The Birkenhead News and Wirral General Advertiser. — 1908-02-15 (Birkenhead, Merseyside, England)

BRASSEY-STREET GUILD  On Thursday evening last Brassey-street Guild members and their friends Listened to an illustrated lecture on Holland by Mr. F. Clibborne. . .  The lecturer pointed out that the views were the work of his fellow traveller and townsman, Me. 0. E. Thompson. He stated he Was not dealing with the country historically, but with the country and people as found to-day. Mr. Augustus Hare in his book on Holland mid he found the inhabitants to be greedy, avaricious, dirty and uneourteous, but Mr. Clibborne thought be must have been unfortunate, as quite the contrary had been their experienoe. Rotterdam, which was reached after 21 hoare of morrow on the sea teem Grimsby, has its docks, situated in 'the middle of a bright and neat park. It is a commercial city like Liverpool, and mostly a place of arrival and departure. Delft was reached by a delightfully narrow canal. 'llee high gaunt windmills are a prominent feature of this place. /lel* the women wear charming cape of lace, gold, or silver, and tbs children wear sabots. Delft of to-day is very much the Delft of William the Silent days. The houses are nearly all surrounded by water. Amsterdam, sometimes called the "Venice of the North," was afterwards reached. This town boasts a very handsome railway station, and the oldest part of it is quite Venicelike. There are 40,000 Jews in Amsterdam, who are poor, and dwell in a very tumbled-down and dirty quarter. A great many of them are employed in the diamond mills. Holland is the land of windmills, and Zaandam is noted for 400 of them, and here were counted 23 of them, without turning their heads at all. The peculiarity of these mills is they go the wrong way round. The next town visited was Haarlem, and although the other places visited were remarkable for their cleanliness, this was cleaner and cleaner still. This town boasta a 'Very old large organ, once one of the wonders of the world. The travellers afterwards visited "the dead cities of the Zuyder Zee," many delightful views of which were thrown on the screen. The name of the place at the mouth of the canal leading to the sea is spelt Tmuiden, the pronunciation of which the lecturer facetiously remarked he would leave to the audience. Other places visited were Hoorn*, the bore, of the navigator who discovered the Cape Horn pa/tease, the Hague, a eharMing lively little city, aed Dortrecht, the real Venice of the North. As to the Dutch, they found them sturdy, strong, healthy, and nice and clean and courteous, passionately fond of dowers, even the barges and ocean-going steamers display their eallostion of them. Nearly all spoke English, even to the children, who said they learnt it at evening schools. All the boys smoke cigar., as if from babyhood, and, added the speaker, the boye who would follow them in large numbers were the , greatest objection in the land, the clatter of their 'sabots sounding like the advance of an invading army. The people are intensely devoted to the Orange family. A Dutchman would sooner think of doing a 'murder than killing a stork, which x.re attended to a 8 if they children. The Roman Catholic re • 'on is making headway in Holland, the Natant being dormeat. Mr. Clibborne added much to the , lecture by hie quaintt humour. Mr. T. Dillon manipulated the lantern. A hearty vote of thanks to the lecturer concluded the evening.  One day a miorobe found a nest In broad. expansive full-grown chest; He chuckled and laughed aloud wits glee, "A happy home I've found." said he. "Hal Hot Mr. Microbe. no so fist, Your easy lodging will not Met. Your swift eviction I'll ensure With :Woods' Great Peppermint Cum"