The pioneer express. [volume] (Pembina, Dakota [N.D.]) 1883-1928, 1907-06-28
vided with a bowl of ammoniated wa.
for and n niece nf chamniS skin

ter and q piece of chamOis skin.
Having started at the farther end of
the entry or hall. she Is proceeding
backward, pulling her bowl after her
and scrubbing the floor. Arrived a;
the door. she scrubs the threshold and
continues to recede across the side
walk. scrubbing all the way, and If q
passer happens to step on her clean
section she never rises, but waits pa
fully scrubs out the faint mark of his
feet. And when at last the sidewalk
is as clean as bread board she re-
moves her wooden shoes and returns
to the house in her stocking feet.
1t adds to the picturesqueness the
first time you encounter 1t to see the
bank of canal lined with servant
girls shaking and beating rugs ana
carpets and curtains Of all descrip-
tons, but when you have stayed long
enough in city to recognize the pat
terms of the various circles and realize
that at least once every week every
such thing is taken up or taken down
and carried outdoors for such clean
ing as the New England housewife
does only in the spring and fall you
come to feel a vicariOuS fatigue and
wonder if it is all worth the trouble.
lam aware that ought not to speak
Of it in this way. Rather should lay
stress OH the comfort Of knowing that
the washbowls in your hotel are
cleaned with hot water and thoroughly
wiped every morning.
The servants lie in wait to see us go
forth for walk that they may get
into our rooms and put them in perfect
order. One old man attached to the
hotel apparently has nothing to do but
fetch water for the interminable clean
ing from the city pump in the middle
of the Nryburg.
There is no canal adjacent to any
side of this square, and so the weekly
housekeeping takes place in the great
open space. which becomes alive With
energetic servants and waving fabrics
from an antimacaSSar to an eight yard
square Of brussels, and every minute
Of the day the pump is in requiston.
people often standing in line to wait
their turn until the visitor, forgetful
for the moment. becomes alarmed at
the eXtravagant waste of water.
Then she remembers that water is
the most plentiful commodity in Hol-
land, more abundant even than the
land. The Dutclman, however, so far
as can observe, never uses water to
quench his thirst.
He does have various kinds of sweet
ened or aerated waters for the table,
but plain water is good enough for the
several kinds of washing to which he
devotes himself; hence frequent diff
iculty in the dining room.
We do not care for wine or beer at
our meals, which is in itself deep
mystery and probably a disappoint-
ment also to the hotel people, but they
never dream of putting on carafe OF
water and glasses. When we call for
water they bring one of those bottles
Of aerated or sweetened beverage. Then
come linguistic experiments.
nounced almost as in English, but as
our knowledge Of Dutch Is limited t.
the words that are the same as or sim
liar to English words, we have to resor;
to French and German to make our
special wants understood. We demand
In French water for to drink, is 1t not
And l unblushingly raise my closed
fist to my lips and make a weird lap.
ping and sucking noise that never fails
to disconcert the waiter; also it never
fails to bring return of the aerated
bottle.
Then we demand in lucid German
of which Dutch is an offshoot and
sometimes therefore comprehensive tc
a Dutchman. water, even so the same
water the hands to wash in already
whereupon the waiter always sees 8
great light and triumphantly brings u,
finger bowls. -,