Children of Holland (1948)

in holland and on the van wyck farm the children are giving the chickens their breakfast the boy's name is hendrick van wyk and this is sister ani father has milked the cows and is getting the milk ready for market while mother van wyk is making the beds cupboard beds built into the wall and hidden by and it will soon be time for their breakfast too come to eat mother says yeah yes says hendrick wooden shoes must be left outside hendrick and ani and father two enter the house in their stocking feet now for a breakfast of bread and butter and cheese of cold roast beef and hot tea but first father says a silent grace mother cuts huge slices of bread for father and hendrick and ani ani pours out tea for everyone tea to drink with the bread and butter the cheese and the meat that make up the breakfast on the van wyck farm hendrick archibald offers father tells the children they're going to middleburg tomorrow this is good news a trip to town it will be good news too for uncle willem van wyk who runs this grain mill in the village nearby hendrick and ani on their way to school are going to call on uncle villam to see if there's anything he would like from middleburg and barry's uncle villam now coming from the mill to shake out a flower bag [Music] some tobacco or cigars would be nice says uncle villam and now while the great sails of the mill turn round and round outside hendrick and ani take a few minutes to go inside the mill to watch oklahoma at work first he hoists a sack of grain to the upper part of the mill and now clump clump up the old wooden stairs in his noisy wooden shoes up to empty a sack of grain into the grinding machinery down it goes slowly down toward the mill wheels where the grain is ground into flour wooden gears creak round and round turning the wheels below as uncle willem examines the grain just as he has done for years and years grain that has come from the fields nearby grain that the mill will grind into flower as the sails go round in the but now hendrick and ani must hurry off to the village school must hurry to join other children from the village and from the farms they come along the village street and up through the yard to the school and on through the door with morning greetings for their teacher they are having a lesson in geography and the teacher will ask some questions let us see what the first question will be what country is this he asks everyone seems to know the answer to this neighbor the netherlands says the class the netherlands that is another name for the little country which we call holland another question and this time hendrick volunteers but the teacher calls on ani bill cloth is it ani did send their friends from the frame of the starting from america recess and games in the schoolyard this game looks familiar and hendrick seems to play it very well the girls form a circle for ring around a rosie round and round they dance some enclose of an old old style and some in styles that are modern some wear caps of fancy lace and some wear bows of ribbon some of the girls wear wooden shoes but more wear shoes of leather now in the afternoon lessons are over for the day and no more school till monday out of the yard they go and down the village street bicycles and more bicycles as the children return to their homes saturday and time for the trip to middleburg the big baskets of eggs will be sold at the city market over her neatly combed hair ani wears her finest lace cap father is dressed up too and ani sees to it that mother's coral necklace is just exactly right for all the van wyks must look their very best fancy jewelry isn't worn every day father takes great pride in his silver buckles and his gold watch and chain time to start all is ready horse and wagon and span for the journey stand in front of the neat van wyck home mother and children climb up to their places now father takes the driver's seat and out the lane they go goodbye to hans the farm hand duh duh goodbye says hans through the farm gate and down the road that leads to middleburg an hour later and the family are passing along the main canal of the town they wait while a bridge is opened to allow a boat to pass down the canal then joining automobiles carts and trucks the bicycles and wagons the family cross over the bridge that leads toward the market and the old town square of middleburg in the square is the fine old city hall built hundreds of years ago the bells in the tower ring out across the square out over the market stalls where large quantities of butter and eggs and cheese and many products of the town are bought and sold millions and millions of eggs are sold by the farmers of holland the buyer puts the eggs in a large box and keeps a careful count henrik and his father have not forgotten knuckle villains cigars a large sign cigaren shows that this door will be able to fill uncle villam's request and by the time mother has sold the eggs the father and hendrick have bought the cigars now order again for a look around the square even though they live only six miles away it may be a long time before hendrick and ani come into town again they want to see all they can [Music] and now with the sound of the bells still reminding them of the square they start for home down the road along the canal the way they came and they are soon turning in at the gate once more home again with supplies from town toward evening hendrick finds time to look over lamps he bought in town to as collection ani has already started a sweater with woolen yarn she bought and willem called for his cigars he wasn't disappointed the least bit he reads his newspaper and puffs contentedly while he waits with hendrick and ani for the dinner that mother is preparing in the kitchen father works in the garden trimming flowers not until late does evening fall longs and farm lands while the great sails of the windmills turn winds that drift across the level lands of holland