[Sidenote: II 274] [Sidenote: II 277] The “Moddermolen” (mud mill) or “Moddermolenschip” was already found in the first half of the XVIIth century, as the forerunner of the “Baggermolen” (bucket or ladder dredge). This dredge was worked by hand at first; later on horses were used for this purpose. (~Le Comte~, p. 6, and ~Witsen~.) A horsepower and a stable were built on the deck. In the XVIIIth century, says ~Le Comte~, the old “Moddermolen” was already so perfected that it was imagined that there was nothing more to improve. Navigation, however, kept calling for greater and greater depths, so that the Kater Brothers, dredge builders at Monnikendam, were led to build, in 1829, a boat which dredged down to a depth of 7 metres. From three to six horses were used, according to the depth and compactness of the materials to be dredged. These same builders, says ~Le Comte~ at another place, were the inventors of the “Klepschouwen”, for which they asked the concession on May 1, 1830. ~Le Comte~ gives an engraving of these dredges in plate 12 of his work. ~J. C. Kerkmeijer~ relates, in an article of the _Eigenhaard_ Review (1906), entitled “De Diep-of Baggermolen, een merkwaardige ontdekking”, that he had found the model of the dredge built by its inventor in 1632, a model which is mentioned by ~C. A. Abbing~, in his continuation of the _Chronicle of Hoorn_, by ~Veluis~ (1841, p. 12), wherein it is stated: “About this time (1632) Jan Jantz Nieng, a native-born citizen of this town (~Hoorn~), invented the ‹diepmolens›. The first model, made by him, was 2 feet 6½ inches long, 9 inches broad and 6½ inches high; the measurements being taken over all.” This model was still to be seen at the city shops at Hoorn a few years ago. The model found by Mr. Kerkmeijer was carefully repaired by him and it is preserved at the city hall of the town. Thanks to the kind assistance of this author, a few details can still be given in regard to the “Moddermolen” of Middelbourg, called “Dieplust”. These details were received from the chief of the Kool ship yard of this town. The “Dieplust” extracted the mud by means of a trough with low straight sides, lined at its lower end with iron. When the boat was moved, by means of a cable attached to an anchor, the lower end of the trough entered into the mud as far as it could. The ladder of the dredge was suspended inside of the trough and to its endless chain were fastened pieces of plank of about the same width as that of the trough. These pieces of plank tumbling around a hexagonal or octagonal drum at the lower end worked down into the mud of which they brought up a certain quantity and discharged it through a hole at the top of the trough. There was no question yet of buckets to bring up the dredged materials, these having only made their appearance with steam dredges.