[Illustration: Farmhouse Interior, showing the Linen-Press.]

The farmhouses in most parts of the country are neat and more or less of a
pattern, although they differ in minor details. Outside their appearance
is very quaint and picturesque, and the roofs are either thatched or
tiled. In Groningen they now hardly resemble farms. They are, indeed,
little country seats, and the interior is decidedly modern. Some of the
very poorest-looking houses are to be found in Overyssel and Drenthe.
These are built of clay, and stand halfway in the ground. The roofs are
covered with sods taken from the 'Drentsche Veengronden.' Some of these
'Plaggewoningen,' as they are called, are not more than twelve feet square
and eight feet high. The ceiling of the room inside the dwelling is only
four or five feet high, and above this the stores of hay and corn are
kept. A hole in the roof serves as chimney, and in the floor--which is
nothing but hard clay--a hole is dug to serve as fireplace. On the larger
farms in Overyssel the main building is generally divided into two parts.
The back part is for the cattle, which stand in rows on either side, with
a large open space in the centre, called the 'deel,' where the carts are
kept. A large arched double door leads into it, while the thatched roof
comes down low on either side. Leading from the 'deel,' or stable, into
the living-room is a small door, with a window to enable the inhabitants
to see what is going on among their friends of the fields. Against the
wall which forms the partition between the stable and living-room is the
fireplace. You will sometimes find an open fire on the floor, though in
the more modern houses stoves are used. The chimney-piece is in the shape
of a large overhanging hood with a flounce of light print 'Schoorsteenval'
round it, and a row of plates on a shelf above serves for ornament. The
much-prized linen-press, which has already been mentioned, is usually
placed at right-angles to the outer door, so as to form a kind of passage.