"I have lived here all my life," Philippe answered. He then added timidly, "If you would like me to take you around the city after lunch I could show you many interesting sights. There are few places I do not know in Brussels."
"An excellent plan," cried the Englishman.
[Ill.u.s.tration: PLACE DE BRUGeRE, BRUSSELS]
Then he told his friend, the American, what the Belgian boy had offered to do.
"Good!" said the American in English. "And I hope he knows as much about cities as he does about food. For then we shall find our minds stuffed as full as our stomachs!"
Chapter VI
PHILIPPE ACTS AS GUIDE
Philippe was a very good guide. He had learned much through his reading.
Now he was able to show his new friends many interesting sights in Brussels. Also, he knew stories about all of them.
Brussels has been called "Paris in Little." This is because it is beautiful like Paris, with boulevards, similar buildings, and lovely parks. They pa.s.sed avenues shaded by fine old lime trees. They admired statues and fountains all over the city.
Philippe led the two gentlemen to the palace of the King. The little Brussels boy pointed out a long stately building which stands just opposite a fine park.
"So this is the palace of good King Albert!" remarked the English gentleman. "He is considered a great ruler."
"He is," smiled Philippe, "and we love him."
Then the boy continued seriously, "But we Belgians and even King Albert do not like the idea of a kingdom."
"No?" inquired the Englishman, in a surprised tone.
"You know Englishmen are very true to their King."
"Yes, I have read in my books that they are," replied Philippe. "But we have good reasons for continuing with a monarchy. First, because of our love for King Albert, and then because we are afraid that without our kingdom we should split up. And you know that our motto is "In union there is strength.""
"But why do you fear being split up, as you say?" inquired the Englishman.
"Because," answered Philippe, "on one side of us is France, a republic; on the other side is Germany, also a republic. We Belgians are very close to both these countries because of many things. We are like them in many ways and we trade with them. We fear that without our King to hold us together we might become part of these countries. And we are very patriotic. We never want to be anything but Belgian!"
The little fellow stood and saluted the flag, which was flying from the palace.
"See! The flag!" said Philippe, pointing to the red, yellow, and black colors fluttering in the breeze. "I can tell you about that, also, if you would like me to do so."
"Certainly," replied the Englishman. Then he turned to his friend, the American, and said, "The little chap is just full of stories."
"That may be," replied the friend, "but I do not understand a word. It all sounds like Chinese to me!"
"Wait," laughed the Englishman. "I shall translate them to you later."
So Philippe told about his flag.
"The black in the flag is the King"s color," said he. "It stands for constancy, wisdom, and prudence. The yellow stands for law and order.
And red is for Belgium"s liberty, fought for and obtained by the blood of her soldiers."
As they walked along the shady streets the English gentleman explained to his friend all that Philippe had said. The American nodded his head understandingly.
"That is very interesting," he said. "I do not blame the Belgians for being loyal to their King. They have good reasons."
[Ill.u.s.tration: PALACE OF THE KING, BRUSSELS]
"I am sure you would like to visit Waterloo," suggested Philippe. "I need not tell you the story of Waterloo," he smiled, "for everybody who has ever studied history knows about that."
But those who have not yet studied history may want to know that it is a famous battlefield where many wars were fought. The most famous of the battles was the struggle between the Duke of Wellington, who commanded the English army, and Napoleon Bonaparte who led the French.
When Philippe and his new friends had looked about for a while, the American gentleman remarked, "So this is where Napoleon met his Waterloo!"
It was here that Napoleon was conquered! That is why we still use the expression "met his Waterloo" when we mean to say "was defeated."
[Ill.u.s.tration: BRUSSELS HAS MANY FINE BOULEVARDS]
Philippe showed them the "Mound of the Lion," that great pyramid-shaped monument on the battlefield.
"It was built after the Battle of Waterloo, in memory of the Prince of Orange," he explained. "It is as large as a city block. The huge lion on the top is made of metal from captured French cannons. You know that the lion is the emblem of Belgium. The mound was built almost entirely by women who carried the dirt in pails."
Driving back to the city, the Englishman remarked, "It seems to me that tea time is approaching."
The little boy knew how important tea time is to Englishmen. So he suggested an excellent cafe where they might sit outside and watch the people.
While they were eating, Philippe explained to the Englishman how he loved to read. He told of his interest in the stories of his land.
"Then you do not want to be a chef some day like your father?" asked the gentleman.
Philippe shook his head.
"I want to do great things," he answered. "To travel, to have adventures."
The Englishman smiled.
"That is very natural," he remarked. He told his friend, the American, what the boy had said. His friend laughed.
"That sounds like an American boy," he said. "Ask him what he wants to do."
The Englishman asked Philippe this question.
The boy answered, "Oh, I should like to go to Antwerp (=ant"-we~rp=) and Ghent (=gent=) and see the sights of Belgium, because I know so many stories about everything."
He then told them about his wandering friends, Tom and Zelie.