Ashtabula telegraph. (Ashtabula, Ohio) 1874-1880, 1874-08-29
hole Number 1886.

or that nIGIe river down the Mud
Lake slough into the city, and inun-
dated it, destroying an immense
amount of property. 1t is a contin-
gency of this kind, on a thousand
fold greater scale, to which Holland
is liable.
The coat-of-arms of one of the
Provinces of Holland is a lion swim
ming, with the motto, LUct0Y ct
eD1ergO-"I strive to keep my head
above water" 1t might well be
adopted as the national motto, for
the whole country has to struggle to
keep
ITS HEAD ABOVE WATER,
and save itself from submersion. In
some parts of Holland the sea at high
tide is thirty feet above the level of
the face of the country, and at low
tide deep enough to drown the tall
est man. Along some parts of the
Rhine, during the spring freshets,
the water is higher than the roofs of
the houses of the cities and towns
along banks. On the sea coast
the inhabitants who live behind the
dykes can feel them vibrate from the
blows of the huge waves, and can
hear the breakers roaring and rag
ing above their heads, in their mad
efforts to engulf the listeners. The
reader may well imagine that Hol-
land is a delightful country in which
to live for people of nervous temper
ament or weak nerves. But the sto-
lid Dutchman calmly drinks his beer
and smokes his pipe, or sleeps
through the storm, dreaming not
and fearing not of danger.
The construction of the ocean and
river dykes for the protection of
Holland, including only those bull
warks and embankments erected at
national expense for common safety,
have cost the inhabitants of the
Netherlands
TWO THOUSAND MILLIONS
of dollars since the time of their
war of independence against Spain,
three centuries ago. How so small
a country, with such limited natural
resources, could afford to spend such
prodigioHs a sum of money must al
ways remain a mystery. After the
terrible war with Phillip II. of Spain,
the population was reduced by butch
cry, starvation, disease and migra-
ton, from 100000 to q miserable
remnant of 100000 souls. The dykes
had been broken for the purpose of
droyning out the Spaniards; but the
desperate act ruined the inhabitants.
The waves of the sea, for many years
thereafter, washeh~ over nearly the
whole surface Of Hollsud. Then
commenced the mighty BoFS of re-
constructing the sea walls, HFer
dykes and embaRkments, and the ex
pulsion of the obtrusiye water.
Whole generations iabored and toll
ed during their lives on this huge
task; and indeed it could hardly be
considered completed until the first
part of this century; but, in truth,
the work can never be considered
finished. The Dutehman can only
keep from drowning by continually
repairing and Strengthening his
dykes and operating his Windmill
pumps. Eternal vigilance with him
is the price, not only of liberty, but
of existence.
A special college at Delft, is set
apart for the instruction of engineers
whose duty it is to
WATCH THE STATE OF THE WINDS,
TIDES, AND WATERS,
and guard against all accidents from
irruptions of the ocean or the Rhine,
and to see that the pumps keep down
the constantly accumulating waters
in the low lands. The National
Board of Water-Engineers, which
includes men of high scientific attain
ments, has most important duties to
perform; and, indeed, the existence
of Holland may be said to depend
on its skill and watchfulness. The
annual expense of keeping in repair
the whole system of dykes and dams,
canals and sluiceRays, and operating
the State wind-mills, amounts to
about S5,OOO,OOO a year. Every
thing is now in such perfect eondi-
ton that the operating and wear
and-tear expenses are reduced to a
minimum. There
ARE TWO GREAT PUBLIC wohKs,
undertaken by private companies,
which are likely to prove failures un-
less taken off their hands by the
Government. The one is the new
direct ship-canal from Amsterdam to
the ocean, and the other is the drain
ing of the Zuider Zee, with the OBJ
iect of reelaiming the submerged
land for pasturage purposes. The
present ship-canal which connects
Amsterdam with the ocean is exca-
waited through the strip of territory
lying between the shallow, unnaEiga-
bic Zuider Zee, on the one side, and
the ocean on the other. 1t enters
the ocean at the Helder, 81 miles
north of Amsterdam, whereas it is
only 20 miles west of the latter city
to the ocean by a direct line, But
the old engineers who constructed
it could find no safe or suitable har-
Dor of entrance and exit, and were
therefore obliged to run their canal
to the north end Of the Peqinsulas
instead of across it. This canal is
100 feet wide at the surface, 40 at
the bottom, and is is feet deep, and
floats East India ships and steamers
of 200 to 1,4OO tons burden, or any
vessel not drawing more than about
II feet of water. Little packet
steamers ply on it at the speed of s
miles an hour, without seriously
washing the banks, which are pro-
teoted by willow wicker-work. I
rode out and back on one of them
some 25 miles. 1t passed through
continual feet of all kinds of water
craft, from an East Indiaman towed
by steam-tug to a barge dragged
by a donkey, or q market-boat scud-
ding under full sail, laden with milk
cans, and .steered by old women.
Nearly all the craft were moving un-
der full sail. At every or miles,