The breweries and distilleries in Holland are numerous and extensive. Delft, Gouda, and Muyden, are particularly celebrated for their beer. The beer made in Delft is chiefly consumed in that place and the adjacent country. In the 15th century, the town of Gouda had 350 breweries, from which Zealand and a great part of Flanders were fur nished with beer. In 1518, they had decreased to 159; in the year 1522, there were 153 ; in 1588, there were 126 ; and in the year 1803, there were only two. These, how ever, make beer of excellent quality ; imitating London porter with tolerable success. If, however, it is drank out of the cask, it is very inferior ; but after it has been in bottles for some time, its taste is nearly as agreeable as London bottled porter, from which it is difficult to distin guish it. Muyden for good beer, called Flemish physic. The distillation of ardent spirits is the sole mann facture which has increased in Holland. In 1775, there were at Scheidain, particularly noted for its Geneva, 120 distilleries ; in the year 1792, 220 ; and in the whole pro vince of Holland 400; each of these distilleries yielded an nually 4492 ankers or gin. The whole distilleries of the seven provinces would produce annually 2,152,672 ankers; but the want of grain renders it necessary to reduce this quantity one-third, which leaves 1,400,000 ankers, of which 456,000 are consumed in the country, and the re mainder exported.
There are a great number of sawing mills in Holland, particularly in the vicinity of Rotterdam. They are lofty and rather pleasing objects, the mill generally rising from the top of a substantial building two or three stories high. Sonic of them are painted in a whimsical taste, and others adorned with grotesque figures. During the flourishing state of Holland, Saarditm, where Peter the Great acquired a practical knowledge of the art of ship-building, derived great wealth from that trade ; but it is now almost annihi lated.
The miscellaneous manufactures of Holland, not yet enumerated, most of which, however, are confined to Am sterdam, are stuffs embroidered with gold and silver, damasks, brocades, mohair, silk, &c. and particularly the preparation of drugs for dyeing, painting, and medicine, such as camphor, vermilion, sulphur, borax, lapis lazuli ; likewise pitch, tar, rosin, spermaceti, &c. The oil mills are numerous. The cordage made in Holland is very good; and Dutch paper, particularly cartridge paper, is still ex ported in very great quantities, even to England, though we now rival or excel them in the manufacture of fine writing paper. The preparation of diamonds, that is, the cut ting, polishing, and grinding of them, is confined to Am sterdam, where many artists are employed for that purpose. The manufacture of skates is also of some consequence in Holland.
The United Provinces were formerly pre-eminent in commerce ; and the province of Holland, from its greater extent, population, and riches, as well as from its possess ing near all the sea-ports, enjoyed nearly the whole of thig commerce. Long before the French Revolution, however, the trade of the United Provinces had begun to decline; and the circumstances of that tremendous event may be said to have utterly annihilat,W the commerce of Holland. While it lasted, it was card% on principally with France, England, Spain, and Portugal, the Levant and Mediterra nean states, Russia, Sweden, and Denmark ; and with Ger many, by means of the Elbe, the Ems, the Weser, the Rhine, and the Meuse. The inland trade with Germany,
by the canals and the Rhine, is almost the only branch which has escaped the ravages of war. Of this, the most remarkable feature consists in the vast floats of timber which arrive at Dort from Andernach and other places on the Rhine. The length of these rafts is from 700 to 1000 feet ; the breadth from 50 to 90 ; and 500 labourers direct them, living in a village of timber huts erected on the rafts for their reception. The navigation is conducted with the strictest regularity. On their arrival at Dort, the sale of one raft occupies several months, and frequently pro duces upwards of 30,000 pounds sterling. The commerce of Holland was either transit or direct. The articles of direct commerce were supplied either by her agriculture, such as butter, cheese, &c. or by her manufactures, as prepared drugs for medicine, dyeing, &c. linen, woollen cloth, paper, &c. ; or they were supplied by her East India possessions and her fisheries. In return, Holland received either what was necessary for her own consumption, par ticularly corn, or those articles which she again distributed over the rest of Europe. In the year 1807, nearly one million pounds of silk were imported into England from Italy through the medium of Ilolland.
The province of Holland is extremely populous ; per haps more so than any other part of Europe. In the year 1515, it contained only 45,000 houses. In the year 1732, the number of houses was increased to 163,462. De Witt, in his work on the true interests of Holland, informs us, that, in the year 1622, the States lAid a poll tax upon all inhabitants, none excepted hut strangers, prisoners, and vagrants, and those that were on the other side of the line ; yet were there found in all South Holland no more than 481,934, although the instructions of the commissioners appointed for that purpose were very strict. The follow Mg are the particulars, as registered in the Chamber of Accounts : 481,934 De Witt supposes that West Friesland, or North Hol land, might have the fourth part of the inhabitants of South Holland, or 120,483, which, added to 481,934, would give 602,417 as the total population of the province of Holland in the year 1622. This, however, in the opinion of De Witt, was far below the truth,and he raises the num ber to 2,400,000. This must be an exaggeration ; and it is given here, only for the purpose of adding De Witt's calculation of the proportions of this number engaged in different employments : according to him, 450,000 were employed, directly or indirectly, in the fisheries : 200,002 were supported by agriculture, inland-fishing, herding, hay-making, turf-making, and by furnishing materials for these operations : 650,000 in manufactures : 250,000 in na vigation and trade: 650,000 in miscellaneous employments; and 200,000 gentry, magistrates, soldiers, &c. In the year 1732, the population of Holland certainly did not exceed 980,000. In the year 1796, an estimate of the population of the Seven United Provinces was made by order of the National Assembly, which we shall give entire, for the purpose of comparing the population of Holland with that of the other provinces.