To miles from the upper Rhine, in the province of Alsace-Lorraine, lies the city of Strassburg. It has a population of about 180,000, somewhat smaller than Columbus, Ohio. It is connected with the Rhine by canals, and is a manufacturing center. Among its manufactured products are cigars, machinery and surgical instruments. It is heavily fortified, since it forms one of the natural points of defense for southwestern Germany. Strassburg was founded by the Romans during the Middle Ages. It was a great industrial center. At that time it was a free town; that is it had its own government and paid tribute to no nation. Louis XIV seized it in 1681. The French continued to hold possession of it until 1870, when the Germans captured it. The view shows beautifully the Kleber Place

in the center of the city. This is an open park with old-fashioned house built about it. You will observe that these houses are quite different from the houses with which you are familiar. They appear to be very narrow, very tall, with an endless number of stories. Then, too, the roofs are checkered with little dormer windows. The center of interest is the tall spire in the right background. This is the famous Strassburg Cathedral--famous particularly because of its wonderful clock. There are figures of angels, skeletons, Jesus, the Twelve Apostles, and others. On the quarter-hour the figure of an angel appears and strikes a bell. When the hour is struck, a skeleton appears, and at high noon the figures of the Twelve Apostles step out and march about a figure of the Christ, and a cock crows loudly.