BOOK CL. Mountains Rivers. that the allied powers have consented to this, but diffi culties have arisen in the final settlement of the Belgian affairs and the choice of a sovereign, in consequence of the opposition expressed in Belgium to any member of the Nassau family occupying the throne, and the offence that may be given to the great powers of Europe in the object of their choice. A short time will decide a matter, it appears, intimately connected with the peace of the world. Let us now proceed with our description of the country. In Belgium the asperities of the ground are merely small mountains, so small indeed that they may well be considered simply hills: they belong to a group of the Alpine range which predominates in France, and which we have called the Franco-Celtic.* In like manner, those which extend into the grand dutchy of Luxemburg and province of Liege, are merely a prolongation of the chain to which we have formerly given the name of the Cevenno-Vosgian. The branch of the Ardennes, which belongs to the same chain, extends as far as Hainault, and the provinces of Namur and Limbourg. The Low Countries are, by the smallness of their rise above the level of the ocean, the rendezvous of several rivers which flow majestically across the sandy plains of this flat country. The Scheld, (L'Escaut) on quitting the French territory, crosses part of Hainault, forms on the east the boundary of West Flanders, divides East Flanders into two parts, and forms the line of demarcation between East Flanders and the Province of Antwerp. It then divides itself into two principal branches, which, in falling into the sea, form the islands that compose the province of Zealand. The Meuse, by the Belgians called Maas, takes its rise in Lorraine, and seven leagues from the frontiers of France, at the City of Namur, is joined by the Sambre; it then, after watering the provinces of Namur, of Liege, and of Limburg, separates North Brabant from Holland, and, uniting itself to the Waal or the Rhine, takes its course to the German Ocean. After this junction, a popular error gives the usurped name of the Maas or Meuse to the united CL, stream, proceeding upon the mistaken notion that the BOOK Waal or Rhine, the greater river, throws itself into the lesser river the Meuse; whilst it is the Waal, the principal arm of the Rhine, which carries into the ocean the united waters. Other arms less considerable assume the name of the Rhine, and disappear amidst the sands of Leyden and in the gulf of Zuydersee.* Marshes. In Belgium there is no lake of any importance: the Lakes and marsh called the Peel in the provinces of Limburg and Northern Brabant, covers a great extent of ground. tion. A geological examination of the different earths (terrains) Geological in Belgium shows us, in the most elevated part of it, viz, in constitu the mountains of the grand dutchy of Luxemburg, quarries of slate-stone which stretch towards the north, surrounded by granitic rocks, and above which there lie towards the east, as far as the banks of the Moselle, ancient limestone strata with organic remains; towards the west, on the contrary, descending towards Brussels, the schisti form a great basin filled with limestone and containing anthracites, the combustible of ancient earths, then sandstone, and lastly all kinds of rocks of carbonized earth. What is most remarkable about these deposits, thus bedded in the midst of the schisti from whence the slate is taken, is, that the rocks which compose them, in place of presenting themselves in inclined beds, rise vertically to the surface of the soil, and hence the immense coal-pits in the environs of Namur and Mons must be worked by means of shafts. What convulsions have not been necessary to give to these beds, originally horizontal, the disposition which they now present? whether we seek the cause of this disorder in frightful sinkings of the ground, or in heavings of the earth proceeding from the terrible action of subterraneous fires? Above the deposits embedded with the schisti, other deposits less ancient, which the chalky formation mixed with clay and sand belonging to the upper sediments covers, stretch themselves over the greater part of the Low Countries, from the frontiers of France to the mouth of the Ems; while the more ancient earths occupy, in a line which may be traced * See p. 657 of this vol. BOOK CL. Configura soil of Flanders. from Tournay to Maestricht, all the country extending as far as the Moselle. This country is furrowed by a great number of valleys tion of the and dales. This irregularity of ground,' says a Belgian savant, the existence of a multitude of small streams, and the mixture of naked rocks with meadows, of arable lands and small forests, give it a very picturesque appearance; but, as is the case in almost every country where the primordial earths predominate, the soil is unfertile, with the exception, however, of parts situated to the north of the Sambre and the Meuse, over which moveable deposits of secondary earths have spread themselves; so that agricultural and mineral riches are there found united; which has led to the remark, that the miner and the mineralogist, accustomed to inhabit barren mountains, were astonished to find themselves, in Hainault, in the midst of plains covered with a brilliant vegetation, and where cultivation is carried to the highest pitch of perfection.' The same observer has remarked, that, on the right bank of the Meuse, the disposition of the valleys presents two distinct modifications. Some of these valleys are straight, wide, of little depth, bordered with gently sloping rising grounds, and inclining from north-east to south-west; but they are crossed by valleys of greater depth, irregular, inclining in every direction, and serving as beds to rivers: a disposition arising from the geological constitution of the country. The other valleys have no affinity with the nature of the soil: they have not made their way across the hard rocks, and have been stopped by aranaceous deposits. They appear to demonstrate that the excavation of valleys cannot be attributed to the erosive action of water, but to the disruptions that have taken place in the hardest rocks, of which the waters have profited to make themselves a passage. Mines. The quartzeous rocks, and those which contain amphibole and form strata in the midst of slaty earth, constitute an important branch of quarrying for the paving of roads: in the earth which contains anthracites is found that great *Memoires pour servir a la description geologique des Pays-Bas, de la France,' by M. J. J. d'Omalius d'Halloy. variety of marbles, constituting one of the mineral riches of the low countries, and especially that species which derives from the numerous remains of marine organized bodies the name of small granite (petit granite). The same earth contains in abundance rich mineral ores of iron and lead, and gives birth to the celebrated thermal waters (hot springs) of Chaudfontaine near Liege. Amidst the schistous rocks on the right bank of the Meuse, a country barren or covered with forests, there are quarried those whetstones which are sent to every part of Europe, and those schisti charged with alum which are sold under the name of carpenters' pencils; in fine, from a slaty soil proceed the mineral waters of Spa, which have acquired in Europe so great celebrity. BOOK CL. vation. In regard to climate, the provinces of Belgium differ from Climate each other chiefly in their being subject to a greater or les- and cultiser degree of humidity. In the dutchy of Luxemburg, the climate is healthy and temperate, more moist than cold. The oak, the ash, and the beech, bear sway in the beautiful forests of this province; horned cattle find abundant pasturage; a species of the vine is cultivated, which produces an indifferent wine; fruit-trees are rare; wheat succeeds with difficulty; but the inhabitants derive great advantage from the cultivation of rye and oats, and particularly the potato. In the province of Liege the atmosphere is often hazy; its valleys, fertile and well cultivated, especially that watered by the Ourthe and the Embleve, yield, in addition to the productions of Luxemburg, wheat of excellent quality; and its territory is equally rich with the other in forests, in game, in swine, and horned cattle. The air of the province of Namur is sharp and healthy; the soil, extremely various, readily admits of cultivation; the sheep have a finer wool, and their flesh is much more succulent, than in the two other provinces. In Hainault an air equally healthy is breathed; they enjoy a climate equally temperate; the same fertility is observable, and the forests, although more scattered, produce timber excellent for carpentry-work. and East Flanders lie under the influence of a humid climate which frequently gives rise to dangerous fevers; the summer is hot but rainy, and the winter cold; the north-west BOOK CL. winds often render in West Flanders the winter formidable, by the inundations which they occasion. Both these provinces rear horses, too dull, indeed, for riding, but well adapted for the draught. The other domestic animals are remarkable for their excellent condition, and for this they are indebted to their good pasturage. The plants which succeed best in Flanders are tobacco, hemp, madder, and, above all, flax, the principal riches of the country. Destitute of forests, but possessing abundance of turf, they make great use of this as fuel. The provinces of South and North Brabant, and Antwerp, are healthy, although moist; and the soil is particularly fertile, excepting in the northern part of North Brabant, where brushwood and forests of pine still cover some sandy wastes, where the turf accumulates at the bottom of deep bogs. Yet, doubtless, here, as has been done in the territory of Antwerp, incessant labour might transform useless plains into fruitful meadows. Limbourg, no less marshy, cultivates to great advantage the rearing of cattle and bees. The province of North Brabant, noticed here from its immediate proximity to South Brabant, belongs to the kingdom of Holland. In general, it may be remarked,* with regard to the agriculture of the Netherlands, that it has long been distinguished both for its productiveness and variety; and that the excellence of the Flemish system of manuring, their disuse of fallows, and skill in the rearing of cattle, have been noticed and recommended by the most experienced British agriculturists. The farms in East and West Flanders are in extent commonly about ten, and seldom exceed twenty hectares, while, in what are called the Walloon Provinces, they are usually from two to three hundred hectares. The industry of the Flemings, without the use of the wheel plough or strong English harrow, has within two hundred years converted a tract of land, originally a barren and sandy heath, into a rich and beautiful garden; and the produce of wheat here is often not less than 32 bushels to two of * The Editors beg to notice that, for most of what follows regarding the agriculture, manufactures, &c, of the Belgian States, they are indebted to a very able article in the Foreign Quarterly Review,' No. X, Vol. v. A hectare is equal to two and a-half English acres. |