Mountain Farmers - Switzerland (1949)

[music] [singing] The Republic of is a landlin and the alpine inhabited live in valleys surrounded by high snow cap mountains. The mountain peaks look down on slopes where everyible bit of land is used for farming. >> [music] >> The streams which flow down our mountain slopes are fed by the melting snow. Water power is one of our country's few natural resources and is used to make enough electricity for all our wants. Our two mountain chains, the high Alps and the lower Yura, are cut by valleys, one of which is the Emmenal. It is a broad and rich farming valley. This valley is divided into small farms of not more than 15 acres each. The countryside is hilly, so it's difficult to use farm machinery. Early in the spring when the animals are still in the barns, fresh grass to feed them is cut every day. This is one of the many jobs of Swiss farm boys like Carl Hoffer. The Emmenal Valley is famous for its dairy products. Hay for cattle is a common crop, but rye is also grown as well as barley, wheat, and potatoes. Even though the small fields are farmed carefully, they don't yield enough. Farmer Hoffer must buy extra feed for his livestock and some additional grain for meal and flour. The Hoffer farmhouse is very old and the barn is attached, so this makes it easy to get to the cattle when the snow is deep. The roof is high and steep to let the snow slide off. Our mountain farmers live simply. They depend on themselves as much as they can. Carl's mother makes bread with flour ground from homegrown grain. Each one in the family does a share of the work around the farm. Carl's sister Gradel takes care of the chickens. The cattle are kept in the barn until late spring. Our fields are more valuable to us for raising crops than for grazing animals. When the weather grows warm, the cows are driven to pasture in the mountains. The day the cattle are moved to the high pastures is a holiday. Every family has special cowbells for this occasion. The parade of animals from the farms is led by a bull decorated with spring flowers. As the procession moves toward the mountains, herds from one farm after another join the parade. The high pastures are called Alps, like the mountains themselves. All summer long, the cows graze on the short grass under the care of an old herdsman who is hired by the farmers from the village. The bells worn in the parade are not used again until the cows return in the fall. During the summer, fresh milk cannot be carried from the high pastures to the towns below. For this reason, the herdsman makes it into cheese and at the end of the season gives each farmer his share. In their spare time, the herdsmen make wood carvings which are sold to tourists as souvenirs. The same care that goes into a simple wood carving goes into everything we Swiss make. While the cattle are feeding in the mountain pastures, the crops are throughout the valley from their teach that Switzerland is divided into four different regions. Each has its own custom and each speaks a different language. In the largest region, the people speak German. In one part of the Ura mountains, French. In the southeast, an old language called Roman. And in the extreme south, Italian. In Italian Switzerland, the houses are like those in northern Italy. Here, climate is mild. As in Italy, the farmers raise olives, grapes, and corn. The thin soil makes farming difficult, and the people are helped with money spent by tourists who come to enjoy the warm sunshine. The towns have Italian names and the signs and road markers are in Italian. In the southeast is the section called the Angerine. Because it is high in the mountains, the houses are built of thick stone to keep out the cold in winter. Centuries ago, Roman armies crossed the mountain passes of the Angadine on their way to central Europe. Inscriptions welcoming travelers are in Roman, which come from the old Latin spoken by the Roman soldiers. In western Switzerland, bordering France and Germany is our French-speaking section. Here, farmers save their rainwater to use in the house because the surface streams often dry up in the summer. Grains and vegetables grow in the fertile soil and cattle raising and daring are important. French is the language of the region and the customs of the people resemble those of nearby France. Fine horses are bred on the grassy slopes of the Ura mountains. Even though we have four different languages, we Swiss live together peacefully in our mountainous country. In the Emmenal Valley, the people speak German, although the words are pronounced differently than in Germany. The written language is the same. The four sections of Switzerland are linked together by good roads and well-run electrified railroads. Farmer Hora makes one shopping trip to the village every week and usually his first stop is at the flower mill. Because each farmer in the community owns a share of the mill, it is called a cooperative. The bags of grain are marked with each farmer's name. Although we grow a lot of grain in Switzerland, there is never enough and we must buy large amounts from the United States and other countries. The village mill has modern machines to grind the grain into flour for baking. The heavy old millstones are now used only for making cattle feed. From the flower mill, it is only a short drive to the center of the village. When a farmer's horse needs new shoes, he takes it to the blacksmith. Mr. Schmid is alage mayor and the people have elected him to office. Our country is one of the oldest democracies in the world. Another cooperative owned by the farmers sells machinery, seed, sprays, and fertilizers. These cooperative stores help our farmers save money on things they need to buy. Near the edge of the village is the lumber mill where logs are cut into boards. Because we conserve our forest, there is plenty of lumber in the Emmonau. Like most Swiss factories, the mill is run by electricity. We have no coal in Switzerland, and our electricity for power and light is made cheaply by the water that falls down from the mountains. On his day in town, Farmer Hoffer tries to finish his errands in time to give his children a ride home from school. Carl's grandfather and grandmother live in the small cottage behind the big farmhouse. Nearly everything the hoofers eat has been raised on their own land. Vegetables, milk, butter, cheese, eggs, even meat. In the harvest season, other children from the village often come to help the horus. On days like these, Carl's mother has to work very hard to feed so many people. During the haying, everyone worked from early in the morning until late at night. The barns must be filled with enough hay to last all winter long before the cows are brought down from the mountains and the cold weather begins. In the winter months, the Emmenal Valley, like most of Switzerland, is covered with snow. Around the Hoffer's farm, there are drifts so deep that everyone must work indoors, either in the house or barn. The cows are milked twice a day, early in the morning and at night. Carl and his father strap on milking stools to do their chores. In winter, Mr. Horer sends his milk to the cheese factory in the village. Our country is noted for many kinds of cheese. The cheese factory, like the mill and the trading cooperative, is owned by all the farmers in the neighborhood. When milk is brought in, it is weighed and the amount is marked down beside the farmer's name. To make cheese, milk is heated and a preparation called renet is added to make it curdle. As the curdle milk is stirred slowly and evenly, it becomes thicker and thicker. The cheese maker knows exactly when it has been stirred enough. Before it has time to cool and harden, the soft cheese is pressed into a wooden frame. After it has hardened, it must be stored to ripen. Emmonal cheese is shipped all over the world. The cheese makers are experts at telling when each wheel is ripe enough. They test each cheese by tapping it with their fingers. >> Our country is also famous as a great playground. Electric trains take visitors to towns and villages high in the Alps. In both summer and winter, thousands of travelers come to our mountain resorts. Our country is often called the land of winter sports. Everyone who comes to Switzerland, whether in summer or winter, carries away with him the memory of our country's great beauty. Many come to ski on the high mountain slopes where they may be towed up to the starting point. Visitors spend large sums of money and the tourist industry is an important source of income. The hoofers spend their winter holidays on the farm. At Christmas and New Year's, they have a party with a special dinner made of all the good things they have raised during the year. the Emantal region. Oh no. [music] >> Our land is small and our climate often severe. But we make good use of everything we have, even our mountains. In our valleys during spring and summer, we grow food for ourselves and our livestock. The snow feeds our mountain streams, which make electricity for our villages and cities. >> The tourists who visit us help make our nation prosperous. Although we speak different languages and have different customs, we live and work together peacefully in the mountainous country of Switzerland.