Holland was once a quagmire, almost covered with water; but by making
canals higher than the land, and pumping the water out of the fields
into them, the land was drained. The bogs are numerous, and supply so
much turf that little else is burned. There are no beggars; and the
people are in general pretty warmly clothed, and comfortable looking,
with ruddy faces. The townspeople are dressed almost like the
Londoners, or Parisians; but the costume of the country folks is
rather funny. A farmer's wife, when out for a holiday, wears a large
kind of gipsy hat, like a small umbrella, lined with damask; a close
jacket with long flaps; and full short thick coloured petticoats. Her
slippers are yellow, her stockings blue, and her cap is without a
border, being made to fit her head exactly, and gaily ornamented with
gold filagree clasps; while her costume is finished by a pair of
earrings and a necklace. The farmer himself wears a hat without a rim,
and huge silver buttons on his coat; and keeps whiffing away at his
pipe, which he is seldom without. The Dutch are most excellent
gardeners, though they sometimes ruin themselves by their love for
flowers.

Among the articles that have been sent here from Switzerland, are
several well worth looking at, they are so wonderfully ingenious. Of
this kind are two boxes, one of white wood, and the other of brown;
the white has a lovely Alpine rose, with garlands of flowers upon the
sides, the rose and lid being cut out of one piece of wood, and so
beautifully made to imitate nature, that the slightest touch with the
point of a knife or a needle, makes the leaves move and quiver without
spoiling the flower. This was made by a Swiss peasant. The people of
Switzerland are very remarkable for their industry, contentment, and
ingenuity.