STUTTGART.

467

it  is  the  rule  for  fines  to  be  applied  in  the  same  way.  Besides  the  usual  arrangements ­
  for  washing,  shower  baths  are  provided  for  the  workpeople  in  one  large
machine  works,  and  all  men  desirous  of  using  them  are  allowed  twenty  minutes
free  time  once  a  week  during  work  hours  for  the  purpose.
Housing  and  Rents,
The  extension  and  development  of  Stuttgart  have  now  for  some  years
followed  a  systematic  building  plan,  which  was  adopted  by  the  municipal
authorities  after  careful  consideration  of  the  town’s  economic  interests  and
topographical  limitations.  By  this  plan  considerable  areas  of  land  were  set
apart  as  open  spaces,  certain  districts  were  reserved  for  dwellings  of  different
classes—villas,  artisans’  tenements,  &c.—and  industry  was  allotted  its  special
zone.  In  the  laying  out  of  streets  straight  lines  were  avoided  and  moderate
curves  favoured  for  the  sake  of  variety,  and  it  was  laid  down  as  a  general
principle  that  the  height  of  the  houses  should  diminish  with  the  distance  from
the  centre  of  the  town,  the  usual  maximum  being  65  feet.  In  streets  less  than
52  feet  wide,  however,  four  stories  are  the  maximum,  souterrains  rising  more
than  8  feet  1^  inches  above  ground  and  attic  stories  with  a  roof  incline  of
60  degrees  and  above  being  counted  as  stories.  In  the  principal  streets  the
height  of  stories  must  be  9  feet  9  inches  from  beam  to  beam,  though  one  story
may  be  lower,  but  in  other  streets  a  height  of  8  feet  5  inches  is  allowed.  All
living,  bed,  and  work  rooms  regularly  used  by  human  beings  must  be  at  least
8  feet  1J  inches  high  from  floor  to  ceiling,  and  their  windows  must  have  a
surface  equal  to  one-tenth  of  the  floor  area.  Attic  dwellings  are  only  allowed
in  buildings  not  exceeding  65  feet  in  height,  and  with  the  reservation  that  the
elevation  of  a  living  room  must  be  at  least  8  feet  1  j-  inches  over  half  the  floor
surface,  the  skylight  having  an  area  of  2'7  square  feet,  while  a  bedroom  must
be  at  least  5  feet  10  inches  wide.  The  by-laws  also  provide  that  a  certain
proportion  of  a  building  site  behind  the  house  to  be  erected  shall  be  left  open  ;
its  depth  varies  from  one-fifth  to  one-half  of  the  height  of  the  back  wall  of  the
house,  as  measured  from  the  ground  to  the  eaves  gutter.  Back  buildings  are
permitted,  but  if  intended  for  dwellings  they  may  not  exceed  89  feet  in  height,
including  the  roof.  Such  are  the  main  features  of  the  code  of  building  regulations ­
  as  now  observed.  It  will  be  understood,  however,  that  they  have  greater
significance  for  the  future  than  the  past,  and  represent  counsels  of  perfection
which  have  only  a  very  partial  embodiment  in  the  Stuttgart  of  to-day.
The  first  feature  of  the  domestic  architecture  of  Stuttgart  to  strike  a  visitor
is  the  almost  universal  plan  which  has  been  followed  of  building  the  houses
detached,  in  blocks  with  a  frontage  varying  from  40  to  80  feet,  according  as  the
house  is  a  single  or  a  double  one.  The  detached  block  has  been  the  prevailing
type  of  building  for  the  past  half  century,  and  it  gives  to  the  streets  a  distinct
individuality.  It  is  probable  that  utilitarian  reasons—and  among  them  the
diminished  risk  to  life  and  property  in  case  of  fire—had  more  weight  than
considerations  of  public  health  in  causing  the  municipal  building  authorities  to
favour  this  style  of  house,  as  they  have  done  since  18o3,  yet  the  choice
was  well  made.  The  usual  space  between  the  blocks  is  10  feet.  The  flat
system  prevails  here,  as  elsewhere,  and  in  the  newer  buildings  the  rule  is  four  or
five  stories,  with  lofts  in  addition  for  storage  purposes.
There  is  no  single  district  which  can  be  described  as  essentially  industrial  in
character,  though  some  quarters  are  more  so  than  others,  i  he  stratification  of
society  which  is  characteristic  of  German  housing  arrangements  here  often
produces  results  which  to  English  people,  accustomed  to  the  one  family-house
system,  must  seem  incongruous.  A  baron  may  live  on  the  ground  floor  of  a
quiet  residential  street,  a  councillor  of  law  or  a  titled  Government  official  may
occupy  the  rooms  above,  but  on  the  third  floor  may  be  found  a  small
tradesman,  and  possibly  under  the  roof  an  artisan  or  a  journeyman  brewer
earning  thirty  shillings  a  week.  In  less  pretentious  streets  it  is  very
common  for  the  parterre  and  first  story  dwellings  to  be  occupied  by
tradespeople  (the  landlord  almost  invariably  reserving  a  lodging  for  himself  on
the  ground  floor),  and  for  the  flats  above  to  be  let  off  to  working  people,
the  elevation  of  whose  dwellings  is  a  rough  measure  of  their  resources.  Small
tenements  and  high  rents  are  the  common  lot  of  the  Stuttgart  working  classes.
3  N  2

29088