On thatbasis, staple groceries average only a
trifle higher than they do inAmerica. But he was merely asomewhat wealthier and more
prominent specimen of a generalized type.
We can best visualize him as like the old English
yeoman.
The fresh yolks beamed at me from theblue-bordered
plate.
Each family lives on its own holding, entirely
separate fromits neighbors.
Luck is with her whenshe notes a good line of meats
on display, for meat distribution isuncertain.
He is wellqualified for his job, since he is an
expert on agriculture andstock-breeding. The brick floor was partly covered by a
pile of hay from theloft above and heaps of green fodder. An all-seeing paternal
state attends to even this pettysalvage.
Yet even here I found no filth or
squalor.
But it will probably lack American specialties like
an electric iceror a washing-machine.
Neither, apparently, do Germans except for cooking
or sparinglyin their imitation coffee or tea. Yet even here I found no filth or
squalor. The region is predominantly inhabited by a landowningpeasantry. In the
oldtenant farmsteads conditions are decidedly primitive.
It also did notgive a sufficiently clear picture of
popular needs.
By this time Miladys purchases have been duly
assembled on thecounter. There are different cards for men, women, boys,and girls.
The Market Control Statute links all this with the consumer. Bythe time we had
reached our first scheduled stop, I was somewhatchilled.
We have already noted how short Germany is in
butter, lard, andkindred products.
She is anxious to see how the washing isprogressing
and how her younger children are getting on.
She wentpromptly to an official employment agency
to see what could be done.
Those are the precious hours shetakes for marketing
and other necessary shopping.
We can now understand what a prolonged huddle
Milady goes into withthe saleswoman.
But, as Kiplingwould say, that is another
story.
The instant war broke out, the Governmentfroze
domestic service. In the course of our chat Iremarked how much I missed
coffee.
It certainlyappalled many Germans with whom I
discussed the matter.
Nearly all Germans have come to feel that they are
in fora life-and-death struggle.
In that way I gotintelligent comparisons between
German and American standards.
On our way, we nearly ran over a drunk who had
chosen thespace between the rails for his couch. But before relating details, let me
sketch in the background.
InNorthwest Germany, landless, floating farm labor
is little inevidence.
As might be expected, their hospitality was as
ample as it wasunaffected.
For the American visitor, the general aspect of
this region has afamiliar look. Men are even more drastically rationed than their
womenfolk. We can now understand what a prolonged huddle Milady goes into withthe
saleswoman. I saw some harrowing sights during my stay in theReich. They cannot be
transferred,and coupons detached from the card have no value.