The new Northwest. [volume] (Portland, Or.) 1871-1887, 1878-10-31
OUR EUROPEAN CORRESPONDENCE.
LETTER SUMHER EIGHT.
BELGIUM.

l The horrors of the passage from
England to the continent have never
/ been over estimated. The route from
London to Flushing, in Holland, is
better now than at our former passage,
for new and better steamers ply between
the places. This year, however, there
has been so much more travel than
usual that even the new boats are
over-crowded. The passage is made in
the night, aud in the early morning the
low shores of Holland are in sight, and
two hours later our steamer is between
the embankments Of the Scheldt. We
eau just see the church spires and CHM
neys Of houses over the dykes, which
indicates that the river level Is dozen
feet above the streets Of the city. TAX
ing cars for Antwerp, we at once realize
that We are in foreign country.
The strange gutteral Dutch ana old
Flemish which seems to fill the air
around US, the dykes extending away as
far as the eye can reach, the squatty tile
covered houses, the bitches and rows OF
trees which take the place of fences, the
I little patches of d fferent kinds OF grain
which seem to fly by as the train
moves along, and most of all, the short,
broad, big-footed women, wearing
wooden shoes, doing most of the work
I in the fields, all are so different from
what we see at home that the trav-
eler caunot but be greatly interested.
The crops grown are largely wheat, bar
ley and potatoes. No cattle are in sight
pasturing, as land here is too valuable.
Most OF the animal labor is done by
cows or donkeys. Careful cultivation
aud economy Of land is especially no.
ticeable. No spot large enough to raise
hill Of potatoes even is uncultivated,
aud grass is harvested almost up to the
track Of the railroad.
As We near Antwerp, the dykes are
not so high aud finally nearly disappear,
aud there is occasionly a low hill. We
at length pass through heavy fortifica-
tions aud enter Antwerp, which, al
though it has experienced the many
vicissitudes OF a varied fortune, is now,
on the whole, the most important city
OF Belgium. In the 10th century il was
the most wealthy and prosperous city
on the continent, surprising even Ven
ice. IL received its death blow, COM
mercially, in the wars with Spain.
| Driving from the depot to our hotel, we
see strange sights on every side of us.
The great draft horses which We pass
/ celebrated the world over have i'm
mense collars running up to point
two feet above the horses shoulders,
while the traces are generally made Of
ropes. Small loads are drawn by cows,
donkeys, men and women, and fire.
quently by dogs. a team of five dogs
draws a cart Of wood which would be
called by an American farmer a good
load for one horse. Most Of the streets,
particularly Of the old city, are narrow
and winding. The upper stories of the
houses frequently project over the lower,
and at the corners of the streets there
are often little shrines built into the
second stories of the houses. Artistic
ally, Antwerp is famous as the birth
place Of the artist Van Dyck, as one Of
the several places in which it is claimed
Rubens was born, and as the center of
the celebrated Flemish School of Art,
which in the 10th and 18th centuries
was Of worldwide repute. Like every
continental city Of the least pretensions,
Antwerp has a cathedral dating back
for its foundation from 400 to 500 years
ago, a good assortment of churches,
which the tourist is compelled to visit
or be considered a lunatic, aud mu-
seums aud so-called art galleries SUM-
cient to worry the life out OF the aver
age man If he consents to see them all.
The cathedral contains Rubens' far
famed masterpiece, the Descent from
the Cross" which ranks among the first
three or four paintings in the world.
The museum, the finest art gallery in
Belgium, contains 800 pictures, a num-
d, Der Of them by Rubens and Van Dyck
, Nearly all the paintings are ancient
= suppressed monasteries.
II the traveller generously gives day
to the museum. he will 20 through Al
the rate Of five pictures in three min.
utes, which will just about give hin
7 time TO find the name in the catalogu,
!, and the picture on the wall, and Ieav,
, him no time at all to look at the paint
, ing.
The church of st. James has some o
|, the finest and most intricate work eve
executed in marble. The cathe
dral has a chime of So bells, OF
which the most solemn and long
o winded Dutch tunes are played nearly
= all the day.
/, Within the past forty years the ol,
!, Notifications of the city have been re
. moved aud fine boulevard, with som,
] Of the way three carriage drives an,
: four foot ways, has been made in it,
place. The same thing has been don,
in Brussels, Vienna, Paris and man.
J. smaller cities of Europe.
5 one morning a friend and mysel
7 arose early and went to the market
which, like those in most continents
!, cities. was held in the center Of an opel
n square. Here shortly after daylight
: country people come with vegetables 70
sale, which they place on the pavement
rbera were in the market carrots, cab