Mexico weekly ledger., 1902-08-07
In a Country Beneath the Ocean.
" wALIan wnlIAns ~ oOLUEsIA nrnAln.
BUT FIRST soME WORDS ooNcRRNlNs
BELGIUM.

But FIRST soME WORDS CONCERNING
BELGIUM.
Belgium Is among the worlds small
est nations Yet eyeh as the smallest
American state long had two capitals
50 this tiny kingdom, one-sixth as
large as Missouri. has two entirely
distinct races Of people. The Flemish
are here and have for neighbors the
dying and dissimilar Walloons Neither
the Flemish MOI the walloon tongue
is spoken most largely hut instead a
foreign language, the French, is
generally used. The friends OF the
Flemish in their effort to return their
language to use have caused Il 10 be
adopted asone OF the Official languages,
French being the other. The names
OF streets are in both French and
Flemish. Il is dificult for any nation
to endure where all its people do not
speak the same tongue. The United
States sows seeds OF discord when
Little Germany, or Little Italy OF
Little Anyother country is permitted
TO exist within its borders.
Though Missouri would equal in size
six Belgiums the population OF the
European kingdom is twice that OF
Missouri. When the Imperial State
becomes as populous there will be half
as many people in Missouri as there
are now in the United States Of
America and the Empire Of the
Philippine Islands. One can scarcely
walk around in some sections Of
Belgium without stepping on folks.
We ran into a policeman turning q
street corner at Brussels. Such a.
thing would not occur in St. Louis.
Brussels Is two towns One is perch
on a hill and contains the courthouse,
the most stupendous architectural
work of the last century. 1t is ap-
preciable larger than St. Peters at
Rome. We have no doubt that one
side Of it must lap over the border of
little Belgium into France. Within
range Of a cannon ball from Brussels
is the battlefield OF Waterloo. One
may see it from the tail cathedral
tower-the field where a few drops Of
water, according to Victor Hugo, lost
the conflict to the Little Corsican,
Napoleon Bonaparte. II looks no
different from any other field save
where a British lion carved in stone
marks the place where the Iron Duke,
Wellington, stood. Brussels retains
some Of the buildings OF medieval
days. The Town-Hall, the guild
houses and the city market are the
more interesting. The Oldest citizen
OF Brussels is the Mannikin fountain,
a curiously-wrought but somewhatim-
modest bronze figure which like the
Column Yendome at Paris, shows the
city's political changes. When Louis
XIV took the city in l774 the mannikin
wore the white cockade, in 1859 he was
decked in the colors OF the Brabant
revolution, under the French regime
he adopted the tri-color, next the
Orange coloFs and then the colors OF
the revolution Of 1881. Louis XIV,
indeed, Is said 10 have invested the
small chap with the Cross Of ST. Louis.
Speaking OF immodest figures sug-
gests that there is a Van Eyck paint
ing Of Adam and Eve in the Brussels
art gallery which was originally
intended for a church but which the
church authorities rejected on account
Of It's lack Of modesty. So far as we
have 9 it occuies a position In this
regard entirely unique.
There are four important cities in
Belgium In which the outside world is
concerned; Brussels Antwerp. Brnees
and Ghent- Brussels has beauty,
Antwerp money, Bruges pretty girls
and Client . history to stir ones
blood. Another Belgium town,
Molines, is celebrated because its
citizens seeing the full moon shining
through the cathedral tower mistook
it for a conflagration and undertook
TO extinguIsh it by fire engines.
Antwerp has, besides the wealth
which its great and growing commerce
brings to it two pictures by Rubens,
which are deservedly famous. THE
Elevation Of the Cross" and 1.-THE
Descent from the Cross are the chief
glories Of the fine Antwerp cathedral.
Here also is the Plantin- M0retus
museum OF printing, the home and
publishing-house Of a patrician-printer
Of the Sixteenth century preserved in
tact. Antwerp is not merely great
commercially but 1t is one Of the
strongest fortresses in Europe. The
army Of Belgium could retire here and
sustain unsuccorded asiege Of months.
From Belgium, under King Leo
Pold's sway, we cross the line at
Rosendaal into Holland, where the
good Queen Wilhelmina, whose
married life is an unhappy one, bears
rule.
Holland Is the scrubbiest country
in the world. There is constant
spring cleaning In progress. The
Dutch have an Observation-Disclosures
aversion to dirt. The homes and
streets are s~crupulously clean. The
entire nation takes a bath each day
which is more than can be said Of any
other country. The faces OF the peo-
pie shine like their cheese and are
equally chubby.
The elevation or lack Of elevation OF
Holland Is curious Other nations
have hills and mountains. Holland
has only , lefel plain nearly all Of
which is from Il TO Is feet below the
sea. Where other countries have
roads Holland has canals and wherel
other countries have fences Holland
has more canals though smaller ones.
Many Of these canals are higher than
The surrounding land from which they
are separated By earth embankmentG 4.
canal boats may be seen traverslng I,
ihese waterways and from the deck
the canal boat the passenger looks
iown upon the two-story house bel !,
ow. {
Other European countries train Z
,heir youth 70 fight men. Holland ;
rains It's youth 10 aght water. There 9
re schools Of military science In oth-