Polynesian. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu], Hawaii) 1844-1864, 1856-08-30
No. II
BRCSSEIS.

everywhere shown to clear away the masses of
ouliding which are strangely built so as to choke
up 'he nnest churches solecism, in truth, fire.
quentiy found on the Continent. 1t is New Years
/ Day priest is preaching an excellent extern
pore sermon IN the cathedral, q sequel a lune-
raj service which has taken lace in honor of some
person deceased His preaching has the complexion
OF rantIng, bat IS undeniably effective He moraises
on the Death OF that person, and breaches good
practical sermon TO the young. Sermons in Catho-
lie churches have the advantage of not necessarily
detainng the hearer to the end, as he is free to
come and go when he likes. The jour d. Tan is
teted at Brussels as at Paris, which Brussels en-
deavors to initiate as well as it can without the
Seine The custom of friends inviting each other
has been exaggerated till it has become burden
some so has that of giving presents. The sta
TONERS shops are full of embroidered and ctorisl
Ietter-paper, the devices in some cases being ex-
tremely pretty. illustrated gingerbread and oil
kinds OF bOnbOnS also staple article Of trade.
Amongst other things we observe clay pipes dress
ed up with artificial flowers and gilded, which form
presents among the working classes. The opera of
Fra DiarOlo is played in the evening, travelling
Englishman being the butt of the piece He ap-
pears, Of course, dressed in the plaids of many
clans, and with Gle1garry cap on his head. The
piece must certainly have been produced In Paris
before the Alliance, conversation takes place
between some brigands in Italy, who are discussing
the robbery of this Englshman. One of them
scruples to attack him a Sunday the other
quiets his conscience by saying, g If it were the
case of a Christian, one would feel some compunc-
ton, but the creature is only an Englishman.''
HOLLAND.
| We take the rail from Antwerp to Rotter-
dam or at least take it far as it will 60 The
railway company processes to take to Rotterdam;
but we divine, from the fares having been raised,
that all is not right. At first all goes smoothly.
We pass over large fiat country, not cultivated,
like Holland, but desOlate and heathery. We are
aware of the Dutch frontier by an examination of
luggage and passports. This is very cursory, and
conducted with great eiyilty. Our first purchase
tells that centimes have been doubled into cents
and the Belgian lion passes away from the copper
coinage; at the same time the shaven face Of King
Leopold gives place, on the silycr, to the face OF
the King Of Holland, g bearded like pard.'' Our
limited knowledge of geography did not allow us
to know what mouths of rivers arms of the sea
we should have to cross over, though we had sus-
picion that some would intervene At last we are
received by steamer at place called Moer Dyk.
We crash through water clOggcd with ice, and ar
rive at the other side Of one of the mouths of the
Mas. We see no station there but hear that the
company will provide carriages to take on in
certain number Of hours. There is n little Dutch
inn; with bright green windows, at which make
ourselves as comfortable as the circumstances ad-
nit. We are struck with the head ornaments of
the women, consisting in a corkscrew of gold stick
ing out from the ears at right angle. The place
we are stopped at is the terminus of apparently
interminable line of causeway. carried along the
| top of dyke-intcrminable of course, In the
other direction. There are trees on each side, of
uniform height, which diminish into point on the
horizon, thus furnishing an excellent, though
somewhat simple study of perspective At last
something is perceived slowly moving from the point
the horizon, and it turns out to be the carriages
with which we are to proceed. A bOx-seat beside
a drunken driver, whom you cannot understand
or make understand you, is not the most cheerful
thing in the world on monotonous roat. The
sides of this road are secured from being washed
away by wattled rushes btllaSted with the stones
of other countries for there is not native stone
in Holland. We wanted one once to try the thick
ness of the ice which had formed in the night, and
could light upon nothing which more nearly re-
sembled it than piece of brick and potsherd.
! The rushes which form the protection of this road
grow in vast abundance in the marshes by its side.
At last, with very slow movement, we reach the
vanishing point ourselves, and make few turns
till we see church. which reminds Us iurcibly Of
ICuvp's pictures. This is the church of DOrdrecht
or bort In the neighborhood Of Dordrecht we
come upon houses which are compound Of oranges
and villas, kept most scrupulously clean by means
of the dirty water which stagnates round them.
bort, under winter sky, is one of the most PIC
turesquc towns in Holland. Its old Gothic tower,
though built of brick, and the vessels which lie
about the quays, mixed up with the eharacteris-
tic wndmills, form multitude OF studies for the
painter. We have time 10 examine It at leisure.
/ There is river between Don't and the opposite
bank; but the difficulty is, that at present the
river is neither land nor water it is packed with
moving ice. 1t Is of little to cut channel
through this ice, as the tide rises and falls, and
| this channel is continually flied up. so the pas
sage must be made IN small boats which are got
over with great labor, sometimes floating in the
! souu-like water sometimes pushed and pulled and
punted over the solid ice when the channel Is
mother Open nor shut, the boat is worked along
partly hy the exertiOns of the passengers, who
rock ii from one side to the other In this manner
sixty-fiyc railway passengers have 10 be ferried
over in n boat which will only hold FIVE at time.
1t is fine wintar-scene, reminding one O the pic
lures of arctic navigation, but very tedious On
the other side other relays Of carriages open to
receive us which, after. a crampiHg and tedious
/ land journey. bring to the brink of the Rotter-
dam river. Men with torches conduct to the
boat and this river is most fortunately open. This
railway journey has occupied twelve hours, being,
os far as we can guess, most fifty English miles.
which would be somewhere about four miles and
a-half an hour, the usual pace of German dill
gence.
HAARLEM
one Of the prettiest and ceanes towns OF rather
pretty and very clean Holland The tulip-gardens
are all swaddled up to protect them frUm the cold.
and thus we have no sight Of the AOwery gories Of
Haarlen We make an attempt to hear the world
renowned organ, and imagine, as it is Sunday
morning that we are sure of success. We hear
an organ, but not the organ. The organ plays at
other times, when service il pot performed. But
the singing browns be little organ. The singing
is mixed with a croak peculiar to this nation.
1t seems as if they wero a nation WHO had
been changed out of frogs into men, and who, with
IOut anv violent effort of nature, might easily be
changed into frogs again. Such as the singing Is,
there is enough Of It and after the singing long
sermon, which considering the circumstances under