The Government of Amsterdam is in a Senate, consisting of sixty-three Persons, who hold their Places for Life; and when any one dies, ’tis the Senate that appoints his Successor: In this Body there are twelve Burgomasters, of whom four preside annually. They chuse three out of the twelve every Year, who with one of the four of the last
Year, that continues in Office, have the Direction of Affairs. These latter, before they enter into their Office, are obliged to take an Oath to the senior Burgomasters. He who is continued from one Year to the other, has the Presidency for three Months, after which the others take it in their Turns; and they who go out of their[103]Office, are commonly employed as Treasurers of the City, or as Counselor-Deputies to the States of Holland, residing at the Hague.
The Office of Burgomaster is more honourable than profitable; for ’tis said, their Salary is only five hundred Florins per Annum: But their Authority is considerable; for they are the chief Magistrates, and in some Sort the Masters of the City. They dispose of all the public Money, and they alone judge of what is necessary for the Safety of the Town. They are the Guardians of the Bank, which can only be opened in the Presence of one of ’em. They confer all Offices, and may therewith gratify whom they will, and if they please, their own Children; so that, as in Germany, there needs but a Bishop in a decay’d Family to repair its Misfortunes, so here, if there be but a Burgomaster in a Family, ’tis enough to make ’em all easy.
There is also in this City a Bailiff, who is called Hoofd-Schout, or Hoofd-Officier, who is the same that is elsewhere called the Lieutenant of the Police. He has under him three Substitutes, who are called the Under-Schouts. These are they who
apprehend Malefactors, which they often do in the midst of a Mob, only accompanied with a Couple of Archers who have no other Arms but Swords. Yet every one trembles at the Sight of ’em, and two Men carry another to Prison, with more Ease than forty Archers can do the like at Paris.
The Senate meets in the Stadthouse. This Fabric, so much celebrated for its Magnificence, and because it contains the richest Bank in the Universe, is really a stately Edifice; and tho’ it has Defects, it may be ranked in the Number of the finest Buildings in Europe. It fronts a Square called the Dam, in the Centre of the City. The Building is almost a complete Quadrangle, with Pavilions at each Angle. In the middle of the principal Front there’s an advanced Building which takes up one third of the whole Front. ’Tis decorated by seven Porticos, so small that they disfigure all this great Pile of Building; which they pretend was not owing to the Ignorance of the Architect, but to a political Cause: For at the Time that this Stadthouse was built, the Republic was but in its Infancy. The Populace of Amsterdam, a turbulent Mob, ready for any Mischief, were then far less submissive to their Magistrates than now; and they so often disturbed those Magistrates in their Deliberations, that the Architect chose to make the Avenues so narrow, on purpose to prevent the Inconveniencies of too easy an Entrance by a Crowd of People. But if this was his true Reason for not keeping to the Rules of Architecture, three great Porticos would have done as well as seven small ones: He might have given them due Proportion, and the Front would have been more majestic. But the Number Seven was the chosen Number, and it was to represent the Seven United Provinces, to
whose Union the City of Amsterdam owes its Enjoyment of Liberty and Commerce. Notwithstanding this Defect, ’tis certain that a Foreigner, tho’ he will not offer to compare this Stadthouse to the Palace of Versailles, to the Escurial, or to the Procuraties at Venice; and tho’ when he looks on it, he may only think he sees a Town-house, and not the Palace of a King, or of a powerful State, yet he cannot behold it without Admiration, especially if he does but consider that every Material in this Building was brought from foreign Countries.
The Outside of this great Fabric is all of Free-stone, extremely well put together; and an Order of very substantial Pilasters ranges quite round the whole. The Part which projects from the principal Front, is terminated by a Pediment, which is a grand Piece of Sculpture. It represents the City of Amsterdam, under the Figure of Cybele, seated in a Chair. Four Naiads, and two Sea Nymphs, present her with Crowns of Palms, and Laurels, and Fruit, in token of the Power and Abundance which this City receives by Commerce. On the other Side, Neptune, accompanied by the Tritons, seems approaching to pay his Homage to the Goddess, undoubtedly to denote the Power of this City at Sea. All this magnificent Groupe is extremely well executed, and very much esteemed by the Connoisseurs. A Dome at the Top of this Edifice has eight great open Arches all round, which support the Cupola; and in this Dome there’s a Chime of Bells which the Lovers of such noisy Music say is very good Harmony.
The first Room within is the Chamber of Justice, wherein the Criminals receive their Sentence. It has three Porticos which open into the great Square, from whence may be seen what passes in that Chamber. This Room is adorned with Bas-Reliefs
of white Marble, done by excellent Hands. Solomon’s Judgment is there represented in such a grand Manner as is wonderful. Beyond this Chamber is the great Stair-case, which has no manner of Ornament, and little or no Light. It leads to the great Hall, which is really magnificent, but not very lightsome. It is adorned with Pilasters and Bas-Reliefs of white Marble, executed with infinite Art. The arch’d Roof, which is of Wood, and painted with Oil, is not answerable to the Richness of this Hall. Four great Coridors or Galleries, laid open by great Arches on both Sides, at the two Ends of the Hall, lead to the Apartments, and are adorned with white marble Pilasters two and two, Flowers in Bas-Relief, and Statues of a grand Disposition; and the Emblems with which the Gates are adorned, are all very suitable to the Business that is transacted in the Chamber to which they open.