The St. Louis Republic., 1903-01-11

Hsp.cauI Correspondent. of T7s Sunday Republic.
Brussels. Dec 2I-The streets of Brussels
arc torn UP by the American invasion.
In front Of the Stock Exchange a GROVE
Of lue-gowped. bIack-capped. clogshod
workmen are digging out the old horse rail
road and putting in American under
Eround trolley.
The road is roped of. and the brokers have
10 walk a half square out Of their way tC
enter the Bourse.
At night lighted lanterns mark the con
fines Of the work. and all day the SOUND
OF the pick and the hammer is heard
The work is under the charge of the
Americans. although they are not directly
on the ground.
The machinery IL being put in by the
General Electric Company OF New York
which has invaded many parts of Europe
and is doing a big business here.
The Westinghouse Company is competing
with It.
1t has an Office in Brussels and its cleo
: +rfcal supplies are found In all parts OF
>Ahe country.
: There is a good opening here for cleo
trical machinery.
Many Of tho cities have nc trarnways,
and good-sized towns have no electric lights.
Belgium Is cut UP by canals. now oper-
eted by horse power. and at this writing
horses are used to haul many of the cars
of Brussels itself.
They drag the cars. not only along the
tracks. but the cobbles, pulling cars
weighing two tons. and. in addition, thirty
passengers. over the rough stones.
Our horses could not do it. but these big
Brabant steeds are very elephants in har-
ness. and they haul with ease loads that
would stall the American Percheron.
brussels Is fast adopting rapid transit.
The electric work is being well done. and
when completed the roads will he man
aged on military principles
The street car conductor here ia as ror-
Eeous as a German Lieutenant
He has uniform with brass buttons, his
cap is covered with gold embroidery and
he keeps himself as bright AS though he
came out of a bsndboX
Every conductor has n whistle or n horn
bag Tor his money and receipt slips for
1 fares.
lie carries little metal tube with n
sponge in it upon which he vets his fingers
in tearing off the slips.
FIRST-CLASS SEATS
COST ONLY THREE CBNTS.
The car fares low ranging from .
cents upward. according to class and dis
tance.
ON some cars tho frst-class seat, cost
cents. and the second-class 9 cents the
seats being exactly the same except that
the second are behind the first
Tho thrifty Belgians patronize the cheaper
seats so that there is usually plenty of
room in the Scent quarter
BRUSSELS Is the capital of Belgium COM
mercially and politically.
The merchants from all parts of the cou,,
try come here To buy. and by a look ;.t tbe
stores IL Is easy to see that the trade is
enormous.
All sorts of notions are sold
Our patent medicines are dispiaved in the
drug stores. and our porous plsstorS arc
, advertised on the walls
Nedaks'and American typcwriters are we'll
represented. rs are all sorts of American
farm tools.
Brussels is more than a thousand wears
old. and in the Middle Ages il was already
doing AN enormous business
one OF the oldest parts OF the taUu is
the market place, containing the CIV H,u
one of the finest buildings of medieval
Europe.
RL2ht next this old building are stores of
American hardware. stacks Of lawn mowers
frum Philadelphia. hay forks from Column
bus. O, and Grindstones from Berea.
Nearly every Brussels business house
kecps, its accounts with American cash reg
listers made at Dayton. and the most of the
taiiors use American sewing machines
one OF the brightest business Americans
have met ON the Continent is Mr.. H. g de
,'!erq. who represents the King spring Com
,lany of Bufaln and a number of other
American institutions.
lie is one of the largest Of the Belgian
importers. and Is making a big thing in sell
ir,: American ponda
lie has three buildings in Brussels devoted
to .Lis stores, Workshops and supplies. and