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sheim.* From 801 to 864 St. Anskar, (Ausgar, Auscharius,) primate of Bremen, Ham- 
burg, Holstein, &c., himself of Flemish birth, attracted many of his countrymen to 
those northern regions. Also Charlemagne colonized Flemish peasants on the shores of 
the Elbe. 
That stretch of teeming lowlands east of Bremen to the Baltic wore a vastly differ- 
ent face in early days. Marshy and uncultivated, the coast-edge of those parts stood 
exposed to the tender mercies of the sea to such a degree that even a slight breeze 
would suffice to cause submersion; while the inhabitants, through intestine wars demor- 
alized and habituated to strife and broils, evinced little aptitude for the peaceful pur- 
suit of husbandry.t It was then that the attention of German princes was drawn to 
Holland, where similarly situated regions had been brought to a high state of product- 
iveness. The great tide of emigration, however, did not set in until the twelfth and 
thirteenth centuries, from which period the origin of the fine grass-lands along the 
Elbe and Weser must be reckoned. 
It was a mighty flow of emigration that wound its way toward those seemingly 
unfriendly shores, and to this day the peasantry of Holstein have preserved a Dutch 
dittyt which points to the east of Europe as the promised land, just as in our time the 
Great West of the American Union is the goal of the European emigrant. To conceive 
the extent of this wave of emigration, a look should be cast upon the map accompany- 
ing Borchgrave’s work, from which it appears that Dutch settlers gradually spread as 
far south as Silesia, and even Austria. 
In the year 1106 the bishop of Bremen ceded several districts of his possessions to 
Dutch settlers, with the understanding that all occurring marshes should be drained 
and converted into meadows, according to the Dutch method of reclaiming lands. 
Other ecclesiastical, as well as temporal princes, followed his example, and many sim- 
ilar cessions were made to Dutch settlers. It would be quite a task to recount all the 
charters thus granted; yet I cannot refrain from mentioning some which directly refer 
to Holstein. 
St. Vicelin, having observed how the marshy lowlands near Bremen speedily 
assumed the character of luxuriant pastures, was the first ruler of Holstein who 
resolved upon giving his country the benefit of Dutch agricultural science; and.to — 
him and his successors that principality is indebted for the great transformation it 
underwent in the twelfth century. Three districts—Welster, Stor, and Helmshoen— 
received large Dutch settlements under Adalberon’s charter of August 27, 1139, the 
same containing the proviso that the clergy of said districts should be entitled to har- 
vest and cattle tithes upon the lands of Duteh settlers. This prince, July 25, 1144, 
further ceded a tract of land to Dutch emigrants in the district of Elmshorn. On Jan- 
uary 10, 1221, Albert d’Orlamunde transferred to Dutch emigrants that range of lands 
situated between the settlements of the Saxons and the Dutch, known as the Vetus 
Terra. Here it may be mentioned that in 1470 Charles I, King of Denmark, abolished 
the Dutch land-laws then still prevailing in the districts of Welster and Kemper- 
marsh. There is yet extant a deed of conveyance, in the Dutch language, dated 1340, 
relating to certain territories in the district of Stor, wherein the Dutch land-laws, 
then in force, are spoken of. Christiani, Holstein’s historian, states that, as regards 
Holstein, at no time is mention made of other than Dutch colonists, and that Dutch 
emigration may be said to have commenced in the year 1120. The Count of Holstein 
personally undertook a journey to Holland, returning with colonists who settled in 
Wagria. The historian Helmold, in speaking of this colony, admits its importance by 
stating that it was reported to have consisted of 400 families, but that the number of 
Dutch settlers in Wagria might safely be taken at 8,000. In 1516 Christian II intro- 
duced Dutch settlers on the island of Amack, who soon transformed that waste into a 
perfect garden-spot. The inhabitants of to-day have preserved their original lan- 
guage, costumes, and habits, and number about five thousand souls. There can be no 
doubt of the Dutch land-laws having prevailed in Holstein from the emigration 
period down to the close of the fifteenth century. They were known in Germany 
under the name of “Hollandereien,” (Hollandized lands.) In the present acceptation 
of the term, however, “ Hollandereien” simply means dairy-farms—in itself proof that 
the Germans consider themselves disciples of the Dufch in this branch of farming.§ 
Yet enough of historical citations. If they have been introduced rather freely, it was 
for the purpose of historically establishing the fact tat Dutch cattle did not origi- 
nate in Holstein, but that on the contrary Holstein is indebted to Holland for any 
superior dairy-stock she may possess. 4 
Whoever visits Holstein cannot help being struck with the Dutch aspect of the 
country, the prosperity of her farming community offering a strong contrast to the 
generally wretched condition of the German peasant. It is true a German author 
sought to disprove the assertion of German agriculture having materially been in- 
fluenced by Dutch colonization. But Borchgrave, it may be safe to say, bas effectually 
disposed of this point of controversy. Probably no author ever will attempt to refute 
his arguments. 
Luow proceed to examine the subject in hand physiologically. Quite a number of 
* Borchgrave. . t Ibid. t Ibid. § Wersebe II. 
