The daily morning journal and courier., 1904-12-21
SWISS PEASANTS HARD LIFE
THE WINTERS ARE COED AND
 LONG. -e
And Agriculture Conducted in PrImi- tive Way.


 Switzerland attracts us-not alone by it's grand scenery, but by the indepen- denee of spirit which eharacterizes the people. It was this that gave to the Swiss a republican form of government, as well as the virtues of self-reliance. honesty and contentment. These traits. the result possibly of centuries of struggle with poverty, are invaluable; without them the Swiss peasants of to- day would find existence almost an inn possibility.
 The truth of this was brought home to me in spending some time in little hamlet situated upon mountain valley as the shelf or rock is termed, where few cottages with broad balco- nies were huddled upon the brink of a precipice ifty-five hundred feet above the Lauterbrunnen Thai. Behind the village the pasture lands rise high. ter minating in the brown, barren peak of the Schilthorn. Upon the grassy slopes the cows are pastured, with a few goats and sheep. Each animal wears a bell, varying in size from the tinkling sleigh bell to the deep-toned COW bell, and the combined sounds make rather 2 pleasant melody, if the listener is not too near.
 These animals are the most valuable possessions of the poor peasants, and receive the best of care. Like the chil- dren, the animals become very sure-' footed in this land. but occasionally a well-fed. round-bodied COW, descending for her evening milking, would miss her footing, when her ludicrous efforts to regain her balance were successfully aided by the watchful children having the herd in charge.
 At this altitude the summers are short, the winters long and dreary. The land is not unproductive. as the crocus, pimpernel and bluebell deck ev- cry sunny slope, but the season is too short for grain to reach maturity, or vegetables, other than few hardy va rieties. The only crop upon which the peasants can depend is hay; in this moist climate the grass grows rapidly, and there are usually four mowings be- fore the 1st of October. This work is usually done by the men, who use a long handled, short -bIaded scythe. The women follow, spreading the freshly cut grass with a broad, wooden fork. As showers are frequent, it is often ne cessary for it to be turned. tossed and shaken around for several hours of sunshine, the women deftly rake the fragrant hay into windrows, and later. collect it into little heaps for the men to carry under shelter. This Is an in teresting process; first, a stout peasant appears, carrying a large rope net, which he spreads upon the ground, upon which he packs the piles of hay in a compact mass. Then the edges of the net are drawn tightly together and tied making a bundle of enormous size.
 The question in the mind of the on- locker is, how is that huge package to be carried This is soon answered, as the peasant kneels down with his back to the hay, throws himself backward upon it, thrusts his fingers through the knotted ropes, and with a desperate eff fort causing the veins of the face and HECK HlO 6Bduua OQIs -alAhG 5WilAP-1e1l elS2t bringing forward the heavy weight upon his head and shoulders, rises to. his feet, and thus burdened goes stag gering down the mountain to his hut, where the hay is stored in the loft to furnish bedding for the family and food for the stock during the severe winter.
 As any kind of beast of burden is Y,1 oy1 x1yr,,1aY1 and children share in burden bearing. Long, cone-shaped baskets and wooden firkins are made in various sizes, cor responding to the size and strength of those who are to wear them strapped upon their shoulders. In these, milk, butter, cheese, hay, wood, water and even the necessary fertilizer are car- ried over the rocky mountain paths.
 As the supply of wood must be taken ito the chalet in the same way, it is for tunate that one fire suffices for all pur- poses during the eight months of win ter When the attic is filled with the supplies necessary for the shut-in peri od the overflow of hay and fuel is stared in the broad balcony, where it is easily available. All the farm crea- lures, cows, goats, sheep and fowls, are sheltered under the one roof with the family, either in a low stone basement or in an adjoining she'd
 Occasionally traveller goes out of the season to one of these, isolated places, where he must accept the hos pitality of one of the peasants; this means a bed on the hay in the close at tic, wearing the clothing of the day, and passing a sleepless night, owing to the various sounds of the animals sleeping so close at hand, and the tor turing fleas that infest all Swiss farm houses. If the situation is an exposed enc, heavy rocks are placed upon the roofs to keep them from being blown away, as the winds sweep with terrific force over those breezy heights. The furnishings of these homes are very simple, every article being fashioned by the hands of the owner; although the Swiss are skilled in all manner of wood work, they cannot afford to give their time to decorative carving for their homes.
 The marriageable age in Switzerland is thirteen years for girl and fifteen for boy; children are numerous in nearly all the families, and regardless of age, they are dressed precisely like their parents, they seem to be literally
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