xhibition; furs, lace, machinery, corn,
books, furniture, and metals.

Belgium was formerly called Flanders, and the people produced superior
cloth, hats, cutlery, and other useful things, a very great many years
before the English could make any thing better than the most common
sort of goods. The Belgians are still celebrated for their ingenuity
in making toys, lace, cloth, silk, satin, velvet, and other useful
articles. They are also famous for the culture of flowers, in which
they excel even the Dutch. Every house has a garden attached, which is
frequently surrounded by a moat. The country is small, but every part
of the land is made fertile by the industry of the farmers, of whom
there are a great number; many of them grow flax, which is woven into
linen by the women. There is a weekly market for linen, held at Ghent,
whither the peasantry carry their products for sale, and both men and
women may be seen standing in two long lines, with benches before
them.

The farms in Belgium are cultivated with great care and attention, and
much resemble the market gardens round London; they all have gardens,
and grow an ample supply of fruit and vegetables. The food of the
peasants, is rye-bread and milk, for breakfast and supper; potatoes
and onions, with bacon and beer, for dinner; they eat off pewter; and
although their fare is simple, it is good and plentiful. Their dress
is somewhat coarse, but it is neat and clean, the men wear blue linen
frocks; and the women have printed cotton gowns, linen caps, and
woollen petticoats.

The towns and villages of Belgium are numerous, and thickly peopled.
Brussels, the capital, is a fine city, and is celebrated for its
manufactures, particularly for lace, camlet, and carpets. Ten thousand
people are employed there in making lace. It is also famous for its
pottery and porcelain. The other articles made there, are cotton and
woollen stuffs, silk stockings, and earthenware. The carriages built
there, are superior to even those of London or Paris; there is a
specimen of Belgian carriages at the Exhibition.

There are numerous silk manufactories in Brussels; and the beautiful
linen, called damask, is exported in great quantities. There are
innumerable breweries, too; for no people in the world are so fond of
drinking beer as the Belgians. The people carry on a considerable
trade with foreign countries, by means of the various canals, on which
a vast number of steam-boats are constantly