Wheeling Sunday register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1882-1934, 1886-10-31

At Brussels YOU have Waterloo to remind
Won Of the great hattie which, had It turned
ont otherwise, might have given BonaparS
the Sacking OF London, and in the palace OF
Hollands NJ Amsterdam, there is n magnificent
receprion room. the ceiling OF which Is 100
feet hi-h: on the walls Of his are groups IN
marble, and ono Of theS2 groups contained a
skeleton. When Napoleon B~onapartc took
the palace he covered this skeleton with a
sheet Of stucco, and 50 it remains to-day.
Napoleon hal u curious excuse for the cap
turing Of Holland. lie >aid France owned
the Rhine and other rivers which flow into
the north sea, that Holland was made from
the aliuvial deposits of these rivers, and that
in capturing it he was merely taking back the
ground that belonged 70 France originally.
These Dutch cities ere wonderful works OF
human industry. Rotterdam and AnSter-
dam ere Cut up by canals, rs New York and
Philadelphia are by streets These canals
are walled with store and their banks care
fully paved. Good bridges cross them, and
in many places the queerly shaped, high
Dutch houses rise straight up from tho water
like those of Venice. The Dutch cities are
more picturesque than Venice, AMI their CON
struction is fully rs wonderful They are
built upon piles, and this building Is even
now going ON. | saw much pile driving IN
Amsterdam. Great trees Il and - feet long
were stood on end, and by a driving machine
were forced inch by inch into the mud until
they reached the level Of the ground The
bridges are all built in this way, and the pal
ace Of the king at Amsterdam rests on a
foundation of nearly li,OCO piles. There are
90 Islands and 500 bridges in Amsterdam, and
the CITY seems 10 have rs firm a foundation
as that Of New York. The piles hold 10
buildings as big as those of Broadway. The
extent of this sort Of building in Holland An
hardly be appreciated, and the cost Of INT
ing the foundation Of a great house is often
as great as the putting up Of the house itself.
These Dutch cities spend thousands Of dollars
daily in watching and taking care Of their
building and public works. Worms ometin q
eat into the plies, and q slight break might
cause the loss Of much property. Eternal vigil
lance is the price which the Dutch have topay
for Holland. Their great dykes cost them
over 100000 a year TO keep in order, and
the sea is watched night and day. Through
out the country and the city the same con-
slant watchlulneSs IS kept up. Everything IS
kept clean and well cared for. Nothing, as
far as / can see, is wanted, and dirt seems to
be the whole nations greatest enemy.
Saturday is Scrubbing day in the Dutch
cities, and on this day the towns 60 mad over
soap and water. Carpets ere shaken in the
streets by women 50 that the noise sounds Like
that OF so many fourth Of July cannon, the
doorsteps are secured and the windows
washed until they shine like crystal note
especially the cleanliness Of the gas street
lamp here, and that Of the windows Of the
various houses. Not g spot is to be seen
upon them, and were it not for a sort Of q
movable screen which is put inside Of the
window to keep out the eyes Of the paSser by,
one might see al that was going on inside as
easily as il there were no windows whatever.
Speaking Of windows, these Dutch like to
see, though they do not sometimes care about
being seen. They like to watch unobserved
the people who go along the streets upon
which they live, and see who knocks at their
front doors before they decide TO let the per,
son in or not For this purpose they have
little mirrors, some not larger than a cabinet
photograph and others about eight by ten
inches in size fastened to the wall outside Of
the windows at such an angle as TO reflect al
that IS going on in the street One of. these
mirrors is fixed at each side Of the window at