The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1901-10-14

water against the North Sea. Here ia
A. d. 1922 the sand barrier was abruptly
broken, and the waters NJ the German
Ocean. Overlooking the iowlands between
Friesland and the peninsula Of North
Holland, united with the small inner
lake then existing under the name OF
Flevo, and formed the Zuider Zee. Not
q few towns, which had zen nourishing
centres Of trade and industry In Roman
times and in the Middle Ages, have re-
NAMED engulfed since this nsndation.
Their stories are related by HAVARp
in his Dead Cities Of the Zuider Zee,
md the remembrance of them suggested
to a Danish poet the well-known lines.
"whsv the ss Is smiling 80 peacefully
Their Stood a CITY In days gone By.
but the sresp ca h opened 10 make a grave
And the city slumhefs tsnsHth ne wave
whsfr NE and beauty duelt hong aso
The uosy rushss and sea wceds efow
Tho msn that d~,ii there 10 days oi yorc
Now hear not. See not. they arr no morc.
But 60 q, cleaning tn the ccan SIDE
Aud hesrssn. t,afE,n - re lisTiuE ude.
And a i.ini. sweet music viii SCAT 10 thee
IA. church beus chiirinr benes,h Tho ses
From the southwest angle Of the Iuider
Zee. thus suddenly created by the most
terrible catastrophe that has befnllcn
any European country In historic times,
a long narrow arm or inlet, called the
"Y." used Ia run nearly due west through
the peninsula 1T Holland II gave access
to Amsterdam, until. after he middle
Of the last century. the increarcd draught
Of merchant vessels rendered nm inn
provement Of the channel necessary
Then II came Ia pass that a strong sea
dyke and locks were constructed 10 cut
of the Zuider Dee from the through
winch inlet "A broad and deep ship canal
was made for the purpose OF connecting
Amsterdam with the North g On
both sides Of tho canal the ~ was
| drained and converted into some twelve
thousand acres 81 rich land. The new
waterway was formally opened in ls7a.
subsequently. the reclamation Of still
larger sections of the Xulder H." began
To b. advocated. and a State Commis
sion. which investigated the subject
| IN lNts#tta Itf'AlilAA'f'Ha ~
10 recover from the sea an area of 4JO,po
acres, at an estimated cost. including
CONDENSATION to fishermen, Of tl5J, =
epa1. The report of this commission
was noticed at the time by THF SCN.
Now a partial realization Of the project
seems not far distant 4 bill for the
drainage OF sections ~ the Iuider Iec
has been introduced IN the Second
Chamber Of the States-General 10y Mr..
LEY. Minister for the WaterStaA'
with a memorandum giving all the
details Of the proposal The interesting
document. having been forwarded 10
Lord IANsDOwNE, has been published
bv the British Foreign Onice The
authors of the scheme propose IN the
fr, place 10 enclose the Iuider Zee
by n dam extending across its mout@
from Wieringen in Holland to Piaam
in Friesland. The dam, OF course.
will have sluioes into the North Sea,
and. as a glance at the map will show,
| the chain Of islands before MENTIONED.
| from Texel TO Schiermonnlkoog. will
constitute an outer breakwater The
next move ia the process of reclamation
will be tho creation Of two polders, or
areas reclaimed from the sea, by tho
construction of dykes and the pumping
out Of the water Nv steam pumps.
The fins, reclaimed area, comprising
nearly seventy thousand acres, will he
called the Wieringen, or North West Pol
der; the second. which may cover either
seventy-elght thousand or n hundred
and sixteen thousand acres, betwe n
Hoor and Marken. will be termed the
south West, or Hoorn Folder. The
remainder Of the Zuider Doe will remain
for the present. what Flevo used To he
more than Elk hundred years ago, n
frcsb-water lake. Should the experl-
ment prove profitable, however, the ~
claimed area may be ultimately Increased
by the formation Of two more poldcrs
on the northeast and southeast OF the
watery explnse. IL is computed that
the work contemplated by the present
scheme will cost nearly forty million
dollars. and will be completed in eighteen
year We add that the bill before the
Statcs-Generul recommends that the
money required for the partial drain
age Of the Zuider Zcc bc raised by loans.
the principal and interest Of which would
be paid on in sixty years by al annual
addition of some ssSo.0o to the national
budget.
II this colossal reclamation project
shall bc carried out. there will be literal
truth ia the assertion that the Dutch
have rctakcn Holland.