642 



The National Geographic Magazine 



A TYPICAL BLACK FOREST HOME 



valley is unproductive ; not a hill nor 

 rocky slope but bears the pine or fir. 

 Since the scythe, the hand-rake, and the 

 flail have not been supplanted by im- 

 proved farm machinery, the chief value 

 of one of these small estates is repre- 

 sented by the land, live-stock, and the 

 buildings upon it, though in many cases 

 the farms are without buildings, their 

 owners being the village cobbler, black' 

 smith, merchant, or baker. In fact, 

 nearly every family is the owner of a 

 small farm which has been the heirloom 

 for many generations. 



But the cultivation of every natural 

 resource and the exclusion of all waste 

 does not alone account for the fact that 

 this region sustains a dense population 

 free from drones, paupers, and depend- 

 ents ; for, aside from the physical and 

 mental unfortunates, there are indeed 

 few who are not self-supporting. In- 

 deed, the greatest cause of the general 

 success of the communitv lies in the in- 



dustrious and frugal habits of the inhab- 

 itants themselves. 



The peasant or wage-earner in the 

 Black Forest would enjoy the luxuries 

 of life, but he first and last measures his 

 own station in life and adjusts his com- 

 forts and expenses accordingly. Instead 

 of the expensive cigar, he procures a 

 famous Schwarzwald pipe which lasts 

 him a lifetime. Tobacco at four cents 

 per packet supplies the necessary com- 

 bustible material. He travels, too, in 

 his narrow circle ; but a homely knap- 

 sack and a loaf of black bread takes the 

 place of the dining-car meal, and the 

 numerous wayside inns furnish the 

 liquid portion of his meals at prices pass- 

 ing cheap, while for lodging he seldom 

 pays more than a mark. No false pride 

 leads our German peasant to assume a 

 role which he cannot play to the end. 



Observe the immigrant and his equi- 

 page as he lands in New York or wends 

 his way westward to friends. You see 



