River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1909-02-25

1
evening"" (You understand, of
course. that everything about the
gu" and everything in connection
with the social events is in German. J
Now if you could see this man in
class where he speaks without effort,
four or five languages to say moth
ing about the Greek ard Latin he
weaves in, you would say that he is
not an ordinary man. He has as
fine face as you would care to look
at-strong, stern, and intellectual.
mention this because of what
shall say of him later.
There were $50 or more of us
present-probably 200. When l
went into the room there were at
least 100 beer glasses in sight, for
all Europeans drink beer and not a
few Americans. 1t was a we'll
dressed, happy, bright faced crowd
probably half men, half women. I
found myself seated by gentleman
who could speak no English,
not word of his language, but we
learned a good deal of each other
and became very good acquaintance
through the German. DR.. Poszkow-
ski had invited enough Germans
(whom he had scattered among us)
to leaven the lump, and soon the
leaven began to work.
A German arose and shouted
"silentium." (They use this word
always when silence is wanted.) He
proposed a salamander" to some
thing or somebody and all stood.
(They say "prosit" for drink to ones
health The leader shouted PRO
sit' and the glasses were raised for
along draught. Then three "hochs"
were shouted, then ems, zwei, drei
was repeated more rapidly, while
the glasses were rocked on the
tables making frightful noise;
then, almost in the same breath,
the whole action gathering momen-
tum, ems, zwei, drei I! was given
very rapidly, and forcefully, and the
glasses (heavy beer glasses raised
a foot above the table and brought
down upon it with a force that
sounded like the final crack of doom.
Then everybody sat down. Another
time the glasses were rocked and
struck on the floor instead of the
table. What did l d0g Well,
claim my constitutional rights and
refuse to testify. Suffice to say
that some of the Americans drank
lemonade.
A few minutes of conversation
and then every person was asked to
stand, give his name, where he
came from, and, in word charac-
terize or give significant fact about
his country. Some of the responses
were humorous, others serious, but
pointed. Atall, fine looking China
man said, China, the land of tea"
A Greek said, Greece, the cradle
of art and culture" An American
said, die Vereingte Staten"
Omitted States), and added Stand
ard OIL" Eighteen nations were
represented at our first meeting.
We had 40 or so Americans there.
They called for songs from the
different nationalities. We started
"My Country" etc., "Nein, Nein,"
they shouted = "Give us Yankee
Doodle" and we did. Other ma
tions sang songs, and we Americans
gave "rahs" for DR.. Poszkowski,
ending with whats the matter
with P-?" 1t pleased him, you
may be sure. He, meanwhile, was
going about with glass of beer in
one hand and a cigarette in the
other. l laughed myself five years
younger. How l wished for some
of you to help me enjoy it all.
Omitting the tobacco and beer "a
good deal, by the way,) these gath
erings are as circumspect and digni-
fed in every way as any similar
meetings at home. The idea that
the use of beer and tobacco could
involve a question of morality or
propriety is as foreign to the mind
of the German as can be. Person
ally, believe firmly in the Amer
lean attitude, but, really, l cannot
see that the Germans suffer from
their indulgence. They are as fine
looking as any people l have seen,
with less of the appearance of dissi-
patton in their faces than we see IN
the saloon cities of the U. S. have
seen but one man whom suspected
of being intoxicated, and I do not
recall having seen single red-nose.
But, to conclude this topic, ask
you to try to imagine any of an