ences from listening to the bells 

 depends more on the hour of the 

 production than the composition 

 played, since being" awakened in 

 the night by one tune, however 

 choice the harmony, does not 

 differ materially from another in 

 its moral effect upon the sleeper. 



Fortunately, the Dutch chimes 

 do not include large castings 

 with deeptoned vibrations. The 

 bells are small in size and many 

 of the carillons contain as many 

 as 42 in the set. The mechanism 

 of the chime is so arranged that 

 the cylinder, which has pegs 

 similar to a Swiss music-box, 

 may be exchanged for another or 

 removed entirely, permitting a 

 performer to play whatever tune 

 he chooses without waiting for 

 the minute-hand to complete its 

 circuit. 



Many of the Dutch steeple 

 clocks wear an unnatural, open 

 expression, which we finally dis- 

 covered was owing to their habit 

 of holding but one hand — the 

 hour hand — over their faces. 



The location of Amsterdam is 

 most favorable to tourists as 

 headquarters from which to 

 make excursions to places of 

 great historical interest, and to 

 towns in which the life of today 

 is said to be lived precisely as it 

 was centuries ago, and where the 

 dress is similar and the adorn- 

 ments of jewelry and laces are 

 identically the same. 



WINDOW SPIES 



On the front facade of many of the 

 houses, hanging between the windows, 

 are mirrors, placed at such an angle that 

 those inside, without being seen, may 

 view the street in either direction, in- 

 cluding the front door and any one seek- 

 ing admission. The home life of many 

 of the people is said to be so quiet that, 

 wishing to see all that is going on about 

 them, they employ these "spies," as they 

 are sometimes called. 



As we proceeded along a narrow street 

 of one of the little "dam" towns our at- 

 tention was attracted to a front door on 

 which was fastened a piece of white 

 paper containing a note. Several per- 



THE DUTCH WINDMILL 



A man's wealth may be measured by the stocks and 

 bonds he owns in New York, by the cattle he has in 

 Argentina, by the chain of gold eagles his wife wears 

 in Tehuantepec, and so on ; but in some parts of Hol- 

 land the number of windmills a man owns gives the 

 clue to his financial rating. They fight the water, shelter 

 the family, afford an occupation, and provide an income 

 for their owners. 



sons preceding us had paused in passing 

 to read its contents, and on inquiry we 

 were informed that a member of the 

 family who had been ill was improving. 

 This sensible custom is followed by 

 changing the bulletin each day, so that 

 inquiring friends may keep informed of 

 the condition of the patient without dis- 

 turbing the household to inquire. 



Our informant further stated that when 

 a death occurs in a family the relation- 

 ship of the deceased is indicated by the 

 position of the folding shutters of the 

 windows: If a cousin, one section; a 

 brother, two; while for a parent all but 

 one are closed. 



