Thanks to all those who chimed in on the "Dutchman" question.

I have heard that the  early "Dutch" settlers of the New World had a
reputation for being frugal. This was confirmed when I heard Brendan
Gill describing the early Dutch as being down right cheap on a PBS
series on New York City not to long ago(also,"going Dutch"on a date?).
This makes sense when you think of using a "Dutchman" repair to save
from replacing an entire stone unit. I have seen numerous beautifully
done original Dutchman way up high on old stone buildings. The cost in
time and transport of obtaining replacement units for ones that arrived
mangled on site or were damaged during setting was not accepatable,
especially when good masons were probably close at hand to make repairs.

I like the theory of the "Dutch Boy" plugging the hole in the dyke too.

Any place to find out about the number of stone masons working in NYC in
the late 19th century? Met History? Come on, you know this stuff in your
sleep.

Sincerely,

Nick Micros, Lurking less, and a little less ashamed.