LIFE IN ROUMANIA.

New Zealand Times, Volume XLII, Issue 9632, 12 April 1917, Page 3

LIFE IN ROUMANIA.

The Sydney “Sun” gives an interesting talk with Mrs .Osman, of Sydney, who spent three years in a mountain village of Boumania as governess to a Prince’s family. The village, Okna, on the river Trotush, is on the side of the Eastern Carpathian mountains, and looks down the valley within sight of the termination of the enemy's recent advance. Mrs Osman had five pupils, four boys and a girl. The family conversed in Eranch, as did all other -aristooratio families in Boumania, parents sending the children to the peasants to learn their native tongue. The Eoumanians had an intense love for the French people, and were proud of the fact that at that time they were the only foreigners who were allowed in the French Military School of St. Cyr. Mrs Osman’s opinion is that admiration and sympathy for the French was Roumania’e biggest Incentive towards joining forties with the Allies. Etscept in some of the towns, the whole population is either peasant or aristocrat. Domestic servants had to be obtained from Transylvania or Bohemia. Each family had' its little plot of land, which grew sufficient for its own needs, corn meal being the staple food, and in the country rich and poor wear their national dress, which takes months to embroider. Mrs Osman was presented with a costume, receiving part of it each year she was there. The most interesting fact about the proud Boumanians is that scarcely half a century ago they were all serfs, as the Bussian peasants used to be. When the aristocratic Roumanin.no wont abroad and became educated, being people of fine susceptibilities, they became ashamed of their feudal laws, and the whole lot of them agreed to free their serfs. The lords were foresighted benefactors. They concluded that freedom would bo of little use to the people without means of sustenance, and with munificent generosity divided up their lands, giving each family a piece and an ox, and keeping in many cases not more than two peasants’ shares for themselves. There are six months of snowfall in the country, and for a month you dared not go out of doors. At other times it was necessary to swathe every part of the body except the eyes for tear of frostbite. Each winter a Hungarian gypsy undertook the duty of keeping the fires going at Villa Negri, going the rounds of the rooms all night long so that the house could never become cold.

On. winter nights wolves could he heard howling round the villa, and the windows were all barred, for fear a hungry pack might hurl themselves against the glass. It was not safe to ho out after twilight, and the fc/; who had to walk abroad armed themselves with p.stols and a bodyguard of dogs.

him. Ho declares that he is not interested in the war; that he knows nothing about it. But the physician perseveres with his unwilling subject until the memoria technics is found to he producing quite satisfactory results. Gradually the patient displays interest in the review of events. Incidents on tho battlefield begin to unfold themselves before his eyes, and in the course of time memory, that has failed him so long, at last returns.