GERMAN MODEL HOUSES FOR WORKMEN 
By William Mayner 
American Consulate-General, Berlin 
III.—SPINDLERSFELD 
I 'HE dyeworks of W. Spincller were founded in 
^ October, 1832, and have since become a lead¬ 
ing establishment in Berlin. They are located in 
Coepenick (Spindlersfeld). There have also been 
erected for the workmen tour double houses with 
twelve to fourteen lodgings each, the rent for a 
room, bedchamber and kitchen, amounting from $45 
to $52.50 per 
annum. Be¬ 
sides this there 
are many other 
beneficial insti¬ 
tutions for the 
working men, 
for instance 
the bathing- 
house where a 
sho wer-b at h 
can be had for 
two cents, hot 
bath for four 
cents as well as 
all other medi¬ 
cinal baths,etc. 
During the 
summer there 
are bathing 
places for men 
and wo m en 
tree of charge. 
In the kinder¬ 
garten chil¬ 
dren are taken 
care of by two 
trained nurses 
at a charge of 
fifty pfennigs 
(twelve cents) 
per month. 
1 he savings of 
working men 
and e m p 1 o y- 
ees are invested 
at interest of 6 
per cent for 
about $800, 
higher amounts 
4 to 5 per cent. 
There are even¬ 
ing schools for 
the workmen, a 
library with about 5000 books, besides a technical 
library containing 1000 volumes. Near the factory 
there are about twenty-five acres of park land for 
the workmen and their families. 
I There is a sick fund and an old age and accident 
fund. In the home single workmen can receive a 
dinner at from' six to nine cents. It is significant 
that up to the 
end of 1904, 
two hundred 
and seventy- 
five male em¬ 
ployees and 
workmen and 
thirty-eight fe¬ 
males celebrat¬ 
ed their twenty- 
five years 
jubilee in the 
employ of the 
firm, receiving, 
with an expres¬ 
sion of thanks, 
a donation i n 
money from the 
head of the 
firm. 
During the 
winter, enter¬ 
tainments are 
given at the ex¬ 
pense o f the 
fi rm in the 
E rholunarshaus 
O 
on Sundays 
(twelve theatre 
performances 
and six scien¬ 
tific lectures)to 
which the em¬ 
ployees of the 
firm and their 
relatives have 
free admission. 
So much has 
been written 
in favor of the 
so-called model 
w o r k m e n’ s 
dwellings in 
(Germany, that 
229 
