive as a power. Necess ariiy my IN
pres are not based on very exten-
sive observation. but, still. right here in
Stuttgart serious problems confront one
and excite thong hiful speculation.
All food pr ducts ars fifty per cent
higher here than 10 New York. Egg.
milk. flour, sugar. tea and cotfse-espec-
tally potatoes are very high and Of in
fsrior grade to what you are accustomed
TO. Fresh meat is luxury. Sausage and
dried smoked meat and fish are COZ
sumed in incredible quantities. Fruit
and vegetables are scarcely to be had in
winter. except by persons OF more than
moderate means. Rents are enormous.
Rsady-m ,de articles are very high and
generally inferior in quality and make.
Household furnishings are much dear,r
than at LONE. OGe is tempted to won
DIR who has the money. or is there
much to be had = Relative To Ameri-
can ideas OF wealth, there is little here.
Labor appears criminally cheap 20 one
accustomed to our wages. A common
lab,rer gets three Iarks twenty-five
centsl per day and wash-xomen AT d
ssamsi rssses often not twenty-five cents
aud seldom over fifty cents. Teachers
are, in general, miserably paid. Officials
are generally poorly paid, but have the
q ivantages Of email pensions.
All the population seem to be in the
mad rush for the cities here. as at home.
PrCliti :, indeed, are these Germans, ex-
cept among the most intelligent classes,
where they seldom have more than three
children. Raising cannon food as
Hums or somebody said, seems to be the
chief work OF the nation.
The fields are generally meagrs and
are left to the women to till, the men
being either in the towns or army.
Owners Of large agricultural estat es
complain OF the scarcity OF farm hands.
Coder such conditions where is the
food TO come from? From America.
The German agriculturists seem more
willing their people should starve than
get chap food in that direction.
Colon cation is the national lad here.
as in America. Will that solve the
problem ? 1t looks as il it will only de-
lay that social revolution towards which
civiliz ttion seems tending. This old
Europe needs few more wars acd de-
populizing pests. The equilibrium of
population is as vital question as bal
snce Of power" | constantly wonder
how these people live. and yet the labor
ing classes seem to have suffi iency OF
food 10 carry on the splitting and bud
ding" process ad infinitum.
The German mllit Try 10 a mighty ard
wonderfully made institut on-ths 81 ne
qua non Of national pride and ambit on
and yet one cannot but feel that it
will eventually become the cancer to
destroy the German stomach. 90 all
sides one hears that Germany can whip
all creatioa with her army and some
seem anxious to shoS America how the
spider anu fly game is played. but as TO
who would he the spider and who the
fly between a nation of restricted re-
sources and one unconscious OF its innate
powers, there can be no question. The
FrancrPruss war was bad thing for
the Germans. 1t il II tied them 50 that
they are constantly hu0gry to fight CT