Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1915-09-23
OLD POLISH CAPITAL
RRESPONDENT WRITES OF THE
CHARMS OF cRAcOW.
City Has Many Beauties, and Its Citi.
zens Are Refined and Gentle
Scenes in the Market Held in
the Great Square.

IS It not true that cities. like houses
/ reflect the characters of their inhabi-
/ tants? Somebody said that Berlin has
/ the air of a rich, well-fed woman who
! is dressed by the most expensive mod
/ istes and has everything that money
! can buy but never the unpurchasGOIe
| quality of charm. Now, Cracow is her
/ opposite; she is like lady of ancient
| but unhappy race conscious but IN
! complaining of her great sorrows; she
| is fascinating, distinguished. simple.
| Cracow, small as it is, is the heart Of
! Poland, and in Poland's days of free
| dom, long ago, was its capital.
! But the object of this little article
is not to relate the tragic history of
Poland, but Just to give a brief
| sketch of the simple life in beautiful
| Cracow, before the war began.
In the middle Of the town is the
| great square where stands the splen-
did church of Our Lady. There is
a covered market, where the stalls
are mostly kept by Jews, but in the
| open are the peasants from the coun-
! try with their milk and cheese, vege-
tables and poultry. The peasant
women wear gay-colored clothes and
carry huge burdens on their backs
a dozen milk cans, bundle Of brush
wood, a bushel of bread baked in
| great lOcves nearly two yards long.
In their high clumsy boots they tramp
| sturdily along, quite able and willing
| to do a mans work in the world as
! we'll as to bear a woman's burden.
A lady who visited Cracow shortly
before the outbreak of the war was
greatly impressed by the burdens
| borne by people of little higher rank
| than the peasant. These burdens
were mostly geese-white, long
necked, squawking geese. Every 9th
er man, woman and child seemed to
be carrying a goose. Sometimes they
were carried under the arm of the
| purchaser. Often under each arm,
| sometimes in a carpet bag with long
| neck protruding and the bright eyes
| eagerly searching the passers-by as
| though enjoying the novel ride. Some
| times a basket contained as many as
| three geese and sometimes they were
| slung unceremoniously over the shout
| der of the owner, their legs tied to-
| gether and their necks craned up to
| prevent a rush of blood to the head.
| Now and then stout lady would pass
| with goose in the ample bosom of
| her dress or coat, only the head of
| the fowl showing under her chin. The
geese were generally treated with
| consideration and respect, children
! stopping to caress their snaky necks.
| 1t was hard to believe that these pets
were destined for the pot on the NOR
row. To be sure there were other
things for sale besides geese; rolls of
| golden butter and leaves of cheese
| folded together in a way that you new
er see outside Poland
In another part of the great square
is the vegetable market, with its
green and purple cabbages, cauli-
| flowers and Brussels sprouts; satisfy,
onions, and dried mushrooms on long
strings worn like a necklace over the
| necks of the vendors.
But on goose market day in era
COW the center of the stage belongs
to the goose. few abashed hens
were offered for sale or a lonesome
| turkey, but they seemed to feel they
had no right there, and were ready to
hide their heads.
In the center of the square sat the
public weigher with his scales. If
an old lady felt that she had been
given short weight for half pound
of butter she brought it to him to
weigh, and he even took a hand in
| the disputes about the size and quail
| ity Of the geese.
The people that you see in the
streets of Cracow are beautiful to look
| upon. They do not look rich, but
they know how to wear worn clothes
with kind of natural elegance. Then
| their faces are expressive, clean cut
and fine; they know how to walk and
how to stand, they are not rude, but
gentle. What is to be the destiny Of
these clever, refined, unfortunate
Poles we do not yet know.-Exchange