St. Landry clarion. (Opelousas, La.) 1890-1921, 1919-08-02
Belgium Seeks to Recover
Land of Limburger Cheese
Province Famous for the Siege O
Maastricht, It Principal City, and
for the Smelling Dairy Product

Washington, D. G., July 3d.
Dutch" Limburg. that part of ancient
Limburg which Belgium seeks to have
Holland restore because it will en-
able her to fortffy her frontier more
strongly, is described in the follow
ing bulletin from the Washington
Geographic Society:
That portion Of Limburg 0 ruled
by Holland lies east of the Mouse, is
smaller than Rhode Island in area,
and has a population slightly less
than that of eDtrioit, Michigan. Linn
burgess cheese is famous, though its
significant history is almost forgotten
It's name, applying to a considerable
e dates back TO the eleventh CEN
fury and was derived from a CASTLE
built along the Vesdre river, on the
site of the present town Of LimbuFg.
For two centuries thereafter the
history of Limburg was n OF ted1-
Gus disputes until it suddenly illumf-
mated by the exploits of John of Bra
bant, whose brilliant battles against
superior forces resulted in the union
of Limburg and Barbant. Thus Linn
burg became the beneficiary of that
Magma Charta of the continent, known
as the Joyous Entry granted by
John III, Duke of Bragant. The do
cument established a miniature leag-
ue of nations among the federal states
pledging the rulers of Barbant to re-
spect a territorial integrity, and to a
referendum of taxes wars and treaties
to their subjects.
For a time Llm0urg was annexed to
France; portions of it then fell to
Luxembourg and thus passed into the
German confederation. That section
of the original Limburg now IN con-
trooversy was incorporated in Hol-
land by tie London conference at the
close Of our Civil War. After the
Belgian revolution, nearly thirty years
EARLIER, its chief city and present cap
ital, Maastricht, adhered to Holland.
The rest of Limburg including the
area which now is a province of Bel
GUM, SEM its legislators to the Brus-
sells assembly throughout the pc
Rod of nearly a decade when Holland
refused to recognize the independence
of Belgium.
Masstricht's most CONSPICUOUS *
plot was its four months resistance
of the siege of the terrible Duke of
Parma. With a small garrison as a
nucleus, citizens and peasants. from
the vicinity resisted a veteran army
of about equal numbers. Parma had
miners tunnel under the walls. A
woman's regiment from the city scald-
ed hundreds to death with showers
of boiling water. Meanwhile men EN-
ployed bellows from church organs
to blow burning brush into the sub
LTcuCAcS- 4nCn lAS W.
men, nicknamed mine m~istresses,
hurled blazing torches Of pitch upon
the enemy at the city's gates.
When, after a terriffice siege. the
defense crumb1ed the citizens threw
up inner Notifications. They held out
until, as they slept from exhaustion
one night a concerted attack by over
wheIming numbers, invaded their last
stronghold. Red hot sand and boil
ing water deluged them from their
W roof tops. Even the aged wo-
man and the children were ~butchered.
About 5000 persisted, and the city was
plundered.
Concerning the cheese that made
Limburg famous, William Wisner
Chaplin says:
"Limburg is sometimes called the
Garden of Holland. OF the celebrated
relish known as Limburg cheese 1t
has long been a query how an arti-
Gle of food made from delicious mater
and considered such a delicaey can
possess to obnoxious an odor and still
retain it self respect. This peculi-
arity has made Lfmburg cheese re-
sponsible for many amusing incidents.
"a Dutch-American rural citizen
once went to town t make some pur-
chases, among which was some of
this oderiferous commodity. For con-
venience he. placed it in a long box
In the wagon. behind the seat. Happen
ing to stop on the road. an inquisitive
acquaintance approached and asked
what the box contained.
In answer he raised the lid and
replied. Il have may grandmother"
Well" rejoined the inquirer, as he
caught a whiff of the contents, She's
not in a trance"