198 Hans Brinker

XXIV

THE BELEAGUERED CITIES

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“ HIS open square before us,” said Lambert, as he and

Ben walked on together, “is pretty in summer, with
its shady trees. They call it the Ruine. Years ago it was
covered with houses; and the Rapenburg Canal, here, ran
through the street. Well, one day a barge loaded with forty
thousand pounds of gunpowder, bound for Delft, was lying
alongside; and the bargemen took a notion to cook their
dinner on the deck; and, before any one knew it, sir, the
whole thing blew up, killing lots of persons, and scattering
about three hundred houses to the winds.”

“ What!” exclaimed Ben. ‘Did the explosion destroy
three hundred houses?”

“ Yes, sir. My father was in Leyden at the time. He says
it was terrible. The explosion occurred just at noon, and was
like a volcano. All this part of the town was on fire in an
instant, buildings tumbling down, and men, women and chil-
dren groaning under the ruins. The king himself came to the
city, and acted nobly, father says, staying out in the streets all
night, encouraging the survivors in their efforts to arrest the
fire, and rescue as many as possible from under the heaps of
stone and rubbish. Through his means, a collection for the
benefit of the sufferers was raised throughout the kingdom,
besides a hundred thousand guilders paid out of the treasury.