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The National Geographic Magazine 



upon personal liberty as in Holland. 

 This may explain the anomalous con- 

 dition that exists in the educational sys- 

 tem. Free schools had their beginning 

 in the Netherlands, and yet compulsory 

 education has never found favor there, 

 because its enforcement would mean the 

 placing over the delinquent child an au- 

 thority superior to that of the parent. 



BEGGARS ARE NEVER SEEN IN HOEEAND 



The children bereft of parents are well 

 taken care of in this land. Orphan asy- 

 lums are abundant and their conduct is 

 beyond reproach. When we see passing 

 by the boy with the two-colored suit — ■ 

 half red and half black, with the dividing 

 line apparently cutting him in twain — 

 we are apt to think it cruel to place upon 

 the unfortunate such a conspicuous 

 badge proclaiming his dependence ; but 

 it is a feature of economic administra- 

 tion. When the boys are sent out on 

 errands or allowed a vacation, they are 

 sure to return, for by their unmistakable 

 uniform they are known, and it is a pun- 

 ishable offense to harbor an inmate of an 

 asylum or aid in his escape. 



Homes for the aged are seen in every 

 city, and even the insistent demands of 

 commerce in the Kalver stratt of Am- 

 sterdam cannot drive out the home in the 

 Luisen Gasse. 



There are no doubt beggars in the 

 Holland cities, but they are never seen. 

 The only semblance to one I ever saw 

 was an old man who stood all day long 

 by the door of a dentist. He had evi- 

 dently learned how relieved one feels 

 upon leaving the chair of torture, and so 

 he stood there to receive the coins 

 dropped into his hand as a sort of thank- 

 offering. 



When the Dutch made of their coun- 

 try an ark of refuge for all whom other 

 lands oppressed, the Jews came in num- 

 bers, and, finding here opportunities for 

 their skill in trade and commerce, they 

 remained and added greatly to the pros- 

 perity of the home of their adoption. 

 They not only contributed to the nation's 

 wealth, but they contributed more nobly 

 by precept and example to the great 



work of caring for the poor. On this 

 subject alone a book could be written. 

 So deeply is the question of local admin- 

 istration of charitable funds and the alle- 

 viation of neighborhood necessities 

 woven into the sympathies of the people, 

 that they preferred rather to see a min- 

 istry fall than yield to the governmental 

 demand for governmental direction of 

 charities. 



THE PAWNBROKING SHOPS ARE ADMINIS- 

 TERED BY THE MUNICIPALITIES 



Where else can one find an organiza- 

 tion similar to the Society of General 

 Welfare? This society, with a member- 

 ship taken from all classes, has for its 

 purpose the general advancement of 

 prosperity, and seeks to promote the in- 

 tellectual, moral, and social condition of 

 the people by fostering education, by en- 

 nobling their concept of life, by increas- 

 ing the earning capacity of the wage- 

 earner, and by enabling him to better 

 enjoy the fruits of his labor. In the hun- 

 dred and twenty years of its existence it 

 has spread abroad good, popular, and 

 cheap books, improved the schools, re- 

 warded deeds of valor, instituted popu- 

 lar lectures, and finally became such a 

 recognized instrument for good that the 

 government on more than one occasion- 

 sought the aid and advice of the society, 

 and its usefulness so appeals to the peo- 

 ple at large that one person out of four 

 hundred of the entire population is a 

 member. It is safe to say that in all the 

 world there is no charitable organization 

 that enjoys such a widespread member- 

 ship. 



Does any other country maintain by 

 private subscription colonies in which 

 poor families are placed and aided to 

 support themselves by cultivating a plot 

 of ground given them at a small rental? 

 Can any nation boast of pawn-broking 

 establishments created by law and ad- 

 ministered by the municipalities? And. 

 we would seek in vain for larger per 

 capita deposits in the postal savings bank 

 than we find in Holland. We can do> 

 well to repeat the words of Louis XIV : 

 "Have no fear for Amsterdam. I firmly 



