624 The National Geographic Magazine 



claims no credit for smooth seas, nor de- 

 clares any weather the worst. He is 

 true to his trust and, knowing that he 

 sails a N. A. S. M. ship, he is confident 

 of a safe voyage. 



The descendants of some of the old- 

 time mariners to the icy North or to 

 India's coral strand may now be poling 

 a boat along the canal that crosses my 

 street. Their ships are less ambitious, 

 their journeys are not so romantic, and 

 their cargoes may have less of value ; but 

 they are adding, each in his own way, to 

 Holland's greatness. This greatness 

 may be called dwarfed in its proportions, 

 but Holland is truly great in her indus- 

 try, perseverance, and in the spirit of her 

 people. It is this spirit that dares to 

 contest with the sea for supremacy as it 

 dared the haughty Spaniard. It rests in 

 the heart that never falters and lightens 

 burdens that to others would be crush- 



ing:. 



THE WONDERFUL CANALS 



This canal at my corner, whose busy 

 traffic is reflected in my friendly mirror, 

 is one of the many which divide Amster- 

 dam into hundreds of trapezoids and 

 furnish cheap and commodious avenues 

 for the transport of every conceivable 

 article of commerce gathered from all 

 parts of Holland. It would be extremely 

 interesting to know the cargoes and 

 starting places of the vessels which are 

 pushed along these canals — literally 

 pushed — for tug service is expensive 

 and the restricted possibilities for tack- 

 ing renders the sail useless. In pushing, 

 the boatman walks to the prow of the 

 boat, thrusts a long pole in the water, 

 then facing the stern, and with his shoul- 

 der against the free end of the pole, he 

 literally kicks the boat from under him- 

 self as he apparently walks toward the 

 stern. When he risks walking over- 

 board he withdraws the pole and repeats 

 the process, going from side to side for 

 purposes of steering in case only one is 

 poling. 



It is a slow and tedious method of pro- 

 pulsion. Surely the saying, "It's a good 

 thing, push it along," must have orig- 

 inated in Holland. Here nearly every- 



thing is pushed, and the number of push- 

 carts is far in excess of the number of 

 vehicles for horses. The delivery carts 

 are pushed ; small peripatetic shops seem 

 impelled by a magic power, but there is 

 a man behind or a woman ; vegetables 

 enough to stock a market are bowled 

 along from street to street ; and then the 

 fish — smoked and pickled, fresh or dried,, 

 all sorts, sizes, and conditions, alive or 

 dead. The purchaser makes her selec- 

 tion, and the vendor proceeds to prepare 

 the fish for the pan. To the credit of 

 Holland it must be said that a man is 

 not allowed to use dogs to aid in the 

 work of propulsion through the streets. 



It is also astonishing to note the vari- 

 ety of goods which are offered for sale 

 from these carts : hardware and tin- 

 ware, even including small stoves ; 

 books, day-books, and ledgers ; pens, ink, 

 and paper ; glassware, lamp chimneys, 

 cups and saucers ; shoes, hats, clothes, 

 old and new, and in fact the only things 

 omitted are medicines and coffins. The 

 dealers in fags, bones, and old iron pick 

 up every imaginable bit of rubbish, and 

 after deciphering its use and burnishing 

 it up a little, offer it for sale on the mar- 

 ket square or trade with some brother 

 peddler. I watched from my window 

 two sons of Israel inspecting each other's 

 load. It was a painstaking process. I 

 could not hear what was said, but I 

 could see that one fondly handled a few 

 yards of discarded dress trimming. An 

 offer was evidently made and refused ; 

 then perhaps others — a diminution pos- 

 sibly of a cent on the part of the one and 

 a corresponding increase by the other. 

 But to no avail. They separated. How- 

 ever, the longing to buy or the desire to 

 own finally got the better of one, so he 

 stopped and raised his offer, which was 

 accepted and the important deal made. 

 I could see the amount paid ; it was 

 twelve cents ; but then one cannot esti- 

 mate the pleasure which the dealing 

 gave. 



THE LONE FISHERMAN 



But to return to the canal, though if a 

 canal is wanted it is not necessary to 

 turn ; one can go straight ahead. But to 



