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improvements ; while ladies attend the public meetings, 

 and witness the distribution of honours. But the build- 

 ing is made to answer various other purposes. It con- 

 tains the Concert-Hall of Amsterdam, and also an am- 

 phitheatre for lectures on natural philosophy and chemis- 

 try. Dutch taste, strongly influenced by habits of business, 

 here shows itself in rather an amusing way : a principal or- 

 nament of St Cecilia's hall is a clock to warn the audience 

 of the passing hours, and in the amphitheatre there is an 

 index which announces to the merchant every variation 

 of the wind. Other apartments in the same building 

 answer the purposes of our academies for painting and 

 statuary ; and, to crown all, there is an observatory on 

 the roof. 



The Exchange is one of the most remarkable places in 

 Amsterdam. As a building, it is perhaps nowise superior 

 to that of London ; but from two to three o'clock it is 

 crowded with merchants and traders from all countries, in 

 a manner that seemed quite extraordinary to Scotsmen, 

 who were accustomed to see only the trifling weekly assem- 

 blage at the Cross of Edinburgh. 



Close by, in the Kalverstraat, is an institution having for 

 its title Doctrind et Jmiciiid. The library and museum is 

 much frequented by the merchants as they leave 'Change : 

 here they are provided not only with newspapers, but with 

 all the best periodical publications of Germany, France, 

 England, and Italy ; and they really come to read, for the 

 strictest silence is observed. Above is a large hall for the 

 general meetings of the Society ; where some of the most 

 distinguished literary names which Holland can boast are 

 blazoned on the wall. Grotius is inscribed at the head of 

 the room ; and along the sides are the names of s'Grave- 

 sande the philosopher, Boerhaave the physician, Vondvl 



