gone through as to whether a cup of worn by the artisan class of grey or coffee at three kreuzers, or a glass of brown homespun, or dark-colored wine at four, is the better worth hav- serge. It is not uniform; indeed, as it ing. When they have made up their is made in the building, it is exceedminds on these and cognate points, ingly probable that they who wear it they give their orders, and with quite a - at least if they be women— have a lordly air, too, as befits persons who voice in deciding its façon. With the have money in hand to pay for what exception of the invalids, all are rethey wish. The choosing and ordering quired to keep their clothes in good of their own dinners is to most of these repair, and to pay a certain amount of old people a source of intense delight; attention to their own personal appearthe mere fact of having money to ance. These are points which, espespend gives them a feeling of indepen- cially in Vienna, are strongly insisted dence and self-importance which light- upon; for the city does not choose to ens many a burden they have to bear. have its old pensioners going about If the Poor Law Department were to dirty or in rags. The hall-porter has offer them regular board, with three strict orders to allow no one to go out luxurious meals a day, instead of their unless he has "tidied up;" and this meagre little twenty-six kreuzers, the regulation is warmly approved of by majority of them would certainly reject the majority of the inmates themit with scorn. selves. To an outsider it certainly seems superfluous, for most of the old people are the very picture of neatness. They all appear to have a good supply of clothes. One of the inmates of the Prague Home insisted on showing me his wardrobe. In addition to the rough grey suit he was wearing, he had a pair of dark trousers and waistcoat, a black coat, and a long blue overcoat - all in thoroughly good condition. He had, too, under his care a silk gown which he displayed with infinite pride. It was his wife's wedding-dress, he told me. His wife, who lives in another wing of the building, had, it seems, handed it over to him for greater safety. "She always wears it, though, of course, when we pay visits," he remarked incidentally.

These little allowances are valued, too, for another reason: they are a proof of trustworthiness on the part of those who receive them. When a man enters an Old-Age Home his twenty-six kreuzers a day are handed to him as a matter of course. If, however, as sometimes happens, he does not turn them to good account — if, for instance, he spends an undue proportion of them on tobacco, beer, or wine-it is pointed out to him that such conduct cannot be tolerated. Should he not take the hint thus given, he receives an official warning. Then, unless he mends his ways, and that speedily, his kreuzers are stopped and he is placed on rations. Invalids, too, and the feeble-minded have no allowances. Their meals are ordered for them by the doctor, and are sent from the restaurant to their own

rooms.

Many of the inmates of these homes supplement their twenty-six kreuzers a day by earning a little money on their Those responsible for the manage- own account; and the Poor Law aument of the Old-Age Homes have thorities, far from throwing obstacles decided the clothes question in an in the way of their doing so, give them eminently common-sense fashion.every encouragement. They even proSuch of the old people as have clothes of their own, or have friends willing to provide them with clothes, wear them; while the less fortunate are supplied by the Poor Law Department with what they require. In the latter case the dress, though as plain as possible, is warm and comfortable, and of, the kind

vide work for such of the more worthy among them as have the strength, and the wish to do it; and, what is much more remarkable, they pay them regular wages. It is not much that they give, of course, only some ten kreuzers for a six hours' day; still, even ten kreuzers are not to be despised. There

is many an old man in our English force is of the very gentlest character. unions who would gladly work all day Practically the inmates may do just as for half that sum if he might but spend they like, so long as they conduct themit as he chose. The pensioners re-selves in an orderly fashion and do not ceive no remuneration for doing the quarrel. When once they have made lighter kind of housework, such as mak- their rooms neat, they may lounge ing their own beds and keeping their about in the sunshine, or by the stove, rooms clean; this they are required to the whole day long if they choose. do, so long, at least, as they have the After dinner they may all go to bed for necessary strength. But, when there an hour, and this many of them do. is any carpentering to be done, the car- In each home there is a chapel in penters in the home have the option of which mass is celebrated every day; doing it; and the same arrangement is but the old people are perfectly free to in force with regard to the dress-mak- go there or not, just as the fancy takes ing, tailoring, shoemaking, etc.; while them. If they care to do so, they may all are free to turn their hands to gar- leave the home every day, at one dening and wood-chopping. And for o'clock, and need not return until eight this work they are paid. Some of the in the evening. Then they have the women, too, earn quite a tidy little right to spend one whole day with their sum by knitting stockings and vests, friends every week; and if they wish and helping to keep the house-linen in to spend two, the director rarely or repair. Then such of the old people as never refuses them the permission. are specially reliable may become the Once a year, too, they may go away for paid officials of the institution. At- a whole month, providing that they tached to each room is a Stube-Vater, have anywhere to go to. Some of or a Stube-Mutter, as the case may be, them pay quite a string of visits during who receives six kreuzers a day for the summer, and return to the home all keeping order and seeing that they the better and the more contented for who live there conduct themselves the change. These privileges, howproperly. If any one is ill, it is the ever, are strictly conditional on good duty of these officials to fetch what behavior. Should any of the pensionfood or medicine he may require, and ers show a disposition to abuse their to look after him generally and try to liberty, it is at once curtailed. If a make him comfortable. In the rooms man or a woman does not return set apart for invalids, the Stube-Vaters to the home by the appointed time, or Stube-Mutters are replaced by if he returns in a disorderly condition, nurses. Even they who, from lack of he is not allowed to go out again for strength or inclination, do not work, some time to come; nor may he unare not, as a rule, entirely dependent dertake any paid work. If he should for their support on their twenty-six stir up strife among his fellows, or in kreuzers; for whatever presents they any other way interfere with the wellreceive, whether in money or in kind, being of those around him, he is subare their own private property. And ject to imprisonment in a room in the their visitors rarely go empty-handed. home, though for not more than fortyThe roughest of the rough likes to take eight hours. The persistently insubhis old father at least a bit of tobacco ordinate or unruly, however, are not when he drops in to see him; and allowed to remain in the ordinary there is no end to the mysterious-look- homes, but are sent to Mauerbach, ing little packages with which daugh- where, though only in one wing of the ters are laden when they arrive. One building, a somewhat sterner régime rule, however, is rigidly enforced no prevails. spirit is allowed to be taken into the Each Old-Age Home is under the homes. management of a resident director, who In all these institutions, excepting must render an account of all that the one at Mauerbach, the discipline in passes there to the head of the Poor

or

the inmates seem to be as happy as they can be whose lives lie behind them, not before. There is not a touch of that dull listlessness about them, of that just-waiting-for-death, which is so marked a characteristic of the old people in our workhouses. On the contrary, they are quite alert, and take a lively interest not only in what is going on around them, but in things in general. This is especially the case in Prague. An English visitor, who chanced to be there a few months ago, was quite overwhelmed with questions as to how affairs are managed in this country. Some of the old folk were very curious to know how the poor are treated here; and they were not a little scandalized when they heard of one of our social arrangements. "To think of sending worn-out workers to live in the same house as rogues and vagabonds!" they exclaimed, in evident amazement at such barbarous ways. One old man inquired anxiously how the word "Gladstonē" ought to be pronounced.

Law Department. This director, how- are exceptional cases; the majority of ever, is only a constitutional ruler; his authority, though considerable, is strictly limited. Once a month, in each home, the officials, the clergyman, the doctors, and a representative of the Poor Law Department, sit in conference, and the inmates are invited to appear before them and make known their wishes and their grievances. A full report of the proceedings upon these occasions must be submitted to the head of the department. Not very long ago there was an odd little scene in one of the homes. Some dozen old women were interviewing the director for the purpose of inducing him to let them stay where they were, whereas he had received orders to send them to a home further from Vienna. One might have thought, from the tone some of them assumed, that he was an unreasonable landlord, and they tenants whom, in defiance of the law, he was seeking to evict. The director's manner, meanwhile, was deprecative in the extreme. He spent a good half hour soothing the old dames, and striving to convince them that, even down in the country, life might be well worth living.

It is noteworthy that the very arrangements which contribute most to the comfort of these old Austrians inIt would be difficult to find a more volve no outlay whatever. The little contented set of old people than those dinners over which the inmates of the who live in these Austrian homes. Old-Age Homes linger with such keen There are grumblers among them, of enjoyment do not cost more than the course. One of them complained bit- midday meals supplied in our workterly to me that, although twenty-six houses. Workmen's ordinary clothes kreuzers a day might be enough for are not one whit more expensive than bare necessities, they left nothing uniform; nor does the fact of paupers whatever for luxuries. Another - it being allowed to see their friends every was in Prague - replied to a chance day entail any sacrifice on ratepayers. remark that he seemed fairly comfortable, by a very emphatic shake of the head. He was well cared for, he allowed, and the food was good; but He gave a significant glance at a little group of old men who were laughing and talking in the corridor. "They are all Czechs, you know," he whispered, in the tone in which a Southern State planter might in other days have spoken of negroes. "And for a German to have Czechs around him is really very trying." These, however,

In the Vienna Old-Age Homes the average cost per head is fifty-seven kreuzers (about 11d.) a day; in the London workhouses, it is some 1s. 4d. Still, it is not without reason, it must be admitted, that rigid economists look somewhat askance on these homes; for the respectable poor, when their working days are over, go there gladly. Old men and women have been known to die of slow starvation rather than enter a workhouse.

EDITH SELLERS.

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