“Now, I suppose you will want to go to mamma,” he said, soon afterwards; and giving them each a gold coin, added, “Keep these to remember me by, and you can tell your friends that the King of Holland gave them to you.”
The children were perfectly amazed, and could not speak their thanks properly; but of this the king took no notice. He led them to the entrance on the street, and then kindly said, “Good by.”
Mr. and Mrs. Hyde, who had become quite anxious over their long delay, were much relieved to see the children come safely home just before tea-time. They were quite as much astonished, by the account of the visit, as our young folks had supposed they would be.
Tea, on the balcony, and some quiet music in the evening, finished up the day; and when the tired children sought their pillows, they quickly fell asleep.
CHAPTER VI.
A DUTCH CITY.
It would take too long to mention all the sights seen and famous places visited by the travellers in Gravenhaag.
They were admitted to the palace of the Prince of Orange, and saw his famous collection of paintings and chalk drawings. They went over the Binnenhof, which is a collection of ancient stone buildings, containing a handsome Gothic hall, and the prison in which Grotius and Barneveldt were confined, the churches, synagogues, and the royal library, and walked on the Voorhout, a beautiful promenade, with a fine, wide road lined with shade trees and furnished with benches, to the Bosch, a finely wooded park belonging to the King of Holland. In its centre, reached by winding walks among the trees and beautiful lakes, stands the Huys in den Bosch—house in the wood—the king’s summer palace.