Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1903-02-07

you from New ork TO san FRANCISCO anu
almost back to Chicago before you got to
the end of them. There are in all about
two thousand miles of canals-enough to
reach from New York to Denver-and also
three thousand miles of other waterways,
including little rivers and the mouths of the
Scheldt and Rhine. and also the Zuyder Zee
and other places where the northern ocean
runs into the land.
A Cabinet Minister of Waterways.
Indeed, there is so much water here that
one of the most important duties Of the
government Is the taking care of it. The
government has a department known as
The Waterstaat, and the queen has in her
cabinet minister Of waterways. This
department has some of the best Of civil
engineers. 1t has men who devote them
selves to studying how to keep the North
sea from rushing in and drowning out the
country, for almost one-half of Holland is
below the level of the ocean, so that in
some places the fishes outside swim high
above the matched house roofs. 1t has men
who are engaged in planning and building
ship canals, such as the mighty waterways
which connect Amsterdam with the ocean,
and 1t has others who are scheming how to
build great dyke across the Zuyder Zee
to redeem as much land as a good-sized
Texas county, which, when redeemed, will
be worth hundreds of dollars an acre
This undertaking is for a time in abey
ance, but there is no doubt that 1t will
eventually be carried out. The Dutch have
done much of such reclamation in the past.
About fifty years ago they lifted
billion tons of water out of the region near
HARLEM, and made seventy square miles
of good farming land. 1t cost them more
than million and a half of dollars, but the
land was worth 1t. In another place they
have redeemed Al 600 acres at a cost OF
about four million dollars, and as soon as
the work was done a foreign syndicate Of
fered them 600 for the property as
whole. The government refused this Of
fer, and eventually got several hundred
thousand dollars more than it cost it to
make the Improvement.
As to the Zuyder Zee scheme, this is a
bigger one than any that has yet been un-
dertaken. 1t is estimated that IL will cost
over S75. 600 600 but it will result in the
reclamation of a vast tract of land The
work will take thirty-three years. and the
taxes on the land recovered will then bring
In S4 OO0O year to the government
making the matter good long time invest
ment At present the government is afraid
of It, and although all the plans have been
completed no work has been actually done.
In the Islands of iceland.
Have you ever heard of iceland? 1t is
the southeastern province of Holland, con-
sisting of nine islands lying in the mouths
OF the Scheldt and the Mas formed by the
silt brought down by these rivers. The
most Of the province is below sea level, be-
ing protected against the ocean by mighty
dykes. 1t was through this province that
] came from Antwerp to Rotterdam on the
little steamboat Telegraf III.
AS l rode down the Scheldt I passed the
Kroonland of our own American line NOV
ing up with a cargo from New York
for Antwerp, and q little later on
came in sight of the dykes. Near the Dutch
boundary the river is walled with stone held
between piles. We rode high above the rest
OF the country. and could see the roofs of
the barns and houses even with the top Of