Children Of The Alps (1950)

[Music] in a lonely valley in the swiss alps far from the busy highways we come across a little boy [Music] his sledge is handy when the path leads downhill but just here there's some hard pulling to do [Music] up here the men folk help each other with the heavy jobs and the lad who brings them their dinner with a can of hot tea is one of the gang too [Music] their daily bread is the sole reward of hard work in which every member of the family has shared granny for instance is an example of what a good housewife should be when the spinning wheel hums in the narrow living room during those long winter days indoors the girls too are busy bent over their first pieces of handwork [Music] most of the children grow up in these simple old world surroundings romantic hunting scenes adorning the walls recall times long past [Music] spring was already at the door and now winter has come back again [Music] but the very next day when it's time for school the sun is out warm and spring-like once more [Music] here the children learn to read and write as for practical work they learn that in the school of life itself [Music] it doesn't take the youngsters long to make friends with the domestic and farmyard animals perhaps it is from them that they learn the art of silence mountain dwellers are not talkative people they keep their thoughts to themselves [Music] foreign [Music] little by little in the daily performance of their modest tasks the children are drawn into the work of the grown-ups and take their place in the community [Music] [Music] the boys help their father in his work they're already learning the handicrafts which most of them will practice in later life others may go down to the towns where they will find a different world [Music] one of the boys built these chalets in his spare time they are made entirely of old bits of wood but they reveal a natural talent for designing and building [Music] so [Music] nature is a thing of mystery and the imagination of a child conjures up its own fairy land in a forest like this [Music] but such daydreams are not allowed to interfere with the performance of duty's daily round it is often a long way from the alpine cabin down to the village but the daily errands are important and must not be neglected [Music] [Applause] [Music] here comes the postman he too has a long trek to the dwellings scattered along the mountainside but he has found a trusty and willing friend to keep him company on the way [Music] [Music] yes mountain life is hard and filled with all the more reason for the children to enjoy their few hours of leisure between school and domestic tasks this battle is a true expression of their youthful zest and enthusiasm [Music] a special treat today it is not often that the long road home is enlivened by a jolly ride on a slave [Music] so so [Music] [Music] um even the tiny ones are out on the snow fields today under the watchful eye of a sheen mistress the school master too goes sheing with his charges those who live in the mountains must be able to get about summer and winter alike over any kind of ground by the quickest and easiest means foreign for these children of the mountains their homeland is not just a sentimental background but a stern reality to which they must adapt themselves [Music] you