The Bolivar bulletin. [volume] (Bolivar, Hardeman County, Tenn.) 1865-1888, 1882-06-08

heights to be seen anywhere are llnes OF
sand-hills. or dunes, which the wind
and other agencies have formed IN some
places along the coast. No wild ami
mails, no wild birds. no wild flowers, no
woods, no groves; but only green mead-
ows crossed by the canals, trim little
villages and busy cities, sand-wastes
and the dykes. beyond which is the sea,
ready to break in if yard of the en-
bankment should give way (which, how
ever. the Inhabitants take care shall
never happen.
The Hollanders are the neatest peO-
pie in the world; and that brings me to
what ] set out to tell you about There
is a little town, or village, in that coun-
try, few miles from Amsterdam, called
Brock, pronounced brook, Brock in
WateT-land. "
1t has been famous, nobody can tell
how long, for its cleanliness; and not
only that, but for the fanciful style of
the houses and yards and gardens and
streets. The people, though only
peasants, are ali rich, and al feel
pride in their town; It seems to be the
great business of their lives to keep
their houses freshly painted, their gar
dens in perfect order, and their yards
and streets as clean al a parlor
No carts are allowed in the streets
and no cattle. Though the raising of
stock and making butter and cheese is
their occupation, a stranger would
never imagine that there were any cat
tie in the region, unless he went to the
beautiful green meadows back of the
houses, or the stables out there whore
the COWS are kept in stalls scrubbed and
washed like kitchen.
The streets are too fine and nice for
the feet of animals to step on; all paved
with polished stones, intermingled with
bricks of different colors, and kept SO
scrupulOusly clean that lady could
walk anywhere i'm white satin slippers.
Every house has a little yard in front,
but no shrubs, or vines, or iiowersin It,
or even tuft of grass. They are all
carefully paved with colored stones in
the figures of animals, or birds, or trees,
or tulips, or something in designs which
make one think of some of the mon
strosities one sometimes sees in hearth
rugs, such rs scarlet bears, green
horses, blue trees and the like.
The houses are painted i'm the bright
est colors, just as the owner fancies; in
vermilOn, pea-green, pink, purple.
orange, or anything else that is gay and
gorgeous and queer; and the roofs arc
covered with tiles vanished till they
shine like new silver
Every day the stones i'm the yard arc
washed and polished, and slippers are
placed at the door so that any one GO
ing in, stranger or dweller there, must
take off his boots or shoes before setting
foot in the house. Inside, everything
is as clean as constant scrubbing and
rinsing and painting and vanishing
and rubbing aud polishing can make it,
The floors, of black and yellow marble
inlaid, are kept slippery as glass from
so much friction; all the woodwork
glistens, and everything that is made of
metal is dazzling as FURNISHED brass.
There is nothing in all the world like IT.
There are large gardens between the
houses, where there are trinity laid-Out
beds of such choice flowers rs tulips
and hyacinths and the rarest of bulbs;
and all about are set up images rs gro
tesque as heather idols; and these are
| in keeping with the strangeness of ev-
erything else.
The people have but little to do with
the rest of the world, but TO stay at
home and paint and varnish and scrub
and keep clean. Bat they treat every
body well who goes there, and certainly
if there is one queer village that is bet
ter worth visiting than any other, it
must be Brock -HoutHS CompaRioH