Photo by K. M. Newman 



MEN 0E THE WORKING CEASS 



"Another economic weakness arises from the fact that the rural population, which works 

 so arduously during the summer, has practically nothing to do in winter. During the idle 

 months they spend for daily necessities all they earned when work was plentiful" (see text, 

 page 376). 



the use of vegetables should be encour- 

 aged, especially since the soil and climate 

 are adapted to a range as wide as can be 

 found in our Middle Atlantic States. 

 Beans, however, are in favor, for meal 

 made from dried beans furnishes the 

 basis for the dishes used on fast days ; 

 but potatoes do not have the popularity 

 they deserve. 



FROM SEED TO GARMENT 



Some of the outdoor work is almost 

 wholly in the hands of the woman. She 

 takes the hemp and the flax from the 

 seed to the finished garment, and deems 

 herself fortunate if the husband plows 

 for her the ground. As the spinning and 

 weaving is done by the women, the cloth- 

 ing worn by the family are tangible evi- 

 dences of the taste and industry of the 

 women-folk. 



To wear store-made clothes was until 

 recent times a token of indolence or awk- 

 wardness on the part of the females of 

 the family — characteristics that are the 

 butt of most of the jokes improvised by 

 the leader of the Sunday village dance. 



While these remarks apply primarily 

 to conditions in the country, the fact that 

 only 14 per cent of the entire population 

 live in the 71 towns of Roumania sug- 

 gests that they may be accepted as appli- 

 cable to the land. 



In this connection it should be stated 

 that in Roumania there is an exception- 

 ally clear line of demarkation between 

 the rural and the urban population. To 

 escape the isolation inherent in large es- 

 tates, their owners live in the cities or 

 larger towns. This more intimate asso- 

 ciation stimulates social rivalries, and 

 polish is sought in travel and foreign 



375 



