Omaha daily bee., 1909-11-21
HOLLAND FIXED FOR TOURIST?
American Girl Explorers Study Re-
cent Vexed Question.
PORTERs HAVE LITERATURE
Il Holland muir or Merely Product
of an industrious Tourist AGENT
search for Quaint at Mar
ken and VOIendam.

The question whether or not Holland
is framed up" for the American tourist
is one as to which there Is really no middle
ground. One must either stand firmly by
his conviction that Holland is absolutely
genuine or else battle valiantly for his be-
lief that the Holland the traveller sees is
a product Of the industrious tourist agent,
who, seeing the success Of his business
jeoparded by the steady disappearance Of
the quaint old Holland" dear to the
traveller, has made systematic and it must
be admitted skilful efforts to preserve
such parts Of it as most conveniently serve
his purpose of personal character.
Two American girls undertook a Eu-
ropean trip last summer with the intention
Of settling the vexed question once and
forever. They had spent soul wearing
evenings while their more travelled friends
waxed bitter over the discussion and they
had been bored to polite tears while the
adherents of the two schools poured their
arguments into the indifferent ears. They
found their topic Of conversation so seri-
ously curtailed that the cost of a trip to
Europe to decide the matter seemed a
cheap price to pay for the restoration Of
their social prestige.
Their approach to Holland was from the
south. The landscape interested them, but
did not divert them from their purpose.
Although they had never seen a flat green
country guarded by dykes M dotted with
windmills. they at least knew that they
were going to see one.
Dog Carts Old story.
At Dordrecht and at Delft the canals
interested them because they we're Dutch
canals, though for beauty and charm they
did not compare with those left behind at
Bruges, where the trees on the banks often
met overhead and vines and flowers
reached to the water itself and spread a
mat OF blossoms over its sluggish surface.
They refused to be excited by dogs draw
ing low carts with shining brass milk cans
they had too many post card pictures of
such things to be stirred by the actuality-
and they refused to be excited by the gem
eral shininess Of windows, door knobs and
door steps. They admitted, however. that
only in Holland would one be apt to see
the sidewalk in front of each house care
fully rallied in to prevent It being soiled
by the feet Of passersby. Blu these things,
canals and cleanliness, were not what they
had come to Holland for.
They were admitted by every traveller,
The field of controversy still lay before
them. They did their duty by Rotterdam,
by the pictures and the funny little palaces
Of The Hague, and by the galleries Of
Amsterdam.
Once in Amsterdam the real. bone of con-
tention was so near at hand that not even
the galleries could hold them long. For
Volendam and the island Of Marken were
but a few hours distant, and the answer
to the question that had bothered them for
years only awaited the departure OF the
boat next morning.
POrters, Publicity Agents.
Even before they left the hotel they
began taking evidence. They noted with
what zeal the porter urged the tickets on
them and how well supplied he was with
literature, printed in every known language
apparently, setting forth the points Of the
trip.
On the drive to the boat they observ sd
the large number of places that offered the
tickets for sale, and as they neared the
water they saw M less than a dozen ex-
cursion steamers OF various sizes starting
at various hours, managed by various COM
panies, but each announcing with a large
English sign that it supplied the very best
'AA NUS jan eNbA way " NAAN
quaint and characteristic" Volendam and
Marken.
1T certainly seems as though It were a
profitable business" remarked the older
sister Judicially as they Joined the crowd
pushing on to their particular boat and
looked about for seats.
There, 1 knew you would be preJudiced
at the first" replied the younger sister,
whose enthusiasms were rarely tempered
by circumstances. You must keep an
open mind and not reach a decision until
all the evidence is in"
The boat was crowed chiefly with
Americans, with Just enough Germans,
French and English to add gayety to the
occasion. AS the boat made several stops
before It reached Marker, and as the
American girls felt no stern sense OF duty
until they arrived there. they were able
to enjoy their fellow travellers.
The Girl From Missouri.
Their first acquaintance was an American
girl who added to her statement that she
was from Missouri. you may think that's
a joke, but it Amt" She told them in