HOLLAND io 39 



34,388; Deventer, 28,005; Dordrecht, 46,862; Emmen, 28,802; Enschede, 34,992; Gouda, 

 24,704; The Hague, 280,515; Groningen, 75,341; Haarlem, 69,594; den Helder, 27,358; 

 Hengelo, 20,522; 's Hertogenbosch, 35,214; Hilversum, 31,792; Leeuwarden, 37,014; 

 Leiden, 59,114; Maastricht, 37,653; Nijmegen, 56,035; Rotterdam, 426,888; Schiedam, 

 32,489; Tilburg, 51,600; Utrecht, 120,208; Vlaardingen, 22,124; Vlissingen, 21,575; 

 Zaandam, 24,965; Zwolle, 33,928. 



Communications. Naturally rivers and canals play an important part in traffic; hence 

 large sums are always being spent on construction, improvement and repair; in 1909 the 

 expenditure amounted to 8 million guilders. The most important waterways for trans- 

 marine traffic are the New Waterway, from Rotterdam to Hook of Holland, and the North 

 Sea canal, from Amsterdam to Ymuiden. Work is constantly in progress to increase their 

 depths. Whereas in 191 1 the depth of the New Waterway was 9-9 . 3 metres at low tide and 

 10.7-11 M. at high tide, the channel of the North Sea canal was widened to 50 M. and its 

 depth brought to 10.5 M. Rotterdam, so favourably situated for the transit trade between 

 England and Germany, appears to be better and better able to compete with its two great 

 rivals Hamburg and Antwerp. The works for the improvement of the canal from Ghent 

 to Terneuzen, which gave a depth of 8.75 M. and a breadth of 67 M. to this waterway, 

 were completed in 1910, so that large sea-ships can now reach Ghent. In the province of 

 North Brabant there was begun in 1910 the important Wilhelmina canal, connecting the 

 South Williams canal north of Helmond with the Maas at Geertruidenberg. The making 

 of new canals in the province of Groningen has also been continued without interruption of 

 late years, as well as the extension and improvement of several harbours, especially that of 

 Rotterdam. Here the new Waal harbour will extend over a surface of 310 hectares; but 

 it will also require many millions before it is finished. The new harbour works at Delfzyl 

 have only resulted in making this place a modest rival of the town of Emden situated opposite. 



The number of railway lines has also increased. Besides some local lines such as Stads- 

 kanaal-Zuidbroek-Delfzijl and Deventer-Raalte-Ommen, the electric line Rotterdam-The 

 Hague-Scheveningen must specially be mentioned, and also the railways through the 

 Haarlemmermeer, which were opened in August 1912, namely (i) Amsterdam-Hoof ddorp- 

 Leiden, (2) Haarlem-Hoofddorp-Nieuwersluis, (3) Amsterdam-Nieuwkoop-Alfen; together 

 they have a length of 1 10 kilometres. Steam is used here, although the original plan was to 

 use electricity. The line Eindhoven-Weerd is also nearly completed. 



Several new tramways were made, and several others, already existing, such as Flushing- 

 Middelburg, Leiden- Katwijk, Leiden-Noordwijk and the town tram-lines of Arnhem, 

 Leiden and Groningen, have begun using electricity as motive power. Electric trains 

 run between Amsterdam-Haarlem-Zandvoort (as well as Haarlem-Zandvoort). 



The total length of railways in Holland amounted in 1912 to more than 1950 miles, and 

 that of tramways to more than 1380 miles. 



Agriculture. The amount of arable land increases every year, especially in the east of 

 the country, in consequence of the continued reclamation of high fen grounds, the draining 

 of pools and the cultivation of waste lands. The cultivation of high fen grounds as well 

 as of low fen grounds is, it is true, less extensive than it was formerly when peat was the 

 generally, and almost exclusively, used fuel, but still the yearly production of long lumps of 

 peat (high fen) in Holland amounts to 1800 million pieces, worth 6| million guilders, and 

 that of short lumps (low fen) to 700 million pieces, worth i| million guilders. The extent 

 of waste lands is constantly decreasing, for in the years 1909, 1910 and 1911 respectively 

 6657, 7148 and 9314 hectares were cultivated. The following were the figures (in hectares) 

 for the distribution of the soil, according to the use made of it, in 1911: Arable land, 

 872,171; pasture land, 1,213,073; garden land, 78,097; wood, 260,923; waste land, 533,807. 



In 1911 live stock numbered: Horses, 327,377; oxen, 2,026,943; sheep, 889,036; pigs, 

 1,259,844. 



How important a part agriculture and cattle-breeding play in commerce may be gathered 

 from the fact that from July 1911 until April 1912 there were exported to Germany 525 

 million kilograms of potatoes, worth over 13 million guilders, and in 1911 to Belgium 87.5 

 million kilograms. The production of beetroots amounted to over 2,000 million kilograms, 

 that of beetroot sugar to 255 million kilograms. Of kitchen garden produce there was 

 exported in 1911 to Germany 183.4 million kilograms; the export of bulbs to different coun- 

 tries was 17.3 million kilograms. Of oxen 109,042 head were exported; of beef and veal 

 nearly 15 million kilograms, of which 8| million went to England; 13.5 million kilograms 

 butter to Germany, 5.3 to England and 5 to Belgium; of cheese to those three countries 

 respectively 13, n.8 and ro.i million kilograms; of condensed milk (1910) 30.3 million 

 kilograms, 29.4 million being to England. Another important article of export is fish, as 

 in 1910 there were exported 645,427 tons (1,000 kilograms) of herring, 16.2 million kilograms 

 fresh sea fish and 7 million kilograms river fish. The whole fleet of sea-fishing craft consists 

 of 5.336 ships, the crews numbering 20,377 men. The most important place for the trade 

 in fresh fish is Ymuiden, where in 1911 nearly 460,000 worth of fish was brought in. 



The total imports were valued at 261,450,000, the exports at 204,560,000, in 1910. 



