ABSTRACT
The catholics, although a substantial portion of the population, were slower to partake in the process of nation-building. In 1587 the Roman catholics still formed nine-tenths of the population of the province of Holland. At a rough guess, in 1609, the numbers of protestants and catholics were equal. The number of catholics continued to decrease rapidly, for great inducements were held out to encourage a change of religion. A special and highly commendable brand of patriotism associated with a remarkably intense regionalism, the age-long subordination of political to religious issues. The alternative is indifference to the common weal or, in other words, fascism. The party is the golden mean between compulsory uniformity and anarchism. Realism has probably by now become more than a trait in the Dutch character. It is so ingrained that it affects their whole outlook upon life.
