Newspapers / The New Bern Mirror … / Feb. 26, 1960, edition 1 / Page 1
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It is often the case that with the passing of time a disaster can turn out to have had some advan tages all the same. At least this is true as far as the Bernese Onion Market is con cerndd, which began because of a great fire and is now one of Berne’s most popular annual fes tivals. On the 14th of May, 1405, more than 550 years ago, almost three quarters of Berne was destroyed by fire and over one hundred people lost.their lives. The turn of the century had proved promising for Berne and now the city was suddenly faced with ruin. At the beginning of the 14th century Berne was still ruled by powerful overlords, but by the beginning of the 15th century it had achieved independence and established itself as the most pow erful factor in the Aare district. The catastrophe of the great fire left Berne so weak that it seemed unlikely that the city could main tain its strong position, but in their moment of need the Bernese re ceived o,ffers of help from all sides The town of Freiburg, which might well have been jealous of its powerful neighbor, was particular ly generous with help. It sent more than one hundred volunteers, who helped the Bernese to clear lip the debris and rebuild the city. In gratitude the Bernese Town Council decided to grant to Frei burg the right for all time to hold a market in Berne. The fouth Mon day in November was the day granted to them and since the 15th century the farmers of Freiburg and round about have made use of this right. As the onion was the main prod uct of this area, the name Onion Market gradualiy arose. The Bern ese action was not a purely disin terested one, however. In the olden days the onion was considered to be a good remedy against the plague, so by permitting this large scale sale of onions within the town the Bernese Town Council was also doing its best to offer their citizens protection against this dreaded illness. . The Onion Market is still a festi val as well as a serious business, though the piece of onion cake that used to be offered to every guest free of charge in the restau rants must be paid for now in hard cash! Towards dusk there is the confet ti battle which is the delight of all school children (and also the not- so-young!). Tl\is confetti battle has also a historical origin, as until November 1647 the Onion Market was declared open by the town crier, who rode on horseback from fountain to fountain and to attract attention to his -proclamation he threw walnuts among the specta tors. As in the. olden days, the Onion Market still serves the purpose of providirlg the Bernese housewives with a chance to lay in a stock , of vegetables for. the coming winter. It might be described as an elabo rate curb market—much more elaborate and certainly more prof itable than the Saturday curb mar kets that have been operated halt heartedly in New Bern for lo these many years. You know, there’s something downright appealing about the Bernese to those of us who pride ourselves on having a sense of humor. Our mother city and its citizens are quite conservative, but under this conservatism is a prank ish personality that just won’t be denied. No one lacking imagination and a sense ot humor coiild possibly have envisioned the onion queen that appears elsewhere on the front page of The Mirror this week. It’s the sort of imagination a child (Continued on Back Page) The N£W BERN PUBLISHED WEEKLY IN THE HEART OP EASTERN NORTH CAROLINA 5^ Per Copy VOLUME 2 NEW BERN, N. C., FRIDAY, FEBRUARy.26, 1960 NUMBER 4t MlGfiTV ’CLOSE NfilGHBORS—A granaiOse conception of old European town planning is to be found on Justice street in our mother city of Berne, Switzerland. Where, with dwellings linked together and no driveways to be had, does an alley cat go in these parts to escape dogs or en gage in personal visitations? Berne Found Unique Charm In Clinging to the Old Things BERNE’S ONION QUEEN (See Looking Glass Column) It is said of the Bernese that he likes to cling to old things. It is however to this peculiarity that we owe many of the rows of old houses and the old buildings, which distinguished medieval Berne above all other towns. Whether we look through one of the old town gates onto the long, slightly curved rows of houses which boundary the large streets, or look down from a viewpoint such ^s the “Rosengarten’ which shows the wide, dignified streets winding up the hill through a maze of picturesque roofs—in either case the size and beauty of this town picture is impressive. Berne is one of the many towns founded by the Dukes of Zah- ringen. The old part of the town still stands today; jus| as the Duke ordered the town to be built in 1191. What is more, the measures which he used were faithfully fol lowed by the Duke of Savoy when he enlarged the city in 1255 and were still used for that part of the town which was built in 1623—200 feet in width and 120 feet in depth for each house. The first inhabitants tried to ease the burden of the rents which they had to pay to the Duke by subdividing the houses and find ing joint’tenants, and this helped to increase the population of the new settlement. So the numerous houses originat ed which hgd a width of only two or even one window. Still today five or six houses may be counted as belonging formerly to only one court. The many fires in the town have of course often destroyed whole rows of houses; but the old type of houses still exists in abundance. The uncertainties of war produc ed a very special style of construc tion. The townhall is quite castle like in appearance. It was built in the year 1406 and was renovated between 1940 and ’42. The stately patrician houses which encircle its silent square are very lovely and reminiscent of old er times. The corner houses are also castle-like having stone walls right up to the roof. But especially for the patrician houses a special style was devised—the house with the long narrow entrance leading to a small staircase, situated far back. Such houses could be easily defended against any intruders. But there are far older houses than these. Windows were cut. and flats constructed in the towers which were once the town gates, belonging to the old town fortress es. In the old parts of town city walls, dating back to the fotmda- tion of the city, formed the center walls of whole rows of houses. But the most impressive quality in the Bernese houses is their stately appearance and the good care given to them. On the large buttresses and the houses them selves the dates are inscribed, oft en going back to the 13th century. It is hard to believe that these figures actually indicate the dates of the houses’ construction, but that is the case. Coats-of-arms and inscriptions tell of former owners, and houses belonging to the guilds have their window fronts decorat ed with the coats-of-arms and eni- (Continued on Back Page)
The New Bern Mirror (New Bern, N.C.)
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Feb. 26, 1960, edition 1
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