ddle of Ysselmonde to be twenty
feet below the level of the Maas, four series of operations would be
required to lift the water. The central portion is enclosed by a dike,
with a _ringsloot_, or canal, outside of it. The windmills raise the
water five feet. Outside of this, as the level of the land rises,
another canal and ditch are made, and the water is lifted another five
feet; and the process is repeated until the water is finally discharged
into the river. The ditches which separate the different tracts of land
are used as highways, for conveying the harvest to market, the
difference of level being overcome by locks. Of course the character of
these works depends upon the formation of the land.

"The soil of the polders thus drained is remarkably rich and productive.
The two chief exports of Holland are butter and cheese, the low lands
furnishing excellent pasturage for cattle.

"In the service of the government is a special corps of engineers,
called _Waterstaat_, who are employed in watching the waters and the
dikes, and in guarding against any breaking of the latter. In the winter
time, which is the period of the greatest peril to the dikes, these men,
many of whom are gentlemen of the highest scientific culture, are
stationed near the places where danger is apprehended. Buildings
containing all the necessary materials and tools for repairing the
embankments are provided, and, indeed, all precautions which skill, and
science, and care can bring are at hand; for the safety of the country
depends upon these structures.

"The coat of arms of one of the Dutch provinces is a lion swimming,
having this motto: _Luctor et emergo_, 'I strive and keep my head above
water,' which seems to be the whole business of the Dutch people,
figuratively and literally. If you visit the great dike of the Helder,
as I hope you will, you may stand on the low land within it, and hear
the thunder of the sea, as it beats against the dike, fifteen feet
higher than your head.

"The canals of Holland serve a triple purpose. They are the highways of
the country, they drain the land, and they serve as fences. You travel
all over the region in the canals, and all the productions are conveyed
upon them. The roads are for the most part built on the tops of the
dikes, but they are not solid enough to permit their use by
heavily-loaded wagons. Many of them are paved with bricks, on account of
their spongy nature, which answers very well for the