Page:The grand tour in the eighteenth century by Mead, William Edward.djvu/68

 is so gentle that a person is all the way as if he were in a house."

Even minor towns were well served. Note a single instance: "The boat that passes between Brussels and Villebroeck is extremely commodious: the passengers may be accommodated with meat and drink."

For going from Amsterdam to Antwerp and Brussels three or four gentlemen accompanied by ladies might hire a yacht at Rotterdam for from seven to ten guilders a day and see the country with entire independence. They could take servants with them to cook their food and look after the baggage; they could sleep in good beds on the boat, and be more comfortable than at an inn. "If they have a mind, they may stop by the way to see Dort or Bergen-op-Zoom, or some of the towns of Zealand." The chief inconvenience from this sort of travel arose in hot weather, when the nearly stagnant water in the canals became covered with green scum and exhaled a noisome stench.