diff options
| author | Roger Frank <rfrank@pglaf.org> | 2025-10-15 05:03:16 -0700 |
|---|---|---|
| committer | Roger Frank <rfrank@pglaf.org> | 2025-10-15 05:03:16 -0700 |
| commit | fb999d595506f1294b2eb72299f0a7ddfde035d9 (patch) | |
| tree | be6fabdd73e04cbc0fdc3080d5df4bc02e7394e8 | |
| -rw-r--r-- | .gitattributes | 3 | ||||
| -rw-r--r-- | 19692-8.txt | 3074 | ||||
| -rw-r--r-- | 19692-8.zip | bin | 0 -> 54922 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 19692-h.zip | bin | 0 -> 1734958 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 19692-h/19692-h.htm | 3327 | ||||
| -rw-r--r-- | 19692-h/images/image_001.jpg | bin | 0 -> 40120 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 19692-h/images/image_002.jpg | bin | 0 -> 58817 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 19692-h/images/image_003.jpg | bin | 0 -> 35162 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 19692-h/images/image_003_1.jpg | bin | 0 -> 74817 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 19692-h/images/image_004.jpg | bin | 0 -> 70347 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 19692-h/images/image_010.jpg | bin | 0 -> 57138 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 19692-h/images/image_010_1.jpg | bin | 0 -> 86143 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 19692-h/images/image_012.jpg | bin | 0 -> 39424 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 19692-h/images/image_012_1.jpg | bin | 0 -> 66816 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 19692-h/images/image_022.jpg | bin | 0 -> 30105 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 19692-h/images/image_022_1.jpg | bin | 0 -> 80890 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 19692-h/images/image_033.jpg | bin | 0 -> 42253 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 19692-h/images/image_033_1.jpg | bin | 0 -> 69863 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 19692-h/images/image_043.jpg | bin | 0 -> 42913 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 19692-h/images/image_043_1.jpg | bin | 0 -> 77029 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 19692-h/images/image_052.jpg | bin | 0 -> 39530 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 19692-h/images/image_052_1.jpg | bin | 0 -> 84078 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 19692-h/images/image_063.jpg | bin | 0 -> 37444 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 19692-h/images/image_063_1.jpg | bin | 0 -> 76014 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 19692-h/images/image_072.jpg | bin | 0 -> 34670 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 19692-h/images/image_072_1.jpg | bin | 0 -> 75256 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 19692-h/images/image_083.jpg | bin | 0 -> 51204 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 19692-h/images/image_083_1.jpg | bin | 0 -> 85255 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 19692-h/images/image_092.jpg | bin | 0 -> 47656 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 19692-h/images/image_092_1.jpg | bin | 0 -> 79378 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 19692-h/images/image_103.jpg | bin | 0 -> 43359 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 19692-h/images/image_103_1.jpg | bin | 0 -> 70577 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 19692-h/images/image_112.jpg | bin | 0 -> 46214 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 19692-h/images/image_112_1.jpg | bin | 0 -> 37294 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | 19692.txt | 3074 | ||||
| -rw-r--r-- | 19692.zip | bin | 0 -> 54862 bytes | |||
| -rw-r--r-- | LICENSE.txt | 11 | ||||
| -rw-r--r-- | README.md | 2 |
38 files changed, 9491 insertions, 0 deletions
diff --git a/.gitattributes b/.gitattributes new file mode 100644 index 0000000..6833f05 --- /dev/null +++ b/.gitattributes @@ -0,0 +1,3 @@ +* text=auto +*.txt text +*.md text diff --git a/19692-8.txt b/19692-8.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..c98a925 --- /dev/null +++ b/19692-8.txt @@ -0,0 +1,3074 @@ +Project Gutenberg's Peeps At Many Lands: Belgium, by George W. T. Omond + +This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with +almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or +re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included +with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org + + +Title: Peeps At Many Lands: Belgium + +Author: George W. T. Omond + +Illustrator: Amedee Forestier + +Release Date: November 1, 2006 [EBook #19692] + +Language: English + +Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1 + +*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK PEEPS AT MANY LANDS: BELGIUM *** + + + + +Produced by Bruce Albrecht, Sankar Viswanathan, and the +Online Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net + + + + + + + + + + [Illustration: A PEASANT WOMAN OF THE ARDENNES.] + + + PEEPS AT MANY LANDS + + BELGIUM + + + + + BY + GEORGE W. T. OMOND + + + ILLUSTRATED BY + AMÉDÉE FORESTIER + + + + LONDON + ADAM AND CHARLES BLACK + 1909 + + * * * * * + + + + +CONTENTS + + +CHAPTER + + I. THE SANDS OPPOSITE ENGLAND + II. INLAND: THE FLEMISH PLAIN + III. TRAVELLING IN BELGIUM + IV. SOME OF THE TOWNS: THE ARDENNES + V. BELGIAN CHILDREN: THE "PREMIÈRE COMMUNION" + VI. CHRISTMAS IN BELGIUM + VII. NEW YEAR'S DAY + VIII. PAGEANTS AND PROCESSIONS + IX. THE STORY OF ST. EVERMAIRE: A COUNTRY PAGEANT + X. THE CARNIVAL + XI. CHILDREN'S WINTER FESTIVALS + XII. THE ARCHERS: GAMES PLAYED IN BELGIUM + XIII. WHAT THE BELGIANS SPEAK + XIV. A SHORT HISTORY + XV. THE BELGIAN ARMY: THE CONGO + + * * * * * + + + + +LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS + +BY AMÉDÉE FORESTIER + + +A PEASANT WOMAN OF THE ARDENNES _frontispiece_ +THE DUNES +A SHRIMPER ON HORSEBACK, COXYDE +THE VEGETABLE MARKET, BRUGES +ANTWERP +THE HÔTEL DE VILLE, BRUSSELS +AT THE KERMESSE +A CHÂTEAU IN THE LESSE VALLEY +A FARMSTEADING +PLAYING "JEU DE BOULE" AT A FLEMISH INN +VILLAGE AND CANAL, ADINKERQUE +WATERLOO: THE FARM OF LA BELLE ALLIANCE AND THE + MOUND SURMOUNTED BY THE BELGIAN LION +A MILK-SELLER IN BRUGES _on the cover_ + +_Sketch-Map of Belgium._ + + * * * * * + +[Illustration: SKETCH-MAP OF BELGIUM.] + +[Illustration: THE DUNES.] + + * * * * * + + + + +BELGIUM + +CHAPTER I + +THE SANDS OPPOSITE ENGLAND + + +If you leave the mouth of the Thames, or the white chalk cliffs at +Dover, and sail over the water just where the English Channel meets +the North Sea, you will in about three or four hours see before you a +long expanse of yellow sand, and rising behind it a low ridge of +sandhills, which look in the distance like a range of baby mountains. +These sandhills are called "dunes." Here and there at intervals you +will see a number of little towns, each town standing by itself on the +shore, and separated from its neighbour by a row of dunes and a +stretch of sand. + +This is your first view of the little country called Belgium, which is +bounded on the east by Holland, and on the west by France. It is, from +end to end, about half the size of Ireland. + +There are no cliffs or rocks, no shingle or stones covered with +seaweed. There are no trees. It is all bare sand, with moss and rushes +on the higher ground above the beach. In winter the wind rages with +terrific violence along the coast. The sand is blown in all +directions, and the waves dash fiercely on the shore. It is cold and +stormy, with mist and dark clouds, and sometimes violent showers of +hail. But in summer all is changed. Often, week after week, the waves +roll gently in, and break in ripples on the beach. The sky is blue, +and the sands are warm. It is the best place in the world for digging +and building castles. There are very few shells to gather; but there +are no dangerous rocks or slippery places, and children can wade about +and play in perfect safety. So many families--Belgians, English, +Germans, and a few French--spend the summer holidays there. + +Hundreds of years ago the storms of winter used to drive the waves +ashore with such violence that the land was flooded, and whole +villages were sometimes swept away. So the people made ramparts of +earth to keep back the water, till by degrees many parts of the +Belgian shore were thus protected. They still continue to build +defences against the sea; but instead of earth they now use brick and +stone. It looks as if in a few years the whole coast will be lined by +these sea-fronts, which are called _digues de mer_. + +A _digue_, no matter how thick, which rests on the sand alone will not +last. A thick bed of green branches is first laid down as a +foundation. This is strengthened by posts driven through it into the +sand. Heavy timbers, resting on bundles of branches lashed together, +are wedged into the foundations, and slope inwards and upwards to +within a few feet of the height to which it is intended to carry the +_digue_. On the top another solid bed of branches is laid down, and +the whole is first covered with concrete, and then with bricks or +tiles, while the top of the _digue_, at the edge of the seaward slope, +is composed of heavy blocks of stone cemented together and bound by +iron rivets. + +The finest and longest _digue_ is that which extends from Ostend for +about nine miles. It is a good place for bicycle rides. No motor-cars +are allowed on it. + +Each of the little towns which you see dotted along the coast has a +_digue_ of its own, on which there is a row of villas and hotels +facing the sea. Among the dunes behind the _digue_ there are more +villas. These are generally very picturesque, with verandas, red-tiled +roofs, and brightly painted woodwork. + +All day long in summer the _digue_ of each town is crowded by people +walking about in the sunshine, or sitting watching the bathers and the +children playing on the sands. It is a very gay sight. There are +prizes for those who build the best castles, and it is curious to see +hundreds of little Belgian, English, French, and German flags flying +on these small forts, and to hear the children shouting to each other +in so many different languages. It makes one think of the Tower of +Babel. + +From six in the morning till six in the evening bathing-machines go to +and from the water, and often there seem to be as many people in the +sea as on the shore. There is a boat anchored a little way out, in +which two men in red shirts, with ropes and lifebelts, sit watching to +see that no one goes too far out, for the tide is often very strong. +Sometimes these men, who are called _sauveteurs_, stand on the sand, +and if they think anyone is swimming too far they blow a trumpet to +call the swimmer back. + +In the evening, when it is dark and the lamps are lighted, there is +dancing on the _digue_ to the music of a barrel-organ. The Belgians +are very fond of this dancing, and often the English and other +visitors join in it too. + +All summer this holiday life goes on, with bathing, lawn-tennis, and +in some places golf, till at last the time comes for going home. The +hotels and villas close their doors. The windows are boarded up. The +bathing-machines are pulled away from the beach, and put in some +sheltered place among the dunes. The _digue_ is left in solitude, to +be covered with driven sand, and splashed with foam from the waves +which beat against it, till the season of summer gaiety comes round +again next year. + + + + +CHAPTER II + +INLAND: THE FLEMISH PLAIN + + +Let us now leave the shore, and go inland. + +If you climb to the top of some dune, you will see before you a wide +plain stretching out as far as the eye can reach. This part of Belgium +is called Flanders. It is all flat, with canals, and long, straight +roads, paved with stones, running across it. There are rows of tall +poplar-trees or willows, which are bent slightly towards the east, for +the wind blows oftenest from the west, small patches of woodland, +gardens, and many sluggish streams. The fields, which have no fences +or hedges round them, are large and well tilled, some bearing fine +crops of wheat, rye, or potatoes and turnips, while others are rich +pasture-lands for sheep and cattle. The whole of this Flemish Plain, +as it is called, is dotted with farm-houses and cottages. There are a +great many villages, and in the distance rise the roof-tops and the +towers and spires of famous old towns. + +Some of the villages are worth visiting. There is one called Coxyde, +which lies low among the sandhills, not far from the sea. The people +of this village live by fishing, but in a very curious way, for they +do it on horseback. They mount little horses, and ride out into the +sea with baskets, and nets fastened to long poles. It is funny to see +them riding about in the water, and catching fish and shrimps in this +strange fashion. + +There is another village, also only a short distance inland, where +there is a church in which a number of toy ships are hung up. These +are offerings made to an image of the Virgin Mary which stands there. +If a crew of Flemish fishermen have escaped from some dangerous storm, +they walk in silence to this church, and give thanks to the image, +which is called Our Lady of Lombaerdzyde. + +The farm-labourers in Flanders live very simply. Their food is chiefly +black bread, potatoes, and salted pork or fish. There are lots of boys +and girls who eat nothing all the year round but black bread and +potatoes, and who look on pork or fish as quite a treat. Sometimes +they spread lard on their slices of bread, and there are many who have +never tasted butter in their lives. Yet they appear to be very strong +and happy. They drink black coffee, or beer if their parents can +afford it. The food of the older people is much the same. + +Most of the people in the country districts of Flanders--men, women, +boys, and girls--work in the fields. In summer they rise at four or +five in the morning, and after eating a slice of bread go out into the +fields. At half-past eleven or twelve they dine on bread and potatoes, +with perhaps a slice of pork, and take a rest. Then they work again +till about four in the afternoon, when they rest again, and after that +they work on till it is dark. In the short days of winter they toil +from sunrise till sunset. By this means they earn enough to live on. A +boy or girl may get from 5d. to 7d. a day, a woman a little more, +while a married man generally receives 1s. 8d. or 2s. Some farmers pay +an unmarried labourer 10d. and his food. + +This seems a dull and hard life, but the Flemings do not find it so. +Like all Belgians, they are fond of amusement, and there is a great +deal of dancing and singing, especially on holidays. Sunday is the +chief holiday. They all go to church in the morning, and the rest of +the day is given up to play. Unfortunately many of the older people +drink too much. There are far too many public-houses. Any person who +likes can open one on payment of a small sum of money to the +Government. The result is that in many quite small villages, where +very few people live, there are ten or twelve public-houses, where a +large glass of beer is sold for less than a penny, and a glass of +coarse spirits for about the same price. Most of the drinking is done +on Sunday, and on Monday morning it is often difficult to get men to +work. There are many, especially in the towns, who never work on +Mondays. This is quite understood in Belgium, and people who know the +country are pleased, and rather surprised, if an artisan who has +promised to come and do something on a Monday morning keeps his word. +Of course there are many sober work-people, and it is a rare thing to +see a tipsy woman, much rarer than in England; but there is a great +deal of drunkenness in Belgium. + +There is one thing to which all the boys and girls look forward, and +that is what is called the _Kermesse_. This is a kind of fair, which +takes place at every village in summer, and lasts for two or three +days. They talk about it for weeks before, and for weeks after. They +save up every penny they can lay their hands on, and when the time +comes they leave their work or the school as soon as possible in the +afternoon, put on their best clothes, and enjoy themselves. + +The village street is full of stalls covered with cheap toys, +sweetmeats, and all sorts of tempting little articles, and you may be +sure the pennies melt away very quickly. Flags of black, red, and yellow +stripes--the Belgian national colours--fly on the houses. A band of +music plays. Travelling showmen are there with merry-go-rounds, and the +children are never tired of riding round and round on the gaily painted +wooden horses. Then there is dancing in the public-houses, in which all +the villagers, except the very old people, take part. Boys and girls hop +round, and if there are not enough boys the girls take each other for +partners, while the grown-up lads and young women dance together. + +[Illustration: A SHRIMPER ON HORSEBACK, COXYDE.] + +The rooms in these public-houses are pretty large, but they get +dreadfully hot and stuffy. The constant laughing and talking, the +music, and the scraping of feet on the sanded floor make an awful +din. Then there are sometimes disputes, and the Flemings have a nasty +habit of using knives when they are angry, so the dancing, which often +goes on till two or three in the morning, is the least pleasant thing +about these gatherings. + +This is a very old Belgian custom, but of late years the _Kermesses_ +in the big towns have changed in character, and are just ordinary +fairs, with menageries and things of that sort, which you can find in +England or anywhere else. If you want to see a real Kermesse you must +go to some village in Flanders, and there you will find it very +amusing. + + + + +CHAPTER III + +TRAVELLING IN BELGIUM + + +Travelling in Belgium is cheap and easy. The best way to see the +out-of-the-way parts of the country would be to journey about in a +barge on the canals. There are a great many canals. You could go all +the way from France to the other side of Belgium in a barge, threading +your way through fields, and meadow-lands, and villages, and stopping +every now and then at some of the big towns. If you read that charming +book "Vanity Fair," you will see that Mr. Thackeray, who wrote it, +says that once an Englishman, who went to Belgium for a week, found +the eating and drinking on these boats so good that he went backwards +and forwards on the canal between Bruges and Ghent perpetually till +the railways were invented, when he drowned himself on the last trip +of the boat! + +But if that ever happened it was long ago. Nowadays, when travellers +are in such a hurry, the canals are only used for carrying coals, +timber, and other goods. They are largely used for that purpose. The +Belgians are very wise about their canals; they keep them in good +order, and send as many things as possible by water. It is not so +quick, but it is much less expensive, and a great deal safer, than +sending them by railway. + +It is interesting to stand on the bank of a canal and watch a row of +barges moving slowly past. Sometimes a little steam-tug puffs along, +pulling three or four barges after it. Some are pulled by horses, and +often men or women labour along the towing-path dragging these heavily +laden vessels by a rope fastened to a short mast set up in the bows. + +This is hard work, but the barge-folk seem to think nothing of it. +Whole families are born, live, and die on their barges. You often see +the wife or daughter of the bargeman steering, while the children are +playing on the top of the hatches, and the husband is doing some work +among the cargo, or just sitting smoking his pipe. These floating +homes are long and broad, painted in bright colours, with a +deck-cabin, the windows of which are often hung with pretty curtains. +The children run about, and seem never to tumble overboard. If they +did they would be easily pulled out, for the barges are very low in +the water. + +As the country is so flat, bicycling is easy, and alongside most of +the roads there is a path made for this purpose, which is kept up by a +tax everyone who has a bicycle must pay. Always remember that if you +meet another person you keep to the right, and not, as in England, to +the left. The same rule applies to driving in a carriage or riding a +horse. + +The Belgians have an excellent system of light district railways, +which run in all directions, some worked by steam and some by +electricity. These are very useful, for the trains stop at every +village, however small, and the country people can easily go to market +or to visit each other. Outside each carriage there is a platform, on +which you can stand and see the country. The fares are low, and you +can go a long way for a few pence. The carriages are open from end to +end, and if you travel in one of them you will generally see a crowd +of peasants in blue blouses, old women in long black cloaks and white +caps, priests, and soldiers (who only pay half-price), the men all +smoking, and the women talking about what they have bought, or what +they are going to buy. They are always talking about that, and, +indeed, seem never to speak about anything else. A few hours' journey +in one of these district railways, which are called the +_Chemins-de-fer-Vicinaux_, is a far better way of getting a peep at +the Belgian people than rushing along in an express train from one big +town to another. + +The first railway on the Continent of Europe was in Belgium. It was +opened seventy-four years ago--in May, 1835--and ran from Brussels, +the capital of Belgium, to Malines, a town which you will see on the +map. There are now, of course, a great many railways, which belong to +the State and not, as in England, to private companies. + +Season tickets are much used on Belgian railways. For instance, anyone +wishing to travel for five days on end has only to pay £1 4s. 7d. for +a first-class ticket, 16s. 5d. for a second-class, or 9s. 5d. for a +third-class. For these small sums you can go all over Belgium on the +State railways, stopping as often as you please, at any hour of the +day or night, for five days. All you have to do is to take a small +photograph of yourself to the station an hour before you intend to +start, and tell the railway clerk at the booking-office by which class +you wish to travel, and when you go back to the station you will find +your ticket ready, with your photograph pasted on it, so that the +guards may know that you are the person to whom it belongs. You then +pay for it, and leave 4s. more, which are given back at whatever +station your trip may end. There are also tickets for longer periods +than five days. You can send a letter instead of going to the station. +You can write from England, and find your ticket waiting for you at +Ostend or Antwerp, or any other place in Belgium from which you may +intend to start on your journey. This is very convenient, for it saves +the trouble of buying a fresh ticket each day. Besides, it is a great +deal cheaper. These tickets are called _abonnements_. + +There are also _abonnements_ for children going to school, and for +workmen. It is quite common in Belgium to be in a railway carriage +where, when the guard comes round, all the passengers pull out season +tickets. + +There is one thing about travelling by railway in Belgium which +English people don't always know, and that is the rule about opening +and shutting windows. The Belgians are not so fond of fresh air as we +are. They sleep with their bedroom windows shut, which makes them +soft, and apt to catch cold. So they are always afraid of draughts, +especially in a railway train. The first thing a Belgian does, as soon +as he enters a carriage, is to shut the windows, and the rule is that +if by any chance there were, say, five people who wanted a window +open, and only one who wanted it shut, that one can refuse to let the +others have it open. If you are sitting near a window, and open it, +you may be sure that someone, who is perhaps sitting at the other end +of the carriage, will step across and shut it. They never ask leave, +or, indeed, say a word; they just shut it. + +One day, two or three years ago, there was a great crowd in a district +train. It was July, and very hot. All the windows of one first-class +carriage were, as usual, shut, and it was so stifling that some of us +stood outside on the platform so as to get some fresh air. A feeble +old lady chanced to be sitting next one of the windows, and wished to +open it. All the other passengers refused to allow her. She told them +she felt as if she would faint from the heat. Not one of the Belgian +ladies and gentlemen, who were all well-dressed people, cared about +that. They just shrugged their shoulders. At last the old lady, who +had been turning very pale, fainted away. Then they were afraid, and +the guard was sent for. He insisted on letting in some air, and +attended to the lady, who presently revived. The other passengers at +once had the window shut again, and the lady had to be taken into +another carriage, on which everyone began to laugh, as if it was a +good joke. + +Some Englishmen are always having rows about this window question; but +the best plan is to say nothing, and remember that every country has +its own customs, which strangers ought to observe. + + + + +CHAPTER IV + +SOME OF THE TOWNS: THE ARDENNES + + +England, as you know, is not a very big country. But Belgium is very +much smaller. It is such a little bit of a place, a mere corner of +Europe, that in a few hours the train can take you from one end of it +to the other. I suppose that from Ostend to Liége is one of the +longest journeys you could make, and that takes less than four hours. +So it is very easy to go from one town to another. + +Suppose we land at Ostend, which, as you will see on the map, lies in +the middle of the Belgian coast. It is the largest of the seaside +towns, and one of the oldest. In ancient times it was fortified, and +during the wars between the Spaniards and the Dutch the Spaniards +defended it for three whole years. It must have been very strong in +those days. But now it is quite changed, and has no walls, but just a +long _digue_, and a great many hotels, lodging-houses, and big shops. +Crowds of people go there in summer. There are horse-races, concerts, +dancing, and a great deal of gambling. One part of the beach in front +of the _digue_ is crowded with bathing-machines, and it is said that +during one day in August a few years ago no fewer than 7,000 people +bathed. + +[Illustration: THE VEGETABLE MARKET, BRUGES.] + +Ostend, however, is not a nice place to stay in. In summer it is +noisy, and full of people who care for nothing but eating, drinking, +dressing up, and gambling. In winter it is an ugly, dull, stupid town, +in which there is nothing to do, and nothing to see except +fishing-boats and the steamers which carry travellers to and from +Dover. So we shall not say anything more about it, but take the train, +and in twenty minutes find ourselves in a really interesting place. + +This is Bruges. They call it _Bruges la Morte_--that is to say, +"Bruges, the Dead City." Once upon a time, long, long ago, this town +was great, and rich, and prosperous. It was surrounded by strong +walls, and within it were many gilded palaces, the homes of merchant +princes whose wealth was the talk of all the world. Their houses were +full of precious stones, tapestries, silk, fine linen, and cloth of +gold. Their warehouses were stored with costly bales. They lent money +to Kings and Princes, and lived themselves in almost royal luxury. A +broad channel led from the sea to Bruges, and ships entered daily +laden with goods from every country in Europe, as well as from India +and all parts of the world. In those days the cloth made by the +Flemish weavers was famous, and the greatest market for wool was at +Bruges. + +So Bruges grew richer and richer, and much money was spent in +beautifying the town, in which there are said to have been 200,000 +industrious people. Churches rose, and other noble buildings. There +were endless tournaments and festivals. Painters flourished there. +Bruges was spoken of as the Venice of the North. + +But all this came to an end. The channel which joined this great city +to the sea dried up. There were wars and rebellions which drove the +foreign merchants away. They went to Antwerp. Bruges fell, and has +remained fallen ever since. + +It is now a quiet, sad place, so poor that the streets are badly +lighted, seldom cleaned, and have a desolate, neglected appearance. +The few families of the upper class who live there belong to what is +called the _petite noblesse_; there is almost no trade or commerce; +and many of the lower orders live on charity. + +But this dead city is very romantic, with all its memories of olden +times. Nobody should go to Belgium without visiting Bruges, once so +famous and now so fallen, not only because it is picturesque, with its +old buildings and quaint views such as artists love to paint, but also +because it is so quiet that you can watch the customs of a Belgian +town without being disturbed by a crowd--the market-folk with their +wares spread out on the stones of the street, the small carts drawn by +dogs, the women sitting at their doors busy with lace-making, the +pavements occupied by tables at which people sit drinking coffee or +beer, the workmen clanking along in their wooden shoes, and +numberless little things which are different from what you see at +home. + +Every town in Belgium has its "belfry," a tower rising over some +venerable building, from which, in the days of almost constant +warfare, a beacon used to blaze, or a bell ring out, to call the +citizens to arms. The belfry of Bruges is, I think, the finest of them +all. If you have ever been to Bruges you can never forget it. It rises +high above the market-place. All day long, year after year, the chimes +ring every quarter of an hour; and all night too, unceasingly, through +winter storm and summer moonlight, the belfry pours forth its +perpetual lament over the dead city. + +Not far from Bruges, only forty minutes by railway, is another ancient +town called Ghent; but instead of being dead like Bruges, it is alive +and busy. In the days of old the people of Ghent were the most +independent and brave in Belgium. In the belfry there was a famous +bell called "Roland," and if any of their rulers attempted to tax them +against their will, this Roland was rung, and wagged his iron tongue +so well that the townsmen armed themselves at once, and the +tax-gatherers were driven away. It was no easy task to rule them, as +all who tried it found to their cost. They grew very rich, chiefly +because of their trade in wool with England. But evil days came, and +for more than 200 years this mighty city remained in a most forlorn +state. + +In the nineteenth century, however, when there was settled peace in +Belgium after the Battle of Waterloo, the people of Ghent set to work +in earnest once more, and made up for lost time so well that now their +town is full of flourishing factories, and has a harbour from which a +deep canal leads to the River Scheldt, and is used by many ships. Most +beautiful flowers are cultivated in nursery gardens and hothouses, and +are sent all over the world in such quantities that Ghent has been +called "The City of Flowers." + +From busy Ghent, where the belfry in which Roland used to hang and the +walls and towers of many an ancient building look down upon the +crowded streets, you may go to the still busier town of Antwerp, which +stands on the River Scheldt. + +Like Bruges and Ghent, and, indeed, every town in Belgium, Antwerp is +very old. It is said that long ago there was a giant who lived on the +banks of the Scheldt, and compelled the captain of every ship which +came up the river to give him money. If the money was refused, the +giant cut off one of the captain's hands, and threw it into the river. +In Dutch the word _werpen_ means "to throw," and thus the place where +the giant lived was called _Hand-werpen_, which became, in course of +time, _Antwerp_. Perhaps you may not believe this story, but in one of +the squares at Antwerp there is the statue of a man called Brabo, who +is said to have killed the giant. + +Close to this statue is the cathedral, which is one of the grandest in +Europe, and where there are some famous paintings by the great artist +Rubens, who lived at Antwerp for many years. + +Another very interesting thing to see at Antwerp is the +Plantin-Moretus house. It was the home, more than 300 years ago, of a +printer called Plantin, who made a great fortune, and whose +descendants took the name of Moretus, and carried on the business for +a long time. You will see there the types and printing-presses of the +sixteenth century, and also the very furniture of the sitting-rooms +and bedrooms, just as they were in those bygone days. One of the rooms +was the nursery of the Plantin children. The men who show you over the +house are dressed as servants were in Plantin's time. By going there +you will get a far better idea of the family life of those times than +by reading any number of story-books or looking at any number of +pictures. + +Antwerp has, like the other Belgian towns, had its ups and downs, but +now it is one of the greatest harbours in the whole world. So many +ships go there that there is hardly room for all of them. It may seem +an extraordinary thing that a country like Belgium, so small that two +or three English counties would cover it, should have such an +important harbour crowded with the shipping of all nations. But +Antwerp is connected by railways and canals with the busiest parts of +Europe, and the Scheldt is a noble river, by which merchantmen can +find their way to every region of the world. + +A hundred years ago Antwerp was in the hands of the French, who had +seized Belgium; and when Napoleon was beaten he clung to Antwerp as +long as he could. Just before he fell, there was a conference at a +place called Chatillon, when they tried to make peace, but could not; +and afterwards, when he was at St. Helena, Napoleon declared that the +war continued chiefly because he would not give up Antwerp. "Antwerp," +he said, "was to me a province in itself. If they would have left it +to me, peace would have been concluded." He wanted to keep a fleet in +the Scheldt, so as to threaten England. If you look at a map of +Europe, you will see how near the Scheldt is to Kent and Essex. The +Belgians cannot do us any harm, but it would be a dangerous thing for +England if some strong and unfriendly nation had possession of +Antwerp. + +But we must leave Antwerp, and hurry on to Brussels, which is the +capital of Belgium. + +It is just an hour by railway, and as the train rushes on you will see +on your right a town from the middle of which rises a massive square +tower. The town is Malines (or Mechlin), and the tower is that of the +Cathedral of St. Rombold. Malines was once, like Bruges, a most +important city, and so many pilgrims went there that the cost of +building the cathedral was paid out of their offerings. It is now the +seat of the Archbishop of Belgium; but its former glory has long since +departed, and it is even more quiet and desolate than Bruges. + +It is said that once upon a time, when the moon was shining brightly +through the open stonework of the tower, the people thought there was +a fire, and tried to put it out with water! Ever since then the +townsmen of Malines have been laughed at, and called "moon-quenchers" +by the other Belgians. + +When you are in the train between Malines and Brussels, you may +recollect that you are travelling on the first railway-line that was +made on the Continent. Well, when the engineer had finished his work, +the very day before the first train was to run, he looked at some +plans he had of railways in England, and exclaimed: "By Jove! I've +forgotten a tunnel!" And so, without more ado, he sent for some +workmen, and had an archway made over a cutting! Then he thought his +railway was complete! + +Brussels is by far the nicest town in Belgium. It is a charming place +to live in, clean, bright, and gay. The walls which once surrounded it +were taken down many years ago, and replaced by beautiful roadways +called _boulevards_, with a broad carriage-drive in the middle, and on +each side a place for riding on, shaded by rows of trees. There is a +park, not very large, but with many trees and shady walks, and a round +pond, in the centre of which a fountain plays. At one end of this park +is the King's Palace, and at the other end the Houses of Parliament. +In the new parts of the town the streets are wide, and there are +spacious squares, with large and handsome houses. There are no end of +carriages and motor-cars driving about, people riding on horseback, +and all the bustle of a great city of pleasure. + +The people of Brussels are very fond of jokes and fun. They always +seem to be in good humour with each other and with themselves. The +part of Belgium in which Brussels lies is called Brabant. In olden +times it was spoken of as "gay Brabant," and so, indeed, it might be +nowadays. Dull, pompous people are not liked there. You must be lively +and amusing, like the town itself, of which the people are so proud +that they call it the Little Paris. + +Close to Brussels, on the south and west, there is a great forest--the +Forest of Soignies. The part of this forest nearest the town is called +the _Bois de la Cambre_, which is a favourite place for walking and +riding in. You reach it by a fine _boulevard_ called the Avenue +Louise. In the middle of this _Bois de la Cambre_ there is a lake with +an island, on which stands a little coffee-house, the Châlet Robinson; +so called, perhaps, after Robinson Crusoe, who lived on an island. +Belgian families often go there to spend the summer afternoons. There +are lots of pigeons on the island, so tame that they run about on the +grass, and eat out of the children's hands, while the fathers and +mothers sit drinking coffee at tables under the trees. + +[Illustration: ANTWERP.] + +In Belgium the fathers and mothers of the _petite bourgeoisie_, or +lower-middle class, seem always to go about on holidays with their +children. They dine at half-past twelve, and after dinner off they go, +the parents arm-in-arm, and the children strolling before them, and +spend the rest of the day together. It is quite a sight on a summer +evening to see them coming home in crowds down the Avenue Louise, the +father often carrying the youngest on his shoulders, and the mother +with a child hanging on to each arm. + +The Avenue Louise is in the modern part of the town. Brussels, +however, is not all modern. Most of the Belgian towns are quite flat, +but to reach the old Brussels you must go down some very steep, narrow +streets, one of which, called the _Montague de la Cour_, where the +best shops are, leads to the Grande Place, a picturesque square +surrounded by quaint houses with fantastic gables. These were the +houses of the Guilds, or Merchant Companies, in the old days. One of +them is shaped like the stern of a ship. Most of them are ornamented +with gilded mouldings. They are beautiful buildings, and the finest is +the Hotel de Ville, the front of which is a mass of statuettes. Its +high, steep roof is pierced by innumerable little windows, and above +it there is a lofty and graceful spire, which towers up and up, with a +gilded figure of the Archangel Michael at the top. + +A flower-market is held in the Grande Place, and in summer, when the +sun is shining brightly, it is a very pretty sight. But the best time +to see the Grande Place of Brussels is at night, when all is silent, +and the tall houses look solemnly down on the scene of many great +events which took place there long ago. + +I cannot tell you one-half of all there is to see in Brussels--the +beautiful churches, the picture-galleries and museums, the splendid +old library, and the gardens. The largest building is a modern one, +the _Palais de Justice_, where the law courts sit. It cost nearly +£2,000,000 to build, and is much bigger than anything in London. It +stands on an eminence overlooking the lower part of the town, and is +so huge that it may almost be said to make the capital of this tiny +kingdom look top-heavy. + +There are many other towns in Belgium besides those we have been +looking at: Louvain, with its ancient University; Liége and Charleroi, +with their steel and iron works; Courtrai, celebrated for the +manufacture of linen; Tournai, where carpets are made; Mons, with its +coal-mines; and more besides, which all lie within the narrow limits +of this small country. Most of them have played a great part in +history. Belgium is, above all things, a country of famous towns. + +When you wander about among the towns of Flanders and Brabant you +might think that the whole of Belgium was one level plain. But if you +leave Brussels and journey to the south, the aspect of the country +changes. Beyond the Forest of Soignies the tame, flat fields, the +formal rows of trees, and the long, straight roads begin to disappear, +the landscape becomes more picturesque, and soon you reach a river +called the Meuse, which flows along through a romantic valley, full +of quiet villages, gardens, woods, and hayfields, and enclosed by +steep slopes clothed with trees and thickets, and broken here and +there by dells, ravines, and bold, outstanding pinnacles of rock, +beyond which, for mile after mile, an undulating tableland is covered +by thick forests, where deer, wild boars, and other game abound. This +district is called the Ardennes. + +In the Valley of the Meuse there are three old and famous +towns--Liége, Namur, and Dinant--each nestling at the side of the +river, at the foot of a hill with a castle perched upon it. + +Other rivers flow into the Meuse. There is the Sambre, which runs from +the west, and joins the Meuse at Namur; the Lesse, which rushes in +from the south through a narrow gorge; and the Semois, a stream the +sides of which are so steep that there is not even a pathway along +them in some places, and travellers must pass from side to side in +boats when following its course. + +This is the prettiest part of Belgium, and in summer many people, who +do not care for going to the seaside, spend the holidays at the towns +and villages which are dotted about in the valleys and among the hills +and woods. + + + + +CHAPTER V + +BELGIAN CHILDREN: THE "PREMIÈRE COMMUNION" + + +The Belgians may be divided, roughly speaking, into five classes of +people. There are those of the highest rank, who are called the +_grande_, or _vraie, noblesse_. Of these there are not many, but they +belong to old families, some of which have been famous in the history +of their country. They have often fine country-houses, and the towns +in which you will find them most often are Brussels and Ghent. Then +come those of a much lower class, the _petite noblesse_, of whom there +are very many. They seldom mix in society with the _grande noblesse_, +and their friends are generally members of the _haute_, or _bonne, +bourgeoisie_. The _bonne bourgeoisie_ are like our middle class, and +there is no difference between them and the _petite noblesse_ as to +the way in which they live. Below these are the _petite bourgeoisie_, +who are mostly shopkeepers, clerks, and people in various employments. +Last of all are the artisans and working-class people. + +It is about the children of the _bonne bourgeoisie_ that I am going to +speak, for they are a very numerous class, and their customs are in +many respects the same as those of most Belgians. + +When a child is born, the parents should send to all their friends a +box of _dragees_--that is, sugared almonds or sugar-plums. If the +child is a boy, the box is tied with pink ribbons; and if it is a +girl, with blue. Cards announcing the birth of a child are often sent +nowadays, but the real old Belgian fashion is to send the _dragees_, +and it is a great pity that people are giving it up so much. + +The next thing is to find a name for the child, and that is done by +the godmother, who either chooses some family name or calls the child +after its patron saint--that is to say, the saint on whose day it was +born--for in Belgium, as in all Catholic countries, each day is +dedicated to some saint. The commonest name, however, for girls is +Marie, a name given in honour of the Virgin Mary, to whom many baby +girls are devoted from their birth. The mothers of these little girls +vow never to dress them in anything but blue and white till they are +seven years old. When the baby is baptized, the godfather gives a pair +of gloves to the mother and the godmother. Curiously enough, most +Belgian parents would rather have a baby girl than a boy, because a +boy costs more to educate, and also because boys, when they grow up, +have to draw lots for service in the army, and almost every father who +can afford it buys his son off, and that costs money. + +There is no nursery life such as we have in England--at least, in very +few Belgian families. Here again money is grudged. People who will +pay high wages for a good cook hire young girls of fourteen or fifteen +to look after their children, and these _bonnes_, as they are called, +are paid very little, and are often careless and stupid. The result is +that the children are constantly with their parents, and, to keep them +quiet, are dreadfully spoilt and petted. It very often happens that, +when a Belgian lady has a friend calling on her, young children, who +ought to be in a nursery, are playing in the drawing-room. Their +mother has no control over them, and if she ventures to tell them to +keep quiet, or to run away, they don't obey her, and then she gives +in, and lets them have their own way. + +Another thing which follows from this want of nursery training is that +if, as sometimes happens, there are disputes between the parents, the +children are mixed up in them. You will hear a Belgian mother say to +her young daughter: "Imagine what your father has done!" Or if the +husband is angry with his wife, he will turn to his boy, and exclaim: +"That is just like a woman!" Of course, this is very bad for the +children, who hear a great deal which they would know nothing about if +they were not always with their parents. + +From being so much with older people these children get strange ideas. +I know a lady who said to a small Belgian girl, who was an only child: +"Would you like a little brother or sister to play with?" "Oh! no, +no," replied the child, "because when my father and mother die, I +shall have all their money." Whereupon the mother exclaimed: "There! +the dear child; how well she knows the world already!" + +The children of the _petite bourgeoisie_ are the most unruly. One sees +them often at the various holiday places, at the seaside or in the +Ardennes, where they dine, however young, along with their parents at +the _tables d'hôte_, or public dining-tables, of the hotels. They eat +untidily, spill their soup, throw bread at each other, upset their +tumblers of beer or wine (for they are allowed to have whatever their +parents are drinking), talk at the top of their voices, and really +make such a row that the older people can't hear each other speaking. +The moment they have had as much food as they want, they jump up, push +their chairs noisily aside, and begin to chase each other round the +room. Their parents never think of stopping them, and care nothing +about the annoyance such unmannerly behaviour causes. It is curious +how few Belgians, old or young, rich or poor, consider the feelings or +convenience of others. They are intensely selfish, and this is +doubtless caused by the way in which they are brought up. + +As you know, parents in England are forced by law to send their +children to school, or have them taught privately. There is no such +law in Belgium, and parents, if they like, may leave their children +without any education. The number, however, of those who do not go to +school is gradually decreasing, and most children get lessons of some +sort or another. + +No religious instruction is given in Belgian schools, except in +convent schools, or in those where the teachers are entirely under the +Church. But almost all children have to learn the Catechism at home. +They need not understand it, but they must be able to repeat the +words. This is to prepare them for their _Première Communion_, or +first Communion, to which they go when they are eleven or twelve years +old. It takes place two Sundays before Easter Day. + +The custom is for all members of the family to wear new clothes on the +day of a _Première Communion_, but the child's dress is the important +thing. In Belgian towns, for some time before, the windows of the +shops in which articles of dress are sold are full of gloves, +stockings, ties, and other things marked "_Première Communion_." A +boy's dress is not much trouble. He wears black trousers, a black +jacket, and white gloves and tie. But great thought is given to seeing +that a girl looks well in her white dress, and other nice new things. +She thinks and talks of nothing but her clothes for ever so long +before, and especially of her "corsets," which she then puts on for +the first time. Her mother takes her to the shop to try them on, and +is at much pains to make her waist as slender as possible. "Can't you +pull them a little tighter?" she will say to the shopwoman. The girl +has tight new shoes to make her feet look as small as possible; the +_coiffeur_ dresses her hair; and she is very proud of her appearance +when, squeezed into proper shape and decked out in her new clothes, +she sets off to church. + +[Illustration: THE HÔTEL DE VILLE, BRUSSELS.] + +The children are confirmed on the Monday, the day after their first +Communion, and are then taken to visit the friends of the family to be +shown off, and to receive presents. The windows of the confectioners' +shops are full of little white sugar images of boys and girls saying +their prayers, and even the poorest people manage to have a feast of +some sort on this occasion. They often beg money for the purpose. It +is, of course, difficult for parents who are poor to buy new clothes. +But any little gifts of money which a child may receive are taken and +hoarded up to be spent on its first Communion. + +All Belgian children, even those whose parents are not Catholics, go, +with scarcely an exception, to first Communion, and are confirmed, for +there may be relatives with money to leave, and they must not be +displeased. + +The _Première Communion_ is the chief event in the life of a Belgian +child. + + + + +CHAPTER VI + +CHRISTMAS IN BELGIUM + + +Christmas is not kept in Belgium in the same way as in England, +Germany, and other countries. There are special services in church, +but no Christmas-trees, Christmas presents, or family dinner-parties. + +This was not always so, and some traces still remain in different +parts of the old customs which used to be observed in Belgium. The +ancient Belgians had a festival at mid-winter, and when they were +converted to Christianity they continued to use a good many of their +old rites at that season of the year, and the few very old Christmas +customs which survive really began when Belgium was a pagan or heathen +land. + +Some of these customs are rather curious. In the Valley of the Meuse +the pagans used to feast on the flesh of wild boars at their +mid-winter banquets, and now the people of Namur have roast pork for +dinner on Christmas Day. The _petite bourgeoisie_ of Brussels often +eat chestnuts on that day--an old usage handed down from the days when +the Germans ate acorns--and think they can find out what is going to +happen in the future by burning them. For instance, a young man and +woman who are engaged to be married throw two nuts into the fire. If +they burn peacefully, the marriage will be happy; if they crack and +jump away from each other, it will be unhappy. If a candle or lamp +goes out suddenly on Christmas Eve, it is believed that someone in the +room will die soon. Another sign of death is if you throw salt on the +floor and it melts. In some places candles are burnt all night to +scare away evil spirits. Another custom is to go into orchards, and +strike with an axe trees which have not been fruitful. This, it is +thought, will make them bear next year. + +There are many other superstitions like these which can be traced back +to heathen times, but are now mixed up with the rites of Christian +worship. One strange superstition, which a few old peasants still +have, is that when the clock strikes twelve on Christmas Eve all the +water in the house may turn into wine. This comes down, no doubt, from +early Christian times. + +In some Belgian towns the children of the poor go round on Christmas +Eve, from house to house, singing, and asking for bread, fruit, or +nuts. One of their favourite songs begins: + + "Blyden nacht, + O blyden nacht! Messias is geboren!" + +That is Flemish, their language, and it means: "Happy night, oh, happy +night! The Messiah is born." Another song begins: "Een Kindeken is +ons geboren," which is the same as "Unto us a Child is born." + +Good children, who have said their prayers every night, expect to find +under their pillows on Christmas morning a cake, or rather a bun, +which is called an _engelskoek_, or angel's cake, which the Archangel +Gabriel is supposed to have brought during the night to reward them. +Naughty children find nothing. In some places the children are told +that it is the _petit Jesus_ (the little child Jesus), who puts the +bun under their pillows. + +In many churches, but by no means in all, there is a midnight service, +at which there is a manger surrounded by wax candles, with an image of +the Holy Child in it. But this late service was so often made an +excuse for going to public-houses, and drinking too much, that the +hour has been changed, in most places, to five in the morning. The +custom of having shrines, with a manger and candles, known as +"Bethlehems," is, however, common, even in private houses. + +On Christmas Day in Flanders people wish each other "A Merry +Christmas," just as they do in England; and many parents of the upper +classes send their children, in charge of a servant, to visit their +relatives, from whom they may receive some small gifts. + +But Christmas Day is not the same, in the way of presents and +merry-making, as it is in England. + + + + +CHAPTER VII + +NEW YEAR'S DAY + + +New Year's Day is a great day in Belgium. + +December 31, the last day of the old year, is dedicated to St. +Sylvester, and there is a custom, at least in Antwerp, that the child +who gets out of bed last is called a "Sylvester," and must give the +best of its toys to its brothers and sisters. If one of the older +girls in a family does not finish any sewing or fancy-work she may +have on hand by the end of the day, she is afraid of being haunted by +evil spirits. Some people say that a young woman who does not finish +her work before sunset has no chance of being married for a year. So +they all get their various tasks done, and the last night of the year +is spent in amusement. The whole family, children and all, sit up till +midnight, singing, reciting, or playing games till the clock strikes +twelve, when they all kiss each other, and give wishes for "A Happy +New Year." + +In the big towns, however, many of the _petite bourgeoisie_ do not +"bring in the New Year" at home, and the restaurants and cafés are +crowded till twelve o'clock, when healths are drunk, and there is +cheering and singing, which are continued in the streets when the +people are going home; and there is a great deal of noise for a long +time after all the cafés are closed. + +It used to be the fashion to fire guns at midnight on New Year's Eve, +but that is not common now except in one part of Belgium, called +Limburg, where any girl who has a lover expects him to fire off shots +in front of her window. The more shots he fires the more she thinks he +loves her, and to reward him she ought to hide a bottle of gin in some +corner outside the house, from which he can drink her health. +Mischievous young men, however, sometimes find the bottle, and drink +the gin before the lover comes, and so the girl often waits till she +hears the shots, and then lowers the bottle by a string from the +window. This funny custom, like many others, is now going out of +fashion. + +On New Year's Day all Belgians call on their friends to wish them "A +Happy New Year," when they are offered wine, sweetmeats, and things of +that sort. This paying of visits on New Year's Day goes on to such an +extent in Belgian towns that people who have many friends spend almost +the whole day in walking or driving about from one house to another. +As everyone is doing the same thing, of course a great many people are +not at home when their friends come, and so the hall-table of nearly +every house is covered with calling-cards before evening. The servants +have almost nothing to do all day but answer the door-bell, which is +constantly ringing. + +In some towns, Antwerp among others, it is supposed to be quite +allowable for grown-up people, ladies and gentlemen, to kiss anyone +they know on New Year's Day. A Belgian lady once told me that it +brought good luck to kiss an officer of the army; but, of course, +there are limits to this, as there are to kissing under the mistletoe +in England. + +In the country parts of South Belgium it is the custom to try to be +the first to call out "Good New Year" when you meet a friend. If you +say it first you have something given you. The children try to +surprise their fathers and mothers, brothers and sisters, and all the +friends of the family in this way. They get up early, and hide +themselves, so as to be able to jump out suddenly, and say "_Een Zalig +Nieuwjahr_," which means "A Good New Year." All day long they go on +doing it, and are never tired of telling each other about the tricks +they have thought of to _verassen_, as it is called, the older people, +who must give them gingerbread or sugar-plums as the penalty for being +surprised in this way. + +On New Year's Day in Belgium it is not only your friends who stop you +in the street or call at your house. Every man, woman, boy, or girl +who has done any work for you, and often those who have done nothing, +expect to get something. They are very greedy. Railway-porters who +have once brought a box to your house, ring your bell and beg. +Telegraph-boys, scavengers paid by the town, bell-ringers, policemen, +shop-boys, everyone comes bowing and scraping, and men who in England +would be ashamed to take a "tip" will touch their hats, and hold out +their hands for a few pence. They don't wait to be offered money; they +ask for it, like common street-beggars asking alms. + +January 6, the Feast of the Epiphany, is known in Flanders as _Groot +Nieuwjahr_ ("Great New Year"), and is kept to some extent by the +working-people in the same way as the first day of the year. Mondays +are always idle days with working-men in Belgium, and the first Monday +after Epiphany is the idlest of them all. It is called _Verloren +Maandag_, or, in French, _Lundi Perdu_, which means "Lost Monday," +because no one does any work. The day is spent going about asking for +money, and at night there is a great deal of drinking. On one of these +Mondays not long ago some drunken troopers of a cavalry regiment +stabbed the keeper of a village public-house near Bruges, broke his +furniture to pieces, and kept the villagers in a state of terror for +some hours. + +One very bad thing about the lower-class Belgians is that when they +drink, and begin to quarrel, they use knives, and wound or kill those +who have offended them. By a curious superstition it is thought +unlucky to work on Lost Monday, so the people get drunk, and more +crimes of violence are committed on that day than at any other time of +the year. + + + + +CHAPTER VIII + +PAGEANTS AND PROCESSIONS + + +The Belgians are very fond of pageants and processions. In each town +there are several, and in all villages at least one, every year. It +has been so for hundreds of years, and these spectacles must have been +magnificent in the Middle Ages, when the narrow streets were full of +knights in glittering armour riding on their strong Flemish war-horses +decked with embroidered saddle-cloths, bishops and priests in gorgeous +vestments, standard-bearers, trumpeters, heralds in their robes of +office, images of saints borne high above the crowd, mingled with +jesters and the enormous giants with grotesque faces which were +carried along on these occasions. The tall houses with their +projecting wooden gables were gay with flags. The windows and +balconies were hung with rich tapestry, and from them the wives and +daughters of nobles and wealthy merchants looked down upon the scene +below. A Queen of France once rode in a procession through the streets +of Bruges, and was moved to jealousy by the sight of so many ladies +decked in jewels as rich as her own. "I thought," she said, "that I +alone was Queen, but here I have hundreds of rivals." + +[Illustration: AT THE KERMESSE.] + +One of the most splendid of these pageants was in the summer of the +year 1468, when an English Princess, Margaret of York, married a +Prince called Charles the Bold, who was Duke of Burgundy. On that +occasion there was a famous tournament in the market-place of Bruges, +in which many valiant knights took part. It was called the "Tournament +of the Golden Tree." Two years ago, in the summer of 1907, there was a +pageant at Bruges, when the marriage festivities of Charles the Bold +and Margaret of York were represented. A young Belgian lady took the +part of the English Princess, and a Belgian gentleman appeared as +Charles the Bold. There were knights in armour, ladies of the Court of +Burgundy, heralds, men-at-arms, and pages, all dressed in the +picturesque costumes of the Middle Ages. There was tilting in the +lists, when lances were broken, and, in short, everything was done +very nearly as it was 440 years ago. This spectacle, which was +produced on three days, was attended by thousands of people, who came +from all parts of Belgium to see it. It was a very good example of how +well the Belgians can manage a pageant, and how popular these shows +are with the people. + +A very celebrated pageant takes place every year at Bruges, the +"Procession of the Holy Blood," which devout Catholics from every +country in Europe attend. There is a small chapel in that town, where +they keep, in a crystal tube, what is said to be some of the blood of +our Lord. It has been there for more than 700 years. The tube is +preserved in a beautiful case adorned with precious stones, which is +carried through the town on the first Monday after May 2. The houses +are decorated with flags, and candles burn in almost every window. +Through the streets, between crowds of people standing on the +pavements or looking down from the windows--while the church bells +ring, and wreaths of incense fill the air, bands of music, squadrons +of cavalry, crucifixes, shrines, images, the banners of the parishes, +heralds in their varied dresses, bareheaded pilgrims from England, +France, and other countries, maidens in white, bearing palms or crowns +of thorn or garlands--priests and chanting choristers, move slowly +along, and, when the relic of the Holy Blood passes, all the people +sink to the ground. Bruges, usually so empty, is always crowded on +that day. + +Seven or eight years ago at Lierre, a town near Antwerp, I saw three +processions in one month, each of which showed the Belgian fondness +for such things. One was the procession of St. Gommarius, the patron +saint of the town, when a golden shrine, said to contain his bones, +was carried through the streets, just as the relic of the Holy Blood +is carried through Bruges. There were a great many little children in +that procession, dressed as angels and saints--in white, pale green, +blue, crimson, and other colours. Some had wreaths of flowers on +their heads, and some carried lighted tapers. They all seemed proud of +taking part in the procession. The smallest, who were tiny mites, with +their mothers walking with them to take care of them, were very tired +at the end, for they had to walk slowly for hours on the hard stones, +stopping often before sacred images, when the priests burned incense, +and all the people went down on their knees. This, like that at +Bruges, is a religious procession, and there are many others of the +same kind all over Belgium. + +Another procession was in honour of an old couple, who had been +married for fifty years. They were poor people, and the parish was +celebrating their "golden wedding." There was a service in the +Cathedral of St. Gommarius, and when that was finished the old man and +his wife were put in a carriage and four. They were neatly dressed, +and each had a large bouquet of yellow flowers. At the head of each +horse walked a young man, leading it by a long yellow ribbon. In front +of the carriage a band of musicians played, and behind it came a +number of peasants, all in their best clothes. They wore white cotton +gloves and yellow wedding-favours. The man and his wife, who were +evidently feeble as well as very old, seemed rather bored, but all the +people in the procession were in high spirits, for they were on their +way to a good dinner paid for by the parish. + +A few nights after that there was a tremendous noise of music in the +market-place, and another procession was formed, which marched off +round the town, and at last stopped before the door of a house. Here +they remained for a long time. There was a great deal of cheering, and +the band played tune after tune, finishing up with the Belgian +National Anthem. And what do you think it was all about? A boy whose +parents lived in the house had gained a prize at school. That was all; +but it was an excuse for a procession, music, and drinking healths. + +Not long ago a young man won a prize at a great School of Music in +Brussels called the _Conservatoire_, and so his native town must needs +have a procession. There were two bands, a number of flags, and +several carriages, in one of which the young fellow sat, bowing from +side to side as he was driven through the streets to a café, at which +what they call the _vin d'honneur_, or cup of honour, was served. + +In the same town two years ago the football team of a regiment +quartered there won a cup, and there was a long procession of soldiers +and townsmen in honour of the event. The cup was carried in triumph on +a platform adorned with wreaths, and the crowd shouted as if the +soldiers were returning victorious from war. + +The Belgians have always been the same in their love of such displays. +Long ago their country was oppressed by the Spaniards, who killed and +tortured many of them without mercy. But that made no difference, and +their sorrows were soon forgotten if their conquerors provided some +pageant to amuse them. A circus procession of buffoons, with +dromedaries, elephants, sham giants, and pasteboard whales and +dragons, seems to have consoled them for all their misery. + + + + +CHAPTER IX + +THE STORY OF ST. EVERMAIRE: A COUNTRY PAGEANT + + +Once upon a time there was a good man called St. Evermaire, who went +on a pilgrimage to a part of Belgium called the Hesbaye, which is near +the River Meuse. As he and his companions were journeying along, they +came, when it was growing dark one evening, to a great wood. Being +afraid of losing their way, they went to a village to ask for shelter. +This village belonged to a fierce robber, called Hacco, and it was at +his door that the pilgrims knocked. The door was opened by Hacco's +wife, who received them kindly, but told them that her husband was a +robber, and that, though he was away from home, it would not be safe +for them to remain there long. So very early next morning, as soon as +it was light, they went into the wood, and lay down to sleep beside a +fountain among the trees. + +They had scarcely gone when Hacco, who had been out all night looking +for people to rob, came home. When he heard about the strangers who +had just left, he flew into a terrible rage, and went to look for +them. He soon found them fast asleep in the wood, and killed them. +Then he tore off their clothes, and left their bodies lying on the +ground. + +After a little time some huntsmen found the dead pilgrims, and dug a +grave for them. But these people, noticing that the face of one dead +man shone brightly, and feeling sure that he must be some very holy +person, buried him in a grave by himself. This was St. Evermaire. + +The wood was many years later cut down, and a village called Russon +was built near the place where Hacco murdered the pilgrims. The first +priest of this village discovered the grave of St. Evermaire, whose +bones were placed in a tomb in the church of Russon; but they were +afterwards laid to rest in a chapel which was built on purpose to +receive them. This chapel stands in a grove of beech-trees, on a +meadow surrounded by a hedge, in one corner of which there is a +fountain whose water is said to be a cure for ague. It is supposed to +be on the very spot where the pilgrims were killed. Over the altar in +the chapel is a painting of the murder. There are also statues of the +Virgin Mary and of St. Evermaire, and a gilded case, which contains +the bones of the saint. + +[Illustration: A CHÂTEAU IN THE LESSE VALLEY.] + +On May Day there is a procession from Russon to this chapel. First two +vergers come out of the village church, dressed in "tights," and +covered from their ankles to their necks with ivy-leaves. They wear +pointed caps on their heads, and brandish huge clubs, with which +they threaten the country people, who roar with laughter at the faces +they make. Seven men are dressed up to represent St. Evermaire and his +companions. The saint himself wears a tunic of coarse brown cloth, +girt about with a leather belt, from which hang a string of beads and +a pilgrim's bottle, a short cloak of ox-hide, and a round hat; but the +other pilgrims have just black coats and breeches, with white +stockings. They are followed by about fifty men on horseback, dressed +up as Hacco and his band of robbers. + +This strange-looking procession goes to the chapel, where there is +service, the vergers in their ivy-leaves assisting at the altar; and +the moment the Benediction has been said, the whole congregation +rushes out to the meadow. The pilgrims stand in a circle near the +fountain, where they sing a quaint old country hymn. + +In the meantime Hacco and his band gallop about outside the meadow; +but when the pilgrims have done singing, they enter it, and ride round +and round several times. Then the pilgrims go near the chapel, and a +short conversation is sung between them and Hacco, they imploring +mercy, and he abusing them for trespassing on his lands. At last Hacco +becomes impatient, draws his sword, and advances upon the pilgrims, +declaring in a voice of thunder that he is about to kill them. + +At this point the spectators are expected to weep; but all of a +sudden the youngest pilgrim takes to his heels, and scampers away as +fast as ever he can. Hacco and the robbers run after him, scrambling +about among bushes and trees, as if they were playing at +hide-and-seek. The spectators laugh and clap their hands, and the +village children scream with delight. Hacco fires a pistol at the +runaway, but misses, on which everybody cheers. Then he fires again, +and the pilgrim tumbles down, and is killed with an arrow by one of +the robbers, who picks him up, throws him across the back of a horse +and brings him back to the meadow. + +During this chase the other pilgrims have thrown themselves, as if in +despair, on the grass, where presently Hacco and his followers proceed +to kill them. But by this time all the actors are tired and thirsty; +so St. Evermaire and his friends rise up, and the whole company of +robbers and pilgrims walk off, and swill beer together for the rest of +the day. So ends the rustic pageant of Russon. + + + + +CHAPTER X + +THE CARNIVAL + + +The week before Lent begins is called in Flanders _Duivelsweek_, which +means "The Devil's Week"; and on the Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday +before Ash Wednesday there is the Carnival, so called from the Latin +words _carni vale_ (which mean, as every school-boy knows, "farewell +to the flesh"), because during Lent good Catholics should abjure "the +world, the flesh, and the devil," and refrain from eating meat. In +Ghent the Monday of that week is called _Zotten-Maanday_, or Fools' +Monday, and all over Belgium the next day (Shrove Tuesday in England) +is called _Mardi Gras_--that is, Fat Tuesday--the day on which people +can eat and drink as much as they like before beginning to fast. + +During the Carnival people go about the streets in fancy dress, +sometimes with their faces hidden by masks. Often they are dressed as +clowns, and make a great noise, blowing horns, dancing, singing, and +making fools of themselves in every possible way. In the shops bags of +confetti are sold--little bits of coloured paper, like what you see in +England too--which you may throw at other people, whether you know +them or not. The children have often great fun, covering each other +with these bits of paper, which stick in the hair and are very +difficult to shake off. In some of the streets at Brussels the +pavements are carpeted all the time of the Carnival with thousands of +these small pink, yellow, and white fragments, which the people have +been throwing about. Then there are false noses, wigs, and other +disguises, so that you may pass people you know quite well without an +idea who they are. A person may speak to you; you fancy you know the +voice, but a beard, and perhaps a long blue nose, hide the face, and +you are in doubt. A handful of confetti is thrown in your face, and in +a moment the figure is gone and lost in the crowd. + +A few years ago there was a Carnival procession in most of the towns, +and then all the huge wickerwork giants were carried about. They all +have names. The Brussels giant is Ommegan. In another town there is, +or was, one called Goliath. There is a very old giant called Lange +Man, or Long Man. He is probably still to be seen at Hasselt, in the +South of Belgium, which was his native place. A good many years ago he +was carried through the streets on a car drawn by four horses, and all +the poor people got soup, which he was supposed to give them in memory +of a famine from which the town had suffered at one time. A good deal +of money is collected for the poor during the Carnival by people who +go about with boxes, into which everyone is expected to put +something. + +There are not so many Carnival processions as there used to be, and +within the last two or three years they have been entirely given up in +some places. But the Carnival goes on, with more or less gaiety, +everywhere. There are few towns where masked balls do not take place, +and these usually last all night, so that some of the dancers never go +to bed. During the Carnival most of the public-houses remain open all +night, and there is dancing in them, and a great deal of noise. + +The fourth Sunday in Lent is called Mi-Carême, or, in Flemish, +_Half-Vasten_, when the fun of the Carnival is renewed; and on that +day a person like Santa Claus, whom you know in England, makes his +appearance. He is called _De Greef van Half-Fasten_--that is, the +Count of Mi-Carême--and comes to give presents to all good children. +But he is so like Santa Claus that we shall leave him alone in the +meantime, for I shall presently be telling you what Santa Claus does +in Belgium. + +There is, however, another Count who does not visit England--the Count +of Nut Land, who rides along with a sack of nuts, which he throws +about for anyone to pick up. Strange to say, cracking these nuts is +supposed to be a cure for toothache! Is not that a funny idea? + + + + +CHAPTER XI + +CHILDREN'S WINTER FESTIVALS + + +Very young children in Belgium look forward to the evening before +November 11, which is the Day of St. Martin, because they have heard +that something very exciting is going to happen. + +Their parents make them stand in a corner, with their faces to the +wall. They must not look round, for if they do nothing will happen. +But if they are not inquisitive, ask no questions, and stand quite +still, a shower of nuts and apples suddenly falls on the floor behind +them. They are told that these have been thrown down from heaven by +St. Martin, and they at once turn round and scramble for them. + +There is another thing which is sometimes done on St. Martin's Eve. +The father, or some big boy, comes into the younger children's +bedroom, dressed up as the saint, with a beard and robes, and asks how +the children have been behaving. If he is told they have been good, he +gives them apples or sweetmeats; but if he hears they have been +naughty, he pulls out a whip, throws it down, and leaves the room. + +At Malines, and perhaps elsewhere, the children of poor people have a +little procession of their own on St. Martin's Day, when they dress up +and go about singing from house to house. One of them, who is dressed +as St. Martin, carries a large basket, into which the people at whose +doors they ring put apples or money. At another town, called Furnes, +there is also a procession of children, who carry paper lanterns, with +lighted candles in them, and march singing through the streets. The +same thing is done in the country round Bruges, where the children +visit the farm-houses at night, singing and asking for apples and +nuts. + +There are cakes, called _gauffres_, which are often eaten on St. +Martin's Day, and are therefore sometimes called St. Martin's cakes. +That favourite saint is so much spoken of in connection with eating +good things that in the Valley of the Meuse they call him _le bon +vivant_, which means the person who lives well. + +Just as in England bonfires are lighted on Guy Fawkes' Day, November +5, so in Belgium they light them on the evening of St. Martin's Day. +Indeed, they are known as St. Martin's fires, and the children call +lighting a bonfire "warming the good St. Martin." + +About a month after St. Martin's comes the Day of St. +Nicholas--December 6. During the night before this saint is supposed +to ride through the sky, over the fields and above the housetops, +mounted on a donkey or a white horse, with a great basket stuffed +full of toys, fruit, sweetmeats, and other nice things. Down the +chimney of every house where there are children sleeping he drops some +of these things, if the children have been good, or a whip if they +have been naughty. + +So on the Eve of St. Nicholas Belgian children, before they go to bed, +fill their shoes, or sometimes a basket, with hay or carrots, and +place them near the chimney of their sleeping-room, so that when St. +Nicholas comes to the house he may find something for his donkey or +horse to eat, and in return leave presents for them. + +Having made these preparations, the children ought to sing or repeat +verses addressed to the saint. Here is one of them--the one they sing +at Lierre: + + "Sinte Niklaes, + Nobele Sinte Niklaes! + Werpiet in myn Schoentjen + Een Appeltjen of een limoentjen!" + +This means in English: "Noble Saint Nicholas, please throw into my +little shoe just a small apple or lemon." + +There is another of these rhymes which is not so polite, in which the +saint is told that if he gives something, the child will serve him for +life, but if he doesn't, the child will not serve him at all! + +[Illustration: A FARMSTEADING.] + +Next morning the children wake early, and jump out of bed to see what +has happened during the night. They expect to find, if St. Nicholas is +pleased with them, that the hay and carrots have disappeared, and +that their shoes are full of presents; but that if they have not been +good enough, the shoes will just be as they were the night before, and +a birch-rod stuck into the hay. But, as you may suppose, it always +turns out that St. Nicholas is pleased. The presents are there, and +amongst them there is sure to be a gingerbread figure of the saint, +which they may eat or not, as they please; so they are happy for the +rest of the day. + +St. Nicholas, you see, is much the same as Santa Claus, for whom +stockings are hung up in England. + +About a fortnight after this comes December 21, dedicated to St. +Thomas, when Belgian children can play tricks on their parents in a +curious way. The game is to get your father or mother to leave the +house, and then lock the door and refuse to let them in till they have +promised to give you something. A child will say: "Mother, somebody +wants to speak to you in the garden." The mother goes out. Of course +there is nobody there; and when she comes back the child calls out: +"St. Thomas's Day! What will you give me to let you in?" So the mother +promises something, which is usually chocolate, with a piece of +_cramique_--a kind of bread with currants in it--and not till then is +the door opened. This, of course, is great fun for the children, who +always hope that their parents have forgotten what day it is, and so +will be easily tricked. + +A week later is the Festival of SS. Innocents, or _Allerkinderendag_ +(the day of all the children), as it is called in Flemish, which is +observed in memory of the slaughter of the children by Herod. On this +day Belgian children are supposed to change places with their parents, +wear their best clothes, and rule the household. + +They can put on their parents' clothes, and go about the house making +as much noise as they like, teasing the servants and giving them +orders. The youngest girl has the privilege of telling the cook what +she is to prepare for dinner; and all the children may go out and walk +about dressed up as old people. This is not often seen now, though +poor children sometimes put on their parents' things, and beg from +door to door, calling themselves "the little fathers and mothers." + +These winter festivals, when the children have so much liberty and get +so many presents, take the place in Belgium of the Christmas-trees and +parties you have in England. + + + + +CHAPTER XII + +THE ARCHERS: GAMES PLAYED IN BELGIUM + + +Let us imagine we are taking a walk along some country road in +Flanders on a summer afternoon. There is a cinder-track for cyclists +on one side, and the lines of a district railway on the other. The +road between them is causeway, very hard, dusty, and hot to walk on. +But we can step on to the railway, and walk between the rails, or take +to the cycle-track. If a train comes up behind, the engine-driver will +whistle to give us warning, but we must keep a sharp lookout for +cyclists, who seldom ring their bells, but rush swiftly and silently +past, and perhaps shout something rude to us for being on their track. +There are no fences or hedges, but a straggling row of tall +poplar-trees on each side of the road, and beyond them square fields +of rye or pasturage divided by ditches of stagnant water. + +It will not be long before we come to a village, a row of white +cottages with roofs of red tiles, and outside window-shutters painted +green. In front of each cottage there is a pathway of rough stones, +and a gutter full of dirty water. There are about fifty of these +cottages, of which half a dozen or so have signboards with _Herberg_, +which means public-house, over their doors. The railway passes close +in front of them. A little way back from the road there is a church, +with a clock-tower, and a snug-looking house, standing in a garden, +where the parish priest lives. + +Just outside the village we notice a meadow, in which there is a +wooden shed open at one side, with benches in it, and reminding us of +the little pavilions we often see on village cricket-grounds in +England. The part of the meadow just in front of this shed is covered +with cinders or gravel, in the middle of which rises a very high pole, +tapering towards the top, and looking like a gigantic fishing-rod +stuck in the ground. It is crossed, a long way up, by slender spars, +like the yards of a ship, only they are no thicker than a +walking-stick. On these spars, and along the pole itself near the top, +a number of little wooden pegs, with tufts of yellow worsted attached +to them, are fixed. One bigger than the rest is perched on the very +summit of the pole, which bends over slightly to one side. They look +like toy canaries, but are called "pigeons," and they are put there as +marks to be shot at with bows and arrows. + +Presently a number of men come from the village, each with a long-bow +and some arrows. It is a holiday, and the local Society of Archers is +going to spend the afternoon shooting for prizes. One of them takes +his stand close to the foot of the pole, fits an arrow on his +bowstring, aims steadily, and shoots straight up. It needs a good deal +of strength, as the bow is stiff to bend. The arrow flies whistling +among the "birds," touches one or two without bringing them down, +rises high above the top of the pole, turns in the air, and comes down +again to the ground with a thud. It is the duty of two or three boys +to pick up the arrows, and bring them back to the shooters. The arrows +are blunt, but to protect their heads these boys wear hats with thick +flat crowns and very broad brims, which make them look like big +mushrooms with legs as they run about to fetch the arrows. + +When a bird is hit fair and square it comes down, and the shot is +cheered. Sometimes shot after shot is fired, and nothing falls, +especially if there is a wind. But the interest never flags, and the +shooting goes on for hours. There is a great deal of talking and +laughing, much beer is drunk in the pavilion, and the fun only ends +when the light fails. + +This is the great national sport of Belgium. There is scarcely a town +or village which has not a Society of Archers, called generally after +St. Sebastian, the patron saint of archers. Many of them were founded +600 years ago, at the time when the famous archers of England were +showing how well they could hold their own with the bow against +knights clad in heavy armour. In 1303 a society called the +Confraternity of the Archers of St. Sebastian was founded at Ypres, a +town in Flanders, to celebrate a great battle, the Battle of the +Golden Spurs, in which the Flemings had been victorious over the +French the year before, and this society still exists. The chief +Society of Archers in Brabant in the old days was at Louvain, and it +was founded just three years before that Battle of Cressy of which you +have so often heard, when, as the old chronicler Froissart says, the +English arrows flew so thick that it seemed to snow. + +Thus the history of this national sport goes back to the time when +arrows were used in battle, and men had to practise constantly with +their bows in order to be able to defend their country or attack their +enemies. But when the use of firearms became universal, and archers +were no longer employed in warfare, the societies still continued to +exist, and their meetings gradually became what they now are--social +gatherings for the practice of archery as a form of sport. + +At Bruges there is a company of archers called the Society of St. +Sebastian, whose club-house was built with money given by Charles II. +of England, who lived in that town for some time when he was an exile; +and it may interest you to know that Queen Victoria, when on a visit +to Bruges, became a member of this society, and afterwards sent two +silver cups as prizes to be shot for. + +Another form of this sport is shooting with crossbows at a target. St. +George is the patron generally of those who use the crossbow. The +Society of St. George at Bruges has a curious festival, which is +observed in February. It is called the _Hammekensfeest_, or festival +of the ham. The shooting takes place in a hall, where a supper-table +is laid with various dishes of ham, salads, fish, and other eatables. +The target is divided into spaces marked with the names of the dishes. +If anyone hits a space marked, for example, ham, he may go and help +himself to ham; but if someone else, shooting after him, hits the same +place, he must then give up his seat. In the bull's-eye of the target +there is the figure of an ape, and if anyone hits that he can eat of +any dish he pleases. You may suppose what an amusing supper-party this +is, when all the guests are shooting and eating by turns, and no one +knows whether he may not have to rise suddenly and give up his place +to somebody else. + +There are many other customs and festivals connected with the archer +societies, which are very flourishing in Belgium, chiefly among the +_petite bourgeoisie_. + +There are athletic clubs in Belgium, and rowing is a favourite sport, +especially at Ghent. Two years on end the Ghent Rowing Club won the +Grand Challenge Shield at Henley, beating all the English crews which +rowed against them. + +As in all countries, the children have many games. One, which they +call _balle dans la maison_ (ball in the house), is much the same as +rounders, and there is another game called _camp ruiné_, which girls +play at school. There are two sides. A ball is thrown up, and each +side tries to prevent the other catching it. Each player who is +prevented has to join the opposite side or camp, and so on till one +camp is "ruined" by losing all its occupants. + +There is a very popular game among Belgian working-men called the _jeu +de balle_. There are five players on each side, who stand on two large +courts marked on the ground. The ball is served by hitting it with the +hand (as at fives) by a player on one side over the line which divides +the courts, and is returned in the same way by a player on the other +side. The ball must not touch the ground, and is taken full pitch. A +point is lost by the side which sends a ball outside the lines of the +court into which it ought to have been served or returned. The points +count fifteen, thirty, forty, and five for the last, which wins the +game. + +This is the chief game played by working-men in Belgium. In some +places it seems to be quite unknown, but in others it is very popular. +But there are so many rules that it is impossible fully to understand +it without seeing it played, or to explain it without a diagram +showing the positions of the players, who have all different names, +like men fielding at cricket. The _jeu de boule_, which you may hear +mentioned in Belgium, is quite different from the _jeu de balle_, and +is much the same as skittles. + +[Illustration: PLAYING "JEU DE BOULE," AT A FLEMISH INN.] + +Of the more important games football is the most popular in Belgium. +Great crowds assemble to watch the matches, which are always played +under "Association" rules. Rugby football would be impossible for +Belgians, because they would never keep their tempers when caught +and thrown down. There would be constant rows, and no match would ever +be finished. As it is, there is a great deal of quarrelling, and when +one town plays another the visitors, if they win, are hooted, and +sometimes attacked, when they are leaving the ground. Lately, after a +football match in Flanders, knives were drawn, and some of the players +had to escape in a motor-car. + +Cricket has lately been tried, but it has not as yet spread much, and +is not likely to become very popular, as it requires too much patience +and steadiness for Belgian young men and boys. Lawn-tennis and hockey, +however, are quite the fashion, especially lawn-tennis, which many +Belgians, ladies as well as men, play extremely well. Important tennis +tournaments are held every summer at Ostend and other places on the +coast. + +In recent years several golf-courses have been made in Belgium. There +is one at a place called Le Coq, near Ostend, where Leopold II., the +present King of the Belgians, founded a club. It is very pretty, and +there is a fine club-house; but good English players do not like it, +because the course is too artificial, with flower-beds and ornamental +shrubs, whereas a golf-course ought to be as natural as possible. Golf +is played also at Brussels, Antwerp, Nieuport, and Ghent. + +Another place for golf is Knocke, a seaside village near Bruges, where +the game was introduced by a few Englishmen some years ago. The +golf-course at this place is laid out among the dunes, and is +entirely natural, with "bunkers" of fine sand. A great many players go +there from England and Scotland, as well as from various parts of +Belgium, and the Flemish "caddies," who cheerfully carry the clubs for +5d. a round, speak English quite well, and know all about the "Royal +and Ancient Game." + + + + +CHAPTER XIII + +WHAT THE BELGIANS SPEAK + + +Three different languages are spoken in Belgium. These are Flemish, +Walloon, and French. Flemish is spoken in Flanders, in the provinces +of Antwerp and Limbourg, and in a part of Brabant. Walloon is the +language of Liége and the Valley of the Meuse, Luxembourg, and the +western districts. French is spoken all over the country. Some +Belgians speak nothing but Flemish, some nothing but Walloon, and some +nothing but French. A great many speak both Flemish and French, and +there are some who speak all three languages. + +Though Flemish is the language of the majority of Belgians, most of +the books, newspapers, and magazines are published in French, which is +the "official" language--that is to say, it is the language of the +Court and the Government--and all well-educated Belgians can speak, +read, and write it. In Brussels almost everyone speaks French. + +Though many Belgians know French thoroughly, they speak it with an +accent of their own, which is unlike anything you hear in France, just +as English people speak French or German with an English accent. So +Belgium is not a good place to go to if you want to learn French. The +worst French is spoken in East Flanders and the best in Ypres. + +There is a great likeness between Flemish and Dutch, which were +originally one language, and a book printed in Flemish is almost +exactly the same as a Dutch book. But there are many different ways of +pronouncing Flemish. The accent of Ghent is so different from that of +Bruges that the people of these towns do not always understand each +other, and in neither do they speak with the accent which is used in +Antwerp. Thus, in little Belgium there are not only three different +languages, but various ways of speaking Flemish, the original language +of the country. So French is not only the official language, but the +most useful for travellers to know. + +Though French is the official language, there are laws which have been +made to allow the use of Flemish in the law courts, and Belgian +officers must be able to command the soldiers in Flemish. In the +_Moniteur_ (a paper like the _London Gazette_) Royal Proclamations, +and things of that sort, are published in both Flemish and French. +Railway-tickets are printed in both languages. So are the names of the +streets in some towns. In the Belgian Parliament, though the members +generally make their speeches in French, they may use Flemish if they +like, and they sometimes do. + +Walloon may be described as a very old form of French, but though the +Walloons are the most active and industrious of all the Belgians, +their language is not much known, and you will never hear it spoken +except in the Valley of the Meuse, and in the country parts of +South-West Belgium. + +The three Belgian words for Christmas are _Kerstdag_ in Flemish, +_Noël_ in French, and _Nouée_ in Walloon. + + + + +CHAPTER XIV + +A SHORT HISTORY + + +I must write just one chapter on Belgian history. + +Dates are tiresome things, though they are useful pegs, so to speak, +on which to hang the facts of history, and help us to recollect the +order in which they happened. However, we shall not bother with many +dates. I shall make the whole story as plain and simple as possible; +and, besides, you can skip it all if you find it too stupid and dull. + +The first thing to understand about the tiny corner of Europe which is +now called Belgium is that very long ago it was divided into a great +many small States, each of which was ruled over by some Duke, or +Count, or Baron, or some noble with another title, who made peace or +war with his neighbours, just as the Kings of Europe do nowadays. +There were the Dukes of Brabant, and the Counts of Flanders and of +Namur, the Lords of Malines, and the Bishop-Princes of Liége, and many +more. You will see where their States lay if you look at the map. + +The most famous was Flanders, for the great Flemish cities, such as +Ghent, Bruges, and Ypres, became strong and rich by reason of their +trade and manufactures. + +In the towns the merchants and tradesmen were banded together in +societies called guilds. There were guilds of weavers, and butchers, +and other trades; and they defended themselves so well against the +nobles, who often tried to attack their liberties, that the towns +became strongholds of freedom. + +But, unfortunately, they were always quarrelling. Each town wanted to +be richer than its neighbour. Each town cared only for itself, so they +often fought. Ghent wanted to ruin Ypres, and the men of Ghent helped +an English army to attack Ypres. At other times the guildsmen of +Bruges fought against those of Ghent. Thus for many years this part of +Europe was divided into petty States, and the towns, in spite of their +wealth and freedom, were always rebelling against their Princes, or +fighting with each other. And all this time, close at hand and +watchful, there was a mighty State, called "The Burgundies," whose +dominions were ever stretching farther and farther. + +At last a day came when a certain Count of Flanders died, leaving no +heir male, and a Duke of Burgundy, called Philip the Hardy, married a +Flemish Princess, and obtained possession of Flanders. Gradually after +that the Dukes of Burgundy became rulers of all the country which we +now call Belgium, except the Principality of Liége, which remained +independent under its Bishop-Princes till recent times. + +The last Duke of Burgundy was Charles the Bold, a brave warrior, but +very fierce and cruel. He was killed in a battle, and his daughter, +Mary of Burgundy, married an Austrian Archduke called Maximilian; and +then Flanders, Brabant, and the other places we have spoken of, passed +under the Austrian Royal Family, which is called the House of +Hapsburg. + +Maximilian and Mary had a son, called Philip the Handsome, who married +Joanna the Mad, daughter of King Ferdinand of Spain. The son of this +marriage was Charles V., who was neither mad nor handsome, but one of +the most famous men in history. He not only ruled over the +Netherlands, as Belgium and Holland were called, but also over Spain, +and all the immense Spanish Empire, and was, moreover, Emperor of +Germany. + +After reigning for forty years, Charles V. gave up his royal honours +to his son Philip; and then began a terrible time for the Netherlands. + +Philip hated the liberty which the people of the Netherlands loved. +They had, especially in the towns, been accustomed to make laws for +themselves, which their old Dukes and Counts, and also the Hapsburgs, +had always sworn to maintain. But Philip resolved to put an end to all +this freedom, and to be their absolute master. + +[Illustration: VILLAGE & CANAL, ADINKERQUE.] + +He also hated the Protestants, of whom there were many in the +Netherlands, and resolved to destroy them. For this purpose he +introduced a kind of court, called the Inquisition, which inquired +into the religious faith of everyone, and sent people to be tortured +and burned to death if they were not Catholics. + +The people became furious against Philip, and rebelled in defence of +their liberty, and against the Inquisition. For a long time the +contest, which is called the "Revolt of the Netherlands," went on. +Philip was enormously rich, and had a great army and a strong fleet. +The Spanish soldiers, whom he let loose upon the people, were cruel, +as well as highly trained. Men, women, and children were tortured, +robbed, burnt to death, killed in battle, and murdered in cold blood +by thousands. Few things, if any, more terrible have been known in the +history of the world. + +The chief Protestant leader was that Prince of Orange called William +the Silent, of whom you must often have heard. After the contest had +continued for some years, instead of being dismayed, he was more +resolute than ever, and persuaded the Southern or Belgian part of the +Netherlands, and the Northern or Dutch part, to promise that they +would help each other, and fight against the Spaniards till they were +free. + +But in a very short time the Southern and the Northern Netherlands +drifted apart. The Dutch stood firm, and were saved in the long, weary +struggle. They shook off the yoke of Spain, and gained their liberty. +The Belgians halted between two opinions, and were lost. Most of them +were Catholics, which made it easier for them to submit to Philip. But +the most industrious of the population fled, and the trade and +manufactures which had made their country prosperous went to Holland. +After that, a great historian says, "the Flemish and Brabantine cities +were mere dens of thieves and beggars." + +The Spaniards ruled over Belgium, which was now called the "Spanish +Netherlands," till a daughter of Philip's, Isabella by name, married +an Austrian Archduke called Albert. They received Belgium as a +wedding-gift. The bride's father, the tyrant Philip, died about that +time, and Albert and Isabella went to Brussels, where the people, in +spite of the miserable state of their country, had a fine time of it +with banquets, processions, and fireworks. + +But two more changes were at hand. When Albert died Belgium went back +to Spain; and once again, after long wars, during one of which +Brussels was nearly all destroyed by fire, it was handed over to +Austria. This was in the year 1714; and after that it was called the +"Austrian Netherlands." + +Thus, you see, the Belgians were constantly being passed from one set +of masters to another, like a race of slaves. They had not stuck to +the brave Dutch, and fought on till they were free, and so never could +tell who were to be their next rulers. + +This could not be good for the character of any people. However, they +were, on the whole, happy under the House of Hapsburg till an Emperor +called Joseph II. came to the Austrian throne. He was a good man, and +wise in many ways, but he made the mistake of trying to bring in new +laws and customs which the people did not like. Belgium had been sunk, +ever since the time of Philip II., in poverty and ignorance. All the +people wished for was to be let alone, to amuse themselves, and to +have peace. But Joseph II. wanted to raise them up, and, most of all, +to spread knowledge and education among them. + +The Austrian Netherlands--that is, Belgium--were more Catholic than +ever, and all the Bishops and priests were up in arms against the +reforms proposed by Joseph; and there was a revolution, which had not +finished when he died. It came to an end, however, soon after his +death, when the Catholics got all they wanted, though the Austrians +remained in power. But the country had become restless. Its +restlessness was increased by the French Revolution, which was now in +full progress; and all was ripe for another change of rulers, which +soon came. + +The French Republicans, who beheaded their own King and his Queen (who +was, by-the-by, a sister of Joseph II.), invaded Belgium, driving out +the Austrians, and made it a part of France. + +One thing the French did was very popular with the Belgians. It was +this: there was a treaty, called the Treaty of Münster, made as long +before as the year 1648, which declared that the Dutch were to have +control of the Scheldt, and ever since then that splendid river, on +which Antwerp stands, had been closed, so that the trade of Antwerp, +the great Belgian seaport, had been entirely ruined. The French now +declared the Scheldt a free river, to be used by all nations. This was +tidings of great joy to the Belgians; but England would not allow the +Treaty of Münster to be torn up in this way, and a war began between +England and France, which lasted till the fall of Napoleon in 1814. + +During all that war Belgium was ruled by the French. When Napoleon +gave up his throne, and was sent to the Island of Elba, the Great +Powers met to settle Europe, which he had turned upside down. One of +the things they had to decide was what should be done with the +Austrian Netherlands, and the plan they arranged seemed a very good +one. + +Austria did not want Belgium, and the plan was to make that country, +the Principality of Liége, and Holland, into one state, and call it +the "Kingdom of the Netherlands." It was to be ruled over by one of +the Orange family, a descendant of William the Silent. + +And there was something more. The William of Orange who was to be King +of the Netherlands had a son, and the English arranged that this son +should marry our Princess Charlotte, who was heir to the throne of +England; and so all the coasts of the Netherlands opposite England, +with Antwerp and the Scheldt, were to be in the hands of a friendly +nation allied by marriage to the English Royal Family. The proposed +marriage was publicly announced in March, 1814, but it never took +place. The Princess Charlotte married a German, called Prince Leopold +of Saxe-Coburg, and the young Prince of Orange married a Russian Grand +Duchess. + +The Kingdom of the Netherlands, however, was set up; and at the Battle +of Waterloo, which was fought in June, 1815, after Napoleon escaped +from Elba, a force of Netherlanders, some of them Dutch and some of +them Belgians, fought under the Duke of Wellington, when he gained the +great victory which brought peace to Europe. + +And now it was supposed that the Belgians would settle quietly down, +and form one people with the Dutch, who spoke a language so like their +own Flemish, and who came of the same race. But not a bit of it. The +Dutch were mostly Protestants, and almost all the Belgians were +Catholics. There were disputes about questions of religion from the +very first. Disagreements followed on one subject after another; and, +to make a long story short, in fifteen years there was a revolution in +the Belgian provinces of the new kingdom. + +The Belgians proclaimed their wish to make a kingdom of their own, and +once more the Great Powers met to consider what was to be done with +them this time. The meeting was in London, where five very shrewd and +wily gentlemen, from England, France, Russia, Austria, and Prussia, +sat and talked to each other for week after week about what they +should do with this broken kingdom, which was, as it were, thrown on +their hands. They were far too polite to quarrel openly; but Russia, +Prussia, and Austria would have liked to force the Belgians to keep to +what had been arranged in 1814, while England and France were on the +side of the Belgians. On one thing, and one thing only, they all +agreed, and that was not to have another European war. + +In the long run England and France managed to persuade the others that +the best thing was to let the Belgians have their own way, and choose +a King for themselves. They first set their affections on a son of +Louis Philippe, the King of France, and asked him to be their King. +But England would not hear of this, so his father told him to refuse. +Then the Belgians were advised to choose that Prince Leopold of +Saxe-Coburg who had married Princess Charlotte. She was now dead, and +he had been living in England ever since. They took this advice, and +in 1831 he accepted the offer they made him, and was crowned at +Brussels as Leopold I., King of the Belgians. + +Thereafter he married a daughter of Louis Philippe, and reigned till +the year 1865, when he died, and was succeeded by his son, Leopold +II., who is the present King. This is how the southern provinces of +the Netherlands were made into the little, independent kingdom of +Belgium. + +Since then the trade and commerce of Belgium have grown. Antwerp has +become a huge seaport; Brussels flourishes. The industries of Ghent +are prosperous. Throughout the Walloon country, from the busy forges +of Liége to the coal-mines round Mons, there is a hard-working and, on +the whole, successful people. Even fallen Bruges has lately been +struggling to rise again. + +But, unfortunately, there is another side to the picture. You have +often heard it said that "as the twig is bent, the tree grows." It is +the same with mankind. The character and manners of grown-up people +depend on how they have been trained when young. If a child is +bullied, and passed from one master to another, ill-treated and +frightened, it is apt to grow up timid and untruthful. The same thing +may be seen in nations. To this day the lower classes in Belgium bear +traces of the long period of subjection, and the race has not +recovered from the time when the Spaniards turned so many famous towns +into dens of thieves and beggars. They are very often cunning, timid +though boastful, and full of the small tricks and servile ways which +are natural in a people which once had all manliness and courage +crushed out of it. + +Another unlucky thing for the Belgians is that they quarrel dreadfully +among themselves about public questions. In all countries there are +quarrels of this sort, but in Belgium these disputes poison the whole +life of the country. They are divided into Catholics and Liberals, and +the best interests of the State are lost sight of in the squabbling +which goes on between these two parties. By the laws of Belgium all +religions are equal. There is no Established Church. The Parliament +each year finds money for the Catholic clergy, for the English +Protestant chaplains, and for those of any other faith, if there are +enough of them to form a congregation of a certain size. But this has +not brought peace. In England, as you know, only some foolish people +allow their political disputes to interfere with their private +friendships, or with their amusements. But in Belgium the Catholics +and the Liberals never forget their differences. It is like the time +when the Jews had no dealings with the Samaritans. There are Catholic +football clubs and Liberal football clubs; the public-houses are +either Catholic or Liberal; and even children are taught at school to +have feelings of this sort. One day a small girl was asked out to tea +with some English children. When the hour came, her mother found her +crying, and asked her what was the matter. "I'm afraid," she sobbed, +"to go and play with these little heretics!" + +[Illustration: WATERLOO: THE FARM OF LA BELLE ALLIANCE AND THE MOUND +SURMOUNTED BY THE BELGIAN LION.] + +The great quarrel is about education. The Liberals want to make a law +that all children must go to school, but the Catholics will not agree +to this. The priests have so much influence, and work so hard at +the elections, that, except in Brussels, Liége, and a few more places, +the people are frightened to vote against them. So there has always +been a Catholic Government in power for the last twenty-five years. + +The Great Powers, when they allowed the Belgians to have their own way +and choose a King for themselves, took Belgium under their protection, +and made it a "neutral state"--that is to say, a country which may not +be attacked or entered by the armies of other nations which are +fighting each other, and which is not permitted to make war on other +countries. This was a great blessing for the Belgians, because their +country is so small and weak, and so many battles used to be fought in +it that it was called "the cock-pit of Europe." But whether the people +of a neutral state are ever likely to be brave and self-sacrificing is +another thing. + + + + +CHAPTER XV + +THE BELGIAN ARMY: THE CONGO + + +Though Belgium is a neutral state, living under the protection of the +Great Powers of Europe, the Belgians are afraid that some day, if +these Powers quarrel with each other and begin to fight, armies may +march into their country and turn it once more into a battle-field; or +perhaps one of the Powers may wish to take a part of Belgium, or some +Belgian town, such as Antwerp, and rule over it. So this little +kingdom must have an army to defend itself till some powerful nation +comes to help it. + +The Belgian force actually under arms consists of only about 40,000 +soldiers, but it can be raised to 200,000, if there is a danger of +war, by calling out the "reserves," or men who have been trained, but +are no longer with their regiments. In order to keep up this force of +40,000 it is necessary to find about 13,000 new men each year. But the +Belgians do not like to be soldiers, and it is very difficult to +persuade them to join the army. Last year only 1,000 would do so, +which seems very few for a country in which there are 7,000,000 +people. It has been the same for years. So there is a law called the +Conscription, by which the necessary numbers are forced to serve. + +This is how they manage the conscription: in February of each year all +the boys who become nineteen in that year must go and draw lots to +decide which of them are to enter the army. + +The drawing generally takes place in the _Hotel de Ville_ of the chief +town in the part of the country to which the boys belong. On the +appointed day all the families in which there are sons liable to serve +flock into the town, and a great crowd gathers outside the building. +The lads who are to draw lots go in, and find some officials waiting +for them. Each boy has to put his hand into the ballot-box and draw +out a paper on which there is a number. Suppose there are 150 boys, +and 50 are wanted for the army, then those who draw the 50 lowest +numbers are those who have to serve. Each boy draws out his paper, and +gives it to an official, who calls out the number. If it is a number +above 50, he is free, and runs out shouting with joy; but if it is one +of the lower numbers, he goes out sadly to tell his family that he has +drawn a "bad" number. + +While the drawing goes on, the fathers and mothers, brothers and +sisters, and their friends, wait outside in the greatest anxiety. +There are cheers and joyful greetings when a boy with a "good" number +comes out, and groans of pity for those who have been unlucky. And +when the drawing is done, and everyone knows his fate, they all go off +to the public-houses. Those who have drawn lucky numbers get drunk +from joy, while those who have to serve in the army try to forget +their sorrow in drinking. Very often their families and friends do the +same, and so it comes to pass that every February there are horrible +scenes--men and women, boys and girls, reeling about the streets, +shouting, singing, quarrelling, and behaving in the most disgraceful +way. It is quite different from Germany, where every boy knows he must +be trained to defend his country, and where almost everyone is proud +of being a soldier. + +If, however, the father of a boy who has drawn an unlucky number is +rich enough to pay for another to take his place, he may do so. This +system is called the _Remplacement_, and almost every father buys his +son off if he can afford it. Many Belgians think this system unfair, +and the officers of the army do not like it. Perhaps, before very +long, there may be a change, and a new law made by which all boys will +have to serve for a certain time. The Catholics have always been in +favour of the _Remplacement_, while the Liberals have been against it. +But it is said that the King wishes to abolish it, and try some new +plan. So very likely the Catholics will give in, and there will be no +more drawing of lots and buying off, but a system of universal +service, which will be a very good thing for Belgium. + +Though the trade of Belgium is very large indeed for the size of the +country, the Belgians have no navy, and not many merchant-ships. But +they have lately plunged into an adventure which may force them to +have merchant-ships and men-of-war to defend them; for this small +country has taken possession of a huge part of Central Africa, ever so +many times bigger than Belgium itself. + +About twenty-five years ago Leopold II., the present King of the +Belgians, was made ruler over this part of Africa, which is called the +Congo State, because of a magnificent river, the Congo, which flows +through it. It was the Great Powers of Europe who made him ruler, and +they made him promise that he would abolish slavery, allow all nations +to trade freely there, and do all he could to civilize the natives. +But after some time ugly stories began to reach Europe about what was +being done by King Leopold's servants in that distant part of the +world. The Congo is a country full of rich products, and it was said +that the King was breaking his promises: that he was making heaps of +money by forcing the natives to work as slaves, that all their lands +were taken from them, that people were cruelly tortured, that whole +villages were destroyed, that the soldiers hired by King Leopold were +cannibals, and that he would not allow free trading. + +There is no doubt whatever that the King was making a great deal of +money, and that many shameful and wicked things were done in the +Congo. The King never went there himself, but both he and his friends, +who were also making money, said that the English (for it was the +English who found most fault with him) were jealous, and that +everything was going well. Nevertheless bad news kept arriving from +the Congo, and many of the Belgians themselves became as angry as the +English, and said something must be done to stop what was going on. At +last the Belgian Parliament resolved that the only way to save the +Congo was to make it a Belgian colony, and try if they could not +govern it better than King Leopold. + +So in the year 1908, after long debates and much curious bargaining +between the King and his people, the Congo State became a Belgian +colony. It remains to be seen whether they can govern it wisely, for +as yet they have no experience in such matters. Few Belgians like to +speak about the Congo. They shake their heads, and say it will cost a +great deal of money, and bring danger to their country. + +The scene when a ship sails from Antwerp for the Congo is unlike +anything you will see at home. When a ship leaves an English port for +India or the Colonies, the travellers go on board without any fuss, +with perhaps a few private friends to see them off. But when a liner +starts for the Congo, there is much excitement. A crowd assembles; +flags fly; a band plays the Belgian National Anthem; hawkers go about +selling photographs of _le départ pour le Congo_; and a steam-tug, +decorated with flags, and with a band of music playing, accompanies +the liner some distance down the Scheldt. The Belgians, you see, are +so fond of hoisting flags and hearing bands of music on every possible +occasion that they can't help doing it even when there is really +nothing to get excited about. + +And now, having taken this peep at Belgium, we shall leave these +adventurers sailing away to their Congo, and, hoping they will find +wisdom to steer wisely (in more ways than one) and so avoid shipwreck, +wish them _bon voyage_. + + * * * * * + + + + +LIST OF VOLUMES IN THE PEEPS AT MANY LANDS SERIES + +EACH CONTAINING 12 FULL-PAGE ILLUSTRATIONS IN COLOUR + + +BELGIUM INDIA +BURMA IRELAND +CANADA ITALY +CHINA JAMAICA +CORSICA JAPAN +EGYPT MOROCCO +ENGLAND NEW ZEALAND +FINLAND NORWAY +FRANCE SCOTLAND +GERMANY SIAM +GREECE SOUTH AFRICA +HOLLAND SOUTH SEAS +HOLY LAND SWITZERLAND +ICELAND WALES + + * * * * * + + +A LARGER VOLUME IN THE SAME STYLE + +THE WORLD + +Containing 37 full-page illustrations in colour + + * * * * * + +PUBLISHED BY ADAM AND CHARLES BLACK + +SOHO SQUARE, LONDON, W. + + * * * * * + +AGENTS + + +AMERICA THE MACMILLAN COMPANY + 64 & 66 FIFTH AVENUE, NEW YORK + +AUSTRALASIA OXFORD UNIVERSITY PRESS + 205 FLINDERS LANE, MELBOURNE + +CANADA THE MACMILLAN COMPANY OF CANADA, LTD. + 27 RICHMOND STREET WEST, TORONTO + +INDIA MACMILLAN & COMPANY, LTD. + MACMILLAN BUILDING, BOMBAY + 309 BOW BAZAAR STREET, CALCUTTA + + * * * * * + +OTHER BOOKS + +FOR + +BOYS & GIRLS + +ILLUSTRATED IN COLOUR LIKE THE + +PEEPS AT MANY LANDS + + * * * * * + +PRICE 3/6 EACH + +ALL WITH FULL-PAGE ILLUSTRATIONS IN COLOUR + +_Large crown 8vo., cloth_ + + * * * * * + +By JOHN FINNEMORE + +THE STORY OF ROBIN HOOD AND HIS MERRY MEN + +8 full-page Illustrations in Colour by ALLAN STEWART + + * * * * * + +By ASCOTT R. HOPE + +BEASTS OF BUSINESS + +8 full-page Illustrations in Colour by G. VERNON STOKES and ALAN WRIGHT + + * * * * * + +By FREDERIC W. FARRAR + +ERIC; +or, Little by Little + +8 full-page Illustrations in Colour by G. D. ROWLANDSON, +and 78 in Black and White by GORDON BROWNE + + * * * * * + +ST. WINIFRED'S; +or, The World of School + +8 full-page Illustrations in Colour by DUDLEY TENNANT, +and 152 in Black and White by GORDON BROWNE + + * * * * * + +JULIAN HOME +A Tale of College Life + +8 full-page Illustrations in Colour by PATTEN WILSON + + * * * * * + +By Lieut. Col. A. F. MOCKLER-FERRYMAN + +THE GOLDEN GIRDLE + +8 full-page Illustrations in Colour by ALLAN STEWART + + * * * * * + +By JOHN FINNEMORE + +THE WOLF PATROL + +A Story of Baden-Powell's Boy Scouts + +8 full-page Illustrations in Colour by H. M. PAGET + + * * * * * + +JACK HAYDON'S QUEST + +8 full-page Illustrations in Colour by J. JELLICOE + + * * * * * + +By STANLEY WATERLOO + +A TALE OF THE TIME OF THE CAVE MEN + +8 full-page Illustrations in Colour by SIMON HARMON VEDDER + + * * * * * + +By DANIEL DEFOE + +ROBINSON CRUSOE + +8 full-page Illustrations in Colour by JOHN WILLIAMSON + + * * * * * + +By ANDREW HOME + +BY A SCHOOLBOY'S HAND + +8 full-page Illustrations in Colour by STRICKLAND BROWN + + * * * * * + +FROM FAG TO MONITOR + +8 full-page Illustrations in Colour by JOHN WILLIAMSON + + * * * * * + +By CAPTAIN COOK + +VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY + +8 full-page Illustrations in Colour by JOHN WILLIAMSON + + * * * * * + +By MUNGO PARK + +TRAVELS IN AFRICA + +8 full-page Illustrations in Colour by JOHN WILLIAMSON + + * * * * * + +By HUME NISBET + +THE DIVERS + +8 full-page Illustrations in Colour by the Author + + * * * * * + +By the DUCHESS OF BUCKINGHAM AND CHANDOS + +WILLY WIND, AND JOCK AND THE CHEESES + +57 Illustrations by J. S. ELAND (9 full-page in Colour) + + * * * * * + +By ASCOTT R. HOPE + +STORIES + +8 full-page Illustrations in Colour by DOROTHY FURNISS + + * * * * * + +By ANDREW HOME + +EXILED FROM SCHOOL + +8 full-page Illustrations in Colour by JOHN WILLIAMSON + + * * * * * + +By the Rev. R. C. GILLIE + +THE KINSFOLK AND FRIENDS OF JESUS + +16 full-page Illustrations in Colour and Sepia + + * * * * * + +PRICE 6/= EACH + +ALL WITH FULL-PAGE ILLUSTRATIONS IN COLOUR + +Large square crown 8vo., cloth + + * * * * * + +By G. E. MITTON + +THE BOOK OF THE RAILWAY + +12 full-page Illustrations in Colour by ALLAN STEWART + + * * * * * + +By Mrs. ALFRED SIDGWICK and Mrs. PAYNTER + +THE CHILDREN'S BOOK OF GARDENING + +12 full-page Illustrations in Colour by Mrs. CAYLEY-ROBINSON + + * * * * * + +By Miss CONWAY and Sir MARTIN CONWAY + +THE CHILDREN'S BOOK OF ART + +16 full-page Illustrations in Colour from Public and Private Galleries + + * * * * * + +By ELIZABETH GRIERSON + +CHILDREN'S TALES OF ENGLISH MINSTERS + +12 full-page Illustrations in Colour by various Artists + + * * * * * + +By ASCOTT R. HOPE + +ADVENTURERS IN AMERICA + +8 full-page Illustrations in Colour by HENRY SANDHAM, R.C.A. + + * * * * * + +By S. R. CROCKETT + +RED CAP ADVENTURES + +Being the Second Series of Red Cap Tales Stolen from the Treasure-Chest +of the Wizard of the North + +16 full-page Illustrations by ALLAN STEWART and others + + * * * * * + +By S. R. CROCKETT + +RED CAP TALES + +Stolen from the Treasure-Chest of the Wizard of the North + +16 full-page Illustrations in Colour by SIMON HARMON VEDDER + + * * * * * + +Translated and Abridged by DOMINICK DALY + +THE ADVENTURES OF DON QUIXOTE + +12 full-page Illustrations in Colour by STEPHEN BAGHOT DE LA BERE + + * * * * * + +GULLIVER'S TRAVELS + +16 full-page Illustrations in Colour by STEPHEN BAGHOT DE LA BERE + + * * * * * + +By ASCOTT R. HOPE + +THE ADVENTURES OF PUNCH + +12 full-page Illustrations in Colour by STEPHEN BAGHOT DE LA BERE + + * * * * * + +By DUDLEY KIDD + +THE BULL OF THE KRAAL + +A Tale of Black Children + +12 full-page Illustrations in Colour by A. M. GOODALL + + * * * * * + +By P. G. WODEHOUSE + +WILLIAM TELL TOLD AGAIN + +16 full-page Illustrations in Colour by PHILIP DADD + + * * * * * + +By JOHN BUNYAN + +THE PILGRIM'S PROGRESS + +8 full-page Illustrations in Colour by GERTRUDE DEMAIN HAMMOND, R.I. + + * * * * * + +By G. E. MITTON + +THE CHILDREN'S BOOK OF STARS + +Preface by Sir DAVID GILL, K.C.B. + +16 full-page Illustrations (11 in Colour) and 8 smaller figures in the text + + * * * * * + +By G. E. MITTON + +THE CHILDREN'S BOOK OF LONDON + +12 full-page Illustrations in Colour by JOHN WILLIAMSON + + * * * * * + +By ELIZABETH W. GRIERSON + +THE CHILDREN'S BOOK OF CELTIC STORIES + +12 full-page Illustrations in Colour by ALLAN STEWART + + * * * * * + +PRICE 6/= EACH + +ALL WITH FULL-PAGE ILLUSTRATIONS IN COLOUR + +_Large square crown 8vo., cloth_ + + * * * * * + +By ELIZABETH W. GRIERSON + +THE CHILDREN'S BOOK OF EDINBURGH + +12 full-page Illustrations in Colour by ALLAN STEWART + + * * * * * + +Edited by G. E. MITTON + +SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON + +12 full-page Illustrations in Colour by HARRY ROUNTREE + + * * * * * + +By ELIZABETH W. GRIERSON + +CHILDREN'S TALES FROM SCOTTISH BALLADS + +12 full-page Illustrations in Colour by ALLAN STEWART + + * * * * * + +By HARRIET BEECHER STOWE + +UNCLE TOM'S CABIN + +8 full-page Illustrations in Colour and many others in the text + + * * * * * + +ANIMAL AUTOBIOGRAPHIES + +Edited by G. E. MITTON + +Each volume deals entirely with the life story of some one animal, and +is not merely a collection of animal stories. It is necessary to +emphasize this, as the idea of the series has sometimes been +misunderstood. Children who have outgrown fairy-tales undoubtedly +prefer this form of story to any other, and a more wholesome way of +stimulating their interest in the living things around them could +hardly be found. + +Though the books are designed for children of all ages, many adults +have been attracted by their freshness, and have found in them much +that they did not know before. + +The autobiographical form was chosen after careful consideration in +preference to the newer method of regarding an animal through the eyes +of a human being, because it is the first aim of the series to depict +the world as animals see it, and it is not possible to do this +realistically unless the animal himself tells the story. + + * * * * * + +THE LIFE STORY OF A DOG + +By G. E. MITTON + +12 full-page Illustrations in Colour by JOHN WILLIAMSON + + * * * * * + +THE LIFE STORY OF A FOX + +By J. C. TREGARTHEN + +12 full-page Illustrations in Colour by COUNTESS HELENA GLEICHEN + + * * * * * + +THE LIFE STORY OF A FOWL + +By J. W. HURST + +12 full-page Illustrations in Colour by ALLAN STEWART and MAUDE SCRIVENER + + * * * * * + +THE LIFE STORY OF A BLACK BEAR + +By H. PERRY ROBINSON + +12 full-page Illustrations in Colour by J. VAN OORT + + * * * * * + +THE LIFE STORY OF A RAT + +By G. M. A. HEWETT + +12 full-page Illustrations in Colour by STEPHEN BAGHOT DE LA BERE + + * * * * * + +THE LIFE STORY OF A CAT + +By VIOLET HUNT + +12 full-page Illustrations in Colour by ADOLPH BIRKENRUTH + + * * * * * + +THE LIFE STORY OF A SQUIRREL + +By T. C. BRIDGES + +12 full-page Illustrations in Colour by ALLAN STEWART + + * * * * * + +PUBLISHED BY A. AND C. BLACK, SOHO SQUARE, LONDON, W. + + * * * * * + + + + + +End of Project Gutenberg's Peeps At Many Lands: Belgium, by George W. T. Omond + +*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK PEEPS AT MANY LANDS: BELGIUM *** + +***** This file should be named 19692-8.txt or 19692-8.zip ***** +This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: + http://www.gutenberg.org/1/9/6/9/19692/ + +Produced by Bruce Albrecht, Sankar Viswanathan, and the +Online Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net + + +Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions +will be renamed. + +Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no +one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation +(and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without +permission and without paying copyright royalties. Special rules, +set forth in the General Terms of Use part of this license, apply to +copying and distributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works to +protect the PROJECT GUTENBERG-tm concept and trademark. Project +Gutenberg is a registered trademark, and may not be used if you +charge for the eBooks, unless you receive specific permission. If you +do not charge anything for copies of this eBook, complying with the +rules is very easy. You may use this eBook for nearly any purpose +such as creation of derivative works, reports, performances and +research. They may be modified and printed and given away--you may do +practically ANYTHING with public domain eBooks. Redistribution is +subject to the trademark license, especially commercial +redistribution. + + + +*** START: FULL LICENSE *** + +THE FULL PROJECT GUTENBERG LICENSE +PLEASE READ THIS BEFORE YOU DISTRIBUTE OR USE THIS WORK + +To protect the Project Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting the free +distribution of electronic works, by using or distributing this work +(or any other work associated in any way with the phrase "Project +Gutenberg"), you agree to comply with all the terms of the Full Project +Gutenberg-tm License (available with this file or online at +http://gutenberg.org/license). + + +Section 1. General Terms of Use and Redistributing Project Gutenberg-tm +electronic works + +1.A. By reading or using any part of this Project Gutenberg-tm +electronic work, you indicate that you have read, understand, agree to +and accept all the terms of this license and intellectual property +(trademark/copyright) agreement. If you do not agree to abide by all +the terms of this agreement, you must cease using and return or destroy +all copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in your possession. +If you paid a fee for obtaining a copy of or access to a Project +Gutenberg-tm electronic work and you do not agree to be bound by the +terms of this agreement, you may obtain a refund from the person or +entity to whom you paid the fee as set forth in paragraph 1.E.8. + +1.B. "Project Gutenberg" is a registered trademark. It may only be +used on or associated in any way with an electronic work by people who +agree to be bound by the terms of this agreement. There are a few +things that you can do with most Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works +even without complying with the full terms of this agreement. See +paragraph 1.C below. There are a lot of things you can do with Project +Gutenberg-tm electronic works if you follow the terms of this agreement +and help preserve free future access to Project Gutenberg-tm electronic +works. See paragraph 1.E below. + +1.C. The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation ("the Foundation" +or PGLAF), owns a compilation copyright in the collection of Project +Gutenberg-tm electronic works. Nearly all the individual works in the +collection are in the public domain in the United States. If an +individual work is in the public domain in the United States and you are +located in the United States, we do not claim a right to prevent you from +copying, distributing, performing, displaying or creating derivative +works based on the work as long as all references to Project Gutenberg +are removed. Of course, we hope that you will support the Project +Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting free access to electronic works by +freely sharing Project Gutenberg-tm works in compliance with the terms of +this agreement for keeping the Project Gutenberg-tm name associated with +the work. You can easily comply with the terms of this agreement by +keeping this work in the same format with its attached full Project +Gutenberg-tm License when you share it without charge with others. + +1.D. The copyright laws of the place where you are located also govern +what you can do with this work. Copyright laws in most countries are in +a constant state of change. If you are outside the United States, check +the laws of your country in addition to the terms of this agreement +before downloading, copying, displaying, performing, distributing or +creating derivative works based on this work or any other Project +Gutenberg-tm work. The Foundation makes no representations concerning +the copyright status of any work in any country outside the United +States. + +1.E. Unless you have removed all references to Project Gutenberg: + +1.E.1. The following sentence, with active links to, or other immediate +access to, the full Project Gutenberg-tm License must appear prominently +whenever any copy of a Project Gutenberg-tm work (any work on which the +phrase "Project Gutenberg" appears, or with which the phrase "Project +Gutenberg" is associated) is accessed, displayed, performed, viewed, +copied or distributed: + +This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with +almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or +re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included +with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org + +1.E.2. If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is derived +from the public domain (does not contain a notice indicating that it is +posted with permission of the copyright holder), the work can be copied +and distributed to anyone in the United States without paying any fees +or charges. If you are redistributing or providing access to a work +with the phrase "Project Gutenberg" associated with or appearing on the +work, you must comply either with the requirements of paragraphs 1.E.1 +through 1.E.7 or obtain permission for the use of the work and the +Project Gutenberg-tm trademark as set forth in paragraphs 1.E.8 or +1.E.9. + +1.E.3. If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is posted +with the permission of the copyright holder, your use and distribution +must comply with both paragraphs 1.E.1 through 1.E.7 and any additional +terms imposed by the copyright holder. Additional terms will be linked +to the Project Gutenberg-tm License for all works posted with the +permission of the copyright holder found at the beginning of this work. + +1.E.4. Do not unlink or detach or remove the full Project Gutenberg-tm +License terms from this work, or any files containing a part of this +work or any other work associated with Project Gutenberg-tm. + +1.E.5. Do not copy, display, perform, distribute or redistribute this +electronic work, or any part of this electronic work, without +prominently displaying the sentence set forth in paragraph 1.E.1 with +active links or immediate access to the full terms of the Project +Gutenberg-tm License. + +1.E.6. You may convert to and distribute this work in any binary, +compressed, marked up, nonproprietary or proprietary form, including any +word processing or hypertext form. However, if you provide access to or +distribute copies of a Project Gutenberg-tm work in a format other than +"Plain Vanilla ASCII" or other format used in the official version +posted on the official Project Gutenberg-tm web site (www.gutenberg.org), +you must, at no additional cost, fee or expense to the user, provide a +copy, a means of exporting a copy, or a means of obtaining a copy upon +request, of the work in its original "Plain Vanilla ASCII" or other +form. Any alternate format must include the full Project Gutenberg-tm +License as specified in paragraph 1.E.1. + +1.E.7. Do not charge a fee for access to, viewing, displaying, +performing, copying or distributing any Project Gutenberg-tm works +unless you comply with paragraph 1.E.8 or 1.E.9. + +1.E.8. You may charge a reasonable fee for copies of or providing +access to or distributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works provided +that + +- You pay a royalty fee of 20% of the gross profits you derive from + the use of Project Gutenberg-tm works calculated using the method + you already use to calculate your applicable taxes. The fee is + owed to the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm trademark, but he + has agreed to donate royalties under this paragraph to the + Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation. Royalty payments + must be paid within 60 days following each date on which you + prepare (or are legally required to prepare) your periodic tax + returns. Royalty payments should be clearly marked as such and + sent to the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation at the + address specified in Section 4, "Information about donations to + the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation." + +- You provide a full refund of any money paid by a user who notifies + you in writing (or by e-mail) within 30 days of receipt that s/he + does not agree to the terms of the full Project Gutenberg-tm + License. You must require such a user to return or + destroy all copies of the works possessed in a physical medium + and discontinue all use of and all access to other copies of + Project Gutenberg-tm works. + +- You provide, in accordance with paragraph 1.F.3, a full refund of any + money paid for a work or a replacement copy, if a defect in the + electronic work is discovered and reported to you within 90 days + of receipt of the work. + +- You comply with all other terms of this agreement for free + distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm works. + +1.E.9. If you wish to charge a fee or distribute a Project Gutenberg-tm +electronic work or group of works on different terms than are set +forth in this agreement, you must obtain permission in writing from +both the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation and Michael +Hart, the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm trademark. Contact the +Foundation as set forth in Section 3 below. + +1.F. + +1.F.1. Project Gutenberg volunteers and employees expend considerable +effort to identify, do copyright research on, transcribe and proofread +public domain works in creating the Project Gutenberg-tm +collection. Despite these efforts, Project Gutenberg-tm electronic +works, and the medium on which they may be stored, may contain +"Defects," such as, but not limited to, incomplete, inaccurate or +corrupt data, transcription errors, a copyright or other intellectual +property infringement, a defective or damaged disk or other medium, a +computer virus, or computer codes that damage or cannot be read by +your equipment. + +1.F.2. LIMITED WARRANTY, DISCLAIMER OF DAMAGES - Except for the "Right +of Replacement or Refund" described in paragraph 1.F.3, the Project +Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation, the owner of the Project +Gutenberg-tm trademark, and any other party distributing a Project +Gutenberg-tm electronic work under this agreement, disclaim all +liability to you for damages, costs and expenses, including legal +fees. YOU AGREE THAT YOU HAVE NO REMEDIES FOR NEGLIGENCE, STRICT +LIABILITY, BREACH OF WARRANTY OR BREACH OF CONTRACT EXCEPT THOSE +PROVIDED IN PARAGRAPH F3. YOU AGREE THAT THE FOUNDATION, THE +TRADEMARK OWNER, AND ANY DISTRIBUTOR UNDER THIS AGREEMENT WILL NOT BE +LIABLE TO YOU FOR ACTUAL, DIRECT, INDIRECT, CONSEQUENTIAL, PUNITIVE OR +INCIDENTAL DAMAGES EVEN IF YOU GIVE NOTICE OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH +DAMAGE. + +1.F.3. LIMITED RIGHT OF REPLACEMENT OR REFUND - If you discover a +defect in this electronic work within 90 days of receiving it, you can +receive a refund of the money (if any) you paid for it by sending a +written explanation to the person you received the work from. If you +received the work on a physical medium, you must return the medium with +your written explanation. The person or entity that provided you with +the defective work may elect to provide a replacement copy in lieu of a +refund. If you received the work electronically, the person or entity +providing it to you may choose to give you a second opportunity to +receive the work electronically in lieu of a refund. If the second copy +is also defective, you may demand a refund in writing without further +opportunities to fix the problem. + +1.F.4. Except for the limited right of replacement or refund set forth +in paragraph 1.F.3, this work is provided to you 'AS-IS' WITH NO OTHER +WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO +WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTIBILITY OR FITNESS FOR ANY PURPOSE. + +1.F.5. Some states do not allow disclaimers of certain implied +warranties or the exclusion or limitation of certain types of damages. +If any disclaimer or limitation set forth in this agreement violates the +law of the state applicable to this agreement, the agreement shall be +interpreted to make the maximum disclaimer or limitation permitted by +the applicable state law. The invalidity or unenforceability of any +provision of this agreement shall not void the remaining provisions. + +1.F.6. INDEMNITY - You agree to indemnify and hold the Foundation, the +trademark owner, any agent or employee of the Foundation, anyone +providing copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in accordance +with this agreement, and any volunteers associated with the production, +promotion and distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works, +harmless from all liability, costs and expenses, including legal fees, +that arise directly or indirectly from any of the following which you do +or cause to occur: (a) distribution of this or any Project Gutenberg-tm +work, (b) alteration, modification, or additions or deletions to any +Project Gutenberg-tm work, and (c) any Defect you cause. + + +Section 2. Information about the Mission of Project Gutenberg-tm + +Project Gutenberg-tm is synonymous with the free distribution of +electronic works in formats readable by the widest variety of computers +including obsolete, old, middle-aged and new computers. It exists +because of the efforts of hundreds of volunteers and donations from +people in all walks of life. + +Volunteers and financial support to provide volunteers with the +assistance they need, is critical to reaching Project Gutenberg-tm's +goals and ensuring that the Project Gutenberg-tm collection will +remain freely available for generations to come. In 2001, the Project +Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation was created to provide a secure +and permanent future for Project Gutenberg-tm and future generations. +To learn more about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation +and how your efforts and donations can help, see Sections 3 and 4 +and the Foundation web page at http://www.pglaf.org. + + +Section 3. Information about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive +Foundation + +The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation is a non profit +501(c)(3) educational corporation organized under the laws of the +state of Mississippi and granted tax exempt status by the Internal +Revenue Service. The Foundation's EIN or federal tax identification +number is 64-6221541. Its 501(c)(3) letter is posted at +http://pglaf.org/fundraising. Contributions to the Project Gutenberg +Literary Archive Foundation are tax deductible to the full extent +permitted by U.S. federal laws and your state's laws. + +The Foundation's principal office is located at 4557 Melan Dr. S. +Fairbanks, AK, 99712., but its volunteers and employees are scattered +throughout numerous locations. Its business office is located at +809 North 1500 West, Salt Lake City, UT 84116, (801) 596-1887, email +business@pglaf.org. Email contact links and up to date contact +information can be found at the Foundation's web site and official +page at http://pglaf.org + +For additional contact information: + Dr. Gregory B. Newby + Chief Executive and Director + gbnewby@pglaf.org + + +Section 4. Information about Donations to the Project Gutenberg +Literary Archive Foundation + +Project Gutenberg-tm depends upon and cannot survive without wide +spread public support and donations to carry out its mission of +increasing the number of public domain and licensed works that can be +freely distributed in machine readable form accessible by the widest +array of equipment including outdated equipment. Many small donations +($1 to $5,000) are particularly important to maintaining tax exempt +status with the IRS. + +The Foundation is committed to complying with the laws regulating +charities and charitable donations in all 50 states of the United +States. Compliance requirements are not uniform and it takes a +considerable effort, much paperwork and many fees to meet and keep up +with these requirements. We do not solicit donations in locations +where we have not received written confirmation of compliance. To +SEND DONATIONS or determine the status of compliance for any +particular state visit http://pglaf.org + +While we cannot and do not solicit contributions from states where we +have not met the solicitation requirements, we know of no prohibition +against accepting unsolicited donations from donors in such states who +approach us with offers to donate. + +International donations are gratefully accepted, but we cannot make +any statements concerning tax treatment of donations received from +outside the United States. U.S. laws alone swamp our small staff. + +Please check the Project Gutenberg Web pages for current donation +methods and addresses. Donations are accepted in a number of other +ways including checks, online payments and credit card donations. +To donate, please visit: http://pglaf.org/donate + + +Section 5. General Information About Project Gutenberg-tm electronic +works. + +Professor Michael S. Hart is the originator of the Project Gutenberg-tm +concept of a library of electronic works that could be freely shared +with anyone. For thirty years, he produced and distributed Project +Gutenberg-tm eBooks with only a loose network of volunteer support. + + +Project Gutenberg-tm eBooks are often created from several printed +editions, all of which are confirmed as Public Domain in the U.S. +unless a copyright notice is included. Thus, we do not necessarily +keep eBooks in compliance with any particular paper edition. + + +Most people start at our Web site which has the main PG search facility: + + http://www.gutenberg.org + +This Web site includes information about Project Gutenberg-tm, +including how to make donations to the Project Gutenberg Literary +Archive Foundation, how to help produce our new eBooks, and how to +subscribe to our email newsletter to hear about new eBooks. diff --git a/19692-8.zip b/19692-8.zip Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..0751af1 --- /dev/null +++ b/19692-8.zip diff --git a/19692-h.zip b/19692-h.zip Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..f480d8d --- /dev/null +++ b/19692-h.zip diff --git a/19692-h/19692-h.htm b/19692-h/19692-h.htm new file mode 100644 index 0000000..b7c01a4 --- /dev/null +++ b/19692-h/19692-h.htm @@ -0,0 +1,3327 @@ +<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Strict//EN" + "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-strict.dtd"> + +<html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"> + <head> + <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html;charset=iso-8859-1" /> + <title> + The Project Gutenberg eBook of Peeps at many Lands: Belgium, by George W. T. Omond + </title> + <style type="text/css"> +/*<![CDATA[ XML blockout */ +<!-- + p { margin-top: .75em; + text-align: justify; + margin-bottom: .75em; + } + h1,h2,h3,h4,h5,h6 { + text-align: center; /* all headings centered */ + clear: both; + } + hr { width: 33%; + margin-top: 2em; + margin-bottom: 2em; + margin-left: auto; + margin-right: auto; + clear: both; + } + .hr1 { width: 65%; + margin-top: 1em; + margin-bottom: 1em; + margin-left: auto; + margin-right: auto; + clear: both; + } + a[name] { position:absolute; } + a:link {color:#0000ff; background-color:#FFFFFF; + text-decoration:none; } + a:visited {color:#0000ff; background-color:#FFFFFF; + text-decoration:none; } + a:hover { color:#ff0000; background-color:#FFFFFF; } + a img {border: none; } + + table { width:80%; padding: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;} + + .tocch { text-align: right; vertical-align: top;} + .tocpg {text-align: right; vertical-align: bottom;} + .f1 { font-size:smaller; } + .img1 { border-style:solid; border-width:1px; border-color:#000000; } + + body{margin-left: 10%; + margin-right: 10%; + } + + .pagenum { /* uncomment the next line for invisible page numbers */ + /* visibility: hidden; */ + position: absolute; + left: 92%; + font-size: smaller; + text-align: right; + font-style:normal; + } /* page numbers */ + + + .center {text-align: center;} + .smcap {font-variant: small-caps;} + .caption {font-weight: bold; + font-size: smaller; + } + + .figcenter {margin: auto; text-align: center;} + + + .poem {margin-left:10%; margin-right:10%; text-align: left;} + .poem br {display: none;} + .poem .stanza {margin: 1em 0em 1em 0em;} + .poem span.i0 {display: block; margin-left: 0em; padding-left: 3em; text-indent: -3em;} + .poem span.i2 {display: block; margin-left: 2em; padding-left: 3em; text-indent: -3em;} + .poem span.i4 {display: block; margin-left: 4em; padding-left: 3em; text-indent: -3em;} + // --> + /* XML end ]]>*/ + </style> + </head> +<body> + + +<pre> + +Project Gutenberg's Peeps At Many Lands: Belgium, by George W. T. Omond + +This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with +almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or +re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included +with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org + + +Title: Peeps At Many Lands: Belgium + +Author: George W. T. Omond + +Illustrator: Amedee Forestier + +Release Date: November 1, 2006 [EBook #19692] + +Language: English + +Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1 + +*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK PEEPS AT MANY LANDS: BELGIUM *** + + + + +Produced by Bruce Albrecht, Sankar Viswanathan, and the +Online Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net + + + + + + +</pre> + +<div class="figcenter"><a name="pic_C1" id="pic_C1"></a> +<img src="images/image_001.jpg" alt="Cover Page" width="839" height="576" /></div> +<p> </p> +<div class="figcenter"><a name="pic_01" id="pic_01"></a> +<img src="images/image_002.jpg" alt="A MILK-SELLER IN BRUGES." title="A MILK-SELLER IN BRUGES." width="500" height="827" /><br /> +<span class="caption">A MILK-SELLER IN BRUGES.</span></div> +<p> </p> +<div class="figcenter" style="width: 400px;"><a name="pic_1" id="pic_1"></a> +<a href="images/image_003_1.jpg"><img src="images/image_003.jpg" width="400" height="531" alt="A PEASANT WOMAN OF THE ARDENNES." title="A PEASANT WOMAN OF THE ARDENNES." /></a><br /> +<span class="caption">A PEASANT WOMAN OF THE ARDENNES.</span></div> + +<p> </p> + +<div class="figcenter" style="width: 500px;"><img src="images/image_004.jpg" alt="Title Page" width="500" height="717" /></div> +<p> </p> + +<h2>PEEPS AT MANY LANDS</h2> +<h1>BELGIUM</h1> +<p> </p> +<p> </p> +<h3>BY</h3> +<h2>GEORGE W. T. OMOND</h2> +<p> </p> +<h3>ILLUSTRATED BY</h3> +<h2>AMÉDÉE FORESTIER</h2> +<p> </p> +<p> </p> +<p> </p> +<h3>LONDON</h3> +<h3>ADAM AND CHARLES BLACK</h3> +<h3>1909</h3> + + + +<hr style='width: 65%;' /> + +<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_iii" id="Page_iii">[iii]</a></span></p> +<h2>CONTENTS</h2> + + +<table summary="Contents"> +<tr><td class="tocch f1">CHAPTER</td> + <td></td> + <td></td><td class="tocpg f1">PAGE</td></tr> +<tr><td class="tocch">I.</td> + <td> </td> + <td><a href="#CHAPTER_I">THE SANDS OPPOSITE ENGLAND</a></td> +<td class="tocpg"><a href="#Page_1">1</a></td></tr> +<tr><td class="tocch">II.</td> + <td> </td> + <td><a href="#CHAPTER_II">INLAND: THE FLEMISH PLAIN</a></td> +<td class="tocpg"><a href="#Page_5">5</a></td></tr> +<tr><td class="tocch">III.</td> + <td> </td> + <td><a href="#CHAPTER_III">TRAVELLING IN BELGIUM</a></td> +<td class="tocpg"><a href="#Page_10">10</a></td></tr> +<tr><td class="tocch">IV.</td> + <td> </td> + <td><a href="#CHAPTER_IV">SOME OF THE TOWNS: THE ARDENNES</a></td> +<td class="tocpg"><a href="#Page_16">16</a></td></tr> +<tr><td class="tocch">V.</td> + <td> </td> + <td><a href="#CHAPTER_V">BELGIAN CHILDREN: THE "PREMIÈRE COMMUNION"</a></td> +<td class="tocpg"><a href="#Page_28">28</a></td></tr> +<tr><td class="tocch">VI.</td> + <td> </td> + <td><a href="#CHAPTER_VI">CHRISTMAS IN BELGIUM</a></td> +<td class="tocpg"><a href="#Page_34">34</a></td></tr> +<tr><td class="tocch">VII.</td> + <td> </td> + <td><a href="#CHAPTER_VII">NEW YEAR'S DAY</a></td> +<td class="tocpg"><a href="#Page_37">37</a></td></tr> +<tr><td class="tocch">VIII.</td> + <td> </td> + <td><a href="#CHAPTER_VIII">PAGEANTS AND PROCESSIONS</a></td> +<td class="tocpg"><a href="#Page_41">41</a></td></tr> +<tr><td class="tocch">IX.</td> + <td> </td> + <td><a href="#CHAPTER_IX">THE STORY OF ST. EVERMAIRE: A COUNTRY PAGEANT</a></td> +<td class="tocpg"><a href="#Page_47">47</a></td></tr> +<tr><td class="tocch">X.</td> + <td> </td> + <td><a href="#CHAPTER_X">THE CARNIVAL</a></td> +<td class="tocpg"><a href="#Page_51">51</a></td></tr> +<tr><td class="tocch">XI.</td> + <td> </td> + <td><a href="#CHAPTER_XI">CHILDREN'S WINTER FESTIVALS</a></td> +<td class="tocpg"><a href="#Page_54">54</a></td></tr> +<tr><td class="tocch">XII.</td> + <td> </td> + <td><a href="#CHAPTER_XII">THE ARCHERS: GAMES PLAYED IN BELGIUM</a></td> +<td class="tocpg"><a href="#Page_59">59</a></td></tr> +<tr><td class="tocch">XIII.</td> + <td> </td> + <td><a href="#CHAPTER_XIII">WHAT THE BELGIANS SPEAK</a></td> +<td class="tocpg"><a href="#Page_67">67</a></td></tr> +<tr><td class="tocch">XIV.</td> + <td> </td> + <td><a href="#CHAPTER_XIV">A SHORT HISTORY</a></td> +<td class="tocpg"><a href="#Page_70">70</a></td></tr> +<tr><td class="tocch">XV.</td> + <td> </td> + <td><a href="#CHAPTER_XV">THE BELGIAN ARMY: THE CONGO</a></td> +<td class="tocpg"><a href="#Page_82">82</a></td></tr> +</table> + +<hr style='width: 65%;' /> +<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_iv" id="Page_iv">[iv]</a></span></p> + + + + + +<h3>LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS</h3> +<h2>BY AMÉDÉE FORESTIER</h2> +<table summary="Illustrations"> +<tr><td><a href="#pic_1">A PEASANT WOMAN OF THE ARDENNES</a></td> +<td><a href="#pic_1"><i>frontispiece</i></a></td> +</tr> +<tr><td></td><td class="tocpg f1">PAGE</td></tr> +<tr><td><a href="#pic_3">THE DUNES</a></td> +<td class="tocpg"><a href="#Page_viii">viii</a></td></tr> +<tr><td><a href="#pic_4">A SHRIMPER ON HORSEBACK, COXYDE</a></td> +<td class="tocpg"><a href="#Page_8">8</a></td></tr> +<tr><td><a href="#pic_5">THE VEGETABLE MARKET, BRUGES</a></td> +<td class="tocpg"><a href="#Page_16">16</a></td></tr> +<tr><td><a href="#pic_6">ANTWERP</a></td> +<td class="tocpg"><a href="#Page_25">25</a></td></tr> +<tr><td><a href="#pic_7">THE HÔTEL DE VILLE, BRUSSELS</a></td> +<td class="tocpg"><a href="#Page_32">32</a></td></tr> +<tr><td><a href="#pic_8">AT THE KERMESSE</a></td> +<td class="tocpg"><a href="#Page_42">42</a></td></tr> +<tr><td><a href="#pic_9">A CHÂTEAU IN THE LESSE VALLEY</a></td> +<td class="tocpg"><a href="#Page_48">48</a></td></tr> +<tr><td><a href="#pic_10">A FARMSTEADING</a></td> +<td class="tocpg"><a href="#Page_57">57</a></td></tr> +<tr><td><a href="#pic_11">PLAYING "JEU DE BOULE" AT A FLEMISH INN</a></td> +<td class="tocpg"><a href="#Page_64">64</a></td></tr> +<tr><td><a href="#pic_12">VILLAGE AND CANAL, ADINKERQUE</a></td> +<td class="tocpg"><a href="#Page_73">73</a></td></tr> +<tr><td><a href="#pic_13">WATERLOO: THE FARM OF LA BELLE ALLIANCE AND THE +MOUND SURMOUNTED BY THE BELGIAN LION</a></td> +<td class="tocpg"><a href="#Page_80">80</a></td> +</tr> +<tr><td><a href="#pic_01">A MILK-SELLER IN BRUGES</a></td> +<td class="tocpg"><i><a href="#pic_C1">on the cover</a></i></td> +</tr> +</table> + + +<p class="center"><a href="#pic_2"><i>Sketch-Map of Belgium on</i></a><i> <a href="#Page_vii">p. vii</a></i></p> +<hr style="width: 65%;" /> +<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_vii" id="Page_vii">[vii]</a></span></p> + +<div class="figcenter" style="width: 600px;"><a name="pic_2" id="pic_2"></a> +<a href="images/image_010_1.jpg"><img src="images/image_010.jpg" width="600" height="386" alt="SKETCH-MAP OF BELGIUM." title="SKETCH-MAP OF BELGIUM." /></a><br /> + +<span class="caption">SKETCH-MAP OF BELGIUM.</span></div> +<hr style="width: 65%;" /> +<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_viii" id="Page_viii">[viii]</a></span></p> + +<div class="figcenter" style="width: 600px;"><a name="pic_3" id="pic_3"></a> +<a href="images/image_012_1.jpg"><img src="images/image_012.jpg" width="600" height="389" alt="THE DUNES." title="THE DUNES." /></a><br /> + +<span class="caption">THE DUNES. <a href="#Page_1">PAGE 1</a>.</span></div> + + + + + +<hr style="width: 65%;" /> + + +<h2>BELGIUM</h2> + + + +<hr style="width: 65%;" /> +<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_1" id="Page_1">[1]</a></span></p> +<h2><a name="CHAPTER_I" id="CHAPTER_I"></a>CHAPTER I</h2> + +<h3>THE SANDS OPPOSITE ENGLAND</h3> + + +<p>If you leave the mouth of the Thames, or the white chalk cliffs at +Dover, and sail over the water just where the English Channel meets +the North Sea, you will in about three or four hours see before you a +long expanse of yellow sand, and rising behind it a low ridge of +sandhills, which look in the distance like a range of baby mountains. +These sandhills are called "dunes." Here and there at intervals you +will see a number of little towns, each town standing by itself on the +shore, and separated from its neighbour by a row of dunes and a +stretch of sand.</p> + +<p>This is your first view of the little country called Belgium, which is +bounded on the east by Holland, and on the west by France. It is, from +end to end, about half the size of Ireland.</p> + +<p>There are no cliffs or rocks, no shingle or stones covered with +seaweed. There are no trees. It is all bare sand, with moss and rushes +on the higher ground<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_2" id="Page_2">[2]</a></span> above the beach. In winter the wind rages with +terrific violence along the coast. The sand is blown in all +directions, and the waves dash fiercely on the shore. It is cold and +stormy, with mist and dark clouds, and sometimes violent showers of +hail. But in summer all is changed. Often, week after week, the waves +roll gently in, and break in ripples on the beach. The sky is blue, +and the sands are warm. It is the best place in the world for digging +and building castles. There are very few shells to gather; but there +are no dangerous rocks or slippery places, and children can wade about +and play in perfect safety. So many families—Belgians, English, +Germans, and a few French—spend the summer holidays there.</p> + +<p>Hundreds of years ago the storms of winter used to drive the waves +ashore with such violence that the land was flooded, and whole +villages were sometimes swept away. So the people made ramparts of +earth to keep back the water, till by degrees many parts of the +Belgian shore were thus protected. They still continue to build +defences against the sea; but instead of earth they now use brick and +stone. It looks as if in a few years the whole coast will be lined by +these sea-fronts, which are called <i>digues de mer</i>.</p> + +<p>A <i>digue</i>, no matter how thick, which rests on the sand alone will not +last. A thick bed of green branches is first laid down as a +foundation. This is strengthened by posts driven through it into the +sand. Heavy timbers, resting on bundles of branches lashed to<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_3" id="Page_3">[3]</a></span>gether, +are wedged into the foundations, and slope inwards and upwards to +within a few feet of the height to which it is intended to carry the +<i>digue</i>. On the top another solid bed of branches is laid down, and +the whole is first covered with concrete, and then with bricks or +tiles, while the top of the <i>digue</i>, at the edge of the seaward slope, +is composed of heavy blocks of stone cemented together and bound by +iron rivets.</p> + +<p>The finest and longest <i>digue</i> is that which extends from Ostend for +about nine miles. It is a good place for bicycle rides. No motor-cars +are allowed on it.</p> + +<p>Each of the little towns which you see dotted along the coast has a +<i>digue</i> of its own, on which there is a row of villas and hotels +facing the sea. Among the dunes behind the <i>digue</i> there are more +villas. These are generally very picturesque, with verandas, red-tiled +roofs, and brightly painted woodwork.</p> + +<p>All day long in summer the <i>digue</i> of each town is crowded by people +walking about in the sunshine, or sitting watching the bathers and the +children playing on the sands. It is a very gay sight. There are +prizes for those who build the best castles, and it is curious to see +hundreds of little Belgian, English, French, and German flags flying +on these small forts, and to hear the children shouting to each other +in so many different languages. It makes one think of the Tower of +Babel.</p> + +<p>From six in the morning till six in the evening bathing-machines go to +and from the water, and often there seem to be as many people in the +sea as on the<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_4" id="Page_4">[4]</a></span> shore. There is a boat anchored a little way out, in +which two men in red shirts, with ropes and lifebelts, sit watching to +see that no one goes too far out, for the tide is often very strong. +Sometimes these men, who are called <i>sauveteurs</i>, stand on the sand, +and if they think anyone is swimming too far they blow a trumpet to +call the swimmer back.</p> + +<p>In the evening, when it is dark and the lamps are lighted, there is +dancing on the <i>digue</i> to the music of a barrel-organ. The Belgians +are very fond of this dancing, and often the English and other +visitors join in it too.</p> + +<p>All summer this holiday life goes on, with bathing, lawn-tennis, and +in some places golf, till at last the time comes for going home. The +hotels and villas close their doors. The windows are boarded up. The +bathing-machines are pulled away from the beach, and put in some +sheltered place among the dunes. The <i>digue</i> is left in solitude, to +be covered with driven sand, and splashed with foam from the waves +which beat against it, till the season of summer gaiety comes round +again next year.</p> + + + +<hr style="width: 65%;" /> +<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_5" id="Page_5">[5]</a></span></p> +<h2><a name="CHAPTER_II" id="CHAPTER_II"></a>CHAPTER II</h2> + +<h3>INLAND: THE FLEMISH PLAIN</h3> + + +<p>Let us now leave the shore, and go inland.</p> + +<p>If you climb to the top of some dune, you will see before you a wide +plain stretching out as far as the eye can reach. This part of Belgium +is called Flanders. It is all flat, with canals, and long, straight +roads, paved with stones, running across it. There are rows of tall +poplar-trees or willows, which are bent slightly towards the east, for +the wind blows oftenest from the west, small patches of woodland, +gardens, and many sluggish streams. The fields, which have no fences +or hedges round them, are large and well tilled, some bearing fine +crops of wheat, rye, or potatoes and turnips, while others are rich +pasture-lands for sheep and cattle. The whole of this Flemish Plain, +as it is called, is dotted with farm-houses and cottages. There are a +great many villages, and in the distance rise the roof-tops and the +towers and spires of famous old towns.</p> + +<p>Some of the villages are worth visiting. There is one called Coxyde, +which lies low among the sandhills, not far from the sea. The people +of this village live by fishing, but in a very curious way, for they +do it on<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_6" id="Page_6">[6]</a></span> horseback. They mount little horses, and ride out into the +sea with baskets, and nets fastened to long poles. It is funny to see +them riding about in the water, and catching fish and shrimps in this +strange fashion.</p> + +<p>There is another village, also only a short distance inland, where +there is a church in which a number of toy ships are hung up. These +are offerings made to an image of the Virgin Mary which stands there. +If a crew of Flemish fishermen have escaped from some dangerous storm, +they walk in silence to this church, and give thanks to the image, +which is called Our Lady of Lombaerdzyde.</p> + +<p>The farm-labourers in Flanders live very simply. Their food is chiefly +black bread, potatoes, and salted pork or fish. There are lots of boys +and girls who eat nothing all the year round but black bread and +potatoes, and who look on pork or fish as quite a treat. Sometimes +they spread lard on their slices of bread, and there are many who have +never tasted butter in their lives. Yet they appear to be very strong +and happy. They drink black coffee, or beer if their parents can +afford it. The food of the older people is much the same.</p> + +<p>Most of the people in the country districts of Flanders—men, women, +boys, and girls—work in the fields. In summer they rise at four or +five in the morning, and after eating a slice of bread go out into the +fields. At half-past eleven or twelve they dine on bread and potatoes, +with perhaps a slice of pork, and<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_7" id="Page_7">[7]</a></span> take a rest. Then they work again +till about four in the afternoon, when they rest again, and after that +they work on till it is dark. In the short days of winter they toil +from sunrise till sunset. By this means they earn enough to live on. A +boy or girl may get from 5d. to 7d. a day, a woman a little more, +while a married man generally receives 1s. 8d. or 2s. Some farmers pay +an unmarried labourer 10d. and his food.</p> + +<p>This seems a dull and hard life, but the Flemings do not find it so. +Like all Belgians, they are fond of amusement, and there is a great +deal of dancing and singing, especially on holidays. Sunday is the +chief holiday. They all go to church in the morning, and the rest of +the day is given up to play. Unfortunately many of the older people +drink too much. There are far too many public-houses. Any person who +likes can open one on payment of a small sum of money to the +Government. The result is that in many quite small villages, where +very few people live, there are ten or twelve public-houses, where a +large glass of beer is sold for less than a penny, and a glass of +coarse spirits for about the same price. Most of the drinking is done +on Sunday, and on Monday morning it is often difficult to get men to +work. There are many, especially in the towns, who never work on +Mondays. This is quite understood in Belgium, and people who know the +country are pleased, and rather surprised, if an artisan who has +promised to come and do something on a Monday morning keeps his word. +Of course there are<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_8" id="Page_8">[8]</a></span> many sober work-people, and it is a rare thing to +see a tipsy woman, much rarer than in England; but there is a great +deal of drunkenness in Belgium.</p> + +<div class="figcenter" style="width: 400px;"><a name="pic_4" id="pic_4"></a> +<a href="images/image_022_1.jpg"><img src="images/image_022.jpg" width="400" height="592" alt="A SHRIMPER ON HORSEBACK, COXYDE." title="A SHRIMPER ON HORSEBACK, COXYDE." /></a><br /> + +<span class="caption">A SHRIMPER ON HORSEBACK, COXYDE. <a href="#Page_6">PAGE 6.</a></span></div> + +<p>There is one thing to which all the boys and girls look forward, and +that is what is called the <i>Kermesse</i>. This is a kind of fair, which +takes place at every village in summer, and lasts for two or three +days. They talk about it for weeks before, and for weeks after. They +save up every penny they can lay their hands on, and when the time +comes they leave their work or the school as soon as possible in the +afternoon, put on their best clothes, and enjoy themselves.</p> + +<p>The village street is full of stalls covered with cheap toys, +sweetmeats, and all sorts of tempting little articles, and you may be +sure the pennies melt away very quickly. Flags of black, red, and yellow +stripes—the Belgian national colours—fly on the houses. A band of +music plays. Travelling showmen are there with merry-go-rounds, and the +children are never tired of riding round and round on the gaily painted +wooden horses. Then there is dancing in the public-houses, in which all +the villagers, except the very old people, take part. Boys and girls hop +round, and if there are not enough boys the girls take each other for +partners, while the grown-up lads and young women dance together.</p> + + + +<p>The rooms in these public-houses are pretty large, but they get +dreadfully hot and stuffy. The constant laughing and talking, the +music, and the scraping of <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_9" id="Page_9">[9]</a></span>feet on the sanded floor make an awful +din. Then there are sometimes disputes, and the Flemings have a nasty +habit of using knives when they are angry, so the dancing, which often +goes on till two or three in the morning, is the least pleasant thing +about these gatherings.</p> + +<p>This is a very old Belgian custom, but of late years the <i>Kermesses</i> +in the big towns have changed in character, and are just ordinary +fairs, with menageries and things of that sort, which you can find in +England or anywhere else. If you want to see a real Kermesse you must +go to some village in Flanders, and there you will find it very +amusing.</p> + + + +<hr style="width: 65%;" /> +<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_10" id="Page_10">[10]</a></span></p> +<h2><a name="CHAPTER_III" id="CHAPTER_III"></a>CHAPTER III</h2> + +<h3>TRAVELLING IN BELGIUM</h3> + + +<p>Travelling in Belgium is cheap and easy. The best way to see the +out-of-the-way parts of the country would be to journey about in a +barge on the canals. There are a great many canals. You could go all +the way from France to the other side of Belgium in a barge, threading +your way through fields, and meadow-lands, and villages, and stopping +every now and then at some of the big towns. If you read that charming +book "Vanity Fair," you will see that Mr. Thackeray, who wrote it, +says that once an Englishman, who went to Belgium for a week, found +the eating and drinking on these boats so good that he went backwards +and forwards on the canal between Bruges and Ghent perpetually till +the railways were invented, when he drowned himself on the last trip +of the boat!</p> + +<p>But if that ever happened it was long ago. Nowadays, when travellers +are in such a hurry, the canals are only used for carrying coals, +timber, and other goods. They are largely used for that purpose. The +Belgians are very wise about their canals; they keep them in good +order, and send as many things as possible by<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_11" id="Page_11">[11]</a></span> water. It is not so +quick, but it is much less expensive, and a great deal safer, than +sending them by railway.</p> + +<p>It is interesting to stand on the bank of a canal and watch a row of +barges moving slowly past. Sometimes a little steam-tug puffs along, +pulling three or four barges after it. Some are pulled by horses, and +often men or women labour along the towing-path dragging these heavily +laden vessels by a rope fastened to a short mast set up in the bows.</p> + +<p>This is hard work, but the barge-folk seem to think nothing of it. +Whole families are born, live, and die on their barges. You often see +the wife or daughter of the bargeman steering, while the children are +playing on the top of the hatches, and the husband is doing some work +among the cargo, or just sitting smoking his pipe. These floating +homes are long and broad, painted in bright colours, with a +deck-cabin, the windows of which are often hung with pretty curtains. +The children run about, and seem never to tumble overboard. If they +did they would be easily pulled out, for the barges are very low in +the water.</p> + +<p>As the country is so flat, bicycling is easy, and alongside most of +the roads there is a path made for this purpose, which is kept up by a +tax everyone who has a bicycle must pay. Always remember that if you +meet another person you keep to the right, and not, as in England, to +the left. The same rule applies to driving in a carriage or riding a +horse.</p> + +<p>The Belgians have an excellent system of light<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_12" id="Page_12">[12]</a></span> district railways, +which run in all directions, some worked by steam and some by +electricity. These are very useful, for the trains stop at every +village, however small, and the country people can easily go to market +or to visit each other. Outside each carriage there is a platform, on +which you can stand and see the country. The fares are low, and you +can go a long way for a few pence. The carriages are open from end to +end, and if you travel in one of them you will generally see a crowd +of peasants in blue blouses, old women in long black cloaks and white +caps, priests, and soldiers (who only pay half-price), the men all +smoking, and the women talking about what they have bought, or what +they are going to buy. They are always talking about that, and, +indeed, seem never to speak about anything else. A few hours' journey +in one of these district railways, which are called the +<i>Chemins-de-fer-Vicinaux</i>, is a far better way of getting a peep at +the Belgian people than rushing along in an express train from one big +town to another.</p> + +<p>The first railway on the Continent of Europe was in Belgium. It was +opened seventy-four years ago—in May, 1835—and ran from Brussels, +the capital of Belgium, to Malines, a town which you will see on the +map. There are now, of course, a great many railways, which belong to +the State and not, as in England, to private companies.</p> + +<p>Season tickets are much used on Belgian railways. For instance, anyone +wishing to travel for five days on<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_13" id="Page_13">[13]</a></span> end has only to pay £1 4s. 7d. for +a first-class ticket, 16s. 5d. for a second-class, or 9s. 5d. for a +third-class. For these small sums you can go all over Belgium on the +State railways, stopping as often as you please, at any hour of the +day or night, for five days. All you have to do is to take a small +photograph of yourself to the station an hour before you intend to +start, and tell the railway clerk at the booking-office by which class +you wish to travel, and when you go back to the station you will find +your ticket ready, with your photograph pasted on it, so that the +guards may know that you are the person to whom it belongs. You then +pay for it, and leave 4s. more, which are given back at whatever +station your trip may end. There are also tickets for longer periods +than five days. You can send a letter instead of going to the station. +You can write from England, and find your ticket waiting for you at +Ostend or Antwerp, or any other place in Belgium from which you may +intend to start on your journey. This is very convenient, for it saves +the trouble of buying a fresh ticket each day. Besides, it is a great +deal cheaper. These tickets are called <i>abonnements</i>.</p> + +<p>There are also <i>abonnements</i> for children going to school, and for +workmen. It is quite common in Belgium to be in a railway carriage +where, when the guard comes round, all the passengers pull out season +tickets.</p> + +<p>There is one thing about travelling by railway in<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_14" id="Page_14">[14]</a></span> Belgium which +English people don't always know, and that is the rule about opening +and shutting windows. The Belgians are not so fond of fresh air as we +are. They sleep with their bedroom windows shut, which makes them +soft, and apt to catch cold. So they are always afraid of draughts, +especially in a railway train. The first thing a Belgian does, as soon +as he enters a carriage, is to shut the windows, and the rule is that +if by any chance there were, say, five people who wanted a window +open, and only one who wanted it shut, that one can refuse to let the +others have it open. If you are sitting near a window, and open it, +you may be sure that someone, who is perhaps sitting at the other end +of the carriage, will step across and shut it. They never ask leave, +or, indeed, say a word; they just shut it.</p> + +<p>One day, two or three years ago, there was a great crowd in a district +train. It was July, and very hot. All the windows of one first-class +carriage were, as usual, shut, and it was so stifling that some of us +stood outside on the platform so as to get some fresh air. A feeble +old lady chanced to be sitting next one of the windows, and wished to +open it. All the other passengers refused to allow her. She told them +she felt as if she would faint from the heat. Not one of the Belgian +ladies and gentlemen, who were all well-dressed people, cared about +that. They just shrugged their shoulders. At last the old lady, who +had been turning very pale, fainted away. Then they were<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_15" id="Page_15">[15]</a></span> afraid, and +the guard was sent for. He insisted on letting in some air, and +attended to the lady, who presently revived. The other passengers at +once had the window shut again, and the lady had to be taken into +another carriage, on which everyone began to laugh, as if it was a +good joke.</p> + +<p>Some Englishmen are always having rows about this window question; but +the best plan is to say nothing, and remember that every country has +its own customs, which strangers ought to observe.</p> + + + +<hr style="width: 65%;" /> +<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_16" id="Page_16">[16]</a></span></p> +<h2><a name="CHAPTER_IV" id="CHAPTER_IV"></a>CHAPTER IV</h2> + +<h3>SOME OF THE TOWNS: THE ARDENNES</h3> + + +<p>England, as you know, is not a very big country. But Belgium is very +much smaller. It is such a little bit of a place, a mere corner of +Europe, that in a few hours the train can take you from one end of it +to the other. I suppose that from Ostend to Liége is one of the +longest journeys you could make, and that takes less than four hours. +So it is very easy to go from one town to another.</p> +<div class="figcenter" style="width: 600px;"><a name="pic_5" id="pic_5"></a> +<a href="images/image_033_1.jpg"><img src="images/image_033.jpg" width="600" height="470" alt="THE VEGETABLE MARKET, BRUGES." title="THE VEGETABLE MARKET, BRUGES." /></a><br /> + +<span class="caption">THE VEGETABLE MARKET, BRUGES. <a href="#Page_18">PAGE 18.</a></span></div> + +<p>Suppose we land at Ostend, which, as you will see on the map, lies in +the middle of the Belgian coast. It is the largest of the seaside +towns, and one of the oldest. In ancient times it was fortified, and +during the wars between the Spaniards and the Dutch the Spaniards +defended it for three whole years. It must have been very strong in +those days. But now it is quite changed, and has no walls, but just a +long <i>digue</i>, and a great many hotels, lodging-houses, and big shops. +Crowds of people go there in summer. There are horse-races, concerts, +dancing, and a great deal of gambling. One part of the beach in front +of the <i>digue</i> is crowded with bathing-machines, and it is said that +<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_17" id="Page_17">[17]</a></span>during one day in August a few years ago no fewer than 7,000 people +bathed.</p> + + + +<p>Ostend, however, is not a nice place to stay in. In summer it is +noisy, and full of people who care for nothing but eating, drinking, +dressing up, and gambling. In winter it is an ugly, dull, stupid town, +in which there is nothing to do, and nothing to see except +fishing-boats and the steamers which carry travellers to and from +Dover. So we shall not say anything more about it, but take the train, +and in twenty minutes find ourselves in a really interesting place.</p> + +<p>This is Bruges. They call it <i>Bruges la Morte</i>—that is to say, +"Bruges, the Dead City." Once upon a time, long, long ago, this town +was great, and rich, and prosperous. It was surrounded by strong +walls, and within it were many gilded palaces, the homes of merchant +princes whose wealth was the talk of all the world. Their houses were +full of precious stones, tapestries, silk, fine linen, and cloth of +gold. Their warehouses were stored with costly bales. They lent money +to Kings and Princes, and lived themselves in almost royal luxury. A +broad channel led from the sea to Bruges, and ships entered daily +laden with goods from every country in Europe, as well as from India +and all parts of the world. In those days the cloth made by the +Flemish weavers was famous, and the greatest market for wool was at +Bruges.</p> + +<p>So Bruges grew richer and richer, and much money was spent in +beautifying the town, in which there are<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_18" id="Page_18">[18]</a></span> said to have been 200,000 +industrious people. Churches rose, and other noble buildings. There +were endless tournaments and festivals. Painters flourished there. +Bruges was spoken of as the Venice of the North.</p> + +<p>But all this came to an end. The channel which joined this great city +to the sea dried up. There were wars and rebellions which drove the +foreign merchants away. They went to Antwerp. Bruges fell, and has +remained fallen ever since.</p> + +<p>It is now a quiet, sad place, so poor that the streets are badly +lighted, seldom cleaned, and have a desolate, neglected appearance. +The few families of the upper class who live there belong to what is +called the <i>petite noblesse</i>; there is almost no trade or commerce; +and many of the lower orders live on charity.</p> + +<p>But this dead city is very romantic, with all its memories of olden +times. Nobody should go to Belgium without visiting Bruges, once so +famous and now so fallen, not only because it is picturesque, with its +old buildings and quaint views such as artists love to paint, but also +because it is so quiet that you can watch the customs of a Belgian +town without being disturbed by a crowd—the market-folk with their +wares spread out on the stones of the street, the small carts drawn by +dogs, the women sitting at their doors busy with lace-making, the +pavements occupied by tables at which people sit drinking coffee or +beer, the workmen clanking along in their wooden shoes, and<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_19" id="Page_19">[19]</a></span> +numberless little things which are different from what you see at +home.</p> + +<p>Every town in Belgium has its "belfry," a tower rising over some +venerable building, from which, in the days of almost constant +warfare, a beacon used to blaze, or a bell ring out, to call the +citizens to arms. The belfry of Bruges is, I think, the finest of them +all. If you have ever been to Bruges you can never forget it. It rises +high above the market-place. All day long, year after year, the chimes +ring every quarter of an hour; and all night too, unceasingly, through +winter storm and summer moonlight, the belfry pours forth its +perpetual lament over the dead city.</p> + +<p>Not far from Bruges, only forty minutes by railway, is another ancient +town called Ghent; but instead of being dead like Bruges, it is alive +and busy. In the days of old the people of Ghent were the most +independent and brave in Belgium. In the belfry there was a famous +bell called "Roland," and if any of their rulers attempted to tax them +against their will, this Roland was rung, and wagged his iron tongue +so well that the townsmen armed themselves at once, and the +tax-gatherers were driven away. It was no easy task to rule them, as +all who tried it found to their cost. They grew very rich, chiefly +because of their trade in wool with England. But evil days came, and +for more than 200 years this mighty city remained in a most forlorn +state.</p> + +<p>In the nineteenth century, however, when there was<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_20" id="Page_20">[20]</a></span> settled peace in +Belgium after the Battle of Waterloo, the people of Ghent set to work +in earnest once more, and made up for lost time so well that now their +town is full of flourishing factories, and has a harbour from which a +deep canal leads to the River Scheldt, and is used by many ships. Most +beautiful flowers are cultivated in nursery gardens and hothouses, and +are sent all over the world in such quantities that Ghent has been +called "The City of Flowers."</p> + +<p>From busy Ghent, where the belfry in which Roland used to hang and the +walls and towers of many an ancient building look down upon the +crowded streets, you may go to the still busier town of Antwerp, which +stands on the River Scheldt.</p> + +<p>Like Bruges and Ghent, and, indeed, every town in Belgium, Antwerp is +very old. It is said that long ago there was a giant who lived on the +banks of the Scheldt, and compelled the captain of every ship which +came up the river to give him money. If the money was refused, the +giant cut off one of the captain's hands, and threw it into the river. +In Dutch the word <i>werpen</i> means "to throw," and thus the place where +the giant lived was called <i>Hand-werpen</i>, which became, in course of +time, <i>Antwerp</i>. Perhaps you may not believe this story, but in one of +the squares at Antwerp there is the statue of a man called Brabo, who +is said to have killed the giant.</p> + +<p>Close to this statue is the cathedral, which is one of the grandest in +Europe, and where there are some<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_21" id="Page_21">[21]</a></span> famous paintings by the great artist +Rubens, who lived at Antwerp for many years.</p> + +<p>Another very interesting thing to see at Antwerp is the +Plantin-Moretus house. It was the home, more than 300 years ago, of a +printer called Plantin, who made a great fortune, and whose +descendants took the name of Moretus, and carried on the business for +a long time. You will see there the types and printing-presses of the +sixteenth century, and also the very furniture of the sitting-rooms +and bedrooms, just as they were in those bygone days. One of the rooms +was the nursery of the Plantin children. The men who show you over the +house are dressed as servants were in Plantin's time. By going there +you will get a far better idea of the family life of those times than +by reading any number of story-books or looking at any number of +pictures.</p> + +<p>Antwerp has, like the other Belgian towns, had its ups and downs, but +now it is one of the greatest harbours in the whole world. So many +ships go there that there is hardly room for all of them. It may seem +an extraordinary thing that a country like Belgium, so small that two +or three English counties would cover it, should have such an +important harbour crowded with the shipping of all nations. But +Antwerp is connected by railways and canals with the busiest parts of +Europe, and the Scheldt is a noble river, by which merchantmen can +find their way to every region of the world.<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_22" id="Page_22">[22]</a></span></p> + +<p>A hundred years ago Antwerp was in the hands of the French, who had +seized Belgium; and when Napoleon was beaten he clung to Antwerp as +long as he could. Just before he fell, there was a conference at a +place called Chatillon, when they tried to make peace, but could not; +and afterwards, when he was at St. Helena, Napoleon declared that the +war continued chiefly because he would not give up Antwerp. "Antwerp," +he said, "was to me a province in itself. If they would have left it +to me, peace would have been concluded." He wanted to keep a fleet in +the Scheldt, so as to threaten England. If you look at a map of +Europe, you will see how near the Scheldt is to Kent and Essex. The +Belgians cannot do us any harm, but it would be a dangerous thing for +England if some strong and unfriendly nation had possession of +Antwerp.</p> + +<p>But we must leave Antwerp, and hurry on to Brussels, which is the +capital of Belgium.</p> + +<p>It is just an hour by railway, and as the train rushes on you will see +on your right a town from the middle of which rises a massive square +tower. The town is Malines (or Mechlin), and the tower is that of the +Cathedral of St. Rombold. Malines was once, like Bruges, a most +important city, and so many pilgrims went there that the cost of +building the cathedral was paid out of their offerings. It is now the +seat of the Archbishop of Belgium; but its former glory has long since +departed, and it is even more quiet and desolate than Bruges.<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_23" id="Page_23">[23]</a></span></p> + +<p>It is said that once upon a time, when the moon was shining brightly +through the open stonework of the tower, the people thought there was +a fire, and tried to put it out with water! Ever since then the +townsmen of Malines have been laughed at, and called "moon-quenchers" +by the other Belgians.</p> + +<p>When you are in the train between Malines and Brussels, you may +recollect that you are travelling on the first railway-line that was +made on the Continent. Well, when the engineer had finished his work, +the very day before the first train was to run, he looked at some +plans he had of railways in England, and exclaimed: "By Jove! I've +forgotten a tunnel!" And so, without more ado, he sent for some +workmen, and had an archway made over a cutting! Then he thought his +railway was complete!</p> + +<p>Brussels is by far the nicest town in Belgium. It is a charming place +to live in, clean, bright, and gay. The walls which once surrounded it +were taken down many years ago, and replaced by beautiful roadways +called <i>boulevards</i>, with a broad carriage-drive in the middle, and on +each side a place for riding on, shaded by rows of trees. There is a +park, not very large, but with many trees and shady walks, and a round +pond, in the centre of which a fountain plays. At one end of this park +is the King's Palace, and at the other end the Houses of Parliament. +In the new parts of the town the streets are wide, and there are +spacious squares, with large and handsome houses. There are no end of +carriages and<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_24" id="Page_24">[24]</a></span> motor-cars driving about, people riding on horseback, +and all the bustle of a great city of pleasure.</p> + +<p>The people of Brussels are very fond of jokes and fun. They always +seem to be in good humour with each other and with themselves. The +part of Belgium in which Brussels lies is called Brabant. In olden +times it was spoken of as "gay Brabant," and so, indeed, it might be +nowadays. Dull, pompous people are not liked there. You must be lively +and amusing, like the town itself, of which the people are so proud +that they call it the Little Paris.</p> + +<p>Close to Brussels, on the south and west, there is a great forest—the +Forest of Soignies. The part of this forest nearest the town is called +the <i>Bois de la Cambre</i>, which is a favourite place for walking and +riding in. You reach it by a fine <i>boulevard</i> called the Avenue +Louise. In the middle of this <i>Bois de la Cambre</i> there is a lake with +an island, on which stands a little coffee-house, the Châlet Robinson; +so called, perhaps, after Robinson Crusoe, who lived on an island. +Belgian families often go there to spend the summer afternoons. There +are lots of pigeons on the island, so tame that they run about on the +grass, and eat out of the children's hands, while the fathers and +mothers sit drinking coffee at tables under the trees.</p> + + + +<p>In Belgium the fathers and mothers of the <i>petite bourgeoisie</i>, or +lower-middle class, seem always to go about on holidays with their +children. They dine at half-past twelve, and after dinner off they go, +the <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_25" id="Page_25">[25]</a></span>parents arm-in-arm, and the children strolling before them, and +spend the rest of the day together. It is quite a sight on a summer +evening to see them coming home in crowds down the Avenue Louise, the +father often carrying the youngest on his shoulders, and the mother +with a child hanging on to each arm.</p> + +<div class="figcenter" style="width: 600px;"><a name="pic_6" id="pic_6"></a> +<a href="images/image_043_1.jpg"><img src="images/image_043.jpg" width="600" height="457" alt="ANTWERP." title="ANTWERP." /></a><br /> + +<span class="caption">ANTWERP. <a href="#Page_20">PAGE 20.</a></span></div> + +<p>The Avenue Louise is in the modern part of the town. Brussels, +however, is not all modern. Most of the Belgian towns are quite flat, +but to reach the old Brussels you must go down some very steep, narrow +streets, one of which, called the <i>Montague de la Cour</i>, where the +best shops are, leads to the Grande Place, a picturesque square +surrounded by quaint houses with fantastic gables. These were the +houses of the Guilds, or Merchant Companies, in the old days. One of +them is shaped like the stern of a ship. Most of them are ornamented +with gilded mouldings. They are beautiful buildings, and the finest is +the Hotel de Ville, the front of which is a mass of statuettes. Its +high, steep roof is pierced by innumerable little windows, and above +it there is a lofty and graceful spire, which towers up and up, with a +gilded figure of the Archangel Michael at the top.</p> + +<p>A flower-market is held in the Grande Place, and in summer, when the +sun is shining brightly, it is a very pretty sight. But the best time +to see the Grande Place of Brussels is at night, when all is silent, +and the tall houses look solemnly down on the scene of many great +events which took place there long ago.<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_26" id="Page_26">[26]</a></span></p> + +<p>I cannot tell you one-half of all there is to see in Brussels—the +beautiful churches, the picture-galleries and museums, the splendid +old library, and the gardens. The largest building is a modern one, +the <i>Palais de Justice</i>, where the law courts sit. It cost nearly +£2,000,000 to build, and is much bigger than anything in London. It +stands on an eminence overlooking the lower part of the town, and is +so huge that it may almost be said to make the capital of this tiny +kingdom look top-heavy.</p> + +<p>There are many other towns in Belgium besides those we have been +looking at: Louvain, with its ancient University; Liége and Charleroi, +with their steel and iron works; Courtrai, celebrated for the +manufacture of linen; Tournai, where carpets are made; Mons, with its +coal-mines; and more besides, which all lie within the narrow limits +of this small country. Most of them have played a great part in +history. Belgium is, above all things, a country of famous towns.</p> + +<p>When you wander about among the towns of Flanders and Brabant you +might think that the whole of Belgium was one level plain. But if you +leave Brussels and journey to the south, the aspect of the country +changes. Beyond the Forest of Soignies the tame, flat fields, the +formal rows of trees, and the long, straight roads begin to disappear, +the landscape becomes more picturesque, and soon you reach a river +called the Meuse, which flows along through a romantic<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_27" id="Page_27">[27]</a></span> valley, full +of quiet villages, gardens, woods, and hayfields, and enclosed by +steep slopes clothed with trees and thickets, and broken here and +there by dells, ravines, and bold, outstanding pinnacles of rock, +beyond which, for mile after mile, an undulating tableland is covered +by thick forests, where deer, wild boars, and other game abound. This +district is called the Ardennes.</p> + +<p>In the Valley of the Meuse there are three old and famous +towns—Liége, Namur, and Dinant—each nestling at the side of the +river, at the foot of a hill with a castle perched upon it.</p> + +<p>Other rivers flow into the Meuse. There is the Sambre, which runs from +the west, and joins the Meuse at Namur; the Lesse, which rushes in +from the south through a narrow gorge; and the Semois, a stream the +sides of which are so steep that there is not even a pathway along +them in some places, and travellers must pass from side to side in +boats when following its course.</p> + +<p>This is the prettiest part of Belgium, and in summer many people, who +do not care for going to the seaside, spend the holidays at the towns +and villages which are dotted about in the valleys and among the hills +and woods.</p> + + + +<hr style="width: 65%;" /> +<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_28" id="Page_28">[28]</a></span></p> +<h2><a name="CHAPTER_V" id="CHAPTER_V"></a>CHAPTER V</h2> + +<h3>BELGIAN CHILDREN: THE "PREMIÈRE COMMUNION"</h3> + + +<p>The Belgians may be divided, roughly speaking, into five classes of +people. There are those of the highest rank, who are called the +<i>grande</i>, or <i>vraie, noblesse</i>. Of these there are not many, but they +belong to old families, some of which have been famous in the history +of their country. They have often fine country-houses, and the towns +in which you will find them most often are Brussels and Ghent. Then +come those of a much lower class, the <i>petite noblesse</i>, of whom there +are very many. They seldom mix in society with the <i>grande noblesse</i>, +and their friends are generally members of the <i>haute</i>, or <i>bonne, +bourgeoisie</i>. The <i>bonne bourgeoisie</i> are like our middle class, and +there is no difference between them and the <i>petite noblesse</i> as to +the way in which they live. Below these are the <i>petite bourgeoisie</i>, +who are mostly shopkeepers, clerks, and people in various employments. +Last of all are the artisans and working-class people.</p> + +<p>It is about the children of the <i>bonne bourgeoisie</i> that I am going to +speak, for they are a very numerous class, and their customs are in +many respects the same as those of most Belgians.<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_29" id="Page_29">[29]</a></span></p> + +<p>When a child is born, the parents should send to all their friends a +box of <i>dragees</i>—that is, sugared almonds or sugar-plums. If the +child is a boy, the box is tied with pink ribbons; and if it is a +girl, with blue. Cards announcing the birth of a child are often sent +nowadays, but the real old Belgian fashion is to send the <i>dragees</i>, +and it is a great pity that people are giving it up so much.</p> + +<p>The next thing is to find a name for the child, and that is done by +the godmother, who either chooses some family name or calls the child +after its patron saint—that is to say, the saint on whose day it was +born—for in Belgium, as in all Catholic countries, each day is +dedicated to some saint. The commonest name, however, for girls is +Marie, a name given in honour of the Virgin Mary, to whom many baby +girls are devoted from their birth. The mothers of these little girls +vow never to dress them in anything but blue and white till they are +seven years old. When the baby is baptized, the godfather gives a pair +of gloves to the mother and the godmother. Curiously enough, most +Belgian parents would rather have a baby girl than a boy, because a +boy costs more to educate, and also because boys, when they grow up, +have to draw lots for service in the army, and almost every father who +can afford it buys his son off, and that costs money.</p> + +<p>There is no nursery life such as we have in England—at least, in very +few Belgian families. Here again<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_30" id="Page_30">[30]</a></span> money is grudged. People who will +pay high wages for a good cook hire young girls of fourteen or fifteen +to look after their children, and these <i>bonnes</i>, as they are called, +are paid very little, and are often careless and stupid. The result is +that the children are constantly with their parents, and, to keep them +quiet, are dreadfully spoilt and petted. It very often happens that, +when a Belgian lady has a friend calling on her, young children, who +ought to be in a nursery, are playing in the drawing-room. Their +mother has no control over them, and if she ventures to tell them to +keep quiet, or to run away, they don't obey her, and then she gives +in, and lets them have their own way.</p> + +<p>Another thing which follows from this want of nursery training is that +if, as sometimes happens, there are disputes between the parents, the +children are mixed up in them. You will hear a Belgian mother say to +her young daughter: "Imagine what your father has done!" Or if the +husband is angry with his wife, he will turn to his boy, and exclaim: +"That is just like a woman!" Of course, this is very bad for the +children, who hear a great deal which they would know nothing about if +they were not always with their parents.</p> + +<p>From being so much with older people these children get strange ideas. +I know a lady who said to a small Belgian girl, who was an only child: +"Would you like a little brother or sister to play with?" "Oh! no, +no," replied the child, "because when my father and mother die, I +shall have all their money." Where<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_31" id="Page_31">[31]</a></span>upon the mother exclaimed: "There! +the dear child; how well she knows the world already!"</p> + +<p>The children of the <i>petite bourgeoisie</i> are the most unruly. One sees +them often at the various holiday places, at the seaside or in the +Ardennes, where they dine, however young, along with their parents at +the <i>tables d'hôte</i>, or public dining-tables, of the hotels. They eat +untidily, spill their soup, throw bread at each other, upset their +tumblers of beer or wine (for they are allowed to have whatever their +parents are drinking), talk at the top of their voices, and really +make such a row that the older people can't hear each other speaking. +The moment they have had as much food as they want, they jump up, push +their chairs noisily aside, and begin to chase each other round the +room. Their parents never think of stopping them, and care nothing +about the annoyance such unmannerly behaviour causes. It is curious +how few Belgians, old or young, rich or poor, consider the feelings or +convenience of others. They are intensely selfish, and this is +doubtless caused by the way in which they are brought up.</p> + +<p>As you know, parents in England are forced by law to send their +children to school, or have them taught privately. There is no such +law in Belgium, and parents, if they like, may leave their children +without any education. The number, however, of those who do not go to +school is gradually decreasing, and most children get lessons of some +sort or another.<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_32" id="Page_32">[32]</a></span></p> + +<div class="figcenter" style="width: 400px;"><a name="pic_7" id="pic_7"></a> +<a href="images/image_052_1.jpg"><img src="images/image_052.jpg" width="400" height="634" alt="THE HÔTEL DE VILLE, BRUSSELS." title="THE HÔTEL DE VILLE, BRUSSELS." /></a><br /> + +<span class="caption">THE HÔTEL DE VILLE, BRUSSELS. <a href="#Page_4">PAGE 4.</a></span></div> + +<p>No religious instruction is given in Belgian schools, except in +convent schools, or in those where the teachers are entirely under the +Church. But almost all children have to learn the Catechism at home. +They need not understand it, but they must be able to repeat the +words. This is to prepare them for their <i>Première Communion</i>, or +first Communion, to which they go when they are eleven or twelve years +old. It takes place two Sundays before Easter Day.</p> + +<p>The custom is for all members of the family to wear new clothes on the +day of a <i>Première Communion</i>, but the child's dress is the important +thing. In Belgian towns, for some time before, the windows of the +shops in which articles of dress are sold are full of gloves, +stockings, ties, and other things marked "<i>Première Communion</i>." A +boy's dress is not much trouble. He wears black trousers, a black +jacket, and white gloves and tie. But great thought is given to seeing +that a girl looks well in her white dress, and other nice new things. +She thinks and talks of nothing but her clothes for ever so long +before, and especially of her "corsets," which she then puts on for +the first time. Her mother takes her to the shop to try them on, and +is at much pains to make her waist as slender as possible. "Can't you +pull them a little tighter?" she will say to the shopwoman. The girl +has tight new shoes to make her feet look as small as possible; the +<i>coiffeur</i> dresses her hair; and she is very proud of her appearance +when, <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_33" id="Page_33">[33]</a></span>squeezed into proper shape and decked out in her new clothes, +she sets off to church.</p> + + + +<p>The children are confirmed on the Monday, the day after their first +Communion, and are then taken to visit the friends of the family to be +shown off, and to receive presents. The windows of the confectioners' +shops are full of little white sugar images of boys and girls saying +their prayers, and even the poorest people manage to have a feast of +some sort on this occasion. They often beg money for the purpose. It +is, of course, difficult for parents who are poor to buy new clothes. +But any little gifts of money which a child may receive are taken and +hoarded up to be spent on its first Communion.</p> + +<p>All Belgian children, even those whose parents are not Catholics, go, +with scarcely an exception, to first Communion, and are confirmed, for +there may be relatives with money to leave, and they must not be +displeased.</p> + +<p>The <i>Première Communion</i> is the chief event in the life of a Belgian +child.</p> + + + +<hr style="width: 65%;" /> +<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_34" id="Page_34">[34]</a></span></p> +<h2><a name="CHAPTER_VI" id="CHAPTER_VI"></a>CHAPTER VI</h2> + +<h3>CHRISTMAS IN BELGIUM</h3> + + +<p>Christmas is not kept in Belgium in the same way as in England, +Germany, and other countries. There are special services in church, +but no Christmas-trees, Christmas presents, or family dinner-parties.</p> + +<p>This was not always so, and some traces still remain in different +parts of the old customs which used to be observed in Belgium. The +ancient Belgians had a festival at mid-winter, and when they were +converted to Christianity they continued to use a good many of their +old rites at that season of the year, and the few very old Christmas +customs which survive really began when Belgium was a pagan or heathen +land.</p> + +<p>Some of these customs are rather curious. In the Valley of the Meuse +the pagans used to feast on the flesh of wild boars at their +mid-winter banquets, and now the people of Namur have roast pork for +dinner on Christmas Day. The <i>petite bourgeoisie</i> of Brussels often +eat chestnuts on that day—an old usage handed down from the days when +the Germans ate acorns—and think they can find out what is going to +happen in the future by burning them. For instance, a young man and<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_35" id="Page_35">[35]</a></span> +woman who are engaged to be married throw two nuts into the fire. If +they burn peacefully, the marriage will be happy; if they crack and +jump away from each other, it will be unhappy. If a candle or lamp +goes out suddenly on Christmas Eve, it is believed that someone in the +room will die soon. Another sign of death is if you throw salt on the +floor and it melts. In some places candles are burnt all night to +scare away evil spirits. Another custom is to go into orchards, and +strike with an axe trees which have not been fruitful. This, it is +thought, will make them bear next year.</p> + +<p>There are many other superstitions like these which can be traced back +to heathen times, but are now mixed up with the rites of Christian +worship. One strange superstition, which a few old peasants still +have, is that when the clock strikes twelve on Christmas Eve all the +water in the house may turn into wine. This comes down, no doubt, from +early Christian times.</p> + +<p>In some Belgian towns the children of the poor go round on Christmas +Eve, from house to house, singing, and asking for bread, fruit, or +nuts. One of their favourite songs begins:</p> + +<div class="poem"><div class="stanza"> +<span class="i0">"Blyden nacht,<br /></span> +<span class="i0">O blyden nacht! Messias is geboren!"<br /></span> +</div></div> + +<p>That is Flemish, their language, and it means: "Happy night, oh, happy +night! The Messiah is born." Another song begins: "Een Kindeken is +ons<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_36" id="Page_36">[36]</a></span> geboren," which is the same as "Unto us a Child is born."</p> + +<p>Good children, who have said their prayers every night, expect to find +under their pillows on Christmas morning a cake, or rather a bun, +which is called an <i>engelskoek</i>, or angel's cake, which the Archangel +Gabriel is supposed to have brought during the night to reward them. +Naughty children find nothing. In some places the children are told +that it is the <i>petit Jesus</i> (the little child Jesus), who puts the +bun under their pillows.</p> + +<p>In many churches, but by no means in all, there is a midnight service, +at which there is a manger surrounded by wax candles, with an image of +the Holy Child in it. But this late service was so often made an +excuse for going to public-houses, and drinking too much, that the +hour has been changed, in most places, to five in the morning. The +custom of having shrines, with a manger and candles, known as +"Bethlehems," is, however, common, even in private houses.</p> + +<p>On Christmas Day in Flanders people wish each other "A Merry +Christmas," just as they do in England; and many parents of the upper +classes send their children, in charge of a servant, to visit their +relatives, from whom they may receive some small gifts.</p> + +<p>But Christmas Day is not the same, in the way of presents and +merry-making, as it is in England.</p> + + + +<hr style="width: 65%;" /> +<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_37" id="Page_37">[37]</a></span></p> +<h2><a name="CHAPTER_VII" id="CHAPTER_VII"></a>CHAPTER VII</h2> + +<h3>NEW YEAR'S DAY</h3> + + +<p>New Year's Day is a great day in Belgium.</p> + +<p>December 31, the last day of the old year, is dedicated to St. +Sylvester, and there is a custom, at least in Antwerp, that the child +who gets out of bed last is called a "Sylvester," and must give the +best of its toys to its brothers and sisters. If one of the older +girls in a family does not finish any sewing or fancy-work she may +have on hand by the end of the day, she is afraid of being haunted by +evil spirits. Some people say that a young woman who does not finish +her work before sunset has no chance of being married for a year. So +they all get their various tasks done, and the last night of the year +is spent in amusement. The whole family, children and all, sit up till +midnight, singing, reciting, or playing games till the clock strikes +twelve, when they all kiss each other, and give wishes for "A Happy +New Year."</p> + +<p>In the big towns, however, many of the <i>petite bourgeoisie</i> do not +"bring in the New Year" at home, and the restaurants and cafés are +crowded till twelve o'clock, when healths are drunk, and there is +cheering<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_38" id="Page_38">[38]</a></span> and singing, which are continued in the streets when the +people are going home; and there is a great deal of noise for a long +time after all the cafés are closed.</p> + +<p>It used to be the fashion to fire guns at midnight on New Year's Eve, +but that is not common now except in one part of Belgium, called +Limburg, where any girl who has a lover expects him to fire off shots +in front of her window. The more shots he fires the more she thinks he +loves her, and to reward him she ought to hide a bottle of gin in some +corner outside the house, from which he can drink her health. +Mischievous young men, however, sometimes find the bottle, and drink +the gin before the lover comes, and so the girl often waits till she +hears the shots, and then lowers the bottle by a string from the +window. This funny custom, like many others, is now going out of +fashion.</p> + +<p>On New Year's Day all Belgians call on their friends to wish them "A +Happy New Year," when they are offered wine, sweetmeats, and things of +that sort. This paying of visits on New Year's Day goes on to such an +extent in Belgian towns that people who have many friends spend almost +the whole day in walking or driving about from one house to another. +As everyone is doing the same thing, of course a great many people are +not at home when their friends come, and so the hall-table of nearly +every house is covered with calling-cards before evening. The servants +have almost nothing to do all day but answer the door-bell, which is +constantly ringing.<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_39" id="Page_39">[39]</a></span></p> + +<p>In some towns, Antwerp among others, it is supposed to be quite +allowable for grown-up people, ladies and gentlemen, to kiss anyone +they know on New Year's Day. A Belgian lady once told me that it +brought good luck to kiss an officer of the army; but, of course, +there are limits to this, as there are to kissing under the mistletoe +in England.</p> + +<p>In the country parts of South Belgium it is the custom to try to be +the first to call out "Good New Year" when you meet a friend. If you +say it first you have something given you. The children try to +surprise their fathers and mothers, brothers and sisters, and all the +friends of the family in this way. They get up early, and hide +themselves, so as to be able to jump out suddenly, and say "<i>Een Zalig +Nieuwjahr</i>," which means "A Good New Year." All day long they go on +doing it, and are never tired of telling each other about the tricks +they have thought of to <i>verassen</i>, as it is called, the older people, +who must give them gingerbread or sugar-plums as the penalty for being +surprised in this way.</p> + +<p>On New Year's Day in Belgium it is not only your friends who stop you +in the street or call at your house. Every man, woman, boy, or girl +who has done any work for you, and often those who have done nothing, +expect to get something. They are very greedy. Railway-porters who +have once brought a box to your house, ring your bell and beg. +Telegraph-boys, scavengers paid by the town, bell-ringers, policemen,<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_40" id="Page_40">[40]</a></span> +shop-boys, everyone comes bowing and scraping, and men who in England +would be ashamed to take a "tip" will touch their hats, and hold out +their hands for a few pence. They don't wait to be offered money; they +ask for it, like common street-beggars asking alms.</p> + +<p>January 6, the Feast of the Epiphany, is known in Flanders as <i>Groot +Nieuwjahr</i> ("Great New Year"), and is kept to some extent by the +working-people in the same way as the first day of the year. Mondays +are always idle days with working-men in Belgium, and the first Monday +after Epiphany is the idlest of them all. It is called <i>Verloren +Maandag</i>, or, in French, <i>Lundi Perdu</i>, which means "Lost Monday," +because no one does any work. The day is spent going about asking for +money, and at night there is a great deal of drinking. On one of these +Mondays not long ago some drunken troopers of a cavalry regiment +stabbed the keeper of a village public-house near Bruges, broke his +furniture to pieces, and kept the villagers in a state of terror for +some hours.</p> + +<p>One very bad thing about the lower-class Belgians is that when they +drink, and begin to quarrel, they use knives, and wound or kill those +who have offended them. By a curious superstition it is thought +unlucky to work on Lost Monday, so the people get drunk, and more +crimes of violence are committed on that day than at any other time of +the year.</p> + + + + +<hr style="width: 65%;" /> +<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_41" id="Page_41">[41]</a></span></p> +<h2><a name="CHAPTER_VIII" id="CHAPTER_VIII"></a>CHAPTER VIII</h2> + +<h3>PAGEANTS AND PROCESSIONS</h3> + + +<p>The Belgians are very fond of pageants and processions. In each town +there are several, and in all villages at least one, every year. It +has been so for hundreds of years, and these spectacles must have been +magnificent in the Middle Ages, when the narrow streets were full of +knights in glittering armour riding on their strong Flemish war-horses +decked with embroidered saddle-cloths, bishops and priests in gorgeous +vestments, standard-bearers, trumpeters, heralds in their robes of +office, images of saints borne high above the crowd, mingled with +jesters and the enormous giants with grotesque faces which were +carried along on these occasions. The tall houses with their +projecting wooden gables were gay with flags. The windows and +balconies were hung with rich tapestry, and from them the wives and +daughters of nobles and wealthy merchants looked down upon the scene +below. A Queen of France once rode in a procession through the streets +of Bruges, and was moved to jealousy by the sight of so many ladies +decked in jewels as rich as her own. "I thought," she said, "that<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_42" id="Page_42">[42]</a></span> I +alone was Queen, but here I have hundreds of rivals."</p> + +<div class="figcenter" style="width: 400px;"><a name="pic_8" id="pic_8"></a> +<a href="images/image_063_1.jpg"><img src="images/image_063.jpg" width="400" height="540" alt="AT THE KERMESSE." title="AT THE KERMESSE." /></a><br /> + +<span class="caption">AT THE KERMESSE. <a href="#Page_8">PAGE 8</a>.</span></div> + + +<p>One of the most splendid of these pageants was in the summer of the +year 1468, when an English Princess, Margaret of York, married a +Prince called Charles the Bold, who was Duke of Burgundy. On that +occasion there was a famous tournament in the market-place of Bruges, +in which many valiant knights took part. It was called the "Tournament +of the Golden Tree." Two years ago, in the summer of 1907, there was a +pageant at Bruges, when the marriage festivities of Charles the Bold +and Margaret of York were represented. A young Belgian lady took the +part of the English Princess, and a Belgian gentleman appeared as +Charles the Bold. There were knights in armour, ladies of the Court of +Burgundy, heralds, men-at-arms, and pages, all dressed in the +picturesque costumes of the Middle Ages. There was tilting in the +lists, when lances were broken, and, in short, everything was done +very nearly as it was 440 years ago. This spectacle, which was +produced on three days, was attended by thousands of people, who came +from all parts of Belgium to see it. It was a very good example of how +well the Belgians can manage a pageant, and how popular these shows +are with the people.</p> + +<p>A very celebrated pageant takes place every year at Bruges, the +"Procession of the Holy Blood," which devout Catholics from every +country in Europe attend. There is a small chapel in that town, where +they keep,<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_43" id="Page_43">[43]</a></span> in a crystal tube, what is said to be some of the blood of +our Lord. It has been there for more than 700 years. The tube is +preserved in a beautiful case adorned with precious stones, which is +carried through the town on the first Monday after May 2. The houses +are decorated with flags, and candles burn in almost every window. +Through the streets, between crowds of people standing on the +pavements or looking down from the windows—while the church bells +ring, and wreaths of incense fill the air, bands of music, squadrons +of cavalry, crucifixes, shrines, images, the banners of the parishes, +heralds in their varied dresses, bareheaded pilgrims from England, +France, and other countries, maidens in white, bearing palms or crowns +of thorn or garlands—priests and chanting choristers, move slowly +along, and, when the relic of the Holy Blood passes, all the people +sink to the ground. Bruges, usually so empty, is always crowded on +that day.</p> + +<p>Seven or eight years ago at Lierre, a town near Antwerp, I saw three +processions in one month, each of which showed the Belgian fondness +for such things. One was the procession of St. Gommarius, the patron +saint of the town, when a golden shrine, said to contain his bones, +was carried through the streets, just as the relic of the Holy Blood +is carried through Bruges. There were a great many little children in +that procession, dressed as angels and saints—in white, pale green, +blue, crimson, and other colours. Some had wreaths of<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_44" id="Page_44">[44]</a></span> flowers on +their heads, and some carried lighted tapers. They all seemed proud of +taking part in the procession. The smallest, who were tiny mites, with +their mothers walking with them to take care of them, were very tired +at the end, for they had to walk slowly for hours on the hard stones, +stopping often before sacred images, when the priests burned incense, +and all the people went down on their knees. This, like that at +Bruges, is a religious procession, and there are many others of the +same kind all over Belgium.</p> + +<p>Another procession was in honour of an old couple, who had been +married for fifty years. They were poor people, and the parish was +celebrating their "golden wedding." There was a service in the +Cathedral of St. Gommarius, and when that was finished the old man and +his wife were put in a carriage and four. They were neatly dressed, +and each had a large bouquet of yellow flowers. At the head of each +horse walked a young man, leading it by a long yellow ribbon. In front +of the carriage a band of musicians played, and behind it came a +number of peasants, all in their best clothes. They wore white cotton +gloves and yellow wedding-favours. The man and his wife, who were +evidently feeble as well as very old, seemed rather bored, but all the +people in the procession were in high spirits, for they were on their +way to a good dinner paid for by the parish.</p> + +<p>A few nights after that there was a tremendous noise<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_45" id="Page_45">[45]</a></span> of music in the +market-place, and another procession was formed, which marched off +round the town, and at last stopped before the door of a house. Here +they remained for a long time. There was a great deal of cheering, and +the band played tune after tune, finishing up with the Belgian +National Anthem. And what do you think it was all about? A boy whose +parents lived in the house had gained a prize at school. That was all; +but it was an excuse for a procession, music, and drinking healths.</p> + +<p>Not long ago a young man won a prize at a great School of Music in +Brussels called the <i>Conservatoire</i>, and so his native town must needs +have a procession. There were two bands, a number of flags, and +several carriages, in one of which the young fellow sat, bowing from +side to side as he was driven through the streets to a café, at which +what they call the <i>vin d'honneur</i>, or cup of honour, was served.</p> + +<p>In the same town two years ago the football team of a regiment +quartered there won a cup, and there was a long procession of soldiers +and townsmen in honour of the event. The cup was carried in triumph on +a platform adorned with wreaths, and the crowd shouted as if the +soldiers were returning victorious from war.</p> + +<p>The Belgians have always been the same in their love of such displays. +Long ago their country was oppressed by the Spaniards, who killed and +tortured many<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_46" id="Page_46">[46]</a></span> of them without mercy. But that made no difference, and +their sorrows were soon forgotten if their conquerors provided some +pageant to amuse them. A circus procession of buffoons, with +dromedaries, elephants, sham giants, and pasteboard whales and +dragons, seems to have consoled them for all their misery.</p> + + + +<hr style="width: 65%;" /> +<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_47" id="Page_47">[47]</a></span></p> +<h2><a name="CHAPTER_IX" id="CHAPTER_IX"></a>CHAPTER IX</h2> + +<h3>THE STORY OF ST. EVERMAIRE: A COUNTRY PAGEANT</h3> + + +<p>Once upon a time there was a good man called St. Evermaire, who went +on a pilgrimage to a part of Belgium called the Hesbaye, which is near +the River Meuse. As he and his companions were journeying along, they +came, when it was growing dark one evening, to a great wood. Being +afraid of losing their way, they went to a village to ask for shelter. +This village belonged to a fierce robber, called Hacco, and it was at +his door that the pilgrims knocked. The door was opened by Hacco's +wife, who received them kindly, but told them that her husband was a +robber, and that, though he was away from home, it would not be safe +for them to remain there long. So very early next morning, as soon as +it was light, they went into the wood, and lay down to sleep beside a +fountain among the trees.</p> + +<p>They had scarcely gone when Hacco, who had been out all night looking +for people to rob, came home. When he heard about the strangers who +had just left, he flew into a terrible rage, and went to look for +them. He soon found them fast asleep in the wood,<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_48" id="Page_48">[48]</a></span> and killed them. +Then he tore off their clothes, and left their bodies lying on the +ground.</p> + +<div class="figcenter" style="width: 400px;"><a name="pic_9" id="pic_9"></a> +<a href="images/image_072_1.jpg"><img src="images/image_072.jpg" width="400" height="602" alt="A CHÂTEAU IN THE LESSE VALLEY." title="A CHÂTEAU IN THE LESSE VALLEY." /></a><br /> +<span class="caption">A CHÂTEAU IN THE LESSE VALLEY. <a href="#Page_27">PAGE 27.</a></span></div> + +<p>After a little time some huntsmen found the dead pilgrims, and dug a +grave for them. But these people, noticing that the face of one dead +man shone brightly, and feeling sure that he must be some very holy +person, buried him in a grave by himself. This was St. Evermaire.</p> + +<p>The wood was many years later cut down, and a village called Russon +was built near the place where Hacco murdered the pilgrims. The first +priest of this village discovered the grave of St. Evermaire, whose +bones were placed in a tomb in the church of Russon; but they were +afterwards laid to rest in a chapel which was built on purpose to +receive them. This chapel stands in a grove of beech-trees, on a +meadow surrounded by a hedge, in one corner of which there is a +fountain whose water is said to be a cure for ague. It is supposed to +be on the very spot where the pilgrims were killed. Over the altar in +the chapel is a painting of the murder. There are also statues of the +Virgin Mary and of St. Evermaire, and a gilded case, which contains +the bones of the saint.</p> + + + +<p>On May Day there is a procession from Russon to this chapel. First two +vergers come out of the village church, dressed in "tights," and +covered from their ankles to their necks with ivy-leaves. They wear +pointed caps on their heads, and brandish huge <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_49" id="Page_49">[49]</a></span>clubs, with which +they threaten the country people, who roar with laughter at the faces +they make. Seven men are dressed up to represent St. Evermaire and his +companions. The saint himself wears a tunic of coarse brown cloth, +girt about with a leather belt, from which hang a string of beads and +a pilgrim's bottle, a short cloak of ox-hide, and a round hat; but the +other pilgrims have just black coats and breeches, with white +stockings. They are followed by about fifty men on horseback, dressed +up as Hacco and his band of robbers.</p> + +<p>This strange-looking procession goes to the chapel, where there is +service, the vergers in their ivy-leaves assisting at the altar; and +the moment the Benediction has been said, the whole congregation +rushes out to the meadow. The pilgrims stand in a circle near the +fountain, where they sing a quaint old country hymn.</p> + +<p>In the meantime Hacco and his band gallop about outside the meadow; +but when the pilgrims have done singing, they enter it, and ride round +and round several times. Then the pilgrims go near the chapel, and a +short conversation is sung between them and Hacco, they imploring +mercy, and he abusing them for trespassing on his lands. At last Hacco +becomes impatient, draws his sword, and advances upon the pilgrims, +declaring in a voice of thunder that he is about to kill them.</p> + +<p>At this point the spectators are expected to weep;<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_50" id="Page_50">[50]</a></span> but all of a +sudden the youngest pilgrim takes to his heels, and scampers away as +fast as ever he can. Hacco and the robbers run after him, scrambling +about among bushes and trees, as if they were playing at +hide-and-seek. The spectators laugh and clap their hands, and the +village children scream with delight. Hacco fires a pistol at the +runaway, but misses, on which everybody cheers. Then he fires again, +and the pilgrim tumbles down, and is killed with an arrow by one of +the robbers, who picks him up, throws him across the back of a horse +and brings him back to the meadow.</p> + +<p>During this chase the other pilgrims have thrown themselves, as if in +despair, on the grass, where presently Hacco and his followers proceed +to kill them. But by this time all the actors are tired and thirsty; +so St. Evermaire and his friends rise up, and the whole company of +robbers and pilgrims walk off, and swill beer together for the rest of +the day. So ends the rustic pageant of Russon.</p> + + + +<hr style="width: 65%;" /> +<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_51" id="Page_51">[51]</a></span></p> +<h2><a name="CHAPTER_X" id="CHAPTER_X"></a>CHAPTER X</h2> + +<h3>THE CARNIVAL</h3> + + +<p>The week before Lent begins is called in Flanders <i>Duivelsweek</i>, which +means "The Devil's Week"; and on the Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday +before Ash Wednesday there is the Carnival, so called from the Latin +words <i>carni vale</i> (which mean, as every school-boy knows, "farewell +to the flesh"), because during Lent good Catholics should abjure "the +world, the flesh, and the devil," and refrain from eating meat. In +Ghent the Monday of that week is called <i>Zotten-Maanday</i>, or Fools' +Monday, and all over Belgium the next day (Shrove Tuesday in England) +is called <i>Mardi Gras</i>—that is, Fat Tuesday—the day on which people +can eat and drink as much as they like before beginning to fast.</p> + +<p>During the Carnival people go about the streets in fancy dress, +sometimes with their faces hidden by masks. Often they are dressed as +clowns, and make a great noise, blowing horns, dancing, singing, and +making fools of themselves in every possible way. In the shops bags of +confetti are sold—little bits of coloured paper, like what you see in +England too<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_52" id="Page_52">[52]</a></span>—which you may throw at other people, whether you know +them or not. The children have often great fun, covering each other +with these bits of paper, which stick in the hair and are very +difficult to shake off. In some of the streets at Brussels the +pavements are carpeted all the time of the Carnival with thousands of +these small pink, yellow, and white fragments, which the people have +been throwing about. Then there are false noses, wigs, and other +disguises, so that you may pass people you know quite well without an +idea who they are. A person may speak to you; you fancy you know the +voice, but a beard, and perhaps a long blue nose, hide the face, and +you are in doubt. A handful of confetti is thrown in your face, and in +a moment the figure is gone and lost in the crowd.</p> + +<p>A few years ago there was a Carnival procession in most of the towns, +and then all the huge wickerwork giants were carried about. They all +have names. The Brussels giant is Ommegan. In another town there is, +or was, one called Goliath. There is a very old giant called Lange +Man, or Long Man. He is probably still to be seen at Hasselt, in the +South of Belgium, which was his native place. A good many years ago he +was carried through the streets on a car drawn by four horses, and all +the poor people got soup, which he was supposed to give them in memory +of a famine from which the town had suffered at one time. A good deal +of money is collected for the poor during the Carnival by people who +go about with<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_53" id="Page_53">[53]</a></span> boxes, into which everyone is expected to put +something.</p> + +<p>There are not so many Carnival processions as there used to be, and +within the last two or three years they have been entirely given up in +some places. But the Carnival goes on, with more or less gaiety, +everywhere. There are few towns where masked balls do not take place, +and these usually last all night, so that some of the dancers never go +to bed. During the Carnival most of the public-houses remain open all +night, and there is dancing in them, and a great deal of noise.</p> + +<p>The fourth Sunday in Lent is called Mi-Carême, or, in Flemish, +<i>Half-Vasten</i>, when the fun of the Carnival is renewed; and on that +day a person like Santa Claus, whom you know in England, makes his +appearance. He is called <i>De Greef van Half-Fasten</i>—that is, the +Count of Mi-Carême—and comes to give presents to all good children. +But he is so like Santa Claus that we shall leave him alone in the +meantime, for I shall presently be telling you what Santa Claus does +in Belgium.</p> + +<p>There is, however, another Count who does not visit England—the Count +of Nut Land, who rides along with a sack of nuts, which he throws +about for anyone to pick up. Strange to say, cracking these nuts is +supposed to be a cure for toothache! Is not that a funny idea?</p> + + + +<hr style="width: 65%;" /> +<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_54" id="Page_54">[54]</a></span></p> +<h2><a name="CHAPTER_XI" id="CHAPTER_XI"></a>CHAPTER XI</h2> + +<h3>CHILDREN'S WINTER FESTIVALS</h3> + + +<p>Very young children in Belgium look forward to the evening before +November 11, which is the Day of St. Martin, because they have heard +that something very exciting is going to happen.</p> + +<p>Their parents make them stand in a corner, with their faces to the +wall. They must not look round, for if they do nothing will happen. +But if they are not inquisitive, ask no questions, and stand quite +still, a shower of nuts and apples suddenly falls on the floor behind +them. They are told that these have been thrown down from heaven by +St. Martin, and they at once turn round and scramble for them.</p> + +<p>There is another thing which is sometimes done on St. Martin's Eve. +The father, or some big boy, comes into the younger children's +bedroom, dressed up as the saint, with a beard and robes, and asks how +the children have been behaving. If he is told they have been good, he +gives them apples or sweetmeats; but if he hears they have been +naughty, he pulls out a whip, throws it down, and leaves the room.</p> + +<p>At Malines, and perhaps elsewhere, the children<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_55" id="Page_55">[55]</a></span> of poor people have a +little procession of their own on St. Martin's Day, when they dress up +and go about singing from house to house. One of them, who is dressed +as St. Martin, carries a large basket, into which the people at whose +doors they ring put apples or money. At another town, called Furnes, +there is also a procession of children, who carry paper lanterns, with +lighted candles in them, and march singing through the streets. The +same thing is done in the country round Bruges, where the children +visit the farm-houses at night, singing and asking for apples and +nuts.</p> + +<p>There are cakes, called <i>gauffres</i>, which are often eaten on St. +Martin's Day, and are therefore sometimes called St. Martin's cakes. +That favourite saint is so much spoken of in connection with eating +good things that in the Valley of the Meuse they call him <i>le bon +vivant</i>, which means the person who lives well.</p> + +<p>Just as in England bonfires are lighted on Guy Fawkes' Day, November +5, so in Belgium they light them on the evening of St. Martin's Day. +Indeed, they are known as St. Martin's fires, and the children call +lighting a bonfire "warming the good St. Martin."</p> + +<p>About a month after St. Martin's comes the Day of St. +Nicholas—December 6. During the night before this saint is supposed +to ride through the sky, over the fields and above the housetops, +mounted on a donkey or a white horse, with a great basket stuffed<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_56" id="Page_56">[56]</a></span> +full of toys, fruit, sweetmeats, and other nice things. Down the +chimney of every house where there are children sleeping he drops some +of these things, if the children have been good, or a whip if they +have been naughty.</p> + +<p>So on the Eve of St. Nicholas Belgian children, before they go to bed, +fill their shoes, or sometimes a basket, with hay or carrots, and +place them near the chimney of their sleeping-room, so that when St. +Nicholas comes to the house he may find something for his donkey or +horse to eat, and in return leave presents for them.</p> + +<p>Having made these preparations, the children ought to sing or repeat +verses addressed to the saint. Here is one of them—the one they sing +at Lierre:</p> + +<div class="poem"><div class="stanza"> +<span class="i0">"Sinte Niklaes,<br /></span> +<span class="i0">Nobele Sinte Niklaes!<br /></span> +<span class="i0">Werpiet in myn Schoentjen<br /></span> +<span class="i0">Een Appeltjen of een limoentjen!"<br /></span> +</div></div> + +<p>This means in English: "Noble Saint Nicholas, please throw into my +little shoe just a small apple or lemon."</p> + +<p>There is another of these rhymes which is not so polite, in which the +saint is told that if he gives something, the child will serve him for +life, but if he doesn't, the child will not serve him at all!</p> + + +<p>Next morning the children wake early, and jump out of bed to see what +has happened during the night. They expect to find, if St. Nicholas is +pleased with <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_57" id="Page_57">[57]</a></span>them, that the hay and carrots have disappeared, and +that their shoes are full of presents; but that if they have not been +good enough, the shoes will just be as they were the night before, and +a birch-rod stuck into the hay. But, as you may suppose, it always +turns out that St. Nicholas is pleased. The presents are there, and +amongst them there is sure to be a gingerbread figure of the saint, +which they may eat or not, as they please; so they are happy for the +rest of the day.</p> +<div class="figcenter" style="width: 600px;"><a name="pic_10" id="pic_10"></a> +<a href="images/image_083_1.jpg"><img src="images/image_083.jpg" width="600" height="426" alt="A FARMSTEADING." title="A FARMSTEADING." /></a><br /> + +<span class="caption">A FARMSTEADING.</span></div> + + +<p>St. Nicholas, you see, is much the same as Santa Claus, for whom +stockings are hung up in England.</p> + +<p>About a fortnight after this comes December 21, dedicated to St. +Thomas, when Belgian children can play tricks on their parents in a +curious way. The game is to get your father or mother to leave the +house, and then lock the door and refuse to let them in till they have +promised to give you something. A child will say: "Mother, somebody +wants to speak to you in the garden." The mother goes out. Of course +there is nobody there; and when she comes back the child calls out: +"St. Thomas's Day! What will you give me to let you in?" So the mother +promises something, which is usually chocolate, with a piece of +<i>cramique</i>—a kind of bread with currants in it—and not till then is +the door opened. This, of course, is great fun for the children, who +always hope that their parents have forgotten what day it is, and so +will be easily tricked.</p> + +<p>A week later is the Festival of SS. Innocents, or<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_58" id="Page_58">[58]</a></span> <i>Allerkinderendag</i> +(the day of all the children), as it is called in Flemish, which is +observed in memory of the slaughter of the children by Herod. On this +day Belgian children are supposed to change places with their parents, +wear their best clothes, and rule the household.</p> + +<p>They can put on their parents' clothes, and go about the house making +as much noise as they like, teasing the servants and giving them +orders. The youngest girl has the privilege of telling the cook what +she is to prepare for dinner; and all the children may go out and walk +about dressed up as old people. This is not often seen now, though +poor children sometimes put on their parents' things, and beg from +door to door, calling themselves "the little fathers and mothers."</p> + +<p>These winter festivals, when the children have so much liberty and get +so many presents, take the place in Belgium of the Christmas-trees and +parties you have in England.</p> + + + +<hr style="width: 65%;" /> +<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_59" id="Page_59">[59]</a></span></p> +<h2><a name="CHAPTER_XII" id="CHAPTER_XII"></a>CHAPTER XII</h2> + +<h3>THE ARCHERS: GAMES PLAYED IN BELGIUM</h3> + + +<p>Let us imagine we are taking a walk along some country road in +Flanders on a summer afternoon. There is a cinder-track for cyclists +on one side, and the lines of a district railway on the other. The +road between them is causeway, very hard, dusty, and hot to walk on. +But we can step on to the railway, and walk between the rails, or take +to the cycle-track. If a train comes up behind, the engine-driver will +whistle to give us warning, but we must keep a sharp lookout for +cyclists, who seldom ring their bells, but rush swiftly and silently +past, and perhaps shout something rude to us for being on their track. +There are no fences or hedges, but a straggling row of tall +poplar-trees on each side of the road, and beyond them square fields +of rye or pasturage divided by ditches of stagnant water.</p> + +<p>It will not be long before we come to a village, a row of white +cottages with roofs of red tiles, and outside window-shutters painted +green. In front of each cottage there is a pathway of rough stones, +and a gutter full of dirty water. There are about fifty of these +cottages, of which half a dozen or so have signboards<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_60" id="Page_60">[60]</a></span> with <i>Herberg</i>, +which means public-house, over their doors. The railway passes close +in front of them. A little way back from the road there is a church, +with a clock-tower, and a snug-looking house, standing in a garden, +where the parish priest lives.</p> + +<p>Just outside the village we notice a meadow, in which there is a +wooden shed open at one side, with benches in it, and reminding us of +the little pavilions we often see on village cricket-grounds in +England. The part of the meadow just in front of this shed is covered +with cinders or gravel, in the middle of which rises a very high pole, +tapering towards the top, and looking like a gigantic fishing-rod +stuck in the ground. It is crossed, a long way up, by slender spars, +like the yards of a ship, only they are no thicker than a +walking-stick. On these spars, and along the pole itself near the top, +a number of little wooden pegs, with tufts of yellow worsted attached +to them, are fixed. One bigger than the rest is perched on the very +summit of the pole, which bends over slightly to one side. They look +like toy canaries, but are called "pigeons," and they are put there as +marks to be shot at with bows and arrows.</p> + +<p>Presently a number of men come from the village, each with a long-bow +and some arrows. It is a holiday, and the local Society of Archers is +going to spend the afternoon shooting for prizes. One of them takes +his stand close to the foot of the pole, fits an arrow on his +bowstring, aims steadily, and shoots straight up. It needs a good deal +of strength, as the bow is stiff to bend.<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_61" id="Page_61">[61]</a></span> The arrow flies whistling +among the "birds," touches one or two without bringing them down, +rises high above the top of the pole, turns in the air, and comes down +again to the ground with a thud. It is the duty of two or three boys +to pick up the arrows, and bring them back to the shooters. The arrows +are blunt, but to protect their heads these boys wear hats with thick +flat crowns and very broad brims, which make them look like big +mushrooms with legs as they run about to fetch the arrows.</p> + +<p>When a bird is hit fair and square it comes down, and the shot is +cheered. Sometimes shot after shot is fired, and nothing falls, +especially if there is a wind. But the interest never flags, and the +shooting goes on for hours. There is a great deal of talking and +laughing, much beer is drunk in the pavilion, and the fun only ends +when the light fails.</p> + +<p>This is the great national sport of Belgium. There is scarcely a town +or village which has not a Society of Archers, called generally after +St. Sebastian, the patron saint of archers. Many of them were founded +600 years ago, at the time when the famous archers of England were +showing how well they could hold their own with the bow against +knights clad in heavy armour. In 1303 a society called the +Confraternity of the Archers of St. Sebastian was founded at Ypres, a +town in Flanders, to celebrate a great battle, the Battle of the +Golden Spurs, in which the Flemings had been victorious over the +French the year before, and this<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_62" id="Page_62">[62]</a></span> society still exists. The chief +Society of Archers in Brabant in the old days was at Louvain, and it +was founded just three years before that Battle of Cressy of which you +have so often heard, when, as the old chronicler Froissart says, the +English arrows flew so thick that it seemed to snow.</p> + +<p>Thus the history of this national sport goes back to the time when +arrows were used in battle, and men had to practise constantly with +their bows in order to be able to defend their country or attack their +enemies. But when the use of firearms became universal, and archers +were no longer employed in warfare, the societies still continued to +exist, and their meetings gradually became what they now are—social +gatherings for the practice of archery as a form of sport.</p> + +<p>At Bruges there is a company of archers called the Society of St. +Sebastian, whose club-house was built with money given by Charles II. +of England, who lived in that town for some time when he was an exile; +and it may interest you to know that Queen Victoria, when on a visit +to Bruges, became a member of this society, and afterwards sent two +silver cups as prizes to be shot for.</p> + +<p>Another form of this sport is shooting with crossbows at a target. St. +George is the patron generally of those who use the crossbow. The +Society of St. George at Bruges has a curious festival, which is +observed in February. It is called the <i>Hammekensfeest</i>, or festival +of the ham. The shooting takes place in a<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_63" id="Page_63">[63]</a></span> hall, where a supper-table +is laid with various dishes of ham, salads, fish, and other eatables. +The target is divided into spaces marked with the names of the dishes. +If anyone hits a space marked, for example, ham, he may go and help +himself to ham; but if someone else, shooting after him, hits the same +place, he must then give up his seat. In the bull's-eye of the target +there is the figure of an ape, and if anyone hits that he can eat of +any dish he pleases. You may suppose what an amusing supper-party this +is, when all the guests are shooting and eating by turns, and no one +knows whether he may not have to rise suddenly and give up his place +to somebody else.</p> + +<p>There are many other customs and festivals connected with the archer +societies, which are very flourishing in Belgium, chiefly among the +<i>petite bourgeoisie</i>.</p> + +<p>There are athletic clubs in Belgium, and rowing is a favourite sport, +especially at Ghent. Two years on end the Ghent Rowing Club won the +Grand Challenge Shield at Henley, beating all the English crews which +rowed against them.</p> + +<p>As in all countries, the children have many games. One, which they +call <i>balle dans la maison</i> (ball in the house), is much the same as +rounders, and there is another game called <i>camp ruiné</i>, which girls +play at school. There are two sides. A ball is thrown up, and each +side tries to prevent the other catching it. Each player who is +prevented has to join the opposite<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_64" id="Page_64">[64]</a></span> side or camp, and so on till one +camp is "ruined" by losing all its occupants.</p> + +<div class="figcenter" style="width: 600px;"><a name="pic_11" id="pic_11"></a> +<a href="images/image_092_1.jpg"><img src="images/image_092.jpg" width="600" height="464" alt="PLAYING "JEU DE BOULE," AT A FLEMISH INN." title="PLAYING "JEU DE BOULE," AT A FLEMISH INN." /></a><br /> + +<span class="caption">PLAYING "JEU DE BOULE," AT A FLEMISH INN.</span></div> + +<p>There is a very popular game among Belgian working-men called the <i>jeu +de balle</i>. There are five players on each side, who stand on two large +courts marked on the ground. The ball is served by hitting it with the +hand (as at fives) by a player on one side over the line which divides +the courts, and is returned in the same way by a player on the other +side. The ball must not touch the ground, and is taken full pitch. A +point is lost by the side which sends a ball outside the lines of the +court into which it ought to have been served or returned. The points +count fifteen, thirty, forty, and five for the last, which wins the +game.</p> + +<p>This is the chief game played by working-men in Belgium. In some +places it seems to be quite unknown, but in others it is very popular. +But there are so many rules that it is impossible fully to understand +it without seeing it played, or to explain it without a diagram +showing the positions of the players, who have all different names, +like men fielding at cricket. The <i>jeu de boule</i>, which you may hear +mentioned in Belgium, is quite different from the <i>jeu de balle</i>, and +is much the same as skittles.</p> + + + +<p>Of the more important games football is the most popular in Belgium. +Great crowds assemble to watch the matches, which are always played +under "Association" rules. Rugby football would be impossible for +Belgians, because they would never keep their tempers <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_65" id="Page_65">[65]</a></span>when caught +and thrown down. There would be constant rows, and no match would ever +be finished. As it is, there is a great deal of quarrelling, and when +one town plays another the visitors, if they win, are hooted, and +sometimes attacked, when they are leaving the ground. Lately, after a +football match in Flanders, knives were drawn, and some of the players +had to escape in a motor-car.</p> + +<p>Cricket has lately been tried, but it has not as yet spread much, and +is not likely to become very popular, as it requires too much patience +and steadiness for Belgian young men and boys. Lawn-tennis and hockey, +however, are quite the fashion, especially lawn-tennis, which many +Belgians, ladies as well as men, play extremely well. Important tennis +tournaments are held every summer at Ostend and other places on the +coast.</p> + +<p>In recent years several golf-courses have been made in Belgium. There +is one at a place called Le Coq, near Ostend, where Leopold II., the +present King of the Belgians, founded a club. It is very pretty, and +there is a fine club-house; but good English players do not like it, +because the course is too artificial, with flower-beds and ornamental +shrubs, whereas a golf-course ought to be as natural as possible. Golf +is played also at Brussels, Antwerp, Nieuport, and Ghent.</p> + +<p>Another place for golf is Knocke, a seaside village near Bruges, where +the game was introduced by a few Englishmen some years ago. The +golf-course at this<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_66" id="Page_66">[66]</a></span> place is laid out among the dunes, and is +entirely natural, with "bunkers" of fine sand. A great many players go +there from England and Scotland, as well as from various parts of +Belgium, and the Flemish "caddies," who cheerfully carry the clubs for +5d. a round, speak English quite well, and know all about the "Royal +and Ancient Game."</p> + + + +<hr style="width: 65%;" /> +<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_67" id="Page_67">[67]</a></span></p> +<h2><a name="CHAPTER_XIII" id="CHAPTER_XIII"></a>CHAPTER XIII</h2> + +<h3>WHAT THE BELGIANS SPEAK</h3> + + +<p>Three different languages are spoken in Belgium. These are Flemish, +Walloon, and French. Flemish is spoken in Flanders, in the provinces +of Antwerp and Limbourg, and in a part of Brabant. Walloon is the +language of Liége and the Valley of the Meuse, Luxembourg, and the +western districts. French is spoken all over the country. Some +Belgians speak nothing but Flemish, some nothing but Walloon, and some +nothing but French. A great many speak both Flemish and French, and +there are some who speak all three languages.</p> + +<p>Though Flemish is the language of the majority of Belgians, most of +the books, newspapers, and magazines are published in French, which is +the "official" language—that is to say, it is the language of the +Court and the Government—and all well-educated Belgians can speak, +read, and write it. In Brussels almost everyone speaks French.</p> + +<p>Though many Belgians know French thoroughly, they speak it with an +accent of their own, which is unlike anything you hear in France, just +as English<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_68" id="Page_68">[68]</a></span> people speak French or German with an English accent. So +Belgium is not a good place to go to if you want to learn French. The +worst French is spoken in East Flanders and the best in Ypres.</p> + +<p>There is a great likeness between Flemish and Dutch, which were +originally one language, and a book printed in Flemish is almost +exactly the same as a Dutch book. But there are many different ways of +pronouncing Flemish. The accent of Ghent is so different from that of +Bruges that the people of these towns do not always understand each +other, and in neither do they speak with the accent which is used in +Antwerp. Thus, in little Belgium there are not only three different +languages, but various ways of speaking Flemish, the original language +of the country. So French is not only the official language, but the +most useful for travellers to know.</p> + +<p>Though French is the official language, there are laws which have been +made to allow the use of Flemish in the law courts, and Belgian +officers must be able to command the soldiers in Flemish. In the +<i>Moniteur</i> (a paper like the <i>London Gazette</i>) Royal Proclamations, +and things of that sort, are published in both Flemish and French. +Railway-tickets are printed in both languages. So are the names of the +streets in some towns. In the Belgian Parliament, though the members +generally make their speeches in French, they may use Flemish if they +like, and they sometimes do.</p> + +<p>Walloon may be described as a very old form of<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_69" id="Page_69">[69]</a></span> French, but though the +Walloons are the most active and industrious of all the Belgians, +their language is not much known, and you will never hear it spoken +except in the Valley of the Meuse, and in the country parts of +South-West Belgium.</p> + +<p>The three Belgian words for Christmas are <i>Kerstdag</i> in Flemish, +<i>Noël</i> in French, and <i>Nouée</i> in Walloon.</p> + + + +<hr style="width: 65%;" /> +<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_70" id="Page_70">[70]</a></span></p> +<h2><a name="CHAPTER_XIV" id="CHAPTER_XIV"></a>CHAPTER XIV</h2> + +<h3>A SHORT HISTORY</h3> + + +<p>I must write just one chapter on Belgian history.</p> + +<p>Dates are tiresome things, though they are useful pegs, so to speak, +on which to hang the facts of history, and help us to recollect the +order in which they happened. However, we shall not bother with many +dates. I shall make the whole story as plain and simple as possible; +and, besides, you can skip it all if you find it too stupid and dull.</p> + +<p>The first thing to understand about the tiny corner of Europe which is +now called Belgium is that very long ago it was divided into a great +many small States, each of which was ruled over by some Duke, or +Count, or Baron, or some noble with another title, who made peace or +war with his neighbours, just as the Kings of Europe do nowadays. +There were the Dukes of Brabant, and the Counts of Flanders and of +Namur, the Lords of Malines, and the Bishop-Princes of Liége, and many +more. You will see where their States lay if you look at the map.</p> + +<p>The most famous was Flanders, for the great Flemish cities, such as +Ghent, Bruges, and Ypres,<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_71" id="Page_71">[71]</a></span> became strong and rich by reason of their +trade and manufactures.</p> + +<p>In the towns the merchants and tradesmen were banded together in +societies called guilds. There were guilds of weavers, and butchers, +and other trades; and they defended themselves so well against the +nobles, who often tried to attack their liberties, that the towns +became strongholds of freedom.</p> + +<p>But, unfortunately, they were always quarrelling. Each town wanted to +be richer than its neighbour. Each town cared only for itself, so they +often fought. Ghent wanted to ruin Ypres, and the men of Ghent helped +an English army to attack Ypres. At other times the guildsmen of +Bruges fought against those of Ghent. Thus for many years this part of +Europe was divided into petty States, and the towns, in spite of their +wealth and freedom, were always rebelling against their Princes, or +fighting with each other. And all this time, close at hand and +watchful, there was a mighty State, called "The Burgundies," whose +dominions were ever stretching farther and farther.</p> + +<p>At last a day came when a certain Count of Flanders died, leaving no +heir male, and a Duke of Burgundy, called Philip the Hardy, married a +Flemish Princess, and obtained possession of Flanders. Gradually after +that the Dukes of Burgundy became rulers of all the country which we +now call Belgium, except the Principality of Liége, which remained +independent under its Bishop-Princes till recent times.<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_72" id="Page_72">[72]</a></span></p> + +<p>The last Duke of Burgundy was Charles the Bold, a brave warrior, but +very fierce and cruel. He was killed in a battle, and his daughter, +Mary of Burgundy, married an Austrian Archduke called Maximilian; and +then Flanders, Brabant, and the other places we have spoken of, passed +under the Austrian Royal Family, which is called the House of +Hapsburg.</p> + +<p>Maximilian and Mary had a son, called Philip the Handsome, who married +Joanna the Mad, daughter of King Ferdinand of Spain. The son of this +marriage was Charles V., who was neither mad nor handsome, but one of +the most famous men in history. He not only ruled over the +Netherlands, as Belgium and Holland were called, but also over Spain, +and all the immense Spanish Empire, and was, moreover, Emperor of +Germany.</p> + +<p>After reigning for forty years, Charles V. gave up his royal honours +to his son Philip; and then began a terrible time for the Netherlands.</p> + +<p>Philip hated the liberty which the people of the Netherlands loved. +They had, especially in the towns, been accustomed to make laws for +themselves, which their old Dukes and Counts, and also the Hapsburgs, +had always sworn to maintain. But Philip resolved to put an end to all +this freedom, and to be their absolute master.</p> + + +<p>He also hated the Protestants, of whom there were many in the +Netherlands, and resolved to destroy them. <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_73" id="Page_73">[73]</a></span>For this purpose he +introduced a kind of court, called the Inquisition, which inquired +into the religious faith of everyone, and sent people to be tortured +and burned to death if they were not Catholics.</p> + +<div class="figcenter" style="width: 600px;"><a name="pic_12" id="pic_12"></a> +<a href="images/image_103_1.jpg"><img src="images/image_103.jpg" width="600" height="450" alt="VILLAGE & CANAL, ADINKERQUE." title="VILLAGE & CANAL, ADINKERQUE." /></a><br /> + +<span class="caption">VILLAGE & CANAL, ADINKERQUE.</span></div> + + +<p>The people became furious against Philip, and rebelled in defence of +their liberty, and against the Inquisition. For a long time the +contest, which is called the "Revolt of the Netherlands," went on. +Philip was enormously rich, and had a great army and a strong fleet. +The Spanish soldiers, whom he let loose upon the people, were cruel, +as well as highly trained. Men, women, and children were tortured, +robbed, burnt to death, killed in battle, and murdered in cold blood +by thousands. Few things, if any, more terrible have been known in the +history of the world.</p> + +<p>The chief Protestant leader was that Prince of Orange called William +the Silent, of whom you must often have heard. After the contest had +continued for some years, instead of being dismayed, he was more +resolute than ever, and persuaded the Southern or Belgian part of the +Netherlands, and the Northern or Dutch part, to promise that they +would help each other, and fight against the Spaniards till they were +free.</p> + +<p>But in a very short time the Southern and the Northern Netherlands +drifted apart. The Dutch stood firm, and were saved in the long, weary +struggle. They shook off the yoke of Spain, and gained their<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_74" id="Page_74">[74]</a></span> liberty. +The Belgians halted between two opinions, and were lost. Most of them +were Catholics, which made it easier for them to submit to Philip. But +the most industrious of the population fled, and the trade and +manufactures which had made their country prosperous went to Holland. +After that, a great historian says, "the Flemish and Brabantine cities +were mere dens of thieves and beggars."</p> + +<p>The Spaniards ruled over Belgium, which was now called the "Spanish +Netherlands," till a daughter of Philip's, Isabella by name, married +an Austrian Archduke called Albert. They received Belgium as a +wedding-gift. The bride's father, the tyrant Philip, died about that +time, and Albert and Isabella went to Brussels, where the people, in +spite of the miserable state of their country, had a fine time of it +with banquets, processions, and fireworks.</p> + +<p>But two more changes were at hand. When Albert died Belgium went back +to Spain; and once again, after long wars, during one of which +Brussels was nearly all destroyed by fire, it was handed over to +Austria. This was in the year 1714; and after that it was called the +"Austrian Netherlands."</p> + +<p>Thus, you see, the Belgians were constantly being passed from one set +of masters to another, like a race of slaves. They had not stuck to +the brave Dutch, and fought on till they were free, and so never could +tell who were to be their next rulers.</p> + +<p>This could not be good for the character of any<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_75" id="Page_75">[75]</a></span> people. However, they +were, on the whole, happy under the House of Hapsburg till an Emperor +called Joseph II. came to the Austrian throne. He was a good man, and +wise in many ways, but he made the mistake of trying to bring in new +laws and customs which the people did not like. Belgium had been sunk, +ever since the time of Philip II., in poverty and ignorance. All the +people wished for was to be let alone, to amuse themselves, and to +have peace. But Joseph II. wanted to raise them up, and, most of all, +to spread knowledge and education among them.</p> + +<p>The Austrian Netherlands—that is, Belgium—were more Catholic than +ever, and all the Bishops and priests were up in arms against the +reforms proposed by Joseph; and there was a revolution, which had not +finished when he died. It came to an end, however, soon after his +death, when the Catholics got all they wanted, though the Austrians +remained in power. But the country had become restless. Its +restlessness was increased by the French Revolution, which was now in +full progress; and all was ripe for another change of rulers, which +soon came.</p> + +<p>The French Republicans, who beheaded their own King and his Queen (who +was, by-the-by, a sister of Joseph II.), invaded Belgium, driving out +the Austrians, and made it a part of France.</p> + +<p>One thing the French did was very popular with the Belgians. It was +this: there was a treaty, called the Treaty of Münster, made as long +before as the<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_76" id="Page_76">[76]</a></span> year 1648, which declared that the Dutch were to have +control of the Scheldt, and ever since then that splendid river, on +which Antwerp stands, had been closed, so that the trade of Antwerp, +the great Belgian seaport, had been entirely ruined. The French now +declared the Scheldt a free river, to be used by all nations. This was +tidings of great joy to the Belgians; but England would not allow the +Treaty of Münster to be torn up in this way, and a war began between +England and France, which lasted till the fall of Napoleon in 1814.</p> + +<p>During all that war Belgium was ruled by the French. When Napoleon +gave up his throne, and was sent to the Island of Elba, the Great +Powers met to settle Europe, which he had turned upside down. One of +the things they had to decide was what should be done with the +Austrian Netherlands, and the plan they arranged seemed a very good +one.</p> + +<p>Austria did not want Belgium, and the plan was to make that country, +the Principality of Liége, and Holland, into one state, and call it +the "Kingdom of the Netherlands." It was to be ruled over by one of +the Orange family, a descendant of William the Silent.</p> + +<p>And there was something more. The William of Orange who was to be King +of the Netherlands had a son, and the English arranged that this son +should marry our Princess Charlotte, who was heir to the throne of +England; and so all the coasts of the<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_77" id="Page_77">[77]</a></span> Netherlands opposite England, +with Antwerp and the Scheldt, were to be in the hands of a friendly +nation allied by marriage to the English Royal Family. The proposed +marriage was publicly announced in March, 1814, but it never took +place. The Princess Charlotte married a German, called Prince Leopold +of Saxe-Coburg, and the young Prince of Orange married a Russian Grand +Duchess.</p> + +<p>The Kingdom of the Netherlands, however, was set up; and at the Battle +of Waterloo, which was fought in June, 1815, after Napoleon escaped +from Elba, a force of Netherlanders, some of them Dutch and some of +them Belgians, fought under the Duke of Wellington, when he gained the +great victory which brought peace to Europe.</p> + +<p>And now it was supposed that the Belgians would settle quietly down, +and form one people with the Dutch, who spoke a language so like their +own Flemish, and who came of the same race. But not a bit of it. The +Dutch were mostly Protestants, and almost all the Belgians were +Catholics. There were disputes about questions of religion from the +very first. Disagreements followed on one subject after another; and, +to make a long story short, in fifteen years there was a revolution in +the Belgian provinces of the new kingdom.</p> + +<p>The Belgians proclaimed their wish to make a kingdom of their own, and +once more the Great Powers met to consider what was to be done with +them this<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_78" id="Page_78">[78]</a></span> time. The meeting was in London, where five very shrewd and +wily gentlemen, from England, France, Russia, Austria, and Prussia, +sat and talked to each other for week after week about what they +should do with this broken kingdom, which was, as it were, thrown on +their hands. They were far too polite to quarrel openly; but Russia, +Prussia, and Austria would have liked to force the Belgians to keep to +what had been arranged in 1814, while England and France were on the +side of the Belgians. On one thing, and one thing only, they all +agreed, and that was not to have another European war.</p> + +<p>In the long run England and France managed to persuade the others that +the best thing was to let the Belgians have their own way, and choose +a King for themselves. They first set their affections on a son of +Louis Philippe, the King of France, and asked him to be their King. +But England would not hear of this, so his father told him to refuse. +Then the Belgians were advised to choose that Prince Leopold of +Saxe-Coburg who had married Princess Charlotte. She was now dead, and +he had been living in England ever since. They took this advice, and +in 1831 he accepted the offer they made him, and was crowned at +Brussels as Leopold I., King of the Belgians.</p> + +<p>Thereafter he married a daughter of Louis Philippe, and reigned till +the year 1865, when he died, and was succeeded by his son, Leopold +II., who is the present King. This is how the southern provinces of +the<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_79" id="Page_79">[79]</a></span> Netherlands were made into the little, independent kingdom of +Belgium.</p> + +<p>Since then the trade and commerce of Belgium have grown. Antwerp has +become a huge seaport; Brussels flourishes. The industries of Ghent +are prosperous. Throughout the Walloon country, from the busy forges +of Liége to the coal-mines round Mons, there is a hard-working and, on +the whole, successful people. Even fallen Bruges has lately been +struggling to rise again.</p> + +<p>But, unfortunately, there is another side to the picture. You have +often heard it said that "as the twig is bent, the tree grows." It is +the same with mankind. The character and manners of grown-up people +depend on how they have been trained when young. If a child is +bullied, and passed from one master to another, ill-treated and +frightened, it is apt to grow up timid and untruthful. The same thing +may be seen in nations. To this day the lower classes in Belgium bear +traces of the long period of subjection, and the race has not +recovered from the time when the Spaniards turned so many famous towns +into dens of thieves and beggars. They are very often cunning, timid +though boastful, and full of the small tricks and servile ways which +are natural in a people which once had all manliness and courage +crushed out of it.</p> + +<p>Another unlucky thing for the Belgians is that they quarrel dreadfully +among themselves about<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_80" id="Page_80">[80]</a></span> public questions. In all countries there are +quarrels of this sort, but in Belgium these disputes poison the whole +life of the country. They are divided into Catholics and Liberals, and +the best interests of the State are lost sight of in the squabbling +which goes on between these two parties. By the laws of Belgium all +religions are equal. There is no Established Church. The Parliament +each year finds money for the Catholic clergy, for the English +Protestant chaplains, and for those of any other faith, if there are +enough of them to form a congregation of a certain size. But this has +not brought peace. In England, as you know, only some foolish people +allow their political disputes to interfere with their private +friendships, or with their amusements. But in Belgium the Catholics +and the Liberals never forget their differences. It is like the time +when the Jews had no dealings with the Samaritans. There are Catholic +football clubs and Liberal football clubs; the public-houses are +either Catholic or Liberal; and even children are taught at school to +have feelings of this sort. One day a small girl was asked out to tea +with some English children. When the hour came, her mother found her +crying, and asked her what was the matter. "I'm afraid," she sobbed, +"to go and play with these little heretics!"</p> + +<div class="figcenter" style="width: 600px;"><a name="pic_13" id="pic_13"></a> + +<a href="images/image_112_1.jpg"><img class="img1" src="images/image_112.jpg" width="600" height="366" alt="WATERLOO: THE FARM OF LA BELLE ALLIANCE AND THE MOUND +SURMOUNTED BY THE BELGIAN LION." title="WATERLOO: THE FARM OF LA BELLE ALLIANCE AND THE MOUND +SURMOUNTED BY THE BELGIAN LION." /></a><br /> + +<span class="caption">WATERLOO: THE FARM OF LA BELLE ALLIANCE AND THE MOUND +SURMOUNTED BY THE BELGIAN LION. <a href="#Page_77">PAGE 77.</a></span></div> + +<p>The great quarrel is about education. The Liberals want to make a law +that all children must go to school, but the Catholics will not agree +to this. The <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_81" id="Page_81">[81]</a></span>priests have so much influence, and work so hard at +the elections, that, except in Brussels, Liége, and a few more places, +the people are frightened to vote against them. So there has always +been a Catholic Government in power for the last twenty-five years.</p> + +<p>The Great Powers, when they allowed the Belgians to have their own way +and choose a King for themselves, took Belgium under their protection, +and made it a "neutral state"—that is to say, a country which may not +be attacked or entered by the armies of other nations which are +fighting each other, and which is not permitted to make war on other +countries. This was a great blessing for the Belgians, because their +country is so small and weak, and so many battles used to be fought in +it that it was called "the cock-pit of Europe." But whether the people +of a neutral state are ever likely to be brave and self-sacrificing is +another thing.</p> + + + +<hr style="width: 65%;" /> +<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_82" id="Page_82">[82]</a></span></p> +<h2><a name="CHAPTER_XV" id="CHAPTER_XV"></a>CHAPTER XV</h2> + +<h3>THE BELGIAN ARMY: THE CONGO</h3> + + +<p>Though Belgium is a neutral state, living under the protection of the +Great Powers of Europe, the Belgians are afraid that some day, if +these Powers quarrel with each other and begin to fight, armies may +march into their country and turn it once more into a battle-field; or +perhaps one of the Powers may wish to take a part of Belgium, or some +Belgian town, such as Antwerp, and rule over it. So this little +kingdom must have an army to defend itself till some powerful nation +comes to help it.</p> + +<p>The Belgian force actually under arms consists of only about 40,000 +soldiers, but it can be raised to 200,000, if there is a danger of +war, by calling out the "reserves," or men who have been trained, but +are no longer with their regiments. In order to keep up this force of +40,000 it is necessary to find about 13,000 new men each year. But the +Belgians do not like to be soldiers, and it is very difficult to +persuade them to join the army. Last year only 1,000 would do so, +which seems very few for a country in which there are 7,000,000 +people. It has been the same for years. So<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_83" id="Page_83">[83]</a></span> there is a law called the +Conscription, by which the necessary numbers are forced to serve.</p> + +<p>This is how they manage the conscription: in February of each year all +the boys who become nineteen in that year must go and draw lots to +decide which of them are to enter the army.</p> + +<p>The drawing generally takes place in the <i>Hotel de Ville</i> of the chief +town in the part of the country to which the boys belong. On the +appointed day all the families in which there are sons liable to serve +flock into the town, and a great crowd gathers outside the building. +The lads who are to draw lots go in, and find some officials waiting +for them. Each boy has to put his hand into the ballot-box and draw +out a paper on which there is a number. Suppose there are 150 boys, +and 50 are wanted for the army, then those who draw the 50 lowest +numbers are those who have to serve. Each boy draws out his paper, and +gives it to an official, who calls out the number. If it is a number +above 50, he is free, and runs out shouting with joy; but if it is one +of the lower numbers, he goes out sadly to tell his family that he has +drawn a "bad" number.</p> + +<p>While the drawing goes on, the fathers and mothers, brothers and +sisters, and their friends, wait outside in the greatest anxiety. +There are cheers and joyful greetings when a boy with a "good" number +comes out, and groans of pity for those who have been unlucky. And +when the drawing is done, and everyone knows his fate, they all go off +to the public-houses.<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_84" id="Page_84">[84]</a></span> Those who have drawn lucky numbers get drunk +from joy, while those who have to serve in the army try to forget +their sorrow in drinking. Very often their families and friends do the +same, and so it comes to pass that every February there are horrible +scenes—men and women, boys and girls, reeling about the streets, +shouting, singing, quarrelling, and behaving in the most disgraceful +way. It is quite different from Germany, where every boy knows he must +be trained to defend his country, and where almost everyone is proud +of being a soldier.</p> + +<p>If, however, the father of a boy who has drawn an unlucky number is +rich enough to pay for another to take his place, he may do so. This +system is called the <i>Remplacement</i>, and almost every father buys his +son off if he can afford it. Many Belgians think this system unfair, +and the officers of the army do not like it. Perhaps, before very +long, there may be a change, and a new law made by which all boys will +have to serve for a certain time. The Catholics have always been in +favour of the <i>Remplacement</i>, while the Liberals have been against it. +But it is said that the King wishes to abolish it, and try some new +plan. So very likely the Catholics will give in, and there will be no +more drawing of lots and buying off, but a system of universal +service, which will be a very good thing for Belgium.</p> + +<p>Though the trade of Belgium is very large indeed for the size of the +country, the Belgians have no navy, and not many merchant-ships. But +they have lately<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_85" id="Page_85">[85]</a></span> plunged into an adventure which may force them to +have merchant-ships and men-of-war to defend them; for this small +country has taken possession of a huge part of Central Africa, ever so +many times bigger than Belgium itself.</p> + +<p>About twenty-five years ago Leopold II., the present King of the +Belgians, was made ruler over this part of Africa, which is called the +Congo State, because of a magnificent river, the Congo, which flows +through it. It was the Great Powers of Europe who made him ruler, and +they made him promise that he would abolish slavery, allow all nations +to trade freely there, and do all he could to civilize the natives. +But after some time ugly stories began to reach Europe about what was +being done by King Leopold's servants in that distant part of the +world. The Congo is a country full of rich products, and it was said +that the King was breaking his promises: that he was making heaps of +money by forcing the natives to work as slaves, that all their lands +were taken from them, that people were cruelly tortured, that whole +villages were destroyed, that the soldiers hired by King Leopold were +cannibals, and that he would not allow free trading.</p> + +<p>There is no doubt whatever that the King was making a great deal of +money, and that many shameful and wicked things were done in the +Congo. The King never went there himself, but both he and his friends, +who were also making money, said that the English (for it was the +English who found most fault with him)<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_86" id="Page_86">[86]</a></span> were jealous, and that +everything was going well. Nevertheless bad news kept arriving from +the Congo, and many of the Belgians themselves became as angry as the +English, and said something must be done to stop what was going on. At +last the Belgian Parliament resolved that the only way to save the +Congo was to make it a Belgian colony, and try if they could not +govern it better than King Leopold.</p> + +<p>So in the year 1908, after long debates and much curious bargaining +between the King and his people, the Congo State became a Belgian +colony. It remains to be seen whether they can govern it wisely, for +as yet they have no experience in such matters. Few Belgians like to +speak about the Congo. They shake their heads, and say it will cost a +great deal of money, and bring danger to their country.</p> + +<p>The scene when a ship sails from Antwerp for the Congo is unlike +anything you will see at home. When a ship leaves an English port for +India or the Colonies, the travellers go on board without any fuss, +with perhaps a few private friends to see them off. But when a liner +starts for the Congo, there is much excitement. A crowd assembles; +flags fly; a band plays the Belgian National Anthem; hawkers go about +selling photographs of <i>le départ pour le Congo</i>; and a steam-tug, +decorated with flags, and with a band of music playing, accompanies +the liner some distance down the Scheldt. The Belgians, you see, are +so fond of hoisting flags and hearing bands of music on every possible +occasion that<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_87" id="Page_87">[87]</a></span> they can't help doing it even when there is really +nothing to get excited about.</p> + +<p>And now, having taken this peep at Belgium, we shall leave these +adventurers sailing away to their Congo, and, hoping they will find +wisdom to steer wisely (in more ways than one) and so avoid shipwreck, +wish them <i>bon voyage</i>.</p> + + +<hr class="hr1" /> +<h2>LIST OF VOLUMES IN THE PEEPS AT MANY LANDS SERIES</h2> +<h3>EACH CONTAINING 12 FULL-PAGE ILLUSTRATIONS IN COLOUR</h3> +<hr class="hr1" /> + +<table summary="List of countries"> +<tr><td>BELGIUM</td><td>INDIA</td></tr> +<tr><td>BURMA</td><td>IRELAND</td></tr> +<tr><td>CANADA</td><td>ITALY</td></tr> +<tr><td>CHINA</td><td>JAMAICA</td></tr> +<tr><td>CORSICA</td><td>JAPAN</td></tr> +<tr><td>EGYPT</td><td>MOROCCO</td></tr> +<tr><td>ENGLAND</td><td>NEW ZEALAND</td></tr> +<tr><td>FINLAND</td><td>NORWAY</td></tr> +<tr><td>FRANCE</td><td>SCOTLAND</td></tr> +<tr><td>GERMANY</td><td>SIAM</td></tr> +<tr><td>GREECE</td><td>SOUTH AFRICA</td></tr> +<tr><td>HOLLAND</td><td>SOUTH SEAS</td></tr> +<tr><td>HOLY LAND</td><td>SWITZERLAND</td></tr> +<tr><td>ICELAND</td><td>WALES</td></tr> +</table> + + + + + + +<hr class="hr1" /> + +<h4>A LARGER VOLUME IN THE SAME STYLE</h4> +<h3>THE WORLD</h3> +<h4>Containing 37 full-page illustrations in colour</h4> +<hr class="hr1" /> +<h3>PUBLISHED BY ADAM AND CHARLES BLACK</h3> +<h3>SOHO SQUARE, LONDON, W.</h3> +<hr class="hr1" /> + +<p class="center">AGENTS</p> + + +<table summary="Agents"> +<tr><td><b>AMERICA</b></td><td>THE MACMILLAN COMPANY</td></tr> +<tr><td></td><td>64 & 66 FIFTH AVENUE, NEW YORK</td></tr> +<tr><td><b>AUSTRALASIA</b></td><td>OXFORD UNIVERSITY PRESS</td></tr> +<tr><td></td><td>205 FLINDERS LANE, MELBOURNE</td></tr> +<tr><td><b>CANADA</b></td><td>THE MACMILLAN COMPANY OF CANADA, LTD.</td></tr> +<tr><td></td><td>27 RICHMOND STREET WEST, TORONTO</td></tr> +<tr><td><b>INDIA</b></td><td>MACMILLAN & COMPANY, LTD.</td></tr> +<tr><td></td><td>MACMILLAN BUILDING, BOMBAY</td></tr> +<tr><td></td><td>309 BOW BAZAAR STREET, CALCUTTA</td></tr> +</table> + + +<hr class="hr1" /> + + +<h3>OTHER BOOKS</h3> +<h3>FOR</h3> +<h3>BOYS & GIRLS</h3> +<h3>ILLUSTRATED IN COLOUR LIKE THE</h3> +<h3>PEEPS AT MANY LANDS</h3> +<h3>PRICE 3/6 EACH</h3> +<p class="center">ALL WITH FULL-PAGE ILLUSTRATIONS IN COLOUR</p> + +<p class="center"><i>Large crown 8vo., cloth</i></p> + +<hr class="hr1" /> + + +<p class="center">By <span class="smcap">John Finnemore</span></p> + +<p class="center"><b>THE STORY OF ROBIN HOOD AND HIS MERRY MEN</b></p> + +<p class="center">8 full-page Illustrations in Colour by <span class="smcap">Allan Stewart</span></p> + +<hr class="hr1" /> + +<p class="center">By <span class="smcap">Ascott R. Hope</span></p> + +<p class="center"><b>BEASTS OF BUSINESS</b></p> + +<p class="center">8 full-page Illustrations in Colour by <span class="smcap">G. Vernon Stokes</span> and <span class="smcap">Alan +Wright</span></p> + +<hr class="hr1" /> + +<p class="center">By <span class="smcap">Frederic W. Farrar</span></p> + +<p class="center"><b>ERIC; </b></p> +<p class="center"><b>or, Little by Little</b></p> + +<p class="center">8 full-page Illustrations in Colour by <span class="smcap">G. D. Rowlandson</span>, <br /> +and 78 in Black and White by <span class="smcap">Gordon Browne</span></p> + +<hr class="hr1" /> + +<p class="center"><b>ST. WINIFRED'S; </b></p> +<p class="center"><b>or, The World of School</b></p> + +<p class="center">8 full-page Illustrations in Colour by <span class="smcap">Dudley Tennant</span>, and <br /> +152 in Black and White by <span class="smcap">Gordon Browne</span></p> + +<hr class="hr1" /> + +<p class="center"><b>JULIAN HOME</b></p> +<p class="center"><b>A Tale of College Life</b></p> + +<p class="center">8 full-page Illustrations in Colour by <span class="smcap">Patten Wilson</span></p> + +<hr class="hr1" /> + +<p class="center">By Lieut. Col. <span class="smcap">A. F. Mockler-Ferryman</span></p> + +<p class="center"><b>THE GOLDEN GIRDLE</b></p> + +<p class="center">8 full-page Illustrations in Colour by <span class="smcap">Allan Stewart</span></p> + +<hr class="hr1" /> + +<p class="center">By <span class="smcap">John Finnemore</span></p> + +<p class="center"><b>THE WOLF PATROL</b></p> + +<p class="center">A Story of Baden-Powell's Boy Scouts </p> +<p class="center">8 full-page Illustrations in +Colour by <span class="smcap">H. M. Paget</span></p> + +<hr class="hr1" /> + +<p class="center"><b>JACK HAYDON'S QUEST</b></p> + +<p class="center">8 full-page Illustrations in Colour by <span class="smcap">J. Jellicoe</span></p> + +<hr class="hr1" /> + +<p class="center">By <span class="smcap">Stanley Waterloo</span></p> + +<p class="center"><b>A TALE OF THE TIME OF THE CAVE MEN</b></p> + +<p class="center">8 full-page Illustrations in Colour by <span class="smcap">Simon Harmon Vedder</span></p> + +<hr class="hr1" /> + +<p class="center">By <span class="smcap">Daniel Defoe</span></p> + +<p class="center"><b>ROBINSON CRUSOE</b></p> + +<p class="center">8 full-page Illustrations in Colour by <span class="smcap">John Williamson</span></p> + +<hr class="hr1" /> + +<p class="center">By <span class="smcap">Andrew Home</span></p> + +<p class="center"><b>BY A SCHOOLBOY'S HAND</b></p> + +<p class="center">8 full-page Illustrations in Colour by <span class="smcap">Strickland Brown</span></p> + +<hr class="hr1" /> + +<p class="center"><b>FROM FAG TO MONITOR</b></p> + +<p class="center">8 full-page Illustrations in Colour by <span class="smcap">John Williamson</span></p> + +<hr class="hr1" /> + +<p class="center">By <span class="smcap">Captain Cook</span></p> + +<p class="center"><b>VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY</b></p> + +<p class="center">8 full-page Illustrations in Colour by <span class="smcap">John Williamson</span></p> + +<hr class="hr1" /> + +<p class="center">By <span class="smcap">Mungo Park</span></p> + +<p class="center"><b>TRAVELS IN AFRICA</b></p> + +<p class="center">8 full-page Illustrations in Colour by <span class="smcap">John Williamson</span></p> + +<hr class="hr1" /> + +<p class="center">By <span class="smcap">Hume Nisbet</span></p> + +<p class="center"><b>THE DIVERS</b></p> + +<p class="center">8 full-page Illustrations in Colour by the Author</p> + +<hr class="hr1" /> + +<p class="center">By the <span class="smcap">Duchess of Buckingham and Chandos</span></p> + +<p class="center"><b>WILLY WIND, AND JOCK AND THE CHEESES</b></p> + +<p class="center">57 Illustrations by <span class="smcap">J. S. Eland</span> (9 full-page in Colour)</p> + +<hr class="hr1" /> + +<p class="center">By <span class="smcap">Ascott R. Hope</span></p> + +<p class="center"><b>STORIES</b></p> + +<p class="center">8 full-page Illustrations in Colour by <span class="smcap">Dorothy Furniss</span></p> + +<hr class="hr1" /> + +<p class="center">By <span class="smcap">Andrew Home</span></p> + +<p class="center"><b>EXILED FROM SCHOOL</b></p> + +<p class="center">8 full-page Illustrations in Colour by <span class="smcap">John Williamson</span></p> + +<hr class="hr1" /> + +<p class="center">By the Rev. <span class="smcap">R. C. Gillie</span></p> + +<p class="center"><b>THE KINSFOLK AND FRIENDS OF JESUS</b></p> + +<p class="center">16 full-page Illustrations in Colour and Sepia</p> + +<hr class="hr1" /> + + + +<p class="center"><b>PRICE 6/= EACH</b></p> + +<p class="center">ALL WITH FULL-PAGE ILLUSTRATIONS IN COLOUR</p> + +<p class="center">Large square crown 8vo., cloth</p> + +<hr class="hr1" /> + +<p class="center">By <span class="smcap">G. E. Mitton</span></p> + +<p class="center"><b>THE BOOK OF THE RAILWAY</b></p> + +<p class="center">12 full-page Illustrations in Colour by <span class="smcap">Allan Stewart</span></p> + +<hr class="hr1" /> + +<p class="center">By Mrs. <span class="smcap">Alfred Sidgwick</span> and Mrs. <span class="smcap">Paynter</span></p> + +<p class="center"><b>THE CHILDREN'S BOOK OF GARDENING</b></p> + +<p class="center">12 full-page Illustrations in Colour by Mrs. <span class="smcap">Cayley-Robinson</span></p> + +<hr class="hr1" /> + +<p class="center">By Miss <span class="smcap">Conway</span> and Sir <span class="smcap">Martin Conway</span></p> + +<p class="center"><b>THE CHILDREN'S BOOK OF ART</b></p> + +<p class="center">16 full-page Illustrations in Colour from Public and Private Galleries</p> + +<hr class="hr1" /> + +<p class="center">By <span class="smcap">Elizabeth Grierson</span></p> + +<p class="center"><b>CHILDREN'S TALES OF ENGLISH MINSTERS </b> </p> +<p class="center">12 full-page Illustrations in +Colour by various Artists</p> + +<hr class="hr1" /> + +<p class="center">By <span class="smcap">Ascott R. Hope</span></p> + +<p class="center"><b>ADVENTURERS IN AMERICA</b></p> + +<p class="center">8 full-page Illustrations in Colour by <span class="smcap">Henry Sandham</span>, R.C.A.</p> + +<hr class="hr1" /> + +<p class="center">By <span class="smcap">S. R. Crockett</span></p> + +<p class="center"><b>RED CAP ADVENTURES</b></p> + +<p class="center">Being the Second Series of Red Cap Tales Stolen from the<br /> + +Treasure-Chest of the Wizard of the North</p> + +<p class="center">16 full-page Illustrations by <span class="smcap">Allan Stewart</span> and others</p> + +<hr class="hr1" /> + +<p class="center">By <span class="smcap">S. R. Crockett</span></p> + +<p class="center"><b>RED CAP TALES</b></p> + +<p class="center">Stolen from the Treasure-Chest of the Wizard of the North</p> + +<p class="center">16 full-page Illustrations in Colour by <span class="smcap">Simon Harmon Vedder</span></p> + +<hr class="hr1" /> + +<p class="center">Translated and Abridged by <span class="smcap">Dominick Daly</span></p> + +<p class="center"><b>THE ADVENTURES OF DON QUIXOTE</b></p> + +<p class="center">12 full-page Illustrations in Colour by <span class="smcap">Stephen Baghot de la Bere</span></p> + +<hr class="hr1" /> + +<p class="center"><b>GULLIVER'S TRAVELS</b></p> + +<p class="center">16 full-page Illustrations in Colour by <span class="smcap">Stephen Baghot de la Bere</span></p> + +<hr class="hr1" /> + +<p class="center">By <span class="smcap">Ascott R. Hope</span></p> + +<p class="center"><b>THE ADVENTURES OF PUNCH</b></p> + +<p class="center">12 full-page Illustrations in Colour by <span class="smcap">Stephen Baghot de la Bere</span></p> + +<hr class="hr1" /> + +<p class="center">By <span class="smcap">Dudley Kidd</span></p> + +<p class="center"><b>THE BULL OF THE KRAAL</b></p> + +<p class="center">A Tale of Black Children</p> + +<p class="center">12 full-page Illustrations in Colour by <span class="smcap">A. M. Goodall</span></p> + +<hr class="hr1" /> + +<p class="center">By <span class="smcap">P. G. Wodehouse</span></p> + +<p class="center"><b>WILLIAM TELL TOLD AGAIN</b></p> + +<p class="center">16 full-page Illustrations in Colour by <span class="smcap">Philip Dadd</span></p> + +<hr class="hr1" /> + +<p class="center">By <span class="smcap">John Bunyan</span></p> + +<p class="center"><b>THE PILGRIM'S PROGRESS</b></p> + +<p class="center">8 full-page Illustrations in Colour by <span class="smcap">Gertrude Demain Hammond</span>, R.I.</p> + +<hr class="hr1" /> + +<p class="center">By <span class="smcap">G. E. Mitton</span></p> + +<p class="center"><b>THE CHILDREN'S BOOK OF STARS</b></p> + +<p class="center">Preface by Sir <span class="smcap">David Gill</span>, K.C.B.</p> + +<p class="center">16 full-page Illustrations (11 in Colour) <br /> +and 8 smaller figures in the +text</p> + +<hr class="hr1" /> + +<p class="center">By <span class="smcap">G. E. Mitton</span></p> + +<p class="center"><b>THE CHILDREN'S BOOK OF LONDON</b></p> + +<p class="center">12 full-page Illustrations in Colour by <span class="smcap">John Williamson</span></p> + +<hr class="hr1" /> + +<p class="center">By <span class="smcap">Elizabeth W. Grierson</span></p> + +<p class="center"><b>THE CHILDREN'S BOOK OF CELTIC STORIES </b></p> +<p class="center">12 full-page Illustrations in +Colour by <span class="smcap">Allan Stewart</span></p> + +<hr class="hr1" /> + +<p class="center"><b>PRICE 6/= EACH</b></p> + +<p class="center">ALL WITH FULL-PAGE ILLUSTRATIONS IN COLOUR</p> + +<p class="center"><i>Large square crown 8vo., cloth</i></p> + +<hr class="hr1" /> + +<p class="center">By <span class="smcap">Elizabeth W. Grierson</span></p> + +<p class="center"><b>THE CHILDREN'S BOOK OF EDINBURGH</b></p> + +<p class="center">12 full-page Illustrations in Colour by <span class="smcap">Allan Stewart</span></p> +<hr class="hr1" /> + +<p class="center">Edited by <span class="smcap">G. E. Mitton</span></p> + +<p class="center"><b>SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON</b></p> + +<p class="center">12 full-page Illustrations in Colour by <span class="smcap">Harry Rountree</span></p> + +<hr class="hr1" /> + +<p class="center">By <span class="smcap">Elizabeth W. Grierson</span></p> + +<p class="center"><b>CHILDREN'S TALES FROM SCOTTISH BALLADS</b></p> + +<p class="center">12 full-page Illustrations in Colour by <span class="smcap">Allan Stewart</span></p> + +<hr class="hr1" /> + +<p class="center">By <span class="smcap">Harriet Beecher Stowe</span></p> + +<p class="center"><b>UNCLE TOM'S CABIN</b></p> + +<p class="center">8 full-page Illustrations in Colour and many others in the text</p> + +<hr class="hr1" /> + +<p class="center"><b>ANIMAL AUTOBIOGRAPHIES</b></p> + +<p class="center">Edited by <span class="smcap">G. E. Mitton</span></p> + +<p>Each volume deals entirely with the life story of some one animal, and +is not merely a collection of animal stories. It is necessary to +emphasize this, as the idea of the series has sometimes been +misunderstood. Children who have outgrown fairy-tales undoubtedly +prefer this form of story to any other, and a more wholesome way of +stimulating their interest in the living things around them could +hardly be found.</p> + +<p>Though the books are designed for children of all ages, many adults +have been attracted by their freshness, and have found in them much +that they did not know before.</p> + +<p>The autobiographical form was chosen after careful consideration in +preference to the newer method of regarding an animal through the eyes +of a human being, because it is the first aim of the series to depict +the world as animals see it, and it is not possible to do this +realistically unless the animal himself tells the story.</p> + +<hr class="hr1" /> + +<p class="center"><b>THE LIFE STORY OF A DOG</b></p> + +<p class="center">By <span class="smcap">G. E. Mitton</span></p> + +<p class="center">12 full-page Illustrations in Colour by <span class="smcap">John Williamson</span></p> + +<hr class="hr1" /> + +<p class="center"><b>THE LIFE STORY OF A FOX</b></p> + +<p class="center">By <span class="smcap">J. C. Tregarthen</span></p> + +<p class="center">12 full-page Illustrations in Colour by <span class="smcap">Countess Helena Gleichen</span></p> + +<hr class="hr1" /> + +<p class="center"><b>THE LIFE STORY OF A FOWL</b></p> + +<p class="center">By <span class="smcap">J. W. Hurst</span></p> + +<p class="center">12 full-page Illustrations in Colour by <span class="smcap">Allan Stewart</span> and <span class="smcap">Maude +Scrivener</span></p> + +<hr class="hr1" /> + +<p class="center"><b>THE LIFE STORY OF A BLACK BEAR</b></p> + +<p class="center">By <span class="smcap">H. Perry Robinson</span></p> + +<p class="center">12 full-page Illustrations in Colour by <span class="smcap">J. Van Oort</span></p> + +<hr class="hr1" /> + +<p class="center"><b>THE LIFE STORY OF A RAT</b></p> + +<p class="center">By <span class="smcap">G. M. A. Hewett</span></p> + +<p class="center">12 full-page Illustrations in Colour by <span class="smcap">Stephen Baghot de la Bere</span></p> + +<hr class="hr1" /> + +<p class="center"><b>THE LIFE STORY OF A CAT</b></p> + +<p class="center">By <span class="smcap">Violet Hunt</span></p> + +<p class="center">12 full-page Illustrations in Colour by <span class="smcap">Adolph Birkenruth</span></p> + +<hr class="hr1" /> + +<p class="center"><b>THE LIFE STORY OF A SQUIRREL</b></p> + +<p class="center">By <span class="smcap">T. C. Bridges</span></p> + +<p class="center">12 full-page Illustrations in Colour by <span class="smcap">Allan Stewart</span></p> + + + +<hr class="hr1" /> + +<h3>PUBLISHED BY A. AND C. BLACK, SOHO SQUARE, LONDON, W.</h3> +<hr class="hr1" /> + + + + + + + +<pre> + + + + + +End of Project Gutenberg's Peeps At Many Lands: Belgium, by George W. T. Omond + +*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK PEEPS AT MANY LANDS: BELGIUM *** + +***** This file should be named 19692-h.htm or 19692-h.zip ***** +This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: + http://www.gutenberg.org/1/9/6/9/19692/ + +Produced by Bruce Albrecht, Sankar Viswanathan, and the +Online Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net + + +Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions +will be renamed. + +Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no +one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation +(and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without +permission and without paying copyright royalties. Special rules, +set forth in the General Terms of Use part of this license, apply to +copying and distributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works to +protect the PROJECT GUTENBERG-tm concept and trademark. Project +Gutenberg is a registered trademark, and may not be used if you +charge for the eBooks, unless you receive specific permission. If you +do not charge anything for copies of this eBook, complying with the +rules is very easy. You may use this eBook for nearly any purpose +such as creation of derivative works, reports, performances and +research. They may be modified and printed and given away--you may do +practically ANYTHING with public domain eBooks. Redistribution is +subject to the trademark license, especially commercial +redistribution. + + + +*** START: FULL LICENSE *** + +THE FULL PROJECT GUTENBERG LICENSE +PLEASE READ THIS BEFORE YOU DISTRIBUTE OR USE THIS WORK + +To protect the Project Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting the free +distribution of electronic works, by using or distributing this work +(or any other work associated in any way with the phrase "Project +Gutenberg"), you agree to comply with all the terms of the Full Project +Gutenberg-tm License (available with this file or online at +http://gutenberg.org/license). + + +Section 1. General Terms of Use and Redistributing Project Gutenberg-tm +electronic works + +1.A. By reading or using any part of this Project Gutenberg-tm +electronic work, you indicate that you have read, understand, agree to +and accept all the terms of this license and intellectual property +(trademark/copyright) agreement. If you do not agree to abide by all +the terms of this agreement, you must cease using and return or destroy +all copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in your possession. +If you paid a fee for obtaining a copy of or access to a Project +Gutenberg-tm electronic work and you do not agree to be bound by the +terms of this agreement, you may obtain a refund from the person or +entity to whom you paid the fee as set forth in paragraph 1.E.8. + +1.B. "Project Gutenberg" is a registered trademark. It may only be +used on or associated in any way with an electronic work by people who +agree to be bound by the terms of this agreement. There are a few +things that you can do with most Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works +even without complying with the full terms of this agreement. See +paragraph 1.C below. There are a lot of things you can do with Project +Gutenberg-tm electronic works if you follow the terms of this agreement +and help preserve free future access to Project Gutenberg-tm electronic +works. See paragraph 1.E below. + +1.C. The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation ("the Foundation" +or PGLAF), owns a compilation copyright in the collection of Project +Gutenberg-tm electronic works. Nearly all the individual works in the +collection are in the public domain in the United States. If an +individual work is in the public domain in the United States and you are +located in the United States, we do not claim a right to prevent you from +copying, distributing, performing, displaying or creating derivative +works based on the work as long as all references to Project Gutenberg +are removed. Of course, we hope that you will support the Project +Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting free access to electronic works by +freely sharing Project Gutenberg-tm works in compliance with the terms of +this agreement for keeping the Project Gutenberg-tm name associated with +the work. You can easily comply with the terms of this agreement by +keeping this work in the same format with its attached full Project +Gutenberg-tm License when you share it without charge with others. + +1.D. The copyright laws of the place where you are located also govern +what you can do with this work. Copyright laws in most countries are in +a constant state of change. If you are outside the United States, check +the laws of your country in addition to the terms of this agreement +before downloading, copying, displaying, performing, distributing or +creating derivative works based on this work or any other Project +Gutenberg-tm work. The Foundation makes no representations concerning +the copyright status of any work in any country outside the United +States. + +1.E. Unless you have removed all references to Project Gutenberg: + +1.E.1. The following sentence, with active links to, or other immediate +access to, the full Project Gutenberg-tm License must appear prominently +whenever any copy of a Project Gutenberg-tm work (any work on which the +phrase "Project Gutenberg" appears, or with which the phrase "Project +Gutenberg" is associated) is accessed, displayed, performed, viewed, +copied or distributed: + +This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with +almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or +re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included +with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org + +1.E.2. If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is derived +from the public domain (does not contain a notice indicating that it is +posted with permission of the copyright holder), the work can be copied +and distributed to anyone in the United States without paying any fees +or charges. If you are redistributing or providing access to a work +with the phrase "Project Gutenberg" associated with or appearing on the +work, you must comply either with the requirements of paragraphs 1.E.1 +through 1.E.7 or obtain permission for the use of the work and the +Project Gutenberg-tm trademark as set forth in paragraphs 1.E.8 or +1.E.9. + +1.E.3. If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is posted +with the permission of the copyright holder, your use and distribution +must comply with both paragraphs 1.E.1 through 1.E.7 and any additional +terms imposed by the copyright holder. Additional terms will be linked +to the Project Gutenberg-tm License for all works posted with the +permission of the copyright holder found at the beginning of this work. + +1.E.4. Do not unlink or detach or remove the full Project Gutenberg-tm +License terms from this work, or any files containing a part of this +work or any other work associated with Project Gutenberg-tm. + +1.E.5. Do not copy, display, perform, distribute or redistribute this +electronic work, or any part of this electronic work, without +prominently displaying the sentence set forth in paragraph 1.E.1 with +active links or immediate access to the full terms of the Project +Gutenberg-tm License. + +1.E.6. You may convert to and distribute this work in any binary, +compressed, marked up, nonproprietary or proprietary form, including any +word processing or hypertext form. However, if you provide access to or +distribute copies of a Project Gutenberg-tm work in a format other than +"Plain Vanilla ASCII" or other format used in the official version +posted on the official Project Gutenberg-tm web site (www.gutenberg.org), +you must, at no additional cost, fee or expense to the user, provide a +copy, a means of exporting a copy, or a means of obtaining a copy upon +request, of the work in its original "Plain Vanilla ASCII" or other +form. Any alternate format must include the full Project Gutenberg-tm +License as specified in paragraph 1.E.1. + +1.E.7. Do not charge a fee for access to, viewing, displaying, +performing, copying or distributing any Project Gutenberg-tm works +unless you comply with paragraph 1.E.8 or 1.E.9. + +1.E.8. You may charge a reasonable fee for copies of or providing +access to or distributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works provided +that + +- You pay a royalty fee of 20% of the gross profits you derive from + the use of Project Gutenberg-tm works calculated using the method + you already use to calculate your applicable taxes. The fee is + owed to the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm trademark, but he + has agreed to donate royalties under this paragraph to the + Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation. Royalty payments + must be paid within 60 days following each date on which you + prepare (or are legally required to prepare) your periodic tax + returns. Royalty payments should be clearly marked as such and + sent to the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation at the + address specified in Section 4, "Information about donations to + the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation." + +- You provide a full refund of any money paid by a user who notifies + you in writing (or by e-mail) within 30 days of receipt that s/he + does not agree to the terms of the full Project Gutenberg-tm + License. You must require such a user to return or + destroy all copies of the works possessed in a physical medium + and discontinue all use of and all access to other copies of + Project Gutenberg-tm works. + +- You provide, in accordance with paragraph 1.F.3, a full refund of any + money paid for a work or a replacement copy, if a defect in the + electronic work is discovered and reported to you within 90 days + of receipt of the work. + +- You comply with all other terms of this agreement for free + distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm works. + +1.E.9. If you wish to charge a fee or distribute a Project Gutenberg-tm +electronic work or group of works on different terms than are set +forth in this agreement, you must obtain permission in writing from +both the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation and Michael +Hart, the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm trademark. Contact the +Foundation as set forth in Section 3 below. + +1.F. + +1.F.1. Project Gutenberg volunteers and employees expend considerable +effort to identify, do copyright research on, transcribe and proofread +public domain works in creating the Project Gutenberg-tm +collection. Despite these efforts, Project Gutenberg-tm electronic +works, and the medium on which they may be stored, may contain +"Defects," such as, but not limited to, incomplete, inaccurate or +corrupt data, transcription errors, a copyright or other intellectual +property infringement, a defective or damaged disk or other medium, a +computer virus, or computer codes that damage or cannot be read by +your equipment. + +1.F.2. LIMITED WARRANTY, DISCLAIMER OF DAMAGES - Except for the "Right +of Replacement or Refund" described in paragraph 1.F.3, the Project +Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation, the owner of the Project +Gutenberg-tm trademark, and any other party distributing a Project +Gutenberg-tm electronic work under this agreement, disclaim all +liability to you for damages, costs and expenses, including legal +fees. YOU AGREE THAT YOU HAVE NO REMEDIES FOR NEGLIGENCE, STRICT +LIABILITY, BREACH OF WARRANTY OR BREACH OF CONTRACT EXCEPT THOSE +PROVIDED IN PARAGRAPH F3. YOU AGREE THAT THE FOUNDATION, THE +TRADEMARK OWNER, AND ANY DISTRIBUTOR UNDER THIS AGREEMENT WILL NOT BE +LIABLE TO YOU FOR ACTUAL, DIRECT, INDIRECT, CONSEQUENTIAL, PUNITIVE OR +INCIDENTAL DAMAGES EVEN IF YOU GIVE NOTICE OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH +DAMAGE. + +1.F.3. LIMITED RIGHT OF REPLACEMENT OR REFUND - If you discover a +defect in this electronic work within 90 days of receiving it, you can +receive a refund of the money (if any) you paid for it by sending a +written explanation to the person you received the work from. If you +received the work on a physical medium, you must return the medium with +your written explanation. The person or entity that provided you with +the defective work may elect to provide a replacement copy in lieu of a +refund. If you received the work electronically, the person or entity +providing it to you may choose to give you a second opportunity to +receive the work electronically in lieu of a refund. If the second copy +is also defective, you may demand a refund in writing without further +opportunities to fix the problem. + +1.F.4. Except for the limited right of replacement or refund set forth +in paragraph 1.F.3, this work is provided to you 'AS-IS' WITH NO OTHER +WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO +WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTIBILITY OR FITNESS FOR ANY PURPOSE. + +1.F.5. Some states do not allow disclaimers of certain implied +warranties or the exclusion or limitation of certain types of damages. +If any disclaimer or limitation set forth in this agreement violates the +law of the state applicable to this agreement, the agreement shall be +interpreted to make the maximum disclaimer or limitation permitted by +the applicable state law. The invalidity or unenforceability of any +provision of this agreement shall not void the remaining provisions. + +1.F.6. INDEMNITY - You agree to indemnify and hold the Foundation, the +trademark owner, any agent or employee of the Foundation, anyone +providing copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in accordance +with this agreement, and any volunteers associated with the production, +promotion and distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works, +harmless from all liability, costs and expenses, including legal fees, +that arise directly or indirectly from any of the following which you do +or cause to occur: (a) distribution of this or any Project Gutenberg-tm +work, (b) alteration, modification, or additions or deletions to any +Project Gutenberg-tm work, and (c) any Defect you cause. + + +Section 2. Information about the Mission of Project Gutenberg-tm + +Project Gutenberg-tm is synonymous with the free distribution of +electronic works in formats readable by the widest variety of computers +including obsolete, old, middle-aged and new computers. It exists +because of the efforts of hundreds of volunteers and donations from +people in all walks of life. + +Volunteers and financial support to provide volunteers with the +assistance they need, is critical to reaching Project Gutenberg-tm's +goals and ensuring that the Project Gutenberg-tm collection will +remain freely available for generations to come. In 2001, the Project +Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation was created to provide a secure +and permanent future for Project Gutenberg-tm and future generations. +To learn more about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation +and how your efforts and donations can help, see Sections 3 and 4 +and the Foundation web page at http://www.pglaf.org. + + +Section 3. Information about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive +Foundation + +The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation is a non profit +501(c)(3) educational corporation organized under the laws of the +state of Mississippi and granted tax exempt status by the Internal +Revenue Service. The Foundation's EIN or federal tax identification +number is 64-6221541. Its 501(c)(3) letter is posted at +http://pglaf.org/fundraising. Contributions to the Project Gutenberg +Literary Archive Foundation are tax deductible to the full extent +permitted by U.S. federal laws and your state's laws. + +The Foundation's principal office is located at 4557 Melan Dr. S. +Fairbanks, AK, 99712., but its volunteers and employees are scattered +throughout numerous locations. Its business office is located at +809 North 1500 West, Salt Lake City, UT 84116, (801) 596-1887, email +business@pglaf.org. Email contact links and up to date contact +information can be found at the Foundation's web site and official +page at http://pglaf.org + +For additional contact information: + Dr. Gregory B. Newby + Chief Executive and Director + gbnewby@pglaf.org + + +Section 4. Information about Donations to the Project Gutenberg +Literary Archive Foundation + +Project Gutenberg-tm depends upon and cannot survive without wide +spread public support and donations to carry out its mission of +increasing the number of public domain and licensed works that can be +freely distributed in machine readable form accessible by the widest +array of equipment including outdated equipment. Many small donations +($1 to $5,000) are particularly important to maintaining tax exempt +status with the IRS. + +The Foundation is committed to complying with the laws regulating +charities and charitable donations in all 50 states of the United +States. Compliance requirements are not uniform and it takes a +considerable effort, much paperwork and many fees to meet and keep up +with these requirements. We do not solicit donations in locations +where we have not received written confirmation of compliance. To +SEND DONATIONS or determine the status of compliance for any +particular state visit http://pglaf.org + +While we cannot and do not solicit contributions from states where we +have not met the solicitation requirements, we know of no prohibition +against accepting unsolicited donations from donors in such states who +approach us with offers to donate. + +International donations are gratefully accepted, but we cannot make +any statements concerning tax treatment of donations received from +outside the United States. U.S. laws alone swamp our small staff. + +Please check the Project Gutenberg Web pages for current donation +methods and addresses. Donations are accepted in a number of other +ways including checks, online payments and credit card donations. +To donate, please visit: http://pglaf.org/donate + + +Section 5. General Information About Project Gutenberg-tm electronic +works. + +Professor Michael S. Hart is the originator of the Project Gutenberg-tm +concept of a library of electronic works that could be freely shared +with anyone. For thirty years, he produced and distributed Project +Gutenberg-tm eBooks with only a loose network of volunteer support. + + +Project Gutenberg-tm eBooks are often created from several printed +editions, all of which are confirmed as Public Domain in the U.S. +unless a copyright notice is included. Thus, we do not necessarily +keep eBooks in compliance with any particular paper edition. + + +Most people start at our Web site which has the main PG search facility: + + http://www.gutenberg.org + +This Web site includes information about Project Gutenberg-tm, +including how to make donations to the Project Gutenberg Literary +Archive Foundation, how to help produce our new eBooks, and how to +subscribe to our email newsletter to hear about new eBooks. + + +</pre> + +</body> +</html> diff --git a/19692-h/images/image_001.jpg b/19692-h/images/image_001.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..d609ed3 --- /dev/null +++ b/19692-h/images/image_001.jpg diff --git a/19692-h/images/image_002.jpg b/19692-h/images/image_002.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..e77a4cc --- /dev/null +++ b/19692-h/images/image_002.jpg diff --git a/19692-h/images/image_003.jpg b/19692-h/images/image_003.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..f91a4ba --- /dev/null +++ b/19692-h/images/image_003.jpg diff --git a/19692-h/images/image_003_1.jpg b/19692-h/images/image_003_1.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..c5bcc7d --- /dev/null +++ b/19692-h/images/image_003_1.jpg diff --git a/19692-h/images/image_004.jpg b/19692-h/images/image_004.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..1108b4b --- /dev/null +++ b/19692-h/images/image_004.jpg diff --git a/19692-h/images/image_010.jpg b/19692-h/images/image_010.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..777ed59 --- /dev/null +++ b/19692-h/images/image_010.jpg diff --git a/19692-h/images/image_010_1.jpg b/19692-h/images/image_010_1.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..7658c6c --- /dev/null +++ b/19692-h/images/image_010_1.jpg diff --git a/19692-h/images/image_012.jpg b/19692-h/images/image_012.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..5ebe457 --- /dev/null +++ b/19692-h/images/image_012.jpg diff --git a/19692-h/images/image_012_1.jpg b/19692-h/images/image_012_1.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..b9b7737 --- /dev/null +++ b/19692-h/images/image_012_1.jpg diff --git a/19692-h/images/image_022.jpg b/19692-h/images/image_022.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..d30e702 --- /dev/null +++ b/19692-h/images/image_022.jpg diff --git a/19692-h/images/image_022_1.jpg b/19692-h/images/image_022_1.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..007446a --- /dev/null +++ b/19692-h/images/image_022_1.jpg diff --git a/19692-h/images/image_033.jpg b/19692-h/images/image_033.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..6ed4f17 --- /dev/null +++ b/19692-h/images/image_033.jpg diff --git a/19692-h/images/image_033_1.jpg b/19692-h/images/image_033_1.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..753b687 --- /dev/null +++ b/19692-h/images/image_033_1.jpg diff --git a/19692-h/images/image_043.jpg b/19692-h/images/image_043.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..1690902 --- /dev/null +++ b/19692-h/images/image_043.jpg diff --git a/19692-h/images/image_043_1.jpg b/19692-h/images/image_043_1.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..2b77407 --- /dev/null +++ b/19692-h/images/image_043_1.jpg diff --git a/19692-h/images/image_052.jpg b/19692-h/images/image_052.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..3522e36 --- /dev/null +++ b/19692-h/images/image_052.jpg diff --git a/19692-h/images/image_052_1.jpg b/19692-h/images/image_052_1.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..532e098 --- /dev/null +++ b/19692-h/images/image_052_1.jpg diff --git a/19692-h/images/image_063.jpg b/19692-h/images/image_063.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..848917f --- /dev/null +++ b/19692-h/images/image_063.jpg diff --git a/19692-h/images/image_063_1.jpg b/19692-h/images/image_063_1.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..365e4e8 --- /dev/null +++ b/19692-h/images/image_063_1.jpg diff --git a/19692-h/images/image_072.jpg b/19692-h/images/image_072.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..229061d --- /dev/null +++ b/19692-h/images/image_072.jpg diff --git a/19692-h/images/image_072_1.jpg b/19692-h/images/image_072_1.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..d60c98e --- /dev/null +++ b/19692-h/images/image_072_1.jpg diff --git a/19692-h/images/image_083.jpg b/19692-h/images/image_083.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..8bd5373 --- /dev/null +++ b/19692-h/images/image_083.jpg diff --git a/19692-h/images/image_083_1.jpg b/19692-h/images/image_083_1.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..cd15a8e --- /dev/null +++ b/19692-h/images/image_083_1.jpg diff --git a/19692-h/images/image_092.jpg b/19692-h/images/image_092.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..6ee6c60 --- /dev/null +++ b/19692-h/images/image_092.jpg diff --git a/19692-h/images/image_092_1.jpg b/19692-h/images/image_092_1.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..ed9e4e9 --- /dev/null +++ b/19692-h/images/image_092_1.jpg diff --git a/19692-h/images/image_103.jpg b/19692-h/images/image_103.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..ceb0a2d --- /dev/null +++ b/19692-h/images/image_103.jpg diff --git a/19692-h/images/image_103_1.jpg b/19692-h/images/image_103_1.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..cca5178 --- /dev/null +++ b/19692-h/images/image_103_1.jpg diff --git a/19692-h/images/image_112.jpg b/19692-h/images/image_112.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..a6bb51b --- /dev/null +++ b/19692-h/images/image_112.jpg diff --git a/19692-h/images/image_112_1.jpg b/19692-h/images/image_112_1.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..3bf7aad --- /dev/null +++ b/19692-h/images/image_112_1.jpg diff --git a/19692.txt b/19692.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..581d7c5 --- /dev/null +++ b/19692.txt @@ -0,0 +1,3074 @@ +Project Gutenberg's Peeps At Many Lands: Belgium, by George W. T. Omond + +This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with +almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or +re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included +with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org + + +Title: Peeps At Many Lands: Belgium + +Author: George W. T. Omond + +Illustrator: Amedee Forestier + +Release Date: November 1, 2006 [EBook #19692] + +Language: English + +Character set encoding: ASCII + +*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK PEEPS AT MANY LANDS: BELGIUM *** + + + + +Produced by Bruce Albrecht, Sankar Viswanathan, and the +Online Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net + + + + + + + + + + [Illustration: A PEASANT WOMAN OF THE ARDENNES.] + + + PEEPS AT MANY LANDS + + BELGIUM + + + + + BY + GEORGE W. T. OMOND + + + ILLUSTRATED BY + AMEDEE FORESTIER + + + + LONDON + ADAM AND CHARLES BLACK + 1909 + + * * * * * + + + + +CONTENTS + + +CHAPTER + + I. THE SANDS OPPOSITE ENGLAND + II. INLAND: THE FLEMISH PLAIN + III. TRAVELLING IN BELGIUM + IV. SOME OF THE TOWNS: THE ARDENNES + V. BELGIAN CHILDREN: THE "PREMIERE COMMUNION" + VI. CHRISTMAS IN BELGIUM + VII. NEW YEAR'S DAY + VIII. PAGEANTS AND PROCESSIONS + IX. THE STORY OF ST. EVERMAIRE: A COUNTRY PAGEANT + X. THE CARNIVAL + XI. CHILDREN'S WINTER FESTIVALS + XII. THE ARCHERS: GAMES PLAYED IN BELGIUM + XIII. WHAT THE BELGIANS SPEAK + XIV. A SHORT HISTORY + XV. THE BELGIAN ARMY: THE CONGO + + * * * * * + + + + +LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS + +BY AMEDEE FORESTIER + + +A PEASANT WOMAN OF THE ARDENNES _frontispiece_ +THE DUNES +A SHRIMPER ON HORSEBACK, COXYDE +THE VEGETABLE MARKET, BRUGES +ANTWERP +THE HOTEL DE VILLE, BRUSSELS +AT THE KERMESSE +A CHATEAU IN THE LESSE VALLEY +A FARMSTEADING +PLAYING "JEU DE BOULE" AT A FLEMISH INN +VILLAGE AND CANAL, ADINKERQUE +WATERLOO: THE FARM OF LA BELLE ALLIANCE AND THE + MOUND SURMOUNTED BY THE BELGIAN LION +A MILK-SELLER IN BRUGES _on the cover_ + +_Sketch-Map of Belgium._ + + * * * * * + +[Illustration: SKETCH-MAP OF BELGIUM.] + +[Illustration: THE DUNES.] + + * * * * * + + + + +BELGIUM + +CHAPTER I + +THE SANDS OPPOSITE ENGLAND + + +If you leave the mouth of the Thames, or the white chalk cliffs at +Dover, and sail over the water just where the English Channel meets +the North Sea, you will in about three or four hours see before you a +long expanse of yellow sand, and rising behind it a low ridge of +sandhills, which look in the distance like a range of baby mountains. +These sandhills are called "dunes." Here and there at intervals you +will see a number of little towns, each town standing by itself on the +shore, and separated from its neighbour by a row of dunes and a +stretch of sand. + +This is your first view of the little country called Belgium, which is +bounded on the east by Holland, and on the west by France. It is, from +end to end, about half the size of Ireland. + +There are no cliffs or rocks, no shingle or stones covered with +seaweed. There are no trees. It is all bare sand, with moss and rushes +on the higher ground above the beach. In winter the wind rages with +terrific violence along the coast. The sand is blown in all +directions, and the waves dash fiercely on the shore. It is cold and +stormy, with mist and dark clouds, and sometimes violent showers of +hail. But in summer all is changed. Often, week after week, the waves +roll gently in, and break in ripples on the beach. The sky is blue, +and the sands are warm. It is the best place in the world for digging +and building castles. There are very few shells to gather; but there +are no dangerous rocks or slippery places, and children can wade about +and play in perfect safety. So many families--Belgians, English, +Germans, and a few French--spend the summer holidays there. + +Hundreds of years ago the storms of winter used to drive the waves +ashore with such violence that the land was flooded, and whole +villages were sometimes swept away. So the people made ramparts of +earth to keep back the water, till by degrees many parts of the +Belgian shore were thus protected. They still continue to build +defences against the sea; but instead of earth they now use brick and +stone. It looks as if in a few years the whole coast will be lined by +these sea-fronts, which are called _digues de mer_. + +A _digue_, no matter how thick, which rests on the sand alone will not +last. A thick bed of green branches is first laid down as a +foundation. This is strengthened by posts driven through it into the +sand. Heavy timbers, resting on bundles of branches lashed together, +are wedged into the foundations, and slope inwards and upwards to +within a few feet of the height to which it is intended to carry the +_digue_. On the top another solid bed of branches is laid down, and +the whole is first covered with concrete, and then with bricks or +tiles, while the top of the _digue_, at the edge of the seaward slope, +is composed of heavy blocks of stone cemented together and bound by +iron rivets. + +The finest and longest _digue_ is that which extends from Ostend for +about nine miles. It is a good place for bicycle rides. No motor-cars +are allowed on it. + +Each of the little towns which you see dotted along the coast has a +_digue_ of its own, on which there is a row of villas and hotels +facing the sea. Among the dunes behind the _digue_ there are more +villas. These are generally very picturesque, with verandas, red-tiled +roofs, and brightly painted woodwork. + +All day long in summer the _digue_ of each town is crowded by people +walking about in the sunshine, or sitting watching the bathers and the +children playing on the sands. It is a very gay sight. There are +prizes for those who build the best castles, and it is curious to see +hundreds of little Belgian, English, French, and German flags flying +on these small forts, and to hear the children shouting to each other +in so many different languages. It makes one think of the Tower of +Babel. + +From six in the morning till six in the evening bathing-machines go to +and from the water, and often there seem to be as many people in the +sea as on the shore. There is a boat anchored a little way out, in +which two men in red shirts, with ropes and lifebelts, sit watching to +see that no one goes too far out, for the tide is often very strong. +Sometimes these men, who are called _sauveteurs_, stand on the sand, +and if they think anyone is swimming too far they blow a trumpet to +call the swimmer back. + +In the evening, when it is dark and the lamps are lighted, there is +dancing on the _digue_ to the music of a barrel-organ. The Belgians +are very fond of this dancing, and often the English and other +visitors join in it too. + +All summer this holiday life goes on, with bathing, lawn-tennis, and +in some places golf, till at last the time comes for going home. The +hotels and villas close their doors. The windows are boarded up. The +bathing-machines are pulled away from the beach, and put in some +sheltered place among the dunes. The _digue_ is left in solitude, to +be covered with driven sand, and splashed with foam from the waves +which beat against it, till the season of summer gaiety comes round +again next year. + + + + +CHAPTER II + +INLAND: THE FLEMISH PLAIN + + +Let us now leave the shore, and go inland. + +If you climb to the top of some dune, you will see before you a wide +plain stretching out as far as the eye can reach. This part of Belgium +is called Flanders. It is all flat, with canals, and long, straight +roads, paved with stones, running across it. There are rows of tall +poplar-trees or willows, which are bent slightly towards the east, for +the wind blows oftenest from the west, small patches of woodland, +gardens, and many sluggish streams. The fields, which have no fences +or hedges round them, are large and well tilled, some bearing fine +crops of wheat, rye, or potatoes and turnips, while others are rich +pasture-lands for sheep and cattle. The whole of this Flemish Plain, +as it is called, is dotted with farm-houses and cottages. There are a +great many villages, and in the distance rise the roof-tops and the +towers and spires of famous old towns. + +Some of the villages are worth visiting. There is one called Coxyde, +which lies low among the sandhills, not far from the sea. The people +of this village live by fishing, but in a very curious way, for they +do it on horseback. They mount little horses, and ride out into the +sea with baskets, and nets fastened to long poles. It is funny to see +them riding about in the water, and catching fish and shrimps in this +strange fashion. + +There is another village, also only a short distance inland, where +there is a church in which a number of toy ships are hung up. These +are offerings made to an image of the Virgin Mary which stands there. +If a crew of Flemish fishermen have escaped from some dangerous storm, +they walk in silence to this church, and give thanks to the image, +which is called Our Lady of Lombaerdzyde. + +The farm-labourers in Flanders live very simply. Their food is chiefly +black bread, potatoes, and salted pork or fish. There are lots of boys +and girls who eat nothing all the year round but black bread and +potatoes, and who look on pork or fish as quite a treat. Sometimes +they spread lard on their slices of bread, and there are many who have +never tasted butter in their lives. Yet they appear to be very strong +and happy. They drink black coffee, or beer if their parents can +afford it. The food of the older people is much the same. + +Most of the people in the country districts of Flanders--men, women, +boys, and girls--work in the fields. In summer they rise at four or +five in the morning, and after eating a slice of bread go out into the +fields. At half-past eleven or twelve they dine on bread and potatoes, +with perhaps a slice of pork, and take a rest. Then they work again +till about four in the afternoon, when they rest again, and after that +they work on till it is dark. In the short days of winter they toil +from sunrise till sunset. By this means they earn enough to live on. A +boy or girl may get from 5d. to 7d. a day, a woman a little more, +while a married man generally receives 1s. 8d. or 2s. Some farmers pay +an unmarried labourer 10d. and his food. + +This seems a dull and hard life, but the Flemings do not find it so. +Like all Belgians, they are fond of amusement, and there is a great +deal of dancing and singing, especially on holidays. Sunday is the +chief holiday. They all go to church in the morning, and the rest of +the day is given up to play. Unfortunately many of the older people +drink too much. There are far too many public-houses. Any person who +likes can open one on payment of a small sum of money to the +Government. The result is that in many quite small villages, where +very few people live, there are ten or twelve public-houses, where a +large glass of beer is sold for less than a penny, and a glass of +coarse spirits for about the same price. Most of the drinking is done +on Sunday, and on Monday morning it is often difficult to get men to +work. There are many, especially in the towns, who never work on +Mondays. This is quite understood in Belgium, and people who know the +country are pleased, and rather surprised, if an artisan who has +promised to come and do something on a Monday morning keeps his word. +Of course there are many sober work-people, and it is a rare thing to +see a tipsy woman, much rarer than in England; but there is a great +deal of drunkenness in Belgium. + +There is one thing to which all the boys and girls look forward, and +that is what is called the _Kermesse_. This is a kind of fair, which +takes place at every village in summer, and lasts for two or three +days. They talk about it for weeks before, and for weeks after. They +save up every penny they can lay their hands on, and when the time +comes they leave their work or the school as soon as possible in the +afternoon, put on their best clothes, and enjoy themselves. + +The village street is full of stalls covered with cheap toys, +sweetmeats, and all sorts of tempting little articles, and you may be +sure the pennies melt away very quickly. Flags of black, red, and yellow +stripes--the Belgian national colours--fly on the houses. A band of +music plays. Travelling showmen are there with merry-go-rounds, and the +children are never tired of riding round and round on the gaily painted +wooden horses. Then there is dancing in the public-houses, in which all +the villagers, except the very old people, take part. Boys and girls hop +round, and if there are not enough boys the girls take each other for +partners, while the grown-up lads and young women dance together. + +[Illustration: A SHRIMPER ON HORSEBACK, COXYDE.] + +The rooms in these public-houses are pretty large, but they get +dreadfully hot and stuffy. The constant laughing and talking, the +music, and the scraping of feet on the sanded floor make an awful +din. Then there are sometimes disputes, and the Flemings have a nasty +habit of using knives when they are angry, so the dancing, which often +goes on till two or three in the morning, is the least pleasant thing +about these gatherings. + +This is a very old Belgian custom, but of late years the _Kermesses_ +in the big towns have changed in character, and are just ordinary +fairs, with menageries and things of that sort, which you can find in +England or anywhere else. If you want to see a real Kermesse you must +go to some village in Flanders, and there you will find it very +amusing. + + + + +CHAPTER III + +TRAVELLING IN BELGIUM + + +Travelling in Belgium is cheap and easy. The best way to see the +out-of-the-way parts of the country would be to journey about in a +barge on the canals. There are a great many canals. You could go all +the way from France to the other side of Belgium in a barge, threading +your way through fields, and meadow-lands, and villages, and stopping +every now and then at some of the big towns. If you read that charming +book "Vanity Fair," you will see that Mr. Thackeray, who wrote it, +says that once an Englishman, who went to Belgium for a week, found +the eating and drinking on these boats so good that he went backwards +and forwards on the canal between Bruges and Ghent perpetually till +the railways were invented, when he drowned himself on the last trip +of the boat! + +But if that ever happened it was long ago. Nowadays, when travellers +are in such a hurry, the canals are only used for carrying coals, +timber, and other goods. They are largely used for that purpose. The +Belgians are very wise about their canals; they keep them in good +order, and send as many things as possible by water. It is not so +quick, but it is much less expensive, and a great deal safer, than +sending them by railway. + +It is interesting to stand on the bank of a canal and watch a row of +barges moving slowly past. Sometimes a little steam-tug puffs along, +pulling three or four barges after it. Some are pulled by horses, and +often men or women labour along the towing-path dragging these heavily +laden vessels by a rope fastened to a short mast set up in the bows. + +This is hard work, but the barge-folk seem to think nothing of it. +Whole families are born, live, and die on their barges. You often see +the wife or daughter of the bargeman steering, while the children are +playing on the top of the hatches, and the husband is doing some work +among the cargo, or just sitting smoking his pipe. These floating +homes are long and broad, painted in bright colours, with a +deck-cabin, the windows of which are often hung with pretty curtains. +The children run about, and seem never to tumble overboard. If they +did they would be easily pulled out, for the barges are very low in +the water. + +As the country is so flat, bicycling is easy, and alongside most of +the roads there is a path made for this purpose, which is kept up by a +tax everyone who has a bicycle must pay. Always remember that if you +meet another person you keep to the right, and not, as in England, to +the left. The same rule applies to driving in a carriage or riding a +horse. + +The Belgians have an excellent system of light district railways, +which run in all directions, some worked by steam and some by +electricity. These are very useful, for the trains stop at every +village, however small, and the country people can easily go to market +or to visit each other. Outside each carriage there is a platform, on +which you can stand and see the country. The fares are low, and you +can go a long way for a few pence. The carriages are open from end to +end, and if you travel in one of them you will generally see a crowd +of peasants in blue blouses, old women in long black cloaks and white +caps, priests, and soldiers (who only pay half-price), the men all +smoking, and the women talking about what they have bought, or what +they are going to buy. They are always talking about that, and, +indeed, seem never to speak about anything else. A few hours' journey +in one of these district railways, which are called the +_Chemins-de-fer-Vicinaux_, is a far better way of getting a peep at +the Belgian people than rushing along in an express train from one big +town to another. + +The first railway on the Continent of Europe was in Belgium. It was +opened seventy-four years ago--in May, 1835--and ran from Brussels, +the capital of Belgium, to Malines, a town which you will see on the +map. There are now, of course, a great many railways, which belong to +the State and not, as in England, to private companies. + +Season tickets are much used on Belgian railways. For instance, anyone +wishing to travel for five days on end has only to pay L1 4s. 7d. for +a first-class ticket, 16s. 5d. for a second-class, or 9s. 5d. for a +third-class. For these small sums you can go all over Belgium on the +State railways, stopping as often as you please, at any hour of the +day or night, for five days. All you have to do is to take a small +photograph of yourself to the station an hour before you intend to +start, and tell the railway clerk at the booking-office by which class +you wish to travel, and when you go back to the station you will find +your ticket ready, with your photograph pasted on it, so that the +guards may know that you are the person to whom it belongs. You then +pay for it, and leave 4s. more, which are given back at whatever +station your trip may end. There are also tickets for longer periods +than five days. You can send a letter instead of going to the station. +You can write from England, and find your ticket waiting for you at +Ostend or Antwerp, or any other place in Belgium from which you may +intend to start on your journey. This is very convenient, for it saves +the trouble of buying a fresh ticket each day. Besides, it is a great +deal cheaper. These tickets are called _abonnements_. + +There are also _abonnements_ for children going to school, and for +workmen. It is quite common in Belgium to be in a railway carriage +where, when the guard comes round, all the passengers pull out season +tickets. + +There is one thing about travelling by railway in Belgium which +English people don't always know, and that is the rule about opening +and shutting windows. The Belgians are not so fond of fresh air as we +are. They sleep with their bedroom windows shut, which makes them +soft, and apt to catch cold. So they are always afraid of draughts, +especially in a railway train. The first thing a Belgian does, as soon +as he enters a carriage, is to shut the windows, and the rule is that +if by any chance there were, say, five people who wanted a window +open, and only one who wanted it shut, that one can refuse to let the +others have it open. If you are sitting near a window, and open it, +you may be sure that someone, who is perhaps sitting at the other end +of the carriage, will step across and shut it. They never ask leave, +or, indeed, say a word; they just shut it. + +One day, two or three years ago, there was a great crowd in a district +train. It was July, and very hot. All the windows of one first-class +carriage were, as usual, shut, and it was so stifling that some of us +stood outside on the platform so as to get some fresh air. A feeble +old lady chanced to be sitting next one of the windows, and wished to +open it. All the other passengers refused to allow her. She told them +she felt as if she would faint from the heat. Not one of the Belgian +ladies and gentlemen, who were all well-dressed people, cared about +that. They just shrugged their shoulders. At last the old lady, who +had been turning very pale, fainted away. Then they were afraid, and +the guard was sent for. He insisted on letting in some air, and +attended to the lady, who presently revived. The other passengers at +once had the window shut again, and the lady had to be taken into +another carriage, on which everyone began to laugh, as if it was a +good joke. + +Some Englishmen are always having rows about this window question; but +the best plan is to say nothing, and remember that every country has +its own customs, which strangers ought to observe. + + + + +CHAPTER IV + +SOME OF THE TOWNS: THE ARDENNES + + +England, as you know, is not a very big country. But Belgium is very +much smaller. It is such a little bit of a place, a mere corner of +Europe, that in a few hours the train can take you from one end of it +to the other. I suppose that from Ostend to Liege is one of the +longest journeys you could make, and that takes less than four hours. +So it is very easy to go from one town to another. + +Suppose we land at Ostend, which, as you will see on the map, lies in +the middle of the Belgian coast. It is the largest of the seaside +towns, and one of the oldest. In ancient times it was fortified, and +during the wars between the Spaniards and the Dutch the Spaniards +defended it for three whole years. It must have been very strong in +those days. But now it is quite changed, and has no walls, but just a +long _digue_, and a great many hotels, lodging-houses, and big shops. +Crowds of people go there in summer. There are horse-races, concerts, +dancing, and a great deal of gambling. One part of the beach in front +of the _digue_ is crowded with bathing-machines, and it is said that +during one day in August a few years ago no fewer than 7,000 people +bathed. + +[Illustration: THE VEGETABLE MARKET, BRUGES.] + +Ostend, however, is not a nice place to stay in. In summer it is +noisy, and full of people who care for nothing but eating, drinking, +dressing up, and gambling. In winter it is an ugly, dull, stupid town, +in which there is nothing to do, and nothing to see except +fishing-boats and the steamers which carry travellers to and from +Dover. So we shall not say anything more about it, but take the train, +and in twenty minutes find ourselves in a really interesting place. + +This is Bruges. They call it _Bruges la Morte_--that is to say, +"Bruges, the Dead City." Once upon a time, long, long ago, this town +was great, and rich, and prosperous. It was surrounded by strong +walls, and within it were many gilded palaces, the homes of merchant +princes whose wealth was the talk of all the world. Their houses were +full of precious stones, tapestries, silk, fine linen, and cloth of +gold. Their warehouses were stored with costly bales. They lent money +to Kings and Princes, and lived themselves in almost royal luxury. A +broad channel led from the sea to Bruges, and ships entered daily +laden with goods from every country in Europe, as well as from India +and all parts of the world. In those days the cloth made by the +Flemish weavers was famous, and the greatest market for wool was at +Bruges. + +So Bruges grew richer and richer, and much money was spent in +beautifying the town, in which there are said to have been 200,000 +industrious people. Churches rose, and other noble buildings. There +were endless tournaments and festivals. Painters flourished there. +Bruges was spoken of as the Venice of the North. + +But all this came to an end. The channel which joined this great city +to the sea dried up. There were wars and rebellions which drove the +foreign merchants away. They went to Antwerp. Bruges fell, and has +remained fallen ever since. + +It is now a quiet, sad place, so poor that the streets are badly +lighted, seldom cleaned, and have a desolate, neglected appearance. +The few families of the upper class who live there belong to what is +called the _petite noblesse_; there is almost no trade or commerce; +and many of the lower orders live on charity. + +But this dead city is very romantic, with all its memories of olden +times. Nobody should go to Belgium without visiting Bruges, once so +famous and now so fallen, not only because it is picturesque, with its +old buildings and quaint views such as artists love to paint, but also +because it is so quiet that you can watch the customs of a Belgian +town without being disturbed by a crowd--the market-folk with their +wares spread out on the stones of the street, the small carts drawn by +dogs, the women sitting at their doors busy with lace-making, the +pavements occupied by tables at which people sit drinking coffee or +beer, the workmen clanking along in their wooden shoes, and +numberless little things which are different from what you see at +home. + +Every town in Belgium has its "belfry," a tower rising over some +venerable building, from which, in the days of almost constant +warfare, a beacon used to blaze, or a bell ring out, to call the +citizens to arms. The belfry of Bruges is, I think, the finest of them +all. If you have ever been to Bruges you can never forget it. It rises +high above the market-place. All day long, year after year, the chimes +ring every quarter of an hour; and all night too, unceasingly, through +winter storm and summer moonlight, the belfry pours forth its +perpetual lament over the dead city. + +Not far from Bruges, only forty minutes by railway, is another ancient +town called Ghent; but instead of being dead like Bruges, it is alive +and busy. In the days of old the people of Ghent were the most +independent and brave in Belgium. In the belfry there was a famous +bell called "Roland," and if any of their rulers attempted to tax them +against their will, this Roland was rung, and wagged his iron tongue +so well that the townsmen armed themselves at once, and the +tax-gatherers were driven away. It was no easy task to rule them, as +all who tried it found to their cost. They grew very rich, chiefly +because of their trade in wool with England. But evil days came, and +for more than 200 years this mighty city remained in a most forlorn +state. + +In the nineteenth century, however, when there was settled peace in +Belgium after the Battle of Waterloo, the people of Ghent set to work +in earnest once more, and made up for lost time so well that now their +town is full of flourishing factories, and has a harbour from which a +deep canal leads to the River Scheldt, and is used by many ships. Most +beautiful flowers are cultivated in nursery gardens and hothouses, and +are sent all over the world in such quantities that Ghent has been +called "The City of Flowers." + +From busy Ghent, where the belfry in which Roland used to hang and the +walls and towers of many an ancient building look down upon the +crowded streets, you may go to the still busier town of Antwerp, which +stands on the River Scheldt. + +Like Bruges and Ghent, and, indeed, every town in Belgium, Antwerp is +very old. It is said that long ago there was a giant who lived on the +banks of the Scheldt, and compelled the captain of every ship which +came up the river to give him money. If the money was refused, the +giant cut off one of the captain's hands, and threw it into the river. +In Dutch the word _werpen_ means "to throw," and thus the place where +the giant lived was called _Hand-werpen_, which became, in course of +time, _Antwerp_. Perhaps you may not believe this story, but in one of +the squares at Antwerp there is the statue of a man called Brabo, who +is said to have killed the giant. + +Close to this statue is the cathedral, which is one of the grandest in +Europe, and where there are some famous paintings by the great artist +Rubens, who lived at Antwerp for many years. + +Another very interesting thing to see at Antwerp is the +Plantin-Moretus house. It was the home, more than 300 years ago, of a +printer called Plantin, who made a great fortune, and whose +descendants took the name of Moretus, and carried on the business for +a long time. You will see there the types and printing-presses of the +sixteenth century, and also the very furniture of the sitting-rooms +and bedrooms, just as they were in those bygone days. One of the rooms +was the nursery of the Plantin children. The men who show you over the +house are dressed as servants were in Plantin's time. By going there +you will get a far better idea of the family life of those times than +by reading any number of story-books or looking at any number of +pictures. + +Antwerp has, like the other Belgian towns, had its ups and downs, but +now it is one of the greatest harbours in the whole world. So many +ships go there that there is hardly room for all of them. It may seem +an extraordinary thing that a country like Belgium, so small that two +or three English counties would cover it, should have such an +important harbour crowded with the shipping of all nations. But +Antwerp is connected by railways and canals with the busiest parts of +Europe, and the Scheldt is a noble river, by which merchantmen can +find their way to every region of the world. + +A hundred years ago Antwerp was in the hands of the French, who had +seized Belgium; and when Napoleon was beaten he clung to Antwerp as +long as he could. Just before he fell, there was a conference at a +place called Chatillon, when they tried to make peace, but could not; +and afterwards, when he was at St. Helena, Napoleon declared that the +war continued chiefly because he would not give up Antwerp. "Antwerp," +he said, "was to me a province in itself. If they would have left it +to me, peace would have been concluded." He wanted to keep a fleet in +the Scheldt, so as to threaten England. If you look at a map of +Europe, you will see how near the Scheldt is to Kent and Essex. The +Belgians cannot do us any harm, but it would be a dangerous thing for +England if some strong and unfriendly nation had possession of +Antwerp. + +But we must leave Antwerp, and hurry on to Brussels, which is the +capital of Belgium. + +It is just an hour by railway, and as the train rushes on you will see +on your right a town from the middle of which rises a massive square +tower. The town is Malines (or Mechlin), and the tower is that of the +Cathedral of St. Rombold. Malines was once, like Bruges, a most +important city, and so many pilgrims went there that the cost of +building the cathedral was paid out of their offerings. It is now the +seat of the Archbishop of Belgium; but its former glory has long since +departed, and it is even more quiet and desolate than Bruges. + +It is said that once upon a time, when the moon was shining brightly +through the open stonework of the tower, the people thought there was +a fire, and tried to put it out with water! Ever since then the +townsmen of Malines have been laughed at, and called "moon-quenchers" +by the other Belgians. + +When you are in the train between Malines and Brussels, you may +recollect that you are travelling on the first railway-line that was +made on the Continent. Well, when the engineer had finished his work, +the very day before the first train was to run, he looked at some +plans he had of railways in England, and exclaimed: "By Jove! I've +forgotten a tunnel!" And so, without more ado, he sent for some +workmen, and had an archway made over a cutting! Then he thought his +railway was complete! + +Brussels is by far the nicest town in Belgium. It is a charming place +to live in, clean, bright, and gay. The walls which once surrounded it +were taken down many years ago, and replaced by beautiful roadways +called _boulevards_, with a broad carriage-drive in the middle, and on +each side a place for riding on, shaded by rows of trees. There is a +park, not very large, but with many trees and shady walks, and a round +pond, in the centre of which a fountain plays. At one end of this park +is the King's Palace, and at the other end the Houses of Parliament. +In the new parts of the town the streets are wide, and there are +spacious squares, with large and handsome houses. There are no end of +carriages and motor-cars driving about, people riding on horseback, +and all the bustle of a great city of pleasure. + +The people of Brussels are very fond of jokes and fun. They always +seem to be in good humour with each other and with themselves. The +part of Belgium in which Brussels lies is called Brabant. In olden +times it was spoken of as "gay Brabant," and so, indeed, it might be +nowadays. Dull, pompous people are not liked there. You must be lively +and amusing, like the town itself, of which the people are so proud +that they call it the Little Paris. + +Close to Brussels, on the south and west, there is a great forest--the +Forest of Soignies. The part of this forest nearest the town is called +the _Bois de la Cambre_, which is a favourite place for walking and +riding in. You reach it by a fine _boulevard_ called the Avenue +Louise. In the middle of this _Bois de la Cambre_ there is a lake with +an island, on which stands a little coffee-house, the Chalet Robinson; +so called, perhaps, after Robinson Crusoe, who lived on an island. +Belgian families often go there to spend the summer afternoons. There +are lots of pigeons on the island, so tame that they run about on the +grass, and eat out of the children's hands, while the fathers and +mothers sit drinking coffee at tables under the trees. + +[Illustration: ANTWERP.] + +In Belgium the fathers and mothers of the _petite bourgeoisie_, or +lower-middle class, seem always to go about on holidays with their +children. They dine at half-past twelve, and after dinner off they go, +the parents arm-in-arm, and the children strolling before them, and +spend the rest of the day together. It is quite a sight on a summer +evening to see them coming home in crowds down the Avenue Louise, the +father often carrying the youngest on his shoulders, and the mother +with a child hanging on to each arm. + +The Avenue Louise is in the modern part of the town. Brussels, +however, is not all modern. Most of the Belgian towns are quite flat, +but to reach the old Brussels you must go down some very steep, narrow +streets, one of which, called the _Montague de la Cour_, where the +best shops are, leads to the Grande Place, a picturesque square +surrounded by quaint houses with fantastic gables. These were the +houses of the Guilds, or Merchant Companies, in the old days. One of +them is shaped like the stern of a ship. Most of them are ornamented +with gilded mouldings. They are beautiful buildings, and the finest is +the Hotel de Ville, the front of which is a mass of statuettes. Its +high, steep roof is pierced by innumerable little windows, and above +it there is a lofty and graceful spire, which towers up and up, with a +gilded figure of the Archangel Michael at the top. + +A flower-market is held in the Grande Place, and in summer, when the +sun is shining brightly, it is a very pretty sight. But the best time +to see the Grande Place of Brussels is at night, when all is silent, +and the tall houses look solemnly down on the scene of many great +events which took place there long ago. + +I cannot tell you one-half of all there is to see in Brussels--the +beautiful churches, the picture-galleries and museums, the splendid +old library, and the gardens. The largest building is a modern one, +the _Palais de Justice_, where the law courts sit. It cost nearly +L2,000,000 to build, and is much bigger than anything in London. It +stands on an eminence overlooking the lower part of the town, and is +so huge that it may almost be said to make the capital of this tiny +kingdom look top-heavy. + +There are many other towns in Belgium besides those we have been +looking at: Louvain, with its ancient University; Liege and Charleroi, +with their steel and iron works; Courtrai, celebrated for the +manufacture of linen; Tournai, where carpets are made; Mons, with its +coal-mines; and more besides, which all lie within the narrow limits +of this small country. Most of them have played a great part in +history. Belgium is, above all things, a country of famous towns. + +When you wander about among the towns of Flanders and Brabant you +might think that the whole of Belgium was one level plain. But if you +leave Brussels and journey to the south, the aspect of the country +changes. Beyond the Forest of Soignies the tame, flat fields, the +formal rows of trees, and the long, straight roads begin to disappear, +the landscape becomes more picturesque, and soon you reach a river +called the Meuse, which flows along through a romantic valley, full +of quiet villages, gardens, woods, and hayfields, and enclosed by +steep slopes clothed with trees and thickets, and broken here and +there by dells, ravines, and bold, outstanding pinnacles of rock, +beyond which, for mile after mile, an undulating tableland is covered +by thick forests, where deer, wild boars, and other game abound. This +district is called the Ardennes. + +In the Valley of the Meuse there are three old and famous +towns--Liege, Namur, and Dinant--each nestling at the side of the +river, at the foot of a hill with a castle perched upon it. + +Other rivers flow into the Meuse. There is the Sambre, which runs from +the west, and joins the Meuse at Namur; the Lesse, which rushes in +from the south through a narrow gorge; and the Semois, a stream the +sides of which are so steep that there is not even a pathway along +them in some places, and travellers must pass from side to side in +boats when following its course. + +This is the prettiest part of Belgium, and in summer many people, who +do not care for going to the seaside, spend the holidays at the towns +and villages which are dotted about in the valleys and among the hills +and woods. + + + + +CHAPTER V + +BELGIAN CHILDREN: THE "PREMIERE COMMUNION" + + +The Belgians may be divided, roughly speaking, into five classes of +people. There are those of the highest rank, who are called the +_grande_, or _vraie, noblesse_. Of these there are not many, but they +belong to old families, some of which have been famous in the history +of their country. They have often fine country-houses, and the towns +in which you will find them most often are Brussels and Ghent. Then +come those of a much lower class, the _petite noblesse_, of whom there +are very many. They seldom mix in society with the _grande noblesse_, +and their friends are generally members of the _haute_, or _bonne, +bourgeoisie_. The _bonne bourgeoisie_ are like our middle class, and +there is no difference between them and the _petite noblesse_ as to +the way in which they live. Below these are the _petite bourgeoisie_, +who are mostly shopkeepers, clerks, and people in various employments. +Last of all are the artisans and working-class people. + +It is about the children of the _bonne bourgeoisie_ that I am going to +speak, for they are a very numerous class, and their customs are in +many respects the same as those of most Belgians. + +When a child is born, the parents should send to all their friends a +box of _dragees_--that is, sugared almonds or sugar-plums. If the +child is a boy, the box is tied with pink ribbons; and if it is a +girl, with blue. Cards announcing the birth of a child are often sent +nowadays, but the real old Belgian fashion is to send the _dragees_, +and it is a great pity that people are giving it up so much. + +The next thing is to find a name for the child, and that is done by +the godmother, who either chooses some family name or calls the child +after its patron saint--that is to say, the saint on whose day it was +born--for in Belgium, as in all Catholic countries, each day is +dedicated to some saint. The commonest name, however, for girls is +Marie, a name given in honour of the Virgin Mary, to whom many baby +girls are devoted from their birth. The mothers of these little girls +vow never to dress them in anything but blue and white till they are +seven years old. When the baby is baptized, the godfather gives a pair +of gloves to the mother and the godmother. Curiously enough, most +Belgian parents would rather have a baby girl than a boy, because a +boy costs more to educate, and also because boys, when they grow up, +have to draw lots for service in the army, and almost every father who +can afford it buys his son off, and that costs money. + +There is no nursery life such as we have in England--at least, in very +few Belgian families. Here again money is grudged. People who will +pay high wages for a good cook hire young girls of fourteen or fifteen +to look after their children, and these _bonnes_, as they are called, +are paid very little, and are often careless and stupid. The result is +that the children are constantly with their parents, and, to keep them +quiet, are dreadfully spoilt and petted. It very often happens that, +when a Belgian lady has a friend calling on her, young children, who +ought to be in a nursery, are playing in the drawing-room. Their +mother has no control over them, and if she ventures to tell them to +keep quiet, or to run away, they don't obey her, and then she gives +in, and lets them have their own way. + +Another thing which follows from this want of nursery training is that +if, as sometimes happens, there are disputes between the parents, the +children are mixed up in them. You will hear a Belgian mother say to +her young daughter: "Imagine what your father has done!" Or if the +husband is angry with his wife, he will turn to his boy, and exclaim: +"That is just like a woman!" Of course, this is very bad for the +children, who hear a great deal which they would know nothing about if +they were not always with their parents. + +From being so much with older people these children get strange ideas. +I know a lady who said to a small Belgian girl, who was an only child: +"Would you like a little brother or sister to play with?" "Oh! no, +no," replied the child, "because when my father and mother die, I +shall have all their money." Whereupon the mother exclaimed: "There! +the dear child; how well she knows the world already!" + +The children of the _petite bourgeoisie_ are the most unruly. One sees +them often at the various holiday places, at the seaside or in the +Ardennes, where they dine, however young, along with their parents at +the _tables d'hote_, or public dining-tables, of the hotels. They eat +untidily, spill their soup, throw bread at each other, upset their +tumblers of beer or wine (for they are allowed to have whatever their +parents are drinking), talk at the top of their voices, and really +make such a row that the older people can't hear each other speaking. +The moment they have had as much food as they want, they jump up, push +their chairs noisily aside, and begin to chase each other round the +room. Their parents never think of stopping them, and care nothing +about the annoyance such unmannerly behaviour causes. It is curious +how few Belgians, old or young, rich or poor, consider the feelings or +convenience of others. They are intensely selfish, and this is +doubtless caused by the way in which they are brought up. + +As you know, parents in England are forced by law to send their +children to school, or have them taught privately. There is no such +law in Belgium, and parents, if they like, may leave their children +without any education. The number, however, of those who do not go to +school is gradually decreasing, and most children get lessons of some +sort or another. + +No religious instruction is given in Belgian schools, except in +convent schools, or in those where the teachers are entirely under the +Church. But almost all children have to learn the Catechism at home. +They need not understand it, but they must be able to repeat the +words. This is to prepare them for their _Premiere Communion_, or +first Communion, to which they go when they are eleven or twelve years +old. It takes place two Sundays before Easter Day. + +The custom is for all members of the family to wear new clothes on the +day of a _Premiere Communion_, but the child's dress is the important +thing. In Belgian towns, for some time before, the windows of the +shops in which articles of dress are sold are full of gloves, +stockings, ties, and other things marked "_Premiere Communion_." A +boy's dress is not much trouble. He wears black trousers, a black +jacket, and white gloves and tie. But great thought is given to seeing +that a girl looks well in her white dress, and other nice new things. +She thinks and talks of nothing but her clothes for ever so long +before, and especially of her "corsets," which she then puts on for +the first time. Her mother takes her to the shop to try them on, and +is at much pains to make her waist as slender as possible. "Can't you +pull them a little tighter?" she will say to the shopwoman. The girl +has tight new shoes to make her feet look as small as possible; the +_coiffeur_ dresses her hair; and she is very proud of her appearance +when, squeezed into proper shape and decked out in her new clothes, +she sets off to church. + +[Illustration: THE HOTEL DE VILLE, BRUSSELS.] + +The children are confirmed on the Monday, the day after their first +Communion, and are then taken to visit the friends of the family to be +shown off, and to receive presents. The windows of the confectioners' +shops are full of little white sugar images of boys and girls saying +their prayers, and even the poorest people manage to have a feast of +some sort on this occasion. They often beg money for the purpose. It +is, of course, difficult for parents who are poor to buy new clothes. +But any little gifts of money which a child may receive are taken and +hoarded up to be spent on its first Communion. + +All Belgian children, even those whose parents are not Catholics, go, +with scarcely an exception, to first Communion, and are confirmed, for +there may be relatives with money to leave, and they must not be +displeased. + +The _Premiere Communion_ is the chief event in the life of a Belgian +child. + + + + +CHAPTER VI + +CHRISTMAS IN BELGIUM + + +Christmas is not kept in Belgium in the same way as in England, +Germany, and other countries. There are special services in church, +but no Christmas-trees, Christmas presents, or family dinner-parties. + +This was not always so, and some traces still remain in different +parts of the old customs which used to be observed in Belgium. The +ancient Belgians had a festival at mid-winter, and when they were +converted to Christianity they continued to use a good many of their +old rites at that season of the year, and the few very old Christmas +customs which survive really began when Belgium was a pagan or heathen +land. + +Some of these customs are rather curious. In the Valley of the Meuse +the pagans used to feast on the flesh of wild boars at their +mid-winter banquets, and now the people of Namur have roast pork for +dinner on Christmas Day. The _petite bourgeoisie_ of Brussels often +eat chestnuts on that day--an old usage handed down from the days when +the Germans ate acorns--and think they can find out what is going to +happen in the future by burning them. For instance, a young man and +woman who are engaged to be married throw two nuts into the fire. If +they burn peacefully, the marriage will be happy; if they crack and +jump away from each other, it will be unhappy. If a candle or lamp +goes out suddenly on Christmas Eve, it is believed that someone in the +room will die soon. Another sign of death is if you throw salt on the +floor and it melts. In some places candles are burnt all night to +scare away evil spirits. Another custom is to go into orchards, and +strike with an axe trees which have not been fruitful. This, it is +thought, will make them bear next year. + +There are many other superstitions like these which can be traced back +to heathen times, but are now mixed up with the rites of Christian +worship. One strange superstition, which a few old peasants still +have, is that when the clock strikes twelve on Christmas Eve all the +water in the house may turn into wine. This comes down, no doubt, from +early Christian times. + +In some Belgian towns the children of the poor go round on Christmas +Eve, from house to house, singing, and asking for bread, fruit, or +nuts. One of their favourite songs begins: + + "Blyden nacht, + O blyden nacht! Messias is geboren!" + +That is Flemish, their language, and it means: "Happy night, oh, happy +night! The Messiah is born." Another song begins: "Een Kindeken is +ons geboren," which is the same as "Unto us a Child is born." + +Good children, who have said their prayers every night, expect to find +under their pillows on Christmas morning a cake, or rather a bun, +which is called an _engelskoek_, or angel's cake, which the Archangel +Gabriel is supposed to have brought during the night to reward them. +Naughty children find nothing. In some places the children are told +that it is the _petit Jesus_ (the little child Jesus), who puts the +bun under their pillows. + +In many churches, but by no means in all, there is a midnight service, +at which there is a manger surrounded by wax candles, with an image of +the Holy Child in it. But this late service was so often made an +excuse for going to public-houses, and drinking too much, that the +hour has been changed, in most places, to five in the morning. The +custom of having shrines, with a manger and candles, known as +"Bethlehems," is, however, common, even in private houses. + +On Christmas Day in Flanders people wish each other "A Merry +Christmas," just as they do in England; and many parents of the upper +classes send their children, in charge of a servant, to visit their +relatives, from whom they may receive some small gifts. + +But Christmas Day is not the same, in the way of presents and +merry-making, as it is in England. + + + + +CHAPTER VII + +NEW YEAR'S DAY + + +New Year's Day is a great day in Belgium. + +December 31, the last day of the old year, is dedicated to St. +Sylvester, and there is a custom, at least in Antwerp, that the child +who gets out of bed last is called a "Sylvester," and must give the +best of its toys to its brothers and sisters. If one of the older +girls in a family does not finish any sewing or fancy-work she may +have on hand by the end of the day, she is afraid of being haunted by +evil spirits. Some people say that a young woman who does not finish +her work before sunset has no chance of being married for a year. So +they all get their various tasks done, and the last night of the year +is spent in amusement. The whole family, children and all, sit up till +midnight, singing, reciting, or playing games till the clock strikes +twelve, when they all kiss each other, and give wishes for "A Happy +New Year." + +In the big towns, however, many of the _petite bourgeoisie_ do not +"bring in the New Year" at home, and the restaurants and cafes are +crowded till twelve o'clock, when healths are drunk, and there is +cheering and singing, which are continued in the streets when the +people are going home; and there is a great deal of noise for a long +time after all the cafes are closed. + +It used to be the fashion to fire guns at midnight on New Year's Eve, +but that is not common now except in one part of Belgium, called +Limburg, where any girl who has a lover expects him to fire off shots +in front of her window. The more shots he fires the more she thinks he +loves her, and to reward him she ought to hide a bottle of gin in some +corner outside the house, from which he can drink her health. +Mischievous young men, however, sometimes find the bottle, and drink +the gin before the lover comes, and so the girl often waits till she +hears the shots, and then lowers the bottle by a string from the +window. This funny custom, like many others, is now going out of +fashion. + +On New Year's Day all Belgians call on their friends to wish them "A +Happy New Year," when they are offered wine, sweetmeats, and things of +that sort. This paying of visits on New Year's Day goes on to such an +extent in Belgian towns that people who have many friends spend almost +the whole day in walking or driving about from one house to another. +As everyone is doing the same thing, of course a great many people are +not at home when their friends come, and so the hall-table of nearly +every house is covered with calling-cards before evening. The servants +have almost nothing to do all day but answer the door-bell, which is +constantly ringing. + +In some towns, Antwerp among others, it is supposed to be quite +allowable for grown-up people, ladies and gentlemen, to kiss anyone +they know on New Year's Day. A Belgian lady once told me that it +brought good luck to kiss an officer of the army; but, of course, +there are limits to this, as there are to kissing under the mistletoe +in England. + +In the country parts of South Belgium it is the custom to try to be +the first to call out "Good New Year" when you meet a friend. If you +say it first you have something given you. The children try to +surprise their fathers and mothers, brothers and sisters, and all the +friends of the family in this way. They get up early, and hide +themselves, so as to be able to jump out suddenly, and say "_Een Zalig +Nieuwjahr_," which means "A Good New Year." All day long they go on +doing it, and are never tired of telling each other about the tricks +they have thought of to _verassen_, as it is called, the older people, +who must give them gingerbread or sugar-plums as the penalty for being +surprised in this way. + +On New Year's Day in Belgium it is not only your friends who stop you +in the street or call at your house. Every man, woman, boy, or girl +who has done any work for you, and often those who have done nothing, +expect to get something. They are very greedy. Railway-porters who +have once brought a box to your house, ring your bell and beg. +Telegraph-boys, scavengers paid by the town, bell-ringers, policemen, +shop-boys, everyone comes bowing and scraping, and men who in England +would be ashamed to take a "tip" will touch their hats, and hold out +their hands for a few pence. They don't wait to be offered money; they +ask for it, like common street-beggars asking alms. + +January 6, the Feast of the Epiphany, is known in Flanders as _Groot +Nieuwjahr_ ("Great New Year"), and is kept to some extent by the +working-people in the same way as the first day of the year. Mondays +are always idle days with working-men in Belgium, and the first Monday +after Epiphany is the idlest of them all. It is called _Verloren +Maandag_, or, in French, _Lundi Perdu_, which means "Lost Monday," +because no one does any work. The day is spent going about asking for +money, and at night there is a great deal of drinking. On one of these +Mondays not long ago some drunken troopers of a cavalry regiment +stabbed the keeper of a village public-house near Bruges, broke his +furniture to pieces, and kept the villagers in a state of terror for +some hours. + +One very bad thing about the lower-class Belgians is that when they +drink, and begin to quarrel, they use knives, and wound or kill those +who have offended them. By a curious superstition it is thought +unlucky to work on Lost Monday, so the people get drunk, and more +crimes of violence are committed on that day than at any other time of +the year. + + + + +CHAPTER VIII + +PAGEANTS AND PROCESSIONS + + +The Belgians are very fond of pageants and processions. In each town +there are several, and in all villages at least one, every year. It +has been so for hundreds of years, and these spectacles must have been +magnificent in the Middle Ages, when the narrow streets were full of +knights in glittering armour riding on their strong Flemish war-horses +decked with embroidered saddle-cloths, bishops and priests in gorgeous +vestments, standard-bearers, trumpeters, heralds in their robes of +office, images of saints borne high above the crowd, mingled with +jesters and the enormous giants with grotesque faces which were +carried along on these occasions. The tall houses with their +projecting wooden gables were gay with flags. The windows and +balconies were hung with rich tapestry, and from them the wives and +daughters of nobles and wealthy merchants looked down upon the scene +below. A Queen of France once rode in a procession through the streets +of Bruges, and was moved to jealousy by the sight of so many ladies +decked in jewels as rich as her own. "I thought," she said, "that I +alone was Queen, but here I have hundreds of rivals." + +[Illustration: AT THE KERMESSE.] + +One of the most splendid of these pageants was in the summer of the +year 1468, when an English Princess, Margaret of York, married a +Prince called Charles the Bold, who was Duke of Burgundy. On that +occasion there was a famous tournament in the market-place of Bruges, +in which many valiant knights took part. It was called the "Tournament +of the Golden Tree." Two years ago, in the summer of 1907, there was a +pageant at Bruges, when the marriage festivities of Charles the Bold +and Margaret of York were represented. A young Belgian lady took the +part of the English Princess, and a Belgian gentleman appeared as +Charles the Bold. There were knights in armour, ladies of the Court of +Burgundy, heralds, men-at-arms, and pages, all dressed in the +picturesque costumes of the Middle Ages. There was tilting in the +lists, when lances were broken, and, in short, everything was done +very nearly as it was 440 years ago. This spectacle, which was +produced on three days, was attended by thousands of people, who came +from all parts of Belgium to see it. It was a very good example of how +well the Belgians can manage a pageant, and how popular these shows +are with the people. + +A very celebrated pageant takes place every year at Bruges, the +"Procession of the Holy Blood," which devout Catholics from every +country in Europe attend. There is a small chapel in that town, where +they keep, in a crystal tube, what is said to be some of the blood of +our Lord. It has been there for more than 700 years. The tube is +preserved in a beautiful case adorned with precious stones, which is +carried through the town on the first Monday after May 2. The houses +are decorated with flags, and candles burn in almost every window. +Through the streets, between crowds of people standing on the +pavements or looking down from the windows--while the church bells +ring, and wreaths of incense fill the air, bands of music, squadrons +of cavalry, crucifixes, shrines, images, the banners of the parishes, +heralds in their varied dresses, bareheaded pilgrims from England, +France, and other countries, maidens in white, bearing palms or crowns +of thorn or garlands--priests and chanting choristers, move slowly +along, and, when the relic of the Holy Blood passes, all the people +sink to the ground. Bruges, usually so empty, is always crowded on +that day. + +Seven or eight years ago at Lierre, a town near Antwerp, I saw three +processions in one month, each of which showed the Belgian fondness +for such things. One was the procession of St. Gommarius, the patron +saint of the town, when a golden shrine, said to contain his bones, +was carried through the streets, just as the relic of the Holy Blood +is carried through Bruges. There were a great many little children in +that procession, dressed as angels and saints--in white, pale green, +blue, crimson, and other colours. Some had wreaths of flowers on +their heads, and some carried lighted tapers. They all seemed proud of +taking part in the procession. The smallest, who were tiny mites, with +their mothers walking with them to take care of them, were very tired +at the end, for they had to walk slowly for hours on the hard stones, +stopping often before sacred images, when the priests burned incense, +and all the people went down on their knees. This, like that at +Bruges, is a religious procession, and there are many others of the +same kind all over Belgium. + +Another procession was in honour of an old couple, who had been +married for fifty years. They were poor people, and the parish was +celebrating their "golden wedding." There was a service in the +Cathedral of St. Gommarius, and when that was finished the old man and +his wife were put in a carriage and four. They were neatly dressed, +and each had a large bouquet of yellow flowers. At the head of each +horse walked a young man, leading it by a long yellow ribbon. In front +of the carriage a band of musicians played, and behind it came a +number of peasants, all in their best clothes. They wore white cotton +gloves and yellow wedding-favours. The man and his wife, who were +evidently feeble as well as very old, seemed rather bored, but all the +people in the procession were in high spirits, for they were on their +way to a good dinner paid for by the parish. + +A few nights after that there was a tremendous noise of music in the +market-place, and another procession was formed, which marched off +round the town, and at last stopped before the door of a house. Here +they remained for a long time. There was a great deal of cheering, and +the band played tune after tune, finishing up with the Belgian +National Anthem. And what do you think it was all about? A boy whose +parents lived in the house had gained a prize at school. That was all; +but it was an excuse for a procession, music, and drinking healths. + +Not long ago a young man won a prize at a great School of Music in +Brussels called the _Conservatoire_, and so his native town must needs +have a procession. There were two bands, a number of flags, and +several carriages, in one of which the young fellow sat, bowing from +side to side as he was driven through the streets to a cafe, at which +what they call the _vin d'honneur_, or cup of honour, was served. + +In the same town two years ago the football team of a regiment +quartered there won a cup, and there was a long procession of soldiers +and townsmen in honour of the event. The cup was carried in triumph on +a platform adorned with wreaths, and the crowd shouted as if the +soldiers were returning victorious from war. + +The Belgians have always been the same in their love of such displays. +Long ago their country was oppressed by the Spaniards, who killed and +tortured many of them without mercy. But that made no difference, and +their sorrows were soon forgotten if their conquerors provided some +pageant to amuse them. A circus procession of buffoons, with +dromedaries, elephants, sham giants, and pasteboard whales and +dragons, seems to have consoled them for all their misery. + + + + +CHAPTER IX + +THE STORY OF ST. EVERMAIRE: A COUNTRY PAGEANT + + +Once upon a time there was a good man called St. Evermaire, who went +on a pilgrimage to a part of Belgium called the Hesbaye, which is near +the River Meuse. As he and his companions were journeying along, they +came, when it was growing dark one evening, to a great wood. Being +afraid of losing their way, they went to a village to ask for shelter. +This village belonged to a fierce robber, called Hacco, and it was at +his door that the pilgrims knocked. The door was opened by Hacco's +wife, who received them kindly, but told them that her husband was a +robber, and that, though he was away from home, it would not be safe +for them to remain there long. So very early next morning, as soon as +it was light, they went into the wood, and lay down to sleep beside a +fountain among the trees. + +They had scarcely gone when Hacco, who had been out all night looking +for people to rob, came home. When he heard about the strangers who +had just left, he flew into a terrible rage, and went to look for +them. He soon found them fast asleep in the wood, and killed them. +Then he tore off their clothes, and left their bodies lying on the +ground. + +After a little time some huntsmen found the dead pilgrims, and dug a +grave for them. But these people, noticing that the face of one dead +man shone brightly, and feeling sure that he must be some very holy +person, buried him in a grave by himself. This was St. Evermaire. + +The wood was many years later cut down, and a village called Russon +was built near the place where Hacco murdered the pilgrims. The first +priest of this village discovered the grave of St. Evermaire, whose +bones were placed in a tomb in the church of Russon; but they were +afterwards laid to rest in a chapel which was built on purpose to +receive them. This chapel stands in a grove of beech-trees, on a +meadow surrounded by a hedge, in one corner of which there is a +fountain whose water is said to be a cure for ague. It is supposed to +be on the very spot where the pilgrims were killed. Over the altar in +the chapel is a painting of the murder. There are also statues of the +Virgin Mary and of St. Evermaire, and a gilded case, which contains +the bones of the saint. + +[Illustration: A CHATEAU IN THE LESSE VALLEY.] + +On May Day there is a procession from Russon to this chapel. First two +vergers come out of the village church, dressed in "tights," and +covered from their ankles to their necks with ivy-leaves. They wear +pointed caps on their heads, and brandish huge clubs, with which +they threaten the country people, who roar with laughter at the faces +they make. Seven men are dressed up to represent St. Evermaire and his +companions. The saint himself wears a tunic of coarse brown cloth, +girt about with a leather belt, from which hang a string of beads and +a pilgrim's bottle, a short cloak of ox-hide, and a round hat; but the +other pilgrims have just black coats and breeches, with white +stockings. They are followed by about fifty men on horseback, dressed +up as Hacco and his band of robbers. + +This strange-looking procession goes to the chapel, where there is +service, the vergers in their ivy-leaves assisting at the altar; and +the moment the Benediction has been said, the whole congregation +rushes out to the meadow. The pilgrims stand in a circle near the +fountain, where they sing a quaint old country hymn. + +In the meantime Hacco and his band gallop about outside the meadow; +but when the pilgrims have done singing, they enter it, and ride round +and round several times. Then the pilgrims go near the chapel, and a +short conversation is sung between them and Hacco, they imploring +mercy, and he abusing them for trespassing on his lands. At last Hacco +becomes impatient, draws his sword, and advances upon the pilgrims, +declaring in a voice of thunder that he is about to kill them. + +At this point the spectators are expected to weep; but all of a +sudden the youngest pilgrim takes to his heels, and scampers away as +fast as ever he can. Hacco and the robbers run after him, scrambling +about among bushes and trees, as if they were playing at +hide-and-seek. The spectators laugh and clap their hands, and the +village children scream with delight. Hacco fires a pistol at the +runaway, but misses, on which everybody cheers. Then he fires again, +and the pilgrim tumbles down, and is killed with an arrow by one of +the robbers, who picks him up, throws him across the back of a horse +and brings him back to the meadow. + +During this chase the other pilgrims have thrown themselves, as if in +despair, on the grass, where presently Hacco and his followers proceed +to kill them. But by this time all the actors are tired and thirsty; +so St. Evermaire and his friends rise up, and the whole company of +robbers and pilgrims walk off, and swill beer together for the rest of +the day. So ends the rustic pageant of Russon. + + + + +CHAPTER X + +THE CARNIVAL + + +The week before Lent begins is called in Flanders _Duivelsweek_, which +means "The Devil's Week"; and on the Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday +before Ash Wednesday there is the Carnival, so called from the Latin +words _carni vale_ (which mean, as every school-boy knows, "farewell +to the flesh"), because during Lent good Catholics should abjure "the +world, the flesh, and the devil," and refrain from eating meat. In +Ghent the Monday of that week is called _Zotten-Maanday_, or Fools' +Monday, and all over Belgium the next day (Shrove Tuesday in England) +is called _Mardi Gras_--that is, Fat Tuesday--the day on which people +can eat and drink as much as they like before beginning to fast. + +During the Carnival people go about the streets in fancy dress, +sometimes with their faces hidden by masks. Often they are dressed as +clowns, and make a great noise, blowing horns, dancing, singing, and +making fools of themselves in every possible way. In the shops bags of +confetti are sold--little bits of coloured paper, like what you see in +England too--which you may throw at other people, whether you know +them or not. The children have often great fun, covering each other +with these bits of paper, which stick in the hair and are very +difficult to shake off. In some of the streets at Brussels the +pavements are carpeted all the time of the Carnival with thousands of +these small pink, yellow, and white fragments, which the people have +been throwing about. Then there are false noses, wigs, and other +disguises, so that you may pass people you know quite well without an +idea who they are. A person may speak to you; you fancy you know the +voice, but a beard, and perhaps a long blue nose, hide the face, and +you are in doubt. A handful of confetti is thrown in your face, and in +a moment the figure is gone and lost in the crowd. + +A few years ago there was a Carnival procession in most of the towns, +and then all the huge wickerwork giants were carried about. They all +have names. The Brussels giant is Ommegan. In another town there is, +or was, one called Goliath. There is a very old giant called Lange +Man, or Long Man. He is probably still to be seen at Hasselt, in the +South of Belgium, which was his native place. A good many years ago he +was carried through the streets on a car drawn by four horses, and all +the poor people got soup, which he was supposed to give them in memory +of a famine from which the town had suffered at one time. A good deal +of money is collected for the poor during the Carnival by people who +go about with boxes, into which everyone is expected to put +something. + +There are not so many Carnival processions as there used to be, and +within the last two or three years they have been entirely given up in +some places. But the Carnival goes on, with more or less gaiety, +everywhere. There are few towns where masked balls do not take place, +and these usually last all night, so that some of the dancers never go +to bed. During the Carnival most of the public-houses remain open all +night, and there is dancing in them, and a great deal of noise. + +The fourth Sunday in Lent is called Mi-Careme, or, in Flemish, +_Half-Vasten_, when the fun of the Carnival is renewed; and on that +day a person like Santa Claus, whom you know in England, makes his +appearance. He is called _De Greef van Half-Fasten_--that is, the +Count of Mi-Careme--and comes to give presents to all good children. +But he is so like Santa Claus that we shall leave him alone in the +meantime, for I shall presently be telling you what Santa Claus does +in Belgium. + +There is, however, another Count who does not visit England--the Count +of Nut Land, who rides along with a sack of nuts, which he throws +about for anyone to pick up. Strange to say, cracking these nuts is +supposed to be a cure for toothache! Is not that a funny idea? + + + + +CHAPTER XI + +CHILDREN'S WINTER FESTIVALS + + +Very young children in Belgium look forward to the evening before +November 11, which is the Day of St. Martin, because they have heard +that something very exciting is going to happen. + +Their parents make them stand in a corner, with their faces to the +wall. They must not look round, for if they do nothing will happen. +But if they are not inquisitive, ask no questions, and stand quite +still, a shower of nuts and apples suddenly falls on the floor behind +them. They are told that these have been thrown down from heaven by +St. Martin, and they at once turn round and scramble for them. + +There is another thing which is sometimes done on St. Martin's Eve. +The father, or some big boy, comes into the younger children's +bedroom, dressed up as the saint, with a beard and robes, and asks how +the children have been behaving. If he is told they have been good, he +gives them apples or sweetmeats; but if he hears they have been +naughty, he pulls out a whip, throws it down, and leaves the room. + +At Malines, and perhaps elsewhere, the children of poor people have a +little procession of their own on St. Martin's Day, when they dress up +and go about singing from house to house. One of them, who is dressed +as St. Martin, carries a large basket, into which the people at whose +doors they ring put apples or money. At another town, called Furnes, +there is also a procession of children, who carry paper lanterns, with +lighted candles in them, and march singing through the streets. The +same thing is done in the country round Bruges, where the children +visit the farm-houses at night, singing and asking for apples and +nuts. + +There are cakes, called _gauffres_, which are often eaten on St. +Martin's Day, and are therefore sometimes called St. Martin's cakes. +That favourite saint is so much spoken of in connection with eating +good things that in the Valley of the Meuse they call him _le bon +vivant_, which means the person who lives well. + +Just as in England bonfires are lighted on Guy Fawkes' Day, November +5, so in Belgium they light them on the evening of St. Martin's Day. +Indeed, they are known as St. Martin's fires, and the children call +lighting a bonfire "warming the good St. Martin." + +About a month after St. Martin's comes the Day of St. +Nicholas--December 6. During the night before this saint is supposed +to ride through the sky, over the fields and above the housetops, +mounted on a donkey or a white horse, with a great basket stuffed +full of toys, fruit, sweetmeats, and other nice things. Down the +chimney of every house where there are children sleeping he drops some +of these things, if the children have been good, or a whip if they +have been naughty. + +So on the Eve of St. Nicholas Belgian children, before they go to bed, +fill their shoes, or sometimes a basket, with hay or carrots, and +place them near the chimney of their sleeping-room, so that when St. +Nicholas comes to the house he may find something for his donkey or +horse to eat, and in return leave presents for them. + +Having made these preparations, the children ought to sing or repeat +verses addressed to the saint. Here is one of them--the one they sing +at Lierre: + + "Sinte Niklaes, + Nobele Sinte Niklaes! + Werpiet in myn Schoentjen + Een Appeltjen of een limoentjen!" + +This means in English: "Noble Saint Nicholas, please throw into my +little shoe just a small apple or lemon." + +There is another of these rhymes which is not so polite, in which the +saint is told that if he gives something, the child will serve him for +life, but if he doesn't, the child will not serve him at all! + +[Illustration: A FARMSTEADING.] + +Next morning the children wake early, and jump out of bed to see what +has happened during the night. They expect to find, if St. Nicholas is +pleased with them, that the hay and carrots have disappeared, and +that their shoes are full of presents; but that if they have not been +good enough, the shoes will just be as they were the night before, and +a birch-rod stuck into the hay. But, as you may suppose, it always +turns out that St. Nicholas is pleased. The presents are there, and +amongst them there is sure to be a gingerbread figure of the saint, +which they may eat or not, as they please; so they are happy for the +rest of the day. + +St. Nicholas, you see, is much the same as Santa Claus, for whom +stockings are hung up in England. + +About a fortnight after this comes December 21, dedicated to St. +Thomas, when Belgian children can play tricks on their parents in a +curious way. The game is to get your father or mother to leave the +house, and then lock the door and refuse to let them in till they have +promised to give you something. A child will say: "Mother, somebody +wants to speak to you in the garden." The mother goes out. Of course +there is nobody there; and when she comes back the child calls out: +"St. Thomas's Day! What will you give me to let you in?" So the mother +promises something, which is usually chocolate, with a piece of +_cramique_--a kind of bread with currants in it--and not till then is +the door opened. This, of course, is great fun for the children, who +always hope that their parents have forgotten what day it is, and so +will be easily tricked. + +A week later is the Festival of SS. Innocents, or _Allerkinderendag_ +(the day of all the children), as it is called in Flemish, which is +observed in memory of the slaughter of the children by Herod. On this +day Belgian children are supposed to change places with their parents, +wear their best clothes, and rule the household. + +They can put on their parents' clothes, and go about the house making +as much noise as they like, teasing the servants and giving them +orders. The youngest girl has the privilege of telling the cook what +she is to prepare for dinner; and all the children may go out and walk +about dressed up as old people. This is not often seen now, though +poor children sometimes put on their parents' things, and beg from +door to door, calling themselves "the little fathers and mothers." + +These winter festivals, when the children have so much liberty and get +so many presents, take the place in Belgium of the Christmas-trees and +parties you have in England. + + + + +CHAPTER XII + +THE ARCHERS: GAMES PLAYED IN BELGIUM + + +Let us imagine we are taking a walk along some country road in +Flanders on a summer afternoon. There is a cinder-track for cyclists +on one side, and the lines of a district railway on the other. The +road between them is causeway, very hard, dusty, and hot to walk on. +But we can step on to the railway, and walk between the rails, or take +to the cycle-track. If a train comes up behind, the engine-driver will +whistle to give us warning, but we must keep a sharp lookout for +cyclists, who seldom ring their bells, but rush swiftly and silently +past, and perhaps shout something rude to us for being on their track. +There are no fences or hedges, but a straggling row of tall +poplar-trees on each side of the road, and beyond them square fields +of rye or pasturage divided by ditches of stagnant water. + +It will not be long before we come to a village, a row of white +cottages with roofs of red tiles, and outside window-shutters painted +green. In front of each cottage there is a pathway of rough stones, +and a gutter full of dirty water. There are about fifty of these +cottages, of which half a dozen or so have signboards with _Herberg_, +which means public-house, over their doors. The railway passes close +in front of them. A little way back from the road there is a church, +with a clock-tower, and a snug-looking house, standing in a garden, +where the parish priest lives. + +Just outside the village we notice a meadow, in which there is a +wooden shed open at one side, with benches in it, and reminding us of +the little pavilions we often see on village cricket-grounds in +England. The part of the meadow just in front of this shed is covered +with cinders or gravel, in the middle of which rises a very high pole, +tapering towards the top, and looking like a gigantic fishing-rod +stuck in the ground. It is crossed, a long way up, by slender spars, +like the yards of a ship, only they are no thicker than a +walking-stick. On these spars, and along the pole itself near the top, +a number of little wooden pegs, with tufts of yellow worsted attached +to them, are fixed. One bigger than the rest is perched on the very +summit of the pole, which bends over slightly to one side. They look +like toy canaries, but are called "pigeons," and they are put there as +marks to be shot at with bows and arrows. + +Presently a number of men come from the village, each with a long-bow +and some arrows. It is a holiday, and the local Society of Archers is +going to spend the afternoon shooting for prizes. One of them takes +his stand close to the foot of the pole, fits an arrow on his +bowstring, aims steadily, and shoots straight up. It needs a good deal +of strength, as the bow is stiff to bend. The arrow flies whistling +among the "birds," touches one or two without bringing them down, +rises high above the top of the pole, turns in the air, and comes down +again to the ground with a thud. It is the duty of two or three boys +to pick up the arrows, and bring them back to the shooters. The arrows +are blunt, but to protect their heads these boys wear hats with thick +flat crowns and very broad brims, which make them look like big +mushrooms with legs as they run about to fetch the arrows. + +When a bird is hit fair and square it comes down, and the shot is +cheered. Sometimes shot after shot is fired, and nothing falls, +especially if there is a wind. But the interest never flags, and the +shooting goes on for hours. There is a great deal of talking and +laughing, much beer is drunk in the pavilion, and the fun only ends +when the light fails. + +This is the great national sport of Belgium. There is scarcely a town +or village which has not a Society of Archers, called generally after +St. Sebastian, the patron saint of archers. Many of them were founded +600 years ago, at the time when the famous archers of England were +showing how well they could hold their own with the bow against +knights clad in heavy armour. In 1303 a society called the +Confraternity of the Archers of St. Sebastian was founded at Ypres, a +town in Flanders, to celebrate a great battle, the Battle of the +Golden Spurs, in which the Flemings had been victorious over the +French the year before, and this society still exists. The chief +Society of Archers in Brabant in the old days was at Louvain, and it +was founded just three years before that Battle of Cressy of which you +have so often heard, when, as the old chronicler Froissart says, the +English arrows flew so thick that it seemed to snow. + +Thus the history of this national sport goes back to the time when +arrows were used in battle, and men had to practise constantly with +their bows in order to be able to defend their country or attack their +enemies. But when the use of firearms became universal, and archers +were no longer employed in warfare, the societies still continued to +exist, and their meetings gradually became what they now are--social +gatherings for the practice of archery as a form of sport. + +At Bruges there is a company of archers called the Society of St. +Sebastian, whose club-house was built with money given by Charles II. +of England, who lived in that town for some time when he was an exile; +and it may interest you to know that Queen Victoria, when on a visit +to Bruges, became a member of this society, and afterwards sent two +silver cups as prizes to be shot for. + +Another form of this sport is shooting with crossbows at a target. St. +George is the patron generally of those who use the crossbow. The +Society of St. George at Bruges has a curious festival, which is +observed in February. It is called the _Hammekensfeest_, or festival +of the ham. The shooting takes place in a hall, where a supper-table +is laid with various dishes of ham, salads, fish, and other eatables. +The target is divided into spaces marked with the names of the dishes. +If anyone hits a space marked, for example, ham, he may go and help +himself to ham; but if someone else, shooting after him, hits the same +place, he must then give up his seat. In the bull's-eye of the target +there is the figure of an ape, and if anyone hits that he can eat of +any dish he pleases. You may suppose what an amusing supper-party this +is, when all the guests are shooting and eating by turns, and no one +knows whether he may not have to rise suddenly and give up his place +to somebody else. + +There are many other customs and festivals connected with the archer +societies, which are very flourishing in Belgium, chiefly among the +_petite bourgeoisie_. + +There are athletic clubs in Belgium, and rowing is a favourite sport, +especially at Ghent. Two years on end the Ghent Rowing Club won the +Grand Challenge Shield at Henley, beating all the English crews which +rowed against them. + +As in all countries, the children have many games. One, which they +call _balle dans la maison_ (ball in the house), is much the same as +rounders, and there is another game called _camp ruine_, which girls +play at school. There are two sides. A ball is thrown up, and each +side tries to prevent the other catching it. Each player who is +prevented has to join the opposite side or camp, and so on till one +camp is "ruined" by losing all its occupants. + +There is a very popular game among Belgian working-men called the _jeu +de balle_. There are five players on each side, who stand on two large +courts marked on the ground. The ball is served by hitting it with the +hand (as at fives) by a player on one side over the line which divides +the courts, and is returned in the same way by a player on the other +side. The ball must not touch the ground, and is taken full pitch. A +point is lost by the side which sends a ball outside the lines of the +court into which it ought to have been served or returned. The points +count fifteen, thirty, forty, and five for the last, which wins the +game. + +This is the chief game played by working-men in Belgium. In some +places it seems to be quite unknown, but in others it is very popular. +But there are so many rules that it is impossible fully to understand +it without seeing it played, or to explain it without a diagram +showing the positions of the players, who have all different names, +like men fielding at cricket. The _jeu de boule_, which you may hear +mentioned in Belgium, is quite different from the _jeu de balle_, and +is much the same as skittles. + +[Illustration: PLAYING "JEU DE BOULE," AT A FLEMISH INN.] + +Of the more important games football is the most popular in Belgium. +Great crowds assemble to watch the matches, which are always played +under "Association" rules. Rugby football would be impossible for +Belgians, because they would never keep their tempers when caught +and thrown down. There would be constant rows, and no match would ever +be finished. As it is, there is a great deal of quarrelling, and when +one town plays another the visitors, if they win, are hooted, and +sometimes attacked, when they are leaving the ground. Lately, after a +football match in Flanders, knives were drawn, and some of the players +had to escape in a motor-car. + +Cricket has lately been tried, but it has not as yet spread much, and +is not likely to become very popular, as it requires too much patience +and steadiness for Belgian young men and boys. Lawn-tennis and hockey, +however, are quite the fashion, especially lawn-tennis, which many +Belgians, ladies as well as men, play extremely well. Important tennis +tournaments are held every summer at Ostend and other places on the +coast. + +In recent years several golf-courses have been made in Belgium. There +is one at a place called Le Coq, near Ostend, where Leopold II., the +present King of the Belgians, founded a club. It is very pretty, and +there is a fine club-house; but good English players do not like it, +because the course is too artificial, with flower-beds and ornamental +shrubs, whereas a golf-course ought to be as natural as possible. Golf +is played also at Brussels, Antwerp, Nieuport, and Ghent. + +Another place for golf is Knocke, a seaside village near Bruges, where +the game was introduced by a few Englishmen some years ago. The +golf-course at this place is laid out among the dunes, and is +entirely natural, with "bunkers" of fine sand. A great many players go +there from England and Scotland, as well as from various parts of +Belgium, and the Flemish "caddies," who cheerfully carry the clubs for +5d. a round, speak English quite well, and know all about the "Royal +and Ancient Game." + + + + +CHAPTER XIII + +WHAT THE BELGIANS SPEAK + + +Three different languages are spoken in Belgium. These are Flemish, +Walloon, and French. Flemish is spoken in Flanders, in the provinces +of Antwerp and Limbourg, and in a part of Brabant. Walloon is the +language of Liege and the Valley of the Meuse, Luxembourg, and the +western districts. French is spoken all over the country. Some +Belgians speak nothing but Flemish, some nothing but Walloon, and some +nothing but French. A great many speak both Flemish and French, and +there are some who speak all three languages. + +Though Flemish is the language of the majority of Belgians, most of +the books, newspapers, and magazines are published in French, which is +the "official" language--that is to say, it is the language of the +Court and the Government--and all well-educated Belgians can speak, +read, and write it. In Brussels almost everyone speaks French. + +Though many Belgians know French thoroughly, they speak it with an +accent of their own, which is unlike anything you hear in France, just +as English people speak French or German with an English accent. So +Belgium is not a good place to go to if you want to learn French. The +worst French is spoken in East Flanders and the best in Ypres. + +There is a great likeness between Flemish and Dutch, which were +originally one language, and a book printed in Flemish is almost +exactly the same as a Dutch book. But there are many different ways of +pronouncing Flemish. The accent of Ghent is so different from that of +Bruges that the people of these towns do not always understand each +other, and in neither do they speak with the accent which is used in +Antwerp. Thus, in little Belgium there are not only three different +languages, but various ways of speaking Flemish, the original language +of the country. So French is not only the official language, but the +most useful for travellers to know. + +Though French is the official language, there are laws which have been +made to allow the use of Flemish in the law courts, and Belgian +officers must be able to command the soldiers in Flemish. In the +_Moniteur_ (a paper like the _London Gazette_) Royal Proclamations, +and things of that sort, are published in both Flemish and French. +Railway-tickets are printed in both languages. So are the names of the +streets in some towns. In the Belgian Parliament, though the members +generally make their speeches in French, they may use Flemish if they +like, and they sometimes do. + +Walloon may be described as a very old form of French, but though the +Walloons are the most active and industrious of all the Belgians, +their language is not much known, and you will never hear it spoken +except in the Valley of the Meuse, and in the country parts of +South-West Belgium. + +The three Belgian words for Christmas are _Kerstdag_ in Flemish, +_Noel_ in French, and _Nouee_ in Walloon. + + + + +CHAPTER XIV + +A SHORT HISTORY + + +I must write just one chapter on Belgian history. + +Dates are tiresome things, though they are useful pegs, so to speak, +on which to hang the facts of history, and help us to recollect the +order in which they happened. However, we shall not bother with many +dates. I shall make the whole story as plain and simple as possible; +and, besides, you can skip it all if you find it too stupid and dull. + +The first thing to understand about the tiny corner of Europe which is +now called Belgium is that very long ago it was divided into a great +many small States, each of which was ruled over by some Duke, or +Count, or Baron, or some noble with another title, who made peace or +war with his neighbours, just as the Kings of Europe do nowadays. +There were the Dukes of Brabant, and the Counts of Flanders and of +Namur, the Lords of Malines, and the Bishop-Princes of Liege, and many +more. You will see where their States lay if you look at the map. + +The most famous was Flanders, for the great Flemish cities, such as +Ghent, Bruges, and Ypres, became strong and rich by reason of their +trade and manufactures. + +In the towns the merchants and tradesmen were banded together in +societies called guilds. There were guilds of weavers, and butchers, +and other trades; and they defended themselves so well against the +nobles, who often tried to attack their liberties, that the towns +became strongholds of freedom. + +But, unfortunately, they were always quarrelling. Each town wanted to +be richer than its neighbour. Each town cared only for itself, so they +often fought. Ghent wanted to ruin Ypres, and the men of Ghent helped +an English army to attack Ypres. At other times the guildsmen of +Bruges fought against those of Ghent. Thus for many years this part of +Europe was divided into petty States, and the towns, in spite of their +wealth and freedom, were always rebelling against their Princes, or +fighting with each other. And all this time, close at hand and +watchful, there was a mighty State, called "The Burgundies," whose +dominions were ever stretching farther and farther. + +At last a day came when a certain Count of Flanders died, leaving no +heir male, and a Duke of Burgundy, called Philip the Hardy, married a +Flemish Princess, and obtained possession of Flanders. Gradually after +that the Dukes of Burgundy became rulers of all the country which we +now call Belgium, except the Principality of Liege, which remained +independent under its Bishop-Princes till recent times. + +The last Duke of Burgundy was Charles the Bold, a brave warrior, but +very fierce and cruel. He was killed in a battle, and his daughter, +Mary of Burgundy, married an Austrian Archduke called Maximilian; and +then Flanders, Brabant, and the other places we have spoken of, passed +under the Austrian Royal Family, which is called the House of +Hapsburg. + +Maximilian and Mary had a son, called Philip the Handsome, who married +Joanna the Mad, daughter of King Ferdinand of Spain. The son of this +marriage was Charles V., who was neither mad nor handsome, but one of +the most famous men in history. He not only ruled over the +Netherlands, as Belgium and Holland were called, but also over Spain, +and all the immense Spanish Empire, and was, moreover, Emperor of +Germany. + +After reigning for forty years, Charles V. gave up his royal honours +to his son Philip; and then began a terrible time for the Netherlands. + +Philip hated the liberty which the people of the Netherlands loved. +They had, especially in the towns, been accustomed to make laws for +themselves, which their old Dukes and Counts, and also the Hapsburgs, +had always sworn to maintain. But Philip resolved to put an end to all +this freedom, and to be their absolute master. + +[Illustration: VILLAGE & CANAL, ADINKERQUE.] + +He also hated the Protestants, of whom there were many in the +Netherlands, and resolved to destroy them. For this purpose he +introduced a kind of court, called the Inquisition, which inquired +into the religious faith of everyone, and sent people to be tortured +and burned to death if they were not Catholics. + +The people became furious against Philip, and rebelled in defence of +their liberty, and against the Inquisition. For a long time the +contest, which is called the "Revolt of the Netherlands," went on. +Philip was enormously rich, and had a great army and a strong fleet. +The Spanish soldiers, whom he let loose upon the people, were cruel, +as well as highly trained. Men, women, and children were tortured, +robbed, burnt to death, killed in battle, and murdered in cold blood +by thousands. Few things, if any, more terrible have been known in the +history of the world. + +The chief Protestant leader was that Prince of Orange called William +the Silent, of whom you must often have heard. After the contest had +continued for some years, instead of being dismayed, he was more +resolute than ever, and persuaded the Southern or Belgian part of the +Netherlands, and the Northern or Dutch part, to promise that they +would help each other, and fight against the Spaniards till they were +free. + +But in a very short time the Southern and the Northern Netherlands +drifted apart. The Dutch stood firm, and were saved in the long, weary +struggle. They shook off the yoke of Spain, and gained their liberty. +The Belgians halted between two opinions, and were lost. Most of them +were Catholics, which made it easier for them to submit to Philip. But +the most industrious of the population fled, and the trade and +manufactures which had made their country prosperous went to Holland. +After that, a great historian says, "the Flemish and Brabantine cities +were mere dens of thieves and beggars." + +The Spaniards ruled over Belgium, which was now called the "Spanish +Netherlands," till a daughter of Philip's, Isabella by name, married +an Austrian Archduke called Albert. They received Belgium as a +wedding-gift. The bride's father, the tyrant Philip, died about that +time, and Albert and Isabella went to Brussels, where the people, in +spite of the miserable state of their country, had a fine time of it +with banquets, processions, and fireworks. + +But two more changes were at hand. When Albert died Belgium went back +to Spain; and once again, after long wars, during one of which +Brussels was nearly all destroyed by fire, it was handed over to +Austria. This was in the year 1714; and after that it was called the +"Austrian Netherlands." + +Thus, you see, the Belgians were constantly being passed from one set +of masters to another, like a race of slaves. They had not stuck to +the brave Dutch, and fought on till they were free, and so never could +tell who were to be their next rulers. + +This could not be good for the character of any people. However, they +were, on the whole, happy under the House of Hapsburg till an Emperor +called Joseph II. came to the Austrian throne. He was a good man, and +wise in many ways, but he made the mistake of trying to bring in new +laws and customs which the people did not like. Belgium had been sunk, +ever since the time of Philip II., in poverty and ignorance. All the +people wished for was to be let alone, to amuse themselves, and to +have peace. But Joseph II. wanted to raise them up, and, most of all, +to spread knowledge and education among them. + +The Austrian Netherlands--that is, Belgium--were more Catholic than +ever, and all the Bishops and priests were up in arms against the +reforms proposed by Joseph; and there was a revolution, which had not +finished when he died. It came to an end, however, soon after his +death, when the Catholics got all they wanted, though the Austrians +remained in power. But the country had become restless. Its +restlessness was increased by the French Revolution, which was now in +full progress; and all was ripe for another change of rulers, which +soon came. + +The French Republicans, who beheaded their own King and his Queen (who +was, by-the-by, a sister of Joseph II.), invaded Belgium, driving out +the Austrians, and made it a part of France. + +One thing the French did was very popular with the Belgians. It was +this: there was a treaty, called the Treaty of Muenster, made as long +before as the year 1648, which declared that the Dutch were to have +control of the Scheldt, and ever since then that splendid river, on +which Antwerp stands, had been closed, so that the trade of Antwerp, +the great Belgian seaport, had been entirely ruined. The French now +declared the Scheldt a free river, to be used by all nations. This was +tidings of great joy to the Belgians; but England would not allow the +Treaty of Muenster to be torn up in this way, and a war began between +England and France, which lasted till the fall of Napoleon in 1814. + +During all that war Belgium was ruled by the French. When Napoleon +gave up his throne, and was sent to the Island of Elba, the Great +Powers met to settle Europe, which he had turned upside down. One of +the things they had to decide was what should be done with the +Austrian Netherlands, and the plan they arranged seemed a very good +one. + +Austria did not want Belgium, and the plan was to make that country, +the Principality of Liege, and Holland, into one state, and call it +the "Kingdom of the Netherlands." It was to be ruled over by one of +the Orange family, a descendant of William the Silent. + +And there was something more. The William of Orange who was to be King +of the Netherlands had a son, and the English arranged that this son +should marry our Princess Charlotte, who was heir to the throne of +England; and so all the coasts of the Netherlands opposite England, +with Antwerp and the Scheldt, were to be in the hands of a friendly +nation allied by marriage to the English Royal Family. The proposed +marriage was publicly announced in March, 1814, but it never took +place. The Princess Charlotte married a German, called Prince Leopold +of Saxe-Coburg, and the young Prince of Orange married a Russian Grand +Duchess. + +The Kingdom of the Netherlands, however, was set up; and at the Battle +of Waterloo, which was fought in June, 1815, after Napoleon escaped +from Elba, a force of Netherlanders, some of them Dutch and some of +them Belgians, fought under the Duke of Wellington, when he gained the +great victory which brought peace to Europe. + +And now it was supposed that the Belgians would settle quietly down, +and form one people with the Dutch, who spoke a language so like their +own Flemish, and who came of the same race. But not a bit of it. The +Dutch were mostly Protestants, and almost all the Belgians were +Catholics. There were disputes about questions of religion from the +very first. Disagreements followed on one subject after another; and, +to make a long story short, in fifteen years there was a revolution in +the Belgian provinces of the new kingdom. + +The Belgians proclaimed their wish to make a kingdom of their own, and +once more the Great Powers met to consider what was to be done with +them this time. The meeting was in London, where five very shrewd and +wily gentlemen, from England, France, Russia, Austria, and Prussia, +sat and talked to each other for week after week about what they +should do with this broken kingdom, which was, as it were, thrown on +their hands. They were far too polite to quarrel openly; but Russia, +Prussia, and Austria would have liked to force the Belgians to keep to +what had been arranged in 1814, while England and France were on the +side of the Belgians. On one thing, and one thing only, they all +agreed, and that was not to have another European war. + +In the long run England and France managed to persuade the others that +the best thing was to let the Belgians have their own way, and choose +a King for themselves. They first set their affections on a son of +Louis Philippe, the King of France, and asked him to be their King. +But England would not hear of this, so his father told him to refuse. +Then the Belgians were advised to choose that Prince Leopold of +Saxe-Coburg who had married Princess Charlotte. She was now dead, and +he had been living in England ever since. They took this advice, and +in 1831 he accepted the offer they made him, and was crowned at +Brussels as Leopold I., King of the Belgians. + +Thereafter he married a daughter of Louis Philippe, and reigned till +the year 1865, when he died, and was succeeded by his son, Leopold +II., who is the present King. This is how the southern provinces of +the Netherlands were made into the little, independent kingdom of +Belgium. + +Since then the trade and commerce of Belgium have grown. Antwerp has +become a huge seaport; Brussels flourishes. The industries of Ghent +are prosperous. Throughout the Walloon country, from the busy forges +of Liege to the coal-mines round Mons, there is a hard-working and, on +the whole, successful people. Even fallen Bruges has lately been +struggling to rise again. + +But, unfortunately, there is another side to the picture. You have +often heard it said that "as the twig is bent, the tree grows." It is +the same with mankind. The character and manners of grown-up people +depend on how they have been trained when young. If a child is +bullied, and passed from one master to another, ill-treated and +frightened, it is apt to grow up timid and untruthful. The same thing +may be seen in nations. To this day the lower classes in Belgium bear +traces of the long period of subjection, and the race has not +recovered from the time when the Spaniards turned so many famous towns +into dens of thieves and beggars. They are very often cunning, timid +though boastful, and full of the small tricks and servile ways which +are natural in a people which once had all manliness and courage +crushed out of it. + +Another unlucky thing for the Belgians is that they quarrel dreadfully +among themselves about public questions. In all countries there are +quarrels of this sort, but in Belgium these disputes poison the whole +life of the country. They are divided into Catholics and Liberals, and +the best interests of the State are lost sight of in the squabbling +which goes on between these two parties. By the laws of Belgium all +religions are equal. There is no Established Church. The Parliament +each year finds money for the Catholic clergy, for the English +Protestant chaplains, and for those of any other faith, if there are +enough of them to form a congregation of a certain size. But this has +not brought peace. In England, as you know, only some foolish people +allow their political disputes to interfere with their private +friendships, or with their amusements. But in Belgium the Catholics +and the Liberals never forget their differences. It is like the time +when the Jews had no dealings with the Samaritans. There are Catholic +football clubs and Liberal football clubs; the public-houses are +either Catholic or Liberal; and even children are taught at school to +have feelings of this sort. One day a small girl was asked out to tea +with some English children. When the hour came, her mother found her +crying, and asked her what was the matter. "I'm afraid," she sobbed, +"to go and play with these little heretics!" + +[Illustration: WATERLOO: THE FARM OF LA BELLE ALLIANCE AND THE MOUND +SURMOUNTED BY THE BELGIAN LION.] + +The great quarrel is about education. The Liberals want to make a law +that all children must go to school, but the Catholics will not agree +to this. The priests have so much influence, and work so hard at +the elections, that, except in Brussels, Liege, and a few more places, +the people are frightened to vote against them. So there has always +been a Catholic Government in power for the last twenty-five years. + +The Great Powers, when they allowed the Belgians to have their own way +and choose a King for themselves, took Belgium under their protection, +and made it a "neutral state"--that is to say, a country which may not +be attacked or entered by the armies of other nations which are +fighting each other, and which is not permitted to make war on other +countries. This was a great blessing for the Belgians, because their +country is so small and weak, and so many battles used to be fought in +it that it was called "the cock-pit of Europe." But whether the people +of a neutral state are ever likely to be brave and self-sacrificing is +another thing. + + + + +CHAPTER XV + +THE BELGIAN ARMY: THE CONGO + + +Though Belgium is a neutral state, living under the protection of the +Great Powers of Europe, the Belgians are afraid that some day, if +these Powers quarrel with each other and begin to fight, armies may +march into their country and turn it once more into a battle-field; or +perhaps one of the Powers may wish to take a part of Belgium, or some +Belgian town, such as Antwerp, and rule over it. So this little +kingdom must have an army to defend itself till some powerful nation +comes to help it. + +The Belgian force actually under arms consists of only about 40,000 +soldiers, but it can be raised to 200,000, if there is a danger of +war, by calling out the "reserves," or men who have been trained, but +are no longer with their regiments. In order to keep up this force of +40,000 it is necessary to find about 13,000 new men each year. But the +Belgians do not like to be soldiers, and it is very difficult to +persuade them to join the army. Last year only 1,000 would do so, +which seems very few for a country in which there are 7,000,000 +people. It has been the same for years. So there is a law called the +Conscription, by which the necessary numbers are forced to serve. + +This is how they manage the conscription: in February of each year all +the boys who become nineteen in that year must go and draw lots to +decide which of them are to enter the army. + +The drawing generally takes place in the _Hotel de Ville_ of the chief +town in the part of the country to which the boys belong. On the +appointed day all the families in which there are sons liable to serve +flock into the town, and a great crowd gathers outside the building. +The lads who are to draw lots go in, and find some officials waiting +for them. Each boy has to put his hand into the ballot-box and draw +out a paper on which there is a number. Suppose there are 150 boys, +and 50 are wanted for the army, then those who draw the 50 lowest +numbers are those who have to serve. Each boy draws out his paper, and +gives it to an official, who calls out the number. If it is a number +above 50, he is free, and runs out shouting with joy; but if it is one +of the lower numbers, he goes out sadly to tell his family that he has +drawn a "bad" number. + +While the drawing goes on, the fathers and mothers, brothers and +sisters, and their friends, wait outside in the greatest anxiety. +There are cheers and joyful greetings when a boy with a "good" number +comes out, and groans of pity for those who have been unlucky. And +when the drawing is done, and everyone knows his fate, they all go off +to the public-houses. Those who have drawn lucky numbers get drunk +from joy, while those who have to serve in the army try to forget +their sorrow in drinking. Very often their families and friends do the +same, and so it comes to pass that every February there are horrible +scenes--men and women, boys and girls, reeling about the streets, +shouting, singing, quarrelling, and behaving in the most disgraceful +way. It is quite different from Germany, where every boy knows he must +be trained to defend his country, and where almost everyone is proud +of being a soldier. + +If, however, the father of a boy who has drawn an unlucky number is +rich enough to pay for another to take his place, he may do so. This +system is called the _Remplacement_, and almost every father buys his +son off if he can afford it. Many Belgians think this system unfair, +and the officers of the army do not like it. Perhaps, before very +long, there may be a change, and a new law made by which all boys will +have to serve for a certain time. The Catholics have always been in +favour of the _Remplacement_, while the Liberals have been against it. +But it is said that the King wishes to abolish it, and try some new +plan. So very likely the Catholics will give in, and there will be no +more drawing of lots and buying off, but a system of universal +service, which will be a very good thing for Belgium. + +Though the trade of Belgium is very large indeed for the size of the +country, the Belgians have no navy, and not many merchant-ships. But +they have lately plunged into an adventure which may force them to +have merchant-ships and men-of-war to defend them; for this small +country has taken possession of a huge part of Central Africa, ever so +many times bigger than Belgium itself. + +About twenty-five years ago Leopold II., the present King of the +Belgians, was made ruler over this part of Africa, which is called the +Congo State, because of a magnificent river, the Congo, which flows +through it. It was the Great Powers of Europe who made him ruler, and +they made him promise that he would abolish slavery, allow all nations +to trade freely there, and do all he could to civilize the natives. +But after some time ugly stories began to reach Europe about what was +being done by King Leopold's servants in that distant part of the +world. The Congo is a country full of rich products, and it was said +that the King was breaking his promises: that he was making heaps of +money by forcing the natives to work as slaves, that all their lands +were taken from them, that people were cruelly tortured, that whole +villages were destroyed, that the soldiers hired by King Leopold were +cannibals, and that he would not allow free trading. + +There is no doubt whatever that the King was making a great deal of +money, and that many shameful and wicked things were done in the +Congo. The King never went there himself, but both he and his friends, +who were also making money, said that the English (for it was the +English who found most fault with him) were jealous, and that +everything was going well. Nevertheless bad news kept arriving from +the Congo, and many of the Belgians themselves became as angry as the +English, and said something must be done to stop what was going on. At +last the Belgian Parliament resolved that the only way to save the +Congo was to make it a Belgian colony, and try if they could not +govern it better than King Leopold. + +So in the year 1908, after long debates and much curious bargaining +between the King and his people, the Congo State became a Belgian +colony. It remains to be seen whether they can govern it wisely, for +as yet they have no experience in such matters. Few Belgians like to +speak about the Congo. They shake their heads, and say it will cost a +great deal of money, and bring danger to their country. + +The scene when a ship sails from Antwerp for the Congo is unlike +anything you will see at home. When a ship leaves an English port for +India or the Colonies, the travellers go on board without any fuss, +with perhaps a few private friends to see them off. But when a liner +starts for the Congo, there is much excitement. A crowd assembles; +flags fly; a band plays the Belgian National Anthem; hawkers go about +selling photographs of _le depart pour le Congo_; and a steam-tug, +decorated with flags, and with a band of music playing, accompanies +the liner some distance down the Scheldt. The Belgians, you see, are +so fond of hoisting flags and hearing bands of music on every possible +occasion that they can't help doing it even when there is really +nothing to get excited about. + +And now, having taken this peep at Belgium, we shall leave these +adventurers sailing away to their Congo, and, hoping they will find +wisdom to steer wisely (in more ways than one) and so avoid shipwreck, +wish them _bon voyage_. + + * * * * * + + + + +LIST OF VOLUMES IN THE PEEPS AT MANY LANDS SERIES + +EACH CONTAINING 12 FULL-PAGE ILLUSTRATIONS IN COLOUR + + +BELGIUM INDIA +BURMA IRELAND +CANADA ITALY +CHINA JAMAICA +CORSICA JAPAN +EGYPT MOROCCO +ENGLAND NEW ZEALAND +FINLAND NORWAY +FRANCE SCOTLAND +GERMANY SIAM +GREECE SOUTH AFRICA +HOLLAND SOUTH SEAS +HOLY LAND SWITZERLAND +ICELAND WALES + + * * * * * + + +A LARGER VOLUME IN THE SAME STYLE + +THE WORLD + +Containing 37 full-page illustrations in colour + + * * * * * + +PUBLISHED BY ADAM AND CHARLES BLACK + +SOHO SQUARE, LONDON, W. + + * * * * * + +AGENTS + + +AMERICA THE MACMILLAN COMPANY + 64 & 66 FIFTH AVENUE, NEW YORK + +AUSTRALASIA OXFORD UNIVERSITY PRESS + 205 FLINDERS LANE, MELBOURNE + +CANADA THE MACMILLAN COMPANY OF CANADA, LTD. + 27 RICHMOND STREET WEST, TORONTO + +INDIA MACMILLAN & COMPANY, LTD. + MACMILLAN BUILDING, BOMBAY + 309 BOW BAZAAR STREET, CALCUTTA + + * * * * * + +OTHER BOOKS + +FOR + +BOYS & GIRLS + +ILLUSTRATED IN COLOUR LIKE THE + +PEEPS AT MANY LANDS + + * * * * * + +PRICE 3/6 EACH + +ALL WITH FULL-PAGE ILLUSTRATIONS IN COLOUR + +_Large crown 8vo., cloth_ + + * * * * * + +By JOHN FINNEMORE + +THE STORY OF ROBIN HOOD AND HIS MERRY MEN + +8 full-page Illustrations in Colour by ALLAN STEWART + + * * * * * + +By ASCOTT R. HOPE + +BEASTS OF BUSINESS + +8 full-page Illustrations in Colour by G. VERNON STOKES and ALAN WRIGHT + + * * * * * + +By FREDERIC W. FARRAR + +ERIC; +or, Little by Little + +8 full-page Illustrations in Colour by G. D. ROWLANDSON, +and 78 in Black and White by GORDON BROWNE + + * * * * * + +ST. WINIFRED'S; +or, The World of School + +8 full-page Illustrations in Colour by DUDLEY TENNANT, +and 152 in Black and White by GORDON BROWNE + + * * * * * + +JULIAN HOME +A Tale of College Life + +8 full-page Illustrations in Colour by PATTEN WILSON + + * * * * * + +By Lieut. Col. A. F. MOCKLER-FERRYMAN + +THE GOLDEN GIRDLE + +8 full-page Illustrations in Colour by ALLAN STEWART + + * * * * * + +By JOHN FINNEMORE + +THE WOLF PATROL + +A Story of Baden-Powell's Boy Scouts + +8 full-page Illustrations in Colour by H. M. PAGET + + * * * * * + +JACK HAYDON'S QUEST + +8 full-page Illustrations in Colour by J. JELLICOE + + * * * * * + +By STANLEY WATERLOO + +A TALE OF THE TIME OF THE CAVE MEN + +8 full-page Illustrations in Colour by SIMON HARMON VEDDER + + * * * * * + +By DANIEL DEFOE + +ROBINSON CRUSOE + +8 full-page Illustrations in Colour by JOHN WILLIAMSON + + * * * * * + +By ANDREW HOME + +BY A SCHOOLBOY'S HAND + +8 full-page Illustrations in Colour by STRICKLAND BROWN + + * * * * * + +FROM FAG TO MONITOR + +8 full-page Illustrations in Colour by JOHN WILLIAMSON + + * * * * * + +By CAPTAIN COOK + +VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY + +8 full-page Illustrations in Colour by JOHN WILLIAMSON + + * * * * * + +By MUNGO PARK + +TRAVELS IN AFRICA + +8 full-page Illustrations in Colour by JOHN WILLIAMSON + + * * * * * + +By HUME NISBET + +THE DIVERS + +8 full-page Illustrations in Colour by the Author + + * * * * * + +By the DUCHESS OF BUCKINGHAM AND CHANDOS + +WILLY WIND, AND JOCK AND THE CHEESES + +57 Illustrations by J. S. ELAND (9 full-page in Colour) + + * * * * * + +By ASCOTT R. HOPE + +STORIES + +8 full-page Illustrations in Colour by DOROTHY FURNISS + + * * * * * + +By ANDREW HOME + +EXILED FROM SCHOOL + +8 full-page Illustrations in Colour by JOHN WILLIAMSON + + * * * * * + +By the Rev. R. C. GILLIE + +THE KINSFOLK AND FRIENDS OF JESUS + +16 full-page Illustrations in Colour and Sepia + + * * * * * + +PRICE 6/= EACH + +ALL WITH FULL-PAGE ILLUSTRATIONS IN COLOUR + +Large square crown 8vo., cloth + + * * * * * + +By G. E. MITTON + +THE BOOK OF THE RAILWAY + +12 full-page Illustrations in Colour by ALLAN STEWART + + * * * * * + +By Mrs. ALFRED SIDGWICK and Mrs. PAYNTER + +THE CHILDREN'S BOOK OF GARDENING + +12 full-page Illustrations in Colour by Mrs. CAYLEY-ROBINSON + + * * * * * + +By Miss CONWAY and Sir MARTIN CONWAY + +THE CHILDREN'S BOOK OF ART + +16 full-page Illustrations in Colour from Public and Private Galleries + + * * * * * + +By ELIZABETH GRIERSON + +CHILDREN'S TALES OF ENGLISH MINSTERS + +12 full-page Illustrations in Colour by various Artists + + * * * * * + +By ASCOTT R. HOPE + +ADVENTURERS IN AMERICA + +8 full-page Illustrations in Colour by HENRY SANDHAM, R.C.A. + + * * * * * + +By S. R. CROCKETT + +RED CAP ADVENTURES + +Being the Second Series of Red Cap Tales Stolen from the Treasure-Chest +of the Wizard of the North + +16 full-page Illustrations by ALLAN STEWART and others + + * * * * * + +By S. R. CROCKETT + +RED CAP TALES + +Stolen from the Treasure-Chest of the Wizard of the North + +16 full-page Illustrations in Colour by SIMON HARMON VEDDER + + * * * * * + +Translated and Abridged by DOMINICK DALY + +THE ADVENTURES OF DON QUIXOTE + +12 full-page Illustrations in Colour by STEPHEN BAGHOT DE LA BERE + + * * * * * + +GULLIVER'S TRAVELS + +16 full-page Illustrations in Colour by STEPHEN BAGHOT DE LA BERE + + * * * * * + +By ASCOTT R. HOPE + +THE ADVENTURES OF PUNCH + +12 full-page Illustrations in Colour by STEPHEN BAGHOT DE LA BERE + + * * * * * + +By DUDLEY KIDD + +THE BULL OF THE KRAAL + +A Tale of Black Children + +12 full-page Illustrations in Colour by A. M. GOODALL + + * * * * * + +By P. G. WODEHOUSE + +WILLIAM TELL TOLD AGAIN + +16 full-page Illustrations in Colour by PHILIP DADD + + * * * * * + +By JOHN BUNYAN + +THE PILGRIM'S PROGRESS + +8 full-page Illustrations in Colour by GERTRUDE DEMAIN HAMMOND, R.I. + + * * * * * + +By G. E. MITTON + +THE CHILDREN'S BOOK OF STARS + +Preface by Sir DAVID GILL, K.C.B. + +16 full-page Illustrations (11 in Colour) and 8 smaller figures in the text + + * * * * * + +By G. E. MITTON + +THE CHILDREN'S BOOK OF LONDON + +12 full-page Illustrations in Colour by JOHN WILLIAMSON + + * * * * * + +By ELIZABETH W. GRIERSON + +THE CHILDREN'S BOOK OF CELTIC STORIES + +12 full-page Illustrations in Colour by ALLAN STEWART + + * * * * * + +PRICE 6/= EACH + +ALL WITH FULL-PAGE ILLUSTRATIONS IN COLOUR + +_Large square crown 8vo., cloth_ + + * * * * * + +By ELIZABETH W. GRIERSON + +THE CHILDREN'S BOOK OF EDINBURGH + +12 full-page Illustrations in Colour by ALLAN STEWART + + * * * * * + +Edited by G. E. MITTON + +SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON + +12 full-page Illustrations in Colour by HARRY ROUNTREE + + * * * * * + +By ELIZABETH W. GRIERSON + +CHILDREN'S TALES FROM SCOTTISH BALLADS + +12 full-page Illustrations in Colour by ALLAN STEWART + + * * * * * + +By HARRIET BEECHER STOWE + +UNCLE TOM'S CABIN + +8 full-page Illustrations in Colour and many others in the text + + * * * * * + +ANIMAL AUTOBIOGRAPHIES + +Edited by G. E. MITTON + +Each volume deals entirely with the life story of some one animal, and +is not merely a collection of animal stories. It is necessary to +emphasize this, as the idea of the series has sometimes been +misunderstood. Children who have outgrown fairy-tales undoubtedly +prefer this form of story to any other, and a more wholesome way of +stimulating their interest in the living things around them could +hardly be found. + +Though the books are designed for children of all ages, many adults +have been attracted by their freshness, and have found in them much +that they did not know before. + +The autobiographical form was chosen after careful consideration in +preference to the newer method of regarding an animal through the eyes +of a human being, because it is the first aim of the series to depict +the world as animals see it, and it is not possible to do this +realistically unless the animal himself tells the story. + + * * * * * + +THE LIFE STORY OF A DOG + +By G. E. MITTON + +12 full-page Illustrations in Colour by JOHN WILLIAMSON + + * * * * * + +THE LIFE STORY OF A FOX + +By J. C. TREGARTHEN + +12 full-page Illustrations in Colour by COUNTESS HELENA GLEICHEN + + * * * * * + +THE LIFE STORY OF A FOWL + +By J. W. HURST + +12 full-page Illustrations in Colour by ALLAN STEWART and MAUDE SCRIVENER + + * * * * * + +THE LIFE STORY OF A BLACK BEAR + +By H. PERRY ROBINSON + +12 full-page Illustrations in Colour by J. VAN OORT + + * * * * * + +THE LIFE STORY OF A RAT + +By G. M. A. HEWETT + +12 full-page Illustrations in Colour by STEPHEN BAGHOT DE LA BERE + + * * * * * + +THE LIFE STORY OF A CAT + +By VIOLET HUNT + +12 full-page Illustrations in Colour by ADOLPH BIRKENRUTH + + * * * * * + +THE LIFE STORY OF A SQUIRREL + +By T. C. BRIDGES + +12 full-page Illustrations in Colour by ALLAN STEWART + + * * * * * + +PUBLISHED BY A. AND C. BLACK, SOHO SQUARE, LONDON, W. + + * * * * * + + + + + +End of Project Gutenberg's Peeps At Many Lands: Belgium, by George W. T. Omond + +*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK PEEPS AT MANY LANDS: BELGIUM *** + +***** This file should be named 19692.txt or 19692.zip ***** +This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: + http://www.gutenberg.org/1/9/6/9/19692/ + +Produced by Bruce Albrecht, Sankar Viswanathan, and the +Online Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net + + +Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions +will be renamed. + +Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no +one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation +(and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without +permission and without paying copyright royalties. Special rules, +set forth in the General Terms of Use part of this license, apply to +copying and distributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works to +protect the PROJECT GUTENBERG-tm concept and trademark. Project +Gutenberg is a registered trademark, and may not be used if you +charge for the eBooks, unless you receive specific permission. If you +do not charge anything for copies of this eBook, complying with the +rules is very easy. You may use this eBook for nearly any purpose +such as creation of derivative works, reports, performances and +research. They may be modified and printed and given away--you may do +practically ANYTHING with public domain eBooks. Redistribution is +subject to the trademark license, especially commercial +redistribution. + + + +*** START: FULL LICENSE *** + +THE FULL PROJECT GUTENBERG LICENSE +PLEASE READ THIS BEFORE YOU DISTRIBUTE OR USE THIS WORK + +To protect the Project Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting the free +distribution of electronic works, by using or distributing this work +(or any other work associated in any way with the phrase "Project +Gutenberg"), you agree to comply with all the terms of the Full Project +Gutenberg-tm License (available with this file or online at +http://gutenberg.org/license). + + +Section 1. General Terms of Use and Redistributing Project Gutenberg-tm +electronic works + +1.A. By reading or using any part of this Project Gutenberg-tm +electronic work, you indicate that you have read, understand, agree to +and accept all the terms of this license and intellectual property +(trademark/copyright) agreement. If you do not agree to abide by all +the terms of this agreement, you must cease using and return or destroy +all copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in your possession. +If you paid a fee for obtaining a copy of or access to a Project +Gutenberg-tm electronic work and you do not agree to be bound by the +terms of this agreement, you may obtain a refund from the person or +entity to whom you paid the fee as set forth in paragraph 1.E.8. + +1.B. "Project Gutenberg" is a registered trademark. It may only be +used on or associated in any way with an electronic work by people who +agree to be bound by the terms of this agreement. There are a few +things that you can do with most Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works +even without complying with the full terms of this agreement. See +paragraph 1.C below. There are a lot of things you can do with Project +Gutenberg-tm electronic works if you follow the terms of this agreement +and help preserve free future access to Project Gutenberg-tm electronic +works. See paragraph 1.E below. + +1.C. The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation ("the Foundation" +or PGLAF), owns a compilation copyright in the collection of Project +Gutenberg-tm electronic works. Nearly all the individual works in the +collection are in the public domain in the United States. If an +individual work is in the public domain in the United States and you are +located in the United States, we do not claim a right to prevent you from +copying, distributing, performing, displaying or creating derivative +works based on the work as long as all references to Project Gutenberg +are removed. Of course, we hope that you will support the Project +Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting free access to electronic works by +freely sharing Project Gutenberg-tm works in compliance with the terms of +this agreement for keeping the Project Gutenberg-tm name associated with +the work. You can easily comply with the terms of this agreement by +keeping this work in the same format with its attached full Project +Gutenberg-tm License when you share it without charge with others. + +1.D. The copyright laws of the place where you are located also govern +what you can do with this work. Copyright laws in most countries are in +a constant state of change. If you are outside the United States, check +the laws of your country in addition to the terms of this agreement +before downloading, copying, displaying, performing, distributing or +creating derivative works based on this work or any other Project +Gutenberg-tm work. The Foundation makes no representations concerning +the copyright status of any work in any country outside the United +States. + +1.E. Unless you have removed all references to Project Gutenberg: + +1.E.1. The following sentence, with active links to, or other immediate +access to, the full Project Gutenberg-tm License must appear prominently +whenever any copy of a Project Gutenberg-tm work (any work on which the +phrase "Project Gutenberg" appears, or with which the phrase "Project +Gutenberg" is associated) is accessed, displayed, performed, viewed, +copied or distributed: + +This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with +almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or +re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included +with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org + +1.E.2. If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is derived +from the public domain (does not contain a notice indicating that it is +posted with permission of the copyright holder), the work can be copied +and distributed to anyone in the United States without paying any fees +or charges. If you are redistributing or providing access to a work +with the phrase "Project Gutenberg" associated with or appearing on the +work, you must comply either with the requirements of paragraphs 1.E.1 +through 1.E.7 or obtain permission for the use of the work and the +Project Gutenberg-tm trademark as set forth in paragraphs 1.E.8 or +1.E.9. + +1.E.3. If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is posted +with the permission of the copyright holder, your use and distribution +must comply with both paragraphs 1.E.1 through 1.E.7 and any additional +terms imposed by the copyright holder. Additional terms will be linked +to the Project Gutenberg-tm License for all works posted with the +permission of the copyright holder found at the beginning of this work. + +1.E.4. Do not unlink or detach or remove the full Project Gutenberg-tm +License terms from this work, or any files containing a part of this +work or any other work associated with Project Gutenberg-tm. + +1.E.5. Do not copy, display, perform, distribute or redistribute this +electronic work, or any part of this electronic work, without +prominently displaying the sentence set forth in paragraph 1.E.1 with +active links or immediate access to the full terms of the Project +Gutenberg-tm License. + +1.E.6. You may convert to and distribute this work in any binary, +compressed, marked up, nonproprietary or proprietary form, including any +word processing or hypertext form. However, if you provide access to or +distribute copies of a Project Gutenberg-tm work in a format other than +"Plain Vanilla ASCII" or other format used in the official version +posted on the official Project Gutenberg-tm web site (www.gutenberg.org), +you must, at no additional cost, fee or expense to the user, provide a +copy, a means of exporting a copy, or a means of obtaining a copy upon +request, of the work in its original "Plain Vanilla ASCII" or other +form. Any alternate format must include the full Project Gutenberg-tm +License as specified in paragraph 1.E.1. + +1.E.7. Do not charge a fee for access to, viewing, displaying, +performing, copying or distributing any Project Gutenberg-tm works +unless you comply with paragraph 1.E.8 or 1.E.9. + +1.E.8. You may charge a reasonable fee for copies of or providing +access to or distributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works provided +that + +- You pay a royalty fee of 20% of the gross profits you derive from + the use of Project Gutenberg-tm works calculated using the method + you already use to calculate your applicable taxes. The fee is + owed to the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm trademark, but he + has agreed to donate royalties under this paragraph to the + Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation. Royalty payments + must be paid within 60 days following each date on which you + prepare (or are legally required to prepare) your periodic tax + returns. Royalty payments should be clearly marked as such and + sent to the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation at the + address specified in Section 4, "Information about donations to + the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation." + +- You provide a full refund of any money paid by a user who notifies + you in writing (or by e-mail) within 30 days of receipt that s/he + does not agree to the terms of the full Project Gutenberg-tm + License. You must require such a user to return or + destroy all copies of the works possessed in a physical medium + and discontinue all use of and all access to other copies of + Project Gutenberg-tm works. + +- You provide, in accordance with paragraph 1.F.3, a full refund of any + money paid for a work or a replacement copy, if a defect in the + electronic work is discovered and reported to you within 90 days + of receipt of the work. + +- You comply with all other terms of this agreement for free + distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm works. + +1.E.9. If you wish to charge a fee or distribute a Project Gutenberg-tm +electronic work or group of works on different terms than are set +forth in this agreement, you must obtain permission in writing from +both the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation and Michael +Hart, the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm trademark. Contact the +Foundation as set forth in Section 3 below. + +1.F. + +1.F.1. Project Gutenberg volunteers and employees expend considerable +effort to identify, do copyright research on, transcribe and proofread +public domain works in creating the Project Gutenberg-tm +collection. Despite these efforts, Project Gutenberg-tm electronic +works, and the medium on which they may be stored, may contain +"Defects," such as, but not limited to, incomplete, inaccurate or +corrupt data, transcription errors, a copyright or other intellectual +property infringement, a defective or damaged disk or other medium, a +computer virus, or computer codes that damage or cannot be read by +your equipment. + +1.F.2. LIMITED WARRANTY, DISCLAIMER OF DAMAGES - Except for the "Right +of Replacement or Refund" described in paragraph 1.F.3, the Project +Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation, the owner of the Project +Gutenberg-tm trademark, and any other party distributing a Project +Gutenberg-tm electronic work under this agreement, disclaim all +liability to you for damages, costs and expenses, including legal +fees. YOU AGREE THAT YOU HAVE NO REMEDIES FOR NEGLIGENCE, STRICT +LIABILITY, BREACH OF WARRANTY OR BREACH OF CONTRACT EXCEPT THOSE +PROVIDED IN PARAGRAPH F3. YOU AGREE THAT THE FOUNDATION, THE +TRADEMARK OWNER, AND ANY DISTRIBUTOR UNDER THIS AGREEMENT WILL NOT BE +LIABLE TO YOU FOR ACTUAL, DIRECT, INDIRECT, CONSEQUENTIAL, PUNITIVE OR +INCIDENTAL DAMAGES EVEN IF YOU GIVE NOTICE OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH +DAMAGE. + +1.F.3. LIMITED RIGHT OF REPLACEMENT OR REFUND - If you discover a +defect in this electronic work within 90 days of receiving it, you can +receive a refund of the money (if any) you paid for it by sending a +written explanation to the person you received the work from. If you +received the work on a physical medium, you must return the medium with +your written explanation. The person or entity that provided you with +the defective work may elect to provide a replacement copy in lieu of a +refund. If you received the work electronically, the person or entity +providing it to you may choose to give you a second opportunity to +receive the work electronically in lieu of a refund. If the second copy +is also defective, you may demand a refund in writing without further +opportunities to fix the problem. + +1.F.4. Except for the limited right of replacement or refund set forth +in paragraph 1.F.3, this work is provided to you 'AS-IS' WITH NO OTHER +WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO +WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTIBILITY OR FITNESS FOR ANY PURPOSE. + +1.F.5. Some states do not allow disclaimers of certain implied +warranties or the exclusion or limitation of certain types of damages. +If any disclaimer or limitation set forth in this agreement violates the +law of the state applicable to this agreement, the agreement shall be +interpreted to make the maximum disclaimer or limitation permitted by +the applicable state law. The invalidity or unenforceability of any +provision of this agreement shall not void the remaining provisions. + +1.F.6. INDEMNITY - You agree to indemnify and hold the Foundation, the +trademark owner, any agent or employee of the Foundation, anyone +providing copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in accordance +with this agreement, and any volunteers associated with the production, +promotion and distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works, +harmless from all liability, costs and expenses, including legal fees, +that arise directly or indirectly from any of the following which you do +or cause to occur: (a) distribution of this or any Project Gutenberg-tm +work, (b) alteration, modification, or additions or deletions to any +Project Gutenberg-tm work, and (c) any Defect you cause. + + +Section 2. Information about the Mission of Project Gutenberg-tm + +Project Gutenberg-tm is synonymous with the free distribution of +electronic works in formats readable by the widest variety of computers +including obsolete, old, middle-aged and new computers. It exists +because of the efforts of hundreds of volunteers and donations from +people in all walks of life. + +Volunteers and financial support to provide volunteers with the +assistance they need, is critical to reaching Project Gutenberg-tm's +goals and ensuring that the Project Gutenberg-tm collection will +remain freely available for generations to come. In 2001, the Project +Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation was created to provide a secure +and permanent future for Project Gutenberg-tm and future generations. +To learn more about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation +and how your efforts and donations can help, see Sections 3 and 4 +and the Foundation web page at http://www.pglaf.org. + + +Section 3. Information about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive +Foundation + +The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation is a non profit +501(c)(3) educational corporation organized under the laws of the +state of Mississippi and granted tax exempt status by the Internal +Revenue Service. The Foundation's EIN or federal tax identification +number is 64-6221541. Its 501(c)(3) letter is posted at +http://pglaf.org/fundraising. Contributions to the Project Gutenberg +Literary Archive Foundation are tax deductible to the full extent +permitted by U.S. federal laws and your state's laws. + +The Foundation's principal office is located at 4557 Melan Dr. S. +Fairbanks, AK, 99712., but its volunteers and employees are scattered +throughout numerous locations. Its business office is located at +809 North 1500 West, Salt Lake City, UT 84116, (801) 596-1887, email +business@pglaf.org. Email contact links and up to date contact +information can be found at the Foundation's web site and official +page at http://pglaf.org + +For additional contact information: + Dr. Gregory B. Newby + Chief Executive and Director + gbnewby@pglaf.org + + +Section 4. Information about Donations to the Project Gutenberg +Literary Archive Foundation + +Project Gutenberg-tm depends upon and cannot survive without wide +spread public support and donations to carry out its mission of +increasing the number of public domain and licensed works that can be +freely distributed in machine readable form accessible by the widest +array of equipment including outdated equipment. Many small donations +($1 to $5,000) are particularly important to maintaining tax exempt +status with the IRS. + +The Foundation is committed to complying with the laws regulating +charities and charitable donations in all 50 states of the United +States. Compliance requirements are not uniform and it takes a +considerable effort, much paperwork and many fees to meet and keep up +with these requirements. We do not solicit donations in locations +where we have not received written confirmation of compliance. To +SEND DONATIONS or determine the status of compliance for any +particular state visit http://pglaf.org + +While we cannot and do not solicit contributions from states where we +have not met the solicitation requirements, we know of no prohibition +against accepting unsolicited donations from donors in such states who +approach us with offers to donate. + +International donations are gratefully accepted, but we cannot make +any statements concerning tax treatment of donations received from +outside the United States. U.S. laws alone swamp our small staff. + +Please check the Project Gutenberg Web pages for current donation +methods and addresses. Donations are accepted in a number of other +ways including checks, online payments and credit card donations. +To donate, please visit: http://pglaf.org/donate + + +Section 5. General Information About Project Gutenberg-tm electronic +works. + +Professor Michael S. Hart is the originator of the Project Gutenberg-tm +concept of a library of electronic works that could be freely shared +with anyone. For thirty years, he produced and distributed Project +Gutenberg-tm eBooks with only a loose network of volunteer support. + + +Project Gutenberg-tm eBooks are often created from several printed +editions, all of which are confirmed as Public Domain in the U.S. +unless a copyright notice is included. Thus, we do not necessarily +keep eBooks in compliance with any particular paper edition. + + +Most people start at our Web site which has the main PG search facility: + + http://www.gutenberg.org + +This Web site includes information about Project Gutenberg-tm, +including how to make donations to the Project Gutenberg Literary +Archive Foundation, how to help produce our new eBooks, and how to +subscribe to our email newsletter to hear about new eBooks. diff --git a/19692.zip b/19692.zip Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..f93d81d --- /dev/null +++ b/19692.zip diff --git a/LICENSE.txt b/LICENSE.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..6312041 --- /dev/null +++ b/LICENSE.txt @@ -0,0 +1,11 @@ +This eBook, including all associated images, markup, improvements, +metadata, and any other content or labor, has been confirmed to be +in the PUBLIC DOMAIN IN THE UNITED STATES. + +Procedures for determining public domain status are described in +the "Copyright How-To" at https://www.gutenberg.org. + +No investigation has been made concerning possible copyrights in +jurisdictions other than the United States. Anyone seeking to utilize +this eBook outside of the United States should confirm copyright +status under the laws that apply to them. diff --git a/README.md b/README.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000..b04733b --- /dev/null +++ b/README.md @@ -0,0 +1,2 @@ +Project Gutenberg (https://www.gutenberg.org) public repository for +eBook #19692 (https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/19692) |
