Dutch Life in Town and Country | Page 7

a stickler for
etiquette or a lover of display than Queen Emma has proved to be. So
there is a probability that their daughter will also be satisfied with very
limited show, and if Prince Henry be wise, he will not interfere with the
Queen's inclinations. He is said to be 'horsy,' but the same may be said
of her, though as yet her 'horsiness' has not become an absorbing
passion, nor is it likely to be.
It is said also that she abhors music; but as long as she, as Queen, does
not transfer her abhorrence from the art to the artists, no harm will be
done. The facts are that, simple as her tastes are, she does not impose
her simplicity upon others. When she presides at State dinners or at
Court dinners, she is entirely the grande dame, but when she is allowed
to be wholly herself, in a small, quiet circle, she is praised by every one,

low or high, who has been favoured with an invitation to the royal table,
for her natural and unaffected manners, her urbanity, and her gentle
courtesy.

Chapter III
The Professional Classes

The professional classes of Holland show their characteristics best in
the social circle in which they move and find their most congenial
companionships. Imagine, then, that we are the guests of the charming
wife of a successful counsel ('advocaat en procureur')--Mr. Walraven,
let us call him--settled in a large and prosperous provincial town. She is
a typical Dutch lady, with bright complexion, kind, clear blue eyes,
rather dark eyebrows, which give a piquant air to the white and pink of
the face, and a mass of fair golden hair, simply but tastefully arranged,
leaving the ears free, and adorning but not hiding the comely shape of
the head. She wears a dark-brown silk dress, covered with fine Brussels
lace around the neck, at the wrists, along the bodice, and here and there
on the skirt. A few rings glitter on her fingers, and her hands are
constantly busy with a piece of point lace embroidery; for many Dutch
ladies cannot stand an evening without the companionship of a
'handwerkje,' as fancy-needlework is called. It does not in the least
interfere with their conversational duties. She is rather tall. Dutch men
and women seem to have all sizes equally distributed amongst them; it
cannot be said that they are a short people, like the French and the
Belgians, nor can the indication of middle size be so rightly applied to
them as to their German neighbours, whereas the taller Anglo-Saxons
can frequently find their match in the Netherlands.
The room in which we are seated is furnished in so-called 'old Dutch
style.' My friend and his wife have collected fine old wainscots,
sideboards and cupboards of richly carved oak in Friesland and in the
Flemish parts of Belgium. Their tables and chairs are all of the same
material and artistically cut. A very dark, greenish-grey paper covers
the walls; the curtains, the carpet, and the doors are in the same slightly

sombre shades. Venetian mirrors, Delft, Chinese and Rouen china
plates, arranged along the walls, over the carved oak bench, and on the
over-mantel, make delightful patches of bright colour in the room, and
the easy-chairs are as stylish as they are comfortable.
Our visit has fallen in the late autumn, and the gas burns bnghtly in the
bronze chandelier, while the fire in the old-fashioned circulating stove,
a rare specimen of ancient Flemish design, makes the room look cosy
and hospitable. For the moment our friend the lawyer is absent. He has
been called away to his study, for a client has come to see him on
urgent business, and we are left in the gracious society of his wife in
the comfortable sitting-room. On the table the Japan tray, with its silver
teapot, sugar-basin, milk-jug and spoon-box of mother-of-pearl and
crystal, and its dark-blue real China cups and saucers, enjoys the
company of two silver boxes, on silver trays, full of all sorts of
'koekjes' (sweet biscuits). Many Dutch families like to take a 'koekje'
with their tea, tea-time falling in Holland between 7 and 8 o'clock,
half-way between dinner at 5 or 6 p.m. and supper at 10 or 11 p.m. A
cigar-stand is not wanting, nor yet dainty ash-trays; while by the side of
our hostess is an old-fashioned brass 'komfoor,' or chafer,[Footnote:
Komfoor (or _kaffoor_) and chafer are etymologically the same word,
derived from the Latin califacere. The French member of the family is
chauffoir.] on a high foot, so that within easy reach of the lady's hand is
the handle of the brass kettle, in which the 'theewater' is boiling.
Conversation turns from politics and literature to the ball to which my
hostess,