Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1920-06-17

Va "a VertiSed health resort
w awoEe one morning to find
its pOstoffice changed from
Carlsbad, Austria, to Karlovy Vary,
CzechO-Slovakia, the mental shock to
che German inhabitants must have
been somewhat like the occasional eX-
blossoms of its hidden wells, from
which its famous mineral waters come,
says a bulletin of the National Geo
graphic society.
Though it is located In Bohemia, the
langlishman had introduced afternoon
tea, and the American had made ten
his popular, but the 1900 permanent
residents, who remained in Carlsbad
after the annual influx of some 10000
visitors, were essentially German, and
karlovy Vary remains so, according
to the press reports.
Hence it is easy to understand how
this island of Germans, under Czech
rule, approached a political boiling
point. Dispatches told of open dis
play of Emperor Franz Josephs por-
trait, and Of the refusal Of the native
sons, who live by means of the saline
waters and salt derivatives, to call
Carlsbad by any other name.
Discovered by Charles ~.
Traditions had it, and the inhablt-
ants preferred to believe, that EN-
peror Charles w. discovered the heal
ing power Of the waters that gush
through the vents of the mammoth lid
that nature clapped down over a
seething caldron far beneath the sur
face.
Atop this vast subterranean lake of
molten mineral and kissing steam a
river, the Tepel, flows lazily down a
narrow valley whose slopes are soft
ened by beautiful trees and traversed
by winding trails and paths. Among
these, some physicians intimate, the
health hunters gained the rosy cheeks
and buoyant spirits for which the
springs receive Overmuch credit.
1t is just before the Tepel enters the
Eyer that the underground streams
pierce the crust at numerous points,
and furnish the waters used for bath
ing and drinking by those who could
afford to go there; and either bottled
or boiled down by the millions of gal
Ions, for its salt and soda content, and
shipped to all quarters Of the globe.
During the season at prewar CarlS-
bad the guest at any of the numerous
hotels would be awakened at o'clock,
or even earlier, and would arise to
join the procession toward the springs.
At popular one, such as the Sprudel,
from which flow 40 gallons of water
a minute, at a temperature of 1853
degrees, Fair, he might have to wait
Is or 20 minutes until a whiteCapped
maid served him. For his protection,
large glass covers were erected over
many of the springs, and from an air
plane Carlsbad might resemble a field
OF Conservatives.
But to linger too long among the
springs of Carlsbad is to miss its his
tory. Here there is grim sort of
symbolism. For it was here, just 100
years ago last August, that Metternich
plotted to clamp down the lid upon
free speech, free press, and untram-
meled teaching in the German states,
Origin of the carlsbad DEGREES"
There were signs that liberal agita-
ton among Germans was reaching
the boiling point. AutOcracy was
threatened. Prince Metternich of Aus
tria arranged to have sympathetic rep.
resentatOn from Austria, Prussia, and
seven other states of the German con.
federation at Carlsbad, and then call.
ed them together in hurry, under
pretext of need for summary action
Out of the conference came the ia.
nous Carlsbad Decrees," and there
can be little doubt but that the finder
for the world explosion in 1914 was
lighted at Carlsbad. There was formu.
lated the policy, later carried to a
relentless conclusion by the German
empire, of press censorship, of state
regulation of teaching in universities
and all other schools, and commits.
sion was created to inquire into utter.
ances opposed to the mOnarchical prin.
ciple which every German state was
pledged to maintain.
Only sixteen years before Metternich
conceived this method of political re.
preston. Carlsbad was nearly blown
I'D by the forces beneath the crusted
surface. Now, to quote traveller
"The most dangerous portions are firm.
ly battoned down, under solid masonry
held together with iron and steel