alth than is usually found in
capitals; one reason of this being the fact that many families who are
rich enough to choose their place of residence avoid Munich on account
of its notorious sickliness, while their places are filled by
tradesmen and artisans of all kinds, who must make a living at
whatever risk of life. But, at any rate, no one dies there of
starvation, and the great majority of the citizens are able to have
meat for dinner every day. Unfortunately, veal--and very young veal at
that--is the favorite dish of all classes, so that the benefit derived
from animal juices is not so great as it might be. During the recent
Franco-German war it was remarked that the Bavarian soldiers were able
neither to resist nor to endure so well as the troops of North
Germany; and by many this difference was ascribed to the habitual use
by the former of veal as the chief article of diet. There is no doubt,
too, that the immoderate drinking of beer tends to weaken instead of
strengthen the inhabitants, especially as so many of them drink when
they ought to eat, even beginning a day's work by chilling their
stomachs with this cold beverage, and necessitating thereby a
supplementary draught of "schnapps," thus creating excitement instead
of nourishment, and superinducing a second bad habit upon a first.
Pure Bavarian beer, taken in moderation, would be an excellent thing,
for its stimulating and nutritive properties are a good counterpoise
to the exhausting effects of the harsh climate; but, alas! this
renowned specialty of Munich is losing its ancient fame: the beer is
no longer under governmental inspection, and bitter is the general
complaint against the brewers on account of its alleged adulteration
through the use of foreign drugs and poisonous indigenous plants, to
say nothing of its dilution by the retailers with Munich water, itself
a poison sufficiently strong. For the rest, the amount of pork and
sausages consumed is enormous: the favorite vegetable is the
indigestible sauerkraut, and the bread in general use is uniformly
bad. Nor can tobacco be considered as otherwise than an article of
diet, since the men and boys are hardly ever seen without a pipe or
cigar in their mouths, while the women and girls spend the greater
part of their lives in an atmosphere blue and heavy with tobacco
smoke.

Having now given many reasons why the citizens of Munich ought to be
sick, it is time to see to what degree effects correspond to