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diff --git a/old/67401-h/67401-h.htm b/old/67401-h/67401-h.htm deleted file mode 100644 index 55a3eed..0000000 --- a/old/67401-h/67401-h.htm +++ /dev/null @@ -1,19959 +0,0 @@ -<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Strict//EN" - "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-strict.dtd"> -<html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en"> - <head> - <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html;charset=utf-8" /> - <meta http-equiv="Content-Style-Type" content="text/css" /> - <title> - The Project Gutenberg eBook of Forest Scenes in Norway and Sweden, by The Rev. Henry Newland. - </title> - - <link rel="coverpage" href="images/cover.jpg" /> - -<style type="text/css"> - -a { - text-decoration: none; -} - -body { - margin-left: 10%; - margin-right: 10%; -} - -h1,h2 { - text-align: center; - clear: both; -} - -h2.nobreak { - page-break-before: avoid; -} - -hr.chap { - margin-top: 2em; - margin-bottom: 2em; - clear: both; - width: 65%; - margin-left: 17.5%; - margin-right: 17.5%; -} - -div.chapter { - page-break-before: always; -} - -p { - margin-top: 0.5em; - text-align: justify; - margin-bottom: 0.5em; - text-indent: 1em; -} - -table { - margin: 1em auto 1em auto; - max-width: 40em; - border-collapse: collapse; -} - -td { - padding-left: 2.25em; - padding-right: 0.25em; - vertical-align: top; - text-indent: -2em; -} - -.tdpg { - vertical-align: bottom; - text-align: right; - white-space: nowrap; -} - -.blockquote { - margin: 1.5em 10%; -} - -.caption { - text-align: center; - margin-bottom: 1em; - font-size: 90%; - text-indent: 0em; -} - -.caption-r { - text-align: right; - margin-bottom: 1em; - font-size: 90%; - text-indent: 0em; -} - -.center { - text-align: center; - text-indent: 0em; -} - -.figcenter { - margin: auto; - text-align: center; -} - -.footnotes { - margin-top: 1em; - border: dashed 1px; -} - -.footnote { - margin-left: 10%; - margin-right: 10%; - font-size: 0.9em; -} - -.footnote .label { - position: absolute; - right: 84%; - text-align: right; -} - -.fnanchor { - vertical-align: super; - font-size: .8em; - text-decoration: none; -} - -.gothic { - font-family: 'Old English Text MT', 'Old English', serif; -} - -.hanging { - padding-left: 2em; - text-indent: -2em; -} - -.larger { - font-size: 150%; -} - -.noindent { - text-indent: 0em; -} - -.note { - margin-top: 2em; - font-size: 90%; -} - -.pagenum { - position: absolute; - right: 4%; - font-size: smaller; - text-align: right; - font-style: normal; -} - -.poetry-container { - text-align: center; - margin: 1em; -} - -.poetry { - display: inline-block; - text-align: left; -} - -.poetry .stanza { - margin: 1em 0em 1em 0em; -} - -.poetry .verse { - padding-left: 3em; -} - -.poetry .indent0 { - text-indent: -3em; -} - -.poetry .indent2 { - text-indent: -2em; -} - -.poetry .indent4 { - text-indent: -1em; -} - -.poetry .indent6 { - text-indent: 0em; -} - -.poetry .indent8 { - text-indent: 1em; -} - -.poetry .indent10 { - text-indent: 2em; -} - -.poetry .indent14 { - text-indent: 4em; -} - -.poetry .indent18 { - text-indent: 6em; -} - -.poetry .indent20 { - text-indent: 7em; -} - -.poetry .indent26 { - text-indent: 10em; -} - -.right { - text-align: right; -} - -.smaller { - font-size: 80%; -} - -.smcap { - font-variant: small-caps; - font-style: normal; -} - -.titlepage { - text-align: center; - margin-top: 3em; - text-indent: 0em; -} - -.x-ebookmaker img { - max-width: 100%; - width: auto; - height: auto; -} - -.x-ebookmaker .poetry { - display: block; - margin-left: 1.5em; -} - -.x-ebookmaker .blockquote { - margin: 1.5em 5%; -} - - </style> - </head> -<body> -<p style='text-align:center; font-size:1.2em; font-weight:bold'>The Project Gutenberg eBook of Forest Scenes in Norway and Sweden: being Extracts from the Journal of a Fisherman, by Rev. Henry Garrett Newland</p> -<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and -most other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions -whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms -of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online -at <a href="https://www.gutenberg.org">www.gutenberg.org</a>. If you -are not located in the United States, you will have to check the laws of the -country where you are located before using this eBook. -</div> - -<p style='display:block; margin-top:1em; margin-bottom:1em; margin-left:2em; text-indent:-2em'>Title: Forest Scenes in Norway and Sweden: being Extracts from the Journal of a Fisherman</p> -<p style='display:block; margin-top:1em; margin-bottom:0; margin-left:2em; text-indent:-2em'>Author: Rev. Henry Garrett Newland</p> -<p style='display:block; text-indent:0; margin:1em 0'>Release Date: February 13, 2022 [eBook #67401]</p> -<p style='display:block; text-indent:0; margin:1em 0'>Language: English</p> - <p style='display:block; margin-top:1em; margin-bottom:0; margin-left:2em; text-indent:-2em; text-align:left'>Produced by: Charlene Taylor, Bryan Ness and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from images generously made available by The Internet Archive/American Libraries.)</p> -<div style='margin-top:2em; margin-bottom:4em'>*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK FOREST SCENES IN NORWAY AND SWEDEN: BEING EXTRACTS FROM THE JOURNAL OF A FISHERMAN ***</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_i"></a>[i]</span></p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 460px;"> -<img src="images/illus1.jpg" width="460" height="700" alt="" /> -<p class="caption">BEAR-HUNT.</p> -<p class="caption-r"><i>Front.</i></p> -</div> - -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_ii"></a>[ii]</span></p> - -<p class="titlepage larger">FOREST SCENES<br /> -<br /> -<span class="smaller">IN</span><br /> -<br /> -NORWAY AND SWEDEN:<br /> -<br /> -<span class="smaller">BEING<br /> -<br /> -<span class="gothic">Extracts from the Journal of a Fisherman.</span></span></p> - -<p class="titlepage"><span class="smaller">BY</span><br /> -THE REV. HENRY NEWLAND,<br /> -<span class="smaller">RECTOR AND VICAR OF WESTBOURNE,<br /> -AUTHOR OF “THE ERNE: ITS LEGENDS AND ITS FLY-FISHING,” ETC. ETC.</span></p> - -<p class="titlepage">The Second Edition.</p> - -<p class="titlepage">LONDON:<br /> -G. ROUTLEDGE & CO. FARRINGDON STREET;<br /> -<span class="smaller">NEW YORK: 18, BEEKMAN STREET.<br /> -1855.</span></p> - -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - -<div class="chapter"> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_iii"></a>[iii]</span></p> - -<h2 class="nobreak">TO MY MUCH-ESTEEMED FRIEND, -THE PUBLIC.</h2> - -</div> - -<p class="noindent"><span class="smcap">My dear Public</span>,—</p> - -<p>I have frequently heard you remark, in that -quaint and pithy manner so peculiarly your own, that “all -work and no play makes Jack a dull boy.” If you should -happen to find the book which I here present to your notice -to be really of such a character as your friend Jack might -have written under these distressing circumstances, I am -afraid I cannot plead this very sensible observation of yours -as my excuse; for I must confess, which I do with thankfulness, -that in my time I have enjoyed quite as much play -as is good for me, or for any one, in this working-day world -of ours. On this point, therefore, my book must stand on -its own merits.</p> - -<p>But, as I am extremely solicitous of your good opinion, -and should be very sorry to see you err on the opposite -extreme, imagining, as indeed you might, that mine has<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_iv"></a>[iv]</span> -been “all play and no work,” I must request you to look -at the Parson at home as well as the Parson abroad,—in -short, to read my “Confirmation and First Communion,” -as well as my “Forest Life;” a proceeding which, if it -does not benefit you, my dear Public (and I sincerely hope -it may), will, at all events,—through the medium of his -Publisher,—benefit, and that materially,</p> - -<p class="center">Your faithful Servant,</p> - -<p class="right">THE AUTHOR.</p> - -<p class="hanging"><span class="smcap">Westbourne Vicarage</span>,<br /> -<i>July 7th, 1854</i>.</p> - -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - -<div class="chapter"> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_v"></a>[v]</span></p> - -<h2 class="nobreak">CONTENTS.</h2> - -</div> - -<table summary="Contents"> - <tr> - <td><span class="smcap">Introduction</span></td> - <td class="tdpg"><a href="#INTRODUCTION"><i>Page</i> 1</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td><span class="smcap">Chapter I.</span>—Preparations</td> - <td class="tdpg"><a href="#CHAPTER_I">8</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td><span class="smcap">Chapter II.</span>—The Voyage</td> - <td class="tdpg"><a href="#CHAPTER_II">18</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td><span class="smcap">Chapter III.</span>—The Shipwash Sand</td> - <td class="tdpg"><a href="#CHAPTER_III">26</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td><span class="smcap">Chapter IV.</span>—The Landfall</td> - <td class="tdpg"><a href="#CHAPTER_IV">38</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td><span class="smcap">Chapter V.</span>—Christiansand</td> - <td class="tdpg"><a href="#CHAPTER_V">49</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td><span class="smcap">Chapter VI.</span>—The Torjedahl</td> - <td class="tdpg"><a href="#CHAPTER_VI">61</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td><span class="smcap">Chapter VII.</span>—The Encampment Mosse Eurd</td> - <td class="tdpg"><a href="#CHAPTER_VII">78</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td><span class="smcap">Chapter VIII.</span>—Making a Night of it</td> - <td class="tdpg"><a href="#CHAPTER_VIII">92</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td><span class="smcap">Chapter IX.</span>—The Hell Fall</td> - <td class="tdpg"><a href="#CHAPTER_IX">108</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td><span class="smcap">Chapter X.</span>—Departure from Torjedahl</td> - <td class="tdpg"><a href="#CHAPTER_X">122</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td><span class="smcap">Chapter XI.</span>—The Mountain March</td> - <td class="tdpg"><a href="#CHAPTER_XI">141</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td><span class="smcap">Chapter XII.</span>—The Homestead</td> - <td class="tdpg"><a href="#CHAPTER_XII">158</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td><span class="smcap">Chapter XIII.</span>—The Church</td> - <td class="tdpg"><a href="#CHAPTER_XIII">172</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td><span class="smcap">Chapter XIV.</span>—Breaking up the Encampment</td> - <td class="tdpg"><a href="#CHAPTER_XIV">193</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td><span class="smcap">Chapter XV.</span>—Eider Duck Hunting</td> - <td class="tdpg"><a href="#CHAPTER_XV">203</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td><span class="smcap">Chapter XVI.</span>—The Coasting Voyage</td> - <td class="tdpg"><a href="#CHAPTER_XVI">220</a><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_vi"></a>[vi]</span></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td><span class="smcap">Chapter XVII.</span>—Gotheborg</td> - <td class="tdpg"><a href="#CHAPTER_XVII">238</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td><span class="smcap">Chapter XVIII.</span>—Trollhättan</td> - <td class="tdpg"><a href="#CHAPTER_XVIII">253</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td><span class="smcap">Chapter XIX.</span>—Gäddebäck</td> - <td class="tdpg"><a href="#CHAPTER_XIX">267</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td><span class="smcap">Chapter XX.</span>—Wenern</td> - <td class="tdpg"><a href="#CHAPTER_XX">280</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td><span class="smcap">Chapter XXI.</span>—The Meet</td> - <td class="tdpg"><a href="#CHAPTER_XXI">295</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td><span class="smcap">Chapter XXII.</span>—The Commencement of the Skal</td> - <td class="tdpg"><a href="#CHAPTER_XXII">305</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td><span class="smcap">Chapter XXIII.</span>—The Satterval</td> - <td class="tdpg"><a href="#CHAPTER_XXIII">318</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td><span class="smcap">Chapter XXIV.</span>—Making another Night of it</td> - <td class="tdpg"><a href="#CHAPTER_XXIV">333</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td><span class="smcap">Chapter XXV.</span>—The Watch Fire</td> - <td class="tdpg"><a href="#CHAPTER_XXV">349</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td><span class="smcap">Chapter XXVI.</span>—Beating out the Skal</td> - <td class="tdpg"><a href="#CHAPTER_XXVI">367</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td><span class="smcap">Chapter XXVII.</span>—The Ball</td> - <td class="tdpg"><a href="#CHAPTER_XXVII">377</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td><span class="smcap">Chapter XXVIII.</span>—The Wedding</td> - <td class="tdpg"><a href="#CHAPTER_XXVIII">389</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td><span class="smcap">Chapter XXIX.</span>—Homeward Bound</td> - <td class="tdpg"><a href="#CHAPTER_XXIX">402</a></td> - </tr> -</table> - -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - -<div class="chapter"> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_1"></a>[1]</span></p> - -<h1>FOREST LIFE:<br /> -<span class="smaller"><span class="smaller">A</span><br /> -FISHERMAN’S SKETCHES IN NORWAY AND<br /> -SWEDEN.</span></h1> - -<h2 class="nobreak" id="INTRODUCTION">INTRODUCTION.</h2> - -</div> - -<p>Sketches in Norway and Sweden! Are they fact or fiction? -are they to be instructive or simply entertaining? These are -questions which the public has a right to ask, and which the -author means to answer as truly as he can. He hopes there -will be a little of both. At least, in making this selection -from his own and his friends’ journals, he has had both these -objects in his eye, and he trusts he has been able to keep his -eye upon them both at the same time, and that without any -very great amount of squinting. The framework which he -has adopted is that of a very popular description of authors—the -historical romancers, and, if he might venture to say so, -of a certain equally popular historian: that is to say, fiction -founded upon fact. He has laid down absolute facts, or what -he believes to be facts, for his groundwork, and has dressed -them up to suit his fancy.</p> - -<p>These Northern Sketches are, in truth, a continuation of a -former work, “The Erne, its Legends and its Fly-fishing;” -as the expedition which gave rise to them was in every respect -the same as the old Belleek fishing-association, with a simple -change of scene. They are therefore written upon the same -plan, which the author has found extremely convenient and -very suitable to his purpose.</p> - -<p>That purpose was not only to preserve the recollections of -a most enjoyable time, but also to convey as much real information<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_2"></a>[2]</span> -on the subjects treated on as he could compass; and -with such an object before him, absolute fiction would have -been useless.</p> - -<p>His descriptions, therefore, in that book were real descriptions, -his anecdotes, real anecdotes—the incidents of the -story did actually happen; his instructions in the art of fly-fishing -and the hydrography of the river were the results of -his own experience, and the fairy legends were his own -collections. Unless these things had been true, his book -would have been merely a book of entertainment,—and he -was ambitious of something beyond that. Everything of -this kind, therefore, was recorded accurately; and in the few -instances in which the requirements of the story compelled -the author to transplant his incidents, their real localities -were always given.</p> - -<p>All this was important to the public, or, at least, as important -as the subject itself; but it was of no consequence -to any one, except for the gratification of mere curiosity, to -be able to identify the precise Captain A. who broke the -weirs of the Laune, while such information would not have -raised Captain A.’s character at the Horse-Guards. The -Liberal member for B. might enjoy the recollection of the row -he got up at Kildoney, but might not find it convenient to -be reminded of it on the hustings. Attorneys might look -askance at Barrister C., who for a whole summer had directed -his studies to the practice of Club-law; while Parson D., who -had passed three months of his life waist-high in the Erne, -might possibly expect, were he identified, to have cold water -thrown upon him by his Bishop for the rest of his life.</p> - -<p>With all these matters, interesting enough to the characters -themselves, the public had nothing whatever to do: it -was sufficient for them that they had their information and -their story; and, provided the incidents of that story happened -to some one, it signified little to them, which, of all -the letters of the alphabet, composed his name. The public -should feel grateful to any fisherman who has truly revealed -the silks and feathers of his favourite fly; it is what very -few fishermen will do: let them be satisfied with that: they -shall never know—they have no right to know—which of<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_3"></a>[3]</span> -all the “Squires” that haunted the Erne it was who landed -the “Schoolmaster” on the “Bank of Ireland.”</p> - -<p>In the present sketches the author has not so much reason -to conceal the names of his characters; he can hurt no one. -He has no rows or “ructions” to record; more’s the pity, -for there is nothing so interesting to read about. Still, there -are advantages in carrying out the same plan: first, it makes -the continuation obvious—some of the Erne characters are -again introduced: and this is not a fiction; for when rail-roads -began to multiply, and sporting cockneys began to -infest the innocent Erne, frightening its salmon and exacerbating -its proprietors, that pleasant coterie of fishermen, -who, in earlier and better times, were wont to concoct their -punch and tell their stories at Mother Johnstone’s fire-side, -and hang their great two-handed rods upon her hospitable -brackets, actually did betake themselves to the exile of -foreign lands.</p> - -<p>But, in the second place, it conveys the same information -in a more entertaining manner: the author is able to piece -his characters; making them, like <i>Mrs. Malaprop’s</i> Cerberus, -“three gentlemen at once,” by combining into one the incidents -that happened to many. The author has thus availed -himself of other journals and other note-books besides his -own, and has been able to appropriate their contents, and to -distribute whatever was characteristic of the country, into a -series of connected sketches, instead of perpetually changing -his locality and introducing new characters. He by no -means intends to identify himself with his fictitious Parson, -nor will he even undertake to say, that he was himself in all -instances personally present whenever the Parson comes -upon the scene: he will answer for the truth of nothing -beyond the detached incidents and descriptions.</p> - -<p>Neither can these Sketches be used as an itinerary. Now -and then, though not often, names of places have been even -suppressed or altered, and incidents transplanted. They -will, indeed, give glimpses—slight, but true as far as they go—of -northern scenery, costume, travelling peculiarities, and, -above all, sport. They will contain practical hints and -available directions, but it is only in a general way. They<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_4"></a>[4]</span> -are not at all intended as a guide-book, nor will they at all -supersede the indispensable Murray.</p> - -<p>The traveller, following upon the author’s footsteps, will -find himself lost at two points of the narrative—the village -of Soberud, and the locality of the Skal. In the former of -these the reason is evident enough—the author wishes to -convey an idea of what sort of men the Norwegian clergy -are, not to draw the attention of subsequent travellers to any -individual clergyman. In the case of the skal there is -another reason. Although Mr. Lloyd, the author of -“Northern Wild Sports,” being a great hunter, has always -contrived to get a shot at the bear, it is, nevertheless, true, -that an ordinary man sees about as much of a skal as a -regimental officer does of a battle—that is to say, he sees -about a dozen men on each side of him: and, it may well -happen, that the share of any given individual in the most -successful of skals, will amount to hearing a great deal of -firing, and, at the end of three or four days’ hard work, seeing -five or six carcasses paraded at the nearest village. In -order, therefore, to give his readers a graphic sketch of a -skal, without violently outraging probability, it was necessary -for the author to <i>make his ground</i>, that is to say, to imagine -ground of such a description that it was possible for his -characters to see what was going on. It is not altogether -fictitious either, for the traveller will find a good deal of it -in the Toftdahl Valley, though this was never, so far as the -author knows, the scene of a summer skal.</p> - -<p>Similarly, also, though there is no such village as Soberud, -that being the name of a district near Larvig in which Sir -Hyde Parker’s fishing-lodge is situated and where the -author caught a good many salmon and trout, yet the -traveller will be able to patch together the fictitious country -from real and actual elements. The church is Hitterdahl—but -as there is no lake at Hitterdahl, one has been borrowed -for it from the country between Larvig and Frederiksvärn—the -“Lake of the Woods” is, really, about four miles north-east -of the village of Boen; the little lake where the diver -was shot, together with the forest about it, about as far to -the west of the same place; and the dark sombre pine wood<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_5"></a>[5]</span> -is, really, situated in the valley of the Nid. This last has -been slightly altered to suit the locality, for it is next to impossible -to lose oneself in the Nid forest, the river itself -being sufficient guide; but the rest is all drawn as accurately -as the author’s recollections, aided by his journals, will -enable him to depict it. With respect to the characters, -Tom, Torkel, and Jacob were attendants on the author and -his companions, and, though “a little rose upon,” to use a -nautical expression, are drawn from actual life, and in their -own proper names. The Captain and Parson, as has been -said before, are not to be considered actual characters; that -is to say, characters responsible as having done and said all -that they are represented to have done and said, but merely -as pegs upon which to hang the author’s personal experiences, -or pieces of information which he may have received. The -same may be said of Birger. It was necessary to associate -with the party an intelligent Swede, and Lieut. Birger was -chosen to fill that office. Bjornstjerna is wholly fictitious. -Hjelmar is a real character; and his adventure in the -Najaden frigate was related by him exactly as they are conveyed -to the reader, the steamer following out among the -islands the precise track of the chase. The author, however, -will not undertake to say that the actual name of Hjelmar -will be found on the watch and quarter bills of the frigate, -though Hulm was actually her captain, and was actually -buried near Lyngör, where his monument may be seen to -this day. Moodie is a real character, though his name, also, -is fictitious; or, rather, it is derived from a nick-name that -the author understands he has acquired either by his courage -or his foolhardiness: the appellation Modige, which is -pronounced very like our English name, Moodie, is translatable -either way. He does not, however, live at Gäddebäck, -which is the name of a house formerly occupied by -the celebrated Mr. Lloyd, the author of “Wild Sports of the -North,” and “Scandinavian Adventures,” to whose kindness -the author is indebted for his being able to describe, from -experience, the fishing of the Gotha, which is drawn as -accurately as the author’s recollection served him. The -traveller need not, however, fear the quicksand which<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_6"></a>[6]</span> -engulphed poor Jacob; that scene, and a very ridiculous one -it was, occurred on the Torjedahl just below Oxea. The -fisherman is cautioned not to be guided in his choice of a -river by the author’s success on the Torjedahl. It is too -clear, too much overhung, and too steadily and regularly -rapid to be a first-rate river under any circumstances. There -are few shallows in it, for there are no tributaries below the -Falls of Wigeland, and no salmon can get above them; -therefore, its breeding-ground is very limited indeed; probably -the flats of Strei, Oxea, and Mosse Eurd, form the whole -of it. The author’s success must be attributed to the fact of -his fly having been the first of his kind that ever floated on -those transparent waters.</p> - -<p>The songs which are put into the mouths of the different -characters, are really Norwegian or Swedish, and are given -as specimens. They are translations by Hewitt, Forester, -Knightley, and others. Scandinavia has always been remarkable -for its lyrical poetry from the earliest times; and -the <i>Gammle Norgé</i> of Bjerregaard, which is given in -chapter viii., would seem to show that the cup of poetic -inspiration which Odin stole from the keeping of Gunlauth, -and stored up in Asgard, is not yet empty. By far the best -of the modern poets of the North is Grundtvig, but his subjects -are, for the most part, of a nature too solemn for a work -so light as this; a short specimen from his hymns is given in -chapter xviii. The Evening Hymn, in chapter xxiii., though -in common use in Norway, is not Norwegian; it belongs to -the ancient church, and is said to be as old as the days of -Ambrose and Augustine.</p> - -<p>The legends are collected from all manner of sources: -many of them from Tom and Torkel, some from the Eddas -and Sagas, some from Malet and Knightley; they are all, -however, legitimate Scandinavian legends, believed implicitly -by some one or other.</p> - -<p>One word about the voyage out. It signifies little to the -public when and where those incidents really happened—whether -in the North Sea, or in the Bay of Biscay, or in the -Mediterranean; but it signifies to them a great deal, to know -that these things actually did happen once, and may happen -again at any time.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_7"></a>[7]</span></p> - -<p>The main incidents adapted to that fictitious voyage are -strictly and literally true. A large steamer was upon one -occasion in the precise situation ascribed to the <i>Walrus</i>,—and—in -the absence of its skipper, who for the time had -mysteriously disappeared—was saved by the promptness of -one of the passengers, precisely as is described in the narrative. -And it is also true that the same vessel, after a run -of not more than five hundred miles, did find herself fifty -miles out of her course. The compasses, no doubt, being in -fault, as they always are on such occasions—poor things!</p> - -<p>These are important matters for the public to be made -acquainted with; for the public do very frequently go down -to the sea in steamers, and therefore any individual reader -may at any time find himself in the very same situation.</p> - -<p>The author has enlarged upon this, in the faint hope of -drawing attention to these matters. He would suggest that -some sort of superintendence would not be altogether superfluous, -and that it is not entirely right that the lives of two -or three hundred men on the deep sea should be entrusted -to a skipper not competent to navigate a river, nor be committed -to a vessel so parsimoniously found as to be unable to -encounter casualties which might happen any day in a voyage -to Ramsgate.</p> - -<p>On a subject so important as this, the author thinks it his -duty to state that these incidents, extraordinary as they may -appear, are in no way fictitious; that they did happen under -his own eye; and that the mate, the only real sailor on -board, did request of him, after the escape, a certificate that -he, at least, had done his duty. If that man should be still -alive, he possesses a most unique document, a certificate of -seamanship, signed by a clergyman of the United Church of -England and Ireland.</p> - -<p>The skipper’s name the author does not think it necessary -to record. He is not likely to be employed again; for he is -one of those who have since immortalised themselves in the -public prints, by losing his vessel—a circumstance which, it -will readily be believed, did not excite any very great feelings -of surprise in the mind of the author.</p> - -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - -<div class="chapter"> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_8"></a>[8]</span></p> - -<h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_I">CHAPTER I.<br /> -<span class="smaller">PREPARATIONS.</span></h2> - -</div> - -<div class="poetry-container"> -<div class="poetry"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">“In every corner</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Carefully look thou</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Ere forth thou goest.”</div> - </div> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse right"><i>Hávamál.</i></div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -<p>There is no saying more true than that “he who would -make a tour abroad, must first make the tour of London.” -There are miscellaneous articles of appropriate clothing to -be got together; there are bags, knapsacks, portmanteaus, -to be fitted. Above all, there are passports to be procured; -than which no plague more vexatious, more annoying, or -more utterly useless for any practicable or comprehensible -purpose, has been devised by modern ingenuity.</p> - -<p>But if this is a necessary preliminary on ordinary occasions, -much more is it necessary when the contemplated -expedition has for its object sporting, and the northern -wildernesses for its contemplated locality. In addition to -the cares of ordinary travel, there are now tents, blankets, -cloaks, guns, rifles, to be thought of; rods, reels, gaffs, lines, -to be overhauled and repaired; material-books to be replenished, -and the commissariat department to be adequately -looked to. Deep and anxious, yet not without their pleasures, -are the responsibilities which rest on the shoulders of him -who undertakes the conduct of such an expedition as this.</p> - -<p>Such were the thoughts that crossed the mind of the Parson, -as—business in his musing eye, care on his frowning -brow, and determination in his compressed lip—he stood -under the archway of the Golden Cross; his hands mechanically -feeling for the pockets of his fishing-jacket, which had -been exchanged for a clerical frock-coat more befitting the -locality, and his mouth pursing itself up for his habitual<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_9"></a>[9]</span> -whistle, which, had he indulged in it where he then stood, -might have been considered neither appropriate nor decorous.</p> - -<p>“Don’t you think this list rather a long one,” said the -Captain, who had now joined him from the interior of the -hotel, holding in his hand a pretty closely-written sheet of -foolscap. “These are all very good things, and very useful -things no doubt, but how are we to stow them, and how are -we to carry them? Yours is anything but light marching -order.”</p> - -<p>“Why should it be?”</p> - -<p>“My principle is, that no traveller can be too lightly -equipped.”</p> - -<p>“And a very good principle, too,” said the Parson. -“Heavy and useless incumbrances are the invariable attributes -of travelling Englishmen. You may know them by -their endless train of household goods, as you would know a -snail by its shell.”</p> - -<p>“I believe,” said the Captain, “that foreign rail-roads are -regulated precisely so as to tax us English tourists. Travel -on whatever line you please in England, except that grasping -Brighton and South Coast, and you may take just exactly -what luggage you like; while abroad, the fare is so low and -the charge for luggage so high, that an Englishman generally -pays double; while the Frenchman, whose three spare collars -and bottle of hair-oil are in his pocket; and the German, -whose great tobacco-bag and little reticule of necessaries are -so constructed as to fit the allowance, are permitted to go -free.”</p> - -<p>“Upon my word, I do not object to the tax; it is a -tax upon folly. What can be so absurd as such a miscellaneous -collection as Englishmen generally carry with them? -What can a traveller want beyond a dry suit of clothes and -half-a-dozen shirts and stockings?”</p> - -<p>“There is a slight incongruity between your words and -your actions,” said the Captain, holding up the list.</p> - -<p>“Tush! put that paper into your pocket, and tell me -what we are going to do. When I went on my reconnoitring -expedition to Norway last year, my fourteen-foot<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_10"></a>[10]</span> -rod, my fly-book, and a change of clothes constituted all -the cares of my life; and I contend, as you do, that no traveller -whose object is information has any business with -more. But we are going now more in the character of -settlers: we are not going to explore, but to enjoy that -which has been explored for us. Why should we not, therefore, -take whatever may make life enjoyable?”</p> - -<p>“Only for fear we may be called upon to choose between -leaving them behind or leaving our purpose unaccomplished,” -said the Captain.</p> - -<p>“Do you think I have calculated my ambulances so -badly? But come along. We must consult Fortnum and -Mason first. I can explain all that on our road.</p> - -<p>“Considering how wild and uninhabited the greater part -of the country is, both in Norway and Sweden,” the Parson -resumed, as they crossed the pavement under Nelson’s pillar, -“it is astonishing how easily you may travel, and how little -impediment are your <i>impedimenta</i>. The posting regulations -are admirable. On every road there are posting stations at -convenient distances, and, by writing to these, the traveller -may command, at stated prices, every horse and cart in the -district.”</p> - -<p>“And at moderate prices?” said the Captain, whose -means were not so abundant as to make him indifferent to -expense.</p> - -<p>“No, not at moderate prices; for I do not call a penny -an English mile a moderate price, and this is what you -pay in Sweden; and in Norway it is not more than three-halfpence, -except in favoured spots in the vicinity of towns, -where they are permitted to charge three-fold. My plans, -therefore, are these. We are not going to travel, but to -visit certain fishing stations, most of which are at no great -distance from the coast; let us take, therefore, everything -that will make us comfortable at these different -settlements. As long as we coast, we have always traders of -some sort or other, and generally as nice and comfortable -little steamers as you can desire. When our road lies along -the fjords or lakes, boats are to be had from the post stations -on the same terms as you get the carts, a rower reckoning<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_11"></a>[11]</span> -the same as a horse; and when we want to take to the -land, we have but to order as many carts as will hold our -traps.”</p> - -<p>“And how do we travel ourselves?” said the Captain.</p> - -<p>“There is no carriage in the world so pleasant for fine -weather as the cariole; and I propose that we each buy -one. If we have to get them new, they do not cost above -thirty specie-dalers—that is to say, about seven or eight -pounds—with all their harness and fittings, in the very first -style; and you may always sell them again at the end of -your journey. That is the way the natives manage, and -they are terrible gadabouts. You always find some jobber -or other to take it off your hands. But the chances are that -we shall meet with a choice of second-hand carioles to begin -with. I gave twenty specie-dalers for mine last year, and -sold it for fifteen. Drammen is the place for these things, up -in Christiania fjord: it is the Long Acre of Norway.”</p> - -<p>“What sort of things are these carioles?—Gigs, I suppose, -to carry two.”</p> - -<p>“Not they—barely one: and no great room for baggage -either. A Scandinavian is of your way of thinking, and does -not trouble himself with spare shirts. One horse draws one -man, and that is all. If your gig carries two, you are charged -a horse and a half for it. In Sweden they have a sort of -light spring waggon, drawn by three horses, which will take -our followers admirably, with as much luggage as we like to -stow; and by having the collars of the harness made open at -the top, they will do for all the variety of horses we may -meet with on our road. This is better than the Norwegian -mode of engaging the farm carts; for in this, so much time -is lost at every stage in restowing luggage, that it becomes a -serious hindrance. However, in Norway we must do as the -Norwegians do. The light waggon would make a very unpleasant -conveyance down some of their mountain roads.”</p> - -<p>“And how do you manage crossing the fjords and lakes?”</p> - -<p>“Easily enough. Every ferry-boat will take a cariole; and -as for coasting, a cariole ranks as a deck passenger—that is to -say, about ten skillings for a sea mile, you paying for your -own passage in the cabin about twenty.”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_12"></a>[12]</span></p> - -<p>“You travellers get so confoundedly technical. What -the deuce do you mean by a sea mile and a skilling? And -how am I to compare two things neither of which I know -anything about?”</p> - -<p>“A regular traveller’s fault,” said the Parson. “There is -not a book written that does not abound with these absurdities. -Well, a skilling is a halfpenny in our money, and a sea -mile is four of our miles, and a land mile eight, nearly.”</p> - -<p>“Pretty liberal in their measures of length,” said the -Captain.</p> - -<p>“Why, they have plenty of it, and to spare; as you will -find when you come to travel from one place to another. -But their money is not plentiful, and they dole it out in very -small denominations indeed.”</p> - -<p>“But here we are at Fortnum and Mason’s; and now for -the stores.”</p> - -<p>“I observe, you always go to the most expensive places,” -said the Captain.</p> - -<p>“That is because I cannot afford to go to the cheaper -ones,” said the Parson. “On such an expedition as this, you -should never take inferior stores. One hamper turning out -bad when unpacked at the end of a thousand miles or so of -carriage, will make more than the difference between the -cheapest and the most expensive shop in London. But, to -show you that I do study economy, I will resist the temptation -of these preserved meats; and, let me tell you, it is a -temptation, for up the country you will get nothing but what -you catch, gather, or shoot. This, however, is a necessary,” -pointing to some skins of portable soup; “there is not a -handier thing for a traveller; it goes in the smallest compass -of any sort of provisions; it is always useful on a pinch, -and some chips of it carried in the waistcoat pocket on a -pedestrian expedition, make a dinner, not exactly luxurious, -but quite sufficient to do work upon. This we must lay in a -good store of; in fact, if we have this, we need not be very -anxious about anything else. Other things are luxuries: -this is a necessary of life. Tea we must take: there is -nothing more refreshing after a hard day’s work, and you -cannot get it anywhere in the country. At least, what you<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_13"></a>[13]</span> -do meet with is altogether <i>maris expers</i>, being a villanous -composition of dried strawberry leaves and other home -productions. Oil, too—we must take plenty of that; we shall -want it for the frying-pan.”</p> - -<p>“Have they no butter, then?” said the Captain.</p> - -<p>“Yes, they have, and in great plenty too; of all varieties -of quality, from very bad, down to indescribably beastly. -They call it smör, pronouncing the dotted <i>o</i> like the French -<i>eu</i>; and I can assure you their very best butter tastes just as -the word sounds.”</p> - -<p>“Well, then, I vote for some of these sardines, to take off -the taste.”</p> - -<p>“With all my heart,” said the Parson; “they flavour -anything, when they are not made of salted bleak, as they -generally are—so does cayenne pepper. We may as well -have some cocoa paste, and a Bologna sausage or two may -prove a useful luxury.”</p> - -<p>“What do you say to a cask of biscuits?” said the Captain. -“What sort of bread have they?”</p> - -<p>“Do you recollect that old story told of Charles the -Twelfth, when he said of the bread brought to him, that it -was not good, but that it might be eaten? No one can tell -the heroism of that speech who has not eaten the Swedish -black bread, which is generally the only representative of -the staff of life procurable. It is gritty, it is heavy, it is -puddingy; if you throw it against a wall it will stick there—and -as for sourness, O, ye gods! they purposely keep the -leaven till it is uneatably sour, and then fancy it becomes -wholesome.”</p> - -<p>“Well, I suppose it does,” said the Captain. “The Squire -used to say, that everything that was good, is unwholesome -or wrong; and I suppose the converse is true. But why not -take the biscuits?”</p> - -<p>“Because we can get that which will answer our purpose -perfectly when we arrive at the country, and that without -the carriage, and at a much cheaper rate. There is not a -seaport town in all the coast where you may not get what -they call Kahyt Scorpor, a sort of coarse imitation of what -nurses in England feed babies upon, under the name of tops<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_14"></a>[14]</span> -and bottoms. They are made of rye, and are as black as my -hat; but they are very good eating, keep for ever, and are -cheap enough in all conscience, being from four to six skillings -to the pound, that is to say, threepence. In Norway -they call them Rö Kovringer.”</p> - -<p>“We will take some rice, which very often comes in well -by way of vegetables in a kettle of grouse soup; and a good -quantity of chocolate, which packs easily, and furnishes a -breakfast on the shortest possible notice. And this, I think, -will do very well for the commissariat department of our -expedition.”</p> - -<p>“And now for arms and ammunition,” said the Captain.</p> - -<p>“Everything we are likely to want in that department, we -must take with us—guns, of course. Shot certainly may be -got at Christiansand, and the other large towns; up the country, -though, you will get neither that nor anything else: but -powder can be got nowhere, at least, powder that does not -give you an infinity of trouble in cleaning your gun, on account -of the quantity of deposit it leaves. That little -magazine of yours, with its block-tin canisters and brass -screw-stoppers, will hold enough for us two, unless we meet -with very good sport indeed, and in that case we must put -up with the manufacture of the country.”</p> - -<p>“And for guns?” said the Captain. “I shall certainly take -that little pea-rifle I brought from Canada. I want to bring -down a bear.”</p> - -<p>“We shall be more likely to get a crack at a seal, where -we are going,” said the Parson. “Bears are not so plentiful -in Norway as is generally supposed. People imagine that -they run about in flocks like sheep; however, it is possible -that there may be a bear-hunt while we are there. As for -rifles, I own I am partial to our own English manufacture. -Those little pea affairs are sensible things enough in their -own country, where one wanders for weeks on end through -interminable forests and desolate prairies on foot, and where -a pound of lead more or less in your knapsack is a matter of -consequence: but where we have means of transport, I see -no great sense in them. A pea, no doubt, will kill, if it hits -in the right place; but, like the old Duke, I have myself<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_15"></a>[15]</span> -rather a partiality for the weighty bullet. However, each -man to his fancy. The great merit of every gun, rifle, or -pistol, lies behind the stock,—a truth that dandy sportsmen -are apt to forget; a pea sent straight is better than a two-ounce -ball beside the mark.”</p> - -<p>“Well,” said the Captain, laughing, “I think I can hold -my little Yankee pretty straight; but we shall want shot-guns -more than rifles. I may as well take that case I had -from Westley Richards, if you do not think it too heavy.”</p> - -<p>“Not at all; you can always leave the case behind, -and take one gun in a waterproof cover when we go on -light-armed expeditions. This will furnish us with a spare -gun in case of accidents. I shall take my own old one, -and a duck gun—which last will be common property, -and I think with this we shall be pretty sufficiently armed. -Pointers and setters are of no great use, unless it is a steady -old stager, who will retrieve; for you must recollect there is -no heath, and very little field shooting. The character of -the country is cover, not very thick anywhere, and in many -places interspersed with glades and openings. We shall do -better with beaters: a water-dog, however, is indispensable. -Lakes and rivers abound, and so do ducks, teal, and snipes.”</p> - -<p>“Have you thought about tents?” said the Captain.</p> - -<p>“Well,” said the Parson, “I am not sure that tents are -indispensable, and they certainly are not a little cumbersome. -While we are fishing we can do very well without them: by -the water-side we can never be without a cottage of some -sort to put our heads under if it should come on bad weather, -for every house in the whole country stands on the banks of -some lake or river. I must say, though, when you get up -into the fjeld after the grouse and the ducks, or, it may be, -bigger game, it is another affair altogether. You may then -go twenty or thirty miles on end without seeing a human -habitation, unless you are lucky enough to meet with a säter, -and you know what a highland bothy is, for dirt and vermin. -But, even in the fjeld, I do not know that we should want -tents; you can have no idea of the beauty of a northern -summer’s night, and the very little need one has of any cover -whatever. I remember, last year, standing on one of their<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_16"></a>[16]</span> -barrows, smoking my pipe at the foot of an old stone cross, -coeval, probably, with St. Olaf, and shadowing the tomb of -some of his followers that Hakon the Jarl thinned off so -savagely. It was deep midnight, and there was not a chill -in the air, or dew enough on the whole headland to fill the -cup of a Lys Alf. The full round moon was shining down -upon me from the south, while a strong glowing twilight was -still lighting up the whole northern sky, where the sun was -but just hid under the horizon. The whole scene was as -light as day, with the deep solemn stillness of midnight all -the while. I could distinctly make out the distant fishing-boats; -I could almost distinguish what the men were doing -in them, through the bright and transparent atmosphere; -but at the same time all was so still that I could hear the -whistle of the wings, as flight after flight of wild-fowl shot -over me in their course to seaward, though they were so -high in the air that I could not distinguish the individual -birds, only the faint outline of the wedge-like figure in which -they were flying. I remember, that night, thinking how -perfectly unnecessary a tent was, and determining not to -bring one; and, that night at all events, I acted up to my -conviction; for, when my pipe was out, I slept at the foot -of the old cross till the sun warned me that the salmon were -stirring.”</p> - -<p>“All very pleasant, no doubt,” said the Captain; “very -enjoyable indeed: but does it never rain at night in this -favoured land of yours?”</p> - -<p>“Upon my word, it does not very often,” said the Parson; -“at least, not in the summer-time. Besides, you cannot conceive -how well the men tent themselves with pine-branches.”</p> - -<p>“I do not quite like the idea,” said the Captain. “It is -all very well to sleep out when anything is to be got by it; -but, when there is nothing to be got by it but the rheumatism, -to tell you the honest truth—unlucky, as the old -women say it is—I rather prefer contemplating the moon -through glass.”</p> - -<p>“Well, I will tell you what we can do,” said the Parson, -“and that will be a compromise. We can get some canvas -made up into two lug sails. These will help us uncommonly<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_17"></a>[17]</span> -in our passage over lakes and fjords, for their boats are -seldom well provided in that respect; and when we get to -our destination, lug sails—being square, or, to speak more -accurately, parallelogrammatical—will make us very capital -gipsy tents, with two pairs of cross-sticks and a ridge-pole, -which we shall always be able to cut from the forest. I -think we may indulge ourselves so far. As for waterproof -jackets, trousers, boots, and so forth, I need not tell you -about that: you have been out before, and know the value -of these when you want to fish through a rainy day. We -shall not have so dripping a climate here as we had in -Ireland, certainly, but we shall have one use for our waterproof -clothing which we had not there, and that is, when we -bivouac, vulcanised India-rubber is as good a defence against -the dew and the ground-damp as it is against the rain. A -case of knife, fork, and spoon apiece is absolutely necessary, -for they do not grow in the fjeld. A light axe or two, and -a couple of hand-bills, a hammer and nails, which are just as -likely to be wanted to repair our land-carriages as our boats. -If you are at all particular in shaving—which, by-the-by, -is not at all necessary—you may as well take a portable -looking-glass. You will not find it so easy to shave in the -reflection of a clear pool—a strait to which I was reduced -when I was there last year. And now, I think, we have -everything—that is to say, if you have taken care of the -fishing-tackle, as you engaged to do.”</p> - -<p>“I have not taken care of your material-book.”</p> - -<p>“No,” said the Parson; “but I have taken very good -care of that myself. Fly-making may be a resource to -fall back upon, if we meet with rainy weather, and my -book is well replenished.”</p> - -<p>“Everything else,—rods, books, reels, gaffs, and so forth,—I -have packed in the old black box which we had with us -at Belleek, with spare line, and water-cord, and armed wire, -and eel hooks, and, in fact, everything that we can possibly -want; and a pretty heavy package it makes, I can assure you.”</p> - -<p>“Well,” said the Parson, “we may go to sleep now with a -clear conscience. But so much depends upon a good start, -that a little extra trouble, on the first day, will be found to -save, in the end, a multiplicity of inconveniences.”</p> - -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - -<div class="chapter"> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_18"></a>[18]</span></p> - -<h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_II">CHAPTER II.<br /> -<span class="smaller">THE VOYAGE.</span></h2> - -</div> - -<div class="poetry-container"> -<div class="poetry"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">“Hurrah! hurrah! up she’s rising,—</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Stamp and go, boys! up she’s rising,—</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Round with a will! and up she’s rising,</div> - <div class="verse indent18">Early in the morning.</div> - </div> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">What shall us do with a lubberly sailor?—</div> - <div class="verse indent0">What shall us do with a lubberly sailor?—</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Put him in the long-boat and make him bale her,</div> - <div class="verse indent18">Early in the morning.</div> - </div> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">Hurrah! hurrah! up she’s rising.”—</div> - <div class="verse indent18">&c. &c. <i>ad infinitum</i>.</div> - </div> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse right"><i>Anchor Song.</i></div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -<p>Clear and joyous as ever a summer’s day came out of the -heavens, was the 12th of June, 18—, when the good ship -<i>Walrus</i>, with her steam up, her boats secured, and everything -ready for sea, lay lazily at single anchor off Blackwall-stairs. -The weather was as still and calm as weather might -be. The mid-day sun, brilliant and healthful, imparted life -and animation even to the black and unctuous waters, that -all that morning had, in the full strength of the spring tide, -been rushing past her sides. The breeze, light and fitful, -just stirred the air, but was altogether powerless on the glazy -surface of the stream, which sent back, as from a polished -and unbroken mirror, the exact double of every mast, yard, -and line of cordage, that reposed above it. The ships lay -calm and still. The outward-bound had tided down with the -first of the ebb, and were already out of sight, and the few -sails that still hung festooned in their bunt and clew-lines, -lay as motionless as the yards that held them. Like light -and airy dragon-flies, just flitting on the surface, and apparently -without touching it, the river steamers were darting -from wharf to wharf; while ever and anon a great heavy<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_19"></a>[19]</span> -sea-going vessel would grind her resistless way, defying wind -and tide, and dashing the black wave against the oily-looking -banks.</p> - -<p>Steamer after steamer passed, each steadily bent on her -respective mission; and the day wore on—yet there lay the -<i>Walrus</i>, though her sea-signalling blue Peter had hung from -her fore-truck ever since day-light, and the struggling and -impatient steam would continually burst in startling blasts -from her safety-valves. The tide was slackening fast; the -chain cable, that all that forenoon had stretched out taut and -tense from her bows, like a bar of iron, now hung up and -down from her hawsehole, while the straws and shavings and -floating refuse of the great capital began to cling round her -sides.</p> - -<p>“It is a great honour, no doubt, to carry an ambassador, -with Heaven knows how many stars of every degree of -Russian magnitude in his train,” said the Parson, who, seated -on the taffrail, with his legs dangling over the water, had -been watching the turning tide, and grumbling, as ship after -ship in the lower reaches began to swing at her anchors, -while three or four of the more energetic craft were already -setting their almost useless sails, and yo-ho-ing at their -anchors, preparatory to tiding up; “it is a very great -honour, and I hope we are all duly sensible of it; but, like -most great honours, it is a very particular nuisance. These -Russian representatives of an autocrat majesty must fancy -they can rule the waves, when all the world knows it is only -Britannia that can do that. They have let the whole of -this lovely tide pass by—(the Parson cast his eyes on the -greasy water)—and fancy, I suppose, that daddy Neptune is -bound to supply them with a new one whenever they please -to be ready for it.”</p> - -<p>“Why, Mate!” said the Captain, as a smart sailor-like -looking fellow fidgeted across the quarter-deck, with an irregular -step and an anxious countenance; “is this what you -call sailing at ten a.m. precisely? Most of us would have -liked another forenoon on shore, but your skipper was so -confounded peremptory; and this is what comes of it.”</p> - -<p>“What is one to do, sir?” said the Mate, who seemed<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_20"></a>[20]</span> -fully to participate in the Captain’s grievance. “These -Russians have taken up all the private cabins for their own -particular use, and occupy half the berths in the main and -fore-cabins besides—we cannot help waiting for them. They -have pretty well chartered the ship themselves—what can -we do? But,” continued he, after a pause, during which he -had been looking over the side, as the steamer now began -evidently to swing in her turn, “I wish we had gone down -with the morning’s tide.”</p> - -<p>“We should have been at the mouth of the river by -this time,” said the Captain, “if we had started when we -ought.”</p> - -<p>“Yes,” said the Mate, “and we should now be crossing -the dangerous shoals, with fair daylight and a rising tide -before us.”</p> - -<p>“Why, surely you are not afraid,” said the Parson; “that -track is as well beaten as the turnpike road.”</p> - -<p>The Mate shrugged his shoulders, and stepped forward, -giving some unnecessary orders in a tone unnecessarily sharp -and angry.</p> - -<p>“Well, Birger, what news? Do you see anything of -them?”</p> - -<p>The individual addressed was a smart, active, little man, -with a quick grey eye, and a lively, pleasant, good-humoured -countenance, who was coming aft from the bridge of the -steamer, on which he had been seated all the forenoon, -sketching, right and left of him groups of shipping on the -water and groups of idlers on the deck.</p> - -<p>“Anything of whom?” said he. “Oh! the Russians. -No, I don’t know. I suppose they will come some time or -other; it does not signify—it is all in the day’s work. Look -here,”—and he opened his portfolio, and displayed, in wild -confusion all over his paper, the domes of Woolwich, the -houses of Blackwall, the forests of masts and yards in the -Pool, two or three picturesque groups of vessels, a foreign -steamer or two, landing her weary and travel-soiled passengers -at the Custom-house—and, over leaf, and in the background -as it were, slight exaggerations of the ungainly attitudes -in which his two friends were then sprawling. “If<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_21"></a>[21]</span> -you had found something as pleasant as this grumbling to -fill up your time with, you would not be wasting your eyes -and spoiling your temper in looking for the Russians. They -are going back to their own country, poor devils! no wonder -they are slow about it. Did you ever see a boy going to -school?”</p> - -<p>“Birger is not over-fond of the Russians,” said the -Captain.</p> - -<p>“Few Swedes are,” said Birger; “remember Finland and -Pomerania.”</p> - -<p>“Besides, it is not over-pleasant to have a great White -Bear sitting perpetually at one’s gate, always ready to -snap up any of one’s little belongings that may come in -its way. The Russian fleet is getting formidable, and -Revel and Kronstadt are not very far from the mouth of -the Mälar.”</p> - -<p>“I don’t know anything about that,” said Birger, gallantly; -“we are the sons of the men who, under Gustaf, -taught that fleet a lesson.”</p> - -<p>“You are a gallant set of fellows,” said the Parson; “and -Sweden would be a precious hard nut to crack. But your -long-armed friends over the water know the value of a ring -fence, and would dearly like a seaboard. Only fancy that -overpowering country, which is now kept in order by the -rest of Europe, only because, just at present, it lies at the -back of creation, and cannot get out of the Baltic, Black, and -White Seas, to do harm to any one,—only fancy that pleasant -land, with its present unlimited resources, and Gothenborg -for its Portsmouth, and Christiania, and Frederiksvärn -and Christiansand for its outports—a pleasant vision, is -it not, Mr. Guardsman? Don’t you think it probable that -something of this sort has soothed the slumbers of the White -Bear we were speaking of, before this?”</p> - -<p>“Did you ever hear of Charles the Twelfth? He taught -that White Bear to dance.”</p> - -<p>“He taught that White Bear to fight,” said the Captain, -“and an apt scholar he found him. There was more lost -at Pultava than Charles’s gallant army.”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_22"></a>[22]</span></p> - -<p>“There are men in Sweden yet,” said Birger, slightly -paraphrasing the legend of “Holger.”</p> - -<p>“There are,” said the Parson; “and if you could only -agree among yourselves, you might have hopes of muzzling -the White Bear yet. Another union of Calmar?”</p> - -<p>“O, hang the union of Calmar; there is no more -honesty in a Dane or a Norseman than there is in a Russ. -We are not going to have another Bloodbath at Stockholm. -My mother is a Lejonhöved,<a id="FNanchor_1" href="#Footnote_1" class="fnanchor">[1]</a> and I am not likely -to forget that day.”</p> - -<p>“I should have thought you more nearly connected with -the Svinhöved family,” said the Parson; “but depend upon -it, unless you men of the north can make up your quarrels, -the White Bear will chop you up in detail, and us after -you.”</p> - -<p>Birger, who, in some incomprehensible way, traced his -descent from the founder of Stockholm, the great and terrible -Earl Birger, was a smart young subaltern in the Royal -Guards, and though his present dress—a modest and unpretending -blouse—was anything but military, his well-set-up -figure, firm step, and jaunty little forage cap stuck on one -side of his head, sufficiently revealed his profession. From -his earliest youth he had discovered a decided talent for -drawing, and in accordance with a most praiseworthy custom -in the Swedish service, he had been travelling for the last -twelvemonth at the expense of the Government, and was -now returning to the “Kongs Ofver Commandant’s Expedition,” -with a portfolio filled with valuable sketches, and a -mind no less well stored with military knowledge, which he -had collected from every nation in Europe. The Captain<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_23"></a>[23]</span> -had fallen in with him at the Swedish ambassador’s, and, -being himself something of an artist, had struck up on the -spot a sort of professional friendship with him. The pleasant -little subaltern was thus, from that time forward, enrolled -among their party; and though their acquaintance was not -yet of twenty-four hours’ standing, was at that moment -talking and chatting with all the familiarity of old and tried -friendship.</p> - -<p>“Here come those precious rascals at last,” said he, -breaking off the conversation, as a train of at least half-a-dozen -carriages rattled down to the landing-place, and counts, -countesses, tutors, barons, children, dogs, governesses, portmanteaus, -bags, boxes, and trunks were tumbled out indiscriminately -on the landing-place. “Heaven and earth! if -they have not <i>impedimenta</i> enough for an army! and this is -only their light marching baggage either. All their heavy -articles came on board yesterday, and are stowed under -hatches. I’ll be bound we draw an additional foot of water -for them. Hang the fellows! they are as bad as Junot, they -are carrying off the plunder of half the country.”</p> - -<p>“Like the Swedes under Oxenstjerna,” said the Parson; -“but what need you care for that? The plunder—if it is -plunder—comes from England, not Sweden.”</p> - -<p>“It will lumber up the whole cabin, whether it comes -from the one or the other,” said Birger; “we shall not have -room to swing a cat.”</p> - -<p>“We don’t want to swing a cat,” said the Parson; “that -is a Russian amusement rather than an English or a Swedish -one, if all tales be true; and you may depend upon it we shall -fare all the better for their presence: our skipper could never -think of setting anything short of turtle and venison before -such very magnificent three-tailed bashaws.”</p> - -<p>“Yes,” said Birger, “they are going to Petersburgh, too, -where the chances are, the bashaws will find some good opportunity -of squaring accounts with the skipper for any ill-treatment, -before the steamer is permitted to sail.”</p> - -<p>All the while this conversation was going on, the illustrious -passengers were rapidly accomplishing the short -passage from the shore to the steamer, a whole flotilla of<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_24"></a>[24]</span> -boats being employed in the service, while the hurried -click of the pauls, and the quick revolutions of the windlass, -as the chain-cable was hove short, showed that in the Captain’s -opinion, as well as that of the Mate, quite time enough -had been wasted already.</p> - -<p>But the golden opportunity had been lost. English tides -respect no man, not even Russian ambassadors, and old -Father Thames was yet to read them a lesson on the text—</p> - -<div class="poetry-container"> -<div class="poetry"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">If you will not, when you may,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">When you will, you shall have Nay.</div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -<p class="noindent">While the vessel was riding to the ebb tide, as she had done -all the morning, a warp which had been laid out from her port -quarter would have canted her head well into the stream; -and the tide, acting on her starboard bow while the after-part -was in comparatively still water, would have winded -her downwards, almost before her paddles were in motion, or -her rudder could be brought to act. But the turn of the -tide had reversed all this. The vessel had indeed swung to -the flood, which by this time was rattling up at the rate of -five or six miles an hour, and thus her bowsprit was looking -the way she wanted to go; but a strong eddy was now bubbling -up under her starboard bow, and pressing it towards -the left bank, while a great lumbering Indiaman lay just -ahead of her, and a Hamburgh steamer, which had anchored -a little higher up on her starboard quarter, forbade all -reversing of the engine and thus getting out of the mess -stern foremost.</p> - -<p>The moment the anchor broke ground the helm was put -hard a-port, and the paddles were set in motion; but though -from the tide alone the rudder had some effect, the -strength of the eddy was too much for her; round came -her head to port, as if she were going to take a leap at the -embankment.</p> - -<p>“Hard a-port!—hard a-starboard!—ease her!—stop her!—turn -her a-head!” were the contradictory orders bawled out -almost simultaneously. If noise and shouting could have got -the steamer out of the scrape, there was no lack of it; but -all these cries, energetic as they were, produced no effect -whatever, beyond exciting a little suspicion in the mind of<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_25"></a>[25]</span> -our travellers (some of whom having been at sea before, -knew the stem of a ship from the stern) that the skipper was -not altogether a “deacon in his craft;” and thus giving a point -to the Mate’s silent but expressive shrug when the Parson -had alluded to the shoals at the river’s mouth. At last, an -indescribable sensation of grating, and a simultaneous volley -of heterogeneous oaths, such as sailors shot their guns with -on grand occasions, announced the fact that she had taken the -ground abaft.</p> - -<p>This, however, as it turned out, was about the best thing -that could have happened, for it gave the skipper time to -collect his senses; or, what was more to the purpose, gave -the Mate time to whisper in his ear; and the rising tide was -sure to float her again in ten minutes. By this time a warp -had been got out to a ship anchored upon the Surrey side, -an expedient which any sailor would have thought of before -tripping his anchor in the first instance. The end of it was -passed round the windlass and hove taut, and as the rising -water slowly lifted the unlucky vessel from her sludgy bed -and a few turns brought a strain upon her, she gradually -slewed her head outwards. The steam was turned on, the -paddles went round; the black water began to fizz under her -counter, as if a million of bottles of stout had been poured -into it—she was at last a-weigh and fairly on her course, only -about six hours after her proper time.</p> - -<p>“I tell you what,” said the Parson, as he dived down the -companion to inspect the submarine arrangements of the -cabin, “I leave this vessel at Christiansand, and I wish we -were fairly out of her. This fellow knows no more of sea-craft -than a tailor. Kind Providence shield us, or we shall -come to grief yet!”</p> - -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - -<div class="chapter"> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_26"></a>[26]</span></p> - -<h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_III">CHAPTER III.<br /> -<span class="smaller">THE SHIPWASH SAND.</span></h2> - -</div> - -<div class="poetry-container"> -<div class="poetry"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent26">“Our ship,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Which but three glasses since we gave out split,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Is tight and yare and bravely rigged, as when</div> - <div class="verse indent0">We first put out to sea.”</div> - </div> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse right"><i>Tempest.</i></div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -<p>One by one the travellers crept down to the cabin. It was -as uncomfortable as cabins usually are, perhaps more so, as -being more lumbered and more crowded; and the ordinary -space for locomotion had been miserably curtailed by a large -supplementary table, which the steward was lashing athwart -ship for the dinner accommodation of the supernumerary -passengers. These were standing about here and there, as -helpless and uncomfortable as people always are on first -starting, and were regarding one another with looks of suspicion -and distrust, as people who start by a public conveyance -always do regard one another.</p> - -<p>In this the English part of the community was prominently -conspicuous. Denizens of a free land, it would seem as if -they considered it as their bounden duty to be continually exhibiting -their Magna Charta in the eyes of foreigners, and -to maintain their just rights to the very death against all -comers.</p> - -<p>No rights, however, were invaded—there was no opportunity -of asserting the Magna Charta; all were equally shy -and equally miserable; till, by degrees, as the steamer crept -slowly down the river against the tide, they shook into their -places, and the ladies began to smile, and the ladies’ maids to -look gracious.</p> - -<p>The Parson was an old stager. Knowing full well the -value of light and air in the present crowded state of the<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_27"></a>[27]</span> -cabin, he had very willingly assented to the apologetic invitation -of the steward, and had established himself comfortably -enough on the transom itself, upon which was spread for his -accommodation a horsehair mattress. There was no great -deal to spare in the height of his domicile, for it was as much -as he could conveniently manage to sit upright in it; but -it was, at all events, retired, airy, and not subject to be suddenly -evacuated by its occupant under the overpowering -influence of a lee lurch or a weather roll.</p> - -<p>Totally disregarding the bustle and confusion in the cabin -below him, he was occupied in arranging and beautifying his -temporary home. The sill of one window formed his travelling -library, the books of which he had been unpacking from -his stores, and securing by a piece of spun yarn from the -disagreeable consequences of any sudden send of the ship in -a rolling sea. The next formed his toilet-table and workshop, -exhibiting his reels and fly-books, and the huge and well-known -“material book,” the replenishing of which had occupied -so much of his attention. The third was left empty, so -as to be opened and shut at pleasure.</p> - -<p>Stretched on his mattress, with a guide-book in his hand, -and the map of Norway and Sweden at his side, he looked -from his high abode on the turmoil of the cabin deck, -with all the calmness and complacency with which the gods of -the Epicureans are said to regard the troubles and distresses -of mortals below.</p> - -<p>And thus wore on the day. Dinner, tea, had been discussed—some -little portion of constraint and shyness had -been rubbed off—small knots of men were formed here and -there, discussing nothings and making conversation. Night -sank down upon the steamer as she ploughed her way across -the Nore, and the last of the talkers rolled himself up in his -bedclothes, and tried, though for a long while in vain, to -accustom himself to public sleeping.</p> - -<p>It was still dark—for the time was hardly three in the -morning—when the Parson—who, accustomed to all the -vicissitudes of travel, had been making the most of the -hours of darkness, and had been for some time fast asleep—was -suddenly startled from his dreams by a furious concussion<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_28"></a>[28]</span> -on the rudder-case against which his head was -pillowed. The vessel became stationary, and the fresh -breezey hissing of the water in her wake and the tremulous -motion everywhere suddenly ceased.</p> - -<p>“By George, she’s hard and fast!” said the Captain; who, -taking hint from the comfortable appearance which the -Parson had given to his own berth, had occupied the same -position on the starboard side, and was now invading the -Parson’s territories from abaft the rudder-case.</p> - -<p>“What the devil is to be done now?”</p> - -<p>“Nothing at all,” said the Parson; “it is no business of -ours; and I am sure it is not time to get up yet.”</p> - -<p>“Well, but she has certainly struck on a sand.”</p> - -<p>“I know that as well as you,” said the Parson; “but you -can’t get her off. Besides, there is not a bit of danger yet, -at all events, for the sea is as smooth as a mill-pond. There -they go, reversing their engine: much good that will do. -If there was any truth in that bump I felt, she is much too -fast aground for that. And the tide falling too!”—he continued, -striking a lucifer and looking at his watch. “Yes, it -is falling now, it has turned this hour or more.”</p> - -<p>By this time the hurried trampling and stamping on deck -had roused up the passengers, few of whom could comprehend -what had happened, for there was no appearance of -danger, and the ship was as steady and firm as a house. -But there is nothing more startling or suggestive of alarm -than that rushing to and fro of men, so close to the ear, -which sounds to the uninitiated as if the very decks were -breaking up.</p> - -<p>“Is it houraccan storrm?” shouted Professor Rosenschall, -a fat greasy-looking Dane, whom Birger had been hoaxing -and tormenting all the day before, partly for fun, and -partly because he considered it the bounden duty of a -true Swede to plague a Dane—paying off the Bloodbath by -instalments.</p> - -<p>“Steward!” shouted the Professor, above all the din and -confusion of the cabin, “Steward, vinden er stærkere? is it -houraccan storrm?”</p> - -<p>“Yes, Professor, I am sorry to say it is,” said Birger, who<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_29"></a>[29]</span> -had rolled himself up in a couple of blankets under the -table, upon which was reposing the weight of the Professor’s -learning. “It is what we call an Irish hurricane—all up -and down.”</p> - -<p>“All up! O what will become of me—and down! O, -my poor wife. Hvilken skrækelig storrm,” he screamed out, -as half-a-dozen men clapped on to the tackle falls over his -head, with the very innocent purpose of lowering the quarter-boat, -and began clattering and dashing down the coils of rope -upon the deck. “Troer de at der er fore paa Færde?—do -you think there is any danger?”</p> - -<p>What with the Professor’s shouting, and what with the real -uncertainty of the case, and the natural desire that every one, -even the most helpless, has to see their peril and to do something -for themselves, every passenger was by this time astir, -and the whole cabin was buzzing like a swarm of bees.</p> - -<p>The Parson’s idea of sleeping was altogether out of the -question; and, the Captain having gone on deck, he very -soon followed him; for, notwithstanding his assumed coolness, -he was by no means so easy in his mind as he would -have his friends to understand. He had been at sea before -this, and was, at least, as well aware as they, that grounding -out of sight of land, is a very different thing from grounding -in the Thames.</p> - -<p>The scene on deck was desolate enough. The steamer had -struck on the Shipwash, a dangerous shoal on the Essex -coast, distant about twenty miles from land; and a single -glance was sufficient to tell that there was not a chance of -getting her off for the next twelve hours, though the Skipper -was persisting in trying a variety of absurd expedients. -The crew were looking anxious—the passengers were looking -frightened; while the Skipper himself, who ought to have -been keeping up every one’s spirits, was looking more -wretched and more frightened than any one.</p> - -<p>The day was just breaking, but a fog was coming on, and -the wind showed every symptom of freshening. The vessel, -indeed, had begun to bump, but the tide leaving her, that -motion left her also, and she began now to lie over on her -bilge. From some unfortunate list she had got in her stowing<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_30"></a>[30]</span> -(Birger declared it was the weight of the ambassador’s -despatch boxes), she fell over to windward instead of to -leeward, thus leaving her decks perfectly exposed to the run -of the sea, if the wind should freshen seriously.</p> - -<p>When the Parson came on deck, the boats had just returned -from sounding. The Skipper had, indeed, endeavoured -to lay out an anchor with them—an object in which -he might possibly have succeeded, had he tried it at first and -before there was any great rush of tide, for the steamer had -struck at the very turn of the flood; but he had wasted his -time in reversing his engines and in backing and taking in -sails which there was no wind to fill; and thus, before he -had got his anchor lashed to the boat, which, like all passage -steamers’ boats, was utterly inadequate for the work, the -stream was strong enough to swamp boat, anchor, and all, -and it was fortunate indeed that no lives were lost.</p> - -<p>It appeared from the soundings that the ship had not -struck on the main shoal, but on a sort of spit or ridge, the -neck of a submarine peninsula projecting from the S.W. -corner of it. Almost under her bows was a deep turnhole -or bay in the sand about two cables across, communicating -with the open water, beyond which, right athwart her hawse, -lay the main body of the shoal, so that the beacon which -marked its northern extremity, and which was now beginning -to show in the increasing light of the morning, lay broad on -her port bow, while the other end of the shoal was well on -her starboard beam; at half a cable length astern, and on her -port quarter and beam was the deep water with which the -turnhole communicated,—this being, in fact, the channel she -ought to have kept.</p> - -<p>It was perfectly evident that nothing could be done till -the top of the next tide, and whether anything could be done -then was extremely problematical with the wind rising and -the sea getting up; experience having already shown that -there was not a boat in the steamer fit for laying out an -anchor.</p> - -<p>However, for the present the water was smooth enough; -they were for the time perfectly safe and comfortable, lying, -as they did, under the lee of the shoal, patches of which<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_31"></a>[31]</span> -were now beginning to show just awash; while the seas -were breaking heavily enough certainly, but a full half-mile -to windward of them. The passengers, seeing nothing to -alarm them, and feeling their appetites well sharpened by -their early rising, began to lose their fears and to be clamorous -for breakfast; and the meal was served with a promptness -which, under the circumstances, was perfectly astonishing.</p> - -<p>Those who know nothing fear nothing, and the jokes which -were flying about and the general hilarity which pervaded the -whole meeting, conveyed anything rather than the idea of -shipwrecked mariners; though, truth to say, this feeling did -not seem to be fully participated in by the Skipper, who presided -at what might very fairly be called the head of the table, -for it was many feet higher than the foot; he looked all the -while as if he was seated on a cushion stuffed with bramble -bushes.</p> - -<p>The Parson, by way, he said, of utilising his moments, was -preparing for fishing—calculating, and rightly too, that the -whiting would congregate under the lee of the stranded ship.</p> - -<p>He had made his preparations with characteristic attention -to his own comfort and convenience. The dingy, which was -hanging at the stern davits, formed at once his seat and his -fishing-basket; and as he had eased off as much of the lee -tackle fall as brought the boat to an even keel, the taffrail -itself afforded him a shelter from the wind, which was now -getting high enough to be unpleasant.</p> - -<p>There he sat, hour after hour, busily and very profitably -employed, heeding the gradual advance and strengthening of -the tide only so far as its increasing current required the use -of heavier leads.</p> - -<p>The Captain and Birger had been trying to walk the -sloping deck, a pursuit of pedestrianism under difficulties, -for it was very much as if they had been trying to walk -along the roof of a house. Time hangs heavily on the hands -of those who have nothing to do, and there was nothing to -do by the most active of sailors beyond hoisting the ensign -union downwards, and that might just as well have been left -undone too, for all the notice that was taken of it. Ship -after ship passed by—the foreign traders to windward, the<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_32"></a>[32]</span> -English through the shorter but more dangerous channel that -lay between them and the main land. Many of them were -quite near enough for anxious passengers to make out the -people in them reconnoitring the position of the unfortunate -<i>Walrus</i> through their telescopes. But if they did look -on her, certainly they passed by on the other side; it never -seemed to enter into the heads of one of them to afford assistance.</p> - -<p>“Pleasant,” said Birger, “very. Is this the way your -sailors help one another in distress?”</p> - -<p>“I am afraid so,” said the Captain.</p> - -<div class="poetry-container"> -<div class="poetry"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">“Gayer insects fluttering by</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Ne’er droop the wing o’er those that die;</div> - <div class="verse indent0">And English tars have pity shown</div> - <div class="verse indent0">For every failure but their own.”</div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -<p>“You do not mean to say that they will not help us if -there really is danger?” said the Swede.</p> - -<p>“Upon my word, I hope there will not be any real danger; -for if you expect any help from them, I can tell you -that you will not get it.”</p> - -<p>“Not get it!” said Birger, who did not at all seem to -relish the prospect before him.</p> - -<p>“That you will not. Sink or swim, we sink or swim -by our own exertions. Those scoundrels could not help -us without losing a whole tide up the river, a whole -day’s pay of the men, and so much per cent. on the cargo, -besides the chance of being forestalled in the market: do -you think they would do that to save the lives of half-a-hundred -such as you and me? Why, you have not learned -your interest tables; you do not seem to understand how -much twenty per cent. in a year comes to for a day. A -precious deal more than our lives are worth, I can tell -you.”</p> - -<p>Birger looked graver still; drowning for a soldier was -not a professional death, and he did not relish the idea -of it.</p> - -<p>The Captain continued his words of comfort. “I was -very nearly losing a brother this way myself,” he said. “He -was invalided from the coast of Africa, and had taken his<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_33"></a>[33]</span> -passage home in a merchant vessel. They had met with a -gale of wind off the Scillies; the ship had sprung a leak, and -when the gale had subsided to a gentle easterly breeze dead -against them, there were they within twenty miles of the -Longships, water-logged, with all their boats stove, and their -bulwarks gone. Timber ships do not sink very readily, and -incessant pumping had kept them afloat, but it was touch -and go with that—their decks awash, and the seas rolling in -at one side and out at the other. While they were in this -state, the whole outward-bound fleet of English ships passed -them, some almost within hailing distance, and all without -taking more notice of them than those scoundrels are taking -of us. They would, all hands, have gone to the bottom -together, in the very midst of their countrymen, if a French -brig had not picked them off and carried them into Falmouth. -It was so near a thing, that the vessel sank almost before -the last boat had shoved off from her side.</p> - -<p>“Well,” said Birger, “if there is a selfish brute upon -earth, it is an English sailor.”</p> - -<p>“Natural enough that you should say so, just at present,” -said the Captain; “though, as a Swede, you might have recollected -the superstition that prevails in your own country -against helping a drowning man. But the fact is, the fault -lies not so much with the sailors as with the insurance regulations -at Lloyds’. Likely enough, every one of these fellows -has a desire to help us; but if they go one cable’s length -from their course to do so, or if they stay one half-hour by -us when they might have been making their way to their -port, they vitiate their insurance. Man is a selfish animal, -no doubt—sea-going man as well as shore-going man—and it -is very possible that some of them would rather see their -neighbours perish than lose the first of the market; but laws -such as these render selfishness imperatively necessary to -self-preservation, and banish humanity from the maritime -code.”</p> - -<p>“I wish all Lloyds’ were on the Shipwash,” said Birger, -“and had to wait there till I picked them off.”</p> - -<p>“Yes,” said the Captain; “or that the House of Commons -were compelled to take a winter’s voyage every year<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_34"></a>[34]</span> -in some of these company’s vessels. I think, then, they -might possibly find out the advantage of certain laws and -certain officers to see them put in force, in order to prevent -their going to sea so wretchedly found. There is nothing -like personal experience for these legislators. This vessel -has not a boat bigger than a cockle-shell belonging to her. -Did you not hear how nearly the Mate was lost last night,—and -he is the only real sailor in the ship—when they were -trying to lay out an anchor—a manœuvre which, I see, they -have not accomplished yet?”</p> - -<p>“Hallo! this is serious,” said Birger, as a heavy sea struck -the weather paddle-box, and broke over them in spray: for -the tide had been gradually rising, without, as yet, raising -the ship; and, as she lay over to windward, the seas that now -began to break upon her starboard bow and side, deluged her -from stem to stern.</p> - -<p>“Upon my soul,” said the Captain, “I don’t like this, -myself; and there sits the Parson, fishing away, as quietly as -if he were on the pier at Boveysand. By Jove, Nero fiddling -while Rome was burning, is a fool to him! Why, Parson, -don’t you think there is some danger in all this?”</p> - -<p>“‘Er det noget Færde?’ as your friend the professor -would say,” said the Parson, laughing. “I do not think it -improbable that the <i>Walrus</i> will leave her bones here, if you -mean that.—Stop, I’ve got another bite!”</p> - -<p>“Confound your bite! If she leaves her bones here, we -shall leave ours too; for she has not boats for the fourth of -us, the devil take them! and as for expecting help from -these rascally colliers——”</p> - -<p>“You may just as well fiddle to the dolphins,” said the -Parson. “I know that; but do you see that little cutter,—that -fellow, I mean, on our quarter, that has just tacked? -and there beyond her is another, that is now letting fly her -jib-sheet. I have been watching those fellows all the morning, -beating out from Harwich. They are having a race, and -a beautiful race they make of it: you cannot tell yet which -has the best of it. If those cutters were going over to the -Dutch coast, you may depend upon it they would not make -such short boards. There—look—the leading one is in stays<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_35"></a>[35]</span> -again. Those fellows are racing for us, and with our ensign -Union down, as we have it, we shall make a pretty good -prize for the one that gets first to us. Those two are pilot-boats. -You may depend upon it, we are not going to lay -our bones here, whatever comes of the <i>Walrus</i>.”</p> - -<p>The Parson’s anticipations were realised sooner than he -expected, for a long low life-boat, that nobody had seen till -she was close alongside, came up, carrying off the prize from -both competitors—and preparations were begun, which -ought to have been completed hours before, for laying out -an anchor.</p> - -<p>Before long, the cutters also had worked up and anchored -on the lee edge of the shoal, to the great relief of every one -on board; for the seas were by this time making such a -breach over her, that no one could be ignorant of the -danger.</p> - -<p>Suddenly, and without preparation, she righted, throwing -half the passengers off their legs, and very nearly precipitating -the Parson into the sea; who took that as a hint to -leave his seat in the dingy. Soon afterwards she began to -bump, first lightly, and then more heavily, and the paddles -were set in motion. The windlass was manned and worked; -but the shifting sand afforded no good holding-ground for -the anchor, which had not been backed—nor, indeed, had -any precautions been taken whatever—and as soon as there -was any strain upon it, it came home and was perfectly -useless.</p> - -<p>The ship now was hanging a little abaft the chess-tree, on -the very top of the spit; but the stern was free, and the -bows were actually in the deep water of the turnhole, while -at every bump she gained an inch or two: just then, the -anchor coming home, and the tide taking her under the port -bow, she ran up in the wind, and pointed for the very centre -of the shoal.</p> - -<p>“Why the devil don’t you set your jib?” bellowed out -the Captain, who had begun to get excited. “Where the -deuce is that know-nothing Skipper of yours?”</p> - -<p>“Upon my soul, sir, I do not know,” said the Mate, who<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_36"></a>[36]</span> -was standing at the wheel, and was looking very anxiously -forward.</p> - -<p>“Then why don’t you go forward and set it yourself? We -shall be on the main shoal in two minutes, if she floats.”</p> - -<p>“I know it, sir,” said the Mate; “but I dare not leave -my post. We shall all have to answer for this; and if I am -not where the Skipper has placed me, he will throw the -blame upon me.”</p> - -<p>“Then, by George, I don’t care <i>that</i> for your Skipper. -Come along, boys, we’ll run up the jib ourselves.”</p> - -<p>And away he rushed, pushing and shouldering his way -along the crowded decks, among idlers, and horses, and carriages, -followed by his own party, and a good many of the -foreigners also; till he emerged on the forecastle, when, -throwing down the jib and fore-staysail hallyards from the -bitts and clattering them on the deck, while the Parson -went forward to see all clear, he called out to the Russian -servants, who, wet and frightened, were cowering under the -carriages—</p> - -<p>“Here, you slaveys, come out of that—<i>clappez-vous sur -ceci</i>—clap on here, you rascals—<i>rousez-vous dehors de ces -bulwarks</i>. What the devil is Greek for ‘skulking?’”</p> - -<p>Whether the Russians understood one word of the Captain’s -French, or whether they would have understood one word -of it had they been Frenchmen, may be doubted; but his -actions were significant enough; and the men, who only -wanted to be told what to do, clapped on to the jib and fore-staysail -hallyards as well and as eagerly as if they had known -what was to be done with them; here and there, too, was -seen a blue-jacket, for the seamen had no wish to skulk, if -there had been any one to command them.</p> - -<p>“Gib mig ropes enden!” shouted Professor Rosenschall, who -had caught the enthusiasm, and was panting after them, -though a long way astern.</p> - -<p>“Birger will do that for you,” said the Parson, laughing, -but without pausing for one moment from his work—“Birger! -the Professor wants a rope’s-end.”</p> - -<p>“Vær saa artig!” said Birger, tendering him the signal<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_37"></a>[37]</span> -hallyards, the bight of which he had hitched round a spare -capstan-bar on which he was standing. For Birger, like most -Swedish soldiers, had passed a twelvemonth in a midshipman’s -berth, where, whatever seamanship he had picked up, -he had, at all events, learned plenty of mischief.</p> - -<p>“Away with you!” roared the Captain. “Up with the -sails—both of them.”</p> - -<p>“Skynda! Professor, Skynda!” echoed Birger, leaping off -the capstan-bar as he spoke, and thus causing the Professor -to pitch headlong among the trampling men.</p> - -<p>“Up with it! up with it, cheerily! look there, she pays -off already!” as the two sails flew out; the jib, which was -not confined by any stay, bagging away to leeward and hanging -there, but still drawing and doing good service. “Up -with it, boys—round she comes, like a top! Hurrah, that’s -elegant!” as a sea struck her full on the quarter, which, by -her paying off, had now become exposed to it. On it came, -breaking over the taffrail and deluging the idlers on the -poop, but at the same time giving her the final shove off the -ridge. “Off she goes! Shout, boys, shout! and wake up -that Skipper, wherever he is!”</p> - -<p>And amid the most discordant yells that ever proceeded -from heterogeneous voices—Danish, Dutch, Swedish, German, -and Russ, above which, distinct and ringing, rose the -heart-stirring English cheer—the steamer, once more under -command of her rudder, buzzed, and dashed her way into the -open sea.</p> - -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - -<div class="chapter"> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_38"></a>[38]</span></p> - -<h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_IV">CHAPTER IV.<br /> -<span class="smaller">THE LANDFALL.</span></h2> - -</div> - -<div class="poetry-container"> -<div class="poetry"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">“Bewilderedly gazes</div> - <div class="verse indent0">On the wild sea, the eagle</div> - <div class="verse indent0">When he reaches the strand:</div> - <div class="verse indent0">So is it with the man;</div> - <div class="verse indent0">In the crowd he standeth</div> - <div class="verse indent0">And hath but few friends there.”</div> - </div> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse right"><i>Hávamál.</i></div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -<p>“Nothing gives one so lively an idea of eternal, irresistible -progress—of steady, inexorable, unalterable fate, as the -ceaseless grinding of these enormous engines.” Thus moralised -Birger, as, two days after the events recorded in the last -chapter, he stood with his brother officer, the Captain, on the -grating that gave air into the engine-room. “In joy or in -sorrow, in hope or in fear, on they go—grinding—grinding, -never stopping, never varying, never hurrying themselves:—the -same quiet, irresistible round over and over again: we -go to bed—we leave them grinding; we get up—there they -are, grinding still; we are full of hope, and joy, and expectancy, -looking out for land and its pleasures—they go no -faster; they would go no faster if we went to grief and -misery. If you or I were to fall dead at this moment, the -whole ship would be in an uproar, every man of them all -showing his interest, or his curiosity, one way or other—but -still would go on, through it all, that eternal, everlasting -grinding.”</p> - -<p>“Everlasting it is,” said the Captain, who was not at all -poetical, and who was anxious to be at his journey’s end. -“This steamer is the very slowest top I have ever had the -misfortune to sail in. By every calculation we should have -made the coast of Norway ages ago; I have been on the look<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_39"></a>[39]</span> -out for it ever since daylight; but six, seven, eight, nine, and -no coast yet. Breakfast over, and here are your everlasting -wheels of fate grinding away, and not one bit nearer land, as -far as I can see, than they were before. I’ll be hanged if the -wind is not getting northerly too,” he said, looking up, as the -fore and aft foresail over their head gave a flap, as if it would -shake the canvas out of the bolt-ropes. “I thought so. -Look at them brailing up the mainsail! wind and steam -together, we never got seven knots out of this tub; I wonder -what we shall get now—and the sea getting up too?”</p> - -<p>Several consecutive pitches, which set the horses kicking, -and prostrated one-half of the miserable, worn-out, dirty-looking -deck passengers, seemed fully to warrant the Captain’s -grumbling assertion, and they scrambled back to the poop; -upon which most of the passengers were by this time congregated, -for the sun was shining out brightly, and the wind, -though there was plenty of it, was fresh and bracing.</p> - -<p>They had evidently by this time opened the north of -Scotland, for the slow, heaving swell of the Northern Ocean -was rolling in upon them; and this, meeting the windwash -knocked up by the last night’s south-easterly breeze, was -making a terrible commotion in the ship, and everything and -everybody belonging to it.</p> - -<p>“Land! land!” shouted the Parson, who had climbed upon -the weather bulwarks, and was holding on by the vang to -steady his footing. “Land, I see it now; where could our -eyes have been? There it is, like blue clouds rising out of -the water.”</p> - -<p>There was a general move and a general crowding towards -the spot to which he was pointing, but just then the ship -pitched bowsprit and bows under, jerking the Parson off his -legs; upsetting every passenger who had nothing to hold on -by, and submerging half-a-dozen men on the jib-boom, who -were occupied in stowing the now useless jib. They rose -from their involuntary bath puffing and blowing, and shaking -the water from their jackets, but continuing their work as -if nothing had happened.</p> - -<p>There, however, was the land, beyond a doubt. No Cape -Flyaway, but land—bold, decided, and substantial. Whether<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_40"></a>[40]</span> -it was that people had not looked for it in the right direction, -or had not known what to look for; or whether, as was most -likely, a haze had hung over the morning sea, which the sun -had now risen high enough to dispel; whatever was the -cause, there stood the hitherto invisible land, speaking of -hope and joy, and quiet dinners, and clean beds, and creating -a soul under the ribs of sea-sickness.</p> - -<p>Long, however, it was before they neared it,—hour after -hour; and Birger’s everlasting wheels went grinding on, and -the mountains seemed no higher and no plainer than they -were when the Parson had first descried them. But the day -had become much more enjoyable, the wind had moderated, -and the swell was less felt, as the land began to afford some -protection.</p> - -<p>The Captain and his friend Birger had by this time established -themselves on the break of the poop, with their -sketch-books in their hands, nominally to sketch the outline -of the land, really to caricature the Russian magnates during -their hours of marine weakness. While Monsieur Simonet, -one of the numerous tutors, a venturesome Frenchman, -climbed warily up the main shrouds to get a better view, -creeping up step by step, ascertaining the strength of each -rattlin before he ventured his weight upon it, and holding on -to the shrouds like grim Death. Quietly and warily stole -after him the Mate, with a couple of stout foxes hitched -round his left arm.</p> - -<p>“Faith,” said Birger, “they are going to make a spread-eagle -of him. Well, that is kind; it will prepare him for -his new country; it is in compliment to Russia, I suppose, -that they turn him into the national device.”</p> - -<p>But the Mate had reckoned without his host. The Frenchman -made a capital fight for it, and in the energy of his -resistance, entirely forgot his precarious position; he kicked, -he cuffed, he fought gallantly, and finally succeeded in seizing -his adversary’s cap, a particularly jaunty affair with gold -lace round it, in imitation of her Majesty’s navy, of which -the Mate was especially proud. This, the Frenchman swore -by every saint the Revolution had left in his calendar, he -would heave overboard; and before the Captain had completed<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_41"></a>[41]</span> -the little sketch he was taking of the transaction, a -capitulation was entered into by the belligerents upon the -principle of the <i>statu quo</i>, and the discomfited Mate descended, -leaving his adversary to enjoy at once his position -and his victory.</p> - -<p>By this time sails, unseen before, had begun to dot the -space which still intervened between the steamer and the -iron-bound coast before it, which now rose stern and rugged, -and desolately beautiful, clothed everywhere with a sort of -rifle-green, from the dark hues of the fir and juniper, for -none but the hardy evergreens could bear the severe blasts -of even its southern aspect; few and far between were these -sails at first, and insignificant did they seem under the -abrupt and lofty mountains which rose immediately out of -the sea, without any beach or coast-line, or low-land whatever; -but, as they neared the land, the moving objects -assumed a more conspicuous place in the landscape.</p> - -<p>There was the great heavy galliasse with pigs from Bremen -or colonial produce from Hamburg—a sort of parallelogram -with the corners rounded, such as one sees in the -pictures of the old Dutch school two hundred years ago—not -an atom of alteration or improvement in its build since -the days of old Van Tromp; the same flat floor and light -draft of water—the same lumbering lee-boards—the same -great, stiff, substantial, square-rigged foremast, with a little -fore and aft mizen, which looked like an after-thought; she -might be said to be harrowing the main instead of ploughing -it, according to our more familiar metaphor, with a great -white ridge of foam heaped up under her bows, and a broad, -ragged wake like that of a steamer.</p> - -<p>And there was the Norwegian brig returning from Copenhagen -with a cargo of corn for Christiansand; rough and -ill-found, nine times in ten not boasting so much as a foretop-gallant -sail, yet tight and seaworthy, and far better than she -looked; built after the model of a whale’s body, full forward -and lean aft, with a stern so narrow that she looked as if she -had been sailing through the Symplegades, and had got -pinched in the transit.</p> - -<p>Then came a fleet of a dozen jagts from the north, the<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_42"></a>[42]</span> -tainted breezes advertising their fishy cargo, as they came -along. These were the originals of the English yacht, which -unspellable word is merely the Norwegian <i>jagt</i>, written as it -is pronounced in the country, for Norway is the only nation -besides England that takes its pleasure on the deep sea. -With their single great unwieldy sails, their tea-tray-shaped -hulls, and towering sterns, they looked like a boy’s first essays -in the art of ship-building.</p> - -<p>But Bergen furnishes a far more ship-shape description of -craft—sharp fore and aft vessels are the Bergeners, looking -as if they had all been built on the same lines, with little, low -bulwarks, and knife-like cutwaters, as if they were intended -to cut through the seas rather than to ride over them, sailing -almost in the wind’s eye, and, when very close hauled indeed, -a point on the other side of it—at least, so their skippers -unanimously assert, and they ought to know best,—at all -events, ensuring a wet jacket to every one on board, be the -weather as fine as it may, from the time they leave the port -to the time they return to it.</p> - -<p>Then came, crowding all sail and looking as if they were -rigged for a regatta, with their butterfly summer gear and -tapering spars, the lobster smacks from Lyngör, and Osterisö, -and Arendahl, and Hellesund: and a regatta it was on a -large scale, with the wide North Sea for a race-course, omnivorous -London for the goal, and its ever-fluctuating markets -for a prize. These were sharp, trim-looking vessels, admirably -handled, and not unworthy of a place in the lists of any -Royal Yacht Club for beauty or for speed; somewhat less -sharp, perhaps, than the Bergeners, but scarcely less -weatherly or sitting less lightly on the seas.</p> - -<p>The near approach to the land, which had been for so -many hours looked for in vain, seemed to bring no great -comfort to the unfortunate Skipper, who kept fidgetting -about the decks with a perplexed and anxious countenance. -Glasses were brought on deck, and rubbed and polished over -and over again, and directed in succession to every mountain -peak that showed itself, and every inlet that opened before -them. Then, little mysterious consultations were held -between the Skipper and his First Mate; then, one man was<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_43"></a>[43]</span> -sent for, then another; then more whispering, and more -mystery, more shaking of the heads and examination of -charts; then an adjournment to the bridge, on which the -Parson was then standing, taking his survey of the craft in -sight, and enjoying the sunshine. At last, the whispering -took a more objurgatory tone; more in the way of a growl, -with now and then a short, emphatic sentence of eternal -condemnation on somebody’s eyes, or blood, or other personalities,—as -is the custom of those who “go down to the sea -in ships.”</p> - -<p>The first distinct words which met the Parson’s ear, came -from the lips of the Skipper, pronounced in a sharp, acid, -querulous sort of tone; such as superiors sometimes indulge -in, when they are fixing on the shoulders of an inferior the -blame they shrewdly suspect all the while, ought, if justice -had its due, to rest on their own.</p> - -<p>“You are not worth your salt, sir,” he said; “you are not -worth your salt—you ought to be ashamed of wearing a -blue jacket, you know-nothing, lubberly ...” and so -forth; expressions by no means unusual at sea, certainly, -but sounding somewhat misplaced in the present instance, -inasmuch as if there was any one in the whole ship not -worth his salt, the speaker certainly was the man, in his own -proper person.</p> - -<p>“Upon my soul, sir,” said the man addressed, “if I tried -to tell you anything about it, I should be only deceiving you. -I know the coast about Christiansand as well as any man. I -have traded to that port for years, and taken the old brig in -and out twenty times; but the land before us is all strange -to me. I never saw those three hummocky hills before in -my life. This is not Christiansand.”</p> - -<p>“Well, but if it is not, does Christiansand lie east or west -of us—which way am I to steer?”</p> - -<p>The man raised his glass again, and took a long and -anxious survey, but apparently with no better result.</p> - -<p>“Really, sir, I cannot say. I cannot make it out at all; -there is not one single sea-mark that I know.”</p> - -<p>“Then what the devil did you ship for as a pilot, if you -knew nothing of your business?” Here followed another -strong detachment of marine expletives.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_44"></a>[44]</span></p> - -<p>“I shipped as a pilot for Christiansand, sir; and, for the -Sound, and for Copenhagen; and can take the steamer into -any one of them, if she drew as much as a first-rate; but this -place is neither one nor the other of them, and I never called -myself a coasting pilot.”</p> - -<p>“Well,” said the Parson, “this seems to me sad waste of -breath and temper; if you are a couple of lost babes, why -do you not ask your way? There lies a pilot-boat, as you -may see with your own eyes,” pointing to a little cutter exhibiting -in the bright sunshine a single dark cloth in a very -white mainsail, which, with her foresheet to windward, lay -bobbing about in the swell right ahead of them. “That is a -pilot-boat, and I suppose she knows the way, if you do not—why -do you not hail her?”</p> - -<p>The Skipper looked askance at the Parson, as if he meditated -some not very complimentary reply about minding -one’s own business; for, conscious of the estimation in which -he was himself held by the fishing party, who were in no -way chary of their remarks, he regarded them with anything -but friendly feelings. But the advice was too obviously -sound to be neglected, and the Skipper was not by any means -anxious that the magnates on the poop should become -acquainted with the fact that he was at sea in more senses -than one.</p> - -<p>In a few minutes the steamer was alongside the little -shrimp of a cutter, taking the wind out of her sails by her -huge unwieldy hull.</p> - -<p>A short conversation passed between them, which as one-half -was sworn down the wind in very loud English, and the -other half came struggling up in broad Norske, was not -attended with any very satisfactory results.</p> - -<p>Birger offered his services.</p> - -<p>“You may as well ask them what they will take us into -Christiansand for,” said the Skipper; “that will soon make -them find their English.”</p> - -<p>A few more unintelligible words were exchanged, and -Birger burst out laughing.</p> - -<p>“They cannot do it,” he said: “they cannot take us into -Christiansand: not only they are not able, but they are not -licensed to ply so far.”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_45"></a>[45]</span></p> - -<p>“Why! where are we, then?” said the astonished Skipper.</p> - -<p>“Off Arendahl!” said Birger.</p> - -<p>“Arendahl!” broke in the Parson, “why, that is fifty miles -to the westward of your course.”</p> - -<p>“Well, I cannot conceive how that can be,” said the -Skipper. “Something wrong, I am afraid, with the compasses. -We ought not to be so far out; we steered a straight -course, and—”</p> - -<p>“That did you not,” said Birger, “whatever else you did; -the Captain and I have been studying the theory of transcendental -curves from your wake.”</p> - -<p>“I can tell you how it is,” said the Parson; “you have -steered your course as you say, and have not allowed for the -easterly set of the current, and you imagine how this must -have acted upon us under the influence of these rolling swells -which we have had on our port bow ever since daylight, -every one of which must have set us down a fathom or two -to leeward. Don’t you recollect that we lost three line-of-battle -ships coming home from the Baltic by this very -blunder. Compasses!” he continued, <i>sotto voce</i>, “a pretty -lot of blunders are thrown on those unfortunate compasses, -in every court-martial. However,” he continued, aloud, -“there is no help for it,—thankful ought we to be it is no -worse; there is but one thing to be done now, and what that -one thing is, you know as well as I.”</p> - -<p>This the Skipper did know. A close survey of the remaining -coals took place, and it was decided that notwithstanding -the expenditure that took place on the day on the -Shipwash, there might, with economy, be enough for six -hours’ consumption, Birger inquiring innocently, “whether -the Skipper had not anything that would burn in his own -private stores?”</p> - -<p>The steamer’s course was accordingly altered nine or ten -points, for the coast from Arendahl to Christiansand trends -southerly, and she had actually overshot her mark, and gone -to the northward as well as to the eastward of her port, so -that land which had hitherto lain before them, was thus -brought abaft the starboard beam.</p> - -<p>To those who, like our fishermen, were not exactly making<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_46"></a>[46]</span> -a passage, but exploring the country, and to whom it was a -matter of indifference whether they dined at five or supped -at eleven, the Skipper’s blunder was anything but an annoyance. -It afforded them an opportunity, not often enjoyed, -of seeing the outside coast of Norway; for in general, almost -all the coasting trade, and all the passenger traffic, is carried -on within the fringe of islands that guard the shores. An -absolute failure in the article of fuel, and a week or so of -calm within a few miles of their port, might have been a -trial to their tempers; but there was no such temptation to -grumbling on the present occasion; and, besides, the afternoon -and evening were bright and warm, the wind had sunk -to a calm, and though the ever restless sea was heaving and -setting, the swells had become glassy, soft, and regular.</p> - -<p>Cape after cape, island after island of that inhospitable -coast was passed, and not a sign of habitation, not a town, -not a village, not even a fisherman’s cottage, or a solitary -wreath of smoke was to be seen. The land seemed utterly -uninhabited, and, as they drew out from the stream of trade, -the very sea seemed tenantless also.</p> - -<p>The fact is, that the whole coast of Norway, and of Sweden -also, is fringed with islands, in some places two or three deep, -which are separated from the main and from each other by -channels more or less broad, but always deep. Of these -islands, the outer range is seldom inhabited at all, never on -the seaward sides, which, exposed to the first sweep of the -southwester, are either bare, bold rocks, or else nourish on -their barren crags a scanty clothing of stunted fir or ragged -juniper, but afford neither food nor shelter, and where that -necessary of life, fresh water, is very rarely to be met with.</p> - -<p>The whole of the coasting trade passes within this barrier, -and the houses and villages, of which there are many, lie -hidden on the sheltered shores of the numerous channels; so -that, however well peopled the coast may be—and in some -places population is by no means scanty—neither house, nor -boat, nor ship, except the foreign trade as it approaches or -leaves the coast, is ever seen by the outside coaster.</p> - -<p>The shades of evening were already falling, and that at -midsummer in Norway indicates a very late hour indeed,<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_47"></a>[47]</span> -when the glimmer of a light was seen through the scrubby -firs of a cape-land island, occasioning a general rush of expectant -passengers to the bridge, for some had begun to doubt -the very possibility of discovering this continually retreating -port, and to class it with the fairy territories of Cloudland -and Cape Flyaway; while others, with more practical views -and less poetical imaginations, had been contemplating with -anxiety the rapidly decreasing coals in the bunkers. Both -parties, poets and utilitarians alike, had their fears set at rest -when, on rounding the point, the long-lost lighthouse of -Christiansand hove in sight—tall, white, pillar-like, looking -shadowy and ghost-like, against the dark background behind -it. The poets might have thought of the guardian spirit of -some ancient sea king, permitted to watch over the safety of -his former dwelling-place, for Christiansand is renowned in -story. To the utilitarians it might, and probably did, suggest -visions of fresh vegetables, and salmon, and cod, and -lobsters, for all of which that town is famous.</p> - -<p>A bare, low, treeless slab of rock forms its site, a mere -ledge, about a quarter-of-a-mile long, and sufficiently low, and -sufficiently in advance of the higher islands, to form in itself -a danger of no small magnitude during the long winter -nights. It maintains on its withered wiry grass half-a-dozen -sheep and a pig or two, the property of the lighthouse-keeper, -which being the first signs of life and vestiges of -habitation which had greeted the travellers during the afternoon’s -steaming, were regarded with an interest of which -they were not intrinsically deserving.</p> - -<p>In a very few minutes, the heaving of the outside sea was -exchanged for the perfect calm and deep stillness of the -harbour, with its overhanging woods, its long dusky reaches, -its quiet inlets, and mysterious labyrinthine passages, among -its dark, shadowy islands. These became higher and more -wooded as the steamer wound her way among them, deepening -the gloom, and bringing on more rapidly the evening -darkness. All, however, looked deserted and uninhabited, -till suddenly, on opening a point of land, high and wooded -like all the rest, the town of Christiansand lay close before -them, dark and indistinct in the midnight twilight, without<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_48"></a>[48]</span> -the twinkle of a solitary lamp to enliven it, or to indicate the -low houses from the rocks which surrounded and were confused -with them.</p> - -<p>“Hurrah!” said the Parson, as the plunge of the anchor -and the rattle of the chain cable broke the stillness of -the night. “Some of us are not born to be drowned, that -is certain.”</p> - -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - -<div class="chapter"> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_49"></a>[49]</span></p> - -<h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_V">CHAPTER V.<br /> -<span class="smaller">CHRISTIANSAND.</span></h2> - -</div> - -<div class="poetry-container"> -<div class="poetry"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">“Dark it is without,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">And time for our going.”</div> - </div> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse right"><i>Skirnis Fär.</i></div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -<p>At the time the <i>Walrus</i> dropped her anchor, all seemed as -still and lonely as if no sound had ever awakened the silence -of the harbour. The chain cable, as it rattled through the -hawse-hole, had even a startling effect, so solitary, so unusual -was the sound. The place seemed as if it had been uninhabited -since creation; for though the town lay close before -it, the houses, low and lightless, looked like a collection of -fantastic rocks; but scarcely had she felt the strain of her -cable, when her stern swung into the middle of a group of -boats, which seemed as if they had risen from the depths of -the sea, so sudden and unexpected was their appearance, and -crowds of earnest, business-like, trafficing Norsemen were -clambering up her sides at every practical point. Norway -has no inns, and Norway is said to be a place of universal -hospitality, where every one is delighted to receive the wandering -guest—and so every one is, and delighted to receive -the wandering guest’s money also, with two or three hundred -per cent. profit on the outlay. The real fact is, every house -in Norway is an inn, to all intents and purposes, except the -license; and in places like Christiansand, every man is his -own touter. Whatever is the noise and confusion of a vessel -arriving at a French or Flemish port, on this occasion it was -doubled, not only from the number and assiduity of hospitable -hosts, but also from the unusual quantity and quality of -the passengers. It was not every day that a Russian ambassador -graced with his august presence, and his distinguished<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_50"></a>[50]</span> -suite, an obscure trading town of Norway; and its -citizens, inferior to no nation in the world in the art of -turning an honest penny, were in two moments as well aware -of the fact, and as fully determined to profit by it, as the -Dutch landlady, who, having charged our second George the -value of ten pounds sterling English for his two eggs and his -bit of toast, informed him that though eggs were plentiful in -her country, kings were not.</p> - -<p>The confusion which pervaded the <i>Walrus’s</i> decks and -cabins, the cries, the calls, the screams that were flying -about unheeded; the extraordinary oaths that jostled one -another, out of every language of Saxon, Russian, or -Scandinavian origin; the obtrusive civilities of the touters; -the officiousness of volunteering porters; the mistakes -about luggage; the anxieties, the rushings to and fro, in -which everybody is seeking for everybody, may easily be -imagined; and none the less was the confusion of tongues; -that night had thrown her veil over this floating Babel of -the North.</p> - -<p>But through it all the three friends sat on their carpet -bags of patience, smoking the cigar of peace, now and then -making a joke among themselves, as the steward’s lantern -flashed upon some face of unusual solicitude, but totally -unconcerned amid the fluctuating hubbub that surrounded -them.</p> - -<p>“Well,” said the Captain, “I have had enough of this fun, -and am hungry besides; I vote we go on shore. I suppose -your man is here?”</p> - -<p>The Parson got up, and, putting his head over the side, -shouted in a stentorian voice, through his hand, which he -used as a speaking trumpet—“Ullitz! Ullitz!”</p> - -<p>“Hulloh!” returned a voice from the dark waters, in the -unmistakably English man-of-war’s fashion—“Hulloh!” repeated -the voice.</p> - -<p>“Shove alongside here, under the quarter,” said the Parson. -“Who have you got in the boat along with you? Tom -Engelsk for one, I am sure.”</p> - -<p>“Only Tom and Torkel; I thought that would be enough,” -said a voice from the waters below, in remarkably good<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_51"></a>[51]</span> -English, in which the foreign accent was scarcely perceptible.</p> - -<p>“Quite enough,” said the Parson; “look out there!” as -he hove the slack of the quarter-boat’s after-tackle fall, -which he had been making up into coils as he was speaking. -“Tell English Tom to shin up that, and come on board: it is -nothing for an English man-of-war’s man to do, and one of -you hold on by the rope.”</p> - -<p>Tom, active as a cat, and delighted at being spoken of as -an English man-of-war’s man before so many English people, -scrambled up the side and stood before them, with his shallow -tarpaulin hat in hand, as perfectly an English sailor, so -far as his habiliments were concerned, as if he had dressed -after the model of T. P. Cooke.</p> - -<p>The man’s real name was Thorsen, and his birthplace the -extreme wilds of the Tellemark; but having served for five -years on board an English man-of-war, he had dropped his -patronymic, and delighted in the name of English Tom; by -which, indeed, he was generally known.</p> - -<p>“Tom,” said the Parson, “you see to this luggage; count -all the parcels; see that you have it all safe; pass it through -the custom-house, and let us see you and it to-morrow -morning. And now, he who is for a good supper, a -smiling hostess, a capital bottle of wine, and clean sheets, -follow me.”</p> - -<p>As he spoke, he dropped his carpet bag over the side -which Ullitz caught, and disappeared down the rope by -which Tom had ascended, followed implicitly by his two -companions.</p> - -<p>“Shove off, Ullitz,” said he, as the Captain sat himself -down and poised Tom’s oar in his hands, pointing it man-of-war -fashion as Tom himself would have done, and when Ullitz -had got clear of the steamer, seconding ably the sturdy -strokes of Torkel. In a few moments the boat touched the -quay of the fish market, and the party sprang on shore with -all the glee that shore-going people feel when released from -the thraldom of a crowded vessel.</p> - -<p>Ullitz and Torkel remained behind, in order to secure the -boat in some dark nook best known to themselves; for there<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_52"></a>[52]</span> -were several idlers on the fish-market quay, who, except -for want of conveyance, would have been at that moment -unnecessarily adding to the crowd on board, and were -not very likely to be over-scrupulous about Torkel’s private -property.</p> - -<p>The three friends, in the meanwhile, in order to extricate -themselves from two or three groups of drunken men -(drunkenness, the Parson remarked, was the normal state of -Norway, at that time of night), pressed forward, and walked -ankle-deep through the sandy desert, which, in Christiansand, -is called a street, the Captain stuffing the little -black pipe which, as was his wont, he carried in his waistcoat -pocket.</p> - -<p>“Well,” said Birger, “no one can appreciate a blessing -until he has been deprived of it. I declare, it is a luxury in -itself to be able to go where one pleases, after having been -cribbed and cabined and confined as we have been, and to -plant one’s feet on the solid earth once more, instead of -balancing our steps on a dancing plank.”</p> - -<p>“Pretty well, to call this solid earth,” said the Captain; -“I should call it decidedly marine.”</p> - -<p>“Something like the Christiansanders themselves,” said -Birger, “who, as all the world knows, are neither fish nor -flesh, nor good red-herring; but I dare say Purgatory -would be Paradise to those who arrived at it from the -other way. Well, what is the matter? what are you -stopping about?”</p> - -<p>These last words were addressed to the Parson, who having -been sent forward on the previous summer to spy out this -Land of Promise, had volunteered to act as guide.</p> - -<p>“If there is one thing more puzzling than another,” said -he, “it is this rectangular arrangement of streets. I wish -those utilitarian Yankees, who claim the invention, had it all -to themselves. It is fit only for them.”</p> - -<p>“The English of that is, you have lost your way,” said the -Captain.</p> - -<p>“No, not lost my way,” said the Parson, who piqued himself -on his organ of locality; “but the fact is, I cannot -remember, in the dark, which of all these rectangular crossings<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_53"></a>[53]</span> -is the right one. I wish I could see that great lump of -a church they are so proud of. I say, Birger, knock up some -one, and ask ‘if Monsieur Tonson lodges there.’”</p> - -<p>“Not I,” said Birger. “You are the guide; besides, they -must be coming ashore, some of them, from the steamer by -this time; and, in good truth, here are a couple of them.”</p> - -<p>This couple, much to their relief, turned out to be Ullitz -and Torkel, who pointed out the road at once, but looked -rather grave at the Captain’s pipe, which was now sending -forth a bright red glow through the darkness, and occasionally -illuminating a budding moustache which he was cultivating -on the strength of being a military man.</p> - -<p>Had the acquaintance been of longer standing, they possibly -would have spoken out; as it was, they contented themselves -with a muttered dialogue in their own language, in which the -Parson soon made out the words, “Tobacco” and “Police,” -both of which being modern inventions, bear nearly the same -name in every language in Europe.</p> - -<p>“By the by, I had forgotten that,” said he. “Captain, I -am sorry to put your pipe out; but the fact is, you must not -smoke.”</p> - -<p>“Not smoke! why not?”</p> - -<p>“For fear you should set fire to the town,” said the Parson,—“that -is all. You need not laugh; the law is very strict -about it, I can tell you.”</p> - -<p>The Captain did burst out laughing; and, in truth, where -they were standing, it seemed a ridiculous law enough, though -it is pretty general both in Norway and Sweden. The street -was one of unusual width, being one expanse of sand from -side to side, and the houses, none of which boasted a storey -above the ground floor, seemed absurdly distant,—almost -indistinct in the darkness.</p> - -<p>The Captain, however, obediently put his pipe into its receptacle, -and resumed his route, muttering something about -Warner and the long range—his estimate of the Norwegian -legislative capacity being in no way raised by the sight of -certain small tubs of very dirty water standing by the side of -every house door, which the Parson informed him was -another precaution against fire.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_54"></a>[54]</span></p> - -<p>“Whether there really is to be found any one, well authenticated -instance of a town being set on fire by a pipe of -tobacco,” said Birger, “I will not take it upon myself to say, -nor whether legislating upon pipes and leaving kitchen fires -to take care of themselves, be not like guarding the spigot -and forgetting the bung; but the fires here, when they do -occur, are really awful. You talk in your country of twenty -or thirty houses as something; we burn a town at a time. -Everything here is of deal, every bit of this deal is painted, -and in a season like this, everything you meet with is as dry -as tinder, and heated half-way to the point of combustion -already. Hark to that!” as a sharp, startling crack sounded -close by them; “that is the wood strained and expanded by -the roasting heat of a long summer’s day, yielding now to -the change of temperature; we shall have plenty of these -towards morning. Light up but one of these little bonfires -of houses in a moderate breeze, and see how every house in -the town will be burning within half-an-hour. Six months -ago, the capital of my own province, Wenersborg, contained -10,000 inhabitants, and I believe now the church and the -post-house are the only two buildings left in it.”</p> - -<p>Here Ullitz, who was leading, came to a dead halt before -a substantial porch containing wood enough to build a ship, -from the open door of which a bright light was streaming -across the street. Taking off his hat—every Norwegian -is continually taking off his hat to everybody and everything—he -made a profound bow to the party in general, -and with the words, “Vær saa artig,” ushered them into the -house.</p> - -<p>The room into which they entered was long and low, the -ceiling supported by a mass of timbers like the decks of a -ship; every part of it was planked with bright deal,—floor, -walls, and roof alike,—putting one something in mind of the -inside of a deal box. It was, however, well furnished with -birchen tables, birchen sofas chairs and cabinets (for birch -is a wood that takes a high polish), the whole having rather -a French look. The floor was uncarpeted, as is the case in -almost all Norwegian houses, for they have no carpet manufactory -of their own, and the duty upon English woollens is<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_55"></a>[55]</span> -so enormous that it is impossible to import them; but it was -strewed with sprigs of green juniper, which diffused a pleasant -fragrance; and these, in token that the family were -keeping holiday, were spangled with the yellow heads of the -<i>trollius europæus</i>, which the pretty Marie, the daughter of the -house, had been gathering all the morning, and had scattered -over them in honour of the expected guests.</p> - -<p>Neither Marie nor her mother could speak one word of -English—few of their women can—but their deeds spoke for -them; for the hospitable board—and in this case it was -literally a board, placed upon trestles, and removed when the -supper was over—groaned under the weight of the good -cheer. There were fish, not only in every variety, but in -every variety of cookery; there was lobster-soup, and plok -fiske, and whiting cakes, and long strips of bright red -salmon, highly dried in juniper smoke and served up raw; -enormous bowls of gröd,—a name which signifies everything -semi-liquid, from rye-stirabout to gooseberry-fool;—with -cream, as if the whole dairy was paraded at once,—some of it -pure, some tinged with crimson streaks, from the masses of -cranberry jelly that floated about it.</p> - -<p>Nor were the liquors forgotten, which, in Norway, at least, -are considered indispensable to qualify such delicacies. There -was the corn brandy of the country, diffusing round it a -powerful flavour of aniseed, without which no meal of any -kind takes place; there, too, was French brandy, freely partaken -of, but so light both in colour and taste, that it suggested -ideas of a large qualification of water; there was -English beer, and a light sort of clarety wine, that was -drunk in tumblers. Madame Ullitz, indeed, presided over a -marshalled array of tea-cups, of which she was not a little -proud, for it is not every house that can boast of its tea -equipage; but this was as an especial compliment to the -English strangers. The tea-cups and saucers might be -Staffordshire,—they had a most English look about them; -but the tea was unquestionably of native growth, being -little else than a decoction of dried strawberry leaves, not -at all unpleasant, but by no means coming up to English -ideas of tea.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_56"></a>[56]</span></p> - -<p>“Vær saa artig,” said the lady of the house, with an inviting -smile and a general bow, intimating that supper was -ready; and the whole household and guests of various degrees, -including Torkel the hunter, and Jacob the courier, -and two or three stout serving-girls, and half-a-dozen -hangers-on of one sort or other, placed themselves round the -table, as indiscriminately as the viands upon it.</p> - -<p>The house of Ullitz made a feast that day.</p> - -<p>“Vær saa artig,” said Marie, handing to the Captain -a plate heaped up with brown, crisp, crackling whiting -cakes.</p> - -<p>The Captain did his best to look his thanks as he took -the plate. “What on earth do they all mean by that eternal -‘Vær saa artig?’” said he to the Parson, aside. “I have -heard nothing else ever since we dropped our anchor. First, -I thought it meant ‘Get out of the boat,’ or ‘Go up the -street,’ or ‘Come in-doors,’ or ‘Sit down to supper,’ or something -of that sort; but then those drunken porters on -board were shoving and elbowing one another about with -the very same words in their mouths; and, now I recollect, -this was the very speech Birger made to the Professor on -the day of the wreck, when he gave him that slippery -hitch.”</p> - -<p>“In that case,” said the Parson, laughing, “‘vær saa artig’ -must mean two black eyes and a bloody nose, for that, as you -know, is what the Professor got by it. But the fact is, ‘Vær -saa artig,’ with variations, is the general passport throughout -all Scandinavia. Some writers ascribe a mystic force to the -words, ‘Vackere lilla flycka’—pretty little girl; and I am -sure I am not going to deny the force of flattery. But among -the natives, certainly, no one ever thinks of telling you what -they want you to do. ‘Have another slice of beef?’ ‘Come -in?’ ‘Take off your hat?’ ‘Take a seat?’ or whatever it -is; all that is dumb show, preceded by the universal formula, -‘Vær saa artig,’ ‘Be so polite.’ All the rest is understood.”</p> - -<p>“Vær saa artig,” said Ullitz, unconsciously, from the other -end of the table, holding up a bottle of claret, from which he -had just extracted the cork.</p> - -<p>“Jag har äran drikka er till,” replied the Parson, who had<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_57"></a>[57]</span> -picked up some of the formularies during his former visit. -“There,” he said, “that is another instance: an Englishman -would have said, ‘Take a glass of wine,’ in plain English. -He holds me a bottle, and tells me to ‘be polite.’ My belief -is, that when Jack Ketch goes to hang a man in Norway, he -is not such a brute as to tell him to put his head into the -halter; he merely holds it up to him, and, with a bow, requests -him ‘Att være saa artig.’”</p> - -<p>“Yes,” said Birger, breaking in, “that is very true; it -used to be the case; but the Storthing has abolished that -piece of politeness, and capital punishment along with it. -The fact is, the Norwegians are so virtuous now, as everybody -knows, that they never want hanging.”</p> - -<p>This sarcasm, which was spoken in a little louder tone -than the conversation which preceded it, threatened rather -to interfere with the harmony of the evening, which it probably -would have done had the language been generally -understood. But the Parson acted as peace-maker.</p> - -<p>“Now, Ullitz,” said he, not giving that worthy time to -reply, “tell us what arrangements you have been making for -us. Shall we be able to start to-morrow?”</p> - -<p>“I have done everything according to the instructions -transmitted to me,” said Ullitz, speaking like a secretary of -state, and with the solemnity warranted by the importance -of his subject. “There are two boats now lying at the -bridge quay, with their oars and sails in my porch, and we -can easily get another for the foreign gentleman” (so Ullitz -designated his Swedish fellow-countryman—a little trait of -Norske nationality at which Birger laughed heartily). “As -for boat furniture, we have everything you can possibly want, -in the shop; you have but to choose. And as for provisions, -we may trust Madame Ullitz for that.”</p> - -<p>“Yes,” said the Parson, “I know Madame Ullitz and her -provision-baskets of old.”</p> - -<p>Madame smiled, and looked pleased; making a guess that -something was said about her, and that that something must -be complimentary.</p> - -<p>“Then, as for attendants, I made bold to detain this most -excellent and well-born Gothenburger, Herr Jacob Carlblom”—(with<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_58"></a>[58]</span> -a polite bow to Mr. Jacob, returned by a still more -polite bow from that illustrious and well-born individual). -“Herr Jacob is a traveller of some celebrity by sea and land”—(the -Parson afterwards found out that he was a Gothenborg -smuggler)—“and would be happy to attend the gentlemen -in the capacity of courier, cook, interpreter, and commissary, -for the remuneration of a specie-daler per diem, with -his food and travelling expenses.”</p> - -<p>“Very well,” said the Parson; “I suppose we must have -a cook, so we will try your friend Mr. Jacob in our expedition -up the Torjedahl, and see how we like him. And what -says Torkel? are we to have the benefit of his experience?”</p> - -<p>Torkel looked as if earth could afford no higher pleasure, -for, in his way, he was a mighty hunter—he was not only -great at the Långref,<a id="FNanchor_2" href="#Footnote_2" class="fnanchor">[2]</a> and skilled in circumventing the -Tjäder<a id="FNanchor_3" href="#Footnote_3" class="fnanchor">[3]</a> in his lek, but he had followed the Fjeld Ripa<a id="FNanchor_4" href="#Footnote_4" class="fnanchor">[4]</a> to -the very tops of the snowy mountains, had prepared many a -pitfall for the wolf and fox, and had been more than once in -personal conflict with the great Bruin himself.</p> - -<p>“Torkel shall be my man, then,” said the Parson, who had -a pretty good eye to his own interest.</p> - -<p>“And English Tom, who speaks the language so well, will -be just the man for the highborn Captain,” said Ullitz.</p> - -<p>“Very good,” said the Parson, “so be it; and whenever -we have to do with lakes and sailing, Tom shall be our admiral, -and shall put in practice all the science he has learned -in the British navy.”</p> - -<p>“Tom is as proud of belonging to the English navy, as if -it were the Legion of Honour,” said Ullitz, whose father had -belonged to the French faction, and who was rather suspected -of holding French politics himself.</p> - -<p>“It <i>is</i> the Legion of Honour,” said Birger, “and I give<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_59"></a>[59]</span> -Mr. Tom great credit for his sentiments. Well, you must look -me out a man, too. This will not be so very difficult, as I -speak the language pretty well for a foreigner.”</p> - -<p>In fact, Birger had been practising the language a good -deal already, and not a little to the Captain’s envy, by making -fierce love to the daughter of the house; an amusement with -which guardsmen, Swedish as well as English, do occasionally -beguile their leisure moments; and, to the Captain’s infinite -disgust, Marie did not seem to lend by any means an unfavourable -ear to his soft speeches.</p> - -<p>“Oh,” said Ullitz, “we shall have no difficulty whatever -in finding a man; if there is anything these people love -better than gain, it is pleasure, and here we have both combined. -My only difficulty lies in making the selection. I -have reckoned that each of the highborn gentlemen will want -a boatman besides his own man; but I have engaged these -only for the trip to Wigeland, as you will no doubt like to -change them there for men who are acquainted with the -upper river; but you can keep them if you like, they will be -but too happy to go.”</p> - -<p>“All right, then, we will start to-morrow afternoon, and -get as far as Oxea before we sleep. The morning, I suppose, -must be devoted to hearing Tom’s report from the Custom-house, -making our selections for the trip, arranging our heavy -baggage that we are to leave here, and seeing that our outfit -is all right. I like to make a short journey the first day, -in order that if anything is forgotten, it may be sent back -for.”</p> - -<p>“Not at all a bad general maxim,” said the Captain: “and -now to bed; for the broad daylight is already putting out the -blaze even of Madame Ullitz’s candles.”</p> - -<p>“With all my heart,” said the Parson, “it is high time;” -and rising from his seat and going round to where Madame -Ullitz sat, he took her hand, and bowing low, said, “Tak for -mad”—thanks for the meal.</p> - -<p>“Vel de bekomme,” said the lady,—well may it agree -with you.</p> - -<p>In this ceremony he was followed by the whole party,<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_60"></a>[60]</span> -who, shortly after separating, sought their respective sleeping-places.</p> - -<p>The beds were queer concerns, certainly: beautifully clean, -and fragrant with all manner of wild herbs; but as unlike -the English notion of a bed (which in that country is always -associated with ideas of a recumbent position), as is well possible. -A thick, straw mattress, shaped like a wedge, occupied -the upper half. Upon this were placed two enormous -pillows, fringed with lace. The rest of the bed was simply a -feather-bed placed on the ticking, and so much lower, that -the sleeper takes his rest almost in a sitting position. The -whole, including the quilt, was stuffed luxuriously, not with -feathers, but with the very best eider-down; for Madame -Ullitz, in her maiden days, had been at least as celebrated a -beauty as her daughter was now, and unnumbered had been -the offerings of eider-down made by her hosts of admirers, -who had braved wind and wave to procure for her that most -acceptable of all presents to a Norwegian girl—at once the -record of her past triumphs, and the glory of her future home. -The prudent traveller in Norwegian territories will always -do well, if he has the chance, to choose for his residence the -house of a <i>ci-devant</i> beauty.</p> - -<p>Little, however, did the travellers reck of mattress or -feather-bed, Madame Ullitz’s past conquests, or her daughter’s -present bright eyes—a sea-voyage, four or five restless nights, -a long day’s work, and a plentiful supper at the end of it, -equalize all those things; and, though the sun was shining -brightly through the shutterless and curtainless windows, -five minutes had not elapsed before it was indifferent to them -whether they had sunk to rest on eider-down or poplar -leaves; or whether their beds had been strewed for them by -the fair hands of the bright-eyed Marie, or by those of the -two lumps of girls who had assisted at the grand supper.</p> - -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - -<div class="chapter"> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_61"></a>[61]</span></p> - -<h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_VI">CHAPTER VI.<br /> -<span class="smaller">THE TORJEDAHL.</span></h2> - -</div> - -<div class="poetry-container"> -<div class="poetry"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">“Foresight is needful</div> - <div class="verse indent0">To the far traveller:</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Each place seems home to him:</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Least errs the cautious.”</div> - </div> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse right"><i>Hávamál.</i></div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -<p>“And now for work,” said the Parson, as, somewhat late -on the following morning they rose from a breakfast as substantial -and plentiful as had been the supper of the night -before. The ordinary meals of a Norwegian are, in fact, -three good substantial dinners per diem, with their proportionate -quantity of strong drink: one at nine or ten, which -they call “Frökost”; one at two or three, which is termed -“Middagsmad”; and one in the evening, called “Afton.” -But, whatever they call them, the fare is precisely the same -in all; the same preliminary glass of brandy, the same very -substantial hot joints, the same quantity of sweetmeats, and, -at Christiansand at all events, the same liberal supply of -fish. Tea and coffee are not seen at any of them, but generally -form an excuse for supernumerary meals an hour or so -after the grand ones.</p> - -<p>The strangers were not yet acclimated; they lounged over -their morning’s meal as if the recollections of their yesterday’s -supper were yet green in their memories. Not so the natives. -No one would suppose that they had supped at all—they ate -as if they had been fasting for a week.</p> - -<p>All things, however, come to an end,—even a Norwegian’s -breakfast; and the Parson stood in the porch receiving -English Tom’s report from the custom-house, and cataloguing -the packages as they arrived. These included two dogs; one<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_62"></a>[62]</span> -a very handsome brindled bay retriever, called “Grog,” -belonging to the Captain; the other an extremely accomplished -poaching setter, his own friend and constant companion. -These, wild with joy at their newly regained -liberty and restoration to their respective masters, from whose -society they had been separated during the whole voyage, -were grievously discomposing the economy of Madame -Ullitz’s well-ordered house.</p> - -<p>A small assortment of necessaries was packed in deal -covered baskets or boxes,—for they looked as much like the -one as the other. This manufacture is peculiar to the -country, and is equally cheap and convenient. These, with -the rods, guns, ammunition, and boat furniture, including the -sails which were to form tents on the occasion, together with -Madame Ullitz’s liberal supply of provisions (among which -the rö kovringer were not forgotten), were arranged in the -porch, and one by one were transferred by the boatmen to -the bridge quay, where the boats were lying. The weightier -articles were consigned to the keeping of Ullitz, and were -lodged in his ample store rooms.</p> - -<p>“Now, Captain,” said the Parson, as they stood on the -bank of the noble river, “do you take a spare boat and a -couple of hands, and pull as far as the first rapids; let Torkel -be one of them, and he will show you the place. There is on -the left bank of the river, a sort of rude boat canal, which is -not always passable. If we can contrive to get through it, -we will sleep at Oxea to-night: but, if the boats require to -be hauled over land, we must be satisfied with that for one -day’s work, return here to sleep, and carry our things over -land to-morrow morning. It will take me a couple of hours, -at the least, to fit these things, but I shall be ready for you -by the time you return. And, to tell you the truth,” he -added, in a whisper, “I wish you could take Birger with -you. He is doing nothing but laugh and joke; and he -makes the men so idle, that I shall get on twice as well -without him. Set him to harl for salmon—anything, to get -rid of him. It will be of use, too; for if he meet with anything -down here we may be sure that Wigeland is alive -with fish. You will see a reef of rocks on the right bank, a<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_63"></a>[63]</span> -quarter of a mile above the town: it is not a bad throw—set -him to work there.”</p> - -<p>Birger was delighted at the idea, and, as the Parson would -spare none of the boats or boatmen, he took a small praam -that belonged to one of the men, and prepared to accompany -the Captain on his expedition.</p> - -<p>Birger certainly was no fisherman: he could but just -throw a clumsy fly, and had never caught a salmon in his -life, or seen one, except at table: but harling is a science -open to the meanest capacity. It is the manner in which -cockney sportsmen catch their salmon in the Tweed, and -consists of traversing and re-traversing the width of the river, -with a rod and twenty yards of line hanging out of the stern -of the boat. The fly thus quarters the water backwards and -forwards without any exertion of the fisherman, and even the -salmon that seizes it effectually hooks itself before the rod -can be taken in hand. On the Tweed, the fisherman has -actually nothing to do, but to pay his boatmen, who, by -choosing their own course, perform the very little science -which this operation requires. In the present case, Birger, -having to manage his own boat, was far more the artificer of -his own fortune; but his success depended on his skill, not -as a fisherman, but as a boatman—an accomplishment in -which no Northman is deficient,—rather than on his science -and dexterity as a fisherman.</p> - -<p>As soon as the exploring party had left, the Parson, with -his lieutenant and interpreter, Tom, and the remaining three -boatmen, addressed himself seriously to work. Every Norseman -is a carpenter; indeed, every Norseman may be set -down as a Jack-of-all-trades; and under Tom’s interpretership -they very soon began to understand what was wanted.</p> - -<p>Under the starboard gunnel of each boat, and close to the -right-hand of the sitter, were screwed two copper brackets -for the gun, protected by a short curtain of waterproof. On -the opposite side was a sort of shelf or ledge for the spare -rods; and in the stern-sheets a locker for books, reels, powder-flasks, -odds and ends, and, above all, any little store of -brandy that they had,—an article which it was very dangerous -indeed to have loose in the boat.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_64"></a>[64]</span></p> - -<p>Norwegian boats are built like whale boats, with both ends -alike, which is not altogether a convenient build for harling—a -mode of fishing, which, however much to be deprecated in -known rivers, is very useful, indeed almost indispensable, to -explorers. To remedy this, a ring and socket was fixed on -each quarter of the boat, in order to receive the butt of the -rod, and to hold it in an upright position when the fishermen -should be otherwise engaged. Under the thwarts of each -boat were strapped an axe, a handbill, a hammer, and a bag -of nails; and several coils of birch rope were stowed forward. -Birch rope, which is a Swedish manufacture from the tough -roots of the birch tree, is peculiarly adapted to these purposes, -since it has the property of floating on the water, -which hempen ropes have not.</p> - -<p>Upon the principle of “business first and pleasure afterwards,” -so long as anything remained to be done, the Parson -had scarcely raised his eyes from his work, or thought of -anything else; and so well and so ably had he been seconded, -that everything was completely fitted, provisions brought -down and stowed, and all ready for starting, a full half-hour -before the time specified. His friends were, however, still -absent; and thus, having nothing to do, he left the men to -take care of the boats, and lounged across the beautiful -bridge that connects the town with the opposite shore.</p> - -<p>The bridge of Christiansand may well be called beautiful; -not, indeed, as a piece of architecture, for it is built, like -almost everything in the country, of wood, though with a -solidity that would put to shame many of our buildings of -far more durable materials. Its beauty lies in its situation, -spanning as it does with its eleven broad flat arches, the -clear swift stream of the Torjedahl. The depth was such -that ships of some burthen were lying on each side of the -bridge, the centre compartment of which was moveable; but -so clear was the water, that the very foundations of the piers -could be seen as the Parson looked over the parapet; and -among them a beautiful school of white trout, as clearly defined -as if they had been swimming in air, which, much to -his satisfaction, he discerned working their way up from the -sea. This sight was doubly satisfactory, for he had been<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_65"></a>[65]</span> -ominously shaking his head at the peculiar ultra-marine tint -of the waters,—a sight in itself abundantly beautiful, as any -one who has seen the Rhone at Geneva can testify, but far -from welcome to the eyes of a fisherman, as indicating, beyond -a doubt, the presence of melted snow.</p> - -<p>The Parson had reached the last arch, and was sitting on -the parapet, on the look-out for the returning boats; admiring -in the meanwhile the quiet little amphitheatre which forms -the last reach of the Torjedahl after its exit from its mountain -gorge, and scanning the quaint, old-fashioned town, with -its dark-red wooden houses, overtopped by its heavy cathedral, -on the tower of which the Lion of Norway, and the -Axe of St. Olaf, were glittering in the sun; and occasionally -peering into the gabled sheds of its dockyard, from each of -which peeped out the bows of a gun-boat,—that formidable -flotilla which, during the late wars, had hung on our Baltic -trade like a swarm of musquitos, perpetually dispersed by our -cruisers, and as perpetually re-united on some different and -unexpected point. Beyond this was the island citadel, a -place of no strength, indeed, for the strength of Norway does -not lie in its fortifications, but a point of considerable beauty -in the eye of an artist. The whole of this picture to seaward -as well as to landward, was set in by a frame of miniature mountains—not -hills, nor anything like hills, but real fantastically -shaped mountains, with peaked heads, some of them showing -their bare rocks, with little splashes of mica slate sparkling -like diamonds, but most of them covered with dark fir to -their very summits, only shooting out occasionally a bare cliff, -so arid and so perpendicular that no tree could find root -on it.</p> - -<p>So intently was the Parson gazing on the scene, that it -was some time before he caught sight of Birger’s praam, -which was rapidly approaching the place where he was sitting, -and some time longer before he made out the very uncomfortable -position in which his friend was placed. Birger, -dexterous enough in the management of a boat, even that -most ticklish of boats, the Norwegian praam—a dexterity -which any one will appreciate who has ever attempted the -navigation of a Welsh coracle, or can picture to himself what<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_66"></a>[66]</span> -it is to be at sea in a washing-tub—had proved an apt scholar -in the science of harling; and the Captain, having seen him -make two or three traverses without upsetting his boat or -entangling his flies, had proceeded on his mission and left him -to his own devices. The boat was hardly out of sight when -a heavy fish rose at the fly. Birger seized his rod, as he had -been directed, but in his agitation forgot to secure his paddles, -both of which dropped overboard, and, unseen and unheeded, -set out on an independent cruise of their own,—and -thus the salmon, of course, had it all his own way. It so -happened that he headed to seaward, and the light praam -offering very little resistance, and the stream, which was -sweeping stilly and steadily at the rate of three or four miles -an hour, forwarding him on his way, there was every probability -of his reaching it.</p> - -<p>No sooner had the Parson realised the true state of things, -than he rushed across the bridge for his boat; but the bridge -was by no means a short one, and the Parson was at the -farthest end; and long before he reached it, salmon, Birger, -praam, and all had disappeared under one of the centre -arches.</p> - -<p>The boatmen had, of course, lounged away from the quay, -probably to the nearest brandy shop; but the Parson sprang -into a boat, cut the painter, seized the paddles, and shoved -off furiously into the stream.</p> - -<p>Fortunately, this had been seen by the Captain, who was -at that moment returning; and he, though of course perfectly -unaware what was the matter, changed his course, and dashed -through the nearest arch, in pursuit.</p> - -<p>By this time the praam was fairly at sea; but the boats -were nearing her fast, and the Captain, having the advantage -of oars, passed the Parson’s boat, and then, checking his -speed, lest he should capsize the friend he meant to aid, -grappled the praam with his boat-hook, and, winding his -own boat at the same time, towed her quietly and steadily -to a little sandy beach. Upon this, both he and Birger -landed. The latter, whose arms were aching as only a -salmon-fisher’s arms can ache, was glad enough to transfer -his rod to the Captain.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_67"></a>[67]</span></p> - -<p>The Parson calling in vain for a gaff, which implement in -the hurry had been left in one of the other boats, threw himself -into the water, which there was not much over his knees. -But the salmon, seeing his enemies on every side, collected -his energies afresh, as that gallant fish will do, and rattled -off fifty yards of line into the deep blue sea before the Captain -could turn him. He had, however, a practised hand to deal -with. Slowly and carefully did the Captain reel him up, -guiding him to the spot a little above where the Parson was -standing as still and motionless as the rocks around him. -There was as yet a considerable current, arising from the -flow of the river, and the Captain, taking advantage of this, -let the fish tail down quietly and inch by inch, to where the -Parson was standing motionless and stooping so that his -hands were already under water. Slowly, and without effort, -the fish came nearer and nearer, till at last, gripping firmly -with both hands the thin part just above the insertion of the -tail, the Parson, half-lifting the fish from the water, dragged -him to land, and, despite his struggles, threw him gasping on -the snow-white beach.</p> - -<p>“Well done, Birger!” said the Captain, laying his rod -against a rock, and running down, steelyard in hand; -“there is the first fish of the season, and you are the -prize-man.”</p> - -<p>“Hurrah,” said Birger, admiring his own handiwork,—for -the steelyard had given a full two-and-twenty pounds,—“this -is the first salmon I ever caught in my life; and upon my -word, when I had him, I thought I had got hold of Loki -himself.”</p> - -<p>“And upon my word,” said the Parson, “it looked as if -Loki had got hold of you; I thought he was taking you off -to his own realms. If we had not come up, you would have -been by this time half way to the Midgard Serpent!”<a id="FNanchor_5" href="#Footnote_5" class="fnanchor">[5]</a></p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_68"></a>[68]</span></p> - -<p>“Well,” said Birger, “it took all the Œsir together to -land the aboriginal salmon; and, I must say, Thor himself -could not have handled him better than you did.”</p> - -<p>“What is your story?” said the Captain; “sit down there -and tell it us. You will lose no time,” he added—for Birger, -having once tasted blood, looked very much as if he wished -to be at work again—“you will lose no time, I tell you, for -I must crimp this fish for our dinners. Who can tell if we -are to catch another to-day? Parson, lend me your crimping-knife; -I left mine in the boat.”</p> - -<p>The Parson produced from his slip-pocket that formidable -weapon, called by our transatlantic brethren a bowie knife; -and the Captain, having first put the fish out of his misery, -proceeded to prepare him scientifically for the toasting-skewers.</p> - -<p>“Now, Birger, for the story. So much I know, that it is -something about diabolical agency. Loki, I believe, is the -Devil of Scandinavian mythology.”</p> - -<p>“Not exactly,” said Birger; “though we must admit that -he and his progeny, the Wolf Fenrir and the Midgard -Serpent, are the origin of evil, and will eventually cause the -destruction of the world. But Loki really was one of the -Œsir, or gods, and had sworn brotherhood with Odin himself; -and thus, though he often played them mischievous tricks, -they seem to have associated with him, as one is in the habit -of doing with a disreputable brother-officer—not exactly -liking him, far less approving of his ways, but still consorting -with him, and permitting him to be a participator of -their exploits. At last, however, when he had gone so far -as to misguide poor blind Hodur, so as to make him kill -Baldur, they determined that this really was too bad. Baldur -was a general favourite; everything good or beautiful, -either in this world or in Asgard, was called after him; and -the unanimous vote was, that Loki should be brought to -justice, and made to suffer for this. Loki, however, who -rather suspected that he had gone too far, himself, was no -where to be found. He had quitted Asgard in the form of -a mist,—whence, I presume, we derive the expression ‘to -mizzle,’—and had betaken himself to the great fall called<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_69"></a>[69]</span> -Fränängars Foss, where he lived by catching salmon;—for -Loki, it is said, was the first inventor of nets.”</p> - -<p>“I have not a doubt of it,” said the Captain. “I always -did think that those stake nets must have been invented by -the Principle of Evil himself.”</p> - -<p>“Well, so it was, at all events,” said Birger. “Odin, -however, one day, while sitting upon his Throne of Air, -Hlidsjälf, happened to fix his eye upon him—I say eye, -for you know Odin had but one, having left the other in -pledge at the Mimir Fountain. No sooner did he see -him, than he called to Heimdall, the celestial warder, to -blow his horn, and summon the gods to council at the Well -of Urdar.</p> - -<p>“Loki, perceiving that something was suspected, burnt his -nets, and, changing himself into a salmon, took refuge under -the fall; so that, when the gods arrived at Fränägngar, they -found nothing but the ashes of the nets. It so happened, -however, that the shape of the meshes was left perfect in the -white ash to which it was burnt, and the god Kvasir, who, I -presume, must be the god who presides over the detective -police of Heaven, saw what had happened, and set the gods -weaving nets after the pattern of the ashes.<a id="FNanchor_6" href="#Footnote_6" class="fnanchor">[6]</a></p> - -<p>“When all was ready, they dragged the river; but Loki -placed his head under a stone—as that clever fish, the salmon, -will do,—and the net slipped over his smooth, scaly back. -The Œsir felt him shoot through, and tried another cast, -weighting the net with a spare heap of new shields, which -the Valkyrir had brought the day before from a battle-field,<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_70"></a>[70]</span> -in order to mend the roof of Valhalla. Loki, however, leaped -the net this time gallantly, and again took refuge under the -foss.</p> - -<p>“This time the gods dragged down stream; Thor wading -in the river behind the net. Thor did not mind wading; he -was obliged to do that every day that he went to council, for -the bridge of Bifrost would not bear him. In the meanwhile -Vidar, the God of Silence, in the form of a seal, cruised about -at the river’s mouth.</p> - -<p>“Loki had thought to go to sea and take refuge with his -daughter, Jörmungard the Serpent, but, in assuming the form -of a salmon, he had assumed also, of necessity, the natural -antipathies and fears of the fish. He turned at a sight so -terrible to a salmon, and again sprang over the net. But -Thor was ready for him, and while he was in the air, caught -him in his hand, just above the insertion of the tail; and you -may observe that salmon have never yet recovered from that -tremendous squeeze, but are finer and thinner at the root of -the tail than any fish that swims.”</p> - -<p>“Well,” said the Captain, “that is quite true; it is a fact -that every salmon-fisher knows; and he knows also that the -root of the tail is the only part of the salmon by which it is -possible to hold him, and that it <i>is</i> possible to hold him by -that the Parson showed you just now practically. But it is -very satisfactory to find out the reason of such things, particularly -when the reason is such a very good one. What did -the gods do with Mr. Loki when they had got him; crimp -him, and eat him?”</p> - -<p>“They could not kill him,” said Birger, “because of the -oath of brotherhood which Odin had one day incautiously -sworn with him (I presume, when they were both drunk); -so they laid him on his back on three pointed rocks in a -cave, and bound him with three cords which they afterwards -transformed into iron bars; and there he will lie, -shifting himself, every now and then, from side to side, and -producing what mortals call earthquakes, until that day, -known only to the Nornir, when the twilight shall -fall upon Asgard, and the conflagration of the world is at -hand.”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_71"></a>[71]</span></p> - -<p>“Serve him right, too,” said the Captain; “I am delighted -to hear that the inventor of salmon-nets perished—like Perillus -and other rascals—by his own invention. I hope the -gods will keep him purgatory, or whatever they call it, as -long as rivers run toward the sea. However, here is our -Loki (holding up, by the tail, the scored salmon), and, as we -have not been geese enough to swear brotherhood with him, -he will do for our dinner. What shall we do, in the -meanwhile, to crimp him?”</p> - -<p>“Make him fast to the boat, and tow him a-stern for ten -minutes,” said the Parson; “the water of the Torjedahl is -cold enough to crimp a live fish, let alone a dead one. And, -I will tell you what: let Torkel go with the praam for the -other boats, and meet us on the left bank, just above the -bridge. I want to show you a view of our route to-day that -is worth seeing.”</p> - -<p>So saying, he led the way up a steep, rugged path, just -discernible among the rocks of the rugged ridge which -divides the amphitheatre in which Christiansand is situated -from the wild coasts of the Fjord; and, passing through a -sort of natural opening cut in the summit ridge, pointed to -the scene before them. “There,” said he, “what do you -think of that?”</p> - -<p>Birger was an artist; and, anxious as he was to begin his -career as a fisherman, his ever-ready sketchbook was drawn -out of his pocket; nor did he express a wish to move till -the rugged foreground upon which they stood, the luxuriant -park-like middle distance, with its clumps of trees, and -dark-red houses, and neat English-looking church, and the -background of fir-clad mountains, range beyond range, and -the deep narrow gorge through which their journey lay, -which the blue lake-like river seemed to fill from side to side, -were transferred to the paper.</p> - -<p>A few minutes’ walk brought them to where the boats -were waiting, with the whole house of Ullitz, handmaidens -and all, who had come to see them off. Hand-shaking -all round—the fishermen took their places—the boats -shoved off—Marie threw after them her kid slipper, for -luck, (for that custom is of Scandinavian origin)—English<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_72"></a>[72]</span> -Tom gave three cheers, after the manner of her Britannic -Majesty’s navy—and the expedition started on its voyage up -the Torjedahl.</p> - -<p>The Parson, who was anxious to reach the proposed -encampment at Oxea, while there was yet light to pitch the -tents, would suffer no harling, notwithstanding Birger’s remonstrances, -until the first rapids had been safely passed; -and, indeed, with the exception of the single throw where -the Lieutenant had hooked his fish that morning, that part -of the river was scarcely worth the trouble.</p> - -<p>The rapids, however, which had been surveyed beforehand -by the Captain, were passed, under his skilful pilotage, -in much less time than had been allotted for the operation, -and then, with one consent, the flies were thrown upon -the water.</p> - -<p>Above the rapids, the river forms what is technically -called a “flat;” a spot carefully to be sought out by the exploring -fisherman, as the likeliest to reward his search. A -flat is where the water rolls on with its acquired velocity and -the pressure of that which is behind it, rather than on -account of any declivity in the bed through which it flows. -In the present instance, indeed, the bed of the river actually -rose instead of sinking, for the ridge of rocks which form the -head of the rapids, had retained the stones and loose earth -washed down in the winter floods. This gradually shallowed -the whole river, spreading it out, at the same time, like a -lake, so as to fill the level of the valley from mountain to -mountain. These rose abruptly on either hand, in bare, inaccessible -cliffs, as if they had been forced asunder by some -convulsion of Nature, to make room for the rush of waters, -and exhibited a bare splintered face of rock.</p> - -<p>At the end of an hour—for the Parson would allow no -more—all fears were at an end for that night’s supper; -no other salmon, indeed, had risen, but trout after trout -had been handed into the boats, some of them, too, of a very -respectable size: even Birger had not been without his share -of success.</p> - -<p>But the stream was strong, the day was waning, many -miles intervened between them and their camping-ground,<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_73"></a>[73]</span> -the Parson was inexorable; so the casting-lines were exchanged -for harling-tackle, and the squadron formed in order -of sailing.</p> - -<p>The difference between a common casting-line and the -harling-tackle which one rod in each boat should carry in -every exploring expedition, consists principally in the length -of the gut. The harling line carries five or six flies, in order -to show, at once, as great a variety as possible of size and -colour, and is joined to the reel-line by a swivel, in order to -prevent it from kinking—while two, or, at the most, three, -flies will be found quite sufficient for casting.</p> - -<p>The order of march was this:—Birger led, with his gun -in his hand, ready for a stray duck or teal, many of which -would whistle over their heads, as evening drew on. He was -directed to keep, as near as possible, to the middle of the -stream; while, on either flank, and about twenty yards behind -him, came his two friends, with one rod in each boat -for harling, while, with the other, they whipped into the -likely ripples. Shooting and fishing, however, were made -altogether a secondary condition to progress: they might -catch what they could, and shoot what they could, but the -rowers were to pull steadily forward.</p> - -<p>And thus they opened reach after reach of the beautiful -river, for the most part pent in by inaccessible cliffs, on -which the birch trees seemed to grow on each other’s heads, -and to support above them all a serrated crest of spruce and -fir. But, now and then, they would come to little semicircular -coombs, where the mountain wall would recede for a -space, leaving flats of twenty or thirty acres, which were -carefully cultivated to the very water’s brink, and planted at -the roots of the mountains with white poplar, the dried -leaves of which were to serve for beds in the summer and -hay in the winter. Here would be dark-red wooden houses -with overhanging eaves, and tidy, compact, little farmsteadings, -with their granaries, and store-rooms, and cattle-sheds, -all complete in themselves: and they had need be, for they -were completely isolated from the rest of the world. There -was no road, not even a footpath; no possibility of ingress -or egress, except that which the river afforded. The mountains,<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_74"></a>[74]</span> -except here and there, were inaccessible; and at every -turn of the river, seemed to beetle over it, shutting out each -little amphitheatre from its neighbour. The winter is the -Torjedahler’s time of liberty: then it is that their vehicles -are put into requisition; then it is that their corn and cattle, -if they produce any beyond their own consumption, are -brought to market; for the river, which has hitherto been -their boundary, forms now their railroad and frost-constructed -channel of communication.</p> - -<p>The shadows were darkening on the clear river, and the -arms of even Norwegian rowers were beginning to ache, -when the last point was rounded; and the Parson’s joyous -shout gave notice that their camping-ground was at last -reached; and at the welcome signal, the lines were reeled -up with alacrity, and the boats’ heads were directed to the -shore.</p> - -<p>The spot had been selected by him and Ullitz the year -before, partly as lying conveniently near to Mosse Eurd, their -proposed head-quarters, which it was considered expedient to -reach before noon on the morrow, in order to afford time for -their men hutting themselves and foraging out the resources -of the place; but principally from its own beauty and convenience.</p> - -<p>So precious is level land by the banks of the river, that it -is rare to find any portion of it uncultivated of sufficient -extent for such an encampment as they required. But here, -at the foot of a winter torrent, whose dry bed gave access to -the uplands in summer, and brought down rocks and uprooted -trees in the winter, was a rough plain, formed, no -doubt, originally from the debris brought down by the torrent, -but now covered with short turf and cranberry-bushes, with -a few thick, bushy, white poplars, the leaves of which had -not yet been stripped for hay; while here and there a -graceful birch-tree formed a natural tent with its weeping -branches.</p> - -<p>“Tom, bring the sails with you,” said the Captain, who -had leaped ashore to reconnoitre the ground; “we will have -our tent under this rock.”</p> - -<p>“Capital place!” said Birger; “and bring the axe with<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_75"></a>[75]</span> -you, Tom, as well: that fir will make a first-rate ridge-pole, -and it blocks up the place where it stands.”</p> - -<p>The Captain, not accustomed yet to the trifling value put -upon timber, hesitated to chop up a very promising young -tree,—which, indeed, was unnecessarily large for the purpose, -and which stood but very little in the way, after all.</p> - -<p>“Why,” said Birger, “the very best fir-tree that ever -grew is not worth a specie daler here; and as for that -stick——” substituting the action for the word, he struck -deep into its side, and in a dozen strokes or so it came crashing -down among the under-stuff.</p> - -<p>There was no lack of fuel: there never is in Norway, -where outsides of timber float down the rivers unheeded; -and trees, uprooted by the winter storms and land-slips, rot -where they fall. Before half the things were out of the -boats, three or four fires were throwing round their cheerful -light, some for cooking, some for wantonness, for the evening -was anything but cold. Birger, however, who, as a Swedish -soldier, had had a good deal of experience in bivouacking,—an -exercise to which they are all regularly drilled,—set his -own two men to gather and pile fuel enough to last through -the night; observing that they would all find it cold enough -before morning, when those scamps had burned up the fuel -at hand.</p> - -<p>The Captain and the Parson were occupied in collecting -and weighing the fish, and apportioning them and the other -provisions among the men, while Jacob, the courier, seated -on a stone, apart, was plucking and preparing half-a-dozen -teal that Birger had shot during the passage. These, to the -Parson’s surprise, he deliberately cut in pieces, and consigned -to the great soup-kettle, along with a piece of salt-beef from -the harness cask, and various condiments which he made a -great secret of.</p> - -<p>It may be observed that in Norway fresh meat is seldom -eaten, unless it be on grand occasions, or by those who are -well to do in the world. October is called in the north the -Slaughtering Month, and every family there is occupied in -salting, not only for winter, but for the rest of the year. A -harness cask, therefore,—that is to say, a small cask with a<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_76"></a>[76]</span> -moveable head, containing salt-beef or pork in pickle,—is a -very common thing to meet with, and in fact had formed the -<i>pièce de resistance</i> of Madame Ullitz’s stores.</p> - -<p>“Look here, Jacob, my man,” said the Captain; “I will -show you a trick in cookery that has never reached Gottenborg -yet, nor London neither, for that matter; it is worth a -hogshead of your teal-soup.”</p> - -<p>He called to Tom, who had been preparing under his -superintendence certain square sods of turf, and some long -white skewers; which, in the absence of arbutus—in Ireland -considered indispensable on such occasions,—he had been -directed to cut from the juniper.</p> - -<p>Birger’s salmon, the flakes of which had actually curled -under the cold of the waters, preserving all their curd between -them, was cut into what he technically termed fids; -each one of these was spread open by the skewers and fixed -upon the turfs. These the Captain ranged round a great -heap of hot embers, which he had raked from the fire, and -set English Tom to turn as they required, basting them -pretty freely with salt and water.</p> - -<p>The remaining fish had been given to the men, by whom -they were subjected to a variety of culinary operations; one -of which was making soup of them; and the fires began to -grow bright and cheery in the increasing darkness, when -Jacob paraded his kettle of teal-soup, and Tom set before -each of the fishermen a turf of toasted salmon.</p> - -<p>In return, they received the men’s rations of brandy, the -only part of the provisions on which any limitation was -affixed. This in Norway, perhaps, was considered but a -small modicum: it would have been, however, quite enough -to make twice the number of Englishmen roaring drunk.</p> - -<p>The men collected round their fires, looking like so many -gipsies; provisions were dispatched in enormous quantities, -pipes were lighted, horns produced and filled with pure -brandy, in which each man drank “du” with his neighbour,—an -ancient Scandinavian ceremony, which entitles the drinkers -henceforward to address one another in the second person -singular, and to consider themselves on terms of intimacy.</p> - -<p>In the meanwhile, the principal personages of the expedition<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_77"></a>[77]</span> -sat at the door of their tent, for which the Captain -received his due meed of praise, he having brought the -canvas. They tempered their brandy with a little water, -after the custom of their country, and they smoked somewhat -better tobacco than the Norwegians; but after their -kind, they indulged in very nearly the same relaxations as -their attendants.</p> - -<p>And thus fell the shades of night upon the first day of -the expedition.</p> - -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - -<div class="chapter"> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_78"></a>[78]</span></p> - -<h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_VII">CHAPTER VII.<br /> -<span class="smaller">THE ENCAMPMENT MOSSE EURD.</span></h2> - -</div> - -<div class="poetry-container"> -<div class="poetry"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">“Our good house is there,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Though it be humble:</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Each man is master at home.”</div> - </div> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse right"><i>Hávamál.</i></div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -<p>“Rouse out, Birger, my boy,” said the Captain; “recollect -we have got the Rapids of Oxea to pass before we get any -breakfast, and that we have our breakfast to catch into the -bargain. Come, come,” continued he, as Birger stretched -himself on his Astrakan cloak, as if he was thinking of -another spell of sleep, “‘shake off dull sloth, and early rise,’ -as Dr. Watts says—see me rouse out those lazy hounds down -there!” And that he did, in good earnest, by firing off both -barrels within a foot of their ears; a salutation responded to -by a chorus of yelping from the dogs, who imagined, of -course, that shooting was begun already.</p> - -<p>This had the effect of speedily setting the whole party in -motion; and Jacob, who, with provident care, had prepared, -over-night, a kettle of coffee, raked together the embers -of the still burning fires, presented each with a full -horn of it, a very welcome introduction to the day’s labour; -and then, as wood was plentiful, threw on some logs for a -parting blaze.</p> - -<p>The river itself formed the fishermen’s washing-basin, and -the boat’s thwarts their toilet-tables. Bitter cold, indeed, -was the water; whatever the air may be, there is seldom -much caloric to spare in the water till autumn is pretty well -advanced; but, at least, it had the effect of thoroughly -waking them, and causing them fully to appreciate the luxury -of the now blazing fires to dress by.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 700px;"> -<img src="images/illus2.jpg" width="700" height="460" alt="" /> -<p class="caption">OPENING OF THE CAMPAIGN.</p> -<p class="caption-r"><a href="#Page_78">p. 78.</a></p> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_79"></a>[79]</span></p> - -<p>No one who has any regard for his health should think of -going on a fishing expedition, however short, without a complete -change of clothes,—one set for work, and one for dining -and sleeping in. No man has any business, indeed, on such -an expedition at all, who is afraid of water; but whether he -is afraid or not, he will be sure to be wet, at one time or -other, during the day. This, while the limbs are in exercise -and the sun above the horizon, is all well enough; but let no -man, however hardy he may think himself, sleep habitually in -wet clothes, or in clothes hastily and imperfectly dried by the -camp fire. The very bracing of the nerves during the day, -which prevents the fisherman from taking injury by what -would be called imprudence by his stay-at-home friends, -makes the relaxation and reaction during the night more -complete; and during that time he is exposed to a host of -dangers which vanish before the face of the sun. With all -his precautions, no man gets up from his night’s sleep in the -open air without a little stiffness in the limbs for the first -minute or so, though it may vanish at the first plunge into -the water of his morning’s ablutions. But without these -precautions, he is not unlikely to cut short his own expedition -by any one of a dozen diseases which no amount of -animal courage will enable him to bear up against, and thus -he will be defeating his own object. It is very well to bear -hardships cheerily when they are unavoidable—cheerfulness -itself is a preservative. But it is only very young sportsmen -indeed, who will seek out hardships for the pleasure of undergoing -them.</p> - -<p>Our fishermen were not young sportsmen, they were men -of experience. The Parson and the Captain had both of -them learned their lesson in Ireland, where people soon begin -to understand what wet means; and Birger was a Swedish -soldier, and had learnt these matters professionally. Before -they started, they had settled the invariable rule of a complete -dress for dinner, under any circumstances whatever, -which implied, of course, as complete a dress in the morning: -it is necessary almost to bind oneself to some such vow, there -are so many temptations to break it; in Norway especially, -where, though the summer days are hot—hotter by many<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_80"></a>[80]</span> -degrees than they are in England, and the evenings in the -highest degree enjoyable, the morning air is generally sharp -and bracing, and the water which comes down from the -snowy ranges bitterly cold.</p> - -<p>Jacob, in the meanwhile, whose toilet did not take very -long, and who rarely occupied himself in any work which did -not especially belong to his own department, had been parleying -with a young fellow, who, roused by the Captain’s gun, -had pulled across in his boat from the opposite side, while -the rest of the men were occupied in preparing the boats and -re-arranging the articles that had been taken on shore the -preceding evening.</p> - -<p>They came up together to where the Parson was standing -by the fire, busily engaged in exchanging his salmon casting-line -for one better adapted for trout.</p> - -<p>“The young man says that the river is dangy,” said he; -for though he spoke English well enough, he has his own -particular words, which it was necessary to make out.</p> - -<p>“Dingy,” said the Parson, without any very clear comprehension -of what was meant, but rather reverting in his mind -to the azure transparency of the waters; which, in truth, he -would gladly have seen a little stained by mud. “Well, -that is a good job. But I fear he will find himself a little -mistaken.”</p> - -<p>Jacob evidently had not conveyed his meaning: he looked -round for Tom or Torkel to assist him, but they were both -in the boats, working busily under the Captain’s orders; so -Jacob tried his hand again.</p> - -<p>“The young man says that there is a great deal of water -in the river from the snow. He says that boats are very -often sunk at Oxea.”</p> - -<p>“Humph!” said the Parson, who began to suspect something.</p> - -<p>Here the young man himself broke in with a long story in -Norske.</p> - -<p>“He says,” interpreted Jacob, “only last week, one boat -was upset, and two men were drowned.”</p> - -<p>“Aye? aye?” said the Parson; “what! sober men?”</p> - -<p>Jacob did not see the inference, or would not. “This<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_81"></a>[81]</span> -young man is a river-pilot,” said he; “he will take you up -for two mark each boat.”</p> - -<p>“I tell you what it is, Mr. Jacob,” said the Parson; “I -will teach you a lesson. When you engaged as our courier, -you meant to fleece us all pretty handsomely. Well, I have -nothing to say against this. As courier, it is your undoubted -privilege so to do. But remember this, it is equally your -duty, as courier, to prevent any one else from fleecing us. -And if I find you only once again failing in that respect, off -you go at a minute’s notice. Now send your friend home -again.”</p> - -<p>Without looking behind him, the Parson, who had now -finished fitting his flies, took his place in his own boat, and, -directing Torkel to shove off to the other bank, threw his -line across the mouth of a small tributary to the great river, -which he had marked the year before as abounding with -trout. Jacob looked for a moment inclined to rebel, but no -man was more alive to his own interests than the ex-smuggler. -He had engaged in the trip, not like Tom and Torkel, -from sheer love of sport and adventure, but as a profitable -speculation. So, pocketing the affront, much as “ancient -Pistol” did his leek, he crept down to Birger’s boat, which -was his place in the line of march, where he sat sulky, but -utterly wasting his sulkiness; for Birger, anxious to keep up -his yesterday’s character of a fisherman, was much too intent -upon the—to him—difficult manœuvre of keeping his flies clear -of the oars, to observe whether he was pleased or not.</p> - -<p>The Captain took the inner line skirting the shore on the -right bank, for it had been agreed that the flat below the -Oxea rapids should be well tried, in hopes of getting some -fresh fish for breakfast.</p> - -<p>Though last in the field, he drew the first blood, hooking -and, in a few minutes, landing a small salmon, and thus -securing a breakfast. And by the time the boats came -together again, the Parson had brought to bag a very fair -supply of fjeld öret, or brook trout, from the little streamlet -he had been trying. And now began the serious business of -the day.</p> - -<p>Notwithstanding Mr. Jacob’s information, the rapids of<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_82"></a>[82]</span> -Oxea are perfectly safe to sober men. It is impossible that -an accident can happen in them, except from carelessness; -for the water, though swift, is everywhere deep. The stream -falls with some force over a slanting ledge of smooth, slaty -rock, some three or four hundred yards long or perhaps more, -and acquires in its slide considerable velocity; but the bottom -is smooth, and the surface nowhere broken by sunken rocks. -The stream, therefore, is a steady current, surging up against -the numerous islands which dot the river, as if they had been -pieces of a ruined bridge. Each of these was crested with -its half-dozen or so of ash or birch, which looked as if it was -they that were in motion, and not the clear stream that was -racing past them.</p> - -<p>The passage was a sheer trial of strength, requiring no -great amount of pilotage, or local experience, or even skill. -The ropes were got out and made fast to two or three thwarts, -to take off the strain; the boats were lightened of their living -incumbrances—except so far as the steersmen were concerned,—and -were then tracked by main force one by one, every one -of the party lending a hand, except, indeed, Jacob, who considered -it his duty, having once said the rapids were dangerous, -to act as if he thought so, and who had, therefore, -been despatched by land to the head of the rapid, with orders -to light the fires and get the breakfast ready, as nothing else -could be done with him.</p> - -<p>The principal difficulty arose from the uncertainty of the -footing among the crags, and the gnarled ash-trees that every -here and there shot almost horizontally from between the -fissures of the rock, dipping their branches into the stream. -These rendered it necessary, every now and then, to make -fast the boat to the tree itself, and then to float down a line -to it from some point above the obstacle, for the river fortunately -ran in a curve at that place. Thus, by giving a -broad sheer into the stream, while the rest of the party -hauled upon the rope, the boat would swing clear of the -impediment.</p> - -<p>But all this was very hard work, and, as the sun was now -high in heaven, very hot work; and, moreover, it had to -be repeated three times before all the boats were in safety.<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_83"></a>[83]</span> -Fully as much justice was done to Jacob’s breakfast as had -been done to his supper on the preceding evening; and most -luxurious was the hour’s rest which succeeded it.</p> - -<p>The remaining part of the voyage was easy: there was a -sharp current, no doubt, too sharp for anything to speak of -to be done with the flies; but it was all plain travelling, and, -with an occasional help from the ropes, before noon their -destination had been reached. This was the foot of a low -fall, or something between a fall and a rapid, called “The -Aal Foss,” in the middle of which was a picturesque rocky -island, covered with trees, and on the left bank an equally -picturesque peninsula, which was destined to be the head-quarters -of the expedition, and the basis of subsequent -operations.</p> - -<p>“There,” said the Parson, fixing his rod in the stern-rings, -and springing on shore as the boat’s keel touched a sandy, -slaty beach in the isthmus of the peninsula—</p> - -<div class="poetry-container"> -<div class="poetry"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">“Thus far into the bowels of the land</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Have we marched on without impediment.</div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -<p class="noindent">Here is the limit of my survey. Thus far have I borne the -baton of command; and I beg you to observe that we have -reached the appointed spot twenty minutes before the appointed -time.” And he held out his watch in proof of it. -“I have, as you see, performed my promise; and thus I resign -the leadership of the expedition.”</p> - -<p>“With universal thanks and approbation,” said the -Captain; “and I propose that now the leadership devolve -upon Birger; he is the man of camps and bivouacs, for he -has experienced what we have only read about.”</p> - -<p>“Well,” said Birger, “I will not affect modesty. Like -others, I have passed my degrees, and it would be a great -shame if bearing his Majesty’s commission, I did not understand -what every soldier is taught.” Then, suddenly recollecting -that the Captain was a military man as well as himself, -he steered adroitly out of his scrape, continuing, as if his -concluding paragraph had been part of his original speech—“You -have only to wait for a war, Captain, and you will be -in a situation to give us all a lesson. No one understood<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_84"></a>[84]</span> -these things better than your old Peninsula men; but Sweden -thinks her soldiers ought to learn their business before we are -called out to fight, and not afterwards.”</p> - -<p>To pass the degrees—“gradar,” or rather “gradarne,” for -no one ever thinks of speaking of them without the definite -article “ne,” as if there were no other degrees in the world—is -anything but a joke in Sweden. Military service, so -far, at least, as the Guards and the Indelta<a id="FNanchor_7" href="#Footnote_7" class="fnanchor">[7]</a> are concerned, -is extremely popular. There is ample choice in candidates; -and very good care is taken that the officers shall be men -who know their business, and shall not be at a loss in what -situation soever they may be placed. The “gradar” consists -of a series of lectures and extremely strict examinations, in -everything connected with the service, both intellectual or -physical, from the construction of an equilateral triangle up -to the sketch of a campaign, and from the musket drill to a -year of sea service. Passing out in seamanship is indispensable; -for Sweden, reversing our principle of hatching ducklings -under hens, hatches her young death-or-glory cornets -and ensigns on board her ships. Properly speaking, the -Swedish navy has no midshipmen. The cadets, who fill pretty -numerously the midshipman’s berth, may possibly enter the -navy, if they are so inclined; but nine-tenths of them are -candidates for commissions in the army, and are thus learning -a lesson which may be of use to them hereafter, when they -have troops of their own to embark or manage on ship-board.</p> - -<p>Birger had passed his degrees with credit, or he would -not have been selected as a travelling student; and his companions -were now likely to profit by this circumstance, for -one of those degrees comprehends all these mysteries of -camping, and hunting, and cooking, and provisioning, and, if -scandal may be trusted, a sort of Spartan stealing, which<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_85"></a>[85]</span> -goes under the euphemism of “availing one’s self of the resources -of the country;” these little matters being taught by -a three weeks’ actual practice in the field every summer.</p> - -<p>Birger was altogether in his element. “Now,” said he, -“the first thing I must do is to borrow all your boatmen, -for I shall want every man I can lay my hands upon; some -for the camps, and some for cutting and drawing fuel; I can -find something to do for them all, and for more too if I had -them. And here, you Jacob, take a basket with you, and -see what you can forage out from the cottages and woods -about, in the way of milk, bread, butter, berries, and so -forth; and hark you, Jacob, no brandy, if you please; -that is the first thing those scamps always put their hands -upon.”</p> - -<p>“You have not reckoned us,” said the Captain, “among -your effective strength; we shall not be of much use in -foraging, as we cannot speak Norske, but we have hands and -heads too.”</p> - -<p>“Do not forget how scantily the camp is provisioned,” said -Birger; “we have not had time or opportunity to catch or -shoot anything since we left Oxea, where, I am sure, we ate -up most of our fresh fish. It will not do to be drawing too -largely from our supplies.”</p> - -<p>“I have no objection, I am sure,” said the Parson; “but -you must let us have one boat, Birger; even if we are to fish -this river from the shore, there is half a mile of open space, -certainly, between this and the great falls of Wigeland; but -best throws lie on the right bank, and we really must have -the power of crossing.”</p> - -<p>“Well,” said Birger, “I cannot spare you Torkel, that is -certain—he is much too valuable; take your own boatman; -you may halloo out ‘Kom öfver elven,<a id="FNanchor_8" href="#Footnote_8" class="fnanchor">[8]</a>’ if you want him, -and happen to be on the wrong side; and if he cannot hear -you, say ‘Skynda paa mid baaten sáa skall du faa drikspengar,’<a id="FNanchor_9" href="#Footnote_9" class="fnanchor">[9]</a> -and I will warrant he hears fast enough, deaf as -he may be to the first call. We must have one of the boats<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_86"></a>[86]</span> -above this fall,” he continued, musing; “and we may as well -do it at once. We will set all hands to launch it over this -isthmus, before we do anything else, and then you can use it -for your passage-boat. And now for the camp. Tom, -Torkel, my own man Peter, my boatman and the Captain’s -will be little enough for what I have to do, though there are -some good hands among them, as I saw last night and this -morning too at Oxea.”</p> - -<p>“We must fish, then,” said the Captain; “for there is -no use going about after grouse, in this thick forest, -without Torkel, or some one that knows the place; we -should be but wasting our time, poking about these trees at -hap-hazard.”</p> - -<p>“And, I am half-afraid that we shall not do much in -fishing either,” said the Parson, as they got a sight of the -upper reach of the river, which lay calm and shining before -them. “The sun is as bright as if Odin<a id="FNanchor_10" href="#Footnote_10" class="fnanchor">[10]</a> had got -his other eye out of pledge, and were shining on us with -both at once.”</p> - -<p>The Captain whistled a few bars of the Canadian Boat -Song.</p> - -<p>“Yes,” said the Parson, “it is very true, as you whistle, -but, though the sun be bright, and, though ‘there be not a -breath the blue wave to curl,’ we must try what we can do. -It adds considerably to the interest of fishing, when we know -that our supper depends upon it.”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_87"></a>[87]</span></p> - -<p>“If this were the old Erne,” said the Captain, “we might -whistle for our supper, in good earnest; but, it must be confessed, -that the fish here are very innocent; we may deceive -one; it is not impossible; for, as Pat Gallagher used to say, -‘there are fools everywhere.’ But—look here,” he said, as -he cast across the stream, “positively, you may see the -shadow of the line on the bottom, deep as the water is.”</p> - -<p>“Let us cross,” said the Parson. “‘Gaa öfver elven,’ as -Birger says, for I see they have got the boat up: near the -great fall there are some strong streams that will defy the -sun and the calm together.”</p> - -<p>Thanks to the innocence of the salmon, which the Captain -had hinted at, their pot-fishing was not entirely without -success: the upper part of the reach, where the waters had -not yet recovered their serenity after undergoing the roar -and fury of the great fall, did actually furnish them with a -graul or two; but the salmon that had arrived at years of -discretion were very much too cautious to be taken. They -had never, it is true, been fished for in their lives with anything -more delicate than a piece of whipcord and a bunch of -lobworms, as big as a cricket-ball; but, for all that, they -were quite old enough to draw an inference, and were perfectly -aware that natural grasshoppers were not in the habit -of swimming about with lines tied to their noses.</p> - -<p>Towards evening there sprang up a light air of wind, and -the rises began to be more frequent. The Captain, by -making use of Birger’s prescribed form of words, had got the -boatman to land him on the rocky island which divides the -Aal Foss into two branches. There, concealed by a stubby -fir, not quite so high as himself, he was sending out twenty -yards of line that fell so lightly that it never seemed to touch -the water at all.</p> - -<p>There is no doubt that, of all the Erne fishermen, it was the -Captain who threw the longest and the lightest line, and well -was the Captain aware of that fact: but there is an axiom -which “far and fine” fishers would do well to bear in mind, and -which, though apparently evident to the meanest capacity, is -very seldom borne in mind by any one; and that is, that it -is of very little use to fish “far and fine,” when the fish<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_88"></a>[88]</span> -themselves are lying, all the while, in the water close under -your feet. This was precisely the Captain’s position; the -waters, divided by the rock on which he was standing, were -naturally deepest close to the rock itself, and, as naturally, -the best fish lay in the deepest water. The Captain understood -this well, but he could not deny himself his length of -line, and, therefore, contrived to fish the water close to him -by raising his arms, bringing the point of his rod over his -right shoulder, and then whisking his flies out for a fresh -cast with a dextrous turn of the wrist which no man in -England but himself could have performed.</p> - -<p>“I will tell you what,” said the Parson—who, not having -met with much success, had stuck up his rod, and had got -himself ferried over to the island—“it is not very likely that -a fish of any size will rise this evening, but if such a thing -should happen I would not give much for your rod.”</p> - -<p>“I wish the biggest fish in the river——”</p> - -<p>The sentence was never finished, for, at the word, the wish -was granted; and, if not the biggest fish in the river, certainly -the biggest fish they had yet seen, rose at the fly when -it was not a foot from the rock.</p> - -<p>The rod never stood a chance. Raised at a sharp angle -over the Captain’s shoulder, the whole strain came upon the -top-piece, which, as he struck, snapped like a flower-stalk, -without effort or resistance; and away rushed the fish forty -or fifty yards up-stream with the top-piece, which had run -down upon the fly, bobbing against his nose.</p> - -<p>The Captain did all that man could do. Carefully did he -watch his fish, anticipating every movement; instantly did -he dip his rod, as the salmon sprang madly into air—instantly -did he recover it; promptly was the line reeled in -at the turn; tenderly was it given out at the rush; but it -was of no avail—the rod had lost its delicate spring; and, -despite the Captain’s care, every now and then the fish -would get a stiff pull against the stump, thus gradually enlarging -the hold which the hook had taken in the skin of the -jaw, till, at last, just as the Parson, who had been hoping -against hope, was taking the cork off the point of his -gaff and clearing away the brambles to get a good standing<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_89"></a>[89]</span> -place for using it, the line came up slack; the hold had -given way.</p> - -<p>The Parson had the generosity to be silent about his -warning that had received so immediate a fulfilment.</p> - -<p>“Well,” he said, “you have recovered your top; that is -something, so many miles from Bell Yard; and as for -the fish, depend upon it that there are more where he came -from.”</p> - -<p>The Captain mused a little. With the exception of -Birger’s chance-medley, they had not seen a full-grown -salmon<a id="FNanchor_11" href="#Footnote_11" class="fnanchor">[11]</a> since they had come upon the river, and the loss -was no light one. “I suppose,” he said, interrogatively, “it -would be hardly worth while to fetch another top from the -camp?”</p> - -<p>“Not at all worth while,” said the Parson; “the wonder is, -that you rose one full-mouthed fish on such a day as this. -You are not going to rise another. Besides,” he added, -“look at the sun! It is time for us to think of cooking, -rather than catching. Birger will be wondering what is -become of us.”</p> - -<p>They were at no great distance from the camp, which, to -their surprise, they found tenanted by Jacob alone, who, -having got over his morning sulks, was busy in what he -called a Långref, a miniature variety of which is not -altogether unknown to our Hampshire poachers; but -Jacob’s was a tremendous affair, more like what in sea-fishing -is called a spillet or bolter, consisting of three or four hundred -yards of water cord, and half as many hooks.</p> - -<p>“Halloo,” said the Captain; “what has become of them -all? Why, Jacob, where is Lieutenant Birger?”</p> - -<p>“He is gone with the men to make an offering to Nyssen,” -said Jacob.</p> - -<p>“Who the devil is Nyssen?” said the Captain.</p> - -<p>Jacob looked distressed. It is not lucky to mention the -mundane spirits and those of hell in the same sentence; in<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_90"></a>[90]</span> -fact, the less people talk about either of them the better, -so, at least, the Swedes think, and therefore imprecate their -curses by saying, “The Thousand take you,” leaving it for -your own conscience to determine whether they are consigning -you to saints or devils.</p> - -<p>“There they are, you may see them yourself,” replied he, -evading the question, and pointing to a bare rounded rock -which rose above the wooded summits about a mile down the -river.</p> - -<p>The Parson’s telescope was in his hand in a moment; but -all he could make out was, that they put something on the -ground which they left there, and immediately entered the -thick wood, which hid them from his sight. Jacob could -not, or at all events would not, satisfy their curiosity, and -they had nothing for it but to amuse themselves with -admiring Birger’s handy-work, till that individual on his -return should make his own report of himself.</p> - -<p>And really the Lieutenant would have extorted praise from -the head of the Kong’s-öfver-commandant’s-Expedition himself, -so well and so orderly was the encampment made.</p> - -<p>The sails were formed into three several tents, not very -large ones, certainly, and scarcely admitting of the inmates -sitting upright, except in the centre, but quite sufficient to -shelter a man lying at full length. At the back of these, -where the ground rose a little, a neat trench was cut, in -order to carry off the drainings of any unforeseen shower. -These were the sleeping tents; and in front of them were -spread out a quantity of poplar leaves, which were eventually -to form the beds, and which were then pretty rapidly -undergoing the process of desiccation in the hot and bright -sunshine which had hitherto been so unfriendly. A birch -trimmed in its weeping branches, and thickened above with -a few supplementary boughs of spruce-fir, was evidently -arranged for the dining-room, and several of the stores were -gathered round its trunk and thatched with fir-branches, -while at some distance below, and not far from the sandy -beach, stood three or four neat green huts, built with a framework -of fir-poles, and thatched closely, both in roof and walls, -with the upper branches of the trees that had been cut down<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_91"></a>[91]</span> -for the frame. Not far from where Jacob was sitting over his -långref, there was an elaborate kitchen, built of rough stones -against a natural rock, with a cross-beam on the top to swing -the kettle from, and beside it rose a goodly pile of fuel, cut -into lengths, and stacked into what is called in the country -fathoms, that is to say, square piles, six feet long and three -high. This had evidently been their last work, for the axes -and saws were still lying on the unfinished pile. By the -river’s bank at the edge of the peninsula was a curious erection, -which Jacob called the smoking-house. It was a -pyramid constructed of outsides of deals, hundreds of which, -rejected from the saw-mills, were floating about unheeded in -the river, and drifting into every corner that was sheltered -from the current. This was by no means a place constructed -for the luxury of smoking tobacco, an amusement in which -every individual of the party indulged in every possible place -and in all places alike. It was erected for hanging up superfluous -salmon which had previously been slightly salted, in -order, with the help of smoke from the green juniper, to convert -them into what in London is called “kipper.”</p> - -<p>There was little use for it that evening, however, for the -grauls brought in by the fishermen would have been but -scanty allowance, even for the present supper, had they not -been helped out by other provisions. But Jacob had by no -means been idle in his vocation. On a shelf of rock not very -far from the kitchen, and shaded by a friendly tree, stood -gallons of milk and piles of flad bröd, with a few raspberries, -which were just then ripening, and an actual little mountain -of strawberries, for the woods were carpetted with their -bright green leaves and scarlet berries.</p> - -<p>Jacob, as was his duty, rolled up his långref as quickly as -such a combination of tackle could be stowed away, and commenced -preparing the fish for dinner, while the fishermen -changed their clothes, and hung them to dry round a supplementary -fire which had been lighted for the purpose.</p> - -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - -<div class="chapter"> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_92"></a>[92]</span></p> - -<h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_VIII">CHAPTER VIII.<br /> -<span class="smaller">MAKING A NIGHT OF IT.</span></h2> - -</div> - -<div class="poetry-container"> -<div class="poetry"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">“Ale’s not so good</div> - <div class="verse indent0">For the children of men</div> - <div class="verse indent0">As people have boasted;</div> - <div class="verse indent0">For less and less,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">As more he drinketh,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Knows man himself.</div> - </div> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">The kern of forgetfulness</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Sits on the drunken</div> - <div class="verse indent0">And steals the man’s senses,—</div> - <div class="verse indent0">By the bird’s pinions</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Fettered I lay</div> - <div class="verse indent0">In Gunlada’s dwelling.</div> - </div> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">Drunken I lay,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Lay thoroughly drunken,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">With Fjalar the wise.</div> - <div class="verse indent0">This is the best of drink,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">That every one afterwards</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Comes to his senses.”</div> - </div> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse right"><i>High Song of Odin the Old.</i></div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -<p>Many minutes had not expired, during which brief space the -fishermen had been luxuriating in their dry clothes, when -the boats were seen working their way back across the tail -of the Aal Foss rapid, as they returned with the party from -the right bank, which, after bobbing about on the ripples -and cross currents, shot into their little harbour beneath the -encampment.</p> - -<p>Birger came up the bank, half-laughing, yet looking as if -he had been doing something he was ashamed of.</p> - -<p>“Where the deuce have you been, Birger?” said the Captain, -as that worthy threw himself on the turf under the -birch-tree: “Jacob says you have been sacrificing to Nyssen, -whoever he is.”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_93"></a>[93]</span></p> - -<p>“So I have,” said Birger; “but don’t speak so loud. I will -tell you all about it.”</p> - -<p>“Not speak so loud,” said the Captain; “why not?”</p> - -<p>“Well,” said Birger, rather hesitatingly, “Nyssen does -not like to be spoken of. That is to say, the men don’t -exactly like to hear people speaking of him, at least by name, -if it is above the breath.”</p> - -<p>“Come, come, Birger, be honest,” said the Parson.</p> - -<p>“Well, if you must have it, I do not quite like it myself. -I do not believe in such things, of course; but there is no -good in doing what everybody thinks unlucky.”</p> - -<p>“Well, well,” said the Captain, “but tell us what you have -been about. I am quite in the dark as yet about this mysterious -gentleman or lady.”</p> - -<p>“Why, the Nyss,” said Birger, sinking his voice at the -word to a whisper, “is a spirit of the air, just as the Neck (a -similar whisper) is a spirit of the water.”</p> - -<p>“The very familiars of the Lady of Branksome,” said the -Parson:—</p> - -<div class="poetry-container"> -<div class="poetry"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent4">It was the Spirit of the Flood,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">And he spoke to the Spirit of the Fell.</div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -<p>“Very likely, but our spirits, like our people, are not -indifferent to the pleasures of eating and drinking; and -therefore, whenever we start on an expedition, we propitiate -them with an offering.”</p> - -<p>“And the offering consists of——?”</p> - -<p>“What we like best ourselves, cakes and ale.”</p> - -<p>“But what had you to do with it,” said the Captain; “I -suppose you do not believe in spirits?”</p> - -<p>“The men asked leave to go, when they had done their -work, and wanted me to go with them, to that high rock -you see down there,—for they always choose out some -bare and elevated locality, as best adapted to a spirit -of the air; and so—well, I went with them; don’t laugh -at me.”</p> - -<p>“That will I not,” said the Parson; “you could not have -done a wiser thing. Always fall in with men’s superstitions; -there is nothing that attaches them so much as humouring<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_94"></a>[94]</span> -their little illegitimate beliefs; to say nothing,” he added -slily, “of believing a little in them yourself.”</p> - -<p>“How is this offering made?” said the Captain: “what are -the rites belonging to the worship of a spirit of the air?”</p> - -<p>“They are simple enough,” said Birger, “and not at all -like those you would see on the stage of London,—no blue -fires or poetical incantations: they consist in simply -placing the cake on the most exposed pinnacle you can find, -pouring the ale into the nearest hollow that will hold it, -and then retreating in silence, and without looking behind -you.”</p> - -<p>“While some thirsty soul, after the manner of Bel in the -Apocrypha, plays Nyssen and accepts the offering,” said the -Captain.</p> - -<p>“What! eat Nyssen’s offering! Tom, what do you say -to that?”—for the men were still fidgetting about the fire,—“what -do you say to that? The Captain thinks that -one of you will eat up Nyssen’s cake; what do you say -about it?”</p> - -<p>“Well,” said Tom, “we have bold men in Norway, as all -our histories will tell you; but bold as we are, I do -not think you will get a man in the whole country to do -that.”</p> - -<p>“There was a young fellow once who did it in my country -though,” said Jacob, “and dearly he paid for it. The family -used to place the yearly gifts to Nyssen under the sails of -their windmill every Christmas Eve;—you Norwegians do -not know what windmills are; you grind all your corn by -water, poor devils!”</p> - -<p>Here Tom and Torkel, both Tellemarken men, broke in -simultaneously; the one swearing that, in the Tellemark, -windmills were as plenty as fir trees; the other vociferating, -somewhat incongruously, that no nation two degrees from -actual barbarism could ever think of such a piece of machinery -at all.</p> - -<p>Birger stilled their national animosities by wishing -“The Thousand” would take them all three, and their -windmills into the bargain, and Jacob went on with his -story.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_95"></a>[95]</span></p> - -<p>“The eldest son,” he said, “was a sad unbeliever; he had -been a very good boy as long as he had lived with his father -and mother at Lerum, but when he grew up he had gone to -Copenhagen and got corrupted; for, as his honour Lieutenant -Birger knows, they are all sad infidels at Copenhagen.” -Here was likely to be another outbreak; for the Danes, -though it is quite true that a great many of them are not -only sceptics in fairy mythology but in religion also, are yet -vehemently regretted by the Norwegians, who were in no -ways pleased with that act of the Congress of Vienna which -separated them from Denmark; a fact which our friend -Jacob was perfectly aware of.</p> - -<p>Peace was again effected by a vigorous kick from his -fellow-countrymen, together with some observations respecting -a donkey in a state of eternal condemnation; and -Jacob went on as if nothing particular had happened.</p> - -<p>“Well,” said he, “the young man found that the best ale -and sweetest cake were always given to Nyssen, so he slipped -out and gobbled them up himself. During the whole year -that followed that Christmas, no great harm came of it, only -there was always something wrong about the windmill; now -a sail blown away, now a cog broken; there was plenty of -grist, trade was lively enough, it was always something to do -with the wind, and, as far as that was concerned, nothing -went right. Still no one suspected the reason, till Christmas -Eve came round again, and another sweet cake and another -bottle of strong ale were placed under the mill for Nyssen. -The night was as still and as quiet as this evening is,—quieter -if possible; there was not a breath of wind, and the snow -looked like a winding-sheet in the moonlight. Well, the -young man slipped out again; but scarcely had he stooped -to pick up the bottle, when a furious gust of wind arose, -scattering the snow like flour out of a sack; the sails flew -round as if they were mad; it was said that a figure in a -pointed cap and a red jacket sat astride on the axle, and one -of the sails taking the young man on the side of the head, -threw him as far as I could fling a stone. He sank into the -snow, which closed over him, and no one knew what had -become of him till the thaw came on. It was very late that -year, for the ground was not clear till Walpurgis’ Night,<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_96"></a>[96]</span> -and then they found him, and Nyssen’s broken bottle still -in his hand. It was by that they found out how it had -happened. I would not be the man to touch anything belonging -to Nyssen.”</p> - -<p>“Nor I neither,” chimed in the two Norsemen.</p> - -<p>“Johnstone and Maxwell both agree for once,” said the -Parson, laughing; “and I will tell you another thing, -neither would I. But now, Mr. Jacob, that we have done -everything that can be expected of us by the spirits of the -air, who, I hope, in common gratitude, will give us fishermen -a cloudy sky and a little bit of a breeze to-morrow, -I must say I should like to take my turn at the cakes -and ale; so let us have whatever you have got in your big -pot there, and bring us a bucket of strawberries and cream -for dessert.”</p> - -<p>The dinner was by no means so elaborate an affair as that -of yesterday; this was occasioned, in some measure, by -their want of sport, but, principally, because all had been -far too much engaged in the necessary business of the -camp to think much of eating. The solids, such as they -were, that is to say, beef and pork, out of the harness -cask, were soon despatched, and the huge camp kettle, -one of the old-fashioned ante-Wellingtonian affairs, as big as -a mortar, and nearly as heavy, was sent down to the men, -while the fishermen lounged at full length on the turf, enjoying -their rest over Jacob’s plentiful provision of strawberries -and cream.</p> - -<p>Fénélon has, somewhere or other, a fable about a man who -had the power of procuring, “<i>pour son argent</i>,” as the good -Bishop says, half-a-dozen men’s appetites and digestions. -The man does not seem, in the fable, to have made a very -good use of his extraordinary powers, or to have derived -any extraordinary pleasure from them. If he had only -come out campaigning in Norway, he might have had his -five appetites for nothing, and been much the better for -them all.</p> - -<p>Meanwhile, the lower table did not at all seem to be in -want of an appetite; the kettle was emptied, and whole heaps -of flad-bröd, sour as verdjuice, and pots of butter, such as no -nose or stomach, out of Norway, could tolerate, were fast<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_97"></a>[97]</span> -disappearing beneath the unceasing attacks of seven gluttonous -Scandinavians—while, as the twilight darkened, and -diminished the restraint they might possibly have felt at the -presence of their superiors, the noise grew louder and louder. -Jacob began some interminable ballad about the sorrows and -trials of little Kirstin, a very beautiful lady, who went -through all sorts of misfortunes, and did not seem a “bit -better than she should be;” but that goes for nothing at all -in Swedish song, and very little in Swedish life. This he -sang, chorus and all, to his own share. It seemed to affect -the worthy man very little, that he was almost his own -audience; no one seemed to attend him, but his song -went on, stanza after stanza, uninterruptedly, forming a sort -of running accompaniment to the shouts and screams of -“Gammle Norgé,” “Wackere Lota, or, Kari,” which startled -the echoes alternately, according as love, or patriotism, was -the prevailing sentiment.</p> - -<p>At last, they began drinking healths—“Skaal Herr -Carblom,” “Skaal for the well-born singer;” for, like the -old Spanish nobility, though they addressed one another as -Tom, Piersen, and so forth, they always gave the interloper -his full title.</p> - -<p>“Jeg takker de,” said Jacob, solemnly, without, however, -pausing for one moment in his song.</p> - -<div class="poetry-container"> -<div class="poetry"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">“Little Kirstin, she came to the bridal hall,—</div> - <div class="verse indent2">We will begin with the wooing,—</div> - <div class="verse indent0">And a little page answered to her call,</div> - <div class="verse indent2">My best beloved, I ne’er can forget you”—</div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -<p>Here broke in Tom, beating time to his music with a horn -which he had replenished to the very brim, and of which he -was imparting the contents very liberally to the turf round -him—</p> - -<div class="poetry-container"> -<div class="poetry"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent4">“Wet your clay, Andy!</div> - <div class="verse indent4">Out with the brandy!</div> - <div class="verse indent4">We live in jolly way,—</div> - <div class="verse indent4">Here’s to you, night or day!</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Look at sister Kajsa Stina,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">See her bottles bright and clear-ah!</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Take the horn, good fellow! grin-ah!</div> - <div class="verse indent2">Grin and swill and drink like me!”</div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_98"></a>[98]</span></p> - -<p>Jacob’s voice was again audible—</p> - -<div class="poetry-container"> -<div class="poetry"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">“She tied her horse in the garden there:</div> - <div class="verse indent2">We will begin with the wooing”—</div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -<p>“Skaal Thorsen! skaal Tom Engelsk! skaal for the British -navy!”</p> - -<p>“Rule, Britannia!” shouted Tom. Jacob went on—</p> - -<div class="poetry-container"> -<div class="poetry"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent4">“We will begin with the wooing:</div> - <div class="verse indent0">She brushed and—”</div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -<p class="noindent">Here a general chorus—</p> - -<div class="poetry-container"> -<div class="poetry"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">“To the brim, young men! fill it up! fill again!</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Drain! drain, young men!—’tis to Norway you drain.</div> - <div class="verse indent8">Your fathers have sown it,</div> - <div class="verse indent8">Your fields they have grown it;</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Then quaff it, young men! for he’ll be the strongest</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Who drinks of it deepest and sits at it longest.”</div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -<p>Jacob’s voice became audible, like a symphony, between -the verses—</p> - -<div class="poetry-container"> -<div class="poetry"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">“She brushed and combed her golden hair,”—</div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -<p class="noindent">when again rose up the wild chorus, overwhelming it under -the volume of sound:</p> - -<div class="poetry-container"> -<div class="poetry"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">“To the brim, old men! fill it up! fill again!</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Drain! drain, old men!—’tis to Norway you drain.</div> - <div class="verse indent8">There’s health in the cup,—</div> - <div class="verse indent8">Fill it up! fill it up!</div> - <div class="verse indent0">And quaff it, old men! for he’ll live the longest</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Who drinks of it deepest and likes it the strongest.”</div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -<p>“By the Harp of Bragi,” said Birger, “I’ll back old -Jacob against the field,—that fellow has such bottom!” for -the honest toper’s voice came again dreamily up the hill -where they were sitting, during the pause that followed this -outburst.</p> - -<div class="poetry-container"> -<div class="poetry"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">“Little Kirstin then passed out from the door,—</div> - <div class="verse indent2">We had best begin with the wooing:</div> - <div class="verse indent0">She said, I shall hither come no more,—</div> - <div class="verse indent2">My best beloved! I never will forget thee.</div> - </div> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">Forth she went to the garden there,—</div> - <div class="verse indent2">We had best begin with the wooing:</div> - <div class="verse indent0">She hung herself with her golden hair,—</div> - <div class="verse indent2">My best beloved! I never can forget thee.”</div> - </div> -</div> -</div> -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_99"></a>[99]</span></p> -<p>“Skaal for Birger! skaal for the brave Lieutenant! skaal -for the royal guard!” shouted one, waxing more bold as the -night drew on.</p> - -<p>“Gammle Norgé!” screamed back an opponent, and -immediately Torkel burst out, with his fine bass voice, into -the national song, drowning entirely poor Jacob’s melancholy -ditty, which never got much beyond the wooing after all.</p> - -<div class="poetry-container"> -<div class="poetry"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">“The hardy Norseman’s house of yore</div> - <div class="verse indent2">Was on the foaming wave,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">And there he gathered bright renown—</div> - <div class="verse indent2">The bravest of the brave.</div> - <div class="verse indent0">O, ne’er should we forget our sires,</div> - <div class="verse indent2">Wherever we may be;</div> - <div class="verse indent0">For they did win a gallant name,</div> - <div class="verse indent2">And ruled the stormy sea.</div> - </div> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">What though our hands be weaker now</div> - <div class="verse indent2">Than they were wont to be</div> - <div class="verse indent0">When boldly forth our fathers sailed</div> - <div class="verse indent2">And conquered Normandy?</div> - <div class="verse indent0">We still may sing their deeds of fame,</div> - <div class="verse indent2">In thrilling harmony;</div> - <div class="verse indent0">They won <span class="smcap">for us</span> that gallant name,</div> - <div class="verse indent2">Ruling the stormy sea!”—</div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -<p>Enthusiasm was at its height, as the full chorus thundered -forth from all the voices—</p> - -<div class="poetry-container"> -<div class="poetry"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">“Never will we forget our sires,</div> - <div class="verse indent2">Wherever we may be;</div> - <div class="verse indent0">They won for us that gallant name,</div> - <div class="verse indent2">Ruling the stormy sea!”</div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -<p>Whether Jacob joined in it, or persevered in the sorrows -of little Kirstin, it is impossible to say; but the loud-ringing -alto of Birger came in tellingly from the house of the Nobles, -accompanied by the bass of his two friends. The compliment -was taken at once, “Skaal for the high-born Fishermen!” -“Skaal for the noble gentlemen!” “Skaal for Vict<i>ou</i>ria!” -“Skaal for Carl Johann!” “Skaal for England!”</p> - -<p>“Skaal for Sweden,” shouted Jacob at last.</p> - -<p>“Gammle Norgé! Gammle Norgé! Sweden and Norway!—Sweden -and Norway for ever! Skaal! Skaal!”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_100"></a>[100]</span></p> - -<p>“Upon my word,” said the Parson, “some one must have -been shelling out in good earnest. There goes something -stronger than water to all that noise.”</p> - -<p>“Well,” said Birger, “it is very true: they did their work -this afternoon like men, and then, instead of going and buying -brandy, and making beasts of themselves, they very properly -sent Torkel as spokesman to me, and asked my permission to -get drunk, which, as they had behaved so well, of course I -granted them, and gave them five or six orts to buy brandy -with.”</p> - -<p>The Parson burst out laughing: “Well, Birger, it is very -kind of you, to save them from making beasts of themselves: -rather a novel way of doing it, though.”</p> - -<p>“O, it is all right,” said Birger; “that is the way we -always do in my country, we get it over at once: they will -be as sober as judges after this—if we had not indulged them -when they knew they had deserved it, they would always -have been hankering after brandy, and dropping off drunk -when they were most wanted: they will be as sober as judges -after this, I tell you,” he reiterated, observing a slight smile -of incredulity on the faces of both his companions.</p> - -<p>“I do not feel quite so confident of their being as sober as -judges to-morrow, as I do about their being as drunk as pigs -to-night,” said the Captain; “though, to be sure, I do not -know what judges are in Norway; but it does seem to me -that five or six orts<a id="FNanchor_12" href="#Footnote_12" class="fnanchor">[12]</a> are rather a liberal allowance, in a -country where one can get roaring drunk for half-a-dozen -skillings.”</p> - -<p>“That is just the very thing I do not want them to do,” -said Birger. “Whenever a Norseman gets roaring drunk, -he is sure to kick up a row: it is very much better that they -should get beastly drunk at once; then they go to sleep and -sleep it off, and no one the wiser.”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_101"></a>[101]</span></p> - -<p>“I should have thought, though,” said the Captain, “that -you gave them quite enough for that, and a good remainder -for another day into the bargain.”</p> - -<p>“It is little you know of the Norwegian, then,” said -Birger, “or, for the matter of that, of the Swede either: he -is not the man to make two bites of a cherry, or to leave his -brandy in the bottom of the keg. Besides, they will consider -themselves upon honour. They asked my leave to get -drunk on this particular night, and I gave them the money -to do it with; it would be absolute swindling, to get drunk -with my money on any other occasion.”</p> - -<p>“Upon my word,” said the Captain, “this a terrible drawback -to your beautiful country. Our fellows in Ireland used -to get drunk now and then, to be sure, but they had always -the grace to be ashamed of it. These scoundrels do it in such -a business-like way.”</p> - -<p>“Your countryman, Laing, sets that down to the score of -our virtues,” said Birger. “He considers it much better to -act upon principle, like our people, than to yield to temptation, -as your English and Irish sots do. I must say, though, -that he is not half so indulgent to us poor Swedes.”</p> - -<p>“My countryman, Laing,” said the Parson, “though a -very observant traveller, is, also, a very extreme republican -and a very prejudiced writer. He gives us facts in -monarchical Sweden, as well as in republican Norway, and he -gives them as he sees them, no doubt; but, he looks at the -two countries through glasses of different tints. Now, my -idea is, that, in point of drunkenness, there is not a pin to -choose.”</p> - -<p>“Yes, but there is, though,” said Birger. “The Norwegian -is quarrelsome in his cups; and you will seldom find that in -any part of Sweden, unless in Scånia, and the Scånians are half -Danes yet. I had the precaution to take away those gentlemen’s -knives when I gave them the money for their brandy (and, -I must admit, they gave them up with very good grace), or, -the chances are, that we should have lost the services of that -ass Jacob, and given a job for the Landamptman to-morrow. -Why, half the party-coloured gentlemen in the castle at<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_102"></a>[102]</span> -Christiania have earned their iron decorations in some -drunken brawl or other.”<a id="FNanchor_13" href="#Footnote_13" class="fnanchor">[13]</a></p> - -<p>“Well, that may be,” said the Parson. “I have not experienced -enough to gainsay you; but you must admit that as -far as simple drinking goes, the two nations have the organ -of drunkenness pretty equally developed.”</p> - -<p>“I should think it must be a barrel organ, then,” said the -Captain, “if we are to judge by the quantity it contains.”</p> - -<p>“Thank your stars it has got a good many stops in it. -The Scandinavian does not drink irregularly, like your -people whom you can never reckon upon for two days -together. He has his days of solemn drunkenness—some -of them political, such as the coronation; or the king’s -name day; or, here, in Norway, the signing of their cursed -constitution. Some of them, again, are religious—such as -Christmas, and Easter, and Whitsuntide: these are days in -which all Scandinavia gets drunk as one man. And there -are a few little domestic anniversaries besides—such as -christenings and weddings; but, this is all, except a chance -affair, like this; so that, by a glance at the calendar, and a -little inquiry into a man’s private history, you may always -know when to find him sober, and fit for work.”</p> - -<p>“Sober, meaning three or four glasses of brandy?” said -the Parson.</p> - -<p>“Yes,” said Birger. “He seldom goes beyond that, on -ordinary days; and, therefore, on festivals like this, I think -him very well entitled to make up for it.”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_103"></a>[103]</span></p> - -<p>“I think, though,” said the Parson, “when I was in Sweden, -last year, I did see such things as stocks for drunkards, -at some of the church doors.”</p> - -<p>“Yes, you did, at all of them; but, you never saw any -one in them. How is a mayor to order a man into the -stocks, for drunkenness, when the chances are, that he was -just as drunk himself on the very same occasion?”</p> - -<p>“How do you account for this universal system of drinking -spirits?” said the Captain.</p> - -<p>“It is easy enough to account for it,” said the Parson; for -Birger rather shirked the question. “Every landed proprietor -has a right to a private still; the duty is a farthing -a gallon, carriage is difficult, and brandy is much more -portable than corn. Will not this account for some of it? -I do not happen to know what may be the return for -Sweden; but, for Norway, it is somewhat over five million -gallons a-year, in a country which does not grow nearly -enough of corn to support itself; and this, as the population -does not come up to a million and a-half, gives three and -a-half gallons per Christian, to every man, woman, and child, -in the country.”</p> - -<p>“Come, come,” said Birger, “if you go to statistics, look -at home. Your Mr. Hume moved, last session, for a return -of all the men that had been picked up, drunk, in the course -of the preceding year; and, in Glasgow alone, there were -nearly fifteen thousand—that is to say, one out of every -twenty-two of the whole population. Do not talk to us of -drunkenness. Did you ever hear of the controversy between -the pot and the kettle?”</p> - -<p>“The Scotch are no more our countrymen, than the -Norwegians are yours,” said the Parson; “and, if I recollect -right, that very return gave no more than one in every six -hundred, picked up, drunk, in our Manchester; and Manchester -is not what we call a moral place, either.”<a id="FNanchor_14" href="#Footnote_14" class="fnanchor">[14]</a></p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_104"></a>[104]</span></p> - -<p>“In that very place, Glasgow,” said the Captain, “where, -for my sins, I was quartered last year, I was actually taken -up before the magistrates, and fined five shillings, for what -the hypocritical sinners call ‘whustling on the Saubboth,’ -and it was only Saturday night, either—the rascally Jews! -They are fellows to</p> - -<div class="poetry-container"> -<div class="poetry"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">Compound for sins they are inclined to</div> - <div class="verse indent0">By damning those they have no mind to.</div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -<p class="noindent">The scoundrels couldn’t whistle a tune themselves on any -day of the week, ‘were it their neck verse at Hairibee;’ they -have no notion of music, beyond the bagpipe and the Scotch -fiddle.”</p> - -<p>“Five shillings?” said the Parson, musingly; “that is -just the sum they fine people, in London, for being drunk and -disorderly.”</p> - -<p>“Then, in all human probability, the Captain made one -individual item in Mr. Hume’s fifteen thousand himself.”</p> - -<p>“Very possibly,” said the Captain. “It was Saturday -night, and I will not say I might not have been a little -screwed. When one is in Turkey one must live as turkeys -live.”</p> - -<p>“Well,” said the Parson, “I believe all northern nations -have a natural turn for drunkenness, but laws and regulations -may increase or diminish the amount of it; and the -laws of both these countries tend most particularly to increase -it. With you it is a regular case of ‘Drunkenness made -easy.’ Besides, public opinion sets that way too. If I were -suspected of anything approaching to the state of our friends -down below, I never could face my parish again. Your -parish priest might be carried home and tucked into bed by -a dozen of his faithful and hard-headed parishioners on Saturday -night, and if the thing did not come round too often,<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_105"></a>[105]</span> -would get up not a pin the worse on Sunday morning, either -in health or in reputation.”</p> - -<p>“I think,” said the Captain, “public presents are a very -fair test of public propensities. In the snuffy days of the -last century and the beginning of this, every public character, -from the Duke of Wellington down to William Cobbett, had -the freedoms of all sorts of things given them in golden snuff-boxes. -Now, look at your people. When your king paid a -visit to the University of Upsala, the most appropriate -present he could think of making to that learned body, was -an ancient drinking-horn,—of course, by way of encouraging -the national tastes. And when he made a pilgrimage to -the tomb of Odin and Freya, the most appropriate present -which that learned body could make to him in their turn, -was another ancient drinking-horn, which had the additional -value of having once been the property of those heroic, -but, if there is any truth in Sagas, exceedingly drunken -divinities.”</p> - -<p>“Well, well,” said Birger, good-humouredly (and it must -be said that his was a case of good-humour under difficulties), -“every nation has its own national sins to answer for, and it -is no use for me to deny that ours is drunkenness. But what -else can you expect from a people whose ideal of the joys of -heaven used to be fighting all day, and after a huge dinner -of boiled pork, getting beastly drunk upon beer? Gangler, -in the prose Edda, asks Har, ‘How do your Heroes pass -their time in Valhalla when they are not drinking?’ And -Har replies, ‘Every day, as soon as they have dressed themselves, -they ride out into the court, and fight till they cut -each other in pieces. This is their pastime; but when meal-time -approaches, they return to drink in Valhalla.’ Or, if -you will have the same in verse, this is what the Vafthrudnis -Mal says:—</p> - -<div class="poetry-container"> -<div class="poetry"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">The Einherjir all,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">On Odin’s plain,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Hew daily each other</div> - <div class="verse indent0">While chosen the slain are;</div> - <div class="verse indent0">From the fray they then ride,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">And drink ale with the Œsir.”</div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_106"></a>[106]</span></p> - -<p>“After all,” said the Parson, “this is nothing more than a -ghostly tournament; and I have no doubt but that the -haughty tournaments of the middle ages, if deprived of their -mediæval gilding, would be very like the hewings, ale swillings, -and pork banquetings of the Einherjir. I hope, though, -that they brewed good ale in Asgard.”</p> - -<p>“I dare say,” said the Captain, “that, after their carousal, -they wanted a little sleep to fit them for the toils of the next -day; I am sure I do, and I vote we try what sort of couches -Birger has prepared for us. Our once merry friends below -seem to be as fast asleep as swine now, and as quiet. To -tell you the truth, I am a little tired with our day’s work, -and we certainly have another good day’s work cut out for us -to-morrow.”</p> - -<p>“With all my heart,” said Birger, finishing off what, from -its colour, might have been a glass of water, but was not. -As Odin says—</p> - -<div class="poetry-container"> -<div class="poetry"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">“No one will charge thee</div> - <div class="verse indent0">With evil, if early</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Thou goest to slumber.”</div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -<p>“Come along, then,” said the Captain, “turn in; and may -the Nyss to whom we have sacrificed send us to-morrow ‘a -southerly wind and a cloudy sky.’”</p> - -<div class="note"> - -<p>There are several national songs in Norway. That which Torkel sings -is an ancient song, and has been adapted and arranged as a chorus, by -Hullah; but it is not that which is generally known as “Gammle -Norgé.” This, though eminently popular, is but a modern composition. -Its author is Bjerregaard, a Norse poet of some eminence. It has been -thus rendered into English by Mr. Latham:—</p> - -<div class="poetry-container"> -<div class="poetry"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">Minstrel, awaken the harp from its slumbers!</div> - <div class="verse indent2">Strike for old Norway, the land of the free!</div> - <div class="verse indent0">High and heroic in soul-stirring numbers,</div> - <div class="verse indent2">Clime of our fathers, we strike it for thee!</div> - <div class="verse indent8">Old recollections</div> - <div class="verse indent8">Awake our affections,—</div> - <div class="verse indent0">They hallow the name of the land of our birth;</div> - <div class="verse indent8">Each heart beats its loudest,</div> - <div class="verse indent8">Each cheek glows its proudest,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">For Norway the Ancient, the Throne of the Earth!</div><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_107"></a>[107]</span> - </div> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">Spirit! look back on her far-flashing glory,</div> - <div class="verse indent2">The far-flashing meteor that bursts on thy glance,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">On chieftain and hero immortal in story,</div> - <div class="verse indent2">They press to the battle like maids to the dance.</div> - <div class="verse indent8">The blood flows before them,</div> - <div class="verse indent8">The wave dashes o’er them,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">They reap with the sword what they plough with the keel;</div> - <div class="verse indent8">Enough that they leave</div> - <div class="verse indent8">To the country that bore them</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Bosoms to bleed for her freedom and weal.</div> - </div> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">The Shrine of the Northman, the Temple of Freedom,</div> - <div class="verse indent2">Stands like a rock where the stormy wind breaks;</div> - <div class="verse indent0">The tempests howl round it, but little he’ll heed them,—</div> - <div class="verse indent2">Freely he thinks, and as freely he speaks.</div> - <div class="verse indent8">The bird in its motion,</div> - <div class="verse indent8">The wave in its ocean,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Scarcely can rival his liberty’s voice;</div> - <div class="verse indent8">Yet he obeys,</div> - <div class="verse indent8">With a willing devotion</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Laws of his making and kings of his choice.</div> - </div> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">Land of the forest, the fell, and the fountain,—</div> - <div class="verse indent2">Blest with the wealth of the field and the flood,—</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Steady and truthful, the sons of thy mountain,</div> - <div class="verse indent2">Pay the glad price of thy rights with their blood.</div> - <div class="verse indent8">Ocean hath bound thee,</div> - <div class="verse indent8">Freedom hath found thee,—</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Flourish, old Norway, thy flag be unfurled!</div> - <div class="verse indent8">Free as the breezes</div> - <div class="verse indent8">And breakers around thee—</div> - <div class="verse indent0">The pride of thy children, the Throne of the World!</div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -</div> - -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - -<div class="chapter"> -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_108"></a>[108]</span></p> - -<h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_IX">CHAPTER IX.<br /> -<span class="smaller">THE HELL FALL.</span></h2> - -</div> - -<div class="poetry-container"> -<div class="poetry"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">“If thou hadst not been leading a life of sin—</div> - <div class="verse indent4">The sun shines over Enen—</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Thou wouldst have given me water thy bare hand within—</div> - <div class="verse indent4">Under the linden green.</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Now, this is the penance that on thee I lay:</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Eight years in the wood shalt thou live from this day,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">And no food shall pass thy lips between,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Save only the leaves of the linden green;</div> - <div class="verse indent0">And no other drink shalt thou have at all,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Save the dew on the linden leaves so small;</div> - <div class="verse indent0">And no other bed shall be pressed by thee,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Save only the roots of the linden tree.</div> - <div class="verse indent0">When eight long years were gone and spent,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Jesus the Lord to Magdalene went—</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Now shall Heaven’s mercy thee restore—</div> - <div class="verse indent4">The sun shines over Enen—</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Go, Magdalena, and sin no more</div> - <div class="verse indent4">Under the linden green.”</div> - </div> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse right"><i>Svenska Folk-visor.</i></div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -<p>Whether the Spirits of the Flood and Fell considered -themselves complimented by the homage which had been paid -to them, or whether things would have turned out exactly -the same had there been no offering at all, is a mystery of -mythology which we will not take upon ourselves to determine. -Certain it is, that when the next morning was ushered -in with a soft westerly breeze and a dull cloudy sky, interspersed -with bright transient gleams of joyous sunshine, such -as salmon love, the Nyssar got the credit of it all. Not that -the Norwegians were at first aware of the extent of their -blessings, for the barbarians are all unversed in the mysteries -of fly-fishing, but they were not long in finding it out, from -the smiling looks and congratulatory expressions of their -employers.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_109"></a>[109]</span></p> - -<p>Englishmen might have felt dull and heavy after the consumption -of such enormous quantities of brandy: English -heads might have ached, and English hands might have felt -shaky during the operation of getting sober. Thor himself -could not have risen from the challenge cup, set before him -by Loki Utgard, with more complete self-possession than did -Tom and Torkel, and the mighty Jacob. Sleep and drink -had fled with the shades of night, and it was a steady hand -that served out the coffee that morning.</p> - -<p>The party had long separated to their respective pursuits, -for the impatience of the fishermen and the actual dearth of -provisions in the camp did not allow of idling.</p> - -<p>Towards noon the breeze had entirely sunk, and the sun, -having succeeded in dispelling the clouds, was shining in its -summer strength into the confined valley, concentrating its -rays from the encircling rocks upon the channel of the river, -and pouring them on the encampment as on the focus of a -burning-glass.</p> - -<p>It was not, however, a depressing, moist, stewing heat; -there was a lightness and elasticity in the air unknown in -southern climes, or if known at all, known only on the higher -Alps, and in the middle of the summer. Men felt the heat, -no doubt, and the thermometer indicated a high degree of -temperature; but there was nothing in it enervating, nothing -predisposing to slothfulness or inaction; on the contrary, the -nerves seemed braced under it, and the spirits buoyant. -Work and exercise were a pleasure, not a toil; and if the -Parson did stretch himself out under the shade of the great -birch tree, it was the natural result of a well-spent morning -of downright hard work. Wielding a flail is a trifle compared -to wielding a salmon rod; and he and the Captain had, -both of them, wielded it that morning to some purpose, for -the salmon had not been unmindful of the soft breeze and -the cloudy skies, but had risen to the fly with appetites truly -Norwegian.</p> - -<p>Jacob and Torkel, with one of the boatmen in the distance, -were up to their eyes in salt and blood, cleaning, splitting, -salting, and otherwise preparing the spare fish for a three -days’ sojourn in the smoking-house; while three or four<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_110"></a>[110]</span> -bright-looking fresh run salmon, selected from the heap, and -ready crimped for the kettle or toasting skewers, were glittering -from under the green and constantly-wetted branches, -with which they were protected from the heat of the day.</p> - -<p>Birger, who was much more at home with his gun than -with his fishing-rod, had gone out that morning early, attended -by his two men, in order to reconnoitre the country, -and see what its capabilities were; for the Parson’s report -had been confined to its excellencies as a fishing station. The -Captain was still on the river; every now and then distant -glimpses of his boat could be seen as he shifted from throw -to throw, and occasionally condescended even to harl the -river, by way of resting his arms. Such a fishing morning -as they had enjoyed, is not often to be met with, and the -Captain would not take the hint which the cloudless sun had -been giving him for the last half-hour.</p> - -<p>The Parson, whose rod was pitched in a neighbouring -juniper, and whose fly, a sober dark-green, as big as a bird, -floated out faintly in the expiring breeze, was stretched at -full length on the turf, occupied, so far as a tired man who is -resting himself can be said to be occupied at all, in watching -the motions of a little red-headed woodpecker, that was darting -from branch to branch and from tree to tree, making the -forest ring again with its sharp succession of taps, as it drove -the insects out of their hiding-places beneath the outside -bark. Taps they were, no doubt, and given by the bird’s -beak, too, but by no means like the distinct and deliberate tap -of the yellow woodpecker, every one of which may be counted: -so rapid were they, that they sounded more like the scrooping -of a branch torn violently from the tree, and so loud, that -it was difficult to conceive that such a sound could be caused -by a bird comparatively so diminutive.</p> - -<p>The woodpecker, which seemed almost tame and by no -means disconcerted by the presence of strangers, pursued its -occupation with the utmost confidence, though quite within -reach of the Parson’s rod.</p> - -<p>“Take care,” said the Parson, as Torkel approached, “do -not disturb it.”</p> - -<p>“Disturb what?” said Torkel.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_111"></a>[111]</span></p> - -<p>The Parson pointed to the woodpecker, which was not a -dozen yards from them. The bird paused a moment, and -looked at them, but evinced no symptoms of timidity.</p> - -<p>“What, the Gertrude-bird?” said Torkel; “no one would -disturb her while working out her penance, poor thing! She -knows that well enough; look at her.” And, in truth, the -bird did seem to know it, for another loud rattle of taps -formed an appropriate accompaniment to Torkel’s speech; -though Birger and the Captain at that moment came up, the -one with his last fish, the other with a couple of ducks, a -tjäder, and two brace of grouse, of one sort or another, -which he had met with during his morning’s exploration.</p> - -<p>The Parson nodded to the Captain, congratulated Birger, -but, ever ready for a legend, turned round to Torkel.</p> - -<p>“What do you mean by a Gertrude-bird, and what is her -penance?” said he.</p> - -<p>Birger smiled—not unbelievingly, though; for the legend -is as well known in Sweden as it is in Norway; and -few people, in either of these countries, who believe in anything -at all, are altogether sceptical on matters of popular -superstition.</p> - -<p>“That bird,” said Torkel, “or at least her ancestors, was -once a woman; and it is a good lesson that she reads us -every time we see her. God grant that we may all be the -better for it,” he added, reverentially.</p> - -<p>“One day she was kneading bread, in her trough, under -the eaves of her house, when our Lord passed by, leaning on -St. Peter. She did not know that it was the Lord and his -Apostle, for they looked like two poor men, who were travelling -past her cottage door.”</p> - -<p>“‘Give us of your dough, for the love of God,’ said the -Lord Christ; ‘we have come far across the fjeld, and have -fasted long!’</p> - -<p>“Gertrude pinched off a small piece for them, but on rolling -it on her trough to get it into shape, it grew and grew, -and filled up the trough completely. She looked at it in -wonder. ‘No,’ said she, ‘that is more than you want;’ so -she pinched off a smaller piece, and rolled it out as before; -but the smaller piece filled up the trough, just as the<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_112"></a>[112]</span> -other had done, and Gertrude put it aside, too, and pinched -a smaller bit still. But the miracle was just the same; the -smaller bit filled up the trough as full as the largest-sized -kneading that she had ever put in it.</p> - -<p>“Gertrude’s heart was hardened still more; she put that -aside too, resolving, so soon as the strangers had left her, to -divide all her dough into little bits, and to roll it out into -great loaves. ‘I cannot give you any to-day,’ said she; ‘go -on your journey, and the Lord prosper you, but you must -not stop at my house.’</p> - -<p>“Then the Lord Christ was angry; and her eyes were -opened, and she saw whom she had forbidden to come into -her house, and she fell down on her knees; but the Lord said, -‘I gave you plenty, but that hardened your heart, so plenty -was not a blessing to you; I will try you now with the -blessing of poverty; you shall from henceforth seek your food -day by day, and always between the wood and the bark.<a id="FNanchor_15" href="#Footnote_15" class="fnanchor">[15]</a> -But forasmuch as I see your penitence to be sincere, this -shall not be for ever: as soon as your back is entirely clothed -in mourning this shall cease, for by that time you will have -learned to use your gifts rightly.’</p> - -<p>“Gertrude flew from the presence of the Lord, for she was -already a bird, but her feathers were blackened already, from -her mourning; and from that time forward she and her -descendants have, all the year round, sought their food between -the wood and the bark; but the feathers of their back -and wings get more mottled with black as they grow older; -and when the white is quite covered the Lord Christ takes -them for his own again. No Norwegian will ever hurt a -Gertrude-bird, for she is always under the Lord’s protection, -though he is punishing her for the time.”</p> - -<p>“Bravo, Torkel,” said the Parson. “I could not preach -a better sermon than that myself, or give you sounder -theology.”</p> - -<p>“You seem always on the look-out for a superstition,” -said the Captain.</p> - -<p>“So I am,” said the Parson. “There is nothing that<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_113"></a>[113]</span> -displays the character of a people so well as their national -legends.”</p> - -<p>“But do you not consider that in lending your countenance -to them, and looking as if you believed them, you are lending -your countenance to superstition itself?”</p> - -<p>“Well,” said the Parson, “what would you have me do? -laugh them out of it, like Miss Martineau? And if I succeeded -in that, which I should not, what should I have done -then? Why, opened a fallow for scepticism. Superstition -is the natural evidence of the Unseen in the minds of the -ignorant; to be superstitious, is to believe in a Being superior -to ourselves; and this is in itself the first step to spiritual -advancement. Inform the mind, teaching it to distinguish -the true from the false, and superstition—that is to say, the -reverence for the unseen—brightens into true religion. -Take it away by force, or quench it by ridicule, and you -have an unoccupied corner of the soul for every bad passion -to take root in. Superstition is the religion of the -ignorant.”</p> - -<p>“Well, there is truth in that,” said the Captain. “When -a boy becomes a man, he will not play prison-base, or go a -bird’s-nesting; but prison-base and bird’s-nesting are no bad -preparation for manly daring and gallant enterprise.”</p> - -<p>“Very true; and when the boy is capable of the latter -he will leave off his prison-base and bird’s-nesting without -any trouble on your part.”</p> - -<p>“There are good superstitions as well as bad,” said Birger. -“To be afraid of thinning down a noxious bird, like the -magpie, as our people are, because the devil has them under -his protection, is a bad superstition. It is a distrust in the -power and providence of God; but, though it is equally a -superstition to imagine that one bird is more a favourite with -God than another, yet the boy who, in your country, in the -ardour of his first shooting expedition, turns aside his gun -because</p> - -<div class="poetry-container"> -<div class="poetry"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">Cock-robins and kitty-wrens</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Are God Almighty’s cocks and hens;</div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -<p class="noindent">or, in our country, from the Gertrude-bird, because she is -working out the penance which Christ has imposed upon her,<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_114"></a>[114]</span> -has, in so doing, exercised self-denial, has acknowledged the -existence of a God, and has admitted the sanctity of His -protection. Many a superstition has as good a moral as a -parable, and this is one of them.”</p> - -<p>The approach of dinner at once scared away the Gertrude-bird, -and put an end to Birger’s moralising; and as they -discussed the pink curdy salmon, the produce of the morning’s -sport, and revelled in the anticipation of strawberry and -raspberry jam, the fumes of which every now and then were -wafted to them from the kitchen, and in the certainty of roast -game and smoked fish for future consumption, they laid their -plans for the afternoon’s sport.</p> - -<p>The sun was still shining in its strength and cloudlessness, -and bade fair so to shine for the rest of the day; and the -breeze, which had been for some time failing, had now sunk -into a perfect calm. No salmon or trout were to be caught -by the usual means—that was clear enough. Jacob, however, -who had procured what might be called with great propriety -a kettle of fish, for he had borrowed from a neighbouring -farm-house one of the kettles in which they simmer -their milk, and had got it full of minnows and other small -fry—proposed setting his långref. This was unanimously -assented to, for occupation is pleasing, and so is variety; -and eels, pike, and flounders, which were likely to be -its produce, were no bad additions to a larder less remarkable -for the variety of its provisions than for their -abundance.</p> - -<p>But the grand scheme was one proposed by the Captain, -who had been reconnoitring the higher parts of the river, -and had discovered a very likely place for a bright day, -but one which could not be reached from the shore, or by -any of the ordinary means of propelling a boat. It was a -fall terminating, not as falls generally do, in a huge basin, -but in a shoot or rapid of considerable length, like a gigantic -mill race, which, after a straight but turbulent course of a -couple of hundred yards, shot all at once into the middle of a -round and eddying pool. It was called the Hell Fall, probably -from its fury, for the word is Norske; but possibly -also, from Hela’s Fall, Hela being the Goddess of Darkness;<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_115"></a>[115]</span> -and well did the yawning chasm, through which the waters -rushed, deserve that name, overshadowed as it was by its -black walls of rock. It was upon this that the Captain had -reckoned; whatever were the case with the rest of the world, -sunshine or storm must be alike to it, and to the tenants of -its gloomy recesses.</p> - -<p>The Captain was confident the thing could be done, and -the Parson was as confident that if it could be done, and the -fly introduced into the numerous turn-holes round which the -water boiled and bubbled, the rapid would require neither -cloud nor wind to make it practicable. And Birger, who -was a great man at contrivances, asseverated strongly that it -should be done.</p> - -<p>The first job, however, was to set the långref, and that -was a mode of poaching with which they were all familiar. -The långref, a line of two or three hundred fathoms in length, -with a snood and a hook at each fathom, was baited from -the minnow kettle, and coiled, so that the baited hooks lay -together on a board; and one end having been made fast to -a stump on the landing place, the boat was pulled diagonally -down and across the stream, and the line gradually paid out -in such a manner that the hooks were carried by the current, -so as to hang free of the back line; the other end, which -came within a few yards of the farther bank, was anchored -by a heavy stone, backed by a smaller one, and the whole -affair left to fish for itself.</p> - -<p>In the meanwhile, some of the men had been sent forward -with ropes, and with the boat-hooks and oars belonging -to the expedition; for, though boats are always procurable -in a place where the river forms the usual means of communication, -their gear is not always to be relied on in cases of -difficulty.</p> - -<p>The fishermen selected their short lake rods, as better -adapted to the work they were going about than the great -two-handed salmon rods with which they had been fishing -that morning; and having fitted fresh casting lines, which, in -consideration of the work they were going about, were of the -strongest twisted gut they could find, they took the path up -the river.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_116"></a>[116]</span></p> - -<p>“I wonder what are the proper flies of this river,” said -the Captain. “In Scotland every place has its own set of -flies, and you are always told that you will do nothing at all, -unless you get the very colours and the very flies peculiar to -the river.”</p> - -<p>“You seem to have done pretty well on this river, at all -events,” said Birger, “without any such information.”</p> - -<p>“No information is to be despised,” said the Parson. -“The oldest fisherman will always find something to be -learnt from men who have passed their lives on a particular -stream, and have studied it from their boyhood. There is, -however, only one general principle, and that will always -hold good. By this the experienced fisherman will never be -at a loss about suiting his fly to the water. Here is the -Captain now; we have had no consultation, and yet I will -venture to say that we are both fishing with flies of a similar -character. What fly did you catch your fish with, this -morning, Captain?”</p> - -<p>“I have been using my old Scotch flies,” said the Captain, -“such as they tie on the Tay and Spey,<a id="FNanchor_16" href="#Footnote_16" class="fnanchor">[16]</a> and the largest of -the sort I could find.”</p> - -<p>“To be sure you did; and tell Birger why you did not use -your Irish flies.”</p> - -<p>“They were too gaudy for the water,” said the Captain.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_117"></a>[117]</span></p> - -<p>“That, Birger, will give you the principle,” said the -Parson. “The Captain has been very successful with flies -belonging to another river; now, look at mine, which I tied -last night, while I was waiting till you came home from -sacrificing to Nyssen. Except in size, this is as different as -possible from the Captain’s; and yet its principle is precisely -the same; mine is a green silk body, black hackle, blackcock -wing, no tinsel, and nothing bright about it, except this -single golden pheasant topping for a tail. Now, the Tay -flies are quite different to look at; they are mostly brown -or dun pig’s wool bodies, with natural red or brown hackles -and mallard wings; but the principle of both is the same; -they are sober, quiet flies, with no glitter or gaudiness about -them; and the Captain shall tell you what induced him to -select such as these.”</p> - -<p>“I chose the largest fly I could find,” said the Captain; -“because the water here is very deep and strong; and as -the salmon lies near the bottom, I must have a large fly to -attract his attention; but I must not have a gaudy fly, -because the water is so clear that the sparkle of the tinsel -would be more glittering than anything in nature; and the -fish, when he had risen and come near enough to distinguish -it, would be very apt to turn short.”</p> - -<p>“You have it now, precisely,” said the Parson; “the -depth of the water regulates the size of the fly, and the -clearness of the water its colours. This rule, of course, is -not without exceptions; if it were, there would be no -science in fishing. The sun, the wind, the season, the state -of the atmosphere must also be taken into consideration; -for instance, this rapid we are going to fish now, is the very -same water we have been fishing in below, and therefore -just as clear, but it is rough, and overhung by rocks and -trees. I mean, therefore, to put on a gayer fly than anything -we have used hitherto. But here we are,” he said, as -they looked down upon the rush of waters, “and upon my -word, an ugly place it is.”</p> - -<p>The Parson might well say that, for the waters were rushing -below with frightful rapidity. Above them was the -fall, where the river, compressed into a narrow fissure, shot<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_118"></a>[118]</span> -through it like an enormous spout, into a channel, wider -certainly than the spout itself, but still very narrow; while -the perpendicular walls reminded the spectators of an artificial -lock right in the middle of the stream; at the very -foot of the fall, was a solid rock, on the back of which the -waters heaped themselves up, and found their way into the -straight channel by rushing round it. In fact, without this -check, their rapidity would have been too great for anything -to swim in them; and as it was they looked anything but -inviting.</p> - -<p>“A very awkward place!” said the Parson! “and how do -you mean to fish this?”</p> - -<p>“Come away a little from the roar of the waters,” said the -Captain, “and I will explain my plans. You see that flat -ledge of rock below us, just above the rush of the water; -that spot we can reach by means of the rope. Make it fast -to that tree, Tom: you learned knotting in the English -navy, you know.”</p> - -<p>Tom grinned, and did as he was told, and the Captain -ascertained the strength of his work practically, by climbing -down the face of the rock, and reconnoitring personally the -ledge he had pointed out.</p> - -<p>“Now,” said he, when he had returned, “we will get the -boat as near as we can to this rush of water, and then veer -out a rope to her from this rock: birch ropes will float, and -the stream is quite sufficient to carry it down. If we make -the boat fast to this, we may command every inch of the -rapid, and you see yourself, how many turn-holes are made -by the points of the rock which project from either side. -You may depend upon it, every one of these contains a -salmon, and the water is so troubled and covered with foam, -that not one of these fish will know or care whether the sun -is shining or not.”</p> - -<p>“I think your reasoning is sound enough,” said the Parson; -“but if the boat capsizes, the best swimmer in Norway -would be drowned, or knocked to pieces against these rocky -points.”</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 700px;"> -<img src="images/illus3.jpg" width="700" height="460" alt="" /> -<p class="caption">HELL FALL.</p> -<p class="caption-r"><a href="#Page_119">p. 119.</a></p> -</div> - -<p>“But what is to capsize the boat? I am not going to -take young hands with me; we all know our work; at all<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_119"></a>[119]</span> -events, I mean to make the first trial of my own plan myself, -you have nothing to do but to stand on the rock, and haul -up the boat.”</p> - -<p>The Parson looked at Birger.</p> - -<p>“I do not think there is much danger,” said he; “and if -the Captain will manage the rod, I will see to the boat. -Tom shall take the other oar.”</p> - -<p>“Well,” said the Parson, “you have left me the safest -job; but I do not quite like to see you do it. However, -I suppose you will; so here goes to see that you -run no more danger than is absolutely necessary.” So -saying, he eased himself down the rope to the flat rock, -followed by Torkel and Pierson, who had previously -thrown down a coil of birch rope; while the Captain, Birger, -and Tom went down to the place below the rapid, where -the boat was moored to a stump of a tree that grew over the -river.</p> - -<p>The birch rope floated on the top of the racing water, and -soon reached the great turn-hole below the rapid, where the -current was not so furious but that the boat could easily be -managed. After one or two misses, Birger caught the end -of it with his boat-hook, and, passing it round all the -thwarts, secured it to the aftermost one; placing an axe in -the stern sheets, in which the Captain had seated himself -with his short lake-rod in his hand, Tom sat amidships with -the paddles, while Birger himself stood forward with the -boat-hook, to fend off from any point of rock that the eddies -might sheer the boat against.</p> - -<p>When all was ready, he waved his cap—for no voice could -be heard amid the roar of water—and the Parson and -his party began steadily hauling on the rope. The boat -entered the dark cleft, and, though her progress was very -slow, cut a feather through the water, as if she were racing -over it.</p> - -<p>Tom, by dipping one or other paddle, steered from side -to side, as he was bid; and the Captain threw his fly into -the wreaths of foam which gathered in the dark corners; for -in the most furious of rapids, there will always be spots of -water perfectly stationary, where the eddies, that have<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_120"></a>[120]</span> -been turned off by projecting rocks, meet again the -main current; and, in those places, the salmon will invariably -rest themselves, accomplishing their passage, as it -were, by stages.</p> - -<p>From side to side swung the boat—now at rest, now -hauled upon by the line, according to the messages which -Birger telegraphed with his cap; but, for some time, without -any result, except that of convincing the Parson that the -dangers he apprehended, were more in appearance than in -reality; so that they were beginning to think that their ingenuity -would be the sole reward of their pains. At length, -there was a sudden tug at the line, the water was far too -agitated to permit the rise to be seen, and the Captain’s rod -bent like a bow.</p> - -<p>“Haul up, a few fathoms,” said he, raising his rod so as to -get his line, as much as possible, out of the action of the -water, which was forcing it into a bight. “Now, steer -across, Tom, to the opposite side. We must try the -strength of the tackle—‘Pull for the half,’ as we say in -Ireland.”</p> - -<p>The fish had not attempted to run, knowing that its best -chance of safety was in the hole in which it lay, but had -sunk sulkily to the bottom. No sooner, however, did the -boat feel the current on her bow, than she sheered across to -the opposite side; and the Captain, stopping his line from -running out, drew the salmon by main force from its shelter, -who, feeling the strength of the current, for a moment attempted -to stem it; but soon, the Captain, adroitly dropping -his hand, turned tail and raced away, downward, with the -combined velocity of the stream, and its own efforts.</p> - -<p>The Captain paused a moment, to make sure that the -fish was in earnest, and then cut the rope; and boat, fish, -and all, came tumbling down the rapid into the turn-hole -below.</p> - -<p>Once there, it became an ordinary trial of skill between -man and fish—such as always occurs whenever a salmon is -hooked in rough water—and that the Captain was well up -to. It was impossible for it again to head up the dangerous -ground of the rapid, or to face the rush of the waters with<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_121"></a>[121]</span> -the strain of the line upon it; so it raced backwards and -forwards, and up and down in the deep pool, while Tom -took advantage of every turn to paddle his boat quietly into -still water. At last, the Captain succeeded in turning his -fish under a projecting tree, upon which the Parson, who, as -soon as he had seen the turn matters were likely to take, had -shinned up the rope, and hurried to the scene of action, was -standing gaff in hand to receive it.</p> - -<p>“Well done, all hands!” said the Captain, as the Parson -freed his gaff from the back fin of a twenty-pound salmon, and -Birger hooked on to the tree, and brought his boat to shore. -“Well done, all hands! it was no easy matter to invade such -territories as that; but one wants a little additional excitement -after such a fishing morning as we have had.”</p> - -<p>“I think we may set you down as <i>bene meritus de patriâ</i>,” -said the Parson; “it is just as well to have a fresh resource -on a bright afternoon like this; the time may come when we -may want it.”</p> - -<p>“Now, then, for another fish,” said the Captain; “Birger -shall try his hand at the rod this time.”</p> - -<p>Birger would have excused himself on account of his want -of skill, but was very easily persuaded, and, thus they took -turns, now securing a fish, now cutting a line against an -unseen rock, now losing one by downright hard pulling, -till, when the light began to fail, and the dangers to grow -more real from the darkness, they made fast their boat -to the stump, and returned victorious to the camp, having -added three or four fish to their store, and those the finest -they had caught that day.<a id="FNanchor_17" href="#Footnote_17" class="fnanchor">[17]</a></p> - -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - -<div class="chapter"> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_122"></a>[122]</span></p> - -<h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_X">CHAPTER X.<br /> -<span class="smaller">DEPARTURE FROM TORJEDAHL.</span></h2> - -</div> - -<div class="poetry-container"> -<div class="poetry"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">“Og Trolde, Hexer, Nysser i hver Vraae.”</div> - </div> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse right"><i>Finn Magnussen.</i></div> - </div> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">And Witches, Trolls, and Nysses in each nook.</div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -<p>“Hallo! what is the matter now?” said the Captain, who had -been out with his gun that morning, and on his return caught -sight of the Parson sitting disconsolate on the river’s bank. -By the waters of Torjedahl we sat down and wept. “What -has gone wrong?”</p> - -<p>“Why, everything has gone wrong,” said the Parson -peevishly; “look at my line.”</p> - -<p>“You do seem to have lost your casting line, certainly.”</p> - -<p>“Yes, I have, and half my reel line beside.”</p> - -<p>“Very tinkerish, I dare say, but do not grieve over it; put -on a new one and hold your tongue about it; no one saw -you, and I promise not to tell.”</p> - -<p>“How can you be so absurd?” said the Parson, “look at -the river, and tell me how we are to fish that; just look at -those baulks of timber floating all over it. I had on as -fine a fish as ever I saw in my life,—five-and-twenty pounds -if he was an ounce, when down came these logs, and one of -them takes my reel line, with sixty yards out, and cuts it right -in the middle.”</p> - -<p>“Well, that is provoking,” said the Captain, “enough to -make a saint swear, let alone a parson; but, hang it, man, it -is only once in the way. Come along, do not look behind you; -I am in a hurry to be at it myself, I came home on purpose, -I was ashamed to waste so glorious a fishing day as this in -the fjeld.”</p> - -<p>“That is just the thing that annoys me,” said the Parson;<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_123"></a>[123]</span> -“it is, as you say, a most lovely fishing day,—I never saw a -more promising one; and I have just heard that these logs -will take three days floating by at the very least, and while -they are on the river I defy the best fisherman in all England -to land anything bigger than a graul.”</p> - -<p>“Why,” said the Captain, “have the scoundrels been -cutting a whole forest?”</p> - -<p>“This is what Torkel tells me,” said the Parson; “he says -that in the winter they cut their confounded firs, and when -the snow is on the ground they just square them, haul them -down to the river or its tributaries, where they leave them to -take care of themselves, and when the ice melts in the spring, -down come the trees with it. But there are three or four -lakes, it seems, through which this river passes—that, by-the-by, -is the reason why it is so clear; and, as the baulks -would be drifting all manner of ways when they got into -these lakes, and would get stranded on the shores instead of -going down the stream, they make what they call a boom -at or near the mouth of the river, that is to say, they chain -together a number of baulks, end-ways, and moor them in a -bight across the river, so that they catch everything that -floats. Here they get hold of the loose baulks, make them -into rafts, and navigate them along the lakes, launching them -again into the river at the other end, and catching them -again at the next boom in the same way. They have, it -seems, just broken up the contents of one of these booms -above us. It will take three days to clear it out, and another -day for the straggling pieces.”</p> - -<p>“Whew!” said the Captain, “three blessed days taken -from the sum of our lives; what on earth is to be done?”</p> - -<p>“Well,” said the Parson, “that is exactly what we must -see about, for it is quite certain that there is nothing to be -done on the water. Before I began grumbling I sent off -Torkel to look for Birger—for we must hold a council of -war upon it. O! there is Birger,” said he, as they crossed -the little rise which forms the head of the Aal Foss and came -in sight of the camp and the river below it; “Torkel must -have missed him.”</p> - -<p>“Hallo!” said Birger, who was with Piersen in one of<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_124"></a>[124]</span> -the boats, fishing up with his boat-hook the back line of the -långref, and apparently he had made an awkward mess of it—“hallo -there! get another boat and come and help me, these -baulks have played Old Scratch with the långref; it has -made a goodly catch, too, last night, as far as I can see, but -we want more help to get it in.”</p> - -<p>The Parson had the discretion to keep his own counsel, -but the fact was, it was he who was the cause both of the -abundant catch and of the present trouble. The small eels -had been plaguing them, for some nights successively, by -sucking off and nibbling to pieces baits which they were too -small to swallow, and thus preventing the larger fish from -getting at them. The Parson had seen this, and had set his -wits to work to circumvent them. By attaching corks to -the back line, he had floated the hooks above the reach of -the eels, which he knew would never venture far from the -bottom, while pike, gös, id, perch, the larger eels, and occasionally -even trout, would take the floating bait more readily -when they found it in mid-water.</p> - -<p>This would have done exceedingly well, had he looked at -it early in the morning; that, however, he had not exactly -forgotten, but had neglected to do. Time was precious, and -he was unwilling to waste it on hauling the långref. Jacob, -whose business it was to haul it, had been sent down to -Christiansand on the preceding day, with two of the boatmen, -for supplies, and had not yet returned; and the Parson, -holding his tongue about his experiment, and proposing to -himself the pleasure of hauling the långref when the mid-day -sun should be too hot for salmon-fishing, had gone out -early with his two-handed rod. In the meanwhile the -baulks had come down, and the very first of them, catching -the centre of the floating bight, had cut it in two, and had -thus permitted the whole of the Parson’s great catch of fish -to entangle themselves at their pleasure.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 700px;"> -<img src="images/illus4.jpg" width="700" height="460" alt="" /> -<p class="caption-r"><a href="#Page_124">p. 124.</a></p> -</div> - -<p>It was these <i>disjecta membra</i> that Birger was busying himself -about; the task was not an easy one; and if it were, the -guardsman was not altogether a proficient. But, even when -the reinforcement arrived, there was nothing to be done beyond -lifting the whole tangle bodily into the boat, releasing<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_125"></a>[125]</span> -the fish from the hooks, and then, partly by patience, partly -by a liberal use of the knife, to get out the tangle on -shore. The further half gave them the most trouble to find; -it had been moored to a stone, and the back line had been -strong enough to drag it some way down the river before it -broke. It was, however, at last discovered and secured, and -the catch was of sufficient magnitude to ensure a supply of -fish, notwithstanding the logs.</p> - -<p>“Stop a minute,” said the Captain, as the boats’ heads -were put up the stream on their return; “we have not -got all the långref yet, I am sure; I see another fish; just -pull across that ripple, Parson, a few yards below the end of -that stranded log. Yes, to be sure it is, and a salmon, too, and -as dead as Harry the Eighth. Steady there! hold water!” -and he made a rake for the line with his boat-hook. “Why, -what have we got here? it is much too fine for the långref. -As I live, it is your own line. To be sure; here it runs. -Steady! Let me get a hold of it with my hand, it may not -be hitched in the wood firmly, and if it slips we shall lose it -entirely. That will do: all right. That must be the log -that broke you; it must have stranded here after coming -down the Aal Foss, with the fish still on it—and—hurrah! -here is the fish all safe—and, I say, Parson, remarkably fine -fish it is, certainly! not quite twenty-five pounds, though,”—holding -up the fish by the tail, and measuring it against -his own leg; for his trousers were marked with inches, from -the pocket-button downwards,—a yard measure having been -stitched on the seam. “You have not such a thing as a -steelyard, have you?”</p> - -<p>The Parson, laughing—rather confusedly, though,—produced -from his slip pocket the required instrument.</p> - -<p>“Ah! I thought so, ten pounds and a half; the biggest -fish always do get away, that is certain, especially if they -are not caught again; it is a thousand pities I put my eye -on this one. I have spoilt your story?”</p> - -<p>“Well, well,” said the Parson, “if you have spoilt my story, -you have made a good one for yourself, so take the other oar -and let us pull for the camp.”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_126"></a>[126]</span></p> - -<p>“Birger,” said the Captain, when the boats had been made -fast, and the spoils left in the charge of Piersen, “Torkel has -been telling the Parson that we are to have three days of -these logs. If the rascal speaks the truth, what is to be done -by us fishermen?”</p> - -<p>“The rascal does speak the truth in this instance, I will -be bound for it,” said Birger; “he knows the river well, -and besides, it is what they do on every river in Norway -that is deep enough to float a baulk.”</p> - -<p>“What is to be done, then? there is no fishing on the river -while this is going on.”</p> - -<p>“I will tell you what we can do,” said Birger; “two or -three days ago—that day when I returned to the camp so -late—if you remember, I told you that I had fallen in with -a lonely lake in the course of my rambles. There was a -boat there belonging to a sœter in the neighbourhood, which -Piersen knew of, and I missed a beautiful chance at a flight -of ducks. However, that is neither here nor there; the -people at the sœter told me that the great lake-char was to -be found there; so the next day I sent Piersen, who understands -laying lines if he does not understand fly-fishing, to -set some trimmers for them. I vote we shoot our way to -the lake, look at these lines, get another crack at the ducks, -and make our way to the Toftdahl (which, if the map is to -be trusted, must be somewhere within reach), fish there for a -day, shoot our way back again, and by that time the wooden -flood will be over.”</p> - -<p>“Bravo, Birger,” said the Captain, “a very promising plan, -and here, in good time, comes Commissary-General Jacob -with the supplies. I see his boat just over that point, entangled -among a lump of logs. I vote we take him with us; -no man makes such coffee. I have not had a cup worth -drinking since you sent him down the river.”</p> - -<p>“You cannot take the poor fellow a long march to-day,” -said the Parson, considerately, “he has just been pulling up -the stream from Christiansand.”</p> - -<p>“He pull! is that all you know of Jacob? I will venture -to say he has not pulled a stroke since he started;<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_127"></a>[127]</span> -look at the rascal, how he lolls at his ease, with his legs over -the hamper, while the men are half in the water, struggling -their way through the obstacles.”</p> - -<p>“I see the scamp,” said the Parson; “upon my word, he -puts me in mind of what the nigger observed on landing in -England; man work, horse work, ox work, everything work, -pig the only gentleman; Jacob is the only gentleman in our -expedition.”</p> - -<p>“I admire that man,” said Birger; “that is the true practical -philosophy, never to do anything for yourself if you can -get other people to do it for you. But I think those fellows -had better make haste about it. I have known such a hitch -of timber as that bridge the whole river, from side to side, in -ten minutes; they accumulate very rapidly when they once -take ground—ah! there goes the boat free; all right; but I -certainly began to tremble for my provisions.”</p> - -<p>“Well, then, we will take gentleman Jacob,” said the -Captain, “I cannot give up my coffee.”</p> - -<p>“I think so,” said Birger; “we will leave our three boatmen -here in charge of the camp; Tom, Torkel, and Piersen -can carry the fishing-rods and our knapsacks, which we must -pack in light marching order. Jacob shall provide for the -kitchen, and we will each of us take a day’s provisions in our -havresacs, and our guns on our shoulders; the odds are, we -knock over grouse and wild fowl, by the way, enough to -supply us nobly. And even if we do not meet with sport, -we shall at all events have a pleasant pic-nicking trip, and -see something of the country, while the Parson, who is so -fond of open air, may indulge himself with sleeping under a -tree, and contemplating the moon at his ease.”</p> - -<p>Torkel, who had come up while they were watching Jacob’s -progress, and had learnt their plans, informed them of a -sœter which lay nearly in their proposed course, and in which -he had himself often received hospitality.</p> - -<p>“Well, then,” said the Captain, “that will do for us, and -we will leave the Parson, if he prefers it,</p> - -<div class="poetry-container"> -<div class="poetry"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">“His hollow tree,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">His crust of bread and liberty.”</div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -<p>“You may laugh,” said the Parson, “but the time will<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_128"></a>[128]</span> -come when you will find out certain disagreeables in a Norwegian -dwelling, which may make you think with less contempt -on the hollow tree.”</p> - -<p>“The Parson is of the same mind as the Douglas,” said the -Captain, “he likes better to hear the lark sing, than the -mouse squeak.”</p> - -<p>“I like clean heather better than dirty sheep-skin,” said -the Parson.</p> - -<p>“And musquitoes better than fleas,” added the Captain.</p> - -<p>“Bother the musquitoes: I did not think of them.”<a id="FNanchor_18" href="#Footnote_18" class="fnanchor">[18]</a></p> - -<p>“They will soon remind you,” said Birger, “if we happen -to encamp near standing water.” And he went on packing -his knapsack to the tune of “Should Auld Acquaintance -be Forgot,” which he whistled with considerable taste and -skill.<a id="FNanchor_19" href="#Footnote_19" class="fnanchor">[19]</a></p> - -<p>Arrangements, such as these, are soon made; the three -boatmen were left in charge of the camp, with full permission -to get as drunk as they pleased; and, before Jacob -had well stretched his legs, which had been cramped in -the boat, he was stretching them on the mountain-side, -marching a good way in the rear of the party, and grumbling -as he marched.</p> - -<p>The mountains, which, all the way from Christiansand, -hem in the river, so that not even a goat can travel along its -banks, at Mosse Eurd and Wigeland recede on both sides, -forming a sort of basin; and here, in a great measure, they -lose their abrupt and perpendicular character. Close by the<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_129"></a>[129]</span> -water-side, there are a hundred, or two, of acres of inclosed -ground comparatively flat, and either arable or meadow; not -by any means in a ring fence, but spots cribbed here and there -from the fjeld, which looks more like a gentleman’s park -than anything else, with these little paddocks fenced out of -it. The houses, too, are quite the picturesque houses that -gentlemen in England ornament their estates with, so that -the untidy plank fences seemed altogether out of character -with the scenery. What one would look for here, is the -neat park palings of England, or its trim quickset hedges.</p> - -<p>Beyond this, the ground becomes more broken and -wooded, but without losing its parkish character; it is -something like the forest grounds of the South Downs in -England, only broken into detached hills and deep rises, -with, occasionally, a bare ridge of rock forcing its way through -the short green turf. The forest was mostly birch, with a -few maples and sycamores, and, here and there, a fir; but -every tree big enough for a timber stick, had long ago been -floated down to the boom at Christiansand. The character -of the whole scene was prettiness rather than beauty. The -mountains, however, were no lower than they had been -further down the river; it was as if their perpendicular -sides had, in some antediluvian age, given way, and that, in -the course of centuries, the fragments had become covered -with trees and verdure.</p> - -<p>Among these broken pieces of mountain it was extremely -easy for the traveller to lose his way; there was not the -vestige of a path, that is to say, a path leading to any place -to which he could possibly want to go. The grass was -particularly good and sweet there, and sheep and cows are -intensely conservative in their idiosyncracy; so stoutly had -they kept up the principle of <i>stare super antiquas vias</i>, that -the appearance was as if the whole region was thickly -inhabited and intersected with foot-paths in every direction, -while every animal that helps to make them rings its own -individual bell, and carries its own individual brand, but -pastures in uncontrolled liberty. A cow is a very good -guide to a lost man, for, if he has patience to wait till evening,<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_130"></a>[130]</span> -she is sure to feed her way to the sœter to be milked; -but woe to the man who puts his trust in bullocks or in -sheep; they feed at ease, and roam at pleasure, till the frosts -and snows of approaching winter bring them home to the -fold, the stall, and the salting-tub.</p> - -<p>Much of the shrubbery appearance of the scene is produced -by the numerous plants of the vaccinium tribe, the -bright glossy leaves of which look like myrtle; and the blue -aconite, and the gentian, and the lily of the valley, flowers -which we seldom meet with in England, absolutely wild, -and the familiar leaves of the raspberry, and black currant, -suggest ideas of home, while the turf on which the -traveller treads, looks as if it had been mown by the gardener -that very morning.</p> - -<p>The course, though varied by quite as many ups and -downs as there were ins and outs, was, upon the whole, -continually ascending; and, as the higher regions were -attained, and the facilities of transport diminished, the tall -stately fir began to assert its natural supremacy among the -northern sylva. Still, however, there was enough of birch, -and even of the softer woods, to diversify the foliage, and -preserve the park-like aspect. Heather, of which the Parson -had anticipated making his couch, there was none; but, -on the other hand, there was no furze to irritate the shins, -or brambles to tear the clothes. The latter does grow in -Norway, and is much more prized for its fruit than either -raspberry or strawberry, but the former cannot stand the -winters. Linnæus is said to have sat for hours in delighted -contemplation of an English field of furze in full -bloom, and the plant is generally seen in Swedish conservatories -to this day, or set out in pots as oranges and myrtles -are with us.</p> - -<p>The mid-day sun had scattered the clouds of the morning, -as, in truth, it very generally does on a Norway summer -day, and, shining down in patches of brilliant light through -the openings, added to the beauty of the scene, and diminished -in an equal proportion all regrets at leaving the -Torjedahl behind; for it was quite evident that, except<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_131"></a>[131]</span> -in the Hell Fall, or the pools, little or nothing could -be done on so bright a day, had the baulks been entirely out -of the question.</p> - -<p>It was an hour or two past noon when they arrived at the -ridge which divides the valley of the Torjedahl from that of -the Aalfjer—not that ridge is the proper expression, for the -ground had, for some miles, become so nearly level that, -were it not for a little rill, whose line of rushes had been -for some time their guide, they would not have known -whether they were ascending or descending. The country -still preserved its character of beauty, but its features had -gradually become more tame, so that the inequalities which, -in the beginning of their journey had looked like fragments -of mountains, were now rounded and regular, like so many -gigantic mole-hills.</p> - -<p>Between two of these, the turf of which was green and -unbroken to the summit, and shorter and more velvety, if -that were possible, than any they had passed over, was the -source of the rill, a black, boggy, rushy, uninviting bit of -ground, but covered with myrica bushes, which diffused -through the still air their peculiarly aromatic and refreshing -scent; in the centre of this was a deep still hole—it -could be called nothing else—it certainly was not a spring -head, for there was not a bubble of springing water; it was -perfectly still and motionless, and looked absolutely black in -its clearness.</p> - -<p>It was a welcome halt to all, for the sun was hot and the -way was long. The well-head was a noted haunt of the -dwarfs or Trolls, indeed it was said to penetrate to the centre -of the earth, and to be the passage through which they -emerged to upper air.</p> - -<p>This was the reason why, though everything around -was scorching and dropping in the withering heat, and -though the unshaded sun fell full upon the unprotected -surface, the water was at all times very cold, and yet in -the hardest winter no ice ever formed upon it—its cold -was that of the well of Urdar which waters the roots of -Yggdrassil, the tree of life; no frost can bind these waters, -neither can they be polluted with leaves or sticks, for a dwarf<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_132"></a>[132]</span> -sits continually on guard there, to keep open the passage for -his brethren.</p> - -<p>“Well,” said Birger, “I can readily believe that these are -the waters of life, I never met with anything so refreshing, -it beats all the brandy in the universe.”</p> - -<p>Jacob put in no protest to this heresy, but expressed a -practical dissent by applying his mouth to a private bottle -and passing it to Tom.</p> - -<p>The Captain was proceeding to wash his face and hands in -the well-head, but the men begged him not to pollute it; the -rill below, they said, did not so much signify.</p> - -<p>The place had been noted by Birger for a halt, and -right glad were they all to disembarrass themselves of their -respective loads, and to stretch themselves in various -attitudes of repose picturesque enough upon the whole, -under the great white poplars whose restless leaves fluttered -over head though no one could feel the breeze that -stirred them, and shaded the fairy precincts of the haunted -well.</p> - -<p>The Parson threw himself on his back upon the turf with -his jacket, waistcoat, and shirt-collar wide open, his arms -extended, and his neckerchief, which he had removed, -spread over his face and bare neck to keep off the musquitoes. -He was not asleep exactly, nor, strictly speaking, -could it be said that he was awake; he was enjoying -that quiet dreamy sort of repose, that a man thoroughly -appreciates after walking for five or six hours on a burning -hot summer’s day. His blood was still galloping -through his veins, and he was listening to the beat of his -own pulses.</p> - -<p>“This is very delightful, very,” he said, in a drowsy -drawling voice, speaking rather to himself than to Torkel. -“A very curious sound, one, two, three, it sounds like distant -hammers.”</p> - -<p>“Oh, the Thousand!” said Torkel, “where are we -lying?”</p> - -<p>The Parson, when he threw himself down on the hill -side, had been a great deal too hot and tired to pay much -attention to his couch, beyond the evident fact that the turf<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_133"></a>[133]</span> -was very green and inviting, and that it contained no -young juniper or other uncomfortable bedding: roused by -Torkel’s observation, he sat upright, and seeing nothing very -remarkable except a good rood of lilies of the valley at his -feet, the scent of which he had been unconsciously enjoying, -and which did not look at all terrible, stared at him. -“Well,” said he, “what is the matter? where should we be -lying?”</p> - -<p>“I do not know,” said Torkel, “that is, I do not know -for certain; but did you not say you heard hammers? -Stay,” he said, looking as if he had resolved to do some -desperate deed—“yes, I will, I am determined,” and he -took a piece of clay that was sticking on his right boot, -and having patted it into the size of a half-crown, put it -on his head and dashed his hat on over it. Then shading -his eyes with his hand, he looked fixedly at the hill, as -if he were trying to look through it. “No,” said he, -“I do not see anything, I hope and trust you are mistaken.”</p> - -<p>“What can you be about?” said the Parson impatiently, -“have you found a brandy shop in the forest?”</p> - -<p>“I thought it must be the Bjergfolk,” he said, “when -you heard the hammers. I never can hear them myself, -because I was not born on a Saturday, and I thought -perhaps you might have been. It is a very round hill too, -just the sort of place they would choose, and they have -not a great deal of choice nowadays, there are so many bells -in the churches, and the Trolls cannot live within the sound -of bells.”</p> - -<p>“No?” said the Parson, “why not?”</p> - -<p>“None of the spirits of the middle earth like bells,” said -Torkel, “neither Alfs, nor Nisses, nor Nechs, nor Trolls, -they do not like to think of man’s salvation. Bells call -people to church, and that is where neither Troll nor -Alf may go. They are sometimes very spiteful about it, -too.”</p> - -<p>“In the good old times, when it was Norway and Denmark, -and we were not tied to those hogs of Swedes as we -are now” (sinking his voice, out of respect to Birger, but by<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_134"></a>[134]</span> -no means so much so that Birger could not hear him), “they -were building a church at Knud. They pitched upon a -highish mound near the river, on which to build it, because -they wanted the people to see their new church, little -thinking that the mound was the house of a Troll, and that -on St. John’s eve, it would stand open supported on real -pillars. Well, the Troll, who must have been very young -and green, could not make out what they were going to do -with his hill, and he had no objection whatever to a house -being built upon it, because he reckoned upon a good supply -of gröd and milk from the dairy. He could have seen but -very little of the world above the turf not to know a church -from a house. However, he had no suspicions, and the bells -were put up, and the Pröbst came to consecrate. The poor -Troll could not bear to see it, so he rushed out into the wide -world, and left his goods and his gold and his silver behind -him.</p> - -<p>“The next day a peasant going home from the consecration -saw him weeping and wringing his hands beyond the -hearing of the bells, which was as near as he could venture -to come. And the Troll told him that he was obliged to -leave his country, and could never come back, and asked him -to take a letter to his friends.</p> - -<p>“I suppose the man’s senses were rather muzzy yet—he -could hardly have had time to get sober so soon after -the ceremony; but somehow or another he did not see that -the speaker was a Troll, but took him for some poor -fellow who had had a misfortune, and had killed some one, -and fancied he was afraid of the Landamptman, particularly -as he had told him not to give the letter to any -one (indeed it had no direction), but to leave it in the -churchyard of the new church, where the owner would -find it.</p> - -<p>“One would naturally wish to befriend a poor fellow in -such a strait; so the man took the letter, put it into his -pocket, and turned back.</p> - -<p>“He had not gone far before he felt hungry, so he took -out a bit of flad bröd and some dried cod that he had -put into his pocket. They were all wet. He did not know<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_135"></a>[135]</span> -how that could be; but he took out the letter for fear -it should be spoiled, and then found that there was wet -oozing out from under the seal. He wiped it; but the -more he wiped it, the wetter it was. At last, in rubbing, -he broke the seal, and he was glad enough to run for it -then, for the water came roaring out of the letter like -the Wigelands Foss, and all he could do he could only -just keep before it till it had filled up the valley. And -there it is to this day. I have seen it myself—a large -lake as big as our Forres Vand. The fact was, the Troll -had packed up a lake in the letter, and would have drowned -church, bells, and all, if he had only sealed it up a little more -carefully.”</p> - -<p>“Well,” said the Parson, “this beats our penny-post; we -send queer things by that ourselves, but I do not think anybody -has ever yet thought of sending a lake through the -General Post Office.”</p> - -<p>“Is there not some story about Hercules cleaning out the -Admiralty, or some such place, in a very similar way?” said -the Captain.</p> - -<p>“No,” said the Parson, “I never heard that the Admiralty -has ever been cleaned out at all since the days of Pepys. -If ever it is done, though, it must be in some such wholesale -way as this—I do not know anything else that will do it.”</p> - -<p>“The hill-men are not such bad fellows, though,” said -Tom, on whom all this by-play about the Admiralty was -quite lost, British seaman as he was; “and, by the way, -Torkel, I wish you would not call them by their names, you -know they do not like it, and may very well do us a mischief -before we get clear of this fjeld. Many people say that -there is no certainty of their being damned after all—our -schoolmaster thinks they certainly will not, for he says he -cannot find anything about damning Trolls in the Bible, -and I am sure I hope it will not be found necessary to damn -them, for they often do us a good turn. There was a Huusbonde -in the Tellemark who had one of their hills on his -farm that no one had ever made any use of, and he made up -his mind to speak to the Troll about it. So he waited till St. -John’s eve came round and the hill was open, and then he<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_136"></a>[136]</span> -went, and sure enough he found the Bjergman. He seemed -a good-humoured fellow enough, but he was not so rich as -most of them; he had only a very few copper vessels in his -hill and hardly any silver.</p> - -<p>“‘Herr Bjergman,’ said the Huusbonde, ‘you do not seem -to be in a very good case, neither am I, but I think we may -make something of this hill of yours between us—I say -between us, for, you know, the top of the soil belongs to me, -just as the under soil belongs to you.’</p> - -<p>“‘Aye, aye!’ said the Bjergman, ‘I should like that very -well. What do you propose?’</p> - -<p>“‘Why, I propose to dig it up and sow it, and as we have -both of us a right to the ground, I think in common fairness -we ought both of us to labour at it, and then we will take -the produce year and year about. The first year I will have -all that is above ground and you shall have all below; and -the next year we will change over, and then you shall have -all that is above and I will have all that is below.”</p> - -<p>“‘Well,’ said the Troll, greatly pleased, ‘that is fair; I -like dealing with an honest man. When shall we begin?’</p> - -<p>“‘Why, next spring, I think; suppose we say after -Walpurgis night,<a id="FNanchor_20" href="#Footnote_20" class="fnanchor">[20]</a> we cannot get at the ground much -before.’</p> - -<p>“‘With all my heart,’ said the Bjergman—and so they -did. They worked very well together, but the Bjergman -did twice as much work as his friend; they always do when -they are pleased; and they sowed oats and rye and bear; -and when harvest came the Huusbonde took that which was -above the ground, the grain and the straw which came to -his share, while the Bjergman was very well contented with -his share of roots.</p> - -<p>“‘When next Walpurgis night came round they dug up -the ground again; and this time the Bjergman was to have -all that was above ground, so they manured it well, and -sowed turnips and carrots; and by and by, when the harvest -came, the Huusbonde had a fine heap of roots, and the -Bjergman was delighted with his share of greens. There<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_137"></a>[137]</span> -never came any harm of this that I know, each was pleased -with his bargain, and the Huusbonde came to be the richest -man in the Tellemark. You know the family, Torkel, old -Nils of Bygland, it was his grandfather Lars, to whom it -happened.”</p> - -<p>“Well,” said Torkel, “it is quite true, then, I can testify, -I only wish I had a tenth part so many specie-dalers in the -Trondhjem Bank as old Nils has.”</p> - -<p>“And our Norfolk squires,” said the Captain, “fancy it -was their sagacity that discovered the four-course system of -agriculture! The Trolls were before them, it seems.”</p> - -<p>“The system seems to answer quite as well in Norway as -ever it did in England,” said the Parson, “If all that Tom -tells us about Nils of Bygland be true.”</p> - -<p>“There is not a doubt of that,” said Torkel, “all Tellemarken -knows Nils of Bygland, and it is a great pity, when -we were crossing the lake the other day, that we did not stop -at his house; he was never known to let a stranger go to bed -sober yet.”</p> - -<p>“I should think he was seldom without company, then,” -said Birger.</p> - -<p>“It seems to have answered very well in this particular -case,” said Jacob, “but I do not think you can trust beings -without souls, after all. It is best just to make your offering -to Nyssen, and to the Lady of the Lake, and two or three -others, and then to have nothing more to do with them.”</p> - -<p>“You certainly had better keep a sharp look-out,” said -Torkel, “But I think we Norwegians know how to handle -them, and so do our gallant friends the Danes. Did you -ever hear how Kallendborg Church was built?”</p> - -<p>The Englishmen, at all events, had not, and Torkel went -on.</p> - -<p>“Esberne Snorre was building that church, and his means -began to run short, when a Troll came up to him and offered -to finish it off himself, upon one condition, and that was, that -if Snorre could not find out his name he should forfeit his -heart and his eyes.</p> - -<p>“Snorre was very anxious to finish his church, and he consented, -though he was not without misgivings either; and the<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_138"></a>[138]</span> -Troll set about his work in earnest. Kallendborg Church is -the finest church in the whole country, and the roof of its -nave was to stand on four pillars, for the Troll drew out the -plan himself. It was all finished except half a pillar, and -poor Snorre was in a great fright about his heart and his -eyes, when one evening as he came home late from the -market at Roeskilde he heard a Troll woman singing under -a hill—</p> - -<div class="poetry-container"> -<div class="poetry"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent20">“Tie stille, barn min,</div> - <div class="verse indent20">Imorgen kommer Fin</div> - <div class="verse indent20">Fa’er din,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Og gi’er dig Esberne Snorre’s öine og hjerte at lege mid.”<a id="FNanchor_21" href="#Footnote_21" class="fnanchor">[21]</a></div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -<p>“Snorre said nothing; but the next morning out he goes -to his church, and there he meets the Troll bringing in the -last half pillar.</p> - -<p>“‘Good morning, my friend <span class="smcap">Fin</span>,’ said he, ‘you have got a -heavy weight to carry.’</p> - -<p>“The Troll stopped, looking at him fiercely, gnashed his -teeth, stamped on the ground for rage, flew off with the half -pillar he was carrying; and so Snorre built his church and -kept his heart and eyes.”</p> - -<p>“Do not believe a word of that,” said Jacob, “there is not -a word of truth in the story; and as for Esberne Snorre -building a church, everybody knows he was no better than -he should be at any time of his life.<a id="FNanchor_22" href="#Footnote_22" class="fnanchor">[22]</a> He was not the man -to build a church, much less to give his eyes for it.”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_139"></a>[139]</span></p> - -<p>“It is true,” said Torkel, “I have been at Kallendborg -Church myself; and have seen the half pillar with my own -eyes. The roof of the nave stands on three pillars and a -half to this day.”</p> - -<p>“More shame to the Kallendborgers, who never had religion -enough to finish it,” said Jacob, “nor ever will. Do -you mean to deny that the Devil carried off Esberne Snorre -bodily? I think all the world knows that pretty well.”</p> - -<p>“That shows that he thought him worth the trouble of carrying,” -said Torkel, “he would never put himself out about -carrying off you, because he knows you will go to him of -your own accord.”</p> - -<p>“Come, come, Torkel,” said the Parson, “do not be personal, -and take your fingers off your knife handle; we cannot -spare our cook yet, and you seem to like Jacob’s gröd yourself, -too, judging by the quantity you eat of it; and now, -Jacob, do not grind your teeth, but let us hear why you do -not believe Torkel’s story, which certainly is very circumstantial, -not to say probable.”</p> - -<p>“Because every one knows that it was Lund Cathedral -that was built by the Trolls, at the desire of the blessed -Saint Laurentius,” said Jacob; “it was he who promised his -eyes for it, and had them preserved by a miracle, not by a -trumpery trick. Esberne Snorre, indeed; or any Dane, for -matter of that! A set of infidels! It is only a Swede who -would give his eyes for the church.”</p> - -<p>“I should like to know who Scånia belonged to at the -time when Lund Cathedral was built,” said Tom, “I do not -think it was to the Swedes; and I should like to know who -took away its archbishopric when they did get it, and made -the great metropolis of all Scandinavia a trumpery little -bishopric under the see of Upsala?”</p> - -<p>“And I should like to know,” said Torkel, “who made -bishops ride upon asses, and drink ‘du’ with the hangman. -The Swedes give their eyes for the church, indeed! That for -the Swedes!” snapping his fingers, and spitting on the -ground.</p> - -<p>This was a poser. Jacob was not only in the minority, -but clearly wrong in matter of fact. At the dissolution of<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_140"></a>[140]</span> -the union of Kalmar, Scånia, though situated in Sweden, was -a Danish province, and its archbishop was, as he always had -been, the metropolitan.</p> - -<p>At the present time it is quite true that Scånia is a -Swedish province; but this is a comparatively modern -arrangement. In the days when the cathedral was built, -though geographically a portion of Sweden, it was politically -a province of Denmark; nor was it till its union with the -former state that its capital, Lund, was deprived of its -ecclesiastical primacy. And the treacherous conduct of -Gustavus Vasa towards Canute, Archbishop of Upsala, and -Peter, Bishop of Westeras, and the contumelies to which -they were exposed, previous to their most unjust execution, -are a blot even in that blood-stained reign, which Geijer -himself, with all his ingenuity, cannot vindicate, and which -the Norwegians, from whose protection the bishops were -lured, are continually throwing in the teeth of their more -powerful neighbours.</p> - -<p>Birger himself was a little taken aback, not exactly liking -that the weak points in his country’s history should be thus -exposed to strangers.</p> - -<p>“Never mind them, Jacob,” said he, forcing a laugh, “they -are only Tellemarkers, and know no better. You and I -shall see them, some of these days, climbing the trees of -Goth’s garden themselves.”<a id="FNanchor_23" href="#Footnote_23" class="fnanchor">[23]</a></p> - -<p>This bit of national slang, which fortunately was lost on -the Norwegians, had the effect of soothing the ire of the -sulky Jacob, who drew near to his countryman with a happy -feeling of partisanship.</p> - -<p>“The sooner the better,” said he, bitterly.</p> - -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - -<div class="chapter"> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_141"></a>[141]</span></p> - -<h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_XI">CHAPTER XI.<br /> -<span class="smaller">THE MOUNTAIN MARCH.</span></h2> - -</div> - -<div class="poetry-container"> -<div class="poetry"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">“Onward amid the copse ’gan peep,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">A narrow inlet still and deep,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Affording scarce such breadth of brim</div> - <div class="verse indent0">As served the wild duck’s brood to swim;</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Lost for a space through thickets veering,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">But broader when again appearing,—</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Tall rocks and tufted knolls their face</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Could in the dark-blue mirror trace;</div> - <div class="verse indent0">And farther as the hunter strayed,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Still broader sweep its channels made.”</div> - </div> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse right"><i>Lady of the Lake.</i></div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -<p>“How shall it be? Will you look your lay-lines to-day or -to-morrow?” said the Parson, who, though not a little -amused at the tilting between the rival champions, and by -the manner in which Birger had suffered himself to be drawn -into the squabble, began to think it had gone quite far -enough for the future peace and unanimity of the expedition. -“Come, Jacob, shoulder your knapsack, and march -like a sensible Swede.”</p> - -<p>“There never was but one sensible Swede,” said Torkel, in -a grumbling aside, “and that was Queen Kerstin, when she -jumped over the boundary, and thanked God that Sweden -could not jump after her.”<a id="FNanchor_24" href="#Footnote_24" class="fnanchor">[24]</a></p> - -<p>Jacob had sense enough not to hear this laudatory remark on -his late sovereign’s discrimination, but, with his ordinary -phlegm, resumed his load and his place in the line of march.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_142"></a>[142]</span></p> - -<p>“By the way,” said the Parson, as they resumed their -journey, “what was it, Torkel, that made you scrape the mud -from your right foot and put it on your head in that insane -manner, just now?”</p> - -<p>“I can answer that,” said Birger; “you know that the -whole tribe of Alfs, white, brown, and black, and the Trolls, -and in fact the whole class that go under the generic -name of Bjerg-folk, or Hill-men, live under the earth. To -see them, therefore, on ordinary occasions, you must put -yourself—at least, typically—in a similar condition. That -upon which you have trod must cover your head; and you -take it from the right foot rather than the left, partly as -being more lucky, and partly because the left being a mark -of disrespect, would incense the dwarfs, who would be sure -to make you pay for it sooner or later; in fact they are a -dangerous race to meddle with at all, they take offence so -very easily. I believe, however, this is the safest plan, for -they are not aware, unless you betray yourself, that the -veil is removed from your sight. Did you never hear the -story of the Ferryman of Sund?”</p> - -<p>The Englishman, of course, had not heard it, neither had -any of the men, for the legend is Danish and local; and -though anything Danish is much better known in Norway -than stories or legends relating to Sweden, it so happened -that it was new to them all, and they closed up to listen to it.</p> - -<p>“One evening, between the two lights,<a id="FNanchor_25" href="#Footnote_25" class="fnanchor">[25]</a> a strange man -came to the ferry at Sund and engaged all the boats: no -sooner had the bargain been made, than they began to sink -deeper and deeper into the water, as if some heavy cargo had -been put into them, though the astonished boatmen could see -nothing, and the boats looked quite empty.</p> - -<p>“‘Shove off,’ said the stranger, ‘you have got quite load -enough for one trip;’ and so they had, for the gunwales were -not a couple of inches from the water, and the boats pulled<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_143"></a>[143]</span> -so heavily, that it was as much as the men could do to get -to the Vandsyssel side; if the water had not been wonderfully -calm, they could not have done it at all—but it was calm; -and all under the wake of the moon it looked as if it was -covered with a network of silver filigree, to chain down the -ripples.</p> - -<p>“As soon as the boats touched the Vandsyssel shore, they -began rising in the water again, as if their freight had been -taken out of them, and then the stranger sent them back -again; and so it went on throughout the whole night, and -very hard work the ferrymen had, bringing over cargoes of -emptiness.</p> - -<p>“Then the day began to break, and the eastern sky to -whiten; and just as the coming sun shot up his seven lances -to show the world that King Day was at hand, the stranger, -who had arranged all this, paid the ferrymen, not counting -the coins, but filling their hats with them with both hands, -as a boy shovels out his nuts.</p> - -<p>“‘What had they been bringing over?’ asked one of -them. ‘Cannot you be quiet, and know when you are well -off,’ said the stranger; ‘you need not be afraid of the custom-house -dues; they will have sharp eyes to see anything contraband -in what you have carried over last night; put your -money in your pockets and be thankful—you will not earn -so much in the next three years.’</p> - -<p>“But in the mean while one of the ferrymen, a sharper -fellow than his neighbours, jumped on shore, and did just -exactly what Torkel did just now—put a piece of clay from -the sole of his shoe on the crown of his head. His eyes -were opened at once; all the sandhills about Aalberg were -alive with little people, every one of them carrying on his -back gold and silver pots, and jugs, and vessels of every description—the -whole place looked like one gigantic anthill.</p> - -<p>“‘O-ho,’ said he, ‘that’s what you are about; well, joy go -with you, we shall not be plagued with you any more on our -side of the water; that’s one good job, anyhow.’</p> - -<p>“But it was not a good job for him; it is very possible to -be too sharp for one’s own good. All his gold money turned<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_144"></a>[144]</span> -to yellow queens,<a id="FNanchor_26" href="#Footnote_26" class="fnanchor">[26]</a> and his silver money to chipped oyster-shells, -and he never got rich, or anything more than a poor -ferryman of Sund, while his companions had their hats full -of ancient Danish gold and silver coins, and bought ships of -their own, and went trading to Holland and the free towns, -and became great men.”</p> - -<p>“Upon my word, Torkel,” said the Parson, “you are too -venturesome; it is just as well that there were no Trolls to -be seen just now at the well; but you must not try it again, -or you will never become a great man, or command a ship—not -that this would suit you very well, I suppose.”</p> - -<p>“Torkel would undertake the command of the <i>Haabet</i>, -just now, I’ll engage, little as he knows about seamanship, if -he could only get young Svensen out of her,” said Mr Tom, -with a knowing grin; to which innuendo, whatever it might -mean, Torkel playfully replied by kicking out behind at him -with one foot, after the manner of a donkey. He missed -Tom, however, to his and Piersen’s intense mirth; but what -was the precise nature of the joke, there was now no opportunity -of explaining, as the descent had become so steep that -the assistance of the hand was necessary, in order to keep -their footing.</p> - -<p>At a few hundred yards from the dwarf’s well, they had -fallen in with a little streamlet, running eastward, on a pretty -rapid descent, even from the first, but which now began to -form a series of diminutive cascades, leaping in so many -spouts from rock to rock, while the ground, over which it -ran, seemed as if it was fast changing from the horizontal to -the perpendicular; indeed, had there not been plenty of rocks -jutting out, and a good crop of twisted and gnarled trunks -and roots, many portions of the journey might have been -accomplished with more speed than pleasure.</p> - -<p>The rapidity of the descent soon brought them to the -bottom of a deep hollow valley, far above the level of the -sea, indeed, but low compared with the abrupt heights that -surrounded it. It was one of those singular features in<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_145"></a>[145]</span> -Norwegian scenery, a valley without an outlet; its bottom -occupied by a deep, black, still lake, whose only drain—if it -had any drain at all except the porous nature of the soil—was -under the surface. As the ground rose rapidly on every -side, it did not answer to cut timber which could never be -carried, and the forest here was left in the wildest state of -desolation. Solid, substantial firs, of ancient growth, were -the predominant tree; but the soil was rich and the valley -sheltered, and there was a plentiful sprinkling of birch and -wych-elm, interspersed with a much rarer tree, the stubborn -old oak himself.</p> - -<p>Beneath this mingled canopy was a plentiful undergrowth -of juniper, and enormous ferns. There was a still, calm -desolateness about the whole scene, for many of the trees -were dead, not by accident or disease, but from pure old age, -and stood where they had withered, or reclined against the -younger brethren of the forest, exhibiting their torn and -ragged bark, and stretching forth their bare and leafless -arms: the very rill—their lively and noisy companion -hitherto—seemed to be sobered down, and to partake here -of the general sadness, as it soaked its still way among the -rushes and weeds that encumbered its course.</p> - -<p>Where it ran, or rather crept, into the lake, a small marshy -delta was formed of the sand carried down in its course; and -here was moored an old crazy boat, half full of water, with a -couple of old primitive oars; the whole had a bleached and -weather-stained appearance, well in keeping with the general -character of the scene. The boat belonged to a sœter some -three or four miles off, on the western slope of the mountains, -and was used occasionally by the inhabitants, when, at -rare intervals, they amused themselves by setting lay lines -for the char, for which the lake had a local celebrity. The -sœter belonged to Piersen’s brother, and it was he who had -induced Birger to visit the spot.</p> - -<p>Having baled out the boat with their mess tins, -they pulled out into the lake, which turned out to be -very much larger than they expected to find it. The spot -where the boat was moored, and which indeed looked like -a small, deep, still tarn, was in fact only a bay, or inlet, and<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_146"></a>[146]</span> -the whole lake was a body with numerous arms, none of -them very large in themselves, but making a very large -piece of water when taken together.</p> - -<p>Of course it had a name; every rock, and stream, and -splash of water in Norway, has a name of one sort or other; -but whatever it might have been, it was unknown to the -fishermen, and this dark pool was entered into their diaries -by the appropriate appellation of the “Lake of the Woods.” -Mountains surrounded it on every side, steep, abrupt, -plunging into the deep dark water, and wooded from base to -summit with a dense black mass of wood wherever tree -could stand on rock. There was not beach or shore of any -kind; the mountain rose from the water itself, so steep as -to be scarcely accessible, and, in many places, not accessible -at all. As for a bird, Avernus itself could not be more -destitute of them. Not a sound was heard, except the splash -of the cumbersome oar, and the creaking of the rowlock, and -that sounded so loud, and so out of place in the universal -stillness, that the rowers tried to dip them quietly, as if -they feared to awaken the desolate echoes.</p> - -<p>“Ah,” said Birger, in a whisper, “this is just the place for -the ‘Lady of the Lake;’ I hope she will do us no harm for -trespassing on her territories.”</p> - -<p>The men looked uneasy, and a little whispering went on -between Tom and Piersen, who were pulling, they resting -on their oars the while, from which the drops trickled off -and dripped into the silent water. Tom brightened up. -“I do not think she will hurt us,” he said; “she had a very -fine cake from Piersen’s family last Christmas, and she will -not hurt any one while he is with us.”</p> - -<p>“What a confounded set of gluttonous sprites you have -in your country,” said the Captain; “mercenary devils they -are too.”</p> - -<p>“Hush, hush, don’t abuse them, at all events while you -are on their territories. The fact is, the ‘Lady of the Lake’ -is the easiest propitiated of all the sprites: she is an epicure, -too, and not a glutton; she likes her cake good, but she does -not care how small it is. On Christmas Eve you pick a very -small hole in the ice, and put a cake by the side of it, only<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_147"></a>[147]</span> -just big enough to go through it; and if you watch, which -is not a safe thing to do if you have any sins unconfessed,<a id="FNanchor_27" href="#Footnote_27" class="fnanchor">[27]</a> -you may see, not the lady herself, for she is never seen, but -her small white hand and arm, as she takes the offering and -draws it down through the hole in the ice. Those see her -best who are born on the eves of the holiest festivals.”</p> - -<p>“That is all nonsense,” said Jacob, “I never could see -her at all, often as I have looked, and I was born on Easter -Eve.”</p> - -<p>“Why you precious rascal,” said the Captain, “how could -you expect it? When were your sins shriven, I should like -to know?”</p> - -<p>The men were not by any means displeased at Jacob’s rebuff, -who seemed much more disconcerted by it than the occasion -at all required; when Birger took up the conversation. -“There is danger in that,” said he, “not that you should miss -seeing the Lady, but that you should suffer for your rashness. -The fact is,” he continued, turning to his friends, “the -Lady of the Lake is the impersonation of the sudden squalls -which fall unexpectedly on open spaces of any kind in -mountainous countries, and her small white hand and arm -are the dangerous little white breakers that are stirred up -by the gusts, which, though diminutive when compared with -the mighty rollers of the ocean, very often do draw men -down, just as the hand draws Torkel’s cake. There is a -similar spirit for the rivers, called the Black Horse, and -another for the sea. This latter is called King Tolf, and is -represented as driving furiously across the Sound, his chariot -drawn by water-horses, and cutting right through any ship -or boat that may lie in his path. But they all signify the -same thing, in different situations to which their several -attributes are very well adapted.”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_148"></a>[148]</span></p> - -<p>“And that thing is?”</p> - -<p>“Death, by drowning.”</p> - -<p>“Here are the corks,” broke in Piersen in very indifferent -English; “we shall have gjep for supper to-day, I see the -floats bobbing.”</p> - -<p>The corks which he had pointed out were, in reality, a -string of birch-bark floats, which on being examined, were -found attached to lines anchored in the very deepest spot -of the whole lake; for the gjep, or great lake char, unlike -any of its congeners, and indeed unlike any fresh-water -fish whatever, except the common char, the eel, and the -fictitious mal,<a id="FNanchor_28" href="#Footnote_28" class="fnanchor">[28]</a> is never found but in the deepest waters.</p> - -<p>Birger, who was the hero of this fishing, caught the nearest -float in the crook of his gaff, and began hauling in—evidently -there was something, for at first the line twitched and -twitched and was nearly jerked out of his hand; but as he -hauled on (and in good truth the line seemed as long as if -some one, as Paddy says, had cut off the other end of it), -it came lighter and lighter, and before he had got it in, a -large ugly fish, three or four pounds weight, with an enormous -protuberant belly, lay helpless on the surface.</p> - -<p>“That’s the fellow,” said Piersen, pouncing on him,—but -the fish made little effort to get away; it was almost dead -before he got hold of it. The gjep, though classed as a char -by the learned, is as little like the bright crimson char of -our own lakes or of the mountain lakes of Norway as can well -be imagined; never met with except in water of immense -depth, never found out of his hole, never caught except with -a still and (so the Swedes assert) a stinking bait, he bears -the colours and character of his local habitation, a sober dark<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_149"></a>[149]</span> -olive brown back, a dark grey side shot with purple, which -turns black when the fish is dead; no red spots or very -minute ones, no splashes of red or anything red about it, -except one bright line along the edge of the fins. The most -remarkable point about it, its enormous belly, from which it -derives its name, <i>Salvelinus ventricosus</i>, is really no distinguishing -mark at all, except of its habitat. The fact is, -drawn suddenly and against its will from the depths of the -lake, its air-bladder swells so enormously as to kill the fish, -and give it that peculiarly inelegant appearance.</p> - -<p>Inelegant as it looks, and disagreeable as it is to catch, it -is by far the best eating of any Swedish fish, and, from its -rarity, and from the difficulty of catching it, bears, when -it is to be had at all, which is very seldom, by far the -highest price of any fish in the market. In fact, to eat -it at all in perfection, a man must go after it; it will -never answer to catch it for amusement; but the men may -easily be set to lay lines for it while other sports are going -forward.</p> - -<p>Four or five of these highly prized fish were hauled in one -after another by Birger, who looked as proud of his exploit -as if he had landed a schoolmaster.<a id="FNanchor_29" href="#Footnote_29" class="fnanchor">[29]</a> When the lines had -been all coiled up and deposited in the boat, Birger proposed -visiting some rushes that he remembered, in a hope -of meeting with wild fowl; a hope in which he was disappointed, -not at all to the surprise of his brother fishermen, -for the whole lake looked so black and gloomy -that no duck of ordinary taste would think of pitching -there; it was, however, an interesting voyage among -the sad and silent intricacies of the lake; but it so happened, -that in returning they took a turn short of their -point and wandered into another deep and narrow inlet, -very like that from which they had started, but still not the -same.</p> - -<p>So like was one spot to another that they had pulled some<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_150"></a>[150]</span> -considerable distance before the mistake was found out, and -when it was, so much time had been lost that they were -unwilling to pull back.</p> - -<p>“Piú noja un miglio in dietro che dieci in avanti,” -said the Captain; “let us pull on and see what luck will -send us.”</p> - -<p>Piersen, on being consulted, as best acquainted with the -country, did not seem to know a great deal about it, but -imagined that if once on shore he could cut into the -right track; and the fishermen having taken a look at -their compasses, and the sun, and the wind, what little there -was of it, decided that at all events the adventure should -be tried.</p> - -<p>Hardly had this conclusion been arrived at, when the boat -grounded on a bed of spongy rushes, so like that from which -they had embarked, that it was with difficulty they could -persuade themselves that it was not the very same—there -was the same little soaking rill, the same mossy, soppy turf, -and when they had gone on a little further, there was the -same leaping, sparkling brooklet, bounding from rock to rock, -just like that by which they had descended.</p> - -<p>A good stiff pull it took them to reach the top, and then -it was evident enough that the spot they had attained was -not the same as that from which they had descended. There -was no hill on the other side, properly so called, but a wide -smooth plain of light sand, shelving, certainly, towards the -east, but shelving so gradually, that the declivity was scarcely -perceptible; it was completely overshadowed by large massive -well-grown pines, not growing together closely but in -patches (as is generally the case both in Norway and Sweden), -so as to leave grassy glades and featherly copse-wood between -the groups, but regularly and evenly, as if they had all -been planted at measured distances. The branches formed -a complete canopy over head, shutting out both air and sunshine, -and effectually destroying everything like verdure -beneath: the tall straight monotonous trunks with a purplish -crimson tint on their bark, effectually walled in the -view on every side, and the whole ground was carpeted with -a slippery covering of dead pine-leaves.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_151"></a>[151]</span></p> - -<p>“I hope this will not last long,” said the Captain, “the -place is so dark and the air so close and stifling, that it seems -like walking through turpentine vaults. However, our road -lies this way, that is certain,” putting his compass on the -ground so that it could traverse easily, “and at all events we -must come to a water-course sooner or later.”</p> - -<p>But they did not come to a water-course; whether there -were none, the sand being sufficiently permeable to sop up -the rain, or whether they were travelling on the rise between -two parallel brooks, did not appear; but mile after mile was -skated and slid over with considerable fatigue and exertion, -and the same scene lay before them, and around them, and -above them. Tall clear branchless stems, with long vistas -between them opening and closing as they went on, vistas -which led to nothing and terminated in nothing but the -same bare, branchless, dead-looking poles. Their compasses -and a slight declivity told them that they were not travelling -in a circle, and their reason enlightened them as to the fact -that everything except a circle must have an end; but after -three hours’ very hard work and some dozen of tumbles a -piece, that end seemed as far off as ever.</p> - -<p>The only variety was a dead tree, and the only apparent -difference between the living and the dead was, that in this -case the straight perpendicular lines were crossed by lines as -straight, which were diagonal; for the dead trees for the -most part reclined against their living neighbours, very -much to the detriment of the latter. As for a bird, it did -not seem as if birds could live there; nor could they in the -close space beneath that dark-green canopy; but every now -and then there was a tantalizing whirr of wings, as a black-cock -threw himself out from the topmost branches, and, far -above their heads, skimmed along in that bright sunshine -which could not penetrate to them. This is a favourite -haunt of the black-cock, for the pine-tops and their young -buds are its most welcome food, and often render its flesh -absolutely uneatable from the strong turpentiny flavour -they impart to it.</p> - -<p>At last, and after they had well-nigh begun to despair, the -trees began to be thinner. Here and there a patch of sky<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_152"></a>[152]</span> -relieved the monotonous black, here and there a sunbeam -would struggle down; then a little grass, weak and pale, -would cast a shade of sickly green over the ashy brown of -the dead fir leaves, and afford a somewhat steadier footing; -a patch of birch was hailed with the joy with which one -meets a welcome friend; cattle paths, deceptive as they are, -afforded at least a token of civilization: and now the whort -and the cranberry began to show themselves, and the hospitable -juniper too, the remembrancer of bright crackling -fires and aromatic floors, and—</p> - -<p>“Oh, positively we must have a halt now, for the difficulties -are over,” said Birger, and, though he had plenty of -tobacco in his havresac, out of sheer sentiment he stuffed his -pipe with the dead strippy bark of that useful shrub, which -is generally its mountain substitute.</p> - -<p>A few minutes were sufficient for their rest; breathing the -fresh air again was in itself a luxury, and treading the firm -elastic turf a refreshment. As they went on, the landscape -began to resume its park-like character, glades to open, trees -to feather down, gentians to embroider the green with their -blue flower work, and lilies of the valley to perfume the air. -They were as much lost as ever, but the country looked so -like the beautiful banks of the Torjedahl, that they could -not but think themselves at home.</p> - -<p>“This will do,” said Torkel, at last, who apparently had -recognised some well-known landmark, “we shall soon find -a night’s lodging now, and a kind welcome into the bargain.”</p> - -<p>The track into which he had struck, did not at first -appear more inviting than any of the numerous cattle-paths -which they hitherto passed on their way; but Torkel followed -it with a confidence which, as it turned out, was not -misplaced; for it soon widened out into a broad green glade, -at the further end of which stood a sœter of no mean pretensions.</p> - -<p>The portions of cultivated and inhabited land in Norway -are almost always mere strips, the immediate banks of rivers -or of lakes—most of them are actually bounded by the -forest; and in no case is the wild unenclosed country at any<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_153"></a>[153]</span> -great distance from them. Every farm, therefore, has, as a -necessary portion of its establishment, its sœter, or mountain -pasture, to which every head of cattle is driven as soon as -the grass has sprung, in order to allow the meadows of the -lower farms to be laid up for hay. At these it is often a very -difficult thing to get a mess of milk in the summer, for -almost all the cheese and butter of the kingdom is made at -the sœters. They are generally abundantly stocked with -dairy furniture, but, as they are abandoned in the winter, -they seldom exhibit any great amount of luxury. They -consist generally of rude log-huts, of sufficient solidity, no -doubt, for these logs are whole trunks of pines roughly -squared and laid upon one another, morticed firmly at the -corners, but of very little comfort indeed, notwithstanding. -They contain generally a single room, a chimneyless fire-place, -and a mud floor, in most places sufficiently dirty, with a few -sheds and pens surrounding the main hut.</p> - -<p>The present sœter, however, was one of far greater pretensions, -it was built of sawn timber, and boasted of an upper -floor, implying, of necessity, a separation between human -beings who could climb a ladder, and cows and pigs who -could not. This projected some two or three feet on every -side beyond the lower storey, forming at once a shade and a -shelter for the cattle, according as the weather required one -or the other, and, in its turn, was crowned with a low-pitched -shingled roof, whose eaves had another projection -of two or three feet, so that, seen end on end, it had the appearance -of a gigantic mushroom standing on its stalk. The -dairymen had been men of taste as well as of leisure, for the -barge-boards which protected its gables were ingeniously -carved and painted with texts from Scripture, and the heavy -corners of the projecting upper storey terminated in pendants -no less grotesque than elaborate. There was one window in -each gable and two in the side, the sills of which had been -planed and painted with some date, text, or motto, like the -barge-boards.</p> - -<p>Round these sœters there are generally some patches of -enclosed ground where hay is made, or where the more tender -of the herds or flocks are protected, but here there seemed<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_154"></a>[154]</span> -to be a complete farm; full forty acres had been redeemed -from the forest, and enclosed by the peculiar fence of the -country; which, except that it is straight, is in its general -appearance not unlike the snake fences of America. It is -formed by planting posts in the ground by pairs at small -distances between pair and pair, and then heaping a quantity -of loose planks and stems, and any other refuse timber -which comes to hand, between them, the tops being kept -firm by a ligature of birch-bark or some such material. -These fences, when they begin to rot, which they do -very soon, are the harbour of all sorts of small vermin, and -are, in fact, the great eye-sores of Swedish scenery.</p> - -<p>In the present instance, this was pre-eminently the case; -not only the fences, but everything else, was in a terrible -state of disrepair—in many places the posts were gone, in -others the birch ropes had rotted through, and the miscellaneous -timber which had formed the fence was lying about -entwined with a spiry growth of creepers and brambles, a -mass of rottenness. The house itself was in a more promising -state; it was evident that it had been partially repaired -and put in order, and that very recently, for many of -the timbers showed by their white gashes, the recent marks -of the axe, and the axe which had made them was lying -across the door sill.</p> - -<p>Torkel lifted the latch—that was easy, for there was no -bolt or lock to prevent him—but the place was evidently -uninhabited—he looked on Tom with a face of disappointment.</p> - -<p>“Faith!” said he, “this is too bad. Torgenson told me -that the Soberud party were to drive their cattle to the fjeld -on Thursday last, and the weather has been as fine as fine -can be. Well! there is no trusting people.”</p> - -<p>“There is no trusting Torgenson’s daughter, at all events,” -said Tom, “for I suspect it was from her that you had the -information; Lota is much too pretty to be trusted further -than you can see her; and I have no doubt she made some -excuse herself for not coming last Thursday. It was natural -enough too; of course she would not like to come to the -sœter before young Svensen sailed.”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_155"></a>[155]</span></p> - -<p>“The Thousand take young Svensen, and you too!” said -Torkel, turning round as sharply as if Tom had bitten him -in earnest, but catching a grin upon the latter’s countenance -which he had not time to dismiss, looked very much as if he -meditated making him pay for his ill-timed joke, when a -loud, clear voice was heard in the glade below, making -the leafy arches of the old forest ring with the ballad of -master Olaf—</p> - -<div class="poetry-container"> -<div class="poetry"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">“Master Olaf rode forth ere the dawn of day,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">And came where the elf folk were dancing away,</div> - <div class="verse indent8">The dances so merry,</div> - <div class="verse indent8">So merry in the green-wood.”</div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -<p>Torkel stopped to listen, and Tom laughed.</p> - -<div class="poetry-container"> -<div class="poetry"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">“The elf father put forth his white hand, and quoth he,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Master Olaf stand forth, dance a measure with me,</div> - <div class="verse indent8">The dances so merry,</div> - <div class="verse indent8">So merry in the green-wood.”</div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -<p>“Here they come at last,” said Tom; “pretty Lota is not -half so false as you thought her, Torkel. The <i>Haabet</i> has -sailed, I suppose,” added he, in a stage whisper. Torkel, -however was much too happy to pay the smallest attention -to his malicious insinuations, but took up the song for himself. -Whether Lota put any particular meaning on the -words of it, we will not take upon ourselves to say—</p> - -<div class="poetry-container"> -<div class="poetry"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">“And neither I will, and neither I may,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">For to-morrow it is my own wedding-day,”</div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -<p class="noindent">shouted he, at the full pitch of his voice, while the whole -party took up the chorus—</p> - -<div class="poetry-container"> -<div class="poetry"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">“The dances so merry,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">So merry in the green-wood.”</div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -<p>By this time the approaching party had emerged from the -forest, and came along the glade in an irregular procession, -putting one in mind of the Nemorins and Estelles of ancient -pastorals, and all the more so from their picturesque costumes. -The men wore certainly absurdly short round jackets, but -they had rows of silver buttons on them, and brown short -trousers worked with red tape, very high in the waistband,<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_156"></a>[156]</span> -to match the jacket, but coming down no further than the -calf of the leg, which was ornamented with bright blue stockings, -with crimson clocks.</p> - -<p>The women had all of them red kerchiefs on their heads, -the ends of which hung down their backs, and red or yellow -bodices with great silver brooches on them, and blue petticoats -trimmed with red or yellow. Both sexes adorn themselves -with all the silver they can collect; the men’s shirt -buttons are sometimes as big as a walnut, and on gala days -they will wear three or four of them strung one under another.</p> - -<p>All the party were loaded with the utensils necessary for -following their occupations in the fjeld; the women were -carrying the pails, while the men’s loads, which consisted of -all sorts of heterogeneous articles, were topped with the great -iron kettles in which they simmer their milk, after the -Devonshire fashion, in order to collect the whole of the cream.</p> - -<p>There were little carts, too, that is to say, baskets -placed upon two wheels and an axle, and drawn by little -cream-coloured ponies; stout, stubby little beasts, very -high crested, and with black manes and tails—the former -hogged, the latter peculiarly full and flowing. A Swede -generally values his horse according to the quantity of hair -on his tail. These were loaded—it did not take much to -load them—with meal for the summer’s gröd, and strings of -flad bröd, a few sheep skins, particularly dirty, though in -very close proximity to the provisions,—and now and then -the black kettle, which its owner was too lazy to carry. -Then came the goats and sheep, and the little cows following -like dogs, now and then stopping to take a bite, when the -turf looked particularly sweet and tempting—little fairy cows -were they, much smaller than our Alderneys, finer in the -bone, and more active on their legs; they looked as if they -had a cross of the deer in them. They were all of one -colour—probably that of the original wild cattle—a sort of -dirty cream colour, approaching to dun, and almost black on -the legs and muzzle.</p> - -<p>The party was a combined one, and was bound eventually -to several other sœters besides this, but they had agreed to -make their first night’s halt in Torgenson’s pasture, and beside<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_157"></a>[157]</span> -the regular herdsmen and dairymaids, as many supernumeraries -as can possibly find excuse for going, accompany -the first setting out of the expedition, which is always looked -upon in the light of a holiday and a merry-making.</p> - -<p>And a holiday and a merry-making it seemed to be, -judging by the shouts, and screams, and laughter, and -rude love-making that was going on among the gentle -shepherds and shepherdesses of the north; but, for all that, -there was a good deal of real work too. Sœter-life may be -a life of pleasure, but it certainly is anything but a life of ease.</p> - -<p>The Soberud division, bestial as well as human, evidently -seemed to consider themselves quite at home; and the cows -belonging to it, which looked as if they recognised the old localities, -roamed at liberty; but the parties bound to the more -distant mountains were occupied in hobbling, and tethering, -and knee-haltering their respective charges, mindful of their -morrow’s march and of the difficulty of collecting cattle -and even sheep, which, except that they keep together, are -just as bad, from among the intricacies of a strange forest. -Some were forming temporary pounds, by effecting rude -repairs in the dilapidated fences, chopping and hewing, for -that purpose, great limbs of trees and trees themselves, -with as little concern as, in England, men might cut thistles.</p> - -<p>Streams of blue smoke began now to steal up through the -trees, and fires began to glimmer in the evening twilight, -while the girls brought in pail after pail of fresh milk, and -swung their kettles, gipsy fashion, and, opening their -packages, measured out, with careful and parsimonious foresight, -the rye-meal that was to thicken it into gröd. Meal -is precious in the mountains, though milk is not.</p> - -<p>Whether the <i>Haabet</i> had sailed, or what had become of -poor Svensen, did not transpire; but certain it was that the -damsels from Soberud, after looking in vain for their mistress, -were obliged, that evening, to act on their own -discretion—and equally certain it was that the Parson, -whose knife had been inconsiderately lent to Torkel on the -preceding day, was obliged to eat his broiled gjep with two -sticks, the knife and the fortunate individual in whose -pocket it was, being, for the time, invisible.</p> - -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - -<div class="chapter"> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_158"></a>[158]</span></p> - -<h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_XII">CHAPTER XII.<br /> -<span class="smaller">THE HOMESTEAD.</span></h2> - -</div> - -<div class="poetry-container"> -<div class="poetry"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent20">“’Tis a homestead that scarce has an equal,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Plenteous in wood and corn-fields, with rich grassy meadow and moorland—</div> - <div class="verse indent0">This won my father, long since, in wedding the farmer’s fair daughter;</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Here, at length he grew old, like a summer’s eve calmly declining,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Here he spent the best years of his life, and dwelt like a king, amid plenty.</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Servants he had by the score—men servants to plough with the oxen,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">And maids in the house besides, and children, the joy of their mother—</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Thus sowing and reaping, in comfort, from season to season, abode he,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Envied by all around—but having the good will of all men.”—</div> - </div> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse right"><i>The Elk Hunters—Runeberg.</i></div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -<p>Sunrise found the whole bivouac in a stir; the habits of -the Norwegian are always early—at least in the summer -time—and many of the parties had to travel to the yet -distant sœters and wilder uplands: cows are not very -fast travellers, and the load which a dairyman carries on -his back when he is bound to those fjelds, which are inaccessible -to carts, is by no means a light one: ponies -sometimes carry the heavier loads, but this is not often, as -they are useless in the fjeld life, and in the summer are -generally wanted for posting, as well as for agricultural purposes; -the loads are generally carried by the men—sometimes -by the women even,—and the milk-kettle which crowns -the pack is alone a weight which few would like to carry -far, even on level ground.</p> - -<p>The white smoke was already curling about the trees in -long thin columns, and the girls were already bringing in -their pails of new milk, a very fair proportion of which -would be consumed with the morning’s gröd, which was -already bubbling in the kettles.</p> - -<p>Gröd, in high life, means all sorts of eatables that are semi-liquid; -but in the fjeld it is invariably made thus: the<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_159"></a>[159]</span> -water is heated in the great milk-kettle to a galloping boil, -and its temperature is raised to a still higher point by the -addition of salt; meal, generally rye-meal, is then thinly -sprinkled into it, the great art being to separate the particles, -so as to prevent them from forming lumps. As soon as the -contents of the kettle are thick enough for the bubbles to -make little pops, the gröd is taken off the fire and served up -with milk. When that milk is fresh, no one need desire a -better breakfast; but when, as is generally the case, they -mix it with milk that has been purposely kept till it is -curdled over with incipient corruption, in which state they -prefer it, it is as disgusting a mess as ever attained the -dignity of a popular dish.</p> - -<p>In the present instance they were obliged to put up with -fresh milk, no other being procurable; and the fishermen, -having grilled the remains of their gjep (an especial delicacy), -and added to it some of the contents of their havresacs, sent -a deputation, headed by Birger, to invite Miss Lota and her -hand-maidens to partake of their breakfast. This was a -proceeding which Torkel regarded with very questionable -pleasure. He was flattered, no doubt, at the attentions paid -to his lady-love by the fishermen, who could not speak -Norske; but, at the same time, was rather jealous of those of -Birger, who could.</p> - -<p>Lota, however, was in no way disconcerted; she came -smiling and blushing, indeed, but without any sort of affectation -or bashfulness, and listened graciously, and without -laughing, to the blundering compliments paid her by the -Englishmen; and without any great amount of coquetry, considering -the rarity of guardsmen in the Tellemark, to the -tender elegance of the Swede. Torkel had very good reason -to be proud of her, and none at all to be jealous, particularly -as the knapsacks were already packed up for the march.</p> - -<p>The fishermen were in no particular hurry: the track to -Soberud was perfectly known; even if the droves of cows and -the flocks of sheep that had come up it the day before had -not already marked it very sufficiently. The way was not -long either, for it was but a day’s journey to the herds; -the breaking up of the bivouac was very picturesque; Lota<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_160"></a>[160]</span> -was very pretty, and Birger found her very entertaining. -It is no wonder that they lingered.</p> - -<p>However, the shadows of the trees began to shorten. -Party after party came up with their merry “farvels;” the -songs and the laughter, and the tinkling of the bells, sounded -fainter and fainter from under the arches of the forest; and, -last of all, the fishermen, reluctantly shouldering their knapsacks, -took their journey down the glade; with the exception -of Torkel, who, having something to adjust about his straps, -was not exactly ready, and in fact was not seen for a couple -of hours afterwards. He did not join them, indeed, till the -party had made their first halt near the banks of a mountain -lake.</p> - -<p>The halt was called somewhat sooner than usual, for the -Captain, who, with his gun in his hand and old Grog at his -heels, was a little in advance, and had first caught sight of -the lake, had caught sight also of an object floating quietly -along in the middle of it, which his practised eye at once -assured him was that very rare and beautiful bird, the northern -diver.</p> - -<p>He threw himself flat on the ground, an action in which -he was implicitly imitated by the rest of the party, who, -though they had not seen the bird, were quite aware that -there was some good reason for the caution.</p> - -<p>In truth, there are few birds more difficult to kill than the -northern diver; to the greatest watchfulness he unites the -most wonderful quickness of eye and motion, and, large as -he is, he is fully able to duck the flash, as it is called,—that is -to say, to dive between the time of seeing the flash and feeling -the shot.</p> - -<p>They retired a hundred yards or so and smoked the pipe -of council, thus giving Torkel the opportunity of coming up -with them.</p> - -<p>Torkel was well acquainted with the ground, as was -natural, not only because the lake was celebrated for ducks -and the country round it for tjäder, but also because it happened -to lie on the mountain track between his own home -and Torgenson’s farm, a road which business (he did not -state of what nature) required him to travel very often.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_161"></a>[161]</span></p> - -<p>His plan was founded on a well-known characteristic in -the nature of diving birds: during their dive they cannot -breathe, and therefore on rising to the surface for a moment -or so, they cannot make any immediate effort either to dive -or to fly. He proposed, therefore, that the Captain should -conceal himself among the understuff, and that the rest, -taking different positions about the lake, which was not -large, should break twigs and slightly alarm the bird, who -would naturally edge away toward the point occupied by the -Captain, and the object being a valuable prize, an hour or so -was not grudged, as there was plenty of time to spare. The -party having first reconnoitred their ground, marked the -position to be occupied by the Captain on the lee side of the -lake, and ascertained that the bird was still resting on the -water, separated, taking a wide circuit, lest they should alarm -it prematurely.</p> - -<p>The Captain, with his gun ready cocked, lay at full length -on the top of a little ledge of rock about six feet high, which -sloped away from the water, forming a sort of miniature cliff. -It afforded very little cover apparently—there was nothing -between it and the water but a light fringe of cranberry -bushes—but the cover was perfect to a man in a recumbent -position, and the Captain being dressed entirely, cap and all, -in Lowland plaid, the most invisible colour in the world, -looked, even if he had been seen, like a piece of the rock on -which he lay. This place had been selected with forethought, -for the bird is wonderfully suspicious, and will not approach -any strong cover at all.</p> - -<p>For half an hour after the Captain had wormed himself to -the edge of the rock, the bird lay as still as if it had been -asleep, which it certainly was not; at the end of that time -there was a quick turn of its neck, and its eye was evidently -glancing round the margin, but the body remained as quiet -and motionless as before; there was not a ripple on the -water, and it was only by observing the diminishing distance -between it and a lily leaf that happened to be lying on the -surface, that even the practised eye of the Captain could tell -that it was in motion, and was nearing him imperceptibly. -There had been no sound, nor had the bird caught sight of<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_162"></a>[162]</span> -anything; but the Parson had come between it and the wind, -and the light air, that was not sufficient even to move the -surface, had carried down the scent.</p> - -<p>The Parson had caught sight of the lily, as well as the -Captain, and, seeing the bird in motion, had halted, leaving -it to the scent alone to effect his purpose. But in a few -minutes it was evident that the bird had become stationary, -having either drifted out of the stream of scent, or, possibly, -having imagined that it was now far enough from the suspected -shore.</p> - -<p>A slight snapping of dry wood just broke the stillness; -again that sharp, anxious glance, and the imperceptible -motion, was renewed; another and another snap, and now -the water seemed to rise against the bird’s breast, and a slight -wake to be left behind him,—but it was still that same -gliding motion, as if it were slipping through the water: at -last, when the distance was sufficiently great to secure against -flying, a cap was raised, and responded to by two or three hats -at different places; the bird had disappeared, while the calm, -quiet water showed no trace of anything having broken its -surface. Half-a-dozen pair of eyes were anxiously on the -look-out, and long and long was it before the smallest sign -rewarded their vigilance. At last, and many hundred yards -from the point at which they had lost sight of it, a black spot -was seen floating on the water, as quietly and unconcernedly -as if it had never been disturbed. It was, however, a good -way to the right of the line in which they were endeavouring -to drive it; the hats had disappeared, and for ten minutes -the lake was as quiet as if the eye of man had never rested -upon it. Then came again the glance, the move, the dive,—then -an anxious moment of watchfulness,—then a white puff -of smoke and a stream of hopping shot playing ducks and -drakes across the water,—then the sharp, ringing report, -caught up and repeated by echo after echo,—and there lay -the bird, faintly stirring the surface, in the last struggles of -death,—and there was gallant old Grog, plunging into the lake, -and making the water foam before him in his eagerness. -Four or five ducks, which had hitherto been basking unseen -among the stones, sprang into air; and a flight of teal<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_163"></a>[163]</span> -appeared suddenly whistling over the water, and, turning -closely and together as they came unawares within a dozen -yards of the Parson, received his right and left shots among -them, and, with the loss of three or four of their company, -scattered hither and thither among the trees.</p> - -<p>“Hurrah, Grog!—bring him along, boy! bring him along!” -shouted the Captain; and on every side, instead of the quiet, -gliding, creeping figures, just peering about the understuff, -were seen forms bounding and tearing through the cover.</p> - -<p>The prize was one which the Captain, a taxidermist and -a veteran collector, had long desired to possess, and great was -the care with which it was secured on the top of Jacob’s -knapsack; it being entrusted to him, as the most phlegmatic -of the party and the least likely to be led away by any excitement -of sport,—for at last they had arrived into something -like shooting country: the character of the ground was -more open and free from timber than anything they had -seen, and the understuff of whort and cranberry was proportionally -thicker and more luxuriant; it was ground which -a dog could quarter without any very great amount of difficulty, -particularly as it was absolutely free from brambles, -and that furze was unknown in those latitudes anywhere -outside of a greenhouse.</p> - -<p>It was more for the amusement of the thing, and for the -sake of ascertaining the resources of the country, that the -party extended themselves into a line and beat their way -onwards, for it was too early in the year for shooting -anything but wild ducks. Game laws in Norway exist, -certainly, but are utterly disregarded; still the broods of -grouse were, as yet, too young to take care of themselves, -and it would have been sheer murdering the innocents to -injure the grey hens, which, into the bargain, are at this time -not fit for eating. This proceeding seemed very absurd to -Torkel and to Tom, for a Norwegian has no idea of preserving -the game—in reality, he can eat and relish much that most -civilized people cannot; but, besides that, he is a selfish -animal, and the poor lean bird that he secures for himself in -spring, is better than the fine, fat, plump, autumnal one that -he has left for his neighbour.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_164"></a>[164]</span></p> - -<p>Hen after hen got up and tumbled away before the dogs, -who were too well broke to disturb her, had they even been -deceived by her antics, but no shot was fired to convert her -pretence into reality. Now and then, it must be confessed, -when an old, selfish, solitary cock, as black as a hat, and as -glossy as a whole morning’s dressing could make him, -whirred off as if he cared for no one but himself and had -not a wife or family in the world, he paid the penalty of his -selfishness, and fell fluttering on the cranberries—deservedly, -perhaps; at all events, he left no one behind him to lament -his fate, for the black-cock is a roving bird, and never pairs: -but no exclamations of Torkel’s could induce the English -sportsmen to sever the loves of the smaller description of -grouse, and Birger, though a Swede—for very shame—was -obliged to imitate their forbearance. But, every now and -then, a blue Alpine hare was knocked over without mercy; -once an unlucky badger came to an untimely end, and, upon -the whole, the bags were getting quite as heavy as the men -approved of, when a light, graceful, elegant roe, for once in -its life was caught napping, though there had been noise -enough, not only from shots, but from talking also, along the -whole line, to have awakened a far less watchful animal. It -sprang from a thicker piece of covering than common, which -probably had been the means of deluding it into staying, in -the false hope that it could possibly escape the keen scent of -old Grog, whose flourishing tail said as plainly as tail could -speak (and dogs’ tails are very eloquent), “look out, boys; I -have got something here for you, this time, that is worth -having.”</p> - -<p>Jacob was pretty well strung with hares, and remonstrated -against the additional load, which was finally slung -around Torkel’s body like a shoulder-belt, and he was dismissed -at once with directions to follow the path to Soberud, a -place where he was well known, and to prepare, as well as -he could, for the reception of the party, and their provisioning.</p> - -<p>Torkel undertook the mission readily enough, and went -off gaily under a load of game that would have been quite -enough for a pony, casting back a knowing look to Tom,<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_165"></a>[165]</span> -who seemed perfectly to understand him, implying that he -had some project in his head by which he intended to astonish -the strangers.</p> - -<p>The day wore on in this pleasant exercise—perhaps the halt -for Middagsmad might have been a long one, and the pipe -after luxurious; in fact, there is not so luxurious a couch in -this sublunary world as a heap of heather, and no sensation -so luxuriously happy as that of basking, half-tired, in the -warm, pleasant sunshine, after a well-spent morning of honest -exercise, with our gun beside us, and our dogs half sleeping, -like ourselves, around us; but the sun was not a very great -way from the horizon when the party gained the first view -of the village which was to be their resting-place for the -night.</p> - -<p>The fjeld was not high, for it had been sloping away -gradually to the eastward ever since they left the high -mountains which surround the Lake of the Woods, but, as -it almost always does, it terminated abruptly in a sort of -cliff, portions of which were precipitous, and the rest -extremely steep. The path which Torkel had taken, following -the course of a largish brook, had found an easy -access to the valley, practicable even for the carts of the -country; but at the point at which they had struck the -valley, there was nothing for it but a stiff scramble down -the face of the hill, a proceeding which their loads rendered -anything but pleasant and easy. It was a beautiful scene -that lay before them, and perfectly different from anything -they had seen before, though they had been passing through -scenery of wood and lake ever since they left the Torjedahl.</p> - -<p>In the present instance the broad, still lake, broad as it -was, filled up but half the amphitheatre of the wooded -mountains. There was an ample margin of cultivated land -round it, fields rich with the promise of autumn, and green -quiet meadows; here and there a wooded spur shot out -from the frame of highlands, forming sometimes a cape or -promontory in the water, while, in return, narrow secluded -valleys would wind back into the recesses of the mountains, -each with its own little brook and its own secluded pastures. -Besides the village, there were several detached<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_166"></a>[166]</span> -farmsteadings and scattered cottages, all looking trim and -tidy and well to do in the world, and through the middle of -them ran a well-kept but very winding road, with a broad -margin of turf on each side. The fences might have been a -dissight a little nearer, for they were the post and slab fence -so common in the north, but, at the distance, they looked -like park paling; and the swing poles for opening the -gates across the road, formed a picturesque feature in the -landscape.</p> - -<p>Close by the lake-side was the church, a grey and weather-stained -building, which looked like one solid mass of timber, -supporting on its steeply-pitched and shingled roof, three -round towers of different heights, each surmounted with its -cross. Dominating over the whole sat a huge golden cock, -which, newly gilded, glowed in the light of the setting sun -as if it were a supplementary sun itself. The houses of the -village were a good deal scattered, but, with the exception -of the Præstgaard, or parsonage, did not hold out any very -magnificent hopes of accommodation for the night.</p> - -<p>This, however, was of little importance to men whose last -night’s abode had been the shelter of the thickest tree; and -they proceeded, with very contented minds, to descend the -steep hill-side, in order to reach the path they ought to have -taken, which they now discovered, far below them, winding -along the edge of the cultivated ground.</p> - -<p>“And now,” said the Captain, as they reached it and -rallied their forces, which had been a good deal scattered -during the sharp descent, “where to bestow ourselves for -the night? I should like to sleep in a bed, if it were only -for the novelty of the thing; and here, in good time, comes -Torkel, who looks as if he had made himself pretty well at -home already.”</p> - -<p>Torkel, considerably smartened up—however he had contrived -it—and sporting a clean white shirt-front, like a -pouter pigeon, with his silver shirt buttons newly polished, -came up the church path in close conversation with a -respectable, fatherly, well-to-do-in-the-world sort of farmer, -or huusbonde as he was called, in whom, as he introduced -him by the name of Torgensen, the fishermen recognized the<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_167"></a>[167]</span> -father of the pretty hostess of the sœter. Not one word -of English could the good-man speak, though he looked as -like an honest rough-handed English farmer as one man -could look to another; but he wrung their hands, as if, like -Holger, he meant to test their manhood by their powers of -endurance, and smiled, and looked pleasant, which Torkel -interpreted to mean that he heartily desired to see the -whole party under his hospitable roof that night, and would -be right glad to make them all drunk in honour of his roof-tree. -And poor Torkel looked so excessively happy, that -it was easy to see that, in spite of the <i>Haabet</i> and her -skipper, he had not only sped in his wooing at the sœter, -but had contrived to ingratiate himself with the elders of -the household.</p> - -<p>A grand place was that homestead, which, hidden by a -projecting point, and occupying a secluded valley of its own, -had hitherto escaped their observation,—a good, snug, wealthy -farm it really was, even as compared to others in the country; -but in Norway, so much cover is always wanted; and building—at -least timber building—is so cheap, that moderate-sized -farm-houses, with their appurtenances, are little villages; -and the house itself looks always larger than it is, as -an habitation, because the whole upper storey, frequently -called the rigging loft, is invariably used as a store-room for -their provisions, and hides, and wool, and flax, and apples, -and sometimes corn, in the winter, and not unfrequently as -a ball-room, when they have eaten out sufficient space in it.</p> - -<p>The house, like all the rest, a wooden building with a -planked roof and gabled ends, was unusually painted. Torgensen, -in his youth, had himself commanded the <i>Haabet</i>, -and had traded in her for provisions and corn along the -coast of Scånia, and from it had imported Scånian fashions. -Instead of the deep, dull red, which harmonizes so well with -the tints of the country, he had painted his house in figures, -blue, and yellow, and white, and black, which had a singular, -but, upon the whole, a not unpleasant effect. Texts of -Scripture in rough black letter, and dates, and monograms of -himself, and wife, and children, were written under every -window and every gable; and the barge-boards and ridge<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_168"></a>[168]</span> -timber-ends, were carved as elaborately and grotesquely as -those of the church.</p> - -<p>There was but little delicacy in accepting Torgensen’s -hospitality; his house was large enough for a barrack, and -its doors were as wide open as those of an inn. A large -room, that could not exactly be called kitchen, hall, workshop, -or dining-room, but served equally for any one of -these offices (and occasionally for a ball-room also, when the -store-room was too full to be used in that capacity), was open -to all comers; half-a-dozen boards, as thick almost as -baulks of timber, and placed upon trestles that might have -supported the house, formed the principal table; two great -chairs, like thrones, elaborately carved, and looking as if -they required a steam-engine to move them, stood on a sort -of dais;—these are not uncommon pieces of furniture in old -houses; they are called grandfather and grandmother chairs, -and are the seats of honour, though very seldom occupied at -all, unless the master and mistress of the house are old enough -to have lost their active habits. The more ordinary seats -were substantial benches, with or without backs, and three-legged -stools. Here and there was a great chest, a sort of -expense magazine for stowing away the wool, and the flax, -and the skins, which were in process of being converted into -linen, wadmaal, or shoes, by the farm servants. Over -these a series of shelves, like an ancient buffet, containing -pewter drinking-vessels, large brass embossed plates with -the bunch of grapes from the promised land or the expulsion -of Adam and Eve glittering upon them in all the -brightness of constant polish. Over these, again, were slung -a row of copper cauldrons and pots; and on the opposite side -a chest of drawers, carved and painted with grotesque -figures, was ornamented with heaps of blue and white dishes, -and pewter dinner-plates, and rows of brass candlesticks.</p> - -<p>All this was beautifully clean and tidy, for the Norse men -and women keep all their cleanliness for their ships and -houses, and waste none of it on their persons.</p> - -<p>A strong aromatic smell pervaded the whole room, from -the fresh sprigs of fir and juniper with which it was strewn -every morning, as old English halls were with rushes; it<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_169"></a>[169]</span> -might indeed have well passed muster for an English hall in -the olden times, but for the absence of the great gaping fire-place -with its cozy chimney-corner and fire-side benches; -the place of all this was ill supplied by the pride of Torgensen’s -heart, which he pointed out before they had been in the -room for five minutes, and called his “pot-kakoluvne”—a -great pyramidal heap of glazed tiles, portraying Scripture -subjects in Dutch costumes, and doing duty as a stove. This -being an importation from foreign parts was of course of -additional value; its pyramidal shape indicated Denmark as -the country of its manufacture, for in Sweden the corresponding -piece of furniture is cubical; and both are great -improvements on the cast-iron stoves of Norway, which get -nearly red hot, dry and parch the skin, crack the furniture, -and fill the rooms with a description of gas, which, whatever -it may do to a native, ensures to the stranger a perpetual -headache.</p> - -<p>It is rare to find in Norway a farm, and consequently an -establishment of the size of Torgensen’s, though in Sweden -it is common enough. The Odal law, which enforces equal -division of property among the children, prevents any accumulation -of territorial property, and will ultimately reduce -Norway to a population of agricultural peasants with a commercial -aristocracy. The homesteads of the old Norwegian nobility -are deserted and decaying, like their families, but Torgensen -had been educated as a merchant and shipowner, as -elder sons frequently are, and having been fortunate in his speculations, -had been able to buy out his brothers, and to keep up -unimpaired the old hospitalities of his father’s mansion; and -thus fourteen or sixteen farm-servants, and as many girls, -with, it must be confessed, an indefinite number of children -that had found themselves by chance in the establishment -without any fathers at all, sat daily round that mass of -timber which was called the meal-board (<i>mad borden</i>), and -supped their daily gröd and drank their daily brandy.</p> - -<p>Although the head of so great an establishment, Frue<a id="FNanchor_30" href="#Footnote_30" class="fnanchor">[30]</a><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_170"></a>[170]</span> -Kerstin—as Madame Torgensen was usually called, though in -truth she had no great right to the title—did not consider -herself exempt from household duties; in fact she was but -the principal housekeeper of the establishment, and wore a -bunch of keys big enough for an ordinary jail as a badge of -this distinction. It was not a very easy matter to catch her -unprepared, for frugality was by no means the order of the -house; but this day was really an exception to the general -rule, and she saw with some dismay the party which her -husband was bringing home with him. Lota was at the -sœter, and with her were most of the young girls and, of -course, their admirers. There had been hay-making at the -Præstgaard during the past week, and, it being Saturday -night, two-thirds of the remainder were dancing and drinking -there, and thus the party at the homestead being a small -one, the supper was none of the best. Good humour and -real welcome, however, supplied all deficiencies, which after -all, were more in Frue Kerstin’s imagination than in reality. -The evening passed off admirably in songs and conversation; -Torkel was an evident favourite,—and indeed his manly -character, his ready stories and songs, his fine voice and -constant and cheerful good humour well entitled him to the -distinction, to say nothing of a broad strath in the higher -Tellemark, and a lake, and a stream, and a saw-mill, and a -“hammer” as it was called, that is to say, a smelting furnace -for iron, to which, being the only son, he was undoubted -heir, a qualification which prudent parents are not apt to -overlook; but he had evidently risen in their esteem from -the fact of his having brought such popular characters as -English gentlemen to the homestead, and from the consideration -with which those gentlemen treated him.</p> - -<p>Torgensen might have been better pleased had more<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_171"></a>[171]</span> -justice been done to his brandy, which was real Cognac and -admirable, and might have been a little scandalized at the -admixture of water, but his broad, jolly face never lost that -glow of good humour which made his guests feel they were -doing him a pleasure by drinking his brandy and eating his -good cheer. A lively conversation was kept up through -Birger and Torkel till late at night, and when the fishermen, -having duly thanked their hostess, after the customs of the -country, retired to rest in the great square boxes of fragrant -poplar leaves, they sank into such a mass of eider down, -that told well for the <i>ci-devant</i> attractions of the Lady -Christina.</p> - -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - -<div class="chapter"> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_172"></a>[172]</span></p> - -<h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_XIII">CHAPTER XIII.<br /> -<span class="smaller">THE CHURCH.</span></h2> - -</div> - -<div class="poetry-container"> -<div class="poetry"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">“Mighty stands the cross of God,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Smiling homeward to the soul.”</div> - </div> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse right"><i>Almquist.</i></div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -<p>One reason why the fishermen were so anxious to reach -Soberud was, that the next day was Sunday, and they wanted -a day of rest, and a church to go to; and that was not to be -met with, on the Torjedahl, nearer than Christiansand itself. -Hitherto their church had been a remarkably tall fir-tree, -which had, somehow or other, been overlooked by the wood-cutters, -and stood some little way within the forest. It had -been chosen on account of its fancied resemblance to a church -spire, as it towered above the rest of the foliage; and the -lower branches having been cut away, and the space round -its trunk enclosed and decorated with green boughs—as all -Swedish churches used to be decorated on high days before -a royal ordinance was passed which forbade it,—and the -ground strewed with fresh juniper and marsh-marigolds—as -church floors are to this day,—it did make a very fair forest -church for fine weather; and as all the party could sing, -more or less, the service was performed a good deal more -ecclesiastically than it is in some of our English cathedrals.</p> - -<p>Norway is not in communion with England; indeed, -strictly speaking, neither Norway nor Denmark are churches -at all,—they are merely establishments. Sweden may, by -some stretch of imagination and a little implicit faith in its -history, be considered a church, and is so considered by the -Bishop of London, who has authorised the Bishop of Gothenborg -to confirm for him. But though neither the Englishmen, -nor even the Swedes, considered themselves at liberty<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_173"></a>[173]</span> -to communicate in the church of Soberud, there was no reason -whatever against their joining in either the ottesång or the -aftensång (morning or evening service), or even against their -being present at the högmässe, or communion itself. The -men, who had no very accurate ideas of theology, had joined -in the English service very readily, and, indeed, had taken a -good deal of pains in decorating the forest church, for both -Tom and Torkel could read English as well as they could -speak it; and Jacob pretended to do so. They were, however, -all of them, extremely pleased at having the opportunity -of going to a consecrated church.</p> - -<p>Perhaps one of the most remarkable features of the country -is the respect and reverence which all classes pay to their -churches, combined with the very little effect which religion -has on their conduct. Norwegians will face all sorts of -weather, in order to be present at the högmässe of Sunday. -Large sums of money—that is to say, large in comparison -with the wealth of the parishes—are spent upon their -churches, which are always in perfect repair, and always most -carefully swept, and trimmed with rushes or green sprigs. -A man would lose his character at once, and would be -shunned by his acquaintance as a hopeless reprobate, if he -neglected confirmation, or the Lord’s supper. Nothing, -indeed, is more common than to see, as an advertisement—“Wanted, -a confirmed cook or housemaid;” which advertisement -in no ways relates to the capacities of the servant, but -simply to her age, it being taken for granted that a person -of a certain age must have been confirmed. Indeed, the -legislature interferes with this: few offices can be held by -unconfirmed people, or by those who are not communicants; -and the legislature is only the interpreter of public opinion. -No man is at present molested for any religious opinions he -may please to hold; he simply loses his civil rights by -seceding from the national religion. In fact, Norway is the -most complete illustration of the establishment principle -which exists in the world.</p> - -<p>At the same time, education, as it is popularly called—that -is to say, secular instruction—is almost universal. No -one ever meets with a Norwegian unable to read and write.<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_174"></a>[174]</span> -It may fairly be said that there is no country in the world -in which the standard of popular education is so high, and -the standard of popular morality so low,—where the respect for -religion is so very great, and the ignorance of religion so very -profound,—as it is in Norway. Sweden may be second in this -paradox, but Norway is by far the first.</p> - -<p>It is not difficult to account for both these phenomena. -Few countries suffered more extensive church spoliation in -the good old Reformation times than Norway and Sweden; -and when, after that convulsion, men began to gather up the -fragments, they had to choose between an ill-paid clergy -whose social position would be inferior to that of almost all -their parishioners, and a sufficiently paid clergy with enormous -and unmanageable parishes. They chose the latter, -perhaps wisely, as more likely to preserve the character and -influence of the church till better times should come. They, -therefore, grouped the parishes into districts, few of which -were under ten or twelve miles long, and wide in proportion, -some very much larger, and one more than a hundred miles -in length. These districts are a collected group of parishes, -whose churches are still kept up under the name of Annexkyrker, -and service is occasionally performed in them, as a -sort of protest of their right.</p> - -<p>Over these districts they placed rectors (Pfarrherrer), -whose revenue, though not what we should call large in our -country, is, nevertheless, greater than that of most of their -parishioners; they gave them good parsonage houses (præstgaards), -and, in almost every case, provided a dowager house -and farm for their widows. And, while they rendered their -position an object of competition, they provided that it -should be adequately filled, by establishing the most searching -examinations and the most careful provisions. The consequence -of this is, that the Norwegian clergy are almost invariably -very superior people, and, in a country where the -election is absolutely free, they are very generally chosen -members of the Storthing; while, in Sweden, they form an -integral estate of the realm, and possess their own independent -house of parliament.</p> - -<p>In a country where there is so much ceremonial, so much<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_175"></a>[175]</span> -that speaks to the understanding of the uneducated by -speaking to their eye, it is impossible but that the externals -of religion should be respected—the position of its ministers -being such as is calculated to add to that respect, and not, as -is too frequently the case in Roman Catholic countries, such -as to diminish from it.</p> - -<p>But, from the enormous size of the parishes, the externals -are all that can possibly come to the majority of the people. -The Scandinavian Church, learned as its individual ministers -may be, is not the teacher of the people, nor can it be—no -man can teach over fifty miles of country. Education, on -the other hand, there is plenty of, such as it is; for, not -only do the frost-bound winters give plenty of opportunity, -but the Church is the establishment, and the laws of the -land are such as to make reading and writing necessary to -all. At the same time, this education is absolutely secular, -it has nothing to do with the doctrines of religion, and, -consequently, nothing with the morals of the people, except -to increase their power of doing anything. Knowledge with -them, as with all others, is power: but, disjoined from religion, -this is generally the power of doing wrong. Whether -this be, or be not, a correct solution of the paradox, at all -events, the fact remains, and it has never been accounted for: -Norway is pre-eminent in the education of its people, and is -also pre-eminent in the statistics of crime.</p> - -<p>But this is not the external view of the case: the mere -visitor in Norway would speak of the very religious habits -of the people. They certainly are a people of religious -habits, and will continue to be so as long as the externals of -religion are preserved with a magnificence and ceremonial -sufficient to keep up their reverence. But they are, merely, -a people of religious <i>habits</i>—they are not a people of religious -feelings. The marriage between faith and works with them -has been “dissolved by Act of Parliament, and neither their -faith nor their works are the better for it.”</p> - -<p>Nothing of this, however, was visible on that Sunday -morning, as the Parson, when the hospitable and substantial -breakfast of the farm-house had at last come to an end, -walked quietly and musingly along the broad natural terrace<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_176"></a>[176]</span> -which led to the church, and commanded a beautiful view -over the wide valley and its quiet lake.</p> - -<p>The church was a good-sized building, with nave, and -aisles, and transepts, and chancel. It was handsome and -striking, but very quaint and singular; every part of it was of -wood—not planks, but great solid beams of absolute timber; -centuries had passed over them, and there was no perceptible -decay,—they were merely weather-stained, and harmonised -in their colouring; and the whole edifice looked as if the day -of judgment would find it as firm and as eternal as the -Church it was built to represent. The whole was a confused -collection of acute gables and high-pointed roofs, covered with -diamond-shaped pine shingles. The windows were small, -square-headed, and few in number, barely enough, indeed, to -give light to the interior, and in no way contributing to the -architectural beauty of the church. No Norwegian ever -breathes more fresh air than he can help, or thinks of opening -his church windows; it is not very often that he opens -even the windows of his house.<a id="FNanchor_31" href="#Footnote_31" class="fnanchor">[31]</a></p> - -<p>The sharp roofs, which are almost universal in the Norwegian -churches, though extremely ornamental, especially -where, as in the present case, they are shingled, are erected -not for ornament but for use. It is absolutely necessary, -in a land where snow falls so abundantly, to have such a -slope that will not permit it to lodge in any quantities in a -building which is not inhabited and constantly cleared. Were -the roof no steeper than those of most of our English churches, -the weight of lodged snow would soon become sufficient to -bear down any strength of timbers they could put into it.</p> - -<p>Although there was but little of ornament about the windows -and doors—those more ordinary objects of ecclesiastical -decoration—this evidently did not arise from want of respect -or care for their church; for every gable—and there were -thirty or forty of them, great and small—was decorated with -elaborately-carved barge-boards, the ridge timber of every -one of them projected three or four feet beyond the face of -the building, and terminated in the head of some nondescript<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_177"></a>[177]</span> -animal, particularly ugly, but still the record and evidence of -infinite pains and labour. The chancel, the nave, and the -belfry, constituted three separate pyramids, rising one above -the other, consisting of from three to five stages each, and -terminating in round towers, roofed with short shingled -spires, like so many extinguishers. Each of these carried its -huge cross, for neither Norwegian nor Swede is afraid of that -holy emblem; and high on the top of all was the typical -cock—and if it did not warn all sinners to repent, it certainly -was not for want of being seen, for its size was colossal, and -in its new gilding it glittered in the air for miles on every -side. At the entrance of the churchyard, on the side facing -the lake, was a lych-gate, also of solid timber, with a roof -broad enough to shelter a whole funeral. The gate itself, -which, when shut, formed a stile, was shod with iron spikes, -to prevent the pigs from burrowing under. By the side of -it was that satire upon Norway, the evidence of Karl Johann’s -fruitless attempts to stem the tide of national habits—the -stocks—of course unemployed—at least, so far as their legal -purpose went;—they formed, however, a very comfortable -seat, upon which Birger was balancing himself backwards and -forwards, and trying to cross one foot over the other. The -other fishermen, as decent as they could make themselves up -for Sunday—which was rather dingy, after all, compared -with the bright colours of the peasants’ dresses—lounged -about, watching the assembling congregation.</p> - -<p>It wanted some time to service, but there were scattered -here and there about the churchyard several parties, who -had already been for some time on the ground. Sunday as -it was, they had brought with them their garden tools, and -their waterpots, and their baskets of plants, or papers of -seeds, and had tucked up their smart embroidered petticoats, -or turned back their shirt-sleeves, according to their sex, and -were busily employed about the graves.</p> - -<p>These were not oblong mounds of turf, like the graves in -our English churchyards, but raised borders with iron -edging, and were, for the most part, pictures of neat and -tidy gardening; wild flowers very often were all that grew -there, little blue gentianellas, or lilies of the valley, such as<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_178"></a>[178]</span> -might be met with anywhere in the open fjeld; more often -than all, that innocent little white trailer, the anthemis -cotula, which they call Balder’s eyebrow, and to which -they attach a peculiar sanctity; but, even if they were wild, -they always bore the traces of care and cultivation. Now -and then a rose would be woven into the semblance of a -cradle, or an edging of convolvolus major, twining round its -supports, would form a pyramid or a canopy, with its -fragile blue flowers already fading, though so early in the -day, perhaps an apt type of those who lay below them.</p> - -<p>In no place does the Norwegian appear to so great -advantage as when busied about the graves of his family; -these are cared for by all who cherish the memory of the -dead, as their occupants would be were they still on earth. -Appointments are often made among distant members of a -family, and little parties are arranged to meet at the grave -of a common relative; the first object of all these is invariably -to trim its flowers. These are not sad or solemn -meetings; they are rather joyful reunions, much as if the -families were visiting the house of their relation, instead of -his grave. They are not even dressed in mourning, for their -meetings are continued long after the time of mourning is -passed: it is a sort of sober festivity. Much of the good -that exists in the Norwegian character—their family affection, -their patriotism, their attachment to their native country -throughout all their wanderings,—may be traced to their -graves.</p> - -<p>Suddenly, the bells struck up, and every man removed his -hat, bowing to the church as if returning its salutation. -Other people, besides the funeral parties, now began to -collect from different quarters; here and there a stray -cariole rattled up to the churchyard gate, and an old grandmother -or two was brought along in one of the queer-looking -little carts of the country; but the people of Norway are anything -but vehicular in their habits; indeed, except the main -roads—and these are very few indeed—the country is in no -ways calculated for wheeled carriages.</p> - -<p>Boats were a much more fashionable mode of progression; -several of these were already seen approaching from different<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_179"></a>[179]</span> -quarters of the lake, pulled by two or four oars, and containing -a cargo of many-coloured petticoats, which looked, -in the distance, like bunches of variegated tulips. Every -Norwegian, man or woman, learns to row almost as soon as -he learns to walk, and every Norwegian knows something of -the principles of boat-building; and very elegant little craft, -of the whale-boat build, they frequently turn out.</p> - -<p>“Hallo!” said Birger; “we are in luck. I knew it was -Communion Sunday, but we are to have a lot of christenings -besides. Look at the little white bundles in their chrism-cloths, -and the elegant white satin bows. I do believe they -would none of them consider their children baptized without -those white bows.”</p> - -<p>“Have you Christening Sundays, then?” said the Parson.</p> - -<p>“Not always: in many places the clergy set their faces -against them. But the Norwegian is a gregarious animal: -he dearly loves a set feast, and hospitably considers the -more the merrier. In these country-places you will often -find not only Communion Sundays, but Christening Sundays, -and Wedding Sundays, and—”</p> - -<p>“And funeral Sundays?” suggested the Captain.</p> - -<p>“And funeral Sundays—you need not laugh, I mean what -I say; in the winter we have a little frost here, hot as it -is now,—and frost, compared to which your English frost is -but a summer’s day. They cannot very well bury their dead -in the winter, so they very frequently freeze them, and keep -them till the frost breaks up. Whenever that happens it is -of course necessary to bury immediately all that have died -since the beginning of the winter, and thus—though I suspect -you asked that question in pure joke—it really does happen, -that besides gregarious communions, christenings, and weddings, -they have gregarious funerals also.”</p> - -<p>The bells now began to “ring in,” and that portion of the -congregation who were not related to any of the little white -bundles in satin bows, or were not destined to be godfathers -or godmothers to them, came stumbling into the church, and -arranging themselves as best they could on the benches.</p> - -<p>To those coming in from the blaze of day outside, the -interior appeared perfectly dark, so that the people were<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_180"></a>[180]</span> -actually feeling for their places. The little square windows -looked like dots of light against the black walls, but as the -eye accustomed itself to the darkness, the scene came out by -degrees: the tracery of the chancel screen—the great crucifix -seen over it—the altar beyond, heavy with carving and -gilding—the font just within the screen—the pulpit just without -it—then the congregation themselves became visible—the -men on one side of the nave, the women on the other. It was -high mass; for though the Scandinavian Church be reformed, -she still retains the ancient expressions.</p> - -<p>The short hymn which begins the service had closed, and -the priest in his wide-sleeved surplice—mäss skjorta—was -standing by the altar, while the Candidatus marshalled in the -porch a little procession of the christening parties. When -all was ready they entered the church, the congregation -singing, as they advanced towards the chancel, one of the -numerous hymns from the Bede Psalmer—to which little -book, unpretending as it is, the people owe nearly all the -very small acquaintance with the doctrines of their Church, -which they possess.</p> - -<p>In our service we recognise but two parties, the priest and -the people—the English choir being, theoretically, at all -events, merely the leaders of the people’s responses; whereas, -in Scandinavia there are three distinct divisions of the service—the -prayers of the priest, the responses of the choir, and -the hymns of the people; which last are collected and -arranged for seasons and occasions, in their Bede Psalmer, a -book which, as they all sing more or less, most of them have -at their fingers’ ends.</p> - -<p>While this was proceeding, the Candidatus threw open the -richly-carved doors of the chancel screen and admitted the -christening party into the choir, arranging them round the -font which stood at its entrance. The whole service was -very like our own, except that, after the exhortation, the -priest proclaimed his own commission to baptize, in the -words of the three last verses in St. Matthew’s gospel, before -reading the gospel from St. Mark which is used in the -English Church; and afterwards announced the value of the -Sacrament itself in the words of St. John—(chap. 3. v. 5, 6).<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_181"></a>[181]</span> -Before the act of baptism, the priest laid his hand on the -head of each child, severally, and blessed it; then, after sprinkling -it three several times as he pronounced the name of each -of the three Persons in the Trinity, he stepped forward to the -doors of the choir, and presented the new Christian to the -congregation, saying, “In the name of the Holy Trinity, this -child is now, through holy baptism, received as a member of -the Christian Church, and hath right given him to all the -privileges joined therewith: God give His grace, that he, all -the days of his life, may fulfil this his baptismal covenant.”</p> - -<p>After a general thanksgiving for the new birth of the -children, and a general exhortation to the sponsors on the -subject of their duties, the congregation struck up another -hymn from the Bede Psalmer, while the children were -carried round the altar, which does not stand, as in our -churches, close to the well, but has a passage left behind it, -possibly for this purpose, the sponsors depositing on it their -offerings as they passed.</p> - -<p>In the meanwhile the priest, kneeling on the altar steps, -was invested by the Candidatus and Kyrke Sånger (precentor) -with the mässe hacke, a crimson velvet chasuble, embroidered -in front with a gold glory surrounding the Holy -Name, and behind with a gold floriated cross. He remained -kneeling, while the Candidatus, paper in hand, went down -the nave, noting those who intended to present themselves -at the communion, in order to be certain that none should -partake of it who had not previously given their names to -the priest for approbation, and attended the early service of -confession—called communions-skrift. This was not so very -difficult to do, though none of the congregation had left the -church; for each intended communicant wore something -black or grey about him, in memory of the Lord’s death. -When this survey had been completed, the priest rose, and -facing the people, intoned the general thanksgiving, and -then turning again to the altar, made his confession alone, in -the name of his flock, the congregation itself being silent, -though the choir, at the occasional pauses, chanted the Kyrie -Eleeson. He then placed on the altar the “Oblaten Schalten,” -or wafer basket, the silver flagon, and lastly the chalice and<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_182"></a>[182]</span> -patin, which were brought to him with great ceremony, the -Candidatus and Kyrke Sånger, who carried them, being attended -by the whole choir.</p> - -<p>The outer doors of the church were then shut, and the -Candidatus in his black gown and cassock having taken his -place on the lower step, the priest chanted the Gloria in -Excelsis, the choir taking it up after the first sentence.</p> - -<p>After the consecration, the communicants were arranged -in four divisions; the married men, and the married -women, the single men and the single women; these -knelt in the centre, while the non-communicants stood -round them chanting softly the Agnus Dei, and bowing -their heads as the elements were administered to each communicant, -which was done individually, as with us.</p> - -<p>There was then a general thanksgiving and a Hallelujah -by the choir; after which the priest dismissed the congregation -with his benediction, making the sign of the cross towards -them in the air. This form, which was universal -throughout three kingdoms scarcely more than a hundred -years ago, has almost entirely disappeared from the Swedish -Church, disused rather than forbidden; but many of the old -customs which in Sweden have become obsolete, in Norway -are religiously kept up. And besides this, politics have something -to do with the matter; there is always a great affectation -of Danish peculiarities, such as dressing the church with -green boughs on Whitsuntide, among those who are not over -well affected to Sweden. These and many similar ceremonials -retained in Norwegian churches are punishable by fine -or deprivation; but the people will have it so, and the priests -are very willing to indulge them,—members of Storthing and -law-makers as many of them are.</p> - -<p>As for theology, the people are profoundly ignorant of that, -while the priests themselves, who, nine out of ten, are learned -divines,—thanks to the severe examination at Christiania -which generally weeds out one half of the candidates every -year,—are almost always politicians enough to borrow their -churchmanship from Denmark, are just as much Grundtvigites, -or Mynsterites, according as their bias is high or low, -as if they lived in Copenhagen itself.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_183"></a>[183]</span></p> - -<p>After the conclusion of the service the fishermen were -lounging homewards, taking their time, and enjoying the -weather, and the views, and the sunshine, and the Sunday -quiet, and upon the whole, though all of then ardent -sportsmen, by no means sorry for a day of regular rest, -when the Pfarrherr himself, accompanied by his Candidatus -overtook them. The Candidatus was a long, tall youth, fresh -from college, conceited and shy at the same time, who looked, -as Birger afterwards observed, as if he smelt of the midnight -oil; but the Pfarrherr was a gentleman-like man, -with a broad, good-humoured, fresh-coloured face, looking -more like an English old-fashioned squire than anything -else. He had been priest of Soberud for many years, and -being a regular anti-Swede, was very popular. He had -represented the district in several Storthings, and was likely -to do so in many more, though he did belong to the commercial -party, which in Norway, as in America, is aristocratic -and tory, in opposition to the country party, who in -those nations are the radicals.</p> - -<p>In addition to this, he was the probst, or rural dean, which -was a fortunate circumstance for him—for being an enthusiastic -admirer of Grundtvig, he was a great deal too much -of a ritualist and antiquarian for the continually receding -Swedish Church, and, under other circumstances, could hardly -have failed in being brought up before the Church Committee -at Christiania, for his little peculiarities; though it is a fact -that most of the ecclesiastical members of Storthing, who -composed it, thought, felt, and, if they dared, would act, precisely -as he did.</p> - -<p>He spoke English readily enough—indeed, English is to -the educated Norwegians what French is to us,—and, as a -matter of course, invited the fishermen to share the hospitalities -of the præstgaard. This, however, would have been -a mortal offence to poor Torgenson, who, though he could -not speak to his guests one single word except through an -interpreter, would have been deeply scandalized, and, indeed, -would have felt lowered in the eyes of his countrymen, had -they deserted him. The Parson, however, being a professional -man, was an exception, and Pfarrherr Nordlingen<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_184"></a>[184]</span> -carried him off in triumph, Torkel promising to bring over -his knapsack to the præstgaard.</p> - -<p>The præstgaard was not so large and rambling a building -as the hall, but was infinitely more comfortable; highly-polished -birchen furniture, and well-stored bookcases, gave it -an air of habitableness. The room into which they entered -was the summer parlour, whose French windows, shaded by -gauze curtains, were wide open, looking on a broad lawn and -a sparkling little stream beyond it; a good sprinkling of -juniper twigs took off, in a great measure, from the bare look -of the carpetless floors which always strikes an English eye. -It is a great absurdity, in a country which is not favourable -for sheep, and whose woollen manufactures seldom go higher -than the wadmaal, that the duty upon English woollens -should be so absurdly high. But the fact is, the Storthing is -so entirely in the hands of the democratic, or country party, -that anything beyond a class legislation is hopeless. The -idea is not that all the people should have warm blankets, -but that the democratic and agricultural majorities should -work up inferior wool. Weaving by hand is an agriculturist’s -winter work.</p> - -<p>The Priestess Nordlingen, as she was called, a smiling, -pretty-looking woman, much younger than her husband, was -occupied in laying the cloth for aftonsmad, assisted by the -dowager priestess, who lived now on the other side of the -little stream, but being on excellent terms with her late -husband’s successor, spent a good deal more of her time in -her old home than she did in her new one.<a id="FNanchor_32" href="#Footnote_32" class="fnanchor">[32]</a> Servants they -had, both of them, in plenty, for the præster are among the -richest in the land; but no Norwegian wife is above acting -as butler and housekeeper, and no Norwegian damsel, fröken -though she be, is above waiting at table. It does not seem -quite the thing to an English gentleman, to have the ladies -waiting upon him; but certainly in the Norwegian grammar, -if they have one, the masculine is more worthy than the -feminine.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_185"></a>[185]</span></p> - -<p>Forest life is pleasant, but a contrast is pleasant also, and -the Parson, as he lay back in a peculiarly easy chair, sipping -leisurely the dram which invariably precedes a Norwegian -meal, and which, in the present case, was true cognac of -unquestionable genuineness and undeniable antiquity, considered -himself in very great luck indeed; in fact, much -as he admired the rude abundance of the hall, he infinitely -preferred the quiet elegances of the præstgaard. He made -some such observation to Nordlingen.</p> - -<p>“Yes,” replied he, “the Reformation has injured the -Church cruelly, as an endowment, and has cut off five-sixths -of its clergy; but we individual præster have not much to -complain of as regards ourselves.”</p> - -<p>“You must have pretty severe duties, though.”</p> - -<p>“Well, they are not severe, because they cannot be done. -My parish was originally six; these have been thrown together -under one. If I had half-a-dozen curates, the parish -could not be visited, nor the annex kyrker properly served; -for in former times it supported six priests and six deacons; -so what one cannot do at all, one soon ceases to distress one’s -self about. The work is not done, cannot be done, and no -one expects it to be done. We have work enough—especially -those who, like me, are elevated to the Storthing,—but -it is not ecclesiastical work.”</p> - -<p>“Do you know,” said the Parson, “I wonder that, under -such circumstances, you have no dissenters in Norway; our -Wesleyans arose from precisely the same cause. The spoliation -of our Church having diminished our number of priests, -and very seriously impaired the discipline which might, in -some measure, have kept the remainder to their work, the -people in many districts became heathens, much like your -own people, in fact; and when teachers rose up among them, -men followed them not because they were orthodox, but -because they were the only teachers to be had. But you -have some sort of dissenters, too, have you not?”</p> - -<p>“O, the Haugerites. Yes—they are not dissenters, either. -Hauger held a good many doctrines of that arch-heretic, -Calvin: New Birth, as distinct from Baptism; Predestination, -Election, and so forth; but neither he nor his followers separated<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_186"></a>[186]</span> -from the Church. In truth, religion is at too low an -ebb among us for dissent; we have no more strength to -throw up dissenters, than an exhausted field has to throw up -weeds. Hauger succeeded, because he was not only a pious, -but a practical man; he was rich, too; he set up saw-mills -and iron-works, and advanced the money;—it is no wonder -he set up a religious party. But they are going down -now.”</p> - -<p>“Ah, I understand—what we call in Ireland, soup Christians; -and now Hauger is dead, the spring has run dry?”</p> - -<p>“No not at all—I do not mean to say that the practical -turn of his mind was not a recommendation to his theology; -but though he preached and did good, his good offices were -not confined to his own followers; his sect is subsiding -because it has no distinctive tenets, any more than that of -your Wesleyans. You made a great blunder; by turning -Wesley out of the Church, you forced him to set up a -Church government of his own; it is that government, and -not his doctrines, which keeps his followers in a state of -antagonism to a Church with which they have no real doctrinal -difference. We were not such fools with Hauger; he -met with a little persecution himself—for we Norwegians are -not tolerant,—but we were wise enough to leave his people -alone, so they did not think it worth while to differ, and in -fact never did.”</p> - -<p>“I think there may be another reason,” said the Parson: -“with you a sectarian loses his rights of citizenship, by the -fact of his being a sectarian.”</p> - -<p>“Well, and why should he not? by leaving the national -Church he makes himself a foreigner; we do not persecute -him any more than we persecute any other foreigners, but -we do not allow foreigners to legislate for us, neither will we -let him, or any man choose which of our national institutions -he will adhere to and which he will not—and our Church is -one of our national institutions;—we say to him, and to you -alike—you are strangers, both of you, you are both very -welcome to stay here, and to live under the protection of -our laws; moreover, we are very ready to naturalize either -of you, and to receive you as citizens of our country if you<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_187"></a>[187]</span> -like, but choose for yourselves; you cannot be Norwegians -and not Norwegians at the same time. These are the laws, -religious and political, of Norway, take them or leave them, -just as you like, but we cannot let you divide them. Now -where is the injustice of this?”</p> - -<p>“I am sure I will not take upon myself to say,” said the -Parson, laughing; “supposing always, the State meddles -with Church affairs at all; and I, as an Englishman, have no -right to find fault with you for that. But what does your -Church itself say to all this; you called Calvin, just now, an -arch-heretic, what do you say about his followers? Besides, it -strikes me that there is a little difference of opinion between -your friend Hauger and St. Paul, on the subject of female -preachers, to say nothing of his unordained preachers, which -all of his people were; but that I suppose does not greatly -disturb you, as you attach so little value to Apostolical -Succession.”</p> - -<p>This was a hard hit upon poor Nordlingen, who was a -most patriotic Norwegian, but yet, as a Grundtvigite, was -painfully aware of the want of divine commission in his -Church. It was, however, a random shot of the Parson’s, -who, speaking of the Norwegian Church as it then was, -certainly was not aware that the reforms which Grundtvig -and Mynster had effected in Denmark, had already penetrated -to a Church politically divided from them. He took the -opportunity of the bustle, caused by the servants bringing in -the aftonsmad, to turn the conversation to less dangerous -subjects, and occupied the rest of the evening, if not more -profitably, at least more to the amusement of the ladies of -the family, in drawing out the solemn Candidatus, who, fresh -from his examinations, was brimful of theology, which, when -once cheated out of his shyness, he was spilling over on -every opportunity, and mixing, most absurdly, with the -ordinary subjects of conversation.</p> - -<div class="note"> - -<p>The Church of Norway—if Church it can be called—is in a very -anomalous state. Intensely Erastian, it is dominated over by the -Storthing, and swayed by the political feelings of the country. These, -which are called Norwegian and patriotic, are really Danish. Norway -has never been strong enough, or rich enough, since the times of barbarism,<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_188"></a>[188]</span> -to form an independent nation of itself: feeling its weakness, it -acquiesced readily in the dominant position assumed by Denmark, -during the Union of Kalmar, which grated so much against the feeling -of the Swedes only because Sweden was conscious of its own innate -strength and real superiority. When that union was dissolved, it left -very bitter animosities between the two principal nations, which was -participated in by Norway, whose feeling was with Denmark. These -the lapse of time has mitigated, so far as the Danes and Swedes are -concerned. They have been renewed, however, in Norway, by the -forcible annexation of that country to Sweden, by the Congress of Vienna, -in compensation for the loss of Finland; and thus the Norwegian Church, -politically allied to that of Sweden, is affected by that of Denmark.</p> - -<p>The original Reformation in Denmark, which involved that of Norway -also, was exclusively a political movement; that of Sweden was -political also, but grander interests were connected with it. Sweden -was a country shaking off a foreign yoke, and the Reformation succeeded -because the Reformers were patriots also. If reformation in religion is -to be mixed with earthly motives at all, it could not have had a grander -alliance; but the Reformation of Norway was a mere change of politics. -It was forced on by the Court against the will of both clergy and people—the -king, at that time, being nearly despotic. It was not resisted; -there was too little religion—Romanist, or anything else—in the country -for the people to feel any sort of excitement in the matter. After the -fall of Christiern, a new religion was thought to be the most effectual -mode of depressing the remains of his party. A certain German, of the -name of Buggenhausen, was constituted the leading reformer; and, in -fact, the Church of Denmark was not reformed, but destroyed, and -Lutheranism imported in its place, and forced upon the nation by an -arbitrary sovereign. The consequences were precisely similar to those -which followed upon many of the Reformations in Germany. The -Church remained in form, but the vital energy had gone from it. Many -godly persons it had from time to time in its communion, but fewer and -fewer as the time went on, and the traces it has still left of its vitality -are few in number.</p> - -<p>“Towards the close of the last century,” says Hamilton, “the progress -of stupor was complete, and vital Christianity seemed to have -departed from the land; formalism was at its height, and, oddly enough, -bigotry appeared to accompany it. An attempt at revival has been -made during the present century, by Dr. Mynster, now Bishop of -Copenhagen, and by Grundtvig, who may to a certain extent be considered -as the leaders of the high and low Church parties; Mynster taking -his stand on the doctrines connected with the Atonement; Grundtvig, -on the faith once delivered to the saints. There does not appear to be -any opposition between them, any more than there is opposition in the -doctrines upon which they take their respective stand against Indifferentism -and Rationalism; but this is the bent of their minds and the -direction of their teaching.”</p> - -<p>Mynster says, in a letter to Oechlenschlager, “I design, God willing, -to open my mouth, and that in divers ways, certainly first to try what<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_189"></a>[189]</span> -echo will answer my voice; but it shall not be quite in vain, for I know -that I am among the called, and I muse day and night in watching and -praying that I may be also among the chosen.”</p> - -<p>“This object,” says Hamilton (<i>Sixteen Months in the Danish Isles</i>), -“he speedily obtained; and from that time till the present, there has -been no cessation of that gentle, but loud and solemn voice, persuading -men everywhere to repent. In speaking and writing, Christ crucified -has been the beginning and end, the first and the last.”</p> - -<p>Grundtvig, who, like our Keble, was a poet before he was a preacher, -and who has taught by his poems, no less than by his sermons ever since -he brought the great powers of his mind to bear against Rationalism, some -few years after Dr. Mynster began to be celebrated. “It seemed to him -a sin,” he said, “that he should be taken up with Mythology, while the -pastors of God’s flock were neglecting their duty;” so he stepped forward, -asserting the Faith against human might and reason. His leading -text, upon which all his preaching hinges, is the Faith once delivered to -the saints,—pure and complete from the beginning, and incapable of -change. “Every change,” he argues, “is a corruption, and the office -of the Church is simply to restore, either by supplying or by lopping -off what has been superadded to the original Revelation, and to preserve -the faith in its purity.” His style of teaching, therefore, is necessarily -traditional. Grundtvig, himself a most powerful preacher, has naturally -a somewhat exaggerated idea of the importance of preaching, as -opposed to reading. Preaching, he calls the living word. There is a -curious mixture of truth and fallacy in his idea of never putting the -Bible into the hands of an unconverted person, because there is no hope -that such a person can understand it. “It was written for the Church,” -he says truly; and he infers from this, that it must be expounded orally -by a Churchman, because “faith cometh by hearing:” and from this -text he argues, that the Spirit of God does not instruct in the reading -of the Word. Grundtvig, from the first, has been the most uncompromising -opponent of Rationalism, and his line of argument much more -telling and difficult to withstand than that of his fellow-worker, -Mynster; and, accordingly, though now popular, he has not passed -through his course without getting into difficulties of a personal nature, -from the opposition of the Rationalist party. He resigned his living -at one time, and for many years was not a pastor of the Danish National -Church at all.</p> - -<p>These great leaders have their followers and their respective schools; -but it is much to be feared that the revival which they have produced -is merely the effect of their own personal influence and talent, for there -is nothing in the system of the Danish Church which can perpetuate it,—that -this Church, itself severed from the universal Church of Christ, -has no inherent vitality,—and that, as the influence and name of even -Calvin could not prevent even his own Geneva from becoming Unitarian -when other teachers had arisen and his memory had faded from the -recollections of his people, so the teaching of Grundtvig and Mynster is -but a temporary revival of Evangelical teaching,—the produce of the -individual, not of the Church.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_190"></a>[190]</span></p> - -<p>The Swedish Church, as distinguished from the Danish and Norwegian, -has far more pretensions to Churchmanship than either of these, -though it may have lost more of the externals and ceremonial. Its -Apostolic Succession has been doubted, and certainly the question is -not entirely clear. At the time of the Reformation, Matthias, Bishop -of Strengnäs, and Vincent, Bishop of Skara, had been beheaded by -Christiern; and on the other side, Canute, the Archbishop, and Peter, -Bishop of Westeras, had been beheaded by his rival, Gustavus,—so that, -at the final Diet of Westeras, at which the Reformation was determined -upon, Sweden could muster but four bishops, of whom it is said that -Bishop Brask only had been duly consecrated; two others, Haraldsen -and Sommar, were only bishops elect. The results of that Diet caused -Brask to go into voluntary exile, and as all communion with Rome was -thereby broken off, the question of the Succession hinges on the fact, -that Gustavus had previously sent the fourth Bishop, Magnussen, elect of -Skara, to be consecrated at Rome. This fact, which is distinctly affirmed -by Gejer, has been questioned, though on no very good grounds.</p> - -<p>The weakness of the Swedish Church, however, does not lie here, but -in its peculiar connection with the State, which is perpetually involving -it in secular politics, and as perpetually taking from its spiritual character. -This defect existed before the Reformation just as it does now, -and then, as now, formed its element of weakness: then, the bishops -were treated with by contending sovereigns as the most influential -barons—now, they are tampered with as the most influential politicians. -Sweden is governed by a king and four houses of parliament—the -Nobles, the Clergy, the Burghers, and the Peasants; and a bill passing -any three of these houses becomes the law of the land. But, though -the houses are of equal authority, the value of individual votes must -vary inversely as the numbers of which those houses are composed: -for instance, the house of the Nobles contains about 1500 members, and -the house of the Clergy 80; the value of any single ecclesiastic’s vote -is, therefore, eighteen times greater than that of any nobleman’s vote. -The effect of this has been precisely the same as the more arbitrary -nature of the Norwegian Reformation: the Church of Sweden has -become—first political, then worldly, then Erastian; and, at the same -time, the enormous size of the parishes operates precisely as it does in -Norway,—the majority of the people are estranged from their Church -through sheer ignorance of its doctrines,—the prescribed forms of -Confirmation, Communion, and so forth, being gone through as essentials -rather of civil promotion than of eternal Salvation.</p> - -<p>It is not a matter of surprise, therefore, that, year after year, the -Swedish Church is losing some portion of her Churchmanship, and -degenerating more and more every day into a mere establishment. At -this point it would have arrived long ago, had it not been for Archbishop -Wallin, who, not only a sound divine, which most of the educated -clergy are, but by far the greatest poet modern Sweden has produced, -has embodied the doctrines of the Church in a series of hymns, which -now form part of the Church service, under the name of “Bede -Psalmer.”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_191"></a>[191]</span></p> - -<p>Sweden is a musical nation, and these hymns are extremely popular. -So far as the author can find out, they are the only means by which -ninety-nine Swedes out of every hundred have any knowledge whatever -of the Christian doctrine, or in any way differ from their Heathen -ancestors—the worshippers of Odin and the mythology of Asgard.</p> - -<p>As a specimen of Wallin’s poetry, we will take his hymn on the -Creation—a paraphrase of the 104th Psalm,—perhaps as fine a specimen -of rhythmic illustration as any that exists. We give it from -Howitt’s translation:—</p> - -<div class="poetry-container"> -<div class="poetry"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent8">“Sing, my soul,</div> - <div class="verse indent8">The Eternal’s praise,—</div> - <div class="verse indent8">Infinite!</div> - <div class="verse indent8">Omnipotent!</div> - <div class="verse indent8">God of all worlds!</div> - <div class="verse indent0">In glorious light, all star-bestrewed,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Thou dost Thy majesty invest,—</div> - <div class="verse indent0">The Heaven of heavens is Thine abode,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">And worlds revolve at Thy behest.</div> - <div class="verse indent8">Infinite!</div> - <div class="verse indent8">Omnipotent!</div> - <div class="verse indent8">God of all worlds!</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Thy chariot on the winds doth go;</div> - <div class="verse indent0">The thunder follows Thy career;</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Flowers are Thy ministers below,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">And storms Thy messengers of fear.</div> - <div class="verse indent8">Infinite!</div> - <div class="verse indent8">Omnipotent!</div> - <div class="verse indent8">O Thou, our God!</div> - </div> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">“The earth sang not Thy peerless might</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Amid the heavenly hosts of old,—</div> - <div class="verse indent2">Thou spakest, and from empty night</div> - <div class="verse indent2">She issued forth, and on her flight</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Of countless ages proudly rolled,—</div> - <div class="verse indent2">Darkness wrapped her, and the ocean</div> - <div class="verse indent2">Wildly weltering on her lay;</div> - <div class="verse indent4">Thou spakest, and, with glad devotion,</div> - <div class="verse indent4">Up she rose with queenly motion,</div> - <div class="verse indent4">And pursued her radiant way.</div> - </div> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent4">“High soared the mountains,</div> - <div class="verse indent6">Glittering and steep,—</div> - <div class="verse indent4">Forth burst the fountains,</div> - <div class="verse indent4">And through the air flashing—</div> - <div class="verse indent4">From rock to rock dashing—</div> - <div class="verse indent4">’Mid the wild tempest crashing—</div> - <div class="verse indent6">Took their dread leap.</div><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_192"></a>[192]</span> - </div> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent2">“Then opened out the quiet dale,</div> - <div class="verse indent4">With all its grass and flowers;</div> - <div class="verse indent2">Then gushed the spring, so clear and pale,</div> - <div class="verse indent4">Beneath the forest bowers;</div> - <div class="verse indent2">Then ran the brooks from moorlands brown,</div> - <div class="verse indent4">Along the verdant lea,</div> - <div class="verse indent2">And the fleet fowls of heaven shot down</div> - <div class="verse indent4">Into a leafy sea;—</div> - <div class="verse indent2">’Mid the wild herd’s rejoicing throng,</div> - <div class="verse indent4">The nightingales accord—</div> - <div class="verse indent2">All nature raised its matin song,</div> - <div class="verse indent4">And praised Thee—Nature’s Lord:</div> - <div class="verse indent0">O Thou, who wast, and art, and e’er shall be!</div> - <div class="verse indent2">Eternal One! all earth adoring stands,</div> - <div class="verse indent2">And through the works of Thy Almighty Hands</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Feels grace and wisdom infinite in Thee!</div> - </div> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent6">“And answer gives the sea,—</div> - <div class="verse indent8">The fathomless ocean—</div> - <div class="verse indent8">The waste without end—</div> - <div class="verse indent6">Where, in ceaseless commotion,</div> - <div class="verse indent8">Winds and billows contend;—</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Where myriads that live without count, without name—</div> - <div class="verse indent2">Crawling or swimming in strange meander—</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Fill the deep as it were with a quivering flame;</div> - <div class="verse indent2">Where the heavy whale doth wander</div> - <div class="verse indent2">Through the dumb night’s hidden reign,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">And man unwearied with earth’s wide strife</div> - <div class="verse indent2">Still hunts around death’s grim domain—</div> - <div class="verse indent6">The over-flood of life.</div> - </div> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">“To Thee! to Thee! Thou Sire of all,</div> - <div class="verse indent2">Our prayers in faith ascend,—</div> - <div class="verse indent0">All things that breathe, both great and small,</div> - <div class="verse indent2">On Thee alone depend.</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Thy bounteous hand Thou dost unclose,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">And happiness unstinted flows</div> - <div class="verse indent2">In streams that know no end.”</div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -</div> - -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - -<div class="chapter"> -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_193"></a>[193]</span></p> - -<h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_XIV">CHAPTER XIV.<br /> -<span class="smaller">BREAKING UP THE ENCAMPMENT.</span></h2> - -</div> - -<div class="poetry-container"> -<div class="poetry"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">“To-day shall be spent in drinking,—</div> - <div class="verse indent2">We need not spare the ale,—</div> - <div class="verse indent0">And we will set sail on the morrow,</div> - <div class="verse indent2">Nor will our good luck fail.”</div> - </div> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse right"><i>Svenska Folk-visor.</i></div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -<p>The whole party found their quarters in the Soberud valley -so extremely comfortable, and the game so very abundant, -that they were readily induced to prolong their stay; and the -Parson struck up quite a friendship with the worthy Pfarrherr, -and talked theology with the Candidatus. Torkel, who -had had long, and, apparently, very interesting conversations -with old Torgenson, the import of which did not transpire, -had asked a temporary leave of absence, which was readily -granted—the Parson having, no doubt, his own suspicions -from what he saw at the sœter, but prudently holding his -tongue about them. Indeed, he was no loser; for Torkel’s -place, in every respect, except as an interpreter, was amply -supplied by Karl Torgenson, who, having served his time of -drill, had been just discharged from the corvette <i>Freya</i>, and -had arrived, somewhat unexpectedly, on the Sunday evening. -Karl spoke a little English, though not enough for conversation; -but, on the other hand, he was as good a sportsman as -Torkel himself, and much better acquainted with the localities -of his own home.</p> - -<p>Under his guidance, the Parson’s flies lured many a trout -from the blue waters of the lake; but the best fish—such fish, -indeed, as he had never before seen—were caught by a discovery -of his own.</p> - -<p>The lake lying in a broad valley, many of its shores were -shelving and sandy, or slightly muddy, instead of plumping<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_194"></a>[194]</span> -down in rocky sublacustrine precipices, and all these shallows -were fringed with weeds. Coming home late in the evening, -he saw a number of children in the water, ladling out, with -tins and buckets, and vessels of every description, hundreds -and thousands of little white glittering fish, which were -feeding on the weed. These were the young of the fresh-water -herring, which, whenever they can get them, which is -not often, the Norwegians make into soup. The full-grown -fish are not taken till later in the year, and this is never -done except by nets, for they will rise at no bait of any kind -big enough to put on a hook.</p> - -<p>The Parson was looking at the little glittering things as -they sparkled in the moonlight,—and no fish is so brilliantly -white as the fresh-water herring,—when, amid the shouts -and screams of the children, a huge trout was tumbled on -shore out of one of the buckets. “O! by George!” said the -Parson to Karl Torgenson, who smiled as if he understood -every word, “that is worth noting; that fellow came to -make his supper off the herrings, and having ventured in too -far, has got entangled in the weeds. There will be some of -his great relations come to supper, also, for certain. Let us -try.”</p> - -<p>A light fly-rod, such as the Parson carried, was not the -weapon best adapted for the purpose; but he forthwith unlooped -his casting-line, and taking a trace out of his fly-book—for -he was never without trolling materials—fitted -one of the little glittering gwineads on the litch; and wading -quite as deep as was prudent, and a good deal deeper than -was pleasant, considering the time of night and the coldness -of Norwegian waters, he cast beyond the edge of the weeds; -the bait had hardly began to spin, when a fish took him, such -as required all his skill to master with his fly-rod, and long -and arduous was the struggle before he succeeded in leading -him captive through an opening in the weeds, and drawing -him quietly into shoal water.</p> - -<p>The fact was, that the whole coast, like that of France -during the late war, was in a state of strict blockade; the -little gwineads, like the chasse-marées, were dodging about -in-shore, while the great trout, unable, from their draught of<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_195"></a>[195]</span> -water, to pursue them into the shallows, were grimly cruising -about and snapping up any adventurous little youngster that -showed his nose outside. The fly-rod was too feeble to do -much execution that evening, for it took half an hour to -master a fish with it; but the discovery was not lost on the -Parson, and the next evening saw him with a twenty-two -foot cane trolling-rod, commanding, at easy cast, the whole -fishable water, and supplying the præstgaard, as well as the -hall, with such trout as they had never dreamt of.</p> - -<p>The Captain and Birger were no less assiduous in their -own particular calling, and from the quantity of game, including -deer, which they brought in, might very fairly be -said to have paid for their keep. The fjeld of Soberud was -much more open, and better adapted for game, than the -valley of the Torjedahl and its surrounding mountains, and -also, as there were fewer thick trees, better adapted for -getting at it.</p> - -<p>Pleasant as all this was, time wore on, and it became -necessary for the party to resume their knapsacks and retrace -their steps, Torgensen having first exacted a promise that -they would visit Soberud once more before their departure. -“Perhaps,” said he, mysteriously, “I may have occasion to -muster all the friends of my house before the winter comes -on, and whenever that occasion happens, I hope the present -party will honour my roof-tree.”</p> - -<p>Tom, who interpreted this speech, could not conceive what -it alluded to, though it seemed to make him very merry; but -the mystery, if ever there was one, was soon explained by -Lota’s blushes, when the Captain, on seeing her and the -missing Torkel together, as the party arrived at the Aalfjer -sœter that evening, shook his head at them with a knowing -smile. In fact, Torkel had made such excellent use of his -time, that while the party were occupied with the fish and -game of the Soberud valley, he had contrived to settle, and -definitely arrange, with the full approbation of Torgensen, -that his marriage should take place in the autumn. No -Norwegian ever thinks of marrying till the work-day summer -is past; besides, Torkel was making a very good thing of it -with his present employers, and if he were not, it is not<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_196"></a>[196]</span> -altogether certain that even Lota’s attractions would have -been sufficient to draw him away from the sports in which he -was engaged. Apparently, he did not find those things which -he had to settle with Lota herself, so easy of arrangement as -those which had been the subject of his discussions with her -father; for though the first Sunday evening was quite long -enough to settle everything with him, it took him three or -four whole days at the sœter to arrange matters with her; -indeed, there the party found him when they encamped there -on their return, and, notwithstanding this, he had so much -more to say on the last morning, that the fishermen had -arrived for some hours at their old encampment on the -Torjedahl, and had had time entirely to change the whole -plan of the campaign before they saw anything of him.</p> - -<p>During their absence the post had arrived, bringing -letters for them all; these Ullitz had forwarded, and their -first occupation, while their attendants were preparing the -supper and exchanging news with those who had been left -behind, was to read their respective letters. Birger had -a whole heap—which he did not deserve—from a host -of relations and friends, whom, in his ardour for sport, -he had grievously neglected; all of these he postponed for a -great, square, official looking document, with “Kongs ofwer -Commandant’s Expedition” written in the corner: this he -did deserve, for it contained, along with an acknowledgement -for his valuable portfolio of military drawings, an -extension of leave, which the dutiful lieutenant had asked -for on the plea so well known in the British army, “family -arrangements.”</p> - -<p>“Hurrah,” said the Captain, “here’s a letter from Moodie; -he wants us to meet him at Gotheborg, where he is bringing -down a cargo of elks and reindeer, and Northern wild -beasts, for the Zoological Gardens; and then we are to go -back with him, he says, to some place which I can neither -spell nor pronounce, where, the chances are, we shall get a -crack at a bear.”</p> - -<p>“You have always had a weakness that way,” said the -Parson, “I believe getting a crack at a bear, as you call it, -was your principal reason for coming here at all.”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_197"></a>[197]</span></p> - -<p>“Well, but Moodie says there is capital fishing on the -Gotha; the salmo ferox, my boy! what do you think of -that? and you know the fish are beginning to run small -here, there was not a full-mouthed salmon caught the last -day we fished here, nothing but miserable grauls.”</p> - -<p>“Grauls give very pretty sport, though, and as for the -salmo ferox, it is nothing but an ill-conditioned, over-grown -trout, that has got a cross of the pike in it, and consequently -will take nothing but the spinning bait. But I must say -I should like to see old Moodie again.”</p> - -<p>“Will you go then?”</p> - -<p>“Ask Birger.”</p> - -<p>“Hey! what?” said Birger, looking up from his letters, -which, after all, seemed to be more interesting than he had -expected. “Moodie? ah! yes! that’s the fellow my friend -Bjornstjerna mentions; a terrible fellow he says, a very -Hercules against the wild beasts—there is never a skal -without him; Bjornstjerna says he had rather have him than -a hundred men, any day.”</p> - -<p>“And who is Bjornstjerna?”</p> - -<p>“One of the Ofwer Jagmästerer, the officers, that is, whose -business it is to call out the peasantry to keep down the -wild beasts; he is very good authority on such matters, and -I vote we accept your friend Moodie’s invitation, it is much -the best chance we have of seeing sport.”</p> - -<p>The Captain looked a little puzzled; he was anxious -enough to go, but the invitation had been to him and the -Parson, and of course had not included Birger, whose existence -was necessarily unknown to Moodie; in fact, the -Captain had not thought of that difficulty. Birger, who had -spent a good part of his leave in England, where he had some -friends, burst out laughing.</p> - -<p>“Ah, that is just your English way, you think you cannot -take me, because your friend has not sent me a written -invitation in due form—that is not the way we go on here; -my friend’s friend is my friend, and if your countryman has -not learnt that in the four years during which, Bjornstjerna -tells me, he has been living in the country, it is high time he<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_198"></a>[198]</span> -should learn. When does he drive his flocks and herds to -Gotheborg?”</p> - -<p>“Why, if we would meet him, we must start directly, for -he comes next week.”</p> - -<p>“Well, why not start directly? come Parson! one river is -as good as another.”</p> - -<p>“Scarcely that,” said the Parson, laughing; “but I do -want to see how Moodie carries on the war in your barbarous -country; so let us go—Tom,” raising his voice so as -to be heard from below, “when does the next steamer sail for -Valö?”</p> - -<p>“The day after to-morrow, at day-break,” said Tom, whose -head was a perfect register of naval events.</p> - -<p>“That will never do,” said the Parson, who contemplated -a farewell visit to the Torjedahl salmon.</p> - -<p>“Not do!” said Birger, “why it is the very thing. Strike -the tents to-morrow, early,—down the river without stopping -at Christiansand Bridge,—run alongside the steamer, take -our berths,—stow our goods,—and then we shall have half the -day to land and visit our stores at Ullitz’s, kiss Marie, and -make what changes we want in the baggage department. I -must take my uniform for Gotheborg; we are not ashamed -of our uniform in our country,” he added, significantly nodding -at the Captain, who, like most English soldiers, was rather -addicted to mufti; “and you too will want more baggage, -now that you are going into a civilized country.”</p> - -<p>“Do not let Torkel hear you say that. He considers -Christiansand the emporium of fashion and the centre of -civilization. By-the-bye, what are we to do with our men? -I will not leave Torkel behind,—I have quite an affection for -the fellow.”</p> - -<p>“Leave Torkel behind!” said Birger; “why should you? -you do not think the Swedes will eat him, do you? I mean -to take Piersen myself; these Norwegians, rascals as they -are, all of them, are a great deal smarter and handier in -forest work than our Swedes; their education fits them for -Jacks-of-all-trades; they get kicked out of doors, with a -pack on their back, at ten years of age, to earn their livelihood,<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_199"></a>[199]</span> -and learn smartness and knowledge of the world,—and -they do learn it, and precious scoundrels they grow up:—however, -they answer our purpose, for they can turn their -hands to anything.”</p> - -<p>At that moment Torkel came up, looking a little confused -and ashamed of himself, and not the less so that the -Parson asked significantly for the latest news from the -sœter of Aalfjer.</p> - -<p>His love, however, did not prevent him from being wild -to go, as soon as he heard of the change of plans—a sentiment -in which the rest fully participated; indeed there was not a -dissentient voice in the camp, except that of the boatmen, -who were to be discharged at Christiansand, and whose fun -was thus prematurely cut short. A small pecuniary gratification -set matters right in that quarter also, and when the -evening closed on the last day of the encampment, the hopes -and eager anticipations of a brilliant future had already -effaced all regrets for a happy past.</p> - -<p>The sun was hardly above the horizon, when the whole -camp was astir, and active preparations for departure were -begun. These did not occupy any very great deal of time; -they had not come up the river in very heavy marching -order, and there were a good many hands at the work. The -principal part of it was securing the smoked salmon, of which -they had now a very fair cargo. This is a very acceptable -present everywhere; for though salmon are plenty in -Norway, the means of catching them are very imperfectly -understood. There was also a goodly array of forest preserves, -which, being too heavy for transport, and subject to a -heavy duty into the bargain from jealous Sweden, were destined -to swell the ample stores of Madame Ullitz.</p> - -<p>While all this was going on, the Parson, rod in hand, took -a melancholy farewell of his favourite throws, in the course of -which he caught two fish—both grauls, though, as the -Captain took care to remark. By ten o’clock everything -was ready, and the boats shoved off on their downward -voyage.</p> - -<p>“Well, certainly it is much pleasanter to go with the -stream than against it, in all the affairs of this life,” said the<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_200"></a>[200]</span> -Captain, as the boats closed again, after racing down the -upper rapids which had cost them so much time and so -much trouble to ascend. “Here we have undone in half an -hour and at our ease, what it took us half a day to do, and -with harder work than I wish to meet with very often.”</p> - -<p>“Not an uncommon thing in this wicked world of ours,” -said the Parson. “<i>Facilis descensus</i>;—you know the rest. -However, that which is pleasant is not always safe,—so look -out. Here we are, at the head of the Oxea rapid, and a -touch of these rocks, going down stream, you will find a very -different thing from a touch going up. Give way, boys! -let me have good steerage-way through the water.”</p> - -<p>And he dashed into the very midst of the racing current—rocks, -trees, and banks flying past him, till, before they -seemed to be well in it, the three boats were floating side -by side in the broad flat below, at the lower end of which -the encampment had been made on the first night of the -expedition. A short halt here, which they made, more for -the pot than for sport, secured them a good catch of trout -and a graul or two; and their rapid course down the deep, -full-flowing stream was resumed, leisurely indeed—but so -swift was the current under the deceitful show of its calm -and quiet surface, that notwithstanding a little difficulty at -the lower rapids, where there was not water enough in the -boat canal to float them, the sun was still high when they -rounded the dockyard point, and opened the harbour of -Christiansand.</p> - -<p>“Hullo, Tom, where is the steamer?”</p> - -<p>Tom rubbed his eyes, for he could not believe them, but -no amount of rubbing will produce a vision of that which is -not, and the fact became indisputable as they pulled on—there -was no steamer in the harbour. The Parson, who -after all, had left very unwillingly, and rather in compliance -with the wishes of his companions than in accordance with -his own fancy or judgment, began to feel sulky; the Captain, -who had proposed the change, began to feel anxious, and to -labour under the weight of his responsibility; and even -Birger, who had nothing to reproach himself for, was not -entirely at his ease.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_201"></a>[201]</span></p> - -<p>Things however, were not so bad as they had anticipated; -there was no steamer certainly, but Ullitz, who was lounging -on the quay—where indeed the good man spent the greater -part of his summer hours, looking out for travellers and -seeking whom he might entertain, and who certainly did not -approve of a change of plans which deprived him of a very -profitable commissariat,—informed them that the day had -been changed, and that the steamer would not arrive till the -following evening, nor sail till the day after.</p> - -<p>“Never mind,” said Birger, “let us have one good supper, -and one comfortable night’s rest more than we expected; I -will be bound we strike out something for to-morrow, and -after all we shall lose nothing, we may as well be at Christiansand -as at Gotheborg.”</p> - -<p>Ullitz did not say, but looked as if he thought they had -much better.</p> - -<p>“The sea is as calm as glass,” said Torkel to Tom. -“Would not this do for eider duck-hunting.”</p> - -<p>“It is a great pity that Fröken Lota has to make up her -stores of eider down now,” said Tom, “and she to be married -in the autumn.”</p> - -<p>Torkel could afford to laugh, for he knew very well—indeed, -none had cause to know it better, he having supplied -a good half of them—the extent of Miss Lota’s eider -stores. All this was an aside, and Tom resumed aloud, “To -be sure, there could not be better weather, we shall not have -ripple out in the haaf<a id="FNanchor_33" href="#Footnote_33" class="fnanchor">[33]</a> any more than in the fjord; and -besides, we can take some cod-lines, and when we have -killed or driven off the ducks we can fill our boats with rock -cod.”</p> - -<p>“What is all that?” said the Captain.</p> - -<p>Tom explained.</p> - -<p>“Upon my word I think it will do very well; what say -you, Birger?”</p> - -<p>“Nothing better, I have never been duck-hunting myself, -but they say it is capital fun; there are three or four fellows -of ‘ours’ who always get leave in the duck season, and pass<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_202"></a>[202]</span> -a month or two on the islands of the Baltic; they say it is -first-rate sport—I vote we go.”</p> - -<p>And so it was settled, and the details of the expedition -were arranged as they walked up those sandy deserts of -streets which they had traversed on the first night of their -landing.</p> - -<p>Marie received them with smiles, and when she learnt -the object of their sport, so worked on the Captain’s susceptible -heart, that he vowed she should have every feather that -fell to his gun. The Parson was rather affected to Lota, but -Torkel, who had been a little stung by Tom’s joke, magnanimously -transferred the offer to Marie, who, “poor thing, -might perhaps want the down, and Lota would not know -what to do with it, she had a great deal more than she -could make up already;” which, considering his own fame as -a hunter, as well as that of young Svensen, between whom -Miss Lota had been coquetting (so Tom averred) till she -ought to have been ashamed of herself, was not unlikely to -be literally true.</p> - -<div class="note"> - -<p>It must be remarked that this is the sporting way of collecting eider -down. The business way is robbing the nests, which is done in spring, -and is very slow work—though sufficiently dangerous.</p> - -</div> - -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - -<div class="chapter"> -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_203"></a>[203]</span></p> - -<h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_XV">CHAPTER XV.<br /> -<span class="smaller">EIDER DUCK HUNTING.</span></h2> - -</div> - -<div class="poetry-container"> -<div class="poetry"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">“For now in our trim boats of Norroway deal</div> - <div class="verse indent0">We must dance on the waves with the porpoise and seal;—</div> - <div class="verse indent0">The breeze it shall pipe, so it pipe not too high,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">And the gull be our songstress whene’er she flits by;—</div> - <div class="verse indent0">We’ll sing while we bait, and we’ll sing while we haul,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">For the deeps of the Haaf have enough for us all.”</div> - </div> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse right"><i>Norway Fishing Song.</i></div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -<p>The dawn was yet grey upon the mountains, and the light -steaming mist was still resting on the glassy surface of the -harbour, when the three boats slipped off noiselessly from the -dockyard point. The fishing rods, now useless, had been -landed, and the guns and rifles had taken their places, while -the after-lockers were stored with cod lines and their gear, -to say nothing of the långref that had done such good service -at Mosse Eurd, and which was now converted into a spillet. -The boats were well provisioned—that is almost an invariable -rule in Norway, so far as quantity goes, but on this -occasion, they were provisioned with all the delicacies the -fair Marie could lay her hands upon; nay, so interested was -she in the subject, that she came down with the party, in -the grey of the morning, to superintend the packing herself; -and, after carrying on a lively conversation with Birger, on -the road, endeavoured, in vain, to make the Captain understand -something or other; her anxiety to convey her meaning -brought her cheek very much closer to his lips than perhaps -she intended—how close it was impossible to say, for the -morning light was still very faint,—in all probability, Birger -might have come in for a share of the secret, whatever it -was, but he was rude enough to burst out laughing, and to -add something in Swedish, about bribery and corruption, -which put the young lady to immediate flight.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_204"></a>[204]</span></p> - -<p>“You need not look so conceited,” said he, (possibly the -grapes were sour); “it was not you, it was the eider down -she was thinking of.”</p> - -<p>No one knows what silence is, who has not been in the -North—what we call silence, is a perpetual recurrence of a -thousand familiar sounds, so familiar that the ear does not -notice them; the chirp of hundreds of birds, and millions of -insects go to make up English silence;—perhaps within the -Arctic circle it may be deeper than that which, at that early -hour, brooded over the harbour of Christiansand; but even -that was a silence which made itself to be felt; and the -regular and steady roll of the oars in the rowlocks, as the -boats shot out into the fjord, fairly echoed among the cliffs -like grumbling thunder. Nothing could be more calm and -unbroken than the water, which seemed to be hot, for a -slight steam kept slowly rising from the whole surface, and -hung upon it like a veil which now began to whiten in the -increasing light; every here and there a seal would put up -his head, like a black oily bead, take a steady view of the -boats, and then dip under, without a ripple to show where -the surface had been broken.</p> - -<p>“Oars!” said the Captain, in a whisper, as one of -these sheep of Proteus evinced a little more indiscreet -curiosity than his neighbours, and as his boat, which had -been leading, lost her way, he rose quietly, and his rifle -thundered through the still air of the morning, as if it had -been a six-pounder, while its echoes were caught and -repeated, crack after crack, by a dozen sharp cliffs and -wooded islands.</p> - -<p>The surface was sufficiently disturbed this time—for the -Captain’s rifle seldom spoke in vain,—and the seal was struggling -in the agonies of death; the men stretched out on their -oars as if they were racing, but before the boat could reach -the spot, all was quiet again, and a slight red stain in the -water was all that remained to tell of the Captain’s accuracy -of aim. The Captain gazed on the deep blue below.</p> - -<p>“It is of no use,” said the Parson, “they always sink, and -it is a great shame to be firing at that which you cannot -get when you have killed it.”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_205"></a>[205]</span></p> - -<p>“You used to shoot them, yourself, in Sligo Bay.”</p> - -<p>“Yes, I did, but there was a tide there, and we shot them -at high water, and picked them up when the sands were -bare—even then, though, we lost a good many, but here -there is not a chance; that fellow is food for lobsters.”</p> - -<p>“Well, I hope the cockneys will profit by it when the -next batch goes to the London market,” said the Captain, -loading his rifle, “but have we no tide here?”</p> - -<p>“We have no sands that we can make available; but a -tide there is, though a faint one. Did you ever hear how -there came to be a tide in Norway—for originally there certainly -was nothing of the kind? Thor was on a visit to -Loki Uttgard, who, in all love, challenged him to drink his -great horn out, and to turn it over to show there were no -heeltaps, as is the custom in Norway. Thor had never been -conquered yet in drinking, or in anything else; in fact, he -had the hardest head, inside and out, of any god in Norway. -He drank, and he drank, but there was no bottom to be -found to the horn, and Thor put it down with shame, and -acknowledged himself at last vanquished; but the Uttgarders, -who were all giants of a very ferocious stamp, stood -round, in speechless admiration. Loki had made a communication -between the bottom of the horn and the sea -itself, and what Thor had drunk was the ebb.”</p> - -<p>“H’m! Hence the fine of a glass of salt and water,” said -the Captain, “I have often inflicted it, but I never knew -the high authority I had for so doing. Come, boys, give way -for the Haaf.”</p> - -<p>But before so doing they had to stop at a shoal, well -known to Tom, who now began to take the command, while -Torkel sank into comparative insignificance. It was necessary -to lay in a supply of cod-bait, which was not to be had -in deep water. This was a species of large limpet, that clung -to the rocks by thousands, and was dislodged by the boat-hooks, -and stowed away in the balers. At length the swell -of the open sea made itself to be felt, for ever heaving and -setting and rolling along in vast mountains, and flashing in -spray against the black rocks, though the surface was as -glassy and unbroken as that of the harbour. The whole<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_206"></a>[206]</span> -swell of the North Sea, and of the Atlantic beyond it heaves -against these coasts, and is never quiet in the calmest -weather. The sun, which had now risen, gleamed against -the white tower of the light-house, and flashed back in -blinding rays from its lantern, as the boats pulled past it -into the Haaf.</p> - -<p>They had now formed line abreast, at five or six hundred -yards distance, and were pulling leisurely along, keeping a -bright look out on every side. Calm as it was, the swells -were quite heavy enough to conceal the boats entirely from -each other as, from time to time, the huge mountains rolled -between them.</p> - -<p>They had proceeded in this manner for about half an hour, -without seeing anything, except gulls and cormorants—which -latter, sitting in the water, and rising and falling on the -swells, had more than once deceived them,—when, suddenly, -Birger, who was on the extreme right, pointed with his -hand to the westward of their course: all eyes were turned -in that direction, and the line wheeled on Birger, as a pivot, -when a dozen or so, of black spots were seen on the side of -the swell, in the rare intervals when the boats and they -were both rising.</p> - -<p>The centre boat, which was the Parson’s, pulled right on -the objects, while the flankers having increased their distance -to half a mile, pulled on some hundred yards in advance of -her.</p> - -<p>Onward as they came, the black spots grew larger and -larger, and the distinct outlines of the ducks began to be distinguishable; -still they sat on the water, rising and falling -to the swell as unconcernedly as ever.</p> - -<p>The flanking boats were already ahead of them, and the -Parson, with his long gun in his hand, had begun to calculate -his distance—which, out at sea, is particularly deceptive,—when, -with one accord, the dozen tails began to wriggle, and -at once the whole flock were under water, disappearing simultaneously, -and as if by signal.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 700px;"> -<img src="images/illus5.jpg" width="700" height="460" alt="" /> -<p class="caption">EIDER DUCK SHOOTING.</p> -</div> - -<p>The men, who, much to the Parson’s impatience, had been -pulling very leisurely indeed, now stretched out with all -their might, and as they shot across the spot lately occupied<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_207"></a>[207]</span> -by the ducks, marked the chain of air-bubbles, which tended -out to seaward. A signal conveyed this information to the -Captain’s boat, which pulled into the line to intercept them; -Birger, who was thus thrown out, closing in with all his -might, and the Parson following up the track—each stood -up as well as he could in the roll of the sea, and looked out -with all his eyes. Six, eight, ten minutes elapsed, and nothing -to be seen: it was impossible that the birds could be under -so long. At last, far to the rear of even Birger’s boat, twelve -black spots were seen rising and falling on the swell as unconcernedly -as they were at first. The ducks had headed -back under water, and the boats had pulled over them.</p> - -<p>The same manœuvre was repeated, and with the same -result; the centre boat approached almost within firing -distance, when the twelve tails again wriggled simultaneously, -and the twelve bodies went under at once. This time, however, -they rose within shot of Birger’s boat, but before he -could get his gun to bear on them, they were under again.</p> - -<p>This was precisely what was wanted; the only chance of -getting a shot, at this season of the year, is to make the birds -dive till they are exhausted: they are said not to duck the -flash like the divers—perhaps they do not, but, at all events, -they are generally under water long before the quickest -gunner can get a shot at them, and that, practically, comes to -the same thing.</p> - -<p>The dive this time was a short one, though it carried them -out of shot, for the Captain, catching the line of their chain, -had pulled on their track, and headed them back to his -friends. This time they rose among the boats, and one or -two attempted a heavy lumbering flight, which was speedily -put a stop to by the fowling-pieces. The rest dispersed, -diving each his own way, and pursued by the boats independently.</p> - -<p>The object of approaching in a crescent, is to prevent the -birds from doing this before they are too much exhausted to -dive far. A separated flock can seldom be marked, inasmuch -as it is more difficult to catch sight of one black spot than a -dozen; and besides, under such circumstances, the boats can -no longer act in concert. If a flock disperses early in the<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_208"></a>[208]</span> -chase, the chances are that not above one or two birds will -be secured; if kept pretty well together, not above as many -will escape.</p> - -<p>It is a singular thing that eider ducks should be so unwilling -to take the wing in summer, for, though they rise -heavily, they are by no means bad flyers; but so long as they -have breath to dive, nothing will get them into the air; and -this peculiarity, which in ordinary weather is their preservation, -during the calms is their destruction.</p> - -<p>The chase was now an ordinary affair, very like rat hunting: -the birds, confused and dispersed, kept poking their -heads up in all sorts of unexpected directions, and, as their -dives were now short, one or other of the quick and experienced -eyes was sure to detect them. As for missing, when -they were once within shot, it was impossible to miss a bird -nearly as big as a goose, and almost as heavy on the wing. -Ten out of the twelve were bagged, and two only were unaccounted -for, they having slipped away during the heat of the -chase. The boats then formed line-of-battle again, and -cruised on in search of other adventures.</p> - -<p>Various little episodes occurred, in which one or two rare -sea-gulls and other birds were brought down, as they hovered -round the boats or crossed their course. Most gulls, indeed, -evince a great deal of curiosity in their disposition, and a -very dangerous quality this sometimes proves; but in this case -the murders were committed exclusively for the sake of Science -(who, by the way, must be a very cruel goddess), for the -fishermen were a great deal too much of sportsmen to indulge -in the vulgar gull-murder without object, which is called -sport by maritime cockneys. Three or four other flocks of -eider duck were sighted, and chased with various success; -some, taking the alarm in time, contrived to dive and swim -ahead of the boats, so as to elude them altogether; some, -startled by too rapid approach, dived before they had time -to draw together, and, breaking their order, appeared so many -scattered black spots in different directions, most of which -were necessarily lost while pursuing the others. But these -mishaps were not of frequent occurrence, and a good heap of -great ugly birds had already been collected, when, about<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_209"></a>[209]</span> -noon, a light cat’s-paw ruffled the surface, frosting it over -with little wavelets. At the time when this occurred it was -quite unexpected; the boats were following a chain of bubbles, -and all available eyes being fixed on them, no one was -looking out into the offing.</p> - -<p>In a moment the trace was lost; the birds might have -risen, but the eye could no longer mark the clear, well-defined, -black dot. Ten minutes afterwards all was calm again, -but the flock were already safe.</p> - -<p>“It is all over for to-day,” said Tom, looking anxiously -into the offing, where a narrow line of darker blue had -already begun to mark the hitherto undistinguishable boundary -of sea and sky; “here comes the breeze already.”</p> - -<p>And slowly but surely the line crept down, first widening, -then throwing out ramifications before it; and then the -sleepy surface of the sea seemed to shudder, as if touched by -a cold breath; little wavelets began to ripple on the backs -of the long swells,—then light airs fanned the boats uncertainly, -and, at last, a steady breeze set in from the southward -and westward.</p> - -<p>“Up stick, for the cod ground!” said Tom; “we are -only wasting time here.” And in a couple of minutes the -three boats were running away to the eastward, under their -English lugs, which, having hitherto served as tents, were -now for the first time applied to their legitimate use.</p> - -<p>The end of the chase had left them five or six miles to -westward of the fjord’s mouth, and as far to seaward, while -the fishing-ground was a sunken island or shoal, a couple of -miles or so from the lighthouse near the outer range of -islands;—it is called a shoal, and possibly, for Norway, it is -a shoal; but there is not less than twenty fathoms on any -part of it.</p> - -<p>The boats were slipping along through the smooth water, -as if they were going up and down the hills of an undulating -road; the breeze, though very light, was steady, and already -the features of the outer islands were growing distinct; and -Tom was looking out for the bearings of the shoal.</p> - -<p>“This is all very well,” said the Captain, steering his boat -close to that of the Parson, “but I have had no breakfast.”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_210"></a>[210]</span></p> - -<p>“Then why don’t you set about it; I am sure Marie has -not forgotten you.”</p> - -<p>“Oh! I will not stand that; why should we make a toil of -pleasure? I mean to have a regular breakfast, and a pot of -hot coffee—why not? we have the whole day before us.”</p> - -<p>“Well, I do not mind; hail Birger—there is a dissolute -island, as Jacob calls it, before us; we will boil your pot -there.”</p> - -<p>Birger was always ready for his grub, or, indeed, for anything -else that was proposed; and the boats were made fast -to some rocky prominences on the lea of the island, with a -boat-keeper in each, to prevent them from grinding one -another to pieces.</p> - -<p>Strange to say, many of these islets, which are mere rocks, -contain fresh water, some of them in pools in the rocks, but -many in regular springs, and in this particular case a very -respectable little streamlet trickled down a crevice of the -rock.</p> - -<p>Every beach, rock, and islet on the Norwegian coast is -fringed with a layer of drift-wood, in pieces of every size, -from the great baulk which in England would be worth five -or six pounds down to the smallest splinters. The reason -of this is, that each river is continually floating down its -yearly freight of pines to the sea; these are caught by a -boom at the mouth,—that is to say, by a floating chain -of squared pine-stems,—but many dip under this and -escape, many escape when it is opened to let boats pass, -and occasionally a freshet breaks a link or draws a -staple, in which case the whole boom-full of timber floats -out to sea at once. All this is irrecoverably lost, for it is -illegal to pick up timber floating; and a very necessary law -this is, or the booms would find themselves broken much -oftener than they are. Nevertheless, the quantity of timber -lost annually in that way would pretty nearly supply all the -wants of all the English dockyards put together. But “it -is an ill wind that blows nobody any good;”—the wanderer -on the sea coast need never be without a fire to warm himself -by.</p> - -<p>“I like this,” said the Captain, as he lay on his back<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_211"></a>[211]</span> -looking up to the sky, watching the blue smoke as it came -in wreaths above his head. “I should like to be a Robinson -Crusoe now, with a desolate island of my own, like this, -where the foot of man has never trod, and—Holloa! What -the devil have we got now?” he said, jumping up;—“how -came these little animals here?”</p> - -<p>The little animals referred to were half a dozen children, -with rakes and hay-forks in their hands, who, attracted by -the smoke and possibly by the smell of the fried ham, were -peering over the edge of the cliff like so many sea-gulls.</p> - -<p>“These are the savages, Mr. Crusoe,” said the Parson, -quietly; “but it really is a curious thing, so let us climb up -the cliff and see what they are about.”</p> - -<p>The cliff was not difficult to scale, for the edges of the rocks -were like steps; and at the top a very unexpected scene -met their eye: a regular hay-field, with the hay in cocks, -and five or six men and women at work at it; they were -carrying their cocks on a sort of handbier down to their -boats,—great, broad, heavy affairs these were, borrowed -from the horse-ferry,—and upon these they were building -hay-stacks, intending to take them in tow of their whale-boats, -during the calm, and to bring them to the main land.</p> - -<p>The form of the island was a sort of cup, of which the -cliffs round the edge were the highest parts, and the centre, -from having no drain, had formed a fresh-water lake with a -spongy, mossy border,—and this it was which supplied the -streamlet. The outer rim was bare rock, but between these -two extremes there was a boggy, black ring of vegetable -mould, which produced in great abundance a coarse, rank, -wiry grass, which the people were storing up for the winter, -in order to deceive the poor beasts into the idea that they -were eating hay. Poor as it was, they had come out a dozen -miles to sea to get it: their boats, four in number, including -the floating hay-stack, lay snugly in a little bay or inlet, -on the shoreward side, where the water was comparatively -quiet. They had evidently taken up their quarters on -the island, and established a regular bivouac till the work -should be finished, for there was a cooking place built up -with stones, and two or three of the girls were spreading<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_212"></a>[212]</span> -out to dry, in the hot sun, the clothes they had been washing -in the lake.</p> - -<p>“Who would have expected such a marine pastoral,” said -Birger.</p> - -<div class="poetry-container"> -<div class="poetry"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">“Här Necken sin harssa in glasborgen slaar,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Och Haafsfruar kamma sitt grönskende haar,</div> - <div class="verse indent4">Och bleka den skinande drägten.”<a id="FNanchor_34" href="#Footnote_34" class="fnanchor">[34]</a></div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -<p>“Heaven forefend,” said the Parson, hastily, “we are mad -enough, some of us already; and Torkel is in love, which is -worse; we do not want to see Haafsfruer. Remember Duke -Magnus.”</p> - -<p>“It was not the Haafsfru that took away the senses of -Duke Magnus,” said Torkel, “it was the curse of good Bishop -Brask, that rested on the family of Gustavus from the day -when he killed the two bishops and deceived our Bishop of -Trondhjem, who had given them sanctuary; the whole royal -family of Sweden have been crazy, more or less ever since, -till they turned them all out and put our good father Karl -Johann in their place.”</p> - -<p>Birger shook his head sadly; he was too highly born himself, -and too aristocratic, not to feel a little shame at the idea -of a French common soldier superseding the old family of -Vasa, sprung, like himself, from Jarl Birger; but, for all that, -he could not help admiring the worthy old king who, by his -downright honesty and sincerity and his strict sense of duty, -had painfully worked his way against all prejudices of rank -and nationality, and had wound himself into the affections of -the people who had chosen him. Still he had a kindly feeling -for the old and glorious race, and though he could -neither deny the fact of the sacrilege and breach of faith of -Gustavus Vasa,—to which all the Norwegians, and many of -the Swedes also, attribute the hereditary madness of his family,—nor -indeed, the fact of the insanity itself, which was notorious -in Eric his successor, in Charles XII., and Gustavus IV., -as well as the present exiled representative of the family,<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_213"></a>[213]</span> -yet he did not above half like Torkel’s allusion to it. The -Duke Magnus, whom they were speaking of, was the -youngest son of Gustavus Vasa, and was the first in whom -the symptoms of that disease about to be hereditary, had -manifested themselves.</p> - -<p>The Parson, rather sympathising in his discomfiture, -gave a turn to the subject by quoting the Swedish version -of the Duke’s madness, to which he had himself alluded; for -the Swedes ascribe it to the love of a mermaid, the sight of -whom is invariably unlucky and is generally supposed to -produce insanity.</p> - -<div class="poetry-container"> -<div class="poetry"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">“Duke Magnus! Duke Magnus! bethink thee well,—</div> - <div class="verse indent4">Answer me not so haughtily;</div> - <div class="verse indent4">For if thou wilt not plight thee to me,</div> - <div class="verse indent4">Thou shalt ever crazy be.</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Duke Magnus! Duke Magnus! plight thee to me,</div> - <div class="verse indent4">I pray you still so freely,—</div> - <div class="verse indent4">Say me not nay, but yes, yes!”</div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -<p>“There is no harm in <i>these</i> mermaids,” said Tom, “for -they are as good and hard-working a set of girls as any in -Christiansand, but I trust we shall never meet with the real -ones; at least, not just before a voyage.”</p> - -<p>“Why not,” said the Captain, “my principal reason for -coming here was the chance of seeing a mermaid in the only -country in which they are still to be met with. Have you -never seen one yourself, Tom?”</p> - -<p>“No, and God grant I never may; they are not seen so -often now-a-days as they used to be, that is truth. If they -are to be seen at all,” he said, after a pause, “I must say -this is just the time and the weather for them; a calm, still, -sunny day, with a mist on the water; through this they -used often and often to be seen in old times, combing -their hair, or driving their milk-white cattle to feed on the -rock weed; sometimes, though not so often, they are seen at -night, coming and shivering round the fishermen’s fires, and -trying to entice away the young men and to get them to go -with them to their deep sea-caves; and those that they carry<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_214"></a>[214]</span> -off are never seen again in the upper world.<a id="FNanchor_35" href="#Footnote_35" class="fnanchor">[35]</a> But mermaids -are never seen except in a still that comes before a storm, -and no one ever catches a fish for the first voyage after they -have seen them.”</p> - -<p>“It is just the same with the Skogsfrue,” (the Lady of the -Forest,) said Torkel; “she is just as unlucky for us hunters, -and when she can get any young men to go with her, she -never lets them come back again. I have fancied more than -once that I have seen her through the smoke of my fire in -the wild fjeld, but she was not likely to catch me.”<a id="FNanchor_36" href="#Footnote_36" class="fnanchor">[36]</a></p> - -<p>“Ah! there spoke the bridegroom elect,” said Tom, “but -I am not so sure of that either: I think, Torkel, I could -tell Fröken Lota more than you would like her to hear.”</p> - -<p>“If you do, Tom, you deserve to be ducked,” said the -Captain, “and I will help to duck you with my own -hands.”</p> - -<p>“He may tell what he likes, and what he can,” said -Torkel; “but it is quite true about the ill-luck in hunting -and fishing, which follow the sight of the Skogsfruer and -Haafsfruer both.”</p> - -<p>“Well, we will prove that, after Middagsmad, and there, -in good time, goes Jacob’s shot, to let us know that all is -ready.”</p> - -<p>The afternoon was spent in a lazy, lounging way; the -shoal, if shoal it can be called, where the bottom was -evidently jagged rock and the depth never less than twenty -fathoms, lay just off the island where they were, and the -boats had but to pull out a cable’s length to be in the very -best of the ground; but it is not a very exciting amusement -to be continually hauling in little fish about the size of -whiting, as fast as the lines could run down. It did not -take long to half fill the boats with that staple of Norwegian<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_215"></a>[215]</span> -life, rock cod: the hands of the fishermen, hardened with -forest work as they were, and tanned with the sun, were -scarcely calculated to stand the salt water and the constant -friction; the pleasure soon became a toil, and one by one -the boats sought the shore of the island.</p> - -<p>The mermaids were soon characteristically employed in -splitting and laying out in the hot sun the baby cod, which -proved a very acceptable present; for this little fish, which -swarms in every Norwegian fjord, is among the poorer -families, the principal winter store, and in nine cases out of -ten the only sea stock besides rö kovringer (or rye biscuits) -which a vessel carries. A present, in the strict sense of the -word, it could hardly be called, for Tom fairly sold his fish, -and gravely bargained for them with the young ladies, at so -many kisses the hundred, excluding Torkel from all -competition, much to his disgust, by explaining to them -that as an engaged man he was entirely shut out from the -market.</p> - -<p>The Parson and Birger were in the meanwhile seated in a -niche of the rock which formed a natural chaise-longue, -sedately smoking their pipes and watching the picturesque-looking -galliasses, which had endeavoured to work out -against the mid-day’s spurt of breeze that had by this time -entirely died away, and which now, with their great -sails hanging idly, like so many curtains from their yards and -gaffs, seemed, as well as the fishermen, to be basking and -enjoying themselves in the evening sun.</p> - -<p>There was no sort of hurry to return. Christiansand had -few attractions, and excepting Marie (and no one besides -Birger could profit by that), Ullitz’s house had still fewer. -The luggage was all packed, and probably by this time on -board, their places taken, and their passage paid. Their -intention was, not to land again but to go along side at once. -In the meanwhile, a little tired with their morning’s work, -they watched with half-closed eyes the beautiful and peaceful -sunset and the glorious rising of the round full moon -that threw a path of light across the glassy waters.</p> - -<p>“How beautiful!” said the Parson, who had just opened -his eyes.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_216"></a>[216]</span></p> - -<p>“Yes, that is the work of the Ljus Alfar—Lys Alfir they -call them here,—the Elves of Light. All elves work in metals, -and these make a silver filagree so fine that it can only be -seen by moonlight on a background of water. It is the floor -of their ball-room, and if we were either of us good enough, -which it seems we are not, we should see the little fairy -beings dancing on it. When they are tired, they will go to -sleep under the leaves of the limes, which tree belongs to -them especially; the little spots of light which you see in its -foliage on a moonshiny night are their bright eyes, which -they have not yet closed in sleep.”</p> - -<p>“Really,” said the Parson, “Prospero’s Isle ought to have -been placed on the coasts of Norway; it would seem that the -more scarce the visible inhabitants, the more numerous the -invisible.”</p> - -<p>“O, yes, nature, nature abhors a vacuum, and these Alfar -are by far the most numerous of all the supernatural beings. -The White Elves, or Elves of Light, are seldom found out of -Norway and Sweden, but the Brown Elf you have in Scotland -as well. He works in metals of all sorts, though he delights -most in silver and gold. It is the Brown Elf that is the fitful -capricious being, which gives their meaning to the words elf -and elvish: these are the creatures which pinch untidy -maids, and drink up the milk, and light up their evening -candles as Wills’-o’-the-Wisp, and lead men into bogs and -marshes. When seen, they are dressed in brown jackets -with crimson binding, and wear brown caps on their heads, -whereas the Ljus Alfar wear always the helmet of the -foxglove, and are dressed in white. It is the Black Elves -that are malicious, though they often do good service to -men; they, too, work in metals, but it is generally in iron -and copper; they make arms and armour too, and sometimes -filagree work, like the Ljus Alfar, but theirs is always black.”</p> - -<p>“Berlin iron?” suggested the Parson.</p> - -<p>“Perhaps so; at all events the chain armour that they -make is a most valuable present, for, though no heavier than -filagree-work, or, as you say, Berlin iron, it will turn a sword -or a shot.”</p> - -<p>“The disposition of the elf, then, varies with its colour.”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_217"></a>[217]</span></p> - -<p>“Yes, but one characteristic runs through all—all are -capricious. All may benefit you, some may hurt you, but -none can be reckoned upon, and that peculiarity, together -with their universal horror of daylight, gives a key to their -allegorical origin.<a id="FNanchor_37" href="#Footnote_37" class="fnanchor">[37]</a> These elves, or dwarfs, are the incarnation -of mining speculations, a very general form of gambling -both in Norway and Sweden. Mines are proverbially capricious; -it is impossible to tell how they may turn out. Occasionally -these spirits are beneficent in the highest degree, -and their <i>protégés</i> become suddenly rich, but this is never -to be relied on; the best are capricious, and the greater -number are tricksy; while some—though even these are now -and then capricious benefactors—are positively wicked and -malicious. There, now you have my theory of the alfs and -alfheim.</p> - -<p>“And there is another allegory about them, with a good -Christian moral to it,” continued Birger, after a pause spent -in cherishing the fading embers of his pipe; “these alfs are -not baptised and have no part in salvation, but they are -capable of baptism under certain circumstances; they are -always anxious for it for themselves in their good moments, -but invariably so for their children, though those instances -in which they succeed are rare. The Icelandic family of -Gudmund are cursed with a disease peculiar to their race, -which originated—so the family tradition goes—in the curse -of an alf frue, whom one of their ancestors had deceived in -this particular. Andreas Gudmund had a child by an alf -frue: at her earnest request, he promised that it should be -taken in the church; and when the child was old enough, she -duly brought it to the churchyard wall, which was as far as -she might go herself, for no alf may enter consecrated -ground. The sound of the bells was torture to her, but she -bore it, and laid her child on the wall, with a golden cup as -an offering. But Gudmund, fearing the censures of the<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_218"></a>[218]</span> -Church and the reproaches of his friends, would not fulfil -his promise. The alf frue waited and waited, but the service -was over, and the parting bells began to ring again. So she -snatched up the child and vanished into her hill, and neither -she nor it were ever seen again under the light of day. But -from that time forward, the right hand of every Gudmund -is leprous, in token that their ancestor was forsworn.</p> - -<p>“Now all this must be allegory; what should you say was -the meaning of the spirits of the mine being capable of salvation, -and being occasionally, though rarely, seen admitted into -the Church?”</p> - -<p>“I suppose,” said the Parson, “it must be that wealth, -though a temptation to evil, may be used in God’s service, -and that it occasionally, though rarely, is so used. ‘Make -to yourselves friends of the mammon of unrighteousness, -that when ye fail they may receive you into everlasting -habitations.’”</p> - -<p>“I think we may as well top our booms,” said the Captain, -whose cigar was finished; “the people will be all asleep on -board the steamer, and, besides—”</p> - -<p>“Besides what?”</p> - -<p>“Why we promised to let Marie have the eider down, and -Ullitz’s people will be in bed, too. You know we sail at -daybreak?”</p> - -<p>“O-ho, that’s the business is it? Well, then, call the men -together, and see that they leave nothing behind them.”</p> - -<p>That was soon done, for nothing had been landed beyond -the cooking and dining apparatus, and the boats dashed along -the still fjord, leaving behind them three rippling lines of -sparkling light, as if the Ljus Alfar were dancing in their -wakes.</p> - -<p>In little more than an hour they were alongside the -steamer, where their whole travelling paraphernalia had -been stowed in their respective berths. Of these, the Parson -and Birger, tired with their long day’s work, were very -shortly the occupants; the Captain, more energetic, collected -the ducks, and, accompanied by Tom and Torkel, landed at -the wharf; but what Marie said, on receiving so large an accession -to her stores, and what the Captain said to her, and<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_219"></a>[219]</span> -how he contrived to say it, are points upon which history is -silent. Certain it is, that when the Parson awoke from his -first sleep, which was not till the steamer began to tumble -about on the swell outside, the Captain was snoring loudly -in the next berth, while the three attendants were equally -fast asleep on the cabin deck.</p> - -<div class="note"> - -<p>While this book was in the press, the author met with “Lloyd’s -Scandinavian Adventures,” in which there is not only a description, -but a print of eider duck shooting <i>under sail</i>. It would be presumptuous -in him to go against the experience of a sportsman who has -resided in these countries for more years than the author has months. -Possibly in the north, where the birds are less hunted, they may be less -cautious, and may allow a boat to approach them in a breeze. The -author can, however, write only from personal experience. The foregoing -chapter, so far as the facts are concerned, is merely a transcript -from his journal; and as far as his own experience goes, he would say, -that the setting in of a breeze sufficient to enable the lightest boat to -carry sail, would utterly preclude all chance of success in eider duck -hunting.</p> - -</div> - -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - -<div class="chapter"> -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_220"></a>[220]</span></p> - -<h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_XVI">CHAPTER XVI.<br /> -<span class="smaller">THE COASTING VOYAGE.</span></h2> - -</div> - -<div class="poetry-container"> -<div class="poetry"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">“Now launched once more, the inland sea</div> - <div class="verse indent0">They furrow with fair augury.</div> - </div> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">“So brilliant was the landward view,</div> - <div class="verse indent4">The ocean so serene;</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Each puny wave in diamonds rolled</div> - <div class="verse indent0">O’er the calm deep, where hues of gold</div> - <div class="verse indent4">With azure strove, and green.</div> - <div class="verse indent0">The hill, the vale, the tree, the tower,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Glowed with the tints of evening hour,</div> - <div class="verse indent4">The beach was silver sheen.</div> - </div> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">“The wind breathed soft as lover’s sigh,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">And, oft renewed, seemed oft to die,</div> - <div class="verse indent4">With breathless pause between.</div> - </div> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">“O, who with speech of war and woes</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Would wish to break the soft repose</div> - <div class="verse indent4">Of such enchanting scene.”</div> - </div> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse right"><i>Lord of the Isles.</i></div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -<p>If an Englishman can ever enter into the feelings of a -Neapolitan, and in any way connect the ideas of the <i>dolce -far niente</i> with those of enjoyment, if he can ever bend that -active, energetic mind of his, and that restless and industrious -Anglo-Saxon body, to realize the faintest conception -of the “paradise of rest,” in which the Buddhist places the -sum of his felicity, it will be on board ship, after breakfast, -on a calm, warm forenoon, and beyond the influence of the -Post Office.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 700px;"> -<img src="images/illus6.jpg" width="700" height="460" alt="" /> -<p class="caption">SCENE ON THE SOUTH COAST OF NORWAY.</p> -<p class="caption-r"><a href="#Page_220">p. 220.</a></p> -</div> - -<p>That these words actually passed through the lips of the -Captain, and escaped, what Homer calls, the protection of -his teeth, we will not take upon ourselves to affirm—as -indolently he reclined on the paddle-box of the <i>Gefjon</i> -steamer, with his eyes shut, his muscles relaxed, his arms -and legs sprawling about in all directions, while the indolent<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_221"></a>[221]</span> -smoke of his cigar, that from time to time floated out lazily -from between his lips, afforded the only sign of life about -him; he seemed as if he was totally incapable of making -any such exertion—but certainly, these ideas passed through -his mind, and pictured themselves on the light grey clouds -that proceeded from his mouth.</p> - -<p>Breakfast, so far as the English portion of the guests was -concerned, had long been over, and though some hardy -Norseman or persevering Swede was still lingering over the -scenes of his departed joys, and dallying with tempting -morsels of raw smoked salmon, or appetizing <i>caviare</i>, the -first great act of Northern daily life might be looked upon -as completed.</p> - -<p>“You an artist,” said Birger, whose sketching tablet was -already slung round his neck, and who was looking round -him from the bridge, unable to choose, in such a panorama -of beauty, which of all the lovely views he should attempt -to transfer to his paper—“You an artist, and asleep among -scenes like these? you are not worthy of them; as if you -could not smoke your cigar while the rain was falling, and -sleep in the night-time.”</p> - -<p>“I was not asleep,” said the Captain, lazily, “I was -thinking.”</p> - -<p>“Thinking,” said Birger, “look round you, and you may -think that you are in fairy land, if fairy land, itself, has anything -half so lovely. Look at that beautiful lake, which we -are just opening, on the north—see how those wooded capes -partly intercept the view, with their soft outline of birch, -and that long reach of blue water dancing in the sunlight, -and that little island, a single spot of shade, with its three -picturesque fir trees, and that dark red rock that overhangs -it, with its iron stains of brown and yellow starting up from -among the bright green foliage; and look how the ash -fringes the edge of that precipice: get up, and if you are too -lazy to work, at least admire.”</p> - -<p>Really, the scene was a scene of fairy land, such as, in our -most poetical of moments, we picture fairy land to be. The -steamer’s course lay among the groups of islands that fringe -the southern shore of Norway, and these, in that portion of<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_222"></a>[222]</span> -the chain, at least, which lies between Hellesund and Lyngör, -are, for the most part, bold rocks, clothed with every variety -of foliage which Norway produces, and, being sheltered from -the sweep of the sea breezes by the outer chain exhibit that -foliage in its fullest perfection. The idea usually connected -in our minds with Norwegian scenery, is that of wild and -desolate grandeur; and fully is that idea realized in the -mountains of the Hardanger and the Alpine deserts of the -Fille Fjeld—wild, rugged, treeless scenes of utter desolation, -almost beyond the limits of vegetable life. But it is far -otherwise with the coasts—nowhere is seen a colouring -half so vivid as among the sheltered islets of the southern -shores; the turf with which their glades are clothed is more -brilliantly green than anything that we have in England, -where the grass is invariably interspersed with weeds. Take -a square yard of any English turf whatever, and you will find -in it, from ten to twenty different sorts of plants, all of -which are, more or less, glaucous in their colouring, and -these, though at a little distance undistinguishable in their -forms, yet, blend their hues with the emerald green of the -grass, and present what, side by side with Norwegian turf, -would be but a soiled and faded picture. The foliage, too, -is far more bright and luxuriant than anything in England, -even in the interior of the country, but as different from our -wind-worn and frost-nipt sea-side greenery as can well be -conceived.</p> - -<p>There is no such thing as early spring in those latitudes, -or those warm, sunny, deceitful days, which tempt forth the -young bud and leaflet, only to be pinched and shrivelled by -the April frosts. Week after week does stern winter bind -up all nature in its iron fetters; all is still, and cold, and dead; -and though the sun rises higher and higher, he seems to -shine without power; and though the days lengthen, and -the empire of night be invaded, winter still holds on, and -the snows look even whiter in the stronger light—the Norway -of April, is but the Norway of December: more bright -and more chilly—When all at once, and without preparation, -the scene is changed—the snows are gone, the ice is broken, -the leaves are already green, and the country is in the garb<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_223"></a>[223]</span> -of full-blown summer. Spring is a season unknown in -Norway.</p> - -<p>The consequence of this is, that the leaf, which has not -begun to spring at all till the frost is thoroughly out of the -ground and the air free from chill, is never blackened, or -nipped, or dwarfed in its proportions, as it is in England, -and therefore preserves, through the short summer, a greenness -and depth of colouring which with us is unknown.</p> - -<p>“There is a beautiful legend about this,” said Birger, as -he pointed out this peculiarity, “I do not believe in it myself, -altogether,” added he, smiling, as the recollection of the -Tellemarken legends and the sacrifice to Nyssen came -across his mind; “I will not vouch, myself, for more than -the allegory, but if we may trust to the fires of Walpurgis -Night, my countrymen believe it implicitly: ‘Iduna, the -goddess of youth, is among the Æsir, the guardian of the -apples of immortality—gods, like men, are subject to decay; -but whenever they feel any symptoms of it, they renovate -their existence by the apples of Iduna. The possession of -these apples was, as might be supposed, earnestly coveted -by the Hrimthursar, or Frost Giants, whose territories, -called Uttgard, surrounded on every side the sea that encompasses -the earth. Time was when the earth enjoyed a perpetual -spring, but Loki, who had not then forfeited his place -among the gods, attacking, one day, the giant Thjassi, the -chief of the Hrimthursar, whom he had taken for an eagle, -found his hands frozen to his plumage.</p> - -<p>“‘Thjassi demanded as the price of his liberty that Iduna -should be betrayed into his hands: this Loki agreed to do, -and notwithstanding some secret misgivings, contrived to -perform his promise; and thus it was that the goddess of -youth, seduced beyond the influence of Asgard, was seized -upon by the eagle giant and imprisoned in his castle among -the rocks of eternal frost.</p> - -<p>“‘The gods, who had lost their renovating principle, were -growing grey and wrinkled; the might of the Thunderer -was paralysed, and the wisdom of Odin himself, the father of -gods and men, was waning; the whole world was pining -for want of that principle of life which continually restored<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_224"></a>[224]</span> -the inevitable decay of nature; Loki himself felt the universal -loss which the world had sustained, and being as yet -not entirely lost to shame or callous to rebuke, set himself -in earnest to effect the deliverance of Iduna.</p> - -<p>“‘This—having borrowed from Freya her falcon plumage—he -managed to effect, and was bringing back the goddess -to Asgard, under the guise of a swallow, the bird of spring, -when the eagle wings of Thjassi, who was rushing in pursuit, -darkened the air and blotted out half the sky. The -gods lighted fires round all the walls of Asgard to scare -away the pursuer, who fell exhausted in the flames and -perished under their vengeance.</p> - -<p>“‘But Skadi, his daughter, determined to revenge her -father’s death, declared war on Asgard, and carried it on with -such success that the gods were fain to come to a compromise -with her, and she consented to peace on condition that -she should take for her husband any one of the gods she -should choose, and should be admitted into Asgard as an -equal. From that time forward the earth has felt the influence -of the Hrimthursar for a portion of the year; but -their power is at an end<a id="FNanchor_38" href="#Footnote_38" class="fnanchor">[38]</a> on the anniversary of that day, -when Iduna is delivered from her captivity; and men -kindle their fires on Walpurgis Night, the 30th of April, in -memory of those which, kindled on the walls of Asgard, had -baffled and destroyed the chief of the Hrimthursar.’”<a id="FNanchor_39" href="#Footnote_39" class="fnanchor">[39]</a></p> - -<p>“Ah! by the way, I saw them building up a great bonfire<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_225"></a>[225]</span> -as we rounded that point of land, coming out of Hellesund,” -said the Captain; “there was a heap a dozen feet -high, and they had put a whole boat upon the top of it.”</p> - -<p>“Well, but this is not Walpurgis Night,” said the Parson; -“this is St. John’s Eve.”</p> - -<p>“We do not know much about St. John’s Eve in these -parts,” said Birger, laughing. “I am afraid our legends are -a good deal more Pagan than Christian. That which you -saw was the ‘Bale-Fire,’ by which our people commemorate -the death of Baldur, and the boat was his ship, the <i>Hringhorn</i>. -You will see plenty more of them when the night -draws on;—every town and every village, and almost every -hut will have its bale-fire, and many of them its boat too. -It is a singular thing that Pagan legends should have so -much more hold on the minds of the people than anything -derived from their Christian history, but so it is.”</p> - -<p>“Not at all singular,” said the Parson; “properly speaking, -Norway was never converted; it was conquered by a -Christian faction, and again it was conquered by a court -party. The people succumbed to force; but in their thoughts -and feelings—and therefore in their manners and customs—they -were what they had been in the days of the sea-kings; -and now their minds naturally revert to the time when their -country was most powerful.”</p> - -<p>“I will give you a Christian legend, then,” said Captain -Hjelmar, the Swedish commander of the steamer, who had -been for some time talking with Birger on the bridge, and -now came forward with his hat in his hand, after the -manner of his country, and told his tale, very fluently, in a -queer sort of French. This was also after the manner of -his country, for, though that language is abominated in<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_226"></a>[226]</span> -Norway, in Sweden it is much affected by those who would -wish it to be supposed that they are <i>habitués</i> of the court; -and thus it was that though—as it afterwards turned out—Captain -Hjelmar could speak remarkably good English, he -preferred addressing Englishmen in remarkably bad French, -in order to show his court breeding.</p> - -<p>“You see that tall rock,” said he, “that looks so black and -distant, in front of that green island?—that rock really is -one of the Hrimthursar of whom Lieutenant Birger has been -telling you; and when St. Olaf came to convert the Norwegians, -the giant, who had been bribed by Hakon the -Jarl, at the price of his young son Erling, whom he -sacrificed to him, waded into the sea, and put forth his -hand to stay the ship, that the saint should not approach -the shore: but the saint served a higher Power than the -gods of Asgard, and even as he stood, the giant froze into -stone; and there he stands to this day, as you see him, with -one arm advanced,—and there he will stand till the day of -Ragnarök, except that once in a hundred years, on Christmas -Eve, he is restored to life, in order to declare to the Hrimthursar -that on that day their power was broken for ever.”</p> - -<p>“Well done, St. Olaf,” said the Captain; “I thought -that all his conversions were effected by the weight of his -battle-axe.”</p> - -<p>“Why, you Englishmen acknowledge him as a saint as -well as we,” said Captain Hjelmar. “Have you not, in your -great City of London, a church dedicated to him? and is -there not also a place called Cripplegate?”</p> - -<p>“There certainly are such places,” said the Parson, “but -what they have to do with one another, or with Norway, is -more than I can see.”</p> - -<p>“There was a man in Walland, so great a cripple that he -was obliged to go on his hands and knees, and it was revealed -to him that if he should go to St. Olaf’s Church, in -London, he should be healed. How he got there, I cannot -tell you; but he did, and he was crawling along, and the -boys were laughing at him, as he asked them which was St. -Olaf’s Church, when a man, dressed in blue and carrying an -axe on his shoulder, said, ‘Come with me, for I have become<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_227"></a>[227]</span> -a countryman of yours.’ So he took up the cripple and -carried him through the streets, and placed him on the steps -of the church. Much difficulty had the poor man to crawl -up the steps; but when he arrived at the top he rose up -straight and whole, and walked to the altar to give thanks; -but the man with the battle-axe had vanished, and was never -seen more; and the people thought it was the blessed St. -Olaf himself, and they called the place where the cripple was -found ‘Cripplegate,’ and so they tell me it is called to this -day.”<a id="FNanchor_40" href="#Footnote_40" class="fnanchor">[40]</a></p> - -<p>“Faith! I can answer for that part of the story myself,” -said the Captain; “the place is called Cripplegate, sure -enough, but I am afraid St. Olaf has long since ceased to -frequent it, for we have not heard of any miracles done -lately in those parts. But what is your story about the -‘bale-fires,’ Birger, for I see another in process of erection -on that cape?—that looks like a remarkably good boat they -are going to burn in it.”</p> - -<p>“That legend, like most of those from the Eddas, is purely -allegorical, and, unlike most of them, is very intelligible. -Baldur, among the Æsir, is the Principle of Good, and -everything that is bright, or beautiful, or innocent, is dedicated -to him, and among other things, that part of the year -which begins at Walpurgis Night, when the reign of the frost -ceases, and ends at this day, the summer’s solstice—that is -to say, the whole of that time in which light and warmth -are getting the mastery over cold and darkness. These -commemorate the happy days of Asgard, before the Principle -of Evil had crept in; and had they only continued, the -whole world would have been by this time glowing in perpetual -light, and spring, and happiness.</p> - -<p>“But Loki himself, one of the twelve of the principal Æsir, -became envious of this, and was jealous that all the good in -the world should be ascribed to Baldur; so he resolved to -kill him. This the Nornir revealed to Baldur in a vision,<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_228"></a>[228]</span> -and the goddess Freya took an oath of everything that -walked on the earth, or swam the waters, or flew in the air, -or grew from the ground, or was under it, that they would -not hurt Baldur; and then the gods would laugh at the revelation -of the Nornir, and would shoot at Baldur with -stones, and masses of iron, and thrust at him with their -spears, and cut at him with their swords and axes; but they -all passed him by for the oath’s sake, which all nature had -given.</p> - -<p>“So Loki said to the mistletoe, ‘Thou dost neither run, nor -fly, nor swim, nor grow from the ground, nor lie under it; -there is no oath for thee.’ So he gathered the stem of the -mistletoe, and placed it in the hand of Hodur, the god of -Blindness, and said, ‘shoot, like the other gods, and I will -direct thy hand:’ and he shot, and Baldur fell dead in the -midst of the gods, and innocence departed from the earth; -and then the days which had hitherto been getting brighter -and brighter, so that darkness had began to fly from the face -of the earth, now began to close in again, and darkness began -to increase.</p> - -<p>“In vain did Hermod, the brother of Baldur,<a id="FNanchor_41" href="#Footnote_41" class="fnanchor">[41]</a> undertake -the journey to the realms of Hela. So much was accorded, that -if all nature would agree to mourn for the death of Baldur, -he should be restored to earth; but though everything did -so, as the Edda has it, ‘Men and animals, and earth, and -stones, and trees, and all metals, even as thou hast seen -everything weep when it comes forth from the frost into the -warm air, yet the giantess, Thaukt, who it is said was but -Loki in disguise, refused to weep.’</p> - -<div class="poetry-container"> -<div class="poetry"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">“‘Neither in life, nor yet in death,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Gave he me gladness.</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Let Hell keep her prey!’</div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -<p class="noindent">and Hell will keep her prey, as the Norna revealed to Odin, -till the day of restitution of all things; and then, when the -new sun shall enlighten the new earth, Baldur, restored from<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_229"></a>[229]</span> -Hell, and Hodur, no longer blind, shall reign for ever and -ever.<a id="FNanchor_42" href="#Footnote_42" class="fnanchor">[42]</a></p> - -<p>“But in the mean time it was necessary to prepare the -funeral pyre of the god: his body was placed in his ship, -the <i>Hringhorn</i>, and the pile was built round it, and his wife, -Nanna, and his dwarf, Litur, and his father’s magic ring, -Dropsnir, and his horse, and all his accoutrements, were -placed on it, and amid a weeping concourse of gods and men, -and Hrimthursar, and dwarfs, and witches, the fire -was placed to it, and all nature mourned the departure of -innocence.</p> - -<p>“And in memory of this, so soon as the days cease to -lengthen, and nature feels the loss of its original innocence, -and darkness begins to threaten the earth, men kindle their -fires in memory of the death of Baldur.”<a id="FNanchor_43" href="#Footnote_43" class="fnanchor">[43]</a></p> - -<p>“Hallo! the Thousand take you! look where you are -steering,” shouted out Hjelmar, in Swedish, to the helmsman, -“are you going to run down the island?” And in truth it -did seem something like it, for the branches of the overhanging -trees rattled against the fore-topsail-yard, bringing down -a shower of leaves and twigs; and a projecting ash so nearly -brushed the paddle-box on which they were sitting, that the -Parson broke off a branch as they passed.</p> - -<p>“Confound those fellows! they know the water is deep -here, and think they cannot shave the point too closely, I<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_230"></a>[230]</span> -suspect they wanted to astonish the passengers, and did not -see me among them.”</p> - -<p>The point which they had rounded was just to the east, -from off Osterisö, at which place they had just touched; and -immediately afterwards they plunged into a deep, dark -chasm of a passage between the two islands, which looked -as if they had been split asunder by some sudden convulsion -of nature, so evidently the projections and indentations of -the opposite walls of rock seemed to fit into each other; -while far overhead the trees looked as if they were overarching -the chasm, and shutting out the light of day from -its recesses. The churning sound of the paddles, and the -hissing of the sea beneath their stroke sounded unnaturally -loud, and the two little pop-guns which the <i>Gefjon</i> carried -on her forecastle and took that opportunity for discharging, -rolled and echoed like a peal of thunder.</p> - -<p>“There!” said Captain Hjelmar, as the steamer pushed her -way into daylight, and opened out a wide expanse no less -beautiful than those they had been passing through all the -morning; “there lies the strength of our coast; the Norwegian -navy consists principally of gun-boats, and these -dodge in and out among these islets, just as difficult to catch -as rabbits in a warren; the great lumbering cruiser of the -enemy watches in vain on the outside, like a terrier at the -rabbit’s hole, while the rabbit, meanwhile, has passed out by -a back door, and is taking his pleasure elsewhere.<a id="FNanchor_44" href="#Footnote_44" class="fnanchor">[44]</a></p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_231"></a>[231]</span></p> - -<p>“In the days of the last war, I was a cadet on board the -<i>Najaden</i> frigate, the commodore on these coasts: I used to -be lent to the gun-boats, and capital fun we had with your -merchantmen; pretty profitable fun too, for we brought -them in by dozens. There were your big cruisers, every now -and then getting a crack at us, and picking off here and -there a clumsy fellow who let himself get caught outside, -but never doing us much harm. It was glorious fun, certainly,—at -first, I must say, I did not like firing at the old -English flag, that so many of our people had sailed under, -but after exchanging a few shots, and seeing a few of one’s -people knocked over, one soon learns to forget all that; and -I blazed away at the old red rag after a bit, just as readily as -I would at a rascally Russ.</p> - -<p>“Your Captain Stuart put an end to all that, though, for -one while; and before we had recovered from the drubbing -he gave us, there was peace again, and no revenge to be had -for it. I was not sorry for the peace, though; it is not -natural to be fighting the English.”</p> - -<p>“Aye,” said the Parson, “I have heard something about -Captain Stuart, of the <i>Dictator</i>; he got some credit for his -services in these waters.”</p> - -<p>“And well he deserved it,” said Hjelmar; “he was a -thorough sailor, he knew what his ship could do, and he made -her do it. As for fighting, anybody will fight; but to run -such a chase as he did, requiring skill, and science, and nerve, -and firmness, as well as brute courage, which every man has, -and most beasts besides, is what very few men would have -moral courage to attempt, or seamanship enough to bring to -a successful termination.</p> - -<p>“We used to laugh at the old <i>Dictator</i>; if a corvette could -not catch our gun-boats, it was not very likely a line-of-battle -ship would do the trick; for this water, for all it is so -deep and looks so open, is studded all over with pointed rocks -at a fathom or so under the surface; and some of these, not a -yard square at the top, any one of which would bring up a -gun brig, let alone a liner. Well, there was the <i>Dictator</i> -cruising about and doing nothing, as we thought; we did not -know that he was improving his charts, and getting bearings<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_232"></a>[232]</span> -and soundings; still less did we suspect that one of his -quartermasters had been the mate of a coasting jagt, and -knew the coast as well as we did. I have met the fellow -since; he got a boatswain’s rating for his services, and I think -he should have got something better.</p> - -<p>“At that time I was on board the frigate. Old Hulm, -our commodore, said I was too wild to be trusted with a -separate command, and one morning we were dodging about -where we are now, with a steady breeze from the westward -that looked as if it would stand. There were the old -<i>Dictator’s</i> mast-heads, just where we had seen them twenty -times before, over the trees of Laxö,—that is, the island we -are just opening, where those salmon nets are hanging up to -dry.</p> - -<p>“‘By the keel of <i>Skidbladner</i>, that sailed over dry land,’ -says Hulm, ‘what is the fellow at now?’ as we opened the -point of the island, and the line-of-battle ship, that had been -lying with her main-topsail aback, squared away her yards -and dashed in after us. ‘O, by Thor and by Mjölner! if -that is your fun I will see what Norwegian rocks are made -of. Keep her away a couple of points, quartermaster; and -Mr. Sinklar (to the first lieutenant), turn the hands up.’ By -this time we were running away dead before it; the enemy, -who was all ready, had her studding-sails set on both sides,—it -was beautiful to see how smartly they went up, it was like a -bird unfolding her wings. ‘That’s a fine fellow,’ said Hulm; -‘it’s a pity, too, to sink him, but we must, so here goes.’</p> - -<p>“Old Hulm, who was full of fight, all this time dodged -along under plain sail, just as if he did not care for <i>that</i> the big -fellow, and it is my opinion he would not have set his studding-sails -had the distance been less. You see that green point -just on the port bow, that one with the black stone lying off -it:—by the way, I do not see why we should not run the -very course ourselves. I have a passenger to Lyngör, and -we may just as well go that course as any other. Starboard -your helm, my man! that will do! meet her! keep her as she -goes.</p> - -<p>“There, now, you begin to see that there is an opening to -the eastward and northward of that point. As soon as we<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_233"></a>[233]</span> -brought it abeam, down went our helm, and everything was -braced as sharp up as it would draw; for the channel winds, as -you see, to the southward of east. We thought to bother her, -but those fifties on two decks are so short, they come round -like tops. We were running free again to the eastward, -outside the channel. When she came abreast of the opening, -in came her studding-sails all at once, and there were her sails -standing like boards, and her yards braced up as sharp as -ours had been, and so much had he gained upon us, that as -her port broadside came to bear, three or four shots, just to -try the distance, came across the end of the island after us, -skipping and dancing over the seas.</p> - -<p>“‘We must get Mjölner to speak to them,’ said old Hulm, -rubbing his hands and looking delighted. ‘I think she will -pitch her shot home now.’ Mjölner was a long French -eighteen, a very handsome brass gun, ornamented with -<i>fleurs-de-lis</i>, and all sorts of jigmarees; the private property -of the captain. Where he had picked it up, no one knew;—people -said it had been the Long Tom of a French pirate. -Old Hulm had called it Mjölner, which I suppose you know -is the name of Thor’s hammer; he was as fond of it as he -was of his wife, and always kept it on the quarter-deck, -under a tarpaulin, which he never took off except on -Sundays.</p> - -<p>“It took some time to train the gun aft, and by this time -the line-of-battle ship had cleared the channel, and was -putting up her helm to follow us. The old skipper laid his -pet gun himself, and squinted, and squinted over her breech, -and elevated, and depressed, and trained to the right, and -trained to the left, till we thought he never meant to -twitch the lanyard at all. Crack went Mjölner. By this -time we had pretty nearly got the line-of-battle ship’s three -masts in one, and the shot striking just under the fore top-mast -cross-trees, cut the topsail tie and the jib halyards at -once; down rattled the yard, snapping the fore top gallant -sheets, out flew the top gallant sail, and away went the jib -dragging under her fore-foot; and up flew the ship herself -into the wind again, letting drive her broadside at us, as if -she had done it on purpose.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_234"></a>[234]</span></p> - -<p>“The old skipper sent his steward for some bottles of true -Cognac, and gave the men a tot all round, to drink Mjölner’s -health.</p> - -<p>“The enemy had brailed up her driver, and braced by her -after-sails, and got before the wind again in no time; and was -not much longer in bending on a new tie and splicing her -halyards; but we had got pretty well out of range now, and -were bobbing in and out among a cluster of rocks as thick -as porpoises. We had a man at the flying jib-boom as a -look-out, and a couple more on the spritsail yardarms (for -our ships had not whiskers in those days), and it was nothing -but ‘Breakers ahead!’ ‘Rock on the port bow!’ ‘A reef to -starboard!’ for the next quarter of an hour or twenty -minutes, enough to make one’s hair stand on end. A-ha! -thought I, when the last of them showed clear on the quarter, -this is the skipper’s trap; here’s where the old <i>Dictator</i> is -going to lay her bones! But she did not. She dodged -through every one of them every bit as well as we had done, -and there certainly was no doubt but that the distance between -us was a good deal decreased. These tubs of fifties -sail like a haystack on a wind, but before it they go like -<i>Skidbladner</i> herself.</p> - -<p>“Old Hulm began to look grave; he had never dreamt of -her following him within the islands like that, and he began -to ‘smell a rat.’ The frigate had been caught on her very -worst point of sailing. We might easily have worked to -windward at first, but now she had got us fairly under her -lee, and if we tried to tack under her guns, she would have -stripped us of every rag of canvas we could show. Mjölner -came into play again, as well as the stern chasers on the main -deck, and to good purpose, too; but, on the other hand, the -English shot were flying like peas about us—and they did -not always fall short, either. Now and then there was a -rope shot away, or a man knocked over, or a gun capsized,—for, -at that distance, every shot that hit us pitched in upon -the deck and trundled forwards, hopping here and there off -the bulwarks without going through them, like so many -billiard balls.</p> - -<p>“‘I will tell you what,’ says Hulm, ‘I will shove her<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_235"></a>[235]</span> -through the Lyngör Channel, there is a rock in the middle -that it will be as much as we can do to shave ourselves, and -if we do get past it, the chances are, that it will bring up -the liner; it is a desperate chance, but we must try it, and -if the Englishman does get through after us (which she will -not), we will reach out into the offing as close to the wind -as we can lie. Port your helm at once, Mr. Sinklar—drop -your main course, and haul out the driver.’</p> - -<p>“Up she came to the wind again, but the main-sail, which -had been clewed up while we were running, had got a shot -through it, exactly where the bunt-line gathered it into a -bundle. The shot had gone through fold after fold of the -canvas, cutting the foot-rope also, and before the tack was -well hauled down, the sail had split from top to bottom; and -then, just as she drew in under cover of the land, the mizen -top-mast came clattering about our ears.</p> - -<p>“It was all up for beating to windward, unless we could -shift our top-mast in time, and this the enemy was too -close upon us to allow us do; everything lay on the rock -bringing her up, and as I looked over the side as we passed, -the rugged points looked so close to our own bends, that -I thought they must have gone through; and the liner drew -more water than we did.</p> - -<p>“All eyes were turned on the English ship, at least, on her -sails, for a point of land concealed her hull, and prevented -our firing; every moment we expected to see her sheets let -fly;—not a bit of it,—on she came as steadily as ever.</p> - -<p>“Just at the village of Lyngör the channel turns at right -angles, and the islands that form it, being high, took the -wind out of our courses; while we had been running it had -drawn a little to the southward of west,—which, as we had -been off the wind all day, we had not taken notice of—as -we turned the angle it headed us. Whether, under any -circumstances, we could have fetched clear of the northern -cape is doubtful; without our mizen top-sail it was impossible, -for as the courses were becalmed, we really carried -nothing but head sail that would draw; and in fact, we could -scarcely look up for the cape, much less weather it.</p> - -<p>“Down with the anchor! out boats, to lay out a warp<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_236"></a>[236]</span> -to spring her! we will fight it out here!’ said old Hulm. -But the Englishman had seen us over the land from his -mast-heads, and anchored by the stern, clewing up or letting -fly everything, and passing out his cable from his stern-port, -so as to check her way by degrees; when she came into -sight round the point, at not a cable’s length from us, she -had a cluster of men on her bowsprit with a hawser. On -she came, as if she was going to leap over the town, and -dropped her men on the houses, who, sliding down by the -dolphin-striker, leaped on shore and made fast with her -hawser forward, while her anchor brought her up abaft. -And there she lay, as steady as a land battery, and opened -her fire. The first broadside, loaded with grape, came -rattling among the boats that were laying out the warp; what -became of them I never heard; but the warp lay slack, and -the current drifted us end-on to the line-of-battle ship’s -broadside, and I felt our decks crumbling and splintering -under me as her shot tore them up.</p> - -<p>“The next thing after that that I recollect, is a great -rough hand pulling me out of the water by my collar, and a -kindly English voice asking me if I was hurt. The smoke -was still lying on the water, and hanging in little clouds -upon the trees; but all that was to be seen of the old -<i>Najaden</i>, was the main and fore-top gallant and royal masts, -which, with their sails set, were still above water, and the -blue and yellow pennant over all. We had gone down with -our colours flying, and Captain Stuart would not have the -pennant struck,—‘we had fought gallantly for it,’ he said, -‘and we should keep it still.’</p> - -<p>“Poor old Hulm, he was a fine fellow: there now! that is -the very spot of the action,” for by this time they had opened -the point of Lyngör, and had come in sight of the beautiful -little village. “Do you see that iron pillar on the point? -that is Captain Hulm’s monument.”</p> - -<p>“He went down with his ship, then?”</p> - -<p>“No, he did not; how he was saved I do not remember, -but he was saved, and rewarded too for his standing up to -the line-of-battle ship; for Father Karl is an old soldier, -and knows that a man often deserves as much praise for<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_237"></a>[237]</span> -being beat as for beating. The old fellow lived to a good old -age; that was his house, that white fronted one on the hill, -for Lyngör was his native place. It is not two years ago -that he was capsized in his little schooner and drowned. -There’s his monument, any how; and I always salute it, -whenever I pass this way:” and as they came abreast of the -point, the <i>Gefjon’s</i> swallow-tailed ensign dipped from her -peak, and her little pop-guns again testified their respect to -the old sailor’s memory.</p> - -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - -<div class="chapter"> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_238"></a>[238]</span></p> - -<h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_XVII">CHAPTER XVII.<br /> -<span class="smaller">GOTHEBORG.</span></h2> - -</div> - -<div class="poetry-container"> -<div class="poetry"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">“A cautious guest,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">When he comes to his hostel,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Speaketh but little;</div> - <div class="verse indent0">With his ears he listeneth,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">With his eyes he looketh,—</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Thus the wise learneth.</div> - </div> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">“No better burthen</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Bears a man on his journey</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Than observation:—</div> - <div class="verse indent0">No worse provision</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Bears a man on his journey</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Than frequent drunkenness.”</div> - </div> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse right"><i>High Song of Odin the Old.</i></div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -<p>Early rising is not pleasant at sea. Captain Basil Hall -may talk of the joyous morning watch if he likes,—but there -is nothing joyous in washing decks, and that is what most -ships are occupied with at that hour. The Parson did not make -his appearance on deck till after breakfast, and he was the -first of the party.</p> - -<p>The steamer was now approaching the end of her voyage, -for the land, closing on both sides, showed the estuary of the -Gotha. Most of the party were not sorry for the conclusion -of the voyage, enjoyable as the earlier part of it had been; -for the steamer,—after coasting all the way to Christiania, -where the party had supplied themselves with carioles for -their land journey, which, with their wheels unshipped, -were stowed away snugly forward,—had taken her course, -southward, over the tumbling Skagarack—a part of the -world notorious for sea-sickness.</p> - -<p>All the morning long, preparations had been going forward -for making a creditable appearance on arriving in port, and<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_239"></a>[239]</span> -the discomforts of the early-risers had been considerably increased -by a very liberal use of the holy-stone,—an amusement -which, as the men were still employed in blacking the -rigging, gave promise of an early repetition.</p> - -<p>Slung from a block at the mainmast head was a small -triangular stage, made of three battens, on which sat a very -dirty individual with a pot of slush before him and a tarring-brush -in his hand, with which he was polishing off his -morning’s work on the shining mast.</p> - -<p>Seated on the bitts below was a sturdy Norwegian, who, -as if disdaining the compromise usually adopted by the coasting -inhabitants, appeared in the caricature of a full-dressed -Tellemarker, with a strip of jacket like a child’s spencer, of -orange tawny wadmaal, great loose blue trousers with a -waistband over his shoulder blades, crimson braces, and two -strings of silver bullets dependent from the collars of a very -dirty shirt. He was caressing a particularly ugly dog, which -he called Garm,—an appellation which proved him to be -what in England would be called a fast man; it is much as -if an English young gentleman were to call his dog Satan. -He was haranguing, of course, on the vast superiority of -Norway to Sweden, and the infinite degradation which the -former country had received from the union of the crowns,—that -being not only the most favourite topic of Norwegian -declamation, but, in the present instance, at all events, the -most injudicious and unsuitable subject in which to exhibit -before so mixed an audience.</p> - -<p>They behaved, however, exceedingly well, and rather -trotted him out, much to the disgust of Torkel, who had -sense enough to perceive what was going on, and would have -infinitely preferred their beating him: after vainly endeavouring -to draw his countrymen away, he had walked -forward, and was looking moodily over the bows.</p> - -<p>“As for the Swedes,” said our judicious friend, “they are -nothing better than swindlers. I have, for my sins, to go -to Gotheborg every year, to lay in stores for the winter, and -I am sure to be cheated. We don’t let Jews land on our -shores, and I must go to Gotheborg to find them.”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_240"></a>[240]</span></p> - -<p>“Well, but we have no Jews either.” said a bye-stander; -“they do not come to us, they go to the Free Towns.”</p> - -<p>“You are all Jews; the real Jews don’t go to you, that -is very true, but it is because they know that the Gotheborgers -are hogs, and their law does not allow them to have -anything to do with unclean animals. Yes, you are all -swine together. Why, I tell you a Norwegian dog would -not touch anything Swedish. Come here, Garm!”—and he -pulled out of his pocket a bit of ham, evidently filched from -the breakfast table.</p> - -<p>Here the Parson thought he detected a glance of intelligence -between Captain Hjelmar and the man at the mast-head, -who, much amused, had left off his work to listen.</p> - -<p>“Come here, Garm!”—placing the tempting morsel on -the deck.</p> - -<p>The dog wagged his tail, evidently preparing to seize it.</p> - -<p>“Svenske!” said the man. The dog, who had been well -trained in this common trick, turned up his nose with apparent -disgust, and refused the meat.</p> - -<p>“There!” said he, “I defy any Swede among you all to -make a true Norwegian dog eat a bit of it. Garm knows -what you all are, don’t you, Garm?”</p> - -<p>Just then, by the merest accident in the world, the slush-kettle -got unhitched from the stage above his head, and came -tumbling over on the deck, and in its descent, taking the unfortunate -Norwegian on the nape of his neck as he was -leaning forward to caress his dog, pitched the whole of its -contents between his jacket collar and his back.</p> - -<p>Captain Hjelmar rated the man severely for his carelessness -in spoiling his decks, and, ordering him off the stage, -directed the boatswain to put his name into the black list. -The man, however, did not seem much cast down about it, -but slid down the greasy mast with a broad grin on his -countenance, while the Norwegians carried their discomfited -companion forward to purify him; and Garm, profiting -by the confusion, proved a traitor to his country, by not only -swallowing down the Swedish ham, but also by licking up -as much as he could of the Swedish slush that had poured<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_241"></a>[241]</span> -from the head and shoulders of his master on the Swedish -deck.</p> - -<p>The coast of Sweden and the banks of the Gotha below -the town, offer a striking contrast to the lovely scenery they -had left. There are the rocks and the fringing islets, as in -Norway, but here they are all flat, and most of them -absolutely bare. The coasts, too, where they could be seen, -exhibited ledges of rock and wastes of sand, with just enough -cultivation to make the desolateness painful, by connecting -it with the idea of people living there. Eider ducks would -dive before them, and wild-fowl in little knots would cross -their course, and hoopers would go trumpeting over their -heads, with their white wings reflecting the sun like silver, -and dippers of all sorts would play at hide-and-seek with the -waves, and seals would put up their bullet-heads to gaze at -them as they passed. The water is always beautiful when -the sun shines directly upon it; but the eye must not range -so far as the shore, for no sunshine could gild that.</p> - -<p>There was a good deal of life, and traffic too, upon the -waters, for Gotheborg, the nearest port to the Free Towns -and to all foreign trade whatever, as well as the outlet of the -river navigation, may be considered the Liverpool of -Sweden.</p> - -<p>As they proceeded the scenery slightly improved: the right -bank began to be dotted with houses and small villages, -wretched enough compared with the picturesque places on -the other end of the Skaggerack, but at all events showing -signs of life. At length they became continuous, and at a -couple of miles distance, the three churches of Gotheborg, -with the close cluster of houses, came into view. The anchor -was dropped opposite to the fishing suburb of Gammle -Hafvet, and a shore-going steamer came alongside to receive -the passengers; which steamer, much to the fishermen’s -delight, contained their old friend Moodie, who, on hearing -that the Norway packet had been signalized, had gone to -meet her on the chance of seeing them.</p> - -<p>Moodie was a singular character,—a cadet of good family, -and brought up to no profession; he had been from his -childhood passionately fond of field sports, in all of which he<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_242"></a>[242]</span> -excelled. At an early age he had become his own master, -with a good education, some usage of the world, a handsome -person, a peculiarly active frame and sound constitution, and -two hundred a year, <i>pour tout potage</i>. Rightly judging -that England afforded no fitting scope for his peculiar talents, -without the imminent danger of a committal for poaching, -he had expatriated himself to Ireland; which country, he -had, in a sporting point of view, thoroughly studied, and -made himself completely master of its resources; he knew -when every river in the whole island came into season and -went out, and the best and cheapest way of transferring self -and encumbrances from one point to another. He knew the -times at which the woodcocks and the snipes would arrive, -and the out-of-the-way places at which they may be safely -shot; he could give a catalogue <i>raisonnée</i> of all the wayside -public-houses in sporting localities, and was hand-in-glove -with half the disreputable squireens of Ireland. Certainly, -he bagged more grouse annually than many a man -who pays a rent of five or six hundred a year for the privilege -of supplying the London markets.</p> - -<p>It was on the Erne that the fishermen had met him, and -Moodie being an extremely well-informed and gentleman-like -man, besides being a thorough sportsman, they had struck -up with him what might be called an intimate acquaintance, -which, now that they met as Englishmen on a foreign land, -might be considered an intimate friendship.</p> - -<p>It was the railroads, and the consequent invasion of the -cockneys, which had expatriated Moodie from his adopted -country; people began to preserve, too, and to let their -fishing and shooting-grounds; even the Erne was not what -it had been, and Moodie, whose whole belongings, besides -his live stock in the shape of dogs, were contained in -two portmanteaus and as many gun-cases, packed them, -and one morning found himself standing on the quay of -Gotheborg.</p> - -<p>If, instead of the coast of Sweden, it had been the coast -of the Cannibal Islands, Moodie would soon have found -himself at home; but here he had letters of introduction, and -Karl Johann, who had a high opinion of the English, was<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_243"></a>[243]</span> -very anxious to get an infusion of English blood among his -Swedes. Moodie’s peculiar talents, too, which in England -might have consigned him to the county jail, in Sweden -found their legitimate outlet; he soon found a beautiful -little country house on the banks of the Gotha; had no -difficulty in renting the exclusive right of fishing for some -miles above and below it; paid the rent and all expenses of -boats and boatmen, and put a handsome sum into his pocket -besides, by supplying Gotheborg with lake salmon (salmo -ferox). He then got the rangership of a royal forest, by -which he kept his numerous hangers-on in what he called -butcher’s meat, and traded with the Zoological Gardens and -private collections in the wild beasts and birds of the country, -by means of which traffic, he had furnished himself with the -choicest collection of sporting fire-arms and fishing tackle -to be found in the north. Besides which, Moodie had -become a public character. Sweden has its wild beasts as -well as its ordinary game,—he who destroys a wolf or a -bear is a public benefactor, and Moodie had a peculiar -talent for tracking them. Every farmer within a hundred -miles of Gäddebäck would pull off his hat to him; but that is -not saying much, for a Swede is always pulling off his hat, -and if he had nothing else to pull it off to he would be -making his salaams to the cows and sheep.</p> - -<p>It was not a great deal of Gotheborg the fishermen saw -that evening; their experience of the country was confined -to a march by the shortest road from the landing place to -Todd’s Hotel, and their subsequent view to a sort of Dutch -interior, of which pipes, tobacco, bottles, glasses, juniper -beer of native manufacture, and thin vinous importations -from Bordeaux, made up the accessories; but the fishermen -had much to inquire after, and Moodie had much to tell.</p> - -<p>Breakfast, always a luxurious meal in the north, at least, in -summer time, on account of the quantities of berries and the -abundant supply of cream, brought a visitor,—a young artillery -officer, a friend of Birger, by name Dahlgren, and by -rank Count, who had his quarters in the inn,—for the -Swedish officers have no mess like ours, but lodge permanently -in the hotels, paying a fixed sum per week, and<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_244"></a>[244]</span> -dining at the <i>table d’hôte</i>. Like Birger, he was a painter, -but whereas the guardsman exercised his art simply as an -amateur, or at most, in the public service of his country, his -friend, Count as he was, exercised his as a profession, and as a -means of eking out his scanty pay.</p> - -<p>There would be a grand review that afternoon, he said, -and it would be well worth seeing, for Gotheborg is the -great artillery station of Sweden, and the Commander-in-Chief, -with his staff, who were on a tour of inspection, had -arrived by the canal steamer from the new fortress of Wanås, -on the Wetter.</p> - -<p>This piece of information, which the artilleryman detailed -with great glee, was received by Birger with a wry countenance, -as certain to detain him within doors as long as the -General remained at Gotheborg,—for it will be remembered -he was at that very time unable to join his regiment on account -of <i>pressing family affairs</i>.</p> - -<p>This did not affect the others, so, leaving their friend to -amuse himself as best he might, by improving his sketches -or watching the magpies from the window, they started, -under the pilotage of their new ally, for a tour of observation.</p> - -<p>Whatever else Gotheborg is famous for, certainly the -most remarkable thing in it is its flocks of magpies,—birds -which, in our country, are extremely wild, and by no means -fond of town life. Gregarious, in the proper sense of the -term, they are not, but they are as numerous as sparrows in -London, very nearly as tame, and much more impudent. -This by no means arises from any affection which the inhabitants -have for the bird—for magpies are ugly and mischievous -all the world over, and quite as mischievous in Gotheborg -as anywhere else,—but from a popular superstition they are -under the especial protection of the devil—and truly the devil -cares for his own: they build their nests and bring up their -young under the very noses of the schoolboys; they feed -them with stolen goods, filched from every kitchen,—and -often and often, among the delicacies of the season, they -regale them with spring chicken of their own killing. But no -one molests a magpie; Heaven only knows what would be<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_245"></a>[245]</span> -the consequences of killing one; and, though Government has -set a price on their heads, they sleep in safety, under the -protection of their great master.</p> - -<p>The town ought to be handsome, but it is not; the description -would look well on paper. A great broad canal -through the centre, with quays all the way on both sides, as -at Dublin, only twice as broad, forming a very wide street; -and from this five or six similar canals, similarly furnished -with quays and streets, branch off at right angles. The banks -of all these canals are planted with trees, and arranged as -shaded footways. All this sounds as if the place ought to be -pretty, but, though every word of this is true, the reality falls -far short of the ideas it conveys. The houses are mean -and low, and, the windows being flush with the sides, the -whole appearance is pasteboard-like and unsubstantial, which -the reality is not. The Swedes build their wooden houses -in very good taste, and they harmonise very well with -the scenery, but they should stick to that—<i>ne sutor ultra -crepidam</i>: let not the carpenter aspire to be a mason. -Every house, large or small, in town or in country, has very -large panes of glass,—the very cabins have them; the glass -is as bad as bad can be, full of flaws and waves, and very -thin besides; even this produces a bad effect; besides, it is -impossible to admire the finest of towns, when walking over -streets so roughly paved that eyes and thoughts must be continually -directed towards the footing.</p> - -<p>There is a capital market, and the canals bring the hay, -and the fuel, and all other heavy articles from the interior, -to the very doors of the houses. It was singular to see -floating haystacks and faggot piles—for so they looked, the -hulls of the boats being completely hidden by their freight,—towed -up in strings by the little steam-tugs, and moored to -the quays. If Gotheborg is not a prosperous town, Sweden -will not support one at all, for it is impossible for any -situation to be more favourable for trade. The river itself -forms a secure harbour, its only fault being that vessels of -heavy draught cannot anchor within a mile of the town. -The interior water communications comprehend all the midland -provinces, and the landing and shipping of goods is as<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_246"></a>[246]</span> -easy as art can make it; besides, it is the outermost port of -the whole country.</p> - -<p>The markets, certainly, are well supplied, especially -that of fish, both salt and fresh-water. Beef and mutton -are among its articles of export to the southern coasts -of Norway, and there is not a bad display of vegetables -for so northern a country. The quantities of spinach which -are seen everywhere, and which mingle with every dish, -rather surprise the traveller, till he finds out that the sandhills -which he has seen on each side of him all the way up -the river, are covered with it, growing wild—wild as it is, -English garden spinach is not at all better flavoured. Singularly -enough, melons are plentiful; one would almost as soon -expect to meet with pines in these latitudes,—but the short -summer of Sweden is peculiarly favourable for them.</p> - -<p>The trade of the place does not look very lively, and the -bustle in the streets is nothing at all like that of Bristol or -Liverpool. What little stir there was just then, seemed to -be rather military than mercantile. Dirty, slovenly-looking -artillerymen, with ugly blue and yellow uniforms, putting -one disagreeably in mind of the <i>Edinburgh Review</i>; overalls -patched extensively with leather that terribly wanted the -blacking-brush; and dingy steel scabbards, that did not -know what emery-stone was, were clanking about the streets, -followed by little crowds; and groups of officers were standing -at the doors of the hotels and lodging-houses. Evidently a -review was not an everyday business.</p> - -<p>The Parson and Captain were soon deserted by their military -cicerone, who left them, to prepare for his part in the -military display, having directed them into the street that -leads to the scene of action. This was a large meadow, or -small park, to the east of the town, rather a pretty promenade, -enclosed with trees, which was now crowded with -people. Towns, especially trading towns, are not remarkable -for costume. The people, seeing such a variety of foreigners, -get to be citizens of the world themselves, and so lose their -nationalities. But there were a few fancy dresses, too, from -the country round; short round corduroy jackets, sometimes -a sort of tartan, too, but which invariably had rows of buttons<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_247"></a>[247]</span> -sewed as thick together as they could stand. Among the -women, a handkerchief was frequently tied round the head -instead of a bonnet; but every one, almost, carried his or her -bunch of flowers, an article which abounded in the markets; -these were very often carried in the hats, or stuck through -the knots of the kerchiefs.</p> - -<p>And now the bugles of the artillery were heard, and the -rumbling of wheels, and the trampling of horses, as battery -after battery rolled into the park. The Swedes call them -horse artillery, but they are, in reality, only field batteries; -for of horse artillery, properly so called, that most beautiful of -military toys, they have none. Their guns, twelve pounders, -are drawn by six horses, each of which carries a man. In -bringing the guns into action, the off-man of each pair dismounted, -and these were joined by three others, whose seat -was on the limbers. These are hardly men enough to work -so heavy a gun, allowing for the casualties of action, but on -emergencies the driver of the middle pair also lends his -services.</p> - -<p>There was nothing showy in the review, the manœuvres -of which were confined to advancing and retreating in line, -and forming column, and deploying into line again; but all -at a foot’s pace, or at a very slow trot. They had no idea of -changing front, or retreating in echéllon, or any of those -showy manœuvres in which the prolong is used. In fact, so -far as display went, it was a very slow affair indeed; the -men, however, seemed to know their work pretty well, and -though individually dirty and slovenly and without the well -set up carriage of our own soldiers, they bore, as a body, -rather a soldier-like appearance. They ride very forward, -absolutely on the horse’s withers—this is said to give the -horse greater facility of draught; and it may, but at all -events, it gives a most awkward and unsoldier-like appearance -to the men, which is in no way improved by the -manner in which they carry their swords—the elbows sticking -out at right angles to the body, and their knuckles thrust -into their sides, as if they had a pain in their ribs.</p> - -<p>The guns seemed to be very much under-horsed, but -perhaps this is more apparent than real; for the Swedish<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_248"></a>[248]</span> -horses, though small, are strong and wiry, and their enclosed -country is not only not calculated for horse artillery -manœuvres, but does not admit of them. The chances are, -that a whole campaign might be fought in Sweden without -the artillery being required to move faster than at a foot-pace. -So far as numbers went, they mustered at least three -times as many guns as can be got together at Woolwich for -love or money at the best of times.</p> - -<p>The army of Sweden is very curiously constituted, and it -is not easy to reckon up its effective strength. The regular -army does not consist of above 10,000 men; the guards—than -which no finer body of men is to be seen in Europe,—the -artillery, and three or four garrison regiments, who are -stationed at Wanås, in the interior, and Carlscrona, and one -or two other fortresses on the coast.</p> - -<p>The militia, which is called Beväring, consists of every -man in the country between the ages of twenty and twenty-five; -these have regular days of exercise, generally Sunday -evenings in the summer, which is with them by no means a -popular arrangement, for those are the hours which the -ingenuous youths of Sweden devote to dancing, an amusement -of which they are passionately fond. This really is a -much more effective force than it seems, for the Swedes are -natural soldiers; besides which, it gives them all a habit of -drill, which might be rendered serviceable in case of invasion; -for, as every man in the country has been drilled in his -youth, they are all capable of immediately taking their -places in the ranks of the regular regiments. It would be a -very great improvement if they were drilled to ball practice, -like the Swiss and Tyrolese, for a Swede is terribly clumsy -with fire-arms, and on a skal, is just as likely to shoot himself -or his comrade, as a bear or a wolf.</p> - -<p>But the strength of the Swedish army lies in its Indelta, -a description of force peculiar to that country—unless the -military colonies of Russia be considered a parallel case.</p> - -<p>The crown possesses large estates, and these are leased -out, like the knight’s fees in old times, on man service, and -for that purpose are divided into hemmans, each hemman -furnishing a man, who has a portion of it by way of pay—the<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_249"></a>[249]</span> -hemman is not a measure of size, but of produce. Fertile -hemmans are small, waste or barren hemmans are large; and -thus it often happens, when a crown estate has been cleared -and brought into cultivation, though quite as productive as -some other estate, it furnishes a much smaller quota.</p> - -<p>The holder of such a property, is then bound to serve -himself, if capable, and to furnish a certain number of -efficient soldiers, horse or foot, according to the size of his -estate. The whole country is divided into military provinces, -under colonels; these are subdivided into districts, under -captains, with their proper complement of subaltern and -non-commissioned officers, who are paid by the tenure of -certain reserved farms, which they hold in virtue of their -commissions.</p> - -<p>Whenever the Indelta is called out—and a third of them -assemble in camp every summer,—the crown tenants of the -estates that furnished it are bound, at their own expense, to -cultivate the farms which the soldiers hold, and to return to -them their lands, when they are dismissed from active service, -in the same condition in which they took charge of them, -accounting for any sale of produce which they may have -made.</p> - -<p>The service of the Indelta is very popular, and for every -vacancy there are at least half a dozen candidates. No -application is ever received without written testimonials from -the clergyman of the applicant’s parish, and no man is ever -admitted who has been convicted of any crime. Many of -these crown holdings have been purchased and re-purchased, -and transferred from hand to hand so often, that they are -regarded as a sort of private property, and their tenants very -often complain of being burthened to a greater extent than -their countrymen. This, however, is as unreasonable as that -a tenant should complain that in paying rent he is not on -an equality with the proprietor in fee. The sale of crown -lands is merely the transference of a beneficial lease.</p> - -<p>So far as the morals of the people are concerned, the -patronage of the Indelta, and the reward it holds to good -conduct, act very beneficially; as to the efficacy of the force, -the wars of Gustavus Adolphus and of Charles XII., may<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_250"></a>[250]</span> -form a pretty fair criterion. The strength of this contingent -to the Swedish army, may be reckoned at 20,000 -infantry, and 5,000 cavalry, and has the advantage of being -always available.</p> - -<p>“You may come out of your hole now, Birger,” said his -friend, the artilleryman, who, arriving hot and dusty from -the barracks, was lounging down the streets, with his jacket -open and his stiff military stock in his hand, a free and easy -style of dress, in which an English officer would think it -just impossible to put his nose beyond the barrack gates. -“The General and all his staff are gone in a body to Arfwedsen’s -Villa, so you are safe for to-day.”</p> - -<p>“And for to-morrow, too,” said Birger, “for the steamer -starts for Stockholm to-morrow morning early; while you -were amusing yourselves, I have been doing business. As soon -as I heard from the sound of your guns that the General was -safe, I stepped down to the quay, went on board the <i>Daniel -Thunberg</i>, and engaged two cabins—we will toss up who is -to have the cabin to himself.”</p> - -<p>“Why, where’s Moodie?”</p> - -<p>“Moodie!” said Birger, taking out his watch, “why, by -this time Moodie is at Agnesberg.”</p> - -<p>“And where is Agnesberg?”</p> - -<p>“The first stage to Trollhättan. He had transacted his -business, and transferred his herd of deer to the Zoological -men before we came, so he said he would start at once for -Gäddebäck, and prepare to receive us. I rather think there -is some bear hunting afoot, for the Stockholm post came in -while you were at the review, and I am sure I recognised -Bjornstjerna’s great splash of a seal, and his scratchy hand. -At all events, off started Moodie.”</p> - -<p>“Why! is it not necessary to lay a forebud.”</p> - -<p>“Not on the main road; there is traffic enough between -this and Wenersburg to keep holl-horses (retained horses) -always at the stations. He will be at Gäddebäck, I will -venture to say, before daybreak.”</p> - -<p>“And when do we sail?”</p> - -<p>“At ten to-morrow; we can see the falls and the canal -before nightfall, and sleep at Trollhättan to-morrow night; -and on the following morning Moodie is to send his boat for -us. And now for dinner, I have ordered it at the Prinds -Karl; Todd’s is a very good house to sleep at, and not bad -for breakfast, but I want to shew you what Swedish -cookery is, as far as you can get any worth eating in the -provinces.”</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 700px;"> -<img src="images/illus7.jpg" width="700" height="460" alt="" /> -<p class="caption-r"><a href="#Page_251">p. 251.</a></p> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_251"></a>[251]</span></p> - -<p>“Ah! there spoke the guardsman.”</p> - -<p>“Well, it is very true, as you will confess, if ever I get you -to Stockholm; is it not, Count Dahlgren?” addressing the -artillery officer. “You dine with us, of course; in with you, -and wash off the stains of war, which are pretty visible at -present. You have not more time than you know what to -do with. If we do sail to-morrow, we will make a night of it -to-night.”</p> - -<p>“Like our first night at Mosse Eurd?”</p> - -<p>“No, hang it, no; not so bad as that;—that was all very -well for the men, but we do not make such beasts of ourselves -in this country. I have told them, though, to put -plenty of champagne in ice, and to provide the best claret -they have got; we will be merry—and wise, if possible.”</p> - -<p>“And if not possible?”</p> - -<p>“Why, then, the merry without the wise.”</p> - -<p>Whether mirth, or wisdom, or a judicious mixture of the -two prevailed that evening at the Prinds Karl, need not be -related; but the next morning saw the party on the clean -white deck of the elegant little river steamer <i>Daniel Thunberg</i>, -dashing along its broad, still stream, between rows of feathering -rushes, sometimes so tall as to eclipse the still flat and -uninteresting country beyond them. Ducks there were, -in such numbers, that the fishermen half repented their -engagement with Moodie; and Jacob, to whom every spot -was familiar, kept up an incessant chorus of regrets, pointing -out here a spot where he had made a fortune with the -långref, having hauled up a three-pound eel on every hook,—there -a corner where he had caught a pike so big he could -not lift it into the boat, but was obliged to tow it astern all -the way to Gotheborg,—and there a bay in the rushes in -which he had bagged five swans, eight geese, and more ducks -than he could count, at a single shot,—with as many more<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_252"></a>[252]</span> -stories, equally veracious, as he could get people to listen to; -and in fact, could be stopped by nothing short of that grand -event in a Swedish day, dinner, which, announced by -the steamer’s bell, was served with great magnificence in the -saloon.</p> - -<p>These little steamers form as luxurious a conveyance as -can be imagined; they are galley-built, that is to say, the -quarter deck is two or three feet higher than the waist; the -after part is divided into ten or twelve little private cabins, -each possessing its own port, and each furnished with its -two sofas and its table; the fore part contains the saloon, -or common cabin. They do not carry very powerful engines, -but they burn wood, and are as clean and as free from disagreeable -smells as if they were sailing vessels.</p> - -<p>At the locks of Lilla Edet, where a reef comes across the -river, forming a low but very picturesque fall, the fine -scenery commences. The fall itself is singular. The water -of the Gotha, fresh from the great lake of Wenern, which -acts as an enormous cesspool, is as clear and bright as -that of the Torjedahl, but with ten times its volume; it -slips off the smooth ledge of rocks as if it were falling over a -step; the ledge off which it slips is seen through it as distinctly -as if it were enclosed in a glass case, for the water -preserves its unbroken transparency till it reaches the bottom, -and then spreads out into a broad border of foam, like a fan -with swansdown fringe.</p> - -<p>From this point, a very perceptible difference was remarkable -in the run of the current, which retarded considerably -the way of the steamer through the belt of highlands which -separates the low tract bordering the sea-coast from the -higher level of Wenersborglan; and it was not till past five, -that the low rumbling, earth-shaking sound of the great -falls began to tremble on the ear.</p> - -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - -<div class="chapter"> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_253"></a>[253]</span></p> - -<h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_XVIII">CHAPTER XVIII.<br /> -<span class="smaller">TROLLHÄTTAN.</span></h2> - -</div> - -<div class="poetry-container"> -<div class="poetry"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">“Gefjon drew from Gylfi</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Rich stored-up treasure,—</div> - <div class="verse indent0">The land she joined to Denmark.</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Four heads and eight eyes bearing,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">While hot sweat trickled down them,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">The oxen dragged the reft mass</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Which forms this winsome island.”</div> - </div> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse right"><i>Skald Bragi the Old.</i></div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -<div class="poetry-container"> -<div class="poetry"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">“It was a wondrous sight to see</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Topmast and pennon glitter free,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">High raised above the greenwood tree—</div> - <div class="verse indent0">As on dry land the galley moves,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">By cliff and copse and alder groves.”</div> - </div> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse right"><i>Lord of the Isles.</i></div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -<p>“Birger, what is the Swedish for ‘Go to the devil?’ I -cannot make these little brutes of boys understand me,” -shouted the Captain, who was not in the best of humours, -having already made half a dozen slips on very dangerous -ground. In all Sweden, there is not a more slippery bit of -turf than that which clothes the cliffs and highlands of -Trollhättan. The bank along which he was scrambling to -get a good view of the falls rounded itself off gradually, -getting more and more out of the horizontal and into the -vertical at every step, till at last it plunged sheer into the -foaming turn-hole of the middle fall, in which the very best -of swimmers would have had no more advantage over the -very worst than that of keeping his head above water till -he went down the third leap, and got knocked to pieces on -the rocks below. There was not a root to hold on by -stronger than those of the dwarf cranberries, whose smooth<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_254"></a>[254]</span> -leaves only aided the natural slipperiness. Heather is not common -anywhere in Sweden; but here there was quite enough -not only to give a purple brown hue to the scenery, but also -to add to the difficulty of keeping one’s feet, in a way which -any one who has walked the side of a highland hill in very -dry weather will fully be able to appreciate. It was very -irritating when one at last had attained a point of view—after -traversing what to a leather-shod stranger was really -a dangerous path—to have the current of one’s thoughts interrupted -by a parcel of bare-footed urchins, who came -frolicking over the very same ground, and insisting that the -visitor should see everything, from the orthodox point of view -set down by Murray, and from no other whatever, and moreover -should pay for being tormented and unpoeticised, the -regulated number of skillings.</p> - -<p>The rush of waters was certainly very grand and very -magnificent. Much has been written about it in books of -travels, and much more in the album kept at the inn for the -purpose of enshrining and transmitting to posterity the -extasies of successive generations of travellers; but the -Parson, who ought to have been lost in admiration—to his -shame be it spoken—appeared chiefly solicitous to procure -bait, which he and Torkel had been diligently hunting for -in the shallows. It was not without considerable difficulty -that a trout sufficiently small to fit the snap-hooks of the -trolling-litch could be found, and when it was found, we are -happy to say, it met with no more success than it deserved; -for though at very considerable personal risk he tried as -much of the rushing water as his longest trolling-rod would -command, he was not rewarded with a single run.</p> - -<p>But for all that, there certainly are fish in all the pools -about these tremendous falls, and that he had the opportunity -of satisfying himself about before he left off; for -just as he was giving it up for a bad job, Torkel, who had -an eye for a fish like that of a sea-eagle, caught sight of -something alive that had poked itself into one of the runs -from the saw-mills, a place not three feet across; and unscrewing -the gaff which he was carrying, and substituting -for it the five-pronged spear, he plunged it into the water<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_255"></a>[255]</span> -and brought out a black trout (<i>salmo ferox</i>) of ten pounds -weight at the end of it. From the nature of the water it -is impossible that trout can abound at Trollhättan in any -great numbers. The river has scarcely any tributaries below -the falls; and as it is absolutely impossible for a fish to surmount -them, the breeding ground is very limited; but, on -the other hand, the clearness of the water is precisely that -which best suits the constitution of a trout; bleak and -gwinead, which form their principal food, are very plentiful, -and from the depth of the water, there is scarcely any limit -to the growth of the fish; a man, who is satisfied to catch -now and then a monster, will do very well at Trollhättan, -and in the course of the season will have a few stories to tell, -which in England will be set down as altogether fabulous,—but -it does not answer for a day’s fishing. The traveller -may as well make up his mind to admire the scenery at his -leisure,—it will not answer his purpose to wet a line there.</p> - -<p>The Parson having convinced himself of this, and, moreover, -having had one or two very narrow escapes, reeled up -his line and contentedly sought out his friends, who, by -this time, had succeeded in explaining to the swarms of -guides that their services were not required, and were sitting -on a heathery bank feathered with birch, exactly in front of -the middle falls, comfortably eating gooseberries, which grow -there in such plenty that, though the place swarms with -children—a whole regiment of soldiers with their wives and -families being hutted in the vicinity,—the bushes were still -full of them.</p> - -<p>“That is a curious cave,” said the Captain, pointing to a -hole which seemed to enter the face of the precipitous rock -by the side of the great fall, and to penetrate it for some -distance; at least, the depth was sufficiently great to be lost -in darkness; the bottom of it was on a level with the water, -and was not accessible without a boat.</p> - -<p>“That!” said Birger, “that is Polheim’s grave.”</p> - -<p>“Do you mean to say that any man was buried there?”</p> - -<p>“Not the man himself, only the best part of a man—his -reputation. Polheim was an engineer, and when the first -idea of making a practicable communication between the<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_256"></a>[256]</span> -Wener and the sea was entertained, he attempted to carry -it into effect by burrowing out that hole. If he had succeeded -in boring through the rock, he would have accomplished -the largest <i>jet d’eau</i> in the world. However, Government -were wise enough to put a stop to it, and to employ -a cleverer man. Polheim died—it is said of grief,—his body -buried at Wenersborg; what became of his soul, I will not -take upon me to say; but as for his reputation, there is no -doubt about that—that lies buried there.”</p> - -<p>“That canal certainly is a wonderful work for a country -like yours, where the extent of land is so great, and the produce -from it so small.”</p> - -<p>“It would have been more wonderful still,” said Birger, -“for it would have been done when the country was still -poorer, had it not been for the Reformation.”</p> - -<p>“The Reformation!” said the Captain. “What, in the -name of Tenterden Steeple and the Goodwin Sands, has the -Reformation to do with the Gotha Canal?”</p> - -<p>“Not much with the canal, but a good deal with Bishop -Brask who planned it—the man whom Geijer calls, and -very deservedly, ‘the friend of liberty, and the upright -friend of his country.’ The present canal, nearly as you see -it now, was sketched out in a letter still preserved, which -was written in the year 1526, by the Bishop, to stout old -Thurè Jensen, whom men called King of East Gothland—that -gallant old fellow, who, when he saw how the Diet of -Westeras was going, struck up his drums and marched forth, -swearing that no man in Sweden should make him heathen, -Lutheran, or heretic. Before the Bishop’s scheme could be -converted into a reality, stout old Thurè was a headless -corpse, and Brask a voluntary exile. But the good which -men do, lives after them. Gustavus, who had always -respected Brask, and would fain have retained him in his See -of Linköping, carried out many of his plans—and in the -course of time this, as you see, was carried out too, though -it was not for a hundred years or more after the successful -king and the deprived bishop had gone to their respective -accounts.”</p> - -<p>“Jacob has just been giving us another version of the<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_257"></a>[257]</span> -story,” said the Captain, “something about Gefjon and -Gylfi.”</p> - -<p>“O, the Gylfa-Ginning. Stupid old fool!—that did not -happen here, but down in the south, between Sweden and -Denmark. So far, however, he is quite right,—at least, -if you believe the Prose Edda; the Goddess Gefjon was the -first canal maker in Sweden, and the event happened in the -reign of King Gylfi.</p> - -<p>“Thus it was:—</p> - -<p>“King Gylfi ruled over the land of Svithiod (Sweden), -and at that uncertain date which is generally known as ‘once -upon a time,’ he recompensed a strange woman, for some -service she had done him, with as much land as she could -plough round with four oxen in a day and a night; but he -did not know, till the share struck deep into the earth and -tore asunder hills and rocks, that it was the Goddess Gefjon -that he was dealing with. So deep were the furrows, that the -place where the land had been became water, for the oxen, -which had come from Jötenheim (the land of the Goths), -were really her sons, whom she had yoked to her plough.”</p> - -<p>“Phew-w-w,” whistled the Parson.</p> - -<p>“What is the matter?” said Birger.</p> - -<p>“Only that as Gefjon is the northern Diana, I thought -you might have made a mistake; her nephews, possibly, not -her sons?”</p> - -<p>“O, that goes for nothing in Sweden,” said the Captain, -laughing; “there are plenty of cases in point. I have no -doubt Birger is quite right.”</p> - -<p>“Well, if you come to scandalising national divinities,” -retorted Birger, “I am sure that story about Endymion was -never cleared up very satisfactorily.”</p> - -<p>“Clear up your own story, at all events, and place the -oxen in any relationship to the maiden goddess which you -may think best suited to her fair fame.”</p> - -<p>“Then I will call them what the Edda calls them,” said -Birger, gallantly, “her sons, and never sully the fair fame of -the maiden Gefjon either. The whole is an allegory. Sweden -achieved the sea-path, or inland navigation by the labour of<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_258"></a>[258]</span> -her own sons, and that is what the old Skald Bragi means -when he likens them to oxen, and says—</p> - -<div class="poetry-container"> -<div class="poetry"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">“‘Four heads and eight eyes bearing,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">While hot sweat trickled down them,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">The oxen dragged the reft mass</div> - <div class="verse indent0">That formed this winsome island.’</div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -<p class="noindent">And now Gefjon and her sturdy sons have been at work -again. The whole south of Sweden is an island now, and it is -this canal from the Cattegat to the Baltic that makes it so.”</p> - -<p>“Well, so it is; and though it is a long while since the -days of the Goddess Gefjon, or even of good Bishop Brask, -the work is complete at last, and a very creditable work it -is. I think, by-the-way, that we English had something -to do with it.”</p> - -<p>“England had a hand, and a very considerable one, in the -other end of it,” said Birger, “but these locks are home -manufacture, and the thing really has answered very well. -See what a trade it has opened with the Wener only, which -was the original plan; the communication with the Baltic -being a sort of after-thought of the Ostergöthlanders, carried -out by Count Platen. This part of the canal, which was -opened in 1800, has made four of our inland counties, Wenersborglan, -Mariestadslan, Carlstadslan, and Orebrö, into so -many maritime states; and now the other end has done the -same for Jonköping and Linköping. In national wealth, it -has paid a dozen times over. There is no one who has ever -lived, since the days of Oxenstjerna, to whom we owe so -much as we do to Count Platen. In the very heat of the -war—that is to say, in 1808—he conceived the idea of prolonging -the water communication to the Baltic. He went -over to England to inspect, with his own eyes, the Caledonian -canal. He engaged Telford, returned to Sweden, and, within -two months, sent in his plans, with their specification and -estimates, which, strange to say, have not been exceeded in -the execution. It is this old part of the canal, however, -which is, at all events, the most showy job; here are two -miles of solid rock cut through, and, as you see, these falls -are pretty high—not less than a hundred and twenty feet<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_259"></a>[259]</span> -of them, besides the rapids,—they require, therefore, a good -many locks; in fact, as you see, it looks more like a staircase -than anything else.”</p> - -<p>“It certainly was a singular sight,” said the Captain, “to -see our steamer high above our heads, and the masts of the -brigs sticking out from the tops of the rocks, and far above -the highest trees.”</p> - -<p>“This part of the canal is the most showy,” said Birger; -“no doubt but Platen’s work was not altogether so easy -as it looks. Any one can appreciate the skill of an engineer, -who sees a great body of water surmounting a steep wall of -rock; but a still greater amount of skill is evidenced in laying -out a plan; so as to render such tedious and expensive works -unnecessary. When I was a youngster, I was sent by the -Kongs-Ofwer-Commandant’s Expedition, to survey, by way -of practice, the two lines from our fortress of Wanås-on-Wettern -to the two seas, and I really do not know which is -the most wonderful conception. The original plan was only -eight feet deep, but they are deepening it two feet more, and -making the width of the locks twenty-two feet throughout. -We shall see the Linköping battalion at work on this to-morrow. -I must go and pay them a visit while we are -staying at Gäddebäck. I know a good many of the officers.”</p> - -<p>“It is a military work, then?”</p> - -<p>“Not exactly, though, like most other large undertakings, -it is done by soldiers. It is a speculation, something like -those in your own country, which is taken in hand by shareholders, -with a board of directors, though I believe Government -gives them a lift of some sort or other; but in this country, -in time of peace, you can always get as many soldiers as you -want for labourers, from a corporal’s party up to a battalion, -or a brigade, for matter of that. You lodge so much money -in the hands of the Government officer appointed for that -purpose, and a regiment, or a company, or a detachment, receives -orders to march and hut themselves in such a place. -Your engineer, or foreman, or bailiff, as the case may be, -gives his orders to the officer in command, who sees them -carried into effect. It costs more in hard money—and, what -is a worse thing for us Swedes, <i>ready</i> money—than any other<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_260"></a>[260]</span> -sort of labour, but it answers exceedingly well for those who -can afford the first outlay, for the men are under military -discipline, and Government are responsible, not only that you -shall have so many men to work, but so many <i>sober</i> men, <i>fit</i> -to work, which, in this country, as you know, is not exactly -the same thing.”</p> - -<p>“And how do the soldiers like it?” said the Captain, who, -though he did not say so, certainly was thinking that it was -not precisely the situation of an officer and a gentleman, to -do duty as foreman of the works for some speculating farmer, -or builder, or engineer.</p> - -<p>The idea never seemed to strike Birger, who, by-the-way, -belonging to the Royal Guards, was himself exempt from -such service. “It is rather popular,” said he, “with all -classes; the men like it because they have a considerable increase -of pay, and as for the officers, except one or two who -are on duty for the day, they have but a short morning and -evening parade, just to see that their men are all right, and -then they may do what they please. They lose nothing, -either, for all places are equally dull in the summer, when -everybody is at work; there can be no festivities going on -anywhere, and so they shoot, or fish, or lounge, or make love, -at their leisure. But here we are at the parade-ground,” he -continued, as they came upon a cleared space in the forest, -surrounded by very neat and compactly-built huts, some of -considerable pretensions, framed with trunks of pines, and -walled and roofed with outsides from the saw-mills, arranged -as weather-boards; others, more humble, were constructed of -pine-branches and heather; but all alike compact, neat, firm, -tidy-looking, and arranged in military order, in straight lines, -with their officers’ huts in front.</p> - -<p>The sun was not far from its setting, and the soldiers -having put aside their tools, were throwing on their belts in -a way that certainly would not have satisfied an English -adjutant, and were hurrying, with their muskets in their -hands, to their respective posts. There was a short private -inspection by the non-commissioned officers, while the band, -a pretty good one, were tuning their instruments; after -which the companies formed into line, faced to the west, and<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_261"></a>[261]</span> -as the lower limb of the sun touched the horizon, the officers -saluted with their swords, the men presented arms, and -accompanied by the band, sang in chorus, every man of them -joining in and taking his part in it, the beginning of Grundtvig’s -glorious hymn to the Trinity.</p> - -<div class="poetry-container"> -<div class="poetry"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">“O mighty God! we Thee adore,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">From our hearts’ depths, for evermore;—</div> - <div class="verse indent0">None is in glory like to Thee</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Through time and through eternity.</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Thy Name is blessed by Cherubim—</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Thy Name is blessed by Seraphim—</div> - <div class="verse indent0">And songs of praise from earth ascend,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">With thine angelic choirs to blend.</div> - <div class="verse indent4">Holy art Thou, our God!</div> - <div class="verse indent4">Holy art Thou, our God!</div> - <div class="verse indent4">Holy art Thou, our God!</div> - <div class="verse indent20">Lord of Sabaoth.”</div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -<p>The air was simple enough, though beautifully harmonized; -but there is nothing in the whole compass of music so magnificent -as the combination of some hundreds of human voices -trained to sing in harmony; the band would have injured -the effect, but in truth it was hardly heard, overwhelmed as -it was by that volume of sound,—except, indeed, the roll of -drums which accompanied the final “Amen,” swelling and prolonging -the notes, and then dying away like a receding peal -of thunder. The men recovered arms, were dismissed, and in -ten minutes were dispersed over the parade ground, playing -leap-frog, fencing, wrestling, foot-ball; while not a few were -lighting fires, and boiling water for their evening gröd.</p> - -<p>Birger stepped on, to see if he could meet with his -friend, while the other two, thinking that they should most -likely be in the way among people who, if they spoke -English or French at all, spoke it with difficulty; turned -into the well-beaten track that led to the inn and landing -place of Trollhättan.</p> - -<p>Before they arrived there the night had already closed in; -that is to say, it had faded into twilight, for that is the -nearest approach which a northern summer’s night makes to -darkness. All that the travellers then saw of the inn was -the light which, glancing from every window, beamed forth<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_262"></a>[262]</span> -a welcome which it had evidently been beaming forth to -others before them; judging from the din which arose from -the evening relaxations of a dozen or so of jolly subalterns. -These, who had money enough, or who fancied they had -money enough to spend in luxury, had fixed their quarters -at the inn, instead of the pretty looking green huts which -their less wealthy or more prudent comrades had run up in -the camp.</p> - -<p>In fact, the sitting rooms of the inn offered at that time -fewer temptations than the very clean, bare bed-rooms, with -their very white sheets, and very warm down coverlets. -Winter and summer alike, the feather bed is uppermost, and -here it was still; though the only reason why the windows -were not left wide open all night, was the clouds of musquitos -which, entering by them, menaced the repose of the -sleepers.</p> - -<p>Jacob, whom the party had somewhat inconsiderately left -in charge of the baggage, had, much to their surprise, -deceived them all in making no mistake, and leaving nothing -behind; the carioles had been landed, and were ready packed -for their journey on the morrow, as duly as if the fishermen -had seen to them themselves; but in his own country Jacob -had become quite a different character, and piqued himself -in showing to the Norwegians in his own person how vast -was the superiority of the Swedes.</p> - -<p>Birger was not seen again till the party was collected at a -sufficiently early hour of the morning round a magnificent -breakfast of fruit and fish, which had been laid out under -the verandah of the inn,—a narrow esplanade which looked -out upon the yet quiet waters of the brimming Gotha, at -the very point where they were gathering their strength for -their first furious plunge.</p> - -<p>Most cataracts commence with a rapid: so still and calm -was the Gotha at this point, that the esplanade in question -was the general landing place from Wenersborg, and was -furnished with iron rings for the purpose of mooring the -boats, several of which, very fair specimens of Swedish boat-building, -were hanging on to them, scarcely stretching out -their respective painters, so gentle was the current. Among<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_263"></a>[263]</span> -them lay a very handsome gig with bright sides, well scraped -oars, and a white English ensign fluttering in the morning -breeze; from which Moodie, who had come in state with -four rowers, had just landed, and by means of which, the -travellers were to complete their journey.</p> - -<p>In truth, Gäddebäck was not very accessible in any other -way; it had been originally built as a pic-nic house by the -Mayor of Wenersborg, who, when he had been half-ruined -by the great fire that had taken place there the year before, -was glad enough to contract his expenses, and to find a -person to take it off his hands. It suited Moodie well -enough, and its low rent suited him also, but there were not -many men whom it would suit at all. It had been built -exclusively for pleasure parties, and these were expected to -arrive there either by boat or by sledge, according as the -surface of the river was, water or ice. No one had ever -troubled themselves with any other entrance, and it was no -sort of drawback to the place in its original state, that communication -with the main land was entirely cut off. The -still, deep brook which gave to the place its name (pike -brook), had spread out behind the house into a broad reedy -morass, which in spring, during the floods, was a broad reedy -lake, but in summer a sort of neutral ground, between land -and water, through which was led a precarious track, which -might be passed on wheel, or indeed on foot, provided the -traveller did not object to very clear water, not much above -his knees. The actual spot on which the house was situated in -the middle of all this, was a patch of parky ground, abounding -in beautiful timber, which was five or six feet above the -general level; that part of it which lay next the river was -firm, and hard, and covered with short green turf, but this -subsided to landward, first into wet sponge, secondly into -bog, and lastly into reedy water, in proportion as it receded -from the river. The brook, divided by this patch of dry land, -soaked into the main stream, on either end of it, completely -insulating the domain.</p> - -<p>This suited Moodie exactly, for the little park was full of -all sorts of grouse and other birds, which looked as if they -were at perfect liberty, as indeed they were, only that<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_264"></a>[264]</span> -having had their pinions cut, and not being able to swim, -they could not pass the girdle of water—herons, and cranes, -and bitterns, were stalking about, or watching for fish in the -shallows, like their wild brethren, for though excellent -waders, and quite in their element on the soppy shores to -landward, they could not swim any more than the grouse. -There were some deer, also, of various kinds, but as these had -no sort of objection to take the water, they were confined in -little paddocks, those being classed together who would keep -the peace.</p> - -<p>On the esplanade, between the house and the river, lay a -dozen dogs, mostly English, on excellent terms with the -great brown bear, who, though perfectly tame, was secured -from paying any inquisitive visits to the deer paddocks by a -collar and chain, with which he was made fast to a substantial -post at the door.</p> - -<p>The whole front of the house had been occupied by a ball-room, -with windows opening into a verandah. This verandah -had become a general marine store—oars, boat-hooks, masts, -sails, were arranged along it on hooks; but so tidily and -regularly were they disposed, that they looked as if they had -been placed there for ornament;—fishing rods of all lengths -were there, and a large assortment of eel-lines and night-lines, -and trimmers, and gaffs, and pike-wires, and spears, -and other poaching implements, together with a goodly -assortment of drags and flues in the back ground; while -a full-sized casting net, hung up to dry, displayed its -leaded semi-circle to the sun: for be it remembered, -Moodie made a profit of his pleasure, and not only kept -his own establishment in fish, but very seldom allowed the -Gotheborg steamer to pass without dispatching in her a -heavy birchen basket, consigned to Jacob Lindegren, the -fishmonger.</p> - -<p>Neither was the interior at all out of character: the ball-room -had been divided by wooden partitions into three -very tolerable apartments—an ante-room or broad passage in -the middle, and on either side his dining room and what he -called his study, that is to say, the place where he made his -flies. The passage, which was sufficiently littered, contained<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_265"></a>[265]</span> -little other furniture than a turning-lathe and a carpenter’s -bench, with shelves and pigeon-holes round the sides for the -necessary tools; but both rooms were pictures of tidiness; -the furniture was plain enough, certainly, but the walls were -covered with sketches, of Moodie’s own drawing, and with -sporting trophies of every kind: huge bear skins and wolf -skins occupied whole panels, surmounted, perhaps, by the -grinning skull of a lynx, or a huge antlered head with the -skin on; between these were cases containing most of the -wild birds found in the country, all stuffed by his own -hands; together with specimens of eggs, hung up in a pattern, -but each labelled with the name of the bird it belonged -to. Between the windows was a formidable armoury, while -over one door was a stuffed otter, and over the other a wild -cat, and the rug itself was formed of badgers’ skins bordered -with fox; for Moodie had imported an English grate and -had built a fire-place, besides the invariable stove.</p> - -<p>Such was the sportsman’s paradise, into which Moodie -welcomed his guests. There was accommodation, such as it -was, for an unlimited number of them; for there were several -empty rooms of one sort or another; and a rough box, hastily -run up with planks from the saw mills, filled with dry poplar -leaves and covered with a bear skin, was a bed much -better than any of them had been accustomed to. As for -washing, their toilet apparatus was laid out every morning -on the stage to which the boats were moored, and a dive -into the river was the very best way of washing the face -after shaving,—at least, so Moodie seemed to think, for -though his room was pretty well fitted up, inasmuch as such -toilet would be difficult in the winter, when the river was as -hard as a stone, in summer he always chose the boat -stage for his own dressing room, as well as for that of his -guests.</p> - -<p>No one was sorry for a rest; journals had to be written -up, notes had to be compared; there was something, too, in -lounging lazily in the sun, or smoking a peaceful cigar under -the shade of the awning, or teasing the bear, or feeding the -grouse, and knowing all the while that there was no duty -neglected, and no opportunity lost. Not but that excursions<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_266"></a>[266]</span> -in a quiet way were made—now upon the water with the -trolling tackle, now on the high grounds of the royal forest, -now on neither land nor water, but on the marshy debateable -land, astonishing the ducks that swarmed among the reed -beds which divide the left bank of the river from the sound -land; but nothing very particular was done, beyond existing -in a very high state of quiet enjoyment.</p> - -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - -<div class="chapter"> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_267"></a>[267]</span></p> - -<h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_XIX">CHAPTER XIX.<br /> -<span class="smaller">GÄDDEBÄCK.</span></h2> - -</div> - -<div class="poetry-container"> -<div class="poetry"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">“I hung fine garments</div> - <div class="verse indent0">On two wooden men</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Who stand on the wall;</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Heroes they seemed to be</div> - <div class="verse indent0">When they were clothed;</div> - <div class="verse indent0">The unclad are despisèd.”</div> - </div> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse right"><i>Hávamál.</i></div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -<p>The day had been oppressively hot, more actual heat, -perhaps—reckoning by the degrees of Reaumur or Farenheit—than -had been experienced on the fjeld of the Tellemark;—but -that was dry, bracing, exhilarating heat, such as -is felt on the mountain side; this was the moist, feverish -warmth, caused by the sun’s rays acting on the wide expanse -of the Wener Sjön and its marshy shores, and secretly -and imperceptibly drawing up vapours, which would eventually -fall in rain,—not, perhaps, on the spot from which -they had been raised, but on the cold distant mountains of -Fille Fjeld, which at once attracted and condensed them. -There was not a cloud in the sky, but the sun would not -shine brightly or cheerily either.</p> - -<p>The long summer’s day was, however, drawing to a close, -and the party were sitting at the extreme end of a little -jetty which Moodie had built out into the river on piles of -solid fir. This was covered with an awning of striped duck,—of -little use as an awning so late in the day, for the sun -was low enough to peep under it, but still kept up, partly to -tempt the air of wind, which every now and then fluttered -its vandyked border, and partly as a preservative against the -dews, which would be sure to fall as soon as the sun dipped -below the horizon.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_268"></a>[268]</span></p> - -<p>From a flag-staff, stepped on the outermost pile, hung a -huge red English ensign, every now and then stirring in the -breeze, half unrolling its lazy folds and then dropping -motionless against its staff. Moodie was very particular -about this flag, and hoisted it every morning with his own -hands,—for ever since he had fairly turned his back upon -his native land, he had become intensely national.</p> - -<p>In the front and beneath them the broad, clear, deep, still, -brimming river, full four hundred yards from bank to bank, -glided quietly along with a calm unbroken surface, and a -motion hardly sufficient to bring a strain upon the chain -cable of the little cutter that was moored some twenty yards -off the head of the pier, with her triangular burgee fluttering -out in the breeze that was not strong enough to move the -heavier ensign, and displaying the red cross and the golden -R.Y.S. so well known in every port in Europe. It was a -singular thing to see it here though, a hundred miles in the -heart of Sweden, with the tremendous Falls of Trollhättan -between it and the sea.</p> - -<p>Made fast to the rails of the jetty were half a dozen -boats, of all shapes and sizes—from the long narrow galley -with its four well-scraped ashen oars, to the little white flat-bottomed -duck-punt,—for Gäddebäck, though not, strictly -speaking, an island, except during the freshets of early -summer, was so perfectly insulated by the sluggish brook -and the marshy ground through which it flowed, as to make -all communication with the main land, except by boat, extremely -precarious.</p> - -<p>Dinner had been over for some time, and the party had -adjourned to the jetty, as the coolest place they could find. -They were sitting with their wine glasses before them, -while two or three bottles of light claret were towing overboard, -suspended in the cool water of the river by as many -night-lines.</p> - -<p>“Upon my word,” said the Captain, throwing open his -waistcoat, “the West Indies is a fool to this; and it is not -unlike a tropical climate either,—moist, damp, and hot,—stewing -rather than broiling.”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_269"></a>[269]</span></p> - -<p>“To tell you the truth,” said the Parson, “I am surprised -at your selecting this spot for your residence, beautiful as it -certainly is; with all this marsh land about it, it cannot fail -to be unhealthy.”</p> - -<p>“Well, I do not know,” said Moodie, “they do talk of -agues, certainly, but these things never hurt me, and the -place suits me well enough; there is plenty of shooting—ducks -and snipes without end; and on the other side of that -range of heights, not three miles from us, is a royal forest, -well preserved, in which I have full permission to kill anything -I like, except stags, elks, and perhaps peasants, though -they do not make much fuss about a man or two either; -and, besides, the Ofwer Jagmästere is a particular friend of -mine. And as for fishing, it is not altogether such as I should -choose, no doubt, for it is mostly trolling,—but there is some -capital fishing, such as it is. I will show you what we can do -to-morrow at the upper rapids,—we have not been there -yet. It is a singular sort of sport, certainly; but if you -are half the poacher you used to be, you will like it for its -novelty. However, the greatest attraction that the place has -in my eyes, lies in its situation: this river is the high road -from Gotheborg to Stockholm, and steamers pass it every -day. Living on this Robinson Crusoe island of mine, I can -command the best market in the country, and in fact, I do -realize a very fair income by my fish and my game. Look -at my yacht, too, where else could I put it to so great use. -A short canal and a single lock passes me into the great lake -Wener, where I command some of the best rivers and some -of the best bear-country in Sweden. If I want to smell salt -water again, I have but to put my cutter in tow of the -market-tug, and to steam away to Gotheborg; and when I -want to be sulky, here I am, looking after my menagerie of -Scandinavian birds and beasts, and adding odds and ends to my -museum. I dare say people wonder at the old flag ‘that braved -a thousand years, the battle and the breeze,’ as they pass -backward and forward in the steamers; but no one stops -here, and you may be sure no one would find me out by -land. This is just the place for me; besides, it is not always<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_270"></a>[270]</span> -so hot as it is now,—I have driven my cariole across this -river, many a time.”</p> - -<p>“By the way, what do you do with yourself in the winter?” -said the Captain; “you were never very much given to -reading, and your shooting and fishing must fail you then.”</p> - -<p>“Fishing, yes; shooting, no,” said Moodie; “the finest -bear shooting is in the winter.”</p> - -<p>“What! do you meet with bears in the forest?”</p> - -<p>“Pooh, nonsense! you Englishmen are always fancying -that we kick bears out of every bush in Sweden.”</p> - -<p>“You Englishmen!” said Birger, glancing at the flag.</p> - -<p>“Well, well,—you Johnny Raws, I should say,—you -freshmen—you griffins. I was just as bad myself, though: -I remember the day I landed at Gotheborg, marching off -with my gun over my shoulder to a little wooded valley at -the back of the town where the Gotheborg cockneys have -their villas, and attacking a Swede, dictionary in hand, with -‘Hvar er Bjornerne’—how the scoundrel laughed.”</p> - -<p>“Well, but what do you mean by bear shooting then,—where -do you meet with it?”</p> - -<p>“Why, you travel a hundred miles to get a shot at a bear, -and think little of it too. The bear hunter must keep up a -correspondence with the Ofwer Jagmästerer of the different -provinces, and get information whenever the peasants have -ringed a bear as they call it—that is to say, ascertained that -he is within a certain circle, and then out with the sledge -and the dogs, and the rifles, and away up the river, or -across the lake, as it may be. You do not meet with a bear -at every turning, I can assure you. I have killed a pretty -many though, one way or other, since I have been here.”</p> - -<p>“That you have,” said the Captain,—“at least, if all those -trophies that ornament your walls are honestly come by; -but by your own showing, you cannot be hunting every day -in the week; what do you do on the off-days?”</p> - -<p>“Well, to tell you the truth, I was dull enough the first -winter; you will hardly believe it, but I took to reading—I -did indeed; you may laugh, but it is quite true. I got -up the natural history of the country thoroughly, and<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_271"></a>[271]</span> -crammed Linnæus. But I soon found something better to -do, when I began to get acquainted with the people, worthy -souls that they are. I had invitations without end, and got -on capitally with them,—quite a popular character I am.”</p> - -<p>“The English are popular,” said the Parson, certainly; -“high and low we have found that, wherever we have been. -What we English have done to deserve it is more than I can -say; but Norway and Sweden, agreeing in nothing else, -agree at all events in doing honour to the English traveller.”</p> - -<p>“Do not be taking the conceit out of Moodie”, said -Birger; “it is evident that he would have you to understand -that it is he, the individual,—not he, the Englishman, -who is thus honoured and caressed.”</p> - -<p>“You need not be afraid of doing that,” said the Captain; -“ever since I have known him, Moodie has been a very great -man,—in his own eyes, at all events.”</p> - -<p>“Why, you must know I am a great man here,” said -Moodie, “whatever I was in my own country. I am a -kammerjunker—no less.”</p> - -<p>“A what?” said the Captain.</p> - -<p>“A kammerjunker; and, in virtue of it, I have a right -to go before every one of you.”</p> - -<p>“Well, but how came you to be a what-do-you-call-him? -‘Who gave you that name?’ as the Catechism says.”</p> - -<p>“Not ‘my godfathers and godmothers,’ certainly,” said -Moodie, “and I hadn’t it ‘in my baptism;’ but I will tell you -how it was. Sweden, in the winter, is as different from the -same country in the summer as Connaught from Paradise. -In the winter, they are fiddling, and dancing, and singing, -from night to morn, and from morn to snowy eve. There is -not much else to do, as you say, that is the truth of it, unless -one happens to hear of a bear; so when I came to understand -a little of their lingo, I was very glad to go to their -jollifications. The people were always very civil in asking -me, wherever I was—that I must say for them. Now we, -in England, don’t care much about precedence, as you know. -Most of us do not know who is first and who is last, and the -rest do not care; and those who feel most secure of their<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_272"></a>[272]</span> -rank, are generally too proud to take the trouble of asserting -it. But it is not so here; they all know their places, like -schoolboys, and fight for them like dogs at a feeding-trough -if you happen to make a mistake about them—a thing which -the natives never do. I did not care much about this at -first, no Englishman would,—in fact, I did not understand -it; but after a bit it got to be very unpleasant—it made me -a marked man. Here was I, an English gentleman, as noble -as the king—and a little more so than that Brummagem -article of theirs,—shoved down, not only by counts and -barons, which I did not like over and above; for half the -people you meet with here are counts and barons,—and precious -queer ones, some of them; but, besides this, there were -their confounded orders of knighthood: there are knights -of the Cherubim and Seraphim<a id="FNanchor_45" href="#Footnote_45" class="fnanchor">[45]</a>, and knights of the -Elephant and Castle, and knights of the Goose and Gridiron, -and Heaven knows what besides. Then came the officials, -from the prime minister down to the post-master, and their -sons and grandsons. Why, there was not a tradesman I -dealt with, hardly a beggar I gave a shilling to, who had -not a clear right to go before me—aye, and showed every -disposition to exercise it, too!</p> - -<p>“One day I was ass enough to be vexed because my tailor, -who was knight of the Shears and Cabbage, or something of -the sort, elbowed his way before me; and one of my friends, -I think it was this very Bjornstjerna, the Ofwer Jagmästere, -offered to get me a settled precedence. ‘Yours is not a new -family,’ says he.—Of course it was not, everybody knew the -Moodies, of Hampshire.—Well, that was all right; I had -only to get my sixteen quarters blazoned, and he would see -that I was made a kammerjunker. Sixteen quarters! thought -I. I had had a great grandfather, that is certain, for there -he lies in Havant Church, with a ton of marble over him, -and his arms on the top of that, a chevron ermine between -three mermaids ppr. to cheer him up on his road to Paradise. -He was a great man, too, and looked as if he was the son of<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_273"></a>[273]</span> -somebody, as the Spaniards say, to judge by the picture of his -coach-and-six, and outriders with French-horns, which is -hanging up in our hall, at Havant Manor. But he had -played ‘ducks and drakes’ with his guineas, and as for his -quarters, you know we don’t greatly trouble ourselves with -such matters.</p> - -<p>“Well, I told my difficulty to one of my friends in Stockholm—an -idle young scamp of an <i>attaché</i>. ‘Why the devil -don’t you write to the Herald’s College,’ said he, ‘they will -trace your descent from the Preadamite Grants,<a id="FNanchor_46" href="#Footnote_46" class="fnanchor">[46]</a> if you pay -for it. Tell them to make you up a pedigree for Sweden, -and, my life for it, they will get it up well.’</p> - -<p>“I could not lose by it, you know, so I wrote, and, sure -enough, they found out that the old family had come over -with Duke Rollo, and had a hand in that conquest of ‘Normandie,’ -which your fellow Torkel is continually dinning into -our ears. They found out, too, that our name originally was -spelt ‘Modige,’ which, in old Swedish, means ‘dashing,’ and -that it was a title of honour, given to us for our gallantry in -the said conquest. And, what was pat to the present purpose, -Duke Rollo had conferred on us the honour of hereditary -chamberlains, as soon as ever he had a court to appoint us to. -How we came to England I forget—I suppose, though, it was -with Duke William,—and what we did there I do not know, -unless it was plundering the Saxons, like the rest; but, at all -events, I got a string of shields, fit to roof Valhalla, and a -beautiful tree—rather an expensive plant it was, though, for -I paid sixty pounds for it. However, Bjornstjerna and my -friend the <i>attaché</i> marched off with the chevron ermine and -the three mermaids to the Hof-Ofwer-Something-or-other, and -brought me back a sheet of parchment with a big seal hanging -from it, giving me the privilege of pulling off the inexpressibles -of the third prince of the blood royal—whenever it -should please Providence to bless his Majesty with one,—and -in virtue of that office to style myself kammerjunker.”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_274"></a>[274]</span></p> - -<p>“So you are a greater man than your tailor, now?”</p> - -<p>“O yes,” said Moodie, “I take precedence of all manner -of people, and moreover wear, whenever I please—which is -not very often, you may be sure,—a concern in my button-hole, -something like what I used to wear when I was Noble -Grand of the Julius Cæsar Lodge of Oddfellows, at South -Marden. You may depend upon it I am something very -great indeed, though I must admit I do not know exactly -what.”</p> - -<p>“Very great indeed!” said Birger, who, as may be supposed, -did not feel his country particularly flattered by -Moodie’s absurd—not to say ungrateful—description of his -honours, and retorted with a bit of Swedish slang: “I am -sure you are something ending in ‘ral,’ as the Karing’s wife -said to her husband; it certainly is not admiral—perhaps it -is corporal?”</p> - -<p>“Upon my word, Birger, I beg your pardon,” said Moodie, -in some confusion. “You speak English so perfectly, and -look so like an Englishman, that I forgot we are not all -countrymen together.”</p> - -<p>“Well, well,” said Birger, good humouredly, “I must confess -there is a great deal too much of truth in your satire, -and that is what makes the sting of it.”</p> - -<p>“Never mind him, Birger,” said the Parson; “you Swedes -are uncommon fine fellows, and carry your honours in your -history; I should like to know what Europe would have -done in the thirty years war, if it had not been for Gustaf -Adolph and Oxenstjerna? Why, it was you who thrashed -Czar Peter and all the Russias into something like civilization, -and were the making of his armies by licking them. -Gallantly, too, did you hold your own, under the other -Gustaf, against the giant you had made; and I have no -doubt but that you would have thrashed the French giant -Nap., as well as the Russian giant Peter, if you had only -made up your minds in time which side you meant to fight -on. But for all that, it is a fact, as Moodie says, that, like -the girls, you are a little too fond of ribbons.”</p> - -<p>“It is very true,” said Birger; “we depreciate our own -honours by our over-lavish distribution of them. That which<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_275"></a>[275]</span> -is plentiful, is cheap—that which is little, valued. It is the -law of nature, and as true of stars and ribbons as it is of -green peas and early potatoes.”</p> - -<p>“To be sure it is,” said the Captain; “what regiment in -our service cares a button for the distinction of ‘Royal,’ which -it shares with the Royal African condemned corps? Who -prizes the Waterloo medal, which places in the same category -the Englishman who fought and the Belgian who ran?”</p> - -<p>“Yes,” said Moodie, who had by this time done blushing -at his blunder, “at the Congress of Vienna, Lord Castlereagh -sat among the starry host of plenipotentiaries in a plain blue -coat, without one solitary decoration. ‘Ma foi! c’est bien -distingué,’ said good Bishop Talleyrand, who himself had a -star for every oath he had broken, and whose tailor could -not find room on his coat for all of them!”</p> - -<p>“It was ‘distingué,’” said the Captain; “he belonged to -a country whose citizens do their duty for their duty’s sake. -That is distinction enough for any man.”</p> - -<p>“Yes,” said Birger, “<i>if they do</i>—but a good deal depends -on that little particle;—however, even if citizens could be got, -whenever wanted, to do their duty for their duty’s sake, which -I doubt; distinctions, which of course involve precedence, are -useful in themselves. In your country, people are always -jealously guarding their position in society; you are always -on the look out, lest some interloper should thrust you out, -or refuse you the honour you consider your due. This is -what makes you Englishmen so unsociable and exclusive; -you are always on guard, walking sentry over your own -honour. Now look at our people—our barons and our -tradesmen, our princes and our farmers, all meet together -without fear of losing caste, because every one has his -position secured to him, beyond the possibility of invasion. -You dare not do this.”</p> - -<p>“Do not say, ‘you,’” broke in the Captain, “I, thank -God! am a gentleman born, and have not to work for my -daily dignity.”</p> - -<p>“That is only another instance of what I assert—‘a gentleman -born!’ you can afford to do what we all do, because, -by birth or by accident, you find yourself in the very<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_276"></a>[276]</span> -position in which we Swedes are all placed by the customs -of our country.”</p> - -<p>“That is all very true,” said the Parson; “for the amenities -of life, I grant your system is by far the best; men live -happier and more contentedly under it; and it certainly does -produce a much more genial and social intercourse among -all classes, that men are dependent for their dignity on something -else than their wine merchant and their pastry-cook. -Still, yours is not the condition of progress; your people live -content, perhaps happy, in their fixed position; but every -man of ours, who is working for his daily dignity, as the -Captain calls it, is, in a very unpleasant and uncomfortable -manner, pressing onward and improving his own condition. -Now, that nation in which every man is continually excited -to improve his condition, is nationally progressive; that, in -which every man is content in his own place, is nationally -stationary. I do not say which is the best principle, only, -there is something to be said on the other side. One thing -is certain, our principle is not the same as yours; and it is -excusable, when we do borrow from the continent, if we -make a generous blunder in a science which we do not -understand, and in the largeness of our heart, give medals to -runaway Belgians, without remembering that the honour of -the medal lies not in the silver, but in the action which the -silver commemorates, and that, in truth, what we have given -to the cowards who ran, we must have filched from the -brave fellows who had earned for that medal its value.”</p> - -<p>“So far, at all events, you are right,” said Birger, “that -your nation does not understand the science of decorations -any more than ours. You helped to spoil your own -Waterloo medal much more than ever the Belgians spoiled -it, and that not altogether from your largeness of heart. If -I had been a pink-faced ensign of that day, I should have -been ashamed to wear my medal in the presence of a Peninsular -veteran, who had done five hundred times as much as -I. It was a better feeling than that of being ranked with -the Belgians that made your people shy of their Waterloo -medals. And now that you begin to distribute your decorations, -you do not know how to do it: first of all you give it<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_277"></a>[277]</span> -for any little trumpery affair, like sticking those Chinese -pigs, and then you give it to all who have seen the smoke of -the gunpowder.”</p> - -<p>“We presume that every one present does his duty, and -that none can do more,” said the Captain.</p> - -<p>“A very pretty poetical fiction,” said Birger, “pity that it -is a fiction. However, one thing is certain—that will never -be prized that is shared by all alike; you see that at once -in our case—it is equally true in you own.”</p> - -<p>Just then the Stockholm steamer, <i>Daniel Thunberg</i>, hove -in sight, with her light blue pennant of smoke, so unlike the -black volumes that roll from the chimneys of coal-burning -Englishmen.</p> - -<p>“They have got something on board for us,” said Moodie; -“that calico concern on her foremast is their best Swedish -imitation of our English jack, and they always hoist it -whenever they have got a letter or parcel for me. There -goes a gun; those rascals are always glad of any opportunity -for making a bang. Hallo, there! Nils!” continued he, in -Swedish, to the master of his yacht, who had gone to sleep -against the heel of the bowsprit, with his pipe in his -mouth; “answer that signal, and send a boat on board the -steamer.”</p> - -<p>He spoke as if he had a frigate’s crew at his command. -Nils started up, and as he happened, at that moment at -least, to be the captain and the whole ship’s company in his -own person, he proceeded to obey both orders personally—in -a few minutes was alongside the gay little craft, and returned -with a letter, the writer of which, to judge from the superscription -he placed upon it, must have considered Moodie a -very great man indeed, so many titles did he prefix to -his name—High-born and Illustrious were the very least of -them.</p> - -<p>Moodie, a little afraid of the Captain’s satire—though the -direction, after all, was nothing more than the ordinary -Swedish form in which one gentleman addresses another, -and quite as appropriate as our much mis-used esquire,—crumpled -up the envelope in great haste.</p> - -<p>“Hurrah!” said he, flourishing the letter over his head,<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_278"></a>[278]</span> -“this is the very thing for us—you are in high luck; look -here.”</p> - -<p>“What is it?” said the Captain, for the letter, which was in -Swedish and written in the Swedish character, might as -well have been Cyrillic or Uncial, for anything he could -make out of it.</p> - -<p>“Why, there is to be a skal in Wermeland, next Tuesday; -a grand bear hunt, in which they drive twenty or thirty -miles of country; this letter is from the very man I have -been speaking of—Bjornstjerna, the Ofwer Jagmästere, and -my own particular friend. Some half dozen respectable -farmers have made oath to him that they have been annoyed -by bears, and he tells me he has written to the præster of -the neighbourhood, to give notice from their pulpits, and to -turn out the whole country. That is the legal form on such -occasions, and there is a heavy fine for any man who does -not obey it.”</p> - -<p>“Hurrah!” said the Captain, in his turn, “then we shall -kill a bear at last.”</p> - -<p>“That you will,” said Moodie; “Bjornstjerna knows his -business as well as any man in Sweden; there are people -who fancy his patronymic a nick-name<a id="FNanchor_47" href="#Footnote_47" class="fnanchor">[47]</a> of his own earning. -He would not be turning out the country for nothing, you -may depend on it.”</p> - -<p>“Where is this to take place?”</p> - -<p>“Why, in Upper Wermeland, as I told you, near Lysvic, -not very far from the banks of the Klara, a river I know -well, as full of grayling as it can hold; not that that has -much to do with bear hunting. It is not above a hundred -and fifty or two hundred miles from this.”</p> - -<p>“Quite in the neighbourhood,” said the Captain, laughing.</p> - -<p>“O that is nothing, we never mind a hundred miles or so. -If we get anything like a breeze, we will run across the -Wener, in the yacht, we can send the carioles on by land -to Amal, and we will pick up a waggon, or something, for -the men, at there or at Carlstad; and then you will see how<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_279"></a>[279]</span> -we will rattle up the country. We must send a boat, though, -to Wenersborg this very night, and tell the post-master to -make out a forbud for us; it will not do to trust to chance -on such an occasion as this, for we shall have to collect a -good many horses at every station. Let me see, we shall -want one for each of us, and three for the waggon, that will -make seven; and I suppose they will charge half a horse -more besides the forbud; for we shall have four men with us, -and we must take things enough to make us comfortable, for -I dare say we shall have a week in the forest, one way or the -other. Come, finish that bottle, and we will go in and have -some coffee; it is not so well to stay out here at night -when that blue mist is hanging on the swamp; besides, -these rascally musquitoes are anything but pleasant.”</p> - -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - -<div class="chapter"> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_280"></a>[280]</span></p> - -<h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_XX">CHAPTER XX.<br /> -<span class="smaller">WENERN.</span></h2> - -</div> - -<div class="blockquote"> - -<p>“The Night has covered her beauty. Her hair sighs on Ocean’s wind. -Her robe streams in dusky wreaths. She is like the fair Spirit of heaven -in the midst of its shadowy mist.</p> - -<p>“From the wood-skirted waters of Lago ascend at times grey-bosomed -mists, when the gates of the West are closed on the Sun’s eagle eye. -Wide over Lara’s stream is poured the vapour dark and deep. The -Moon, like a dim shield, is swimming through its folds.</p> - -<p>“‘Spread the sail,’ said the King; ‘seize the winds as they pour -from Lena.’ We rose on the wave with songs,—we rushed with joy -through the foam of the deep.”</p> - -<p class="right"><i>Ossian.</i></p> - -</div> - -<div class="poetry-container"> -<div class="poetry"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">“So peaceful, calm, and leaden grey,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Beneath our keel the waters lay,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Parting around the vessel’s prow</div> - <div class="verse indent0">With rippling murmur, sweet and low,—</div> - <div class="verse indent0">And rising slowly from the lake,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">The wreathing mists asunder break—</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Revealing all concealed before</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Of forest, hill, and rocky shore.”</div> - </div> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse right"><i>Anon.</i></div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -<p>There was no great stir next morning at Gäddebäck, considering -the importance of the expedition; as for preparations, -no more preparation was necessary than is necessary for a -detachment of soldiers that has received its route; the guns -and ammunition were paraded, and the knapsacks were -packed in light marching order; the carioles had been -despatched over night to the post-master at Wenersborg, -under the charge of Piersen and one of Moodie’s people, -with directions to send on a forebud, and then to proceed -by land to Amal; and the cutter having received her freight, -had, on the preceding evening, hauled out into the stream in -order to be taken in tow by the night steamer, for Wenersborg. -Moodie had determined that there was no need of disappointing<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_281"></a>[281]</span> -himself or his friends of their day’s fishing at the upper -rapids, seeing that they might easily be taken on the road. -He proposed, therefore, joining the cutter at Wenersborg in -the evening, and making the passage to Amal by night, observing, -that by getting what sleep they could while at sea, they -would lose no time, and might start immediately on landing.</p> - -<p>“This is rather close shaving, Moodie,” said the Captain, as -they sat at breakfast the following morning,—rather an early -breakfast, for Moodie meant to give the fishing-ground what -he called a full due.—“You have made the evening breeze -an element in your calculation; we shall be in a mess if this -night is anything like the last.”</p> - -<p>“O, but it will not be, ‘you see ghosts by daylight,’ as our -people say; there is always a breeze on the open lake, it is -not like this valley; besides, if it does fail us, we have only -to post; there is a regular posting track across the lake, -with stations on the islands, where they keep boats in the -summer and horses in the winter. If the breeze does fail -us, which I tell you it will not, we have only to send the -dingy to Leckö or Lurön, whichever we may be nearest to, -and get boats enough to carry us all.”</p> - -<p>The Parson made no opposition, though in his heart he -agreed with the Captain that the experiment might very -possibly involve the loss of their ultimate object, the skål; -the salmo ferox was, however, a new fish to him, and notwithstanding -all he had said in its disparagement on the -banks of the Torjedahl, he would not much have liked to -lose his chance of landing one. By his advice a light rod -or two were added to the baggage,—for the rivers north of the -Wener abound in grayling, though, strange to say, these -delicate fish are never found south of it.</p> - -<p>The four-oared gig being the fastest pulling boat, carried -them up the stream to the point at which the great canal -leaves the river; beyond this it ceases to be navigable on -account of its rocks and rapids, but for this very reason -becomes much more valuable as a fishing preserve. At these -rapids, which was the crack station of all Moodie’s fishery, -was a sort of out-post, where he had a keeper’s house, with a -separate establishment of boats. The Captain turned up his<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_282"></a>[282]</span> -eyes a little at hearing of this fresh proof of his friend’s magnificence; -but it sounds grander to English ears than it is in -fact, for Moodie made money by his fishery, and of course -required men, not only to preserve it, but to catch the fish -while he was absent on any roving expedition like the present; -and as for boats, where planks may be had at the saw-mills -for almost nothing, and where every man is more or -less of a carpenter, rough fishing punts are articles of very -small expense indeed, and are generally built at home.</p> - -<p>It is said that the great lake, Wener, even now the largest -in Europe, was once much larger; that it once extended to the -falls of Trollhättan; that all the low-lying and marshy shores, -which are now the delight of ducks and the glory of musquitoes, -were once under water, but that the stream having -gradually worked its way over the falls, like a saw, continually -wearing away the rock from which it fell, and -carrying it off, portion by portion, opened a deeper passage, -and that the lake has gradually receded to its present -limits.</p> - -<p>This of course, happened in Preadamite times, or, to use -the language of the allegorical history of creation supplied by -the prose Edda—in those days, “before the sons of Bör had -slain the giant Ymir.”<a id="FNanchor_48" href="#Footnote_48" class="fnanchor">[48]</a> And certainly the formation of the -valley afforded some grounds for the conjecture: two low -lines of hills, steep and cliff-shaped, suggested readily the -idea of Preadamite banks; while the flat bottom of the -valley, in many places irrecoverably marshy, in all liable to -be covered with water whenever the river is in flood, looked -quite as much like the bottom of a drained pond as it did -like the real land. It was not without its beauty, either; -if ever it had been a lake, it must have been a lake studded -with low islands, and these, as well as much of the marshy -ground, were covered with forests, hiding, by the luxuriance -of their growth, the numerous cultivated spots which intervened.</p> - -<p>It was a very different description of scenery to that of<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_283"></a>[283]</span> -Norway certainly, for the hills of Hunneberg and Halleberg, -which bound the view to the east and contain some very -valuable limestone quarries, are, what limestone soil invariably -is, tame and monotonous. They, however, abound in oak—a -very rare tree in the north,—and also in deer and roe-bucks, -which are not common either, but this being a royal forest, -they were probably better looked after than they are in private -lands, and Moodie, who, practically, had the rangership, as -he was the only man allowed to shoot there, was scrupulously -particular, and would as soon have thought of shooting a -keeper as of shooting a deer.</p> - -<p>The rapids are formed by a ridge of rock which crosses -the river, over which it pours down one or two steps leaving -deep broad pools of eddying water between them. The -whole of this part of the river is overhung with trees of the -largest growth which Sweden affords, and is as beautiful a spot -as any they had seen. As the rocks are extremely rugged, -the river is of very unequal breadth,—the banks, at one place, -approaching so near to each other, that an Alpine bridge is -formed of pine trees thrown across it. Four of the longest -firs that could be found, with their stems resting on the -rocks, are tied together in pairs, at their upper ends, by -means of two iron bands, forming a broad Gothic arch. This -is the skeleton of the bridge; the horizontal timbers, which -were laid for the footways, passed them at about a third of -their height, like the cross-bar of the letter A, and formed -ties to steady them as well as to support the rest of the -structure. It was an exceedingly picturesque affair, and told -well for the ingenuity of the architect.</p> - -<p>This bridge was their first stage. The keeper’s hut commanded -the pools both above and below the bridge, and had -establishments of boats for both divisions of the river—for -there was considerable difficulty in getting a boat from one -to the other.</p> - -<p>The salmo ferox, when small, is often caught with a fly, -and may be so caught when fourteen or sixteen pounds -weight, but this is not a very common occurrence. The -usual way of fishing for him is with a large litch of six pairs -of hooks and a lip-hook, very heavily loaded and baited with<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_284"></a>[284]</span> -a bleak or a gwinead, of which there are plenty in the river. -A boat is absolutely necessary. The fisherman stands in the -stern, and runs out some thirty yards of the line heavily -loaded, with a short stiff pike-rod; the boat must be kept -continually traversing the stream, beginning at the head of -it and quartering it down to the foot, while the troller at the -stern, with the point of his rod low, keeps his bait spinning -in jerks,—the object being to imitate a sick or wounded fish. -At each turn of the boat, the line must be gathered in by -the hand, or the edges of the rapids, which indeed are the -most likely parts, would be untried; four out of five fish are -caught while the boats are in the act of turning.</p> - -<p>This rather monotonous description of sport had gone on -for some time, when the Parson felt the rod nearly taken -out of his hand by the rush of a fish. The battle was furious, -for the salmo ferox does not belie his name, but it was a mere -trial of tackle, without any opportunity for the exercise of -skill,—carried on, too, at the bottom of water twenty feet -deep; and when, after a quarter of an hour’s boring against -the bottom, the Parson succeeded in bringing to the gaff his -huge capture, he declared he had done enough for fame, -struck up his rod, sought the lower pool in pursuit of gös -and id, with which, as well as with trout, it was said to -abound.</p> - -<p>The Swedes say that gös is a fish very difficult to catch; -to an Englishman, by far the most difficult part of the business -is to name the fish when he has caught it. Certainly, no -one is qualified to do so who speaks of Göthe under his -English appellations of Goth and Goaty: the dotted o affects -and softens the preceding consonant as well as the vowel, and -the name of this fish is pronounced much as if it was spelt -“yeus,” in French letters. The difficulty experienced by -the Swedes in catching it, arises from the fact of its requiring -fine tackle in the clear waters which it frequents, instead of -the coarse gimp or wire which is sufficient for the rash and -headlong pike; in all other respects the habits of the two -fish are very similar, except that the gös is a much smaller -fish, and very much more prized. For him, the Parson was -content with setting lay-lines with live baits and considerable<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_285"></a>[285]</span> -length of fine gut, while he directed his personal attention -to the id.</p> - -<p>In every particular, except one, the id is a chub; his -haunts, his habits, his food are those of a chub; in looks, too—though -certainly not altogether so clumsy, and, so to speak, -chubby,—he reminds one forcibly of the chub family. He is -something like the half-polished parvenu in his transition -state of existence, just admitted into aristocratic circles, but, -as yet, unable entirely to lay aside his brandy-and-water -habits and feelings. In every particular, <i>except one</i>, the id -is a chub, and that is, that he is by far the best eating of -any of the cyprinæ; in fact, so far as the pot goes, he is a -very respectable prize. The Parson, who, in his youth, had -caught many a chub, and was fully aware of the zoological -affinity of the two fish, was by no means at a loss for subjects -of mutual interest between himself and his new introduction; -a fly, resembling, as near as it could be made on the spur of -the moment, a humble-bee, was tied on his finest gut, and the -boat, anchored in the stern, was by slow degrees permitted -to descend within long-cast of a still, over-shaded pool: the -fly, thrown from as great a distance as he could command, -fell as lightly as so clumsy a combination of fur and feathers -could be expected to fall, and was moved very slowly and -regularly over, or rather through, the water; for, as it may -be supposed, the length of line caused it to sink a few inches -below the surface.</p> - -<p>His science was not unrewarded, for, before long, a sluggish -roll in the waters, and a strong, obstinate, pig-headed -pull at his line announced a capture. This was quickly followed -by others, for id, though gregarious, are quite as indifferent -to the troubles of their neighbours as if they were -human creatures; provided you do not show yourself and -alarm them for their individual safety, their friend may kick -and struggle before their eyes, without causing a single wag -of their selfish tails.</p> - -<p>It was not bad fun upon the whole, for the id, though not -possessing a tithe of the life and activity of the salmo genus, -pull like donkeys, and might have lasted some time longer, -for the Parson was getting interested, when Jacob was seen<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_286"></a>[286]</span> -making his leisurely way along the bank, for the purpose of -announcing “mid-dag’s mad.” The ground was sufficiently -tangled, and Torkel, who was managing the boat and landing -the fish, was extremely amused at the air of vexation and -annoyance with which he dipped under a low-spreading fir -branch, or put aside a too affectionate bramble. About a -hundred yards above the id pool was a little beach of the -whitest and smoothest sand that ever fairy danced upon. -From the point where the boat was anchored, it was evident -that this was caused by a little dull-looking stream, which -had brought the white particles from the hills during the -floods; but which then, very suspiciously, did <i>not</i> run into the -river, but lost itself behind the white beach. All this was -lost upon Jacob, who was in the wood, and who, not liking -the tangled ground, made a valorous jump on to the white -beach.</p> - -<p>“Der var et spring af en Leerovn!” shouted Torkel, quoting -a Danish proverb (“there was a jump for a tile-stove!”)—as -poor Jacob flopped through the thin crust of white sand into -a bed of black, tenacious clay, in which he seemed planted up -to his middle, with his long flowing coat-tails spread out -upon the unbroken sand.</p> - -<p>The more he screamed with fear, the more they screamed -with laughter. There was not the slightest danger, for he -had evidently got as far as he meant to sink; but as for -getting out without a purchase from something solid, the -thing was impossible.</p> - -<p>“We must have another fish,” said Torkel, to make up the -dozen; “and it will be impossible to get Jacob out without -spoiling the pool by pulling the boat across it.”</p> - -<p>The Parson coolly took another cast,—Jacob screamed -louder than ever.</p> - -<p>“Bother that fellow,—I have missed him,” said the Parson, -meaning not Jacob, but the fish.</p> - -<p>“Try again,” said Torkel, coolly, “you will get him next -time.”</p> - -<p>A despairing shriek from Jacob.</p> - -<p>“Ah! that is in him!—this is the biggest we have had -yet! mind what you are about with the landing-net,—do<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_287"></a>[287]</span> -not let him run under the boat! Well, really, we must -pull out poor Jacob, or he will poison us with bad cookery, -out of revenge. Up killick! or whatever you call it in your -language, and shove across to him.”</p> - -<p>But when they landed, they seemed as far from the -rescue as ever. Jacob had jumped vigorously, and the -bank from which he had jumped was high. To reach him -was impossible, and to get out on the sand would be to -share his fate. While Torkel was trying to slip down the -bank, the Parson took out his knife to cut a branch.</p> - -<p>“Stop! stop!” said Torkel, who, unsuccessful, had scrambled -back. “What are you doing?—we shall all suffer for -this; it is elder that you are cutting.”</p> - -<p>“Well! what then?”</p> - -<p>“Why, if we take it without asking for it, the elves will -have power over us for nine days, and the chances are, some -of us will die suddenly.”</p> - -<p>The Parson was inclined to laugh, but he did not, and -turned to look for a branch of less dangerous wood; but -Torkel, placing himself before it, taking off his hat and -bowing three times to the tree, said, “Elf-mother! elf-mother! -let me have some of thy elder, and I will give thee -something of mine.”</p> - -<p>The elf-mother certainly did not refuse, and Torkel took -silence for consent, which it proverbially is, and cut away at -the bough, which, stripped of its side branches, formed a -communication with the imbedded Jacob, who, black without -and sulky within, and, as Torkel said, looking more like -a pig than ever, was dragged floundering to the shore,—not -at all the more pleased when Torkel reminded him that, as -they were in light marching order, he would have to wash -his shirt, trousers, and stockings, and to sit without them -till they were dry.</p> - -<p>When the party met at their mid-dag’s mad, which was not -till long after the Swedish time for mid-dag’s mad had passed, -there was a very respectable show of fish—not only enough -for the cutter, but also a very handsome basket for the -Gotheborg steamer that evening, which was duly packed -and forwarded in a light cart to the locks; while the party,<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_288"></a>[288]</span> -shouldering their weapons and that part of their prize which -they had reserved for themselves, took the forest path to -Wenersborg. Before sundown they were safely established -on board the little cutter, who immediately tripped her -anchor, hoisted jib and foresail—for the mainsail was already -set,—payed off slowly before it, and stood out into the lake, -which was glowingly reflecting the red beams of the setting -sun, but still faintly rippling under the easterly breeze.</p> - -<p>“Did not I tell you so?” said Moodie, who, seating himself -with his legs dangling down the well, had assumed the -tiller just as a gentleman drives his own carriage; “we -have had a capital day’s sport, and got a glorious breakfast -for to-morrow. I have turned a few bancos, which will help -to pay for the trip, and here we are, resting from our labours -while the wind is carrying us on our journey.”</p> - -<p>“I hope it will stand,” said old Nils, “but it is easterly, -you see, and the sun is setting; the wind does not like to -blow in the face of the sun.”</p> - -<p>“Go to the—Strömkarl—your old croaker, and check the -main-sheet; you have got the sail a fathom too flat. The -wind is drawing round to the southward, as any one may -see; ease off the jib and foresail too, while you are -about it.”</p> - -<p>The fact was, that the wind had stood steady enough, but -Moodie, in his anxiety, had let her fall off a couple of points, -which Nils saw, but was too sulky to mention, and which the -rest of the party did not see, because, as strangers, they were -ignorant of the true course, and there was no binnacle, or, -so far as they could see, compass of any kind, besides those -they had in their pockets.</p> - -<p>The cutter was half-decked, with a tidy little cabin forward, -and a couple of bunks for sleeping—one on each side of -the well; in these the party very shortly disposed themselves, -for they knew that a pretty stiff day’s work lay before -them; and having established the best defence in their -power against the musquitoes, slept as campaigners sleep, in -right down earnest.</p> - -<p>“Hallo, Nils! where are we?” asked a sleepy voice next -morning.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_289"></a>[289]</span></p> - -<p>The Captain, who had curled himself into the opposite -bunk, was not quite certain whether it was not still a part -of his dreams.</p> - -<p>The next call was quite enough to settle this fact.</p> - -<p>“Nils!” roared Moodie, “why Nils! confound the fellow, -I believe he is asleep.”</p> - -<p>And so, sure enough, he was, with his head on the rudder-case, -as fast as any one of the seven sleepers of Ephesus; and -poor Nils was by no means singular in this respect—passengers -were asleep, attendants were asleep, dogs were asleep, -Jacob was asleep and snoring, the winds were asleep, everything -was asleep but the sails, and they were waving to and fro -with the knittles pattering against their surfaces, and shaking -the night dew on the deck like rain, while over all, like an -eider-down coverlet, had sunk on them all a steaming white -fog, so thick that the sharpest eyes could not see the little -burgee at the mast-head, or the out-haul block at the bowsprit -end. It was not dark, it never is in summer, but no one -could tell whether the sun had risen or not.</p> - -<p>“Here’s a go!” said the Captain.</p> - -<p>“Faith! I wish it was a go,” said the Parson, putting -his head out of the cabin door; “it seems to me just the -reverse.”</p> - -<p>Moodie, whose clever plan seemed to promise anything but -success, was as sulky as Nils had been overnight, and rated -the poor fellow soundly for going to sleep.</p> - -<p>Nils represented, not altogether unreasonably, that the -wind had gone to sleep first.</p> - -<p>“What is to be done now?” said Moodie, breaking off a -discontented and reflective whistle, the last notes of which -had been singularly out of tune; “I cannot send this sleepy -old fool to Leckö, or anywhere else, for I do not know where -Leckö is, or where we are, or anything about it in this fog; -who was to have thought of this?”</p> - -<p>“Never mind,” said the Parson—</p> - -<div class="poetry-container"> -<div class="poetry"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">“The wisest schemes of mice and men</div> - <div class="verse indent2">Gang aft ajee;”—</div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -<p>“I suppose this fog will clear off some time or other, and -we are well provisioned, at all events.”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_290"></a>[290]</span></p> - -<p>“Yes,” said Moodie, “but we have sent on a forebud, -and we shall have to pay for the horses all the way -up.”</p> - -<p>“Well, that is a bad job,” said the Parson, “as far as it -goes; but the worst that can come of it is to pay double,—once -for the failure, and once for the real journey.”</p> - -<p>“No, that is not the worst, by any means; we have not -only lost our money, but our forebud; we shall be kept -waiting for an hour or two at every station, and shall most -probably arrive when the fun is over. At such out-of-the-way -places there is not a chance of holl-horses, that is to say, -horses which the post-master keeps himself on speculation, -and we shall have to send to the farms, whose turn it is to -furnish them. I have been kept waiting that way for four -hours at a single station.”</p> - -<p>Here Nils, who had been up to the mast-head to see if he -could make out anything (for these fogs very often lie on -the surface, not a dozen feet thick, looking from above like -so much cotton wool in a box, while the sun is shining -brightly above them), slid down the back-stay, and declared -he could feel a light air aloft on the starboard beam; “his -cheek felt quite cold,” he said, “though the heavy main-sail, -dripping with dew, did not acknowledge the breeze -at all.”</p> - -<p>“How is her head; why, confound you, you have forgotten -the compass” (not at all an unlikely piece of forgetfulness in -a river yacht.) This was soon remedied, for the Parson put -his own little pocket affair on the deck, which, as it was a -calm, did quite as well as her own.</p> - -<p>She was looking a little southward of east, having probably -turned round and round a dozen times during the -night.</p> - -<p>“That would do, the wind was southerly then; but where -were they?”</p> - -<p>The day was now getting bright, and the fog was looking -like a silver veil; the tiresome pattering of the knittles had -ceased, or was renewed only at intervals; she was evidently -gliding through the water,—but which way were they -to steer? Amal certainly must be somewhere to the northward,<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_291"></a>[291]</span> -but within six or eight points it was impossible to tell -where after such a sleepy watch as had been kept during -the past night. Reluctantly, Moodie brought her to the -wind, and hauled his foresheet to windward.</p> - -<p>But the breeze increased, and the fog began to lift now -and then; it could be seen under, as it were, and though just -as thick about the mast-head as ever, a hundred yards or so -of the surface could be seen plainly on either side.</p> - -<p>Nils rubbed his hands at this infallible sign of the rising -of the fog, and Moodie, somewhat easier in his mind, ordered -coffee.</p> - -<p>“There’s land on the port-beam,” said the Captain, -during one of these lifts. “I am sure I saw land, whatever -it is.”</p> - -<p>“There ought to be no land there,” said Moodie; for, lying -as she did now, close to the wind, she had brought the east, -that is to say, the great expanse of the lake, to her port-side, -and was looking exactly on the opposite direction to her -course; “get a cast of the lead, and keep a bright look out -for rocks.”</p> - -<p>Just then the curtain of the fog rose in earnest, and disclosed -a cluster of rocks and islets, among which they had -got themselves completely entangled. “Why, what is this?—it -is! no, it can’t be! yet it is—”</p> - -<p>“It is Lurön,” said Nils.</p> - -<p>“Lurön,” said Moodie, “why, that is miles to the eastward -of our course! Where have you been steering to during -the night?”</p> - -<p>“You told me to ‘keep her as she goes,’ and so I did.”</p> - -<p>And so he had; the fault lay with Moodie himself, who -from the first starting had steered two points to the eastward -of his course; the fog and the current—for the Wener is big -enough for current—had done the rest.</p> - -<p>It did not however signify, the breeze blew merrily and -promised to stand; the fog now lay in light fleecy clouds far -above their heads; the sun, not far from the horizon, began -to smile upon them and to chase away the dangers of the -night, and with them the ill-humour they had engendered; -the fore-sheet was let draw, and as she gathered way she<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_292"></a>[292]</span> -tacked, fell off on the port-tack, and with a jolly breeze on -her quarter, buzzed away through the water to the northwest.</p> - -<p>Soon a line of trees appeared on the horizon, as if they -were dancing in the air, or floating in the water; then the -trunks began to form and unite with something below them; -then the line of land, real firm land, began to manifest itself; -then red, and white, and black, and brown, and striped cottages -began to show out; and before ten the anchor was -let go before the little town of Amal.</p> - -<p>The horses were still awaiting them, for the allotted three -hours, during which they are bound to remain, had not yet -elapsed and they escaped on payment of the regulated fine -for being after time. The men were sent on immediately in -the waggon which Moodie had spoken of, and which he had -written to his friend the farmer to borrow, sending his note -by the forebud. In half-an-hour the carioles were harnessed, -and as they plunged into the forests at the back of Amal, -the last thing they saw was the pretty cutter, close hauled, -lying as near to her course to Wenersborg as the wind would -let her look.</p> - -<p>The trees of Western Carlstadtlan, which they were now -traversing, are said to be the finest in Sweden; this is due -partly to the depth and goodness of the soil—a circumstance -which will eventually secure their destruction, by offering a -temptation to convert the fjeld into arable land; that they -stood, even yet, was principally on account of the absence of -any great rivers, which afford the only means of conveying -timber to the coast. The land is quite as good on the banks -of the Klara and Swedish Glommen, the latter of which runs -into the lake a few miles eastward of Amal, but there is a -sensible difference in the growth of the timber. There was -fir, no doubt, in plenty—there is no Swedish forest without -fir,—but there were also huge beech trees, and a sprinkling -of not very happy-looking oak, that put one in mind of the -English in India: they lived in the country, but they did -not enjoy it.</p> - -<p>The whole country looked like an enormous park—rather -too thickly planted, to be sure,—one kept looking, at every<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_293"></a>[293]</span> -turn of the road, for the mansion; and the road, too, though -not one of very great traffic, was very good, winding along -with a great border of short turf on each side, comparatively -level on the whole, but occasionally interrupted by a descent -so sharp that it seemed as if the carioles were going to cut -a summerset over the horses’ ears,—more particularly as -the horses invariably chose those portions of the road for -going as hard as they could lay legs to ground, a peculiarity -sufficiently trying to the nerves; and as those portions of the -road were invariably cut to pieces by the rush of the water, -and were full of rocks besides, sufficiently trying to the -bodily feelings.</p> - -<p>On the opposite sides of these ravines, the horses would -creep at the rate of about a mile an hour, the passenger being -so absolutely expected to walk up them, that many of the -horses came to a dead halt at the bottom, and refused to -proceed at all till disencumbered of their weight.</p> - -<p>“It is not without reason,” said Birger, as they sat on the -roadside, at the top of one of these descents, watching the -slow progress of their carioles, under the care of their respective -schutzebonder—little boys or girls, as the case may be, -who sit on the foot-boards, and bring the horses back after -they have done their stage;—“it is not without reason that -the ancient Swedes have invented the legend that in certain -places the elves and the trees are identical; that these forest -elves are intensely patriotic, and that in times of invasion they -assemble their bands and fight by the side of their human -countrymen, in defence of their common country. Many of the -trees in Carlstadtlan, as well as in other places, are trees only -by day, but are armed soldiers by night. Of course the idea -is that the forests fight for the country in case of invasion, -and add to the numbers of its defenders; and so they do. -Russia might pour her thousands upon us, and sweep us off -the face of the earth, by mere force of numbers, in an open -field; but how would she ever force her passage through a -forest like this, filled with a few thousand riflemen? The -trees would fight for us even by day; but by night our numbers, -counting the elves, would be irresistible.</p> - -<p>“The slight variety that there is in the legend in Denmark,<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_294"></a>[294]</span> -bears this out there also; where the deep Sound and fjords -intersect the kingdom, the stony promontories are its best -defence, and the elf kings are called Klintekonger, or Promontory -Kings. There are several stories about their -parading their elf soldiers, with fife and drum, on the breaking -out of a war, and driving over the sea, with snorting -horses, in clouds and blackness, from one promontory to -another. The elf king of Bornholm will not allow any -earthly prince to sleep more than three nights within his -dominions, nor will King Tolv permit any king besides himself -to pass the bridge of Skjelskör. This is all part of the -same allegory; the elves are the spirits of the woods, and -the Grims of the cataracts, and the Haaf manner of the sea, -and the Strömkarls of the rivers. They all bear the same character; -they are capricious as the elements are over which -they preside, and often injure most those who are most -accustomed to them, but in case of an invasion become rivers, -and lakes, and fjords, and forests, and unite to repel the invader. -Bother that little schutzebonde of mine; I wish she -were a boy, that I might whip her instead of the horse;” -and Birger strode down the hill to infuse fresh spirit into -the post-horse and post-girl.</p> - -<p>Thus they travelled on, at the rate of five or six miles an -hour on the average, bowling along through the forest, but -interrupted, whenever they came near cultivation, by timber -fences and swing gates across the road, living mostly on their -own provisions, with the help of a little gröd which they got -from the post-houses, sleeping when they would in the haylofts, -sometimes in the open air, and occasionally on peculiarly -dirty sheepskins in the post-houses. Oh those sheepskins—</p> - -<div class="poetry-container"> -<div class="poetry"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">“Ye gentlemen of England,</div> - <div class="verse indent2">Who live at home at ease,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">How little do you think upon</div> - <div class="verse indent2">The dangers of the fleas!”</div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - -<div class="chapter"> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_295"></a>[295]</span></p> - -<h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_XXI">CHAPTER XXI.<br /> -<span class="smaller">THE MEET.</span></h2> - -</div> - -<div class="poetry-container"> -<div class="poetry"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">“A various scene the clansmen made—</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Some sate, some stood, some slowly strayed,—</div> - <div class="verse indent0">But most, with mantles folded round,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Were couched to rest upon the ground—</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Scarce to be known by curious eye</div> - <div class="verse indent0">From the deep heather where they lie;</div> - <div class="verse indent0">But when, advancing through the gloom,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">They saw their chieftain’s eagle plume,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Their shout of welcome, shrill and wide,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Shook the steep mountain’s steady side,—</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Thrice it arose, and lake and fell</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Three times returned the martial yell.</div> - <div class="verse indent0">It died upon Rochastle’s plain,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">And silence claimed her evening reign.”</div> - </div> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse right"><i>Lady of the Lake.</i></div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -<p>Evening had already begun to close in, and the dark -branches of the firs, which for the last five or six miles had -canopied the road, were beginning to grow darker still, when -the carioles emerged from the great forest into a green park-like -glade, studded with feathering clumps of birch and -spruce; and rattled up to the door of the little inn that stood -on the borders of it, which was the place appointed for the -meet.</p> - -<p>The inn, which, after all, was little better than a post-house, -was evidently not large enough to contain a tenth -part of the crowd collected in front of it; nor did the half -dozen wooden houses, which formed the village, afford much -more extensive accommodation.</p> - -<p>Few, however, of those there assembled seemed to care -much about the matter; the evening was warm, the sky was -clear, and the stars were beginning to twinkle merrily<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_296"></a>[296]</span> -through the calm blue sky; the good green wood was shelter -enough for the hardy peasants and their equally hardy -landlords, and would have been shelter enough though the -ground had been white with snow.</p> - -<p>Fires were beginning to rise here and there, bringing into -view the gipsy-like groups collected round them, as they sat, -stood, or lay at full-length upon the turf—some busied about -the little tin kettles, in which they were mixing their rye -gröd, some bringing in fuel, some returning from the inn and -the temporary stalls that had been established round it for -the sale of bread, cheese, butter, brandy, and other necessaries; -though most of the party had brought good store of -provision in their own bags. Some—and they mostly the -elders of the parish—were quietly smoking their pipes, and -discussing the events of former skals, and prophesying good -or bad of the present one, according as their dispositions -were sanguine or the reverse; but all were talking, laughing, -hand-shaking, imparting or listening to little pieces of -domestic news, or parish scandal—for, in the forest parishes, -(and in Sweden most parishes are of that character), a skal -brings together men who have but few other opportunities -of meeting.</p> - -<p>A few old stagers, indeed, were trying to get one good -night’s sleep, in order to prepare themselves for the fatigues of -which the morrow was but the beginning, and were stretching -themselves on the turf, with their feet towards their -fires; but new arrivals were continually rousing them up, and -some fresh Calle Jonsen, or Swen Larssen, or Nils Ericsen, -would be continually dropping in with fresh inquiries, fresh -news, and fresh greetings.</p> - -<p>From the windows of the inn, which were wide open, a -broad, bright glare of light was streaming across the glade, -obscured now and then by the shadow of some great head -and shoulders—for the room was full of people,—but strong -enough, notwithstanding, to light up the boughs of the old -lime trees that shaded the porch, glittering among their soft -green leaves, as if they really were what the Swedes suppose -them to be, the roosting places of the Spirits of Light.</p> - -<p>This was evidently the head quarters of the skal, where<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_297"></a>[297]</span> -the generals and field officers were holding high council, -receiving information, arranging plans, and issuing orders; -and Birger, springing from his cariole and throwing the reins -of his horse to his schutzebond, or post-boy, and committing, -with utter recklessness of consequences, the whole department -of quartermaster-general, and commissary-general -to boot, into the hands of Jacob, rushed into the room, -followed by his three friends.</p> - -<p>This opportune reinforcement was greeted with shouts of -welcome: Birger himself was an old friend of the Ofwer Jagmästere, -and had, before this, signalized himself as a hunter. -Englishmen are invariably popular both in Norway and Sweden; -and besides, the value of English rifles, and English sportsmen -to carry them, was universally acknowledged. Moodie, -however, was the great prize; he had been now, for four years -in the country, and had been there quite long enough to be -known and appreciated as the best shot and the most sagacious -and inventive leader in the province. With a natural -turn for the chase in all its varieties, he had thrown himself, -heart and soul, into the business of bear hunting, had studied -it theoretically and had worked out his theories practically, -till he was universally acknowledged to be a fair match for -the “gentleman in the fur cloak, who has the wisdom of ten -and the strength of twenty,” as the Swedes periphrastically -term their great enemy, the bear.</p> - -<p>He had remained in the porch for a minute or two, giving -some directions to his followers, so that the greetings, and -introductions, and first inquiries had a little subsided when -he entered; but the moment his well-known green cap was -seen in the doorway, there arose such a shout of welcome, -that it made the flitches of bacon and strings of onions -tremble from the rafters.</p> - -<p>“Modige! Modige!”<a id="FNanchor_49" href="#Footnote_49" class="fnanchor">[49]</a> for so they had naturalized his -name into a word which, in their language, signifies courageous.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_298"></a>[298]</span></p> - -<p>The well-known cry was caught up among the parties out -of doors, and echoed back again from tree to tree, while the -glare of the camp-fires shewed dark shadows of insane figures, -waving arms and hats, aye, and handkerchiefs, too, for every -woman who can possibly slip away from home, turns out on -a skal.</p> - -<p>“Modige! Modige!” again came thundering and screaming -back in all sorts of voice, old and young, male and female; -now dying away, then bursting forth, as some distant post -took it up again.</p> - -<p>“Upon my word,” said the Ofwer Jagmästere Bjornstjerna, -speaking in French, out of compliment to the strangers—for -this language, though utterly despised in Norway, is pretty -generally spoken among the Swedish aristocracy; “upon my -word, the people have decided the matter for us; I wanted -some one to take charge of the hållet, and was going to offer -you the command the moment I saw you, but the people seem -to have taken the matter into their own hands now; you -cannot possibly refuse, you are elected by acclamation.”</p> - -<p>“I am delighted to be of any use,” said Moodie,—in -fact, he did look delighted in good earnest,—“and will do my -best; but you are aware that I am not very familiar with -the ground here.”</p> - -<p>“Never mind that,” said Bjornstjerna; “we will soon find -some one to be your quartermaster-general; what we -want is, a man that the people look up to, who knows his -business, and is accustomed to command.”</p> - -<p>“How many shall I have under me in the hållet?”</p> - -<p>“We cannot spare you above five hundred,” said Bjornstjerna; -“but the ground is easy enough, at least so far -as the hållet is concerned. See here,” and he produced a -rough but well-executed military sketch of the ground, -which he had surveyed and mapped that morning; “this -plain is the country we mean to drive,—there is about three -miles of it in length, that is to say,” he added, parenthetically, -nodding to the Englishmen, “what you would call in your -country, one or two-and-twenty. On the west, as you see, -it is bounded by the river which I have marked here in -blue; this, in its course, expands into these two lakes, and<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_299"></a>[299]</span> -just by the water-side the country is comparatively open, -with a few farm houses and hamlets about it; the forest, -however, closes it all round, getting thicker as you approach -the mountains. On the east is this range of heights which, -as luck will have it, I find are scarped by nature into cliffs, -so that nothing but a bird can get up them—except at these -passes, which I have marked on the map with a cross. -These are mostly the dry or half-dry beds of torrents, and by -the side of almost all of them there is a passage into the -upper fjeld, practicable for men, and, consequently, for beasts -also, when they are frightened. At this point, where we -intend stationing our dref, the range of hills is about six of -your miles distant from the line of the river, but it gradually -approaches it; and at this point, where there are some falls -and rapids, the distance is very trifling—not above a thousand -eller—somewhere about half an English mile; and, -besides, there is a spur of rock here which causes the falls -of the river, and upon this the forest is very thin and open. -Here I propose placing you with the hållet. You will -establish yourself on the reverse slope of the spur, so that -our shot will pass over your heads; you will then only have -to clear away sufficient of the under-stuff from the front of -your position to give you a fair shot at anything that -attempts to cross.</p> - -<p>“About a thousand or fifteen hundred eller in front of -your position, and parallel to it, runs a cow-track to the -upper säters, which, upon the whole, is pretty open, and -upon which you may as well set a hundred or two of your -men, to improve to-morrow into a shooting line. Here we -shall take our stand after we have driven the country. -There is a thickish bit between this path and your position; -the game will not object to enter it, and if they do, we -ought to get every one of them, for to the left the rock is -absolutely perpendicular, and on the right the rapids are -such that nothing can cross them.”</p> - -<p>“You have no skal-plats?” said Moodie.</p> - -<p>“Why this is a skal-plats,” said Bjornstjerna, “rather a -large one, to be sure; but we shall not run much risk of -getting our men shot in driving it, because you will be on<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_300"></a>[300]</span> -the reverse slope; and, by the way, you must be very particular -in cautioning all your skalfogdar to keep their men -from showing themselves on the crest of the hill. I did -at one time think of making a skal-plats here, on the banks -of this lower lake, and driving from both ends at the same -time; but the ground is not favourable; a good deal of it is -cleared, and every bear will make for the roots of the mountains, -where the under-stuff is thickest; they cannot get up -the perpendicular cliffs, to be sure, but we should have them -creeping up a little way by the branches, and then stealing -back as soon as the dref has passed the place,—upon the whole, -though, I think my present plan is the best.”</p> - -<p>“I really think it is,” said Moodie, “as far as I can judge -from seeing it on paper; but you seem to have a pretty large -country to drive, not less than twenty miles English in -length. What number do you muster?”</p> - -<p>“Not above fifteen hundred or two thousand at the most,” -said Bjornstjerna, “though I have called out five parishes; -but look at the place, it seems cut out for a skal,—half-a-dozen -boats will guard the river, which is navigable in its -whole length till you come to the rapids which flank your -position, and not a bear will go near the houses, as you -know, or face the open ground, if he can possibly help it,—so -much for our right flank; while for the other, a small -picket at each of the water-courses, will be quite sufficient to -guard them till the dref has passed, and then the picket can -either strengthen the other guards farther on, or reinforce -our line, or join you at the hållet, according as they are -wanted. Then, since the cliffs keep approaching the river, in -proportion as we drive forward so our line will be strengthened -by the men closing on each other, till, in the end, when the -beasts begin to break out, we shall be able to send you a reinforcement -of two or three hundred men, for we shall have -more than we want.”</p> - -<p>“That will do,” said Moodie; “we shall have a glorious -skal, I see, and I give you great credit for making the most -of your men.”</p> - -<p>“The truth is, I have quite as many men as I want—I -have never been at a loss for them; what I have been at a<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_301"></a>[301]</span> -loss for, hitherto, is officers, for the Indelta has been unexpectedly -summoned to Stockholm, and with them I have lost -almost every man who knows how to command.”</p> - -<p>“Why not wait till they come back?” said Birger; “they -never keep the Indelta out for more than three weeks, and I -am sure the ‘Fur-clothed Disturbers’ would wait for you:” (no -Swede ever mentions the bear’s name, if he can possibly -help it).</p> - -<p>“Yes,” said Bjornstjerna, “but after that the militia is -to be called out, and if I get my officers I should lose my -men—aye, and two-thirds of the women, too. How many -women do you think would turn out, if you took away all -the men between the ages of twenty and twenty-five? And -let me tell you that the women, though the law does not -allow us to press them into the service, are just as useful as -the men,—and in the dref, where all you want is to drive -the game forward, a great deal more so, for they talk twice -as much, and their screams, and squalls, and laughter, are -heard as far again as the men’s shouts. O, by the Thousand! -I had rather lose my men than my women. But you gentlemen -are a perfect Godsend; I shall do very well for officers -now. Herr Modige is kind enough to take the hållet, -and, whether you like it or no, Master Lieutenant, you -will have the charge of that skal-arm which furnishes the -pickets.”</p> - -<p>“Well, I suppose I must obey my superior officer; -I wish they treated us Lieutenants of the Guards as -well as they do those of England, and then I should be -Captain as well as you—commanding you, perhaps, if I happened -to be senior.”</p> - -<p>“Would you, my boy? I would have you to know that -I rank a Colonel now,—I write ‘Hof’ before my name.”</p> - -<p>“Upon my soul, old fellow, I congratulate you; I do -not know any one who deserves it better.”</p> - -<p>“No more do I,” said Bjornstjerna, “and I must say -that it is not often that the Förste Hof Jagmästere shows -such a specimen of discrimination. However, to business. -Along the left flank of the dref, you will see that in the -course of our beat there are some fifteen or twenty places<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_302"></a>[302]</span> -where game can escape by climbing up the water courses. -At each of these you will post a picket, strong or weak, -according to the nature of the ground. Herr Länsman, can -you furnish the Lieutenant with a man who knows the -country?”</p> - -<p>The Länsman, or tax-gatherer, who in these remote districts -acts as police officer, and is, in fact, the sole representative -of majesty, offered his own services in that capacity.</p> - -<p>“Very good,” said the Ofwer Jagmästere, “then you will -point out the particulars; but, to help you, I have marked all -the more practicable passages with red crosses. Here, however, -is your principal danger—in fact, it is that which made me -hesitate about establishing the hållet where it is. You see -where this cow-path leads to the hills—the path, I mean, -which I have just pointed out to Herr Modige as the place -where I wish him to arrange the shooting line; carry your -eye onward to where it ascends the hills; that is an easy -pass, such as you can ride up, and it is so close to the hållet -that any beast that turns at the line, would naturally dash -at the opening. Here you must post a very strong force.”</p> - -<p>“I cannot do better than put my English friends there,” -said Birger, who saw at a glance that this was the very -crack post of the whole line; “I will venture to say that -their rifles will not allow anything to pass alive through that -opening, from an elk to a rabbit.”</p> - -<p>“Hush, not a word about elks,” said Bjornstjerna; -“neither they nor stags must be touched—the new law is -very strict about that.”</p> - -<p>“It is very difficult to tell one beast from another, in the -thick juniper,” said Birger; “I never could myself.”</p> - -<p>The Ofwer Jagmästere laughed, but put on an official frown.</p> - -<p>“Do you know, Birger,” said the Parson, “I should like -to be your aide-de-camp better than to hold any definite -post; I could carry your orders, you know.”</p> - -<p>“And deliver them in English or French,” said Birger; -“I shall have a very effective aide-de-camp indeed. However, -if you like it, I will give you the post, and I think you -are right; you will see more in that way than in any other, -and you can reinforce the post of danger whenever you are<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_303"></a>[303]</span> -tired. Indeed, you may as well consider it your home -during the skal. Would the Captain, then, take charge of -that point?”</p> - -<p>The Captain was quite willing, and promised to give a -good account of it.</p> - -<p>“Well, then,” said Birger, “I shall not want Piersen to-morrow, -so you may have him, and your own man Tom, and -Jacob for cook. The Parson will probably take Torkel, but -I dare say the Länsman can find you an intelligent Swede, -who knows the ground and can understand a few words of -English, and three or four fellows for sentries; that will be -quite enough for you, for the Parson and Torkel will join you, -and be under your orders before there is anything serious.”</p> - -<p>Here the Ofwer Jagmästere spoke a few words in Swedish to -Birger, who laughed and replied—“No, no, certainly not; I -am confident he would consider it an honour of no small -magnitude to bear a commission in our service. The fact -is,” continued he, addressing the Captain, “everything in -these skaller is arranged according to military discipline, -and everyone here has military rank. And as you have to -command a picket, you would not object to hold a temporary -commission, not quite equal to your own in the English -service.”</p> - -<p>“Object!” said the Captain, “O, no—delighted, of course!”</p> - -<p>“Then give me your cap,” said Birger. “Hand me over -that chalk, Bjornstjerna;” and he wrote upon its peak the -mystic letters, “S.F.,” being the initials of Skal Fogde; -and accordingly the Captain took rank as full sergeant in the -Swedish army.</p> - -<p>“Now, then,” said the Jagmästere, “as I have arranged -matters so satisfactorily here, I will start at once for Lysvik, -where I have ordered the dref to assemble. I shall have -enough to do to-morrow morning, as you may imagine,—what -with numbering the men, and appointing their skalfogdar, -and seeing them at their stations, the commander has -no easy life of it. As for you, Moodie, I need not tell you -your business—you know it as well as I do myself,—but -begin appointing your skalfogdar the first thing to-morrow. -You need not wait for your full complement of men, they<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_304"></a>[304]</span> -will drop in in the course of the day; but as your best men -are sure to be the first, appoint at once; at twelve precisely -write the numbers in their hats, as they stand, and we will -fine all that come later than that. That, Mr. Länsman, -must be your business; but first of all look out for Lieutenant -Birger fifty of your best men. That,” turning to Moodie, -“will leave you nearly five hundred, which is quite as much -as you can want, as the boats will be manned from my party. -You, Birger, will march at daybreak, for I must have every -picket posted by twelve, at which time we move forward -with the dref. Now, Lönner, my horse, as quick as you -please, for we have seven quarters to go before we sleep.”</p> - -<p>The Ofwer Jagmästere might almost be said to “exit speaking,” -for he continued his speech into the porch, and the last -words were lost in the canter of his little hog-maned pony, as -he floundered off, followed by Lönner and a couple of orderlies, -together with the Länsmen of the two other parishes, who -had met him by appointment at Ostmarkand, and now -formed his personal staff.</p> - -<p>Moodie, who was now in command, hesitated for a moment -whether he should exercise it by clearing the inn for the -sleeping accommodation of himself and friends, but, on turning -the matter over in his mind, the interior looked so dirty and -stuffy, and was withal so redolent of tobacco, brandy, and -aniseed, while the exterior was so fresh and green, and the -moon was shining down so softly, and the air was so still, and -the camp fires so bright and inviting, that, with universal consent -and approbation, he adjourned the divisional head-quarters -to a spreading fir-tree, whose branches were illuminated -by a fire worthy of a General; while the provident -Jacob, who had tilted the carioles on end, to form a sort of -screen, spread out before them the contents of his ambulatory -larder.</p> - -<p>This was soon discussed, and then a quiet pipe, a moderate -horn of brandy and water, a hopeful good night, a roll in -their cloaks, and before their heads were well on their knapsacks, -the whole four were in the fairy land of sleep and -forgetfulness.</p> - -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - -<div class="chapter"> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_305"></a>[305]</span></p> - -<h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_XXII">CHAPTER XXII.<br /> -<span class="smaller">THE COMMENCEMENT OF THE SKAL.</span></h2> - -</div> - -<div class="poetry-container"> -<div class="poetry"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">“When shaws beene sheene and shrads full fayre,</div> - <div class="verse indent2">And leaves both large and long,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">’Tis merry walking in the fayre forest,</div> - <div class="verse indent2">To hear the small birde’s song.”</div> - </div> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse right"><i>Robin Hood.</i></div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -<div class="poetry-container"> -<div class="poetry"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">“These mounds I yet may clamber,</div> - <div class="verse indent2">And look on the rocks so grey,—</div> - <div class="verse indent0">On these huge stones on the summits</div> - <div class="verse indent2">I can lie, as oft I lay.</div> - </div> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">“And if it soughs in the forest,</div> - <div class="verse indent2">In the beechwood’s native land,—</div> - <div class="verse indent0">And if the wave roars deeply,</div> - <div class="verse indent2">I nod to sea and strand.</div> - </div> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">“O, never my heart forgetteth</div> - <div class="verse indent2">The cairn, the wood, and the strand,—</div> - <div class="verse indent0">For my heart is only at home in</div> - <div class="verse indent2">The warrior’s fatherland.”</div> - </div> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse right"><i>Holger Danske-Ingemann.</i></div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -<p>The sun had not yet lighted up the spires of the fir-trees, -when a buzz of voices and a shuffling of feet broke the slumbers -of the head-quarters party. Länsman Matthiesen, true -to his word, had not slept before he had picked out his fifty -mountaineers, chalking their hats at the back with the letters -“H.F.,” standing for hög fjeld, or the high forest, indicating -the position they were to occupy.</p> - -<p>While Birger was still rubbing his eyes and kicking up -Jacob to boil the morning’s coffee, Matthiesen was numbering -them from 1 to 50, with chalk, in the front of their hats, -and selecting their skalfogdar, who were marked, as the Captain -had been on the preceding evening, with the letters “S.F.” -It is usual to appoint a skalfogde to every ten men; but, as -these were to be divided into small parties, it was thought<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_306"></a>[306]</span> -expedient to appoint one to every five, it being understood -that, whenever any of these parties were united, the skalfogde -whose number was lowest should reckon as senior, and -command the whole.</p> - -<p>Fire-arms are not very plentiful in any part of Sweden, -but Matthiesen had so picked his men, that about one-fifth -of them had something of the sort,—most of these weapons -looking very much more formidable to the sportsmen who -carried them than to the game at which they were pointed. -The rest were armed with poles, many of which had spikes -at the end. Here and there was an old sword or a pistol -that had seen service in the Thirty years’ War; but most of -the men carried very efficient axes,—an excellent weapon -against a tree, and not a bad one with a bear in close conflict, -if such a thing ever does take place in a skal; but the -fact is, the beasts on these occasions are so completely cowed, -that they rarely, if ever, show fight.</p> - -<p>The men had been searched that morning, and all their -brandy taken from them, and the rest of their provisions -examined, to see if there was enough to last out the number -of days for which they had been summoned. But, before -starting, Birger served out to each a horn of hot coffee from -Jacob’s soup kettle, with a double allowance of sugar in it; -for if there is anything that comes near to brandy in the -estimation of a Swede, it is sugar, which he eats and drinks -whenever he can get it, like a very child.</p> - -<p>Birger then, having first taken a careful survey of the whole -plan of the skal, a copy of which Matthiesen had placed in -his hand, summoned the Parson and Torkel, and, placing -himself at the head of his party, gave the word to march. -This was obeyed in a very military fashion,—for every Swede -is or has been a militia-man, and is very proud of his soldiering,—and -the party was soon lost among the green shades of -the forest.</p> - -<p>Moodie watched them very composedly, and then quietly -set himself down to breakfast, not a little to the discomposure -of the Captain, who, if he had had his will, would have been -walking sentry on his post with his rifle in his hand, looking -out fiercely for the bears,—a proceeding which, as the dref<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_307"></a>[307]</span> -or driving party was not to move till noon, and then would -be twenty miles from the scene of action, evinced, to say -the least of it, more zeal than discretion.</p> - -<p>The Captain need not, however, have disquieted himself, -for the preparations all that time were going steadily forward. -Moodie, having selected six of the most experienced hunters -as Adjutanter or lieutenants, left them to nominate and chalk -off the fifty Skalfogdar which his party required, and to distribute -the men into tens in such a way that every part of -the line should be equally provided with fire-arms. The -farmer who owned the land had offered his services as personal -attendant, or what the Jagmästere had called Quartermaster-General; -and Moodie, quite aware that the authorities -of the place, who knew the characters and capabilities of the -men, would set in order these details much better than he -could, permitted them to manage things their own way, and -interfered but little with their arrangements.</p> - -<p>It was not before ten that everything was put into proper -order, and the little flags prepared which were to mark out the -ground; but then Moodie readily enough got his men into -marching order, and proceeded to take up the position. This -was distant about four miles (English) from the place of -meeting; the road to it leading down the glade, and at right -angles to the direction taken by Birger and his party that -morning.</p> - -<p>If Moodie had seemed apathetic and dilatory while others -were capable of doing the work, there was no want of energy -in him when the party had arrived at the ground. His -orders were given with that distinctness and decision which -evinces an intimate acquaintance with the business in hand, -and ensures the prompt obedience of all engaged in it.</p> - -<p>Two of the Adjutanter, with three men from each skalfogde’s -command were detached to establish the line which -the hållet was finally to occupy, and to mark out with little -flags of white calico, on which were painted their numbers, -the post of each subdivision. In the meanwhile the main -strength of his party were engaged in preparing the mountain -road which the Jagmästere had pointed out for what is -termed the shooting line,—that is to say, the line on which<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_308"></a>[308]</span> -the dref or driving division was finally to halt, having thus -enclosed the game in the patch of wood between it and the -hållet, which is called the skalplats.</p> - -<p>The shooting line was formed, by cutting down the junipers -and lower branches of the trees for about twenty yards -on each side of a mountain road which ran parallel to the -front of the position; but the great labour was to remove -everything that had been cut, for, had such evident traces of -man’s work been left, not one single head of game would -have ventured across the clearing. For this reason, also, -Moodie began his work in this place, leaving the clearing of -his own line for future operations, in order that he might -give time for the scent to clear away,—and therefore it is, -that when the shooting line is once formed, no one is ever -permitted to cross till the dref arrives, driving the game -before them.</p> - -<p>The peculiar kind of the ground had, in this instance, -caused the skalplats to be made very much larger than is -usual; in fact, it was nearly half a mile deep, and very much -more than half a mile in front width—and from this it would -be difficult to dislodge game which had been thoroughly -frightened. But Moodie’s English education had suggested -a remedy: besides the main shooting line, the axe-men -were instructed to subdivide the skalplats by parallel -“rides,” as they are called in an English cover, running from -front to rear, so that a marksman placed at the end of any -of these would have a fair shot, as the game moved from one -block of forest to another.</p> - -<p>All this, however, was a work of time as well as labour, -and though four hundred men were employed about it, and -though they worked as men work who combine pleasure with -duty, the day was far advanced, and the skal had begun for -some hours before Moodie took his final survey, and, dispatching -the Captain and his party to their post in the mountains, -withdrew his workmen to their own position on the reverse -slope of the spur. Having posted his sentries on the crest of -the hill, he dismissed the remainder to procure their suppers, -and to make themselves as comfortable as was consistent -with extreme watchfulness.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_309"></a>[309]</span></p> - -<p>Long before any serious impression had been made by -Moodie, on the shooting line, Birger and the remains of his -party had reached his farthest post, having taken his route -along the crest of the heights. Calculating his time with -military precision, he had visited the heads of all the -different passes, stationing at each a picket, the strength of -which was in proportion to its ascertained importance, or -blocking it up with an abattis of trees—a very easy thing to -do, for the bear, when his suspicions are fairly roused, turns -readily at the slightest appearance of a trap. And now, as -the minute hand of his watch indicated twelve, a fact which -he took care to point out to the Parson, Matthiesen was in -the act of displaying from the branch of a dead fir tree -which overhung the precipice, the long fluttering slip of -white calico, which not only marked out the position of the -pass to those below, but was the agreed signal that it was -occupied.</p> - -<p>The day was bright and hot, as a northern summer’s day -generally is, and within the cover of the woods not a breath of -wind had been felt; but on the exposed cliff, where they -then stood, or rather lay—for the recumbent was decidedly -the favourite position;—a light and refreshing air was just -creeping up the sides of the cliffs, stirring the feathery leaves -of the birches, but leaving the heavier foliage at rest.</p> - -<p>It was a joyous scene, as the eye traversed the tops of the -great forest stretched out like a map below, and traced the -different colours of the foliage—here was a thick, close array -of firs, forming a solid column, of miles in extent—there were -the serried ranks of the spiry spruce,—here, again, where the -axe had been at work selecting the best trees and leaving -the rest to succeed as chance had planted, there was a -broad, park-like expanse full of juniper underwood, bordered, it -may be, by a belt of birch, the consequences of some forgotten -fire, or a patch of white poplars, indicating a marshy bit, or -a dozen or so of restless aspens, balancing their leaves when -all around was still;—here, again, was a svedgefall, as they -term the places where the wind gets under the branches of -the firs, and levels acres of them together. Sometimes these<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_310"></a>[310]</span> -form parks of exceeding beauty, as the young trees grow up -sparsely; but here and there, where they are too small to be -worth removing, they lie, entangled with weeds and undergrowth, -a mass of rottenness and a stronghold of Bruin, out of -which it will sometimes take hours to drive him.</p> - -<p>Here and there, too, was a sœter, or, as we are now in Sweden, -a satterval, or mountain pasture farm, with its low roof of -pine-branches and its meadow of rough hay, which generally -stood in large cocks, ready to be removed as soon as the snow -should form a road; round most of these, groups of cattle -might be seen; but there was no smoke from their chimneys, -for every human being was at the skal.</p> - -<p>Far in the distance, indeed too far to be seen, except -where the sun lighted up its waters and returned a dazzling -reflection, was the river, already guarded by its fleet of boats, -though these were entirely invisible from the cliffs.</p> - -<p>To the southward, the range of heights sank gradually -into the plain, which here was traversed by the main road, -cutting both the ridge and the river at right angles.</p> - -<p>Beyond this, all was one black, dreary, desolate wilderness, -without a shrub, or a bush, or a blade of grass; nothing but -bare, grey, ghost-like trunks of dead trees, stretching forth -their charred and blackened branches, and looking as if a -curse was resting on them. Three years ago that blackened -track had been a flourishing pine forest, but the fire had -passed over it, and it was gone. According to a generally -received Swedish superstition, though the birch might succeed -it, no pine could grow there again for ever: the burnt -tree had been cursed in itself and in its seed.</p> - -<p>This superstition is actually borne out by fact: cut a pine-forest, -and a pine-forest succeeds it; burn a pine-forest, and -the succeeding trees, when they do again clothe the ground, -are invariably birch. In reality, this is not so strange as it -seems at first sight; the fir is the natural seed of the -country, and the young fir is the hardiest tree,—wherever -that tree will grow no other can compete with it; but its -seed is heavy, and cannot fall far from the parent tree, when -once vegetation is destroyed,—the fir-seed can never travel<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_311"></a>[311]</span> -into the wasted land; but the birch-seed flies in the wind, -and its young seedlings are invariably the first green which -succeeds a fire.</p> - -<p>This black wilderness was one cause among many which -had induced the Jagmästere to select this particular spot for -his skal; no game would willingly break through his line -when they knew that miles of uncovered country must be -traversed before they could again find shelter. He had, -therefore, that morning marshalled his dref along the high -road, by placing them in position there, and numbering their -hats as they stood, from the centre to each flank; but, true -to his word, no sooner had the white flag fluttered from -Birger’s post, than his bugle sounded the advance along his -whole line, and the skal was already begun.</p> - -<p>The Parson and Birger, whose work for that morning was -done, were seated on the outer ridge, with their feet fairly -overhanging the precipice, reconnoitring with their glasses the -progress of the dref, as here and there the men emerged into -a more open space, which the skalfogdar were taking advantage -of, in order to reform or repair their line, and -re-establish their communications with the parties right and -left of them.</p> - -<p>Every now and then a sudden shout, followed by half-a-dozen -shots, marking the place by a light puff of smoke, -(Swedish powder makes plenty of that), would point the -glasses to some particular spot,—but on no occasion was any -game visible from above.</p> - -<p>According to law, all shouting is strictly forbidden in -skals, and so is firing at small game, and so is the presence -of women or boys, upon the express count that they are too -noisy; but these laws seem to have been made for no other -purpose except that the people might enjoy the pleasure of -hunting and breaking the law at the same time, for no one -ever thinks of keeping them; shouting is incessant, women -are plentiful, and, as for shooting at small game, the best -chance a cock-robin stands of his life consists in the very -great probability of a Swedish piece missing fire, or a -Swedish marksman missing his aim.</p> - -<p>And, indeed, it is universally admitted by the moderns<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_312"></a>[312]</span> -that their forefathers were in error; that not only shouts and -musketry are useful in keeping up the men’s pluck and -pointing out to each other their whereabouts, but they are -positively of advantage in driving the game. When the ring -is once completed, either by artificial or natural means, and -the game is fairly surrounded, it is far better that it should -be aroused by distant shouts, and should be suffered to slink -off quietly and unseen, approaching by degrees the hållet, -where, after all, it must be brought up by the standing line, -than that it should be surprised by the dref advancing in -silence. A startled bear is just as likely to bolt backwards -as forwards, and, if he does, the chances are that he gets off -scot free. He must be an unlucky bear, indeed, who, at the -earlier part of a skal, and before the men have closed in, -charges the line and gets more than one shot at him; and a -most particularly unlucky bear must he be if that shot takes -effect, whereas it is just as likely to take effect on some -Jan or Karl, who stands with his eyes and mouth open as -the “Disturber” rushes by,—and thus affords, in his own -person, the only chance of a sitting shot, which Swedes -delight in;—indeed, this is almost the only way in which -accidents do happen in skals; the bear very seldom revenges -himself, but he now and then gets people to do it for -him.</p> - -<p>The Parson sat reclining against a rock, very much at his -ease, sometimes watching the progress of the skal, sometimes -picking off the stalks from a quantity of ground-mulberries<a id="FNanchor_50" href="#Footnote_50" class="fnanchor">[50]</a> -which he had gathered during that morning’s march. -Indeed, the Parson, in the course of that march, had succeeded -in making a very pretty figure of himself: his knowledge -of botany amounted simply to a desire of appropriating to -himself every unusual flower he came across; so that by the -end of the day his hat, which was of that description popularly -known as a wide-awake, was generally surrounded by a -garland fit for a May-queen.</p> - -<p>In the present instance, the front of his hat exhibited a -purple plume of the “laf-reseda,” which perfumed the air<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_313"></a>[313]</span> -around him with an odour like that of the night-scented -stock. He had placed it there not so much for that or for -its beauty, as because, like the ground-mulberry, it is never -seen south of the latitude in which they then were—not even -in the south of Sweden. Twining round the hat-band was a -wreath of “Baldur’s brow,” a beautiful white flower, dedicated -in heathen times to the god of Innocence, and still -bearing his name, and retaining a portion of its ancient -sanctity.<a id="FNanchor_51" href="#Footnote_51" class="fnanchor">[51]</a> The lily of the valley, which in Sweden signifies -much the same as it does in England, formed its appropriate -companion; and so might the heart’s-ease, which fairly tinged -the hill sides with blue and yellow, had it retained any -equivalent to its English appellation; but in Sweden it is -called “skart-blom,” and is appropriated to the Devil. It is -the flower the witches decorate themselves with when they -ride by night to the Satanic rendezvous, and dance infernal -polkas in the wilds of Blaakulla.</p> - -<p>“See!” said Birger, “look at that white flag! there it is, -glancing against the corner of those firs in the svedgefall; -now you see another in a line with it,—that is the Ordningsman -and his party; he marks the centre of the advancing -line. Before they started, the Jagmästere will have given -him his precise bearing from the centre of the hållet, and -his business is to attend neither to the bears nor to the -beating, but to advance steadily on his own line; for that -purpose he has those three flagsmen allotted to him. There, -you see that fellow on the farther edge of the svedgefall, -showing his flag from that black-looking fir?—look -through your glass, and you will easily make out the -Ordningsman himself; there he is, with his compass in his -hand, close by the farthest flag; he is taking the bearings of -the first man that we made out; and there is the third now -advancing to take up a new position. What he has to do is -to keep those flags always in the straight line, and all the -rest dress from him.”</p> - -<p>Just then, the Jagmästere rode, or rather clambered, into -the svedgefall on his little cream-coloured pony, which,<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_314"></a>[314]</span> -accustomed to the work, scrambled about the fallen trees -more like a dog than a horse. He was attended by a large -party on foot; one of these, who might be termed his -orderly, had to lead his horse round by the forest cattle tracks, -whenever it happened, as it very frequently did happen, that -the under-stuff was too thick for a horseman to traverse.</p> - -<p>His right wing, which had been beating the easier and -more open country towards the river, had got some distance -in advance, and he was evidently directing the Ordningsman -to halt in the svedgefall till the left had time to come up. -Messengers were dispatched right and left; the bugles began -to sound, some the “advance” and some the “halt,” and those -parts of the line which had begun to emerge from the trees, -were seen collecting in little groups in different attitudes of -rest, lighting their pipes, or visiting their havresacs for their -mid-dag’s mad of black bread and hard white cheese.</p> - -<p>Before long the left wing, the advanced flank of which -was under their feet, made itself to be both heard and seen. -The ground here was much more difficult, because at the -immediate foot of the cliff the <i>debris</i> of ages had formed -themselves into a very steep slope. This part, rugged and -uneven with fallen blocks of stone, was covered with a close -brake of underwood, not only of juniper, but of hazels and -rowan bushes, all matted together by brambles,—as well as -birch and ash, the last of which, winding its long roots among -the stones, had in most places attained the dignity of timber -trees.</p> - -<p>Well aware that every head of game disturbed along the -whole line would, if possible, seek refuge here, the Jagmästere -had intended that his left wing should be thrown forward, -and had allotted a hundred men, under the most -experienced of his Adjutanter, to search the ground well, -keeping a mile or so in advance of the line. The eagerness -of the men on first starting had somewhat disturbed this -arrangement, for at the beginning the cover, along the greater -part of the line, had consisted of firs, which not only screened -the men from the eyes of their officers, but, by destroying the -under-stuff, permitted them to get forwards without any great -exertion. It was to rectify this that the halt had been called.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_315"></a>[315]</span></p> - -<p>“What is that?” said the Parson, jumping up and scattering -half his mulberries down the precipice, as a rush of -wings came sharp round the corner of the rock, and a great -cock-tjäder, as big as a turkey, came close over his head, and -dashed into the firs that crested the hill.</p> - -<p>“That,” said Birger, unslinging his rifle, “that is a hint -that we ought to keep a better look-out;—not that we should -have had that fellow though, for, awkward and heavy as -they seem, they rush along like a round shot, when once they -get into their flight. But never mind, we shall have more -of them presently—mind where you shoot, though, if you use -your rifle,—there will be a peasant or two knocked over -before we have done, most likely. We do not think much -of that, but you would not like to be playing Archbishop -Abbott<a id="FNanchor_52" href="#Footnote_52" class="fnanchor">[52]</a> yourself, would you?”</p> - -<p>The Parson laughed, as he examined and poised his double-barrelled -gun—for the rifle was in the charge of Torkel,—and -made a successful right and left shot among a covey of -orre grouse that were skimming over the tree-tops at his -feet.</p> - -<p>“Oh, if you stick to small shot,” said Birger, who had -despatched a human retriever down the watercourse to pick -up the birds, “you may fire away in the men’s faces if you -like; there is not a Swede who would not stand the chance -of a peppered jacket, to be able to pick up an article of -game,”—a sentiment fully confirmed by the grinning faces of -the picket, for whose benefit he had translated his words.</p> - -<p>“But we are not likely to have bears coming up to us, if -we keep up such a popping as this,” said the Parson.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_316"></a>[316]</span></p> - -<p>“‘A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush;’ if there -are bears within the skal, depend upon it we shall get them, -sooner or later. Fire away! most of us like a broiled grouse -for supper.”</p> - -<p>“Here goes for the bird of Yggdrasil,” as a magnificent -peregrine falcon came floating through the air, as if by the -mere act of volition; “he shall never sit again between -the eyes of the eagle.”<a id="FNanchor_53" href="#Footnote_53" class="fnanchor">[53]</a></p> - -<p>Birger had, however, miscalculated his distance, for the -bird, taking no more notice of his shot than if they had been -hailstones, sailed quietly on his course, without turning to -the right or left.</p> - -<p>“The bird of the gods bears a charmed life,” said the -Parson, “it is no use firing at him. Come, load away! look -sharp, or you will lose your next chance.”</p> - -<p>Game, however, is nowhere very plentiful, either in Norway -or in Sweden; and though every eye in the picket was on -the look-out, nothing more was seen, except a blue Alpine -hare, that came quietly lopping up the watercourse, and sat -on its hind legs, innocently looking Matthiesen in the face -during the minute and half in which he was taking aim; -the shot, however, was successful at last, and puss was destined -to supply the evening kettle.</p> - -<p>“If you want a chance at big game,” said Birger, “I will -tell you what you should do; it is altogether against the -law, no doubt—and that is one of the few laws relating to -skals that ought to be observed;—but if you were to slip -down one of these watercourses with Torkel, and take your -course quietly and silently through the fjeld, keeping four or -five miles ahead of the dref, more unlikely things have happened -than that you should set your eyes upon some beast -or other stealing off. You have got your compass, and you -cannot be lost in a little strip of a forest like this, not half a -dozen miles across. Besides, every stream you come to runs<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_317"></a>[317]</span> -from our pickets, which you may always reach by following -it. You can always distinguish them in the day-time by -their flags, and if you should be overtaken by night—”</p> - -<p>“If I should,” said the Parson, “there is nothing I should -like better. Torkel will soon get up a fire. I have plenty -of provisions in my havresac, and a little of the contraband, -too,” he added, shaking his bottle; “they forgot to search -me; so that if we should be out at night, we will try if we -cannot make a night of it.”</p> - -<p>“So be it, then,” said Birger; “be early at the Captain’s -post, that is all, for you may depend upon it, if I know anything -of the lie of the country, there will be sport there long -before the dref comes up. You will probably find me there -before you.”</p> - -<p>“Au revoir, then,” said the Parson, as he swung himself -off the cliff on which he had been sitting, into the boughs of -an ash, and thus dropped into the watercourse; down this -he disappeared, with Torkel after him, floundering, crashing, -and rolling the stones before him.</p> - -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - -<div class="chapter"> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_318"></a>[318]</span></p> - -<h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_XXIII">CHAPTER XXIII.<br /> -<span class="smaller">THE SATTERVAL.</span></h2> - -</div> - -<div class="poetry-container"> -<div class="poetry"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">“’Tis merry, ’tis merry, in good greenwood,</div> - <div class="verse indent2">Though the birds have stilled their singing;</div> - <div class="verse indent0">The evening blaze doth Alice raise,</div> - <div class="verse indent2">And Richard is faggots bringing.”</div> - </div> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse right"><i>Alice Brand.</i></div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -<p>Avoiding the advanced column of the dref, which had halted -just short of the watercourse, the Parson and his follower -took a line nearly parallel to that of the hills. It is no easy -thing to beat a Swedish forest, for there are every now and -then thick-tangled brakes, and grass-grown svedgefalls, and -occasionally, it may be, a little lake to break the line, causing -perpetual halts, since one part must necessarily wait for -another. But simply making a passage through a Swedish -forest is almost as easy as walking on plain turf:—here -there will be a wide patch of high pines, under which nothing -will grow,—then there will be actual green glades of considerable -length, with short mountain turf, broken only by tufts -of lilies of the valley, or, perhaps, whortleberry or cranberry -plants; and everywhere, when the trees are young, or have -been cut, and the understuff has been permitted to come -up thick, the whole space is intersected by cattle paths,—for -all the fjeld is divided into sœters belonging to the lowland -farms, forming the summer runs for their cattle.</p> - -<p>The Parson and his follower, therefore, had no difficulty -in leaving the whole line behind them, so that first their -shouts and then the reports of their firearms were lost in the -distance, and the forest, soon to be so busy with life, looked -as quiet and lonely as if it never could echo sounds louder -than the coo of the wood-pigeon.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_319"></a>[319]</span></p> - -<p>After five or six miles’ walking, the closeness of the air -under the trees began to tell upon them—more especially as -this afternoon’s excursion had been preceded by a morning’s -walk of sixteen or seventeen miles, and neither of them felt -at all sorry when, in a natural opening of the forest, the -rough enclosures of a sœter came into view.</p> - -<p>“Come,” said Torkel, “we shall get some brandy here, -anyhow.” He was mistaken, however, for no living thing -was to be found there, except a dog tied to a stump (for -dogs are strictly forbidden in skals), that at first made the -forest ring with its barking, but soon became reconciled to -the intruders by that sort of free-masonry, whatever be the -cause of it, which always exist between a dog and a sportsman.</p> - -<p>“At all events, they must have milk here,” he said, “and -I am not sure whether, just now, I had not rather find milk -than brandy.”</p> - -<p>The Parson laughed at Torkel’s unusual feelings of sobriety, -but quite participated in his longing for milk. This -they found, and plenty of it, for the single room of the -cabin was full of vessels, shoved in anywhere, as if the -milkers had been in such a hurry to complete a task which -they could not have neglected without spoiling their cows, -that they had not given themselves time to put their milk -away.</p> - -<p>Torkel went down on his hands and knees, put his mouth -into a bucket that stood near the door, and drank away as if—like -Odin, when he wheedled Gunlauth into letting him -take a sip from the cup of poetic inspiration—he meant to -drain it to the very bottom, and then set to upon a sort of -cake that he found strung upon a cord between two of the -rafters, which looked something like a number of round, -thin discs, of semi-transparent paste, with holes punched out -of the centre to hang them up by.<a id="FNanchor_54" href="#Footnote_54" class="fnanchor">[54]</a></p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_320"></a>[320]</span></p> - -<p>The Parson, who was not less thirsty and exhausted, -evinced a little more moderation than this “hog of the flock -of Epicurus;” he was content with filling his horn occasionally -at the milkpail, and floating in it a handful of cranberries, -bushels of which were growing wherever a glimpse of sunshine -could penetrate the canopy of foliage, “incarnading” -with their red berries the turf of the whole forest, “and -making the green one red.”</p> - -<p>The refreshment was, as Torkel had observed, better than -brandy, and both felt quite sufficiently invigorated for a fresh -journey; but their present quarters looked very comfortable,—the -shadows of the evening were fast lengthening, -and they had already advanced far beyond any point which -the skal could be expected to reach that day. They remained, -therefore, comfortably sitting on the rail fence, and -looking down the grassy glade, without any intention of going -farther that night. Since diving into the forest they had not -seen a head of game of any kind, except a flock (for it hardly -deserved a more sportsman-like appellation) of the smaller -description of grouse, which Torkel, whose eyes were everywhere, -had detected on the higher branches of one of the -trees. Three of these the Parson had brought down in the -most pot-hunting and unsportsman-like fashion, by getting -them into a line as they sat, and bringing them down as -a boy massacres fieldfares. These Torkel was indolently<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_321"></a>[321]</span> -picking, and preparing for the frying-pan, an article which is -generally to be found in a sœter, while, at the same time, he -kept a professional eye on the glade. The Parson, sitting -beside him, was as indolently pulling off the fruit of the -hägg, a sort of wild cherry, a clump of which overshadowed -the fence on which they were sitting, and afforded them a -partial cover from any quick-sighted animal coming up from -the forest.</p> - -<p>“I do not like these great summer skals,” said he. “If you -really want to see sport you should come here in the winter, -when the snow is on the ground,—that is the time for a man to -set his wits against ‘old Fur Jacket,’—to ring him in the snow—to -look out for his den—to turn him out—to dash after him -through the snow on our skier—to follow him day after day—to -camp on his track—and after him again as soon as -day breaks, and at last, after a week’s hunting, perhaps, to -run in upon him and put a rifle-ball upon his head. All -this too is done quietly,—a party of two or three at the -most,—not mobbing the poor devil to death in this fashion,—that -is the thing that tries a man’s talents as a hunter. -In such a skal as this, one of those squalling women could -knock over a bear as well as the best of us, if she happened -to meet with him; he very seldom shows fight, either, in the -summer time,—he sees he is overmatched, and gives it up as a -bad job; but in the winter, you may as well have a firm -heart and a steady hand before you bring your rifle to bear, -and you would be none the worse for a stout comrade to -stand beside you, with pike and knife.”</p> - -<p>“The bear does charge them sometimes?” said the -Parson.</p> - -<p>“Yes, if hit,” said Torkel, “or if he thinks you have got -him into a corner, otherwise he would always rather run -than fight. I remember one journey I had with two young -Englishmen a few years ago; we went to shoot in Nordre -Trondhjemsampt;—ah! you should go there if you want -shooting. I never saw such a place for grouse of all kinds,—aye, -and for deer too. Well, these Englishmen were -always wanting to find a bear,—they would not be satisfied -with the very best of sport, they kept saying that it would<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_322"></a>[322]</span> -never do to come from Norway without having a bearskin to -show their friends,—for all these Englishmen seem to think -that bears are the common game of the country.”</p> - -<p>“We shot deer and grouse as many as we pleased, but we -did not so much as hear of a bear till we had given up shooting -altogether, and were travelling home, which we did -by the road through Ostersund, Hernösand, and Gefle. -When we got to the post-house at Skalstuga, the first on the -Swedish side of the mountains; early in the morning, long -before it was light, the cow-boy came in crying, and said -that a bear had just killed one of the cows. Off goes one of -our Englishmen, half naked, with his gun in his hand, just -as if he had nothing bigger to shoot than a hare. I caught -up an axe that was lying there and ran after him. Up he -comes, and stands right in the bear’s path, just as if he cared -no more for him than for a big dog, and fires away two barrels -right in his face. Lord! it was nothing but small shot, such -as he had been shooting grouse with, and the bear came at -him like Thor’s hammer. Just in the way, as luck would -have it, stood a sapling fir-tree; and I never could tell whether -the bear was blinded by the smoke, or whether some of -the small shot had taken him about the eyes, but he seemed -to take the tree for that which had hurt him, and he reared -himself up against it, and shook it, and fixed his teeth -in it, and shook it again, and seemed to mind nothing else, -till I stole up quietly behind him and drove the axe -into his skull. The Englishman never seemed to care a -bit about the danger he had escaped; all he said was, -‘Got him at last!’ ‘That’s the ticket!’ and shoved into my -hand more yellow and green notes than ever I saw there -before or since; and, for all he was so free with his money, -he went to the Länsman at Ostersund and got the bear’s -nose sealed, and touched the Government reward for it, just -like one of us, and then he tossed the money to me, and told -me to get drunk upon it.”</p> - -<p>“Which you did, I’ll be sworn,” said the Parson.</p> - -<p>“I believe I did!” said Torkel; “I was not fairly sober -for a good three days after it.”</p> - -<p>“Hist! what is that,” said he, dropping, as he spoke, on<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_323"></a>[323]</span> -the inside of the fence, and motioning the Parson to do so -likewise.</p> - -<p>A wolf came lolloping along with the slovenly gallop in -which that disreputable beast usually travels, looking as if it -had sat up all night drinking and was not quite sober yet. -The Parson laid down his gun, and quietly taking his rifle from -Torkel, cocked it, and lodged it upon an opening between the -planks. The wolf had not seen them, but came shambling -on, when, either scenting his enemies, or knowing by experience -the ineligibility of a path near fences, he edged away -towards the close covert, showing a portion of his ungainly -side at a long shot, and though looking as if he were lame of -all four legs at the same time, clearing the ground with his -immense and untiring strides faster than any dog could have -followed him.</p> - -<p>Crack went the Parson’s rifle; but whether the wolf was -hit, or whether he knew what a rifle-shot meant, or whether -he so much as heard it, or saw the smoke, it was all the same; -his course was not altered, his pace was neither relaxed nor -quickened, he went lolloping on, just as when he was first -seen, and, as much at his ease as ever, disappeared in the -forest not a hundred yards from them.</p> - -<p>“Missed him, by all that is unlucky!” said the Parson, -jumping up.</p> - -<p>“There is no knowing,” said Torkel; “if you had hit him -it would have been all the same. Unless the shot strikes a -part immediately vital they take no notice of it.”</p> - -<p>There was evidently nothing to be done; and, indeed, the -probabilities were that the Parson really had missed, for -there was not a vestige of blood to be seen on the turf; and -as the shades were closing in and the woods were getting too -dark to see anything, they returned to their comfortable -quarters, and, by bringing in one of the cocks of rushy hay, -they succeeded in making up on the floor of the hut two -couches, much more luxurious than anything they had enjoyed -since leaving Gäddebäck.</p> - -<p>“That will do,” said Torkel; “it is a great piece of luck -that we happened upon this sœter. We shall make a -much better cookery of our grouse here than we should have<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_324"></a>[324]</span> -done under a tree in the fjeld. There must be a frying-pan -here somewhere, if we had only light to find it by.”</p> - -<p>“Why do you not light the fire?” said the Parson; “that -will give you light enough, for this fuel is as dry as tinder, -and good honest birch, too, with some heart in it. You -must have a fire for cooking, whether you want it for light -or not, so heap up the hearth-stone at once.”</p> - -<p>This was done as soon as said; and to the cheerful -blaze of dry and crackling fir succeeded the steady, candle-like -flame of the birch, lighting up the remotest corners, and -glancing on that indispensable requisite of mountain life -which Torkel had been seeking. Fresh butter, just from the -churn, is not altogether uneatable even in Sweden, and besides, -hunger is not nice; the Parson consumed, with considerable -relish, his own share of the grouse, and only wished -they had been as big as black game, or tjäder. Brandy -there certainly must have been somewhere in the hut, for -there never was a Swedish hut without; but so well was it -hidden, that all Torkel’s experience failed to bring it to light, -and, very much to the Parson’s delight, they were reduced to -milk, of which there was enough to supply the whole skal.</p> - -<p>“Well,” said the Parson, who had succeeded in twisting -up his hay into a sort of chaise-longue, with a well-formed -cushion for his back, “I did not expect to have a roof over -my head; I must say this is a real piece of luxury. Why we -are better off than the Captain with his tents; everything -we want to our hands, and no host to ask for a reckoning.”</p> - -<p>“That would not be over safe in the Hardanger-fjeld,” said -Torkel; “but I suppose Sweden is another thing: indeed, in -Norway it is only on the Hardanger that the thing is permitted.”</p> - -<p>“What is permitted?” said the Parson.</p> - -<p>“Why the ghosts of the damned,” said Torkel, “are permitted -to wander about the Hardanger as they please. No -great favour after all, as you would say if you had ever seen -the place; and when they see travellers coming they build -comfortable huts by the wayside, with fires burning, and -dry clothes, and plenty of brandy and good provisions, and -everything a man wants in order to make himself comfortable.<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_325"></a>[325]</span> -It would be pretty much of a temptation anywhere, and you -may fancy what it is on that exposed and treeless waste, where, -whenever it is not raining it is snowing, and if it is not snowing -it is raining. But if a man once enters and accepts the -hospitality, he is lost,—the rushing wind carries away the -house and all that is in it, and the travellers are never heard -of more.”</p> - -<p>“You never happened upon a ghost-house yourself, did -you?” said the Parson.</p> - -<p>“I never did,” said Torkel, “though I have been a good -deal on the Hardanger-fjeld in my day; it is a capital place -for ripar. But the truth is, these things are not so frequent -as they used to be. My father, though, once passed a very -uncomfortable night on the fjeld, and he never could make -out, to his dying day, whether the ghosts had or had not anything -to do with it.”</p> - -<p>“How was that?” said the Parson, as he threw another -log on the fire, and stirred the embers into a good ghost-story-telling -blaze.</p> - -<p>“In those days,” said Torkel, “we lived near Bykle, on -the upper Torjedahl, and grew a good deal of barley which -we could not very well consume ourselves, and had no means -to transport to Christiansand, where generally there is a pretty -good market for it. So my father set up a still, and drove a -good thriving trade with the country about Jordbrakke and -Skore, exchanging our brandy for their salt fish, an article -which is scarce enough in the Tellemark. My father used -generally to meet a trader, of the name of Nilssen, at what -is called a post-house, situated on a ridge that divides the -Torjedahl from the waters that flow into Wester Hafvet (the -North Sea). Why they called it a post-house I am sure I -do not know, for there is not a horse within a day’s journey -of it, nor a post-master neither, nor, indeed, any one else. -It was built by Government, no doubt, but you seldom saw -anything so bad at a common sœter. One miserable room -of ten feet square, the walls built of dry stones, with the -wind whistling in at one side and out at the other, which -was the only means of carrying off the smoke. Fuel there -was, and straw there was, for Government provides that,<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_326"></a>[326]</span> -and the post-master of the next station is responsible that -there shall always be a store of both; but Government says -nothing about the quality, and we used generally to find the -green bog myrtle which grows there, bad as it is, better fuel -and better bedding than either of them.</p> - -<p>“One evening, about eight o’clock, my father arrived at -the usual place, having appointed a meeting with Nilssen, -but when he came there he could nowhere find the hut. He -recognised the place well enough, there was no missing that; -there was the deep still lake, the waters of which contained -no living thing,—there it was, as black as ever; there, too, -was that old mass of whinstone, which used to form the back -of the hut, and always had a stream of moisture trickling -down it, but no house was to be seen, and, what made matters -worse was, that a thick mountain mist had come on, -with driving rain, which felt as if every spiteful little drop -was a needle. My father looked disconsolately along the -track, and fancied he saw, through the blinding fog, the -gleam of a fire; he went on some fifty yards, and there, sure -enough, was a nice comfortable hut, water-tight and weather-tight, -with the door wide open, a bright fire on the hearth, -and two or three rounds of flad bröd and a Dutch cheese on -the great stone in the middle which did duty for a table,—but -not a soul was there.</p> - -<p>“My father was not easily frightened; he was an old -sailor, and had helped to catch many of your English traders -during the last war. He could have looked down the throat -of a cannon, and did pretty near, for he was on board the -<i>Najaden</i> when the <i>Dictator</i> sank her; but he did not much -fancy being damned, for all that. So he looked and looked -at the merry blaze that smiled its welcome through the door, -and watched the cheese and the flad bröd which seemed to be -dancing in its light, but for all that he laid himself down -under the lee of a rock, and cold, and wet, and miserable, -wished for morning, for the wind blew, and the rain kept -pelting away all night, till he thought it would have floated -him, rock and all, into the Normand’s Laagen; and there, all -the time, was the fire blazing away, till it subsided into a -glowing heap of red-hot embers.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_327"></a>[327]</span></p> - -<p>“Towards morning he fell into a miserable sleep, and when -he woke up the mist was gone, the sun was shining brightly, -and there was not a shred of cloud to be seen. The first -thing he put his eyes upon was Nilssen, coming up from the -shores of the lake, and looking as wet, and as cold, and as -wretched as he was.</p> - -<p>“‘Ah,’ said Nilssen, ‘so you have been lost in the fog, -like me. My misfortune was all my own fault, too. I got here -yesterday in very good time, and lighted the fire, and made -all comfortable, and then I must needs be fool enough to -start after a covey of ripar, that I did not get a shot at after -all; and then the mist came on, and I could not find my -way back. A wretched night I have passed, I can tell you.’</p> - -<p>“‘What,’ said my father, ‘was it you who lighted that -fire?’</p> - -<p>“‘To be sure I did,’ said Nilssen, ‘who else should? Men -are not so plentiful in this cursed place.’</p> - -<p>“‘And you are not damned, after all?’</p> - -<p>“‘Not that I know of,’ said Nilssen.</p> - -<p>“‘That is not the old hut, though, I will take my oath.’</p> - -<p>“‘No,’ said Nilssen, ‘it is not; the other was very nearly -to pieces, as you may recollect, when we were last here. The -roof fell in not a month after that, and then the authorities -of the three Ampts contrived to settle their differences, and -do what they ought to have done years ago—build a new one -at their joint expense. They have not made a bad job of it. -Come in, you are cold enough.’</p> - -<p>“‘And I have been lying out in this cursed rain and wind -all night,’ said my father, ‘with a good fire before my eyes, -and a warm roof within fifty yards of me, fancying all the -while that you were damned, and that you wanted to take -me off to the Devil along with you! What a confounded -fool I have been!’</p> - -<p>“But I am not sure that my father was such a fool either,” -continued Torkel, “for Nilssen died very soon after that; in -fact, he had caught a bad cold during that night, and as he -had sold us a lot of bad fish, I have no doubt he <i>was</i> damned; -at all events, it is quite true that from that day forward my -father was never entirely free from the rheumatism, and this<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_328"></a>[328]</span> -in his latter days, when he began to get religious, he always -attributed to the sight of the fire in the post-house; for he -never was without his misgivings that Nilssen had been -damned before he met him. He once went as far as Hardnæs -to ask the priest about it, and he said that the idea was new -to him, certainly, but that he would not take upon himself -to pronounce it impossible. To the very end of his life, my -father used to congratulate himself upon the fortitude and -self-denial he had evinced during that terrible night, ‘because,’ -said he, ‘if the bare sight of that fire through the mist was -visited so severely, no one can say what would have been the -consequence had I sat by it all night.’”</p> - -<p>“No,” said the Parson, solemnly, “no one can.”</p> - -<p>“You see,” said Torkel, “the whole question hinges on the -fact whether Nilssen was damned or not; now he certainly -did take us in about the fish—we were obliged to throw -away half of it. I should like very much to have your -opinion on the subject.”</p> - -<p>“Why,” said the Parson, gravely, “will you take upon -yourself to say, on your conscience, as a Christian man, that -there was no potato-haulm in the wash from which your -brandy was distilled?”</p> - -<p>Torkel laughed, and rubbed his hands at the recollection. -“No,” said he, “that I will not; I do not think the old -scoundrel made much by us, after all.”</p> - -<p>“Well, if that is the case, I do not think, if I were you, I -would be too hard upon poor Nilssen about the next world. -But you ought to be able to judge for yourself whether the -laager was a ghost-house or not; what became of it?”</p> - -<p>“O, there it is still,” said Torkel. “I have slept in it -often myself since, and no harm has happened from it. But -all that hill-country is a terrible place. Do you know, the -Evil One once leaped over the Tind Sö, where it is four miles -across? He did, indeed; I have seen the prints of his footsteps -with my own eyes—and a very curious thing it is, that -one foot is bigger than the other. Our Kyrkesonger says it -is to mark the difference between mortal and venial sins.”</p> - -<p>“I am afraid your Kyrkesonger will never rise to the rank -of Candidatus,” said the Parson, “if he does not get up his<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_329"></a>[329]</span> -theology a little better. Is not this the place where your -witches meet?”</p> - -<p>“It is not far from it; and it is generally supposed that it -was in hurrying away from one of these meetings, which was -suddenly dispersed by some one having accidentally named a -holy name, that the Devil left the mark of his feet on the -shores of the Tind Sö; but the actual place of meeting is the -top of Gousta Fjeld. The ridge of the mountain is so narrow -that you may sit astride on it, with a leg on each side in the -air, and no resting-place under either foot for a thousand -fathoms. On this ridge the Devil sits playing on the bagpipe, -while the witches dance the polska round him in the -air. They come from all parts of the country, riding upon -the skyts-horse, which looks like a flying cow, and carrying -with them all the children they can catch, in order to enlist -them in the Devil’s service; for each witch has a needle, by -which she unlocks the sides of the houses, and makes an -opening, if she likes, big enough for a carriage and horses to -pass through; and after she has passed, she locks them up so -that no one can know where she has been. When she -arrives at the convent—so the assembly is called,—she presents -to the Devil all those children whom she has brought -with her: she cannot force the children to take service -with him,—some refuse, and the witches are obliged to carry -them back again. These are good and holy people ever -afterwards; but most of them do enter the Devil’s service, -for though he is bound down with a chain, which he has -always worn ever since our Lord came upon earth, yet he -can make himself look so fine and so glorious that very few -of them like to say ‘no,’ and to go back to their homes -through the dark night. If they once say ‘yes,’ he gives -them a silver dollar each, and marks them, by biting the -crown of their heads; and then they are taught to curse all -that is holy—the Heaven, and the earth, and the fruits of -the field, and the birds of the air,—all except the magpie, for -that is the Devil’s own peculiar favourite. And then the -witches make them a mess of rö-gröd, with corn that has -been stolen. They have a way of their own for stealing corn:<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_330"></a>[330]</span> -they put a sack to the roof of the granary as they fly past, -and say ‘Corn draw corn, and straw draw straw,’ and then -all the corn flies up into their sacks, and the straw remains -behind. I know this to be true, for I have lost lispund after -lispund myself that way. I had a girl in my service once, -who was a witch, and I lost as much as three tonne of corn, -and a great many things besides, while she was with me. -But she vanished one night and has never been heard of -since, and with her a great scoundrel, who had lately come -into our parts, whom she called her lover,—but the people -said he was the Devil in disguise.”</p> - -<p>“Very likely,” said the Parson, “lovers very often are; -but what about your witch children?”</p> - -<p>“When they have done all this, the Devil gives notice of -the next convent, and the witches take the children, and -they grow up with their brothers and sisters just like any -of the others, only that they are cross-grained children from -that time forward, and are always getting into one mischief -or another, and quarrelling, and fighting, and stealing, and -lying, and doing the Devil’s work on earth; for they have -all had new names given them at the convent, and whenever -the Devil calls them by those names, they must go and do -whatever work he sets them at, for they have taken his -wages, and, having once engaged to be his servants, they -cannot help themselves now.”</p> - -<p>The Parson felt by no means inclined to laugh at Torkel’s -demonology, every bit of which may be found gravely and -solemnly recorded in the State papers of Sweden, for it once -formed the grounds of accusation upon which men and -women were executed by the dozen; for with the exception -of the material and tangible facts, the cow-like horse, and -the silver dollar, and the ridge of Gousta, and the bagpipes, -the whole of Torkel’s story was but an over-true allegory, -the antitype of which may be found everywhere in real life; -and the fact of the Superior Power compelling the restoration -of all who do not willingly engage in the Devil’s service, is -a very sound piece of theology. So he very readily joined -in the prayer of the Evening Hymn, a very ancient composition,<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_331"></a>[331]</span> -dating from centuries before the Reformation, which -Torkel sang as well and as heartily as if he had been kyrkesonger -himself. A portion of it has been thus translated:—</p> - -<div class="poetry-container"> -<div class="poetry"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">“Ere thy head, at close of day,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">On thy lowly couch thou lay,</div> - <div class="verse indent2">On thy forehead and thy breast</div> - <div class="verse indent2">Be the Cross of Christ impressed.</div> - </div> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">“Sin and shame, like shades of night,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Fade before the Cross’s light,—</div> - <div class="verse indent2">Hallowed thus, the wavering will</div> - <div class="verse indent2">And the troubled heart are still.</div> - </div> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">“Far, far hence, dark phantoms fly,—</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Haunting demons come not nigh,—</div> - <div class="verse indent2">Ever waiting to betray,</div> - <div class="verse indent2">Arch Deceiver, hence!—away!</div> - </div> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">“Serpent! with thy thousand coils,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">With thy many winding wiles,</div> - <div class="verse indent2">With thy deep, meandering arts,</div> - <div class="verse indent2">Ruffling calm and quiet hearts;</div> - </div> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">“Hence!—for Christ, yea, Christ is here,—</div> - <div class="verse indent0">At His token disappear;</div> - <div class="verse indent2">Lo! the sign thou well hast known</div> - <div class="verse indent2">Bids thy cursed crew begone!”</div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -<div class="note"> - -<p>It is a fact that the Gousta Fjeld and the Tind Sö, a very large and -lonely lake at its foot, are popularly supposed to be the resort of the -Devil and his adherents. The author, however, has not been able to -meet with any authentic accounts of the diabolical convents in Norway. -He has, therefore, substituted those of Sweden, the locality of which -is Blaakulla, in Dalecarlia. These are quoted by Frederika Bremer -from the manuscript of Kronigsward, which details the judicial murders -which took place under Councillor Lawrence Kreutz, in 1671,—were -continued for three years, and were suppressed at last by the exertions -of Countess Catharine de la Gardie. But, though the executions for -witchcraft were put an end to, the belief in it is as rife as ever. The -same book contains a laughable story of a supposed witch residing in -the island of Söllezo, in the Silya Sjön, and of her recovery; which -proves that the clergy of Sweden have not lost their power as exorcists. -Not many years ago, a young girl of that island asserted positively that -she was conveyed every evening to Blaakulla. Her parents, who were -honest but simple folks, were much disturbed about it. They closely<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_332"></a>[332]</span> -watched their daughter by night,—bound her fast in bed with cords,—but -nothing would avail; for, in the morning, weeping bitterly, she -still maintained she had been at Blaakulla. At last, her unhappy -parents took her to the clergyman upon the island, and begged him, -with earnest tears, to save their child from the claws of Satan. After -having had several interviews with the maiden, the clergyman one day -said to her, “I know a remedy,—a certain remedy to cure you! but it -will give me much trouble. Yet, as nothing else appears to be of any -avail, we will have recourse to it.” With much solemnity, he caused -the girl to seat herself upon a commodious chair in the centre of the -apartment, took up a “Cornelius Nepos,” and began reading one of -the lives. Before he had finished, she fell fast asleep; and when she -awoke, the clergyman told her she was cured—and she was so!</p> - -</div> - -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - -<div class="chapter"> -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_333"></a>[333]</span></p> - -<h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_XXIV">CHAPTER XXIV.<br /> -<span class="smaller">MAKING ANOTHER NIGHT OF IT.</span></h2> - -</div> - -<div class="poetry-container"> -<div class="poetry"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">“Unstable are autumn nights,—</div> - <div class="verse indent0">The weather changes</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Much in five days—</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Still more in a month.”</div> - </div> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse right"><i>Hávamál.</i></div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -<div class="poetry-container"> -<div class="poetry"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">“Praise the day at eventide,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">The wife when she is dead,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">The sword when thou hast proved it,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">The maid when she is married,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Ice when thou hast crossed it,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Ale when thou hast drunken it.”</div> - </div> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse right"><i>Ibid.</i></div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -<p>Probably their couches were softer than usual,—probably the -fact of their being under a roof where the sun could not -shine on their faces, might have prolonged their slumbers; -but the fact is, the cock, had there been one at the sœter, -which there was not, would have “had his boots on”<a id="FNanchor_55" href="#Footnote_55" class="fnanchor">[55]</a> a very -long while before either the Parson or his follower had opened -their eyes; and when they did open them, it was some time -before either of them could recollect where they were. -Swedes are not over fond of open air, and though their -glazed windows in the towns are large enough and numerous -enough to prove that no ingenious chancellor of the exchequer -had ever devised a tax upon their light, yet in the -fjeld, where glass is scarce, windows are scarce too, and the -few that there are, are generally stuffed with hay. In the -present case, though the sun was well above the trees, there -was not light enough to see the smoky rafters over head, or -the scarcely less dirty strings of flad bröd which were<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_334"></a>[334]</span> -dangling from them; but all round the building there was -a perpetual ringing of bells, from the great cracked bass to -the little tinkling treble; the sheep, scared by the -noises and the fires, had wandered home during the night, -and the cows were collecting round the door of the sœter in -hopes of being milked, which hopes, for one or two of them, -at least, were speedily realized,—for Torkel, taking the -bucket that had been well-nigh drained over night, proceeded -very composedly to milk them, just as if he were in -his own sœter in the Tellemark, observing quietly that new -milk was better than old.</p> - -<p>In Sweden, as well as in Norway, every animal turned out -on a mountain pasture has a bell round its neck; certain -<i>esprits forts</i> (all of whom do it, notwithstanding, as well as -their more credulous neighbours) assert stoutly that it is to -enable the girls to find them among the trees; but as cows -generally keep together, and sheep do so, invariably, one bell -would be quite sufficient for the purpose. The more probable -solution is that given honestly in the Tellemark: that the -bells are tied on to prevent the Trolls from milking them in -the night,—for no Troll, as is well known, can abide a bell.</p> - -<p>While Torkel was in the midst of his operations as deputy -dairyman, and the Parson was looking on, half doubting the -propriety of the thing, and half inclined to put a stop to it, a -sound of laughing and talking was heard behind the fence, -and three girls, none of them more than eighteen or twenty, -came clambering over it. Torkel did not seem the least in -the world disconcerted, nor did they on their part testify the -smallest surprise or displeasure, though one of them was the -proprietor’s daughter, and temporary mistress of the hut, -and the others were her servants; but after exchanging a -few joking observations relative to their respective modes of -passing the preceding night, and the young ladies’ taste for -field sports, they all set to work milking in earnest, and provided -for the sportsmen a better breakfast than they were -likely to have achieved by their own unassisted efforts; nor -could they be prevailed upon to accept any payment, beyond -laughingly insisting upon the intruders carrying out every -bit of hay, rebuilding the hay-cock, sweeping out the room,<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_335"></a>[335]</span> -and putting everything tidily into its place; till the Parson -detected Miss Lilla eyeing, with evident admiration, a pair of -Tellemarken shirt-buttons,—round hollow silver balls, about -the size of a grape-shot, with which he had decorated his -broad-flapped hat. These, after a good deal of pressing, she -permitted the “Herr Englesk” to fasten on the red silk handkerchief -which formed her very becoming head-dress, and -they parted mutually pleased, Lilla remarking politely—as -the Parson, shouldering his gun and taking off his hat after -the manner of the natives, bade her farvel (for the word is -Swedish no less than English)—“Jeg er ret lykkelig ved at -kunne berede dem denne lille Tjeneste,” which, as Lilla was -a pretty girl, Torkel condescended to understand and interpret,—a -thing which he had often professed himself -utterly unable to do when the speaker was a bearded man, -and informed the Parson that she was very happy in finding -such an opportunity of rendering this trifling service.</p> - -<p>The Parson’s Swedish was at an end with his “farvel;” -all he could do in return was to bow and smile, and wave -his hand, as he vaulted over the rail and left the hospitable -sœter behind him.</p> - -<p>Their journey through the forest was little more than a -counterpart of that of yesterday,—now traversing spaces -roofed with gloomy fir, and beech not less gloomy when you -see their undersides only and breathe nothing but the confined -air below them,—now breathing freely in a glade or svedgefall, -and gathering a handful of whorts or cranberries by the -way,—now pushing through a belt of under-stuff, thick enough -to conceal an elephant, but all the time meeting with very -little game. Indeed, skals are not by any means the likeliest -times to find the smaller game, and even the larger -lurk unseen till the very end of them. Torkel had cracked -off the Parson’s rifle at a Lo, as he called it—that is to say, a -lynx,—that jumped up from under his feet and dashed into -a thicket, but with very little effect beyond frightening it, -though the beast was twice as large as a fox and twice as -red. The parson had brought down a hen “capercailzie,”—but -that was the whole of their morning’s sport.</p> - -<p>For some time the under-stuff had been unusually thick,<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_336"></a>[336]</span> -and had formed a considerable impediment to their progress; -they had persevered through it for about half a mile, and the -wood gave no signs of becoming more open, when Torkel -stopped, and looked right and left of him through the stuff, -as if to find an opening.</p> - -<p>“We must be skirting the border of a svedgefall,” said he, -“where the air comes in freely; these hazels would never -grow in the close forest,—let us edge a little to the right, we -are taking the belt end-ways.”</p> - -<p>“The right!” said the Parson; “that seems even thicker -than where we are now.”</p> - -<p>“That is the very reason,” said Torkel; “the nearer the -svedgefall, the more air,—the more air the closer the understuff.”</p> - -<p>The Parson thought this remarkably good reasoning, and -set himself boldly to face the difficulty, instead of shrinking -from it,—a proceeding which, were it generally followed in -our course through life, would seldom fail to meet with its -reward.</p> - -<p>It did not on this occasion, at all events, for after a hundred -yards or so of hard struggle, they suddenly emerged -into an open plain of some miles in length, and a good half -mile across. It was not a svedgefall, as Torkel had imagined, -but the clearing formed by an old fire, the effects of which -nature had already, in a great measure, succeeded in repairing; -for a coarse grass, gemmed with all manner of flowers, -covered the greater part of it, through which the spiræa raised -its feathery head; large tracts were vividly green with young -birches, as yet hardly higher than the grass, but closely set, -as if planted in a nursery;—here and there the cranberry -threw a gleam of crimson into nature’s carpeting, while the -epilobium—an absolute tree compared to the dwarf plants -around it—showed, with its thickly set flowers, a mass of -lilac; and the fox-glove (in Sweden a holy flower), bent its -head and rang its fairy bells, inaudible by mortal ears, whenever -a good angel passed it by on his errand of mercy. A -few great mournful dead trees were still stretching out their -helpless and blackened branches, like the old and ruined -families after a revolution, sorrowful remembrances of the<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_337"></a>[337]</span> -glories which had passed away; but most of these had -dropped where they had stood, and were already concealed by -the vigorous young undergrowth, which was springing up all -the more vigorously because the soil had been for ages fertilized -by the leaves of their predecessors.</p> - -<p>The Parson sat down exhausted on one of these remains -of fallen majesty, and fanned himself with his broad-leafed -hat, while Torkel, standing on the highest point he could find, -cast a look up and down the opening, which seemed as silent -and as destitute of animal life as any part they had hitherto -traversed.</p> - -<p>“There is something,” said he; “I see it move—I am sure -there is something alive there.”</p> - -<p>The Parson was up in an instant, with his telescope in his -hand.</p> - -<p>“There it is,” said Torkel, “on the farther edge, just under -the high trees—that tall dead trunk with a forked head is -exactly in the line; look there, I see it move now as plainly -as possible.”</p> - -<p>“I have got it now,” said the Parson, “and it is a bear, -too, if ever I saw one in the Zoological Gardens.”</p> - -<p>“Hush!” said Torkel; “do not say that, or we shall never -get a shot at it.”</p> - -<p>“Why?” said the Parson; “it is almost out of sight, let -alone out of hearing.”</p> - -<p>“That does not signify,” said Torkel, “that animal is -wiser than any of us; whether it has a fylgia, or guardian<a id="FNanchor_56" href="#Footnote_56" class="fnanchor">[56]</a> -spirit, like us, is more than I can say, but it is the truth, that -if ever you name its name you will get no shot at it, and -fortunate for you if you do not meet with some piece of ill -luck into the bargain.”</p> - -<p>“Well, well,” said the Parson, “I will take care in future; -but what am I to call him?”</p> - -<p>“Call him Old Fur Jacket! or call him The Disturber! or -call him The Wise One! anything you like, only do not call<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_338"></a>[338]</span> -him what you have done just now. I hope no mischief will -come of it.”</p> - -<p>“There are two,” said the Parson; “there is a little one—I -see it plainly enough, now that they have got clear from that -patch of epilobium. What on earth is the old—pshaw!—the -Old Wise One about? she seems to be administering a little -wholesome discipline to young Fur Jacket;”—and he handed -the glass to Torkel.</p> - -<p>“She has been frightened,” said he, “she has been roused -out by the dref, and she is making her cub get up into the -tree; they very frequently do that when they suspect they -will have to run or fight for it. Young Wilful does not seem -to know what is good for him, and must be flogged into it. -Just like our own younkers,” said Torkel, philosophically, -taking another look through the glass.</p> - -<p>“It is not very good for him just now,” said the Parson, -“with our eyes upon him. If he once gets up he is a lost -Fur Jacket.”</p> - -<p>“And up he gets,” said Torkel, “and receives a parting -benediction from his mother’s paw across his stern, just to -freshen his way, as Tom says. And now how to get a crack -at the Old Lady? if we were on the other side we might do it -easily enough, but the stuff here is not high enough to hide us; -those brutes have eyes sharp enough to see through a mill-stone.”</p> - -<p>“Had we better not watch her? perhaps she will think -that which is good for young Hopeful will be good for her; -we shall have her climbing, herself, next.”</p> - -<p>“Not she, she knows better; the branch that is very good -protection to a little lump of brown fur, she knows well -enough, would not do for a beast almost as big as a cow,—you -will not catch her up a tree, and you need not expect it.”</p> - -<p>“What is to be done then? there she is still.”</p> - -<p>“I do not know anything better than to keep along this -edge, till we put a mile or so of ground between us and her, -and then to cross; and the sooner we start the better, for -she will not stay long after she has disposed of her young -one.”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_339"></a>[339]</span></p> - -<p>“Good!” said the Parson, “and now for finding the place -again;”—and he took out his compass and placed it on the -fallen trunk. “That forked tree bears to us exactly E. by -N.; when we come down the other side and bring it W. by -S., we shall not be very far from the place; and then the -northern edge of that large clump of epilobium will give us -the exact mark. And now to get there as quick as we -may.”</p> - -<p>They had not proceeded a couple of hundred yards when -they met with a brook which intersected the opening nearly -at right angles.</p> - -<p>“This will do,” said Torkel, jumping into it, for it was not -much more than knee deep, and clear as crystal. “The fall -of the ground, the bed of the stream, and the stuff that -always grows on the banks, will be quite sufficient cover -for us.”</p> - -<p>On they went, stooping, sometimes splashing through the -water itself, sometimes creeping on hands and knees under -the bank, resting for a while behind some friendly rock or -stump, then creeping on again, till at last they neared the -opposite side; and then, seeking the shelter of the trees, they -took a few minutes’ rest—for going on all-fours is anything but -a comfortable mode of progression. Slowly and warily they -advanced, peering about, moving from tree to tree, and looking -closely into every bush before they showed themselves. -There was the place evidently enough; the north corner of -the epilobium was near enough to the forked tree to make a -capital mark—there could be no mistake as to the locality; -besides, the bear’s tracks were evident enough on some soft -ground; but no living creature was to be seen. The bear -had either heard them, or smelt them, or, having provided -for her young one, and being restless and anxious on account -of the noises that had roused her at first, had gone on to -some thicker cover.</p> - -<p>“That comes of calling the beast by his name,” said Torkel, -half sulkily; “never do that again, at least not in the fjeld. -Well, never mind, we will have young Innocence, at all events; -the reward is half as much for a cub as it is for an old -one.”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_340"></a>[340]</span></p> - -<p>“That is all you think about,” said the Parson.</p> - -<p>“No it is not,” said Torkel; “I like the sport itself as -well as any man living—I love it for its own sake; but I -should not mind a few of their yellow notes, either, to be -turned into honest, hard Norwegian specie-dalers, and laid up -for the winter,—at least, just now, for Lota’s sake. Fancy -what a set of scoundrels these Swedes must be, when they -have to print on all their notes, ‘Whoso forges this shall be -hanged’—we do not do that in Norway.”</p> - -<p>“No,” said the Parson, “you are none of you clever enough -to forge—the <i>Norges Bank’s Representativ</i> is quite safe in -such clumsy hands as yours.”</p> - -<p>“There he sits, just in that fork close to the trunk,” said -Torkel, who, if he had not, as the Parson insinuated, skill -enough in his fingers to forge a note, had quickness enough -in his eyes to see through a log of timber, if a bear had been -hiding behind it. “There is young Innocence! Oh! do not -spoil his skin with that small shot. Here is the rifle. Put -the ball in under his ear,—that will not hurt him.”</p> - -<p>It did not seem to hurt him, in good truth, for he never -moved an inch on receiving the shot, though the blood -dripping down the tree showed that the ball had reached its -mark. The cub remained perfectly dead, but supported by -the fork in which he was sitting.</p> - -<p>“What is to be done now?” said the Parson; “I do not -see how to get him down, for the trunk is too big to swarm -up, and we have not a branch for twenty feet; but it will -never do to leave him there.”</p> - -<p>“Leave him!” said Torkel; “O no! that would never do. -I think we may get up into that tree, though, with a little -management.”</p> - -<p>There was growing, within a few yards of the great tree -which the bear had selected, a small thin weed of a fir, which, -coming up in the shade, had stretched itself out into a long -branchless pole with a bunch of green at the top, in its legitimate -aspirations after light and air. Torkel, disengaging -the axe which he usually carried at his back, notched it on -the nearer side, and then, seeing its inclination would carry -it to the great tree on which the cub was hanging, cut vigorously.<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_341"></a>[341]</span> -In a minute or two the little fir sank quietly into -the yielding arms of his great neighbour, and formed with its -trunk a rough ladder. Up this Torkel, having paused for a -moment to see if it had finally settled, climbed as readily as -any bear in the forest. He was soon seen worming himself -through the spreading branches, and slipping down to the -fork; and the little lump of bear’s fat, about the size of a -two-year-old hog, came squashing down upon the turf.</p> - -<p>Small as it was for a bear, it was impossible to carry it; -so they tied its hind legs together, and hung it upon one of -the dead trees in the open, the Parson having first pinned -upon its snout a leaf which he had torn out of his note-book, -and had written Torkel’s name upon it.</p> - -<p>Torkel, however, was mistaken about his share of the yellow -notes, though the Parson did not suffer him to lose by it. -Every bear killed in a skal is the property of the Ofwer -Jagmästere; a regulation which is found to be absolutely necessary, -in order to prevent men from breaking their ranks -and hunting the likely places independently,—a proceeding -which would ensure the loss of every bear except the particular -animal which was the object of immediate pursuit. Of -this Torkel was not aware, because in Norway skals such as -this seldom or never take place, not only because the ground -is generally too difficult, but principally because the inhabitants -are too widely scattered to be easily collected in sufficient -numbers, and a great deal too lawless to be managed if -they could.</p> - -<p>With all the complacency which the consciousness of having -done a good action confers, they proceeded on their journey, -which, as their course happened to lie lengthways of the -opening, was easy enough. Hot, and the least little bit in -the world fatigued, they sauntered along on the shady side -of the glade, till they began to discover that the whole -country had become shady, and that a little sun, if it was -to be had, would be just as pleasant. In fact, it had -become extremely chilly.</p> - -<p>“There goes Thor’s hammer,” said Torkel, as a crash of -thunder burst over their heads, echoing from tree to tree;<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_342"></a>[342]</span> -“we need not fear the Trolls now, every one of them is -half-way to the centre of the earth by this time.”</p> - -<p>“I wish we had nothing worse to fear,” said the Parson; -“but this gradual darkening looks a great deal more like a -spell of bad weather than a sudden storm. I wish we knew -where the Captain’s post is.”</p> - -<p>“We cannot be within seven or eight miles of that,” said -Torkel; “and I really do think that we are going to have a -wet night, and plenty of mist into the bargain. It will be -perfectly impossible for us to find the post, knowing so little -of the country as we do. We had better hut ourselves at -once. If we had been on the hill we might have seen this -coming, but down here it was impossible, with no sky visible, -except that which is right over our heads.”</p> - -<p>“Well,” said the Parson, “if it is to be, we may as well -halt at once. So off with your havresac, and turn to. This -spreading fir will do as well as any for our canopy.”</p> - -<p>Torkel was a man of deeds, and his assent and approbation -were demonstrated by his throwing down his havresac -and forthwith selecting and cutting down a young fir for his -ridge-pole; and,—while the Parson was securing the locks of -the guns with handkerchiefs, and such like extemporaneous -expedients,—for the gun covers had, of course, been left with -the baggage,—he had already cut down two pair of cross timbers -to lay it on. The Parson, with his hand-bill, aided him -vigorously, and the more so that the rain had now begun to -patter sharply from leaf to leaf, and it was very evident that -no long time would elapse before it found its way to their -localities below. The frame-work of the hut was arranged, -and branches of the fir and beech, and coarse grass and -juniper,—in fact anything that could be collected on the -spur of the moment,—was laid on as thatch, while Torkel -hastily drew together and chopped up the driest stuff he -could find for the fire.</p> - -<p>The rain was now coming on in right earnest, and the -night was prematurely setting in. The drops came through -thicker and thicker, each one as big as a marble; and the -sportsmen, with jackets more than half wet through, crept<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_343"></a>[343]</span> -disconsolately into the unfinished hut, in order, as Torkel -said, to make themselves comfortable.</p> - -<p>The first piece of comfort which was discovered was that -the havresacs, which had been thrown off at the beginning of -the hutting operations, had been left where they were -thrown, and were by this time wet through and through, together -with every morsel of bread that they contained. The -supper was not luxurious, and, as neither was greatly disposed -for conversation, they laid themselves up in the warmest -corner they could find, and courted forgetfulness, as well as -rest and refreshment, in sleep.</p> - -<p>The Parson, as an old fisherman, had been pretty well -accustomed to a minor description of roughing it. The -boxes of dried poplar leaves of a Norwegian cottage, or the -heaps of hay of a sœter-farm were to him as feather beds. -A rainy day, too, he had often hailed as remarkably good -fishing weather, but a night’s bivouac, sub-Jove, and that -Jove pluviali, was rather a new thing to him; and his cloak, -too, miles off, under the charge of the faithful Jacob. One -habit, however, he had picked up in his travels, which stood -him in good stead now, and that was the habit of “making -the best of it.”</p> - -<p>Bad was the best; the fuel was wet and scanty, and the -fire soon went out; and Torkel’s house, run up hastily and -after dark, was as little water-tight as if it had been built -by contract. Before midnight the Parson was roused up, -first by detached drops and then by little streamlets falling -on his face and person, and wet and chilled, he lay counting -the hours, and envying Torkel, who snored comfortably -through it all.</p> - -<p>Morning came at last—it always does come if we wait long -enough for it,—and a dull and misty light began to struggle -in through the opening of the hut, and through several other -openings also, which, during the past night had officiated, -though uncalled for, as spouts for the water.</p> - -<p>Still the rain fell, not in showers, not violently, for there -was not a breath of wind, but evenly, quickly, steadily, as if, -conscious of its resources, it meant to rain for ever; while -the big drops from the fir branches kept patter, patter, on<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_344"></a>[344]</span> -the soppy ground, and the mist hung so low that you could -scarcely see the branches they fell from.</p> - -<p>“Hang that fellow, he will sleep for ever,” said the Parson; -“come, rouse out Torkel, ‘show a leg,’ as Tom says, -it is broad daylight now, and high time for us to be -moving.”</p> - -<p>Torkel stretched himself and rubbed his eyes, and looked -stupid; his thoughts had not returned from his native -Tellemark, and his prospects of a “home and pleasing wife,” -on the banks of the Torjedahl, of which, in all probability, -he had been dreaming.</p> - -<p>“Come, Torkel, rouse up my boy,” said the Parson, kicking -him; “here is the tail end of the brandy-flask for you, and -when that is gone, we must find our way to where more is -to be had.” The hint of brandy had the desired effect of -waking up the old hunter; for even his iron frame was none -the better for the night’s soaking. The brandy, however, -put them both in good-humour, and having extracted from -their havresacs that which had once been excellent kahyt -scorpor, but which now were black soppy lumps of dough, -they made an extempore breakfast, seasoned by some chips -of Fortnum and Mason’s portable soup, a piece of which the -Parson invariably carried with him, but which, as there was -now no possibility of lighting a fire, they were obliged to -suck or eat as they could.</p> - -<p>“Now Mister Torkel, <i>en route!</i> hvar er väga til hållet? -we must get there before we taste brandy again, that is -certain; pray Heaven they have not broken up the skal, and -left us alone in our glory. That is our direction,” continued -he, looking at his pocket-compass, “but the thing is to keep -it, in this thick wood and thick weather, when no one can -see a dozen yards before his nose.”</p> - -<p>Every one who has been out in a fog knows the propensity -the traveller invariably has to work round in a circle, -and to return to the spot from which he started. True, in -the present case, the compass was a safeguard against this, -but to consult the compass when walking or riding requires -time, the needle does not settle itself to the north without a -good deal of vacillation; and here the lie of the country<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_345"></a>[345]</span> -gave no assistance whatever; it was not a plain, certainly, for -it was very uneven, and occasionally rocky, but there was -nothing like hill, or any continuous direction of declivities, -which could form a guide. Here and there were dense -brakes, every leaf and twig of which, overcharged with -moisture, showered down its stores upon them, and there -was no possibility of picking the ground, where the only -chance of finding the track lay in keeping the compass -course. No brook had been met with of sufficient volume -to render it probable that it had come from behind the hills; -and besides, it was more than probable that the watercourses, -which formed the only communications with the -pickets above, were much too full now to be practicable.</p> - -<p>As hour after hour wore on, and the forest seemed always -like that through which they had started in the morning, the -Parson was more than once tempted to follow the course of -the running water, and to make his way down to the river, -upon the chance of at least a shelter and a meal at one of -the farm-houses; but the hopes of effecting a junction with -his friends, and still more with his baggage, kept him to his -course, though the hållet—as Virgil’s Italy served poor -Æneas—seemed to be continually going backwards as he -approached it.</p> - -<p>“Hallo!” said Torkel at last, who was then a little in -advance, “what have we got to now, a svedgefall, or a -sœter? the fjeld is much clearer here. Oho, I see! this -will do; look here, this juniper was cut only lately, and here -is another stump, and the branches all carried away, too, and -there is a tree that has got its lower boughs trimmed; we -have got to the shooting line at last.”</p> - -<p>“Upon my word, I think we have,” said the Parson; “and -if so, we must turn short up to the left, and the Captain’s -post cannot be far from us.”</p> - -<p>“Unless they have broken up the skal,” said Torkel.</p> - -<p>“If they have, I am sure we shall find some one here, left -to guide us; Lieutenant Birger knows that we are to make -for this spot. Here is something, at all events,” as they -came in sight of a line of peeled saplings, right across the -path, which had for some time begun to ascend rather rapidly.<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_346"></a>[346]</span> -“This will do, I am sure;” for now a peasant, who had been -sitting cowering under the rock, with a soldier’s musket in -his hand, the lock of which he had covered with a sack that -had evidently done duty with the carioles, came forward to -meet them.</p> - -<p>He was not very communicative, however, for he could -not speak English, and would not understand Norwegian; -but, at all events, they learnt to their comfort that the post -was there still, and, after ten minutes sharp pull up a steep -but very open and practicable pass, they came in sight of the -Captain’s watch-fires, situated in the gorge of it.</p> - -<p>“Home at last!” said the Parson.</p> - -<p>“And high time, too,” said the Captain. “There, pick -those wretched flowers out of that hat of yours, and let us see -whether we cannot make you look less like a drowned rat.”</p> - -<p>“You have not broken up the skal, then?” said the -Parson.</p> - -<p>“Oh, no! nothing like it; the rain came on late in the -evening, and they could not have broken it up then if they -wished, for the men would not have had time to go home, and -might just as well make themselves comfortable where they -were.”</p> - -<p>Comfortable! thought the Parson, shrugging his wet -shoulders, and thinking of his own comforts during the -night past.</p> - -<p>“And this morning,” continued the Captain, “the weather-wise -say that the rain will not last; and as they have driven so -much of the country, and fairly disturbed the game, the -Ofwer Jagmästere sent for some brandy—not enough to make -the men drunk, but as much as is good for them,—and they -are to keep their fires burning and make all the noise they -can, and so keep the game within the ring till the weather -clears.”</p> - -<p>“And where did you hear all this?” said the Parson.</p> - -<p>“Oh, Birger is here,” said the Captain; “he came in -about two hours ago, as wet as you are; he is asleep in the -other tent. Did you not see a row of barked bushes as you -came up?”</p> - -<p>“Yes,” said the Parson, “that I did, and I hailed them as<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_347"></a>[347]</span> -the traveller did the gibbet,—the first mark of civilisation I -had seen; but I cannot say that I understand what they -mean.”</p> - -<p>“It was Birger’s plan,” said the Captain, “they have done -it pretty continuously along the line of the dref; it is intended -to look like a trap, and to prevent the game from coming up -the pass during the rain, when we cannot trust to our rifles. -We have had half-a-dozen wolves here last night; there is -one of them,” pointing to a carcase which two of the men -were skinning. “I was not ready for them, that is the -truth, for I was eating my supper. I ought, certainly, to -have had a brace of them, but this gentleman was a little in -the rear of his party, and the Devil took the hindermost,—at -least my little pea-rifle did. And there are a couple of -foxes; Tom says their skins are valuable. I picked them -off during the night. I am pretty sure we had a bear, -too, early this morning; but he turned, whatever he was, -before I could get a sight of him.”</p> - -<p>“No wonder, with that fire,” said the Parson.</p> - -<p>“Why, we do want to keep them in,” said the Captain; -“besides, who is to do without a fire in such weather as this? -There—had you not better go and make yourself comfortable. -Jacob has brought your knapsack and cloak: you will find -them there in the tent—(by-the-bye, what do you think of -the use of tents now?) After that I suppose you will be -ready for dinner?”</p> - -<p>“You may say that,” said the Parson; “it is little beside -biscuit sopped in rain that we have had this day. Tom,” -he shouted, “mind you take care of Torkel there; going -without his grub is a serious thing to one of your country, -and a still more serious thing going without his brandy.”</p> - -<p>“As for your wet clothes,” continued the Captain, “there -is no help for that. Birger’s are much in the same mess, -but we have a fire big enough to dry anything, if the rain -would only hold off. In the meanwhile you must keep -under canvas; those lug-sails of yours keep the wet out -capitally. You see, I have used them for roof, and have -built up walls to them with fir-branches and junipers.”</p> - -<p>“Upon my word,” said the Parson, “it is quite luxurious,<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_348"></a>[348]</span> -and so is this dry flannel shirt—Heaven bless the man who -invented flannel shirts,—I should have been dead with cold -by this time, if I had been wearing a linen one. Hallo, -Jacob! you look rather moist; what is the state of the -larder?”</p> - -<p>Whatever the state of the larder was, the Captain had -determined it should be a mystery, for he knew well that -nothing unfits a man for subsequent work so much as a -hearty meal after great fatigue upon little sustenance. As -soon, therefore, as he heard that they had eaten little or -nothing since their breakfast at the sœter on the preceding -day, he gave a private sign to Jacob, and nothing whatever -was forthcoming but a good strong basin of portable soup, -smoking hot, with a couple of kahyt scorpor bobbing about -in it; and, early as it was in the day—for it was not more -than four in the afternoon,—the Parson was well satisfied to -scoop out a bed in the dry moss of the tent, to draw his fur -cloak over him, and to seek in sleep the rest which he needed -quite as much as he did the food.</p> - -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - -<div class="chapter"> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_349"></a>[349]</span></p> - -<h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_XXV">CHAPTER XXV.<br /> -<span class="smaller">THE WATCH FIRE.</span></h2> - -</div> - -<div class="poetry-container"> -<div class="poetry"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">“Fire will be needful</div> - <div class="verse indent0">For him who enters</div> - <div class="verse indent0">With his knees frozen.</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Of meat and clothing</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Stands he in need</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Who journeys o’er mountains.</div> - </div> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">“Water is needful,—</div> - <div class="verse indent0">A towel and kindness,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">For the guest’s welcome.</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Kind inclinations</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Let him experience;—</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Answer his questions.”</div> - </div> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse right"><i>Hávamál.</i></div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -<p>Sound and deep were the Parson’s slumbers, complete and -absolute was his state of unconsciousness. Noises there were -in the camp, no doubt, noises of every description: eight or -ten people without any particular occupation, without -any reason whatever for keeping silence—rather the -reverse,—are apt to be noisy. But it was all one to -him, the Seven Sleepers themselves could not have slept -more soundly; and the next four or five hours were to him -as though they had not been. His first perception of sublunary -matters was awakened by the words of a well known -air, which at first mingled with his dreams, and then presented -themselves to his waking senses:—</p> - -<div class="poetry-container"> -<div class="poetry"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">“O, never fear though rain be falling,—</div> - <div class="verse indent2">O, never fear the thunder dire,—</div> - <div class="verse indent0">O, never heed the wild wind’s calling,</div> - <div class="verse indent2">But gather closer round the fire.</div> - <div class="verse indent0">For thus it is, through storm and rain,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">The weary midnight hours must wane,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Ere joyous morning comes again,</div> - <div class="verse indent14">And bids the gloom retire.”</div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_350"></a>[350]</span></p> - -<p>The Parson unrolled himself from his cloak and looked -out; the night had fallen dark enough, and the rain, though -it gave evident symptoms of having exhausted itself, was still -falling, but scantily and sparingly. The mist was thicker and -darker and blacker than ever; all, however, was bright light -in the camp, for the bale-fires of Baldur could not have burnt -more brightly than the watch-fires of the picket. The Captain -had had plenty of spare hands and plenty of spare time, -and had kept his men in work by collecting stores of fuel; -besides which he had made use of an expedient which, -common enough in winter camps, is seldom resorted to in -summer. A full-grown pine, which seemed to have died of -old age, and had dried up where it stood, was cut down; the -head, already deprived of its branches by Time, was chopped -off and laid alongside the butt, end for end, and the fires had -been lighted on the top of these two pieces of timber. The -interstice between them admitting the air from below, roared -like a furnace, and blew up the bright flames on high; whilst -the trunks themselves, which had speedily become ignited, -contributed their own share to the general light and heat. -There were several supplementary fires, for the great furnace -was much too fierce for culinary operations; and the smoke -from all these, pressed down, as it were, by the superincumbent -mist, formed, by the reflection of the flames, a sort of luminous -halo, beyond which it was impossible for eye to penetrate. -Here and there fir branches were stuck into the -ground to dry the clothes upon, for though the drizzle had -not exactly ceased, the heat dried much faster than the rain -moistened.</p> - -<p>Full in the blaze of light, and as near as he could approach -to it without burning himself, stood Birger; his neat little -figure just as tidy, and just as carefully dressed, as if there -had been no such thing as falling rain, or wet juniper, or -prickly brambles in the world. He was standing with his -back to the fire, and his hands in the pockets of his shooting-jacket, -watching the preparations for a late supper, and singing, -at the full pitch of a very powerful voice, the magic words -which had recalled the Parson to a state of consciousness. -The Captain, who had evidently been furbishing up with<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_351"></a>[351]</span> -fresh chalk the “S. F.” on his cap, which looked quite white -and new, notwithstanding the rain, had just returned from -visiting his sentries, and was examining the lock of his American -rifle, which he had carried with him, to see if it had -sustained any damage from the wet. Jacob, and his attendant -imps, were emerging from behind the flames with the -everlasting black kettle, which was accompanied this time by -a pile of steaks, cut from some mysterious animal, and served -up on the splash-board of one of the carioles, by way of -dish.</p> - -<p>“Halloo! Birger,” said the Parson; “you here! Rather -a change in the general aspect of affairs since we parted -last!”</p> - -<p>“You may well say that; I never saw such a determined -day’s rain; I thought the twilight of the gods was come in -real earnest.”</p> - -<p>“To judge from the fire that you have got up,” said the -Parson, emerging from the tent, “you seem inclined to realize -the old prophecy, that that twilight is to finish off by a -general conflagration.”</p> - -<p>“You need not cast inquiring glances at me,” said Birger to -the Captain, who, having satisfied himself about the state of -his weapons, was trying to make out the allusion. “I am -not going to tell you that long story now. The gods themselves, -if we may trust the high song of Odin, used to take -off the edge of their hunger, and thirst, too,—for they -were thirsty souls,—before they called on Bragi, the god of -minstrelsy, to sing even their own deeds. And, to tell you -the truth, to say nothing of my being as hungry as a hunter, -these steaks are most magnificent, and this kettle unusually -savoury.”</p> - -<p>“What have you got in it?” said the Parson.</p> - -<p>“Andhrimnir cooks Sahrimnir in Eldhrimnir,” replied -Birger, quoting from the cookery of the prose Edda. “Do -you not see Odin has sent us a present of heavenly meat -from Valhalla?”</p> - -<p>“Nonsense! what is the meat of Valhalla called here on -earth?”</p> - -<p>“Goat’s flesh,” said Birger, demurely.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_352"></a>[352]</span></p> - -<p>“Humph!” said the Parson, turning over, with his crimping -knife, a bone almost big enough to have belonged to a -small ox; “and this is a goat’s rib, is it?”</p> - -<p>“Valhalla was always remarkable for its breed of goats,” -said Birger: “but never you mind what rib it is, there’s a -biscuit to eat with it, that is all you need care about, just -now. I am afraid our host, the Skalfogdar” (bowing to the -Captain), “cannot find you any currant jelly to eat with -it.”</p> - -<p>“I can find you some cranberry jelly, though,” said the -Captain, “which is a much better thing, and much more characteristic -of the country. Here, Jacob, hand me that mess-tin, -will you. The very first thing I did, after reconnoitring -my post, was to lay in a store of these cranberries, and to -make them into jelly. I had not to go far for them. You -would not like them in the Swedish fashion—pickled,—would -you? I think the men have got some which they -have made for themselves.”</p> - -<p>“Thank you, yes; and a little of the forbidden stuff, too, -to wash it down with. Never mind the water, Piersen, I -have taken my share of that already.”</p> - -<p>Here Jacob made his appearance, with four or five orre -grouse, spitted upon a strip of fir;—Jacob piqued himself -on his fjeld cuisine, and really did serve up his dinners admirably. -The whole was concluded with split grayling, by -way of cheese, for being north of the Wener Sjön, they were -in the grayling country,—a circumstance which the Captain, -whose post was not a mile from the river, had not been slow -to profit by;—on the sunny morning of the preceding day, -he had caught them by dozens. The grayling, which are -seldom caught in Norway, where the rivers are mostly too -rough for such tender fish, abound throughout the whole -north of Sweden, and are worth anything to the fisherman; -they render his chances of sport, as well as of provisions, -very much less precarious, because they do everything which -trout do not; they are stationary when—in Sweden, at all -events—the trout is migratory; they come into high season -when the trout are going out; they will not rise in a stormy -day, which the trout loves; but, when the sun is bright and<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_353"></a>[353]</span> -the wind is low, and not a ripple curls the surface, and not -a trout stirs beneath it, the swift, shadow-like grayling dot -it with their rises like so many hail-stones. They are very -good eating, too, when dressed in any way man can devise; -but a very excellent method, and a very common method in -Sweden, is to split them down the back, pepper them well, -and dry them in the hot sun before broiling them, or making -them into plok-fiske. This Jacob was unable to do on the -present occasion, for the rain had been falling from the time -of the Captain’s return from the river; so he had substituted -for the sun that which was scarcely less hot—the -Captain’s blazing fire; and his imitation was unanimously -pronounced to have exceeded the original.</p> - -<p>“I do not think I should have fared like this at any of -the farm houses,” said the Parson, stretching himself at full -length on his cloak and basking at the fire, for the rain had -now entirely ceased, and the bivouac began to look home-like -and comfortable. “I must say it required a pretty firm -determination to keep steadily onward, with soaked clothes -and chilled bones and empty stomachs, such as we had this -morning. I was sorely tempted to make for shelter; but I -set before me the comforts of persevering, and I am very -glad I did so. To say nothing of your company and Jacob’s -dinner, this glorious blaze is far better than a farm-house -stove, and my old cloak than a dirty sheep-skin. Well, -virtue is its own reward. Jacob, fill the pot with hot water, -and let us have a few embers here to keep it warm. Have -you got any sugar?”</p> - -<p>“There is nothing your countrymen are so remarkable for,” -said Birger, “as a steady, resolute perseverance against difficulties -and discouragements.”</p> - -<p>“Pluck?” suggested the Captain.</p> - -<p>“Yes, Pluck! you did not know when you were beaten at -Waterloo, and so you won the battle; Wellington would -have got an army of Englishmen out of the scrape of Moscow, -if he had ever been ass enough to get them into it.”</p> - -<p>“I think,” said the Parson, “that this may be traced to a -national peculiarity of ours—love of adventure. Other men -will undergo hardships and incur dangers, in search of gain,<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_354"></a>[354]</span> -or even in the pursuit of some definite object, but the -Englishman seeks his hardships for the pleasure of undergoing -them,—courts his dangers for the pleasure of surmounting -them, and follows out his adventure for adventure’s sake.”</p> - -<p>“In fact,” said the Captain, “he does just what we are all -doing now.”</p> - -<p>“Well,” said Birger, “and let no one say—what is the use -of it?—what is the Englishman the better for diving into -mines, and scaling mountains, and crossing deserts?—what -has he to show for it? He has this to show for it,—a manliness -of character,—a spirit to encounter the dangers of life, -and a heart to overcome its difficulties. Depend upon it, -while your aristocracy—men brought up and nourished in -the very lap of luxury and ease—seek their pleasures in the -dangers of the wild ocean, or the hardships of the stormy -mountain-side, you will see no symptoms of degeneracy in -the hardihood and manliness of your national character. -Pluck is a genuine English word, slang though it be.”</p> - -<p>“I think you may translate it into Swedish,” said the -Captain, “for our English blood has a cross of Scandinavian -in it, and there really is as great a similarity in our national -characteristics as there is in the structure of our languages.”</p> - -<p>“I think,” said the Parson, “your word ‘Mod’ implies -pluck, with a dash of fierceness in it. When it is said of -some grand berserkar, ‘har oprist syn mod,’ it means that -he has summoned his pluck, with the full intention of making -his enemies aware of that fact. Still, however, it is a fair -rendering of our more peaceable word, and you have a right -to it; but I am quite sure you cannot translate that expression -into any other language under the sun, without -losing some part of its force.”</p> - -<p>“Whether any foreigners can translate the word into -their own language,” said the Captain, “is more than I will -undertake to say, but they perfectly understand and appreciate -this peculiarity of our English character. Last year I -was arranging with one of the Chamouny guides an expedition -into the higher Alps; I had with me a jolly talking -little French marquis, whom I had picked up at St. Gervais. -He was an ambitious little fellow, and volunteered—Heaven<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_355"></a>[355]</span> -help him!—to be my companion. My guide—(you recollect -old Couttet, Parson?)—looked rather blank at this, and taking -me aside, said in a low voice, ‘<i>absolument je n’irais pas avec -ce Monsieur lá</i>.’ ‘Why?’ said I, rather astonished at the -man refusing that which would certainly have put some -additional francs into his pocket. ‘<i>Je connais bien ces -Francais</i>,’ said he—‘an Englishman is fearful enough in -the valleys, always saying he will not do this, and he cannot -do that, because in truth he is so proud that he does not like -to take anything in hand and be beat in it; but once get -him on the mountain, and fairly in for it, and be the danger -what it may, he faces it, and be the fatigue what it may, he -keeps up a good heart, and in the end gets through it all as -well as we do ourselves. Your Frenchman is as bold as -brass in the valleys, and does not do badly for a spurt if he -thinks people are admiring him, but he gets cowed when -danger comes and no one to see him, and sits down and dies -when he is tired.’”</p> - -<p>“Mr. Couttet was a sensible fellow, and knew his -man,” said Birger, who, descended from the old aristocracy -of Sweden, hated and despised the French party most cordially; -“and how did you get rid of your travelling companion?”</p> - -<p>“O! Couttet took the management of that upon his own -hands; he made the poor little marquis’s hair stand on end, -with all sorts of stories about snow storms, and whirlwinds, -and frozen travellers; which no doubt were true enough, for -there is not a pass in the High Alps without its well-authenticated -tale of death; so the little fellow came to me heartily -ashamed of himself, and looking like a dog that was going -to be whipped, with his ‘mille excuses,’ and so forth, and in -fact, we then and there parted company, and I have not -seen him from that time to this. He certainly was rather -an ambitious Tom Thumb for the Col du Géant.—Hallo! -there is something on foot there,” said he, interrupting himself, -“hark to that! there goes another.” And in fact, three -or four shots not very distant from them were distinctly -heard, though they came, not sharp and ringing as such -sounds generally strike upon the ear through the clear air of<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_356"></a>[356]</span> -the north, but deadened by the mist, as if, so to speak, the -sound had been smothered by a feather-bed. “There goes -another! and another!” then came a whole platoon—“O, -by George! I must go and visit my sentries.”</p> - -<p>“All nonsense,” said Birger, “one fellow fires at a rustling -leaf, and then all the rest crack off their pieces, by the way -of follow-the-leader; you may just as well make yourself -comfortable,” drawing his cloak round him by way of suiting -the action to the word. “Hand me over the bottle, Jacob! -some more hot water in the pot!”</p> - -<p>“I shall go, however,” said the Captain, who was young at -picket work, and proportionably anxious; so shouldering his -rifle, and calling to Tom, his corporal and interpreter, he -disappeared into the outer darkness, while his friends -settled themselves more comfortably in their cloaks, and -threw half a dozen additional, not to say superfluous, logs -into the glorious blaze.</p> - -<p>The dispositions at the foot of the pass had been made -with great judgment; the object was, if possible, to prevent -anything from passing during the night, but at any rate -to arrange matters so that nothing should pass without being -seen.</p> - -<p>For this purpose a pretty large fire was lighted so near to -the perpendicular part of the rock that nothing would be -likely to go behind it, the shrubs of course being cleared -away from its vicinity; and on the opposite side of the -passage was a little sentry-box of fir branches, under which -sat two Swedes, with directions to let fly at anything that -crossed between them and the fire; so that if they missed, as -most likely they would, the picket above might at least be -prepared.</p> - -<p>The men, who had been excited by the firing, were sharp -as needles, and indeed, were not very far from letting fly at -their own commander, but they had seen nothing that they -could be very certain about, though of course their imaginations -were full of half the beasts in Noah’s Ark; and so, after -straining his eyes into the thick darkness for half an hour or -more, the Captain heaped fresh fuel on the fire, recommended -a sharp look-out, returned slowly up the pass,<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_357"></a>[357]</span> -and was well laughed at for his pains as he resumed his seat -by the blazing tree.</p> - -<p>“By the way, Birger, what is that story that you and the -Parson were alluding to just before dinner, I hope you have -eaten and drank enough by this time to qualify you for -relating it.”</p> - -<p>“What, the twilight of the gods? the Ragnarök, as the -Edda calls it; that is not a story, it is a bit of heathenism.”</p> - -<p>“It seems to me,” said the Captain, “that you Swedes -keep your heathenism a great deal better than you do your -Christianity.”</p> - -<p>“The Norwegians do, certainly,” said Birger, “the fact is, -their conversion was effected by force of arms, rather than by -force of argument; the party of Olaf the Christian was -stronger than the party of Hakon the heathen, so they killed -and converted, and the people became Christians, and very -appropriately adopted the saint’s battle-axe for their national -emblem. As for their Reformation, that was simply an -order from a despotic court, not resisted, only because the -people did not care much about the matter. ‘It will not -make herrings dear,’ was the popular remark on the subject. -The creed of Odin was the only religion that they were in -earnest about, and that is why the legends that they cling -to, are, nine times in ten, heathen rather than Christian.”</p> - -<p>“I think I have read that story about the herrings in -Geijer, but applied to a different nation,” said the Parson; -“it will not do for you Swedes to be throwing stones at -Norway, in the matter of that Reformation; your original -conversion by St. Ansgar, was a good deal more creditable -than theirs, but your Reformation was simply the party of -Gustaf stronger than the party of Christiern—you reformed -your Church because you wanted to dissolve the union of -Kalmar.”</p> - -<p>“What do you say about your own Reformation?” said -Birger.</p> - -<p>“That it has nothing to do with the twilight of the gods, -which the Captain wants to hear about—tell us what you -Swedes believe about that.”</p> - -<p>“Why, we Swedes do not believe in it at all; it is not<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_358"></a>[358]</span> -like the legends of the Walpurgis Night, or the death of -Baldur, which are annually kept alive by the change of -seasons which they commemorate. This legend has lost its -hold on the popular mind; but it is a curious theory, notwithstanding, -because it contains evident traces of a revelation -corrupted, because disjoined from that people to whose -guardianship had been committed the oracles of Divine -Truth. In the twilight of the gods may be clearly traced -a representation of the end of the world, such as is revealed -to us:—a fierce winter, the most terrible natural affliction -to the northern mind, is to usher it in; then comes the -general falling away, which we are ourselves taught to -expect.<a id="FNanchor_57" href="#Footnote_57" class="fnanchor">[57]</a></p> - -<p>“The sun and the moon are to be devoured by the wolves, -that have been continually pursuing them ever since -creation, and every now and then, by seizing them, have -caused eclipses; the stars fall, the earth quakes so that the -trees are shaken from their roots, and the mountains totter;—then -the Midgard Serpent turns on its ocean bed, and an -immense wave rushes over the land, upon which floats the -phantom ship, Naglfar, which is built of the nails of dead -men—the wolf, Fenrir, together with the midgard serpent,—both -of them the offspring of Loki, the Principle of Evil,—which -hitherto have been chained down by the Æsir, are -now permitted to break loose; the heavens are cleft in -twain, and the sons of Muspell, the Band of Brightness, -headed by Surtur the Avenger, ride through the breach, and -advance by the bridge of Bifrost which bursts asunder -beneath them. For the time the Avengers join their<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_359"></a>[359]</span> -bright bands with Loki and the Children of Darkness, and -advance to the battle-field of Vigrid, where the destinies of -the world are to be decided.</p> - -<p>“In the mean while the gods are fully prepared; Heimdall, -the Warder of Heaven, has sounded the Horn Gjallar, -and the gods assemble in council;—Valhalla pours out from -its five hundred and forty gates its hosts of heroes; these, -which are the men who have been slain in battle from the -beginning of the world, and ever since have been trained by -daily tournaments for this very purpose, are eager for the -combat; and Odin, having previously ridden over for the last -time to the Well of Mimir, and consulted the Norna, marshalls -his hosts on the field of Vigrid; loud and desperate is -the battle, the Powers of Evil fall one by one before the gods, -but very few of these survive the conflict. Thor, having -killed the Midgard Serpent, falls exhausted with his efforts -and dies; Frey, who has parted with the sword of victory, -falls before the avenger, Surtur; Loki and Heimdall engage -in battle and mortally wound each other; Odin himself is -swallowed up by the wolf Fenrir, which is instantly destroyed -by Vidar; and last of all, Tyr, the God of Victory, falls in -the very act of overcoming the dog Garm.</p> - -<p>“Surtur the Avenger, having now no opponent, sets the -earth and the heavens on fire with his excessive brightness, -and the whole race of men is consumed, with the exception -of certain chosen individuals who lie hid and protected in -the forest of Hodmimir. Then Surtur himself retires before -Vidar, the God of Silence, who, calling to him Modi and -Magni (Courage and Might) the sons of Thor (Violence), -and summoning Baldur (Innocence) from the realms of Hela -(Night or Invisibility), founds a new heaven and a new earth, -and a new race of inhabitants, and they dwell on the plains -of Ida (perpetual youth), where Asgard formerly stood, and -their descendants shall spread over the new earth, which -shall be lighted by a new sun.</p> - -<div class="poetry-container"> -<div class="poetry"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">“‘The radiant sun</div> - <div class="verse indent0">A daughter bears</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Ere Fenrir takes her;—</div> - <div class="verse indent0">On her mother’s course</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Shall ride that maid</div> - <div class="verse indent0">When the gods have perished.’</div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_360"></a>[360]</span></p> - -<p class="noindent">“And now, to quote the conclusion of the Prose Edda, ‘If -thou hast any further questions to ask, I know not who can -answer thee, for I never heard tell of any one who could -relate what will happen in the other ages of the world. -Make, therefore, the best use thou canst of what has been -imparted to thee.’”</p> - -<p>“Why,” said the Captain, “this is Revelation!”</p> - -<p>“To be sure it is,” said the Parson; “and my wonder is -not that so much of revealed truth should have been corrupted, -but that so much should have been preserved. There -is no occasion for the sneers of those who say that in the -conversion of Scandinavia, St. Ansgar merely substituted -Valentine for Vali, St. Philip for Iduna, and our Lord for -Baldur. He had, in truth, little to teach his converts beyond -explaining allegories, and shewing them that their religion -was only a mild, yet tolerably faithful type of that which -was actually true,—that Thor and Odin were attributes, not -persons, and that Asgard and Gimli, and Hela and Nifleheim, -were states and conditions, not places.”</p> - -<p>It must not be supposed that this conversation had been -continued altogether without interruption. Shots had from -time to time rung through the night-air; some faintly and -from great distances; some, as it would seem, within a few -hundred yards of them; there was evidently something restless -in the circle of the skal, but their own sentries gave no -notice, and the ear becoming accustomed to such noises, the -shots had of late been little regarded.</p> - -<p>One moment, however, changed the whole aspect of affairs, -and recalled the thoughts of the party from the heights of -Asgard to the affairs of middle earth.</p> - -<p>A shot from the foot of the pass; then another! “Hjortarne! -hjortarne!” (the stags! the stags!) roared out the -sentries.</p> - -<p>The Captain sprang into a dark corner, bringing the whole -blaze before him, and cocked his rifle. Then came a sound -like a troop of horse at full gallop—a rush!—a charge! -Jacob flying into the arms of the sportsmen, his coffee pot -scattering around its fragrant contents,—dark forms bounding -across the bright spot of light, scattering the men, and -the wet clothes, and the cookery, and the crockery! A<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_361"></a>[361]</span> -crack from the Captain’s rifle! a crash! and the whole scene -passed away like an illusion, leaving the circle tenantless, in -the midst of which the great fire was blazing away as quietly -and peaceably as if nothing unusual had ever been illumined -by its light.</p> - -<p>“By the Thousand! that shot told somewhere,” said -Birger, picking himself up. “By George, it is Jacob! poor -devil! Well, I am sorry for him, the old scoundrel.”</p> - -<p>But Jacob, when he could be brought to his senses, could -not find out that he had been wounded at all, though his -great unwieldy frock-coat was split up the back, and the tails -rolled in some unaccountable way round his head. His -ideas, which were never peculiarly bright, had got completely -bewildered, and nothing could convince him that a legion of -Trolls had not been making a ball-room of his ample back.</p> - -<p>“It was not Jacob I fired at,” said the Captain, quietly -reloading his rifle; “take a pine knot, and look a little -further up the pass; I suspect you will find something more -valuable than our fat friend. Oh, that’s it!” as a loud shout -was heard; “I thought it could not be far off,—bring him -into the light.”</p> - -<p>Birger repeated the command in Swedish, and presently -three or four of the men emerged from the outer darkness, -bearing, with some difficulty, an enormous elk, the patriarch -of the forest.</p> - -<p>“Well done,” said Birger; “capital shot! Here! Tom, -Torkel, out with your knives, and off with the skin; do not -think twice about it. Ten to one we shall have Moodie -here; he will not mind his own people much, but he knows -that we are not in the habit of firing into the air, and he will -be coming to see what has been disturbing the camp all -night. There, look sharp! never mind a tear or two; make -that beast into goat’s flesh as soon as you can. Cut off the -head at once, you cannot disguise the horns!”</p> - -<p>“Well, but what if Moodie does see it?” said the Parson.</p> - -<p>“Why,” said the Captain, “Birger is quite right. Moodie -is in command, and he would consider it his duty to report -us; and besides, I will answer for it he would jump at the -chance of playing Brutus, and delating his own friends.<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_362"></a>[362]</span> -There was a good deal of significance in the way he cautioned -us that elks and red-deer were strictly preserved. It is a -fact, too, that with all that immense range of royal forest at -his undivided command, he has never shot a stag or an elk -yet. He considers himself on honour, and behaves like a -gentleman and a kammerjunker, as he is.”<a id="FNanchor_58" href="#Footnote_58" class="fnanchor">[58]</a></p> - -<p>“He is the only man in Sweden who does, then,” said -Birger. “I will engage for it. Bjornstjerna, Hof Ofwer -Jagmästere, as he writes himself, never loses a chance if he -can get one on the sly. By the way, how nicely the mist -has cleared off, without any one seeing it. Positively I can -see the stars again. I told you it would be so:—</p> - -<div class="poetry-container"> -<div class="poetry"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent10">“Through storm and rain,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">The weary midnight hours must wane,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Ere joyous morning come again,</div> - <div class="verse indent6">And bid the gloom retire.”</div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -<p>“I wish I could take you up to our day look-out place,” -said the Captain; “we should have a good view of the watch-fires -from it now. I stood there for an hour together on the -first night, looking at the fires of the hållet; and by this time -the dref must have come quite near enough for us to see -them too.”</p> - -<p>“Well,” said Birger, “come along! I think I know the -way,—it is the path I came down by this morning, is it not?”</p> - -<p>“Yes it is, but it will never do on a dark night like this; -it is not over-safe by day, and there are shreds of the mist -hanging about us still. We want light for that path.”</p> - -<p>“And light you shall have,” said Birger. “Here, Tom, -split me this fir-root, it is as full of turpentine as it can hold.<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_363"></a>[363]</span> -There,” continued he, thrusting the end of one of the slips -into the blaze, and striking up the song of the Dalecarlian -miners:—</p> - -<div class="poetry-container"> -<div class="poetry"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">“‘Brother, kindle thy bright light,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">For here below ’tis dark as night;</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Gloomy may be on earth thy way,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">But light and good shall make it day.’</div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -<p>“Now then, I think we start by this ledge; light another -of these pine-slips, Tom, and bring the whole bundle with -you.”</p> - -<p>The path was not altogether a safe one, certainly, for it -was a narrow ledge, winding round the face of the cliff that -formed the northern side of the pass, and leading to a sort of -promontory which jutted forward somewhat in advance of -the range; but there were plenty of branches to hold on by, -and there was no real danger as long as there was light -enough to see where to place the feet; and when they had -got fairly out of the range of their own enormous fire, the -stars were glimmering, and the night was not, after all, so -very dark. A withered ash, the bare trunk of which stretched -out horizontally, like a finger-post, from the extreme point, -was their look-out, and bore the strip of calico, once white, -but now sullied and dishonoured by twenty-four hours of -continuous rain, which marked the position of their picket.</p> - -<p>The look-out commanded completely the position of the -hållet, the encampment of which was placed among some -straggling copse that feathered the reverse slope of the spur -of rock which connected the range of hills with the rapids -and falls of the river. Among this bushwood were scattered, -irregularly, the cooking and sleeping fires, glancing every -now and then on the huts of boughs and other temporary -shelter which had been run up to protect the men from the -wet, while, on the bare crest of the spur, which had been -entirely denuded of what little timber it possessed, was a -line of fifty watch-fires, one to each skalfogde’s command; -each of these had its stoker, who from time to time replenished -its blaze with fresh logs,—and its sentry, who, sitting or -lying in some dark recess, was to fire at everything that -came within the circle of the light. Everything betokened<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_364"></a>[364]</span> -extreme watchfulness; not a fire burnt dim,—black figures -were continually passing and repassing before them,—and -every now and then a straggling shot waked up the echoes, -and kept the whole line in a state of continual agitation.</p> - -<p>The dref, which had advanced a little during the day, was -still five or six miles off, and their fires, which formed a vast -semicircle, were, for the most part, hidden by the trees; but -a hazy and continuous line of misty light defined the whole -position, tinging the very sky with redness, so that the receding -skirts of the mist looked luminous, like a terrestrial aurora -borealis.</p> - -<p>While they yet gazed, the tree tops, which, beyond the -reflection of the fires, had hitherto been one unbroken sea -of blackness, came gradually into view: first the spiry tops -of the firs, then the rounder and softer outlines of the birch -and ash, grew more and more defined; then the character -of the foliage became distinguishable,—the glaucous white of -the poplar and the fringiness of the ash and rowan: then a -soft pale light, interspersed with deep broad shadows, was -cast over the scene, slightly dimming the glow of the watch-fires, -and contrasting strangely with their yellow light; and -then the half moon rose up from the cliffs behind them, illuminating -the distant landscape, but bringing that immediately -beneath their feet into blacker and darker shade.</p> - -<p>“Your friend Bjornstjerna is a plucky fellow,—that I will -say for him; most men would have turned tail at such a -drench of rain as we have had; and now virtue promises -to be its own reward—we shall have a glorious day to-morrow.”</p> - -<p>“I think we shall,” said Birger,—“indeed, I am sure we -shall, as far as the weather is concerned; but I am afraid -that will not prevent us from suffering some loss by what we -have had already. You may depend on it every beast -within our circle has gone the rounds and tried the weak -points of it,—some have escaped, at all events. The wolves -last night, and the stags just now, have forced the passage -with very little loss; and certainly ours is not the most unguarded -spot in the line.”</p> - -<p>“By George! Birger! that shot is from our post!”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_365"></a>[365]</span></p> - -<p>“Not a doubt of that;—and there’s another! Wait a bit, -it may be nothing after all.”</p> - -<p>“O! but it is something!” said the Captain, in an agony, -as three or four more shots rang from the out-post itself, -followed by confused cries and shouts, as if men were engaged -in mortal conflict.</p> - -<p>The Captain threw himself on the steep descent, the whole -of which he would have accomplished very much quicker than -was at all salutary for his bones, had not Birger caught him -by the collar as he was disappearing.</p> - -<p>“For God’s sake, mind what you are about! Take a torch -in your hand, if you must go; or, better still, let Tom go -first. Whatever it is, the thing must be over long before -you can get there. All you will do at that headlong speed -will be to break your neck down the precipice!”</p> - -<p>Tom, much more cool, had already taken the lead, and was -throwing a light on the narrow and broken pathway for the -Captain to see where to place his footsteps. Birger’s selection -of Tom for a leader was a good one, for it was absolutely impossible -for one man to pass another during the descent, and -no threats or entreaties from the Captain could urge the -phlegmatic Norwegian beyond the bounds of strict prudence. -The last ten feet of the rock the Captain leaped, and pounced -down from above into the midst of the picket.</p> - -<p>Before the great fire lay a full-grown bear, dead, and -bleeding from a dozen wounds, and round him were grouped -the whole picket—including the sentries, who had deserted -their posts,—whooping, and hallooing, and screaming, and -making all sorts of unintelligible noises.</p> - -<p>The story was soon told, when the men had been reduced -to something like order. The bear had been attempting to -steal past the first fire, and, sidling away from it, had almost -run over the two sentries, who were much too frightened to -fire with any aim or effect. The bear, almost as frightened -as they, had rushed forward, but, startled at the great blaze -upon which he came suddenly at the turn of the pass, hesitated -a moment, and received Torkel’s spear in his breast. -The rifles and guns, which were lying about, were caught -up and discharged indiscriminately, and, as luck would have<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_366"></a>[366]</span> -it, without taking effect on any of the party. Some rushed -on with their axes, some with knives, some with blazing -brands; and the bear dropped down among them, mobbed -to death, every individual of the party being firmly convinced -that it was he, and none but he, who had struck the victor -stroke.</p> - -<p>“Well!” said Birger, “there is the bear, at all events; and -a good thing for us that he is there; we should not have -heard the last of it from Moodie for some time, if he had -slipped off. Hang him up, my men; we will skin him when -we have time and daylight; we do not want to make goat’s -meat of that fellow, at all events. Hang him up openly, by -the side of the wolf.”</p> - -<p>“Bother that moon,” said the Captain, sulkily, for he did -not enter into the spirit of ‘<i>quod facit per alium facit per -se</i>.’ “What a set of lunatics we were to go staring after the -picturesque instead of minding our business; all of us together, -too!”</p> - -<p>“It was very poetical,” said the Parson.</p> - -<p>“Yes, that is the very thing. Birger, you do not take in -the allusion, I can see—a ‘grāte powut,’ as they pronounce -it, is, in Ireland, slang for an irrecoverable fool.”</p> - -<p>“Well! well!” said Birger, laughing,—for, being an old -bear-hunter, he was not jealous, and could afford to laugh,—“we -have not got to the higher flights of poetry yet, and -we will take good care not to leave our posts again. As for -you, Captain, <i>pends-toi, brave Crillon, nous nous sommes combattus -à Arcques et tu n’y étais pas</i>. However, I think we had -better get a little sleep, those who can, for the chances are -we shall want steady nerves to-morrow.”</p> - -<p>So, sending back the sentries to their posts, the whole -party, with their weapons by their sides, and everything -ready for a sudden emergency, rolled themselves up in their -cloaks, with their feet to the fire, one of them (taking it by -turns of an hour each) walking up and down, rifle in hand, -within the circle of its light.</p> - -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - -<div class="chapter"> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_367"></a>[367]</span></p> - -<h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_XXVI">CHAPTER XXVI.<br /> -<span class="smaller">BEATING OUT THE SKAL.</span></h2> - -</div> - -<div class="poetry-container"> -<div class="poetry"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">“Now the hunting train is ready. Hark, away! By dale and height</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Horns are sounding,—hawks ascending up to Odin’s halls of light.</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Terror-struck, the wild-wood creatures seek their dens ’mid woods and reeds;</div> - <div class="verse indent0">While, with spear advanced pursuing, she, the air Valkyria speeds.”</div> - </div> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse right"><i>Frithi of Tegner.</i></div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -<p>“Hillo, Moodie! what news?” said the Captain; “have -a cup of coffee and a—a—chop,” as that individual strode -down the pass from the side farthest removed from the skal -looking—as, indeed, was very nearly the case—as if he had -neither trimmed his beard nor washed his face since the -beginning of the campaign.</p> - -<p>“Why, the news is, that you had better look out sharp, if -you mean to do credit to my recommendation. I had a -message from Bjornstjerna last night, that he meant to get -the dref in motion an hour before sunrise, so as to beat out, -and give the men time to get home before evening; they -must have been advancing for these two hours; our people -have heard their shouts distinctly enough, and I only wonder -we have had no game yet. Capital mutton chops, these,” he -added; “who is your butcher?”</p> - -<p>“O, we are pretty good foragers,” said the Captain, carelessly, -but at the same time casting an anxious glance round -the encampment, to see whether there were any tell-tale horns -or hoofs lurking about. “Terrible weather yesterday, was -not it?”</p> - -<p>“Upon my word, it was as much as I could do to keep -the men at their posts; I have got one or two skulkers down<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_368"></a>[368]</span> -in the Länsman’s books, but I do not think I can have the -conscience to inflict the fine; I had half a mind to skulk -myself;—we must do it, though, in justice to the honest -fellows who braved the weather. I think the best man I -have is a woman; she did more service in shaming the men -and keeping them to their duty than a dozen of us. I had -occasion to degrade a skalfogde for drunkenness, and I promoted -her into the vacancy on the spot. How the men -laughed: they call her some Swedish equivalent to the -‘Dashing White Serjeant,’—and I only wish I had a dozen -white serjeants instead of one. But what have you done -here in the shooting way? I heard a good deal of firing last -night from your post; you have made yourselves pretty -comfortable, at all events.”</p> - -<p>“It is a way we have in the army,” said the Parson. -“There is our <i>spoliarium</i>, however,” pointing to a group of -carcasses that were hanging to the lower branches of a fir,—“one -bear, two wolves, five foxes, a lot of hares, and”—here -the Captain plucked his sleeve,—“and—that is all, -besides a young bear which I killed in the fjeld as I came -along.”</p> - -<p>“Oh come! that is not so bad; and that bear is a glorious -fellow! who killed him?”</p> - -<p>“Why, we cannot justly say,” replied the Captain, sheepishly: -“the fact is, he made a charge upon the picket, and it -took a good many hands to quiet him,—you may see that by -the gashes; I am afraid the skin is terribly injured.”</p> - -<p>“What a mercenary dog you are; these are honourable -scars, which, while they impair the beauty, only enhance the -value;—every cut is the memorial of a gallant deed.”</p> - -<p>Whether the Captain,—who was vehemently anxious to -kill a bear to his own hand, and whose conscience upbraided -him bitterly for his last night’s dereliction of duty,—coincided -in this sentiment, might be doubted; at all events, he -made no attempt to remove the doubt by indiscreet confessions, -and was only too glad to shift the subject, lest any -untimely observation from his companions or attendants -might reveal the true state of the case.</p> - -<p>“What have you done yourself?” said he; “I am sure<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_369"></a>[369]</span> -your people must have fired twenty shots for our one; I -thought you were having a mock skirmish, at one time.”</p> - -<p>“O, those people fire at anything or nothing, just for the -sake of making a noise. We have got a good many wolves -and foxes, though, and a rascally lynx or two; but we have -not been so fortunate as you with the bears; though I am -clear we saw two or three during the night. I am sorry to -say that there were three or four stags killed, and I do not -know what to do about it. There was a herd last night very -restless; it had tried our line at several points. I had given -strict orders to let them pass, but they always got headed -back, somehow,—in fact, the men fired at them, that is the -truth of it, and the skalfogdar say they could not prevent -them. This morning, as many as three were brought in -dead, and I am sure I do not see how I am to identify the -men who fired; they were firing all night, and every skalfogde -stoutly denies that his party had anything to do -with it.”</p> - -<p>“Oh! how were the people to distinguish one beast from -another in the dark?” said the Captain; “you may be -thankful they have not shot one another, and that you have -not had three or four peasants brought in this morning, -instead of three or four deer.”</p> - -<p>“Upon my word, there would have been less said if it had -been so. However, I must report it to Bjornstjerna, and -leave him to do what he pleases. I strongly suspect my -dashing white serjeant of being one of the murderers. Give -me another chop,—that mutton of yours is the very best -thing I have eaten since we left Gäddebäck,—and then you -really must get to your posts; we shall have the dref down -upon us before we know where we are. Several hares had -been showing themselves, and trying to pass the line before -I came up, and they will not do that by daytime, unless they -are driven. You had better break up the encampment as soon -as you have done breakfast: let Jacob stow everything ready -for moving, and then send him off to have the carioles harnessed. -The skal will break up before noon, and then there -will be such a rush of fellows wanting to get home, that the -chances are we shall have a Flemish account of our horses, if<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_370"></a>[370]</span> -we do not look sharp after them now. People are in no ways -particular on these occasions; there are so many of them, that -it is difficult to fix the blame anywhere, and all roguery -goes down to the account of mistake and confusion.”</p> - -<p>“Very well,” said the Captain, jumping up and carefully -loading the rifle which Tom had just been cleaning from the -effects of the night’s dews and rain, while the shot-gun had -been doing duty in its place by the Captain’s side,—“then -here goes; I am going to the foot of the pass, and shall -not want Tom this half hour, so he may help Jacob. Birger -is going to the look-out place, and he will not want his man -either. What will you do, Parson?”</p> - -<p>“Why, I think I will take a turn with Moodie down the -hållet, when he goes back to inspect his posts. I shall want -Torkel to carry my rifle, as I may not come back here; but -your two men will be enough to help Jacob. How are we -to carry these great beasts?”</p> - -<p>“Oh, that is Bjornstjerna’s business. I dare say he has -given orders for a sufficient number of carts, or, at all events, -we shall have men enough to carry them when the skal breaks -up. These are public property,—you need not trouble yourselves -about them; what we have to think about is our own -little belongings.”</p> - -<p>“Public property!” said the Captain; “I did not bargain -for that; I want the skins to hang up in my paternal halls, -as trophies of the battle.”</p> - -<p>“Then you must buy them,” said Moodie; “there will be -an auction up the village as soon as the skal breaks up, and -by offering a little more than the market price, you may -secure anything that you want. It really is a very fair regulation,” -he added, observing a shade of discontent on the Captain’s -brow. “You shot them, no doubt; but you could -not have got a shot at them at all if it had not been for these -people driving them. Properly speaking, they belong to -Bjornstjerna, but I understand he has given up his right to -the men, if so, they will all be converted into brandy before -night-fall, you may be quite sure. However, come along,—that -last volley was from the dref, and it sounded quite -close.”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_371"></a>[371]</span></p> - -<p>Moodie’s path was by no means either easy or safe, for he -carefully avoided the straight road which would have led him -across the shooting line, and contriving to make a circuit and -scramble down the face of the cliff at a small fissure, which -lay a quarter of a mile to the north of the pass, he attained -the rear of the hållet without disturbing or tainting the -ground. It may be observed, that there was no such extreme -necessity for all this precaution; but Moodie was, after -all, an Englishman, and a hunter of but four years’ standing, -and, if he was the least bit in the world a martinet, he -was not altogether without excuse,—and really his position -was, it must be confessed, very scientifically occupied.</p> - -<p>At the time that he and the Parson came on the ground, -the hållet was just relieving guard, in order to give the -morning watch an opportunity of breakfasting before the -general turn out; and the scene was extremely picturesque.</p> - -<p>The breakfast was an extempore affair enough, except -among those parties who had been so fortunate as to -knock a hare on the head, or to secure a joint of what -Moodie turned his face away from, and the Captain persisted -in calling mutton. A little rye meal, mixed up cold, -or in special cases, when kettles could be had, made into -stirabout, was very nearly the whole of it. An older commander -would have closed his eyes to the sight of brandy, -and his nose to the smell of aniseed, but Moodie was young, -and faithful to his trust.</p> - -<p>Groups of men and women were collected round the fires -for cooking, some rubbing up firearms, some snapping and -oiling obstinate locks and picking touchholes which the wet -had damaged, and drying powder which either would not go -off at all or else flashed in the eyes and singed the hair -and eyebrows of the operators. Gradually, however, they -all began to straggle into their line, for the sounds of the -dref were more and more audible, and now and then some -scared and crouching beast would show itself on the side of -the hill, and after drawing upon itself the fire of all who -were within a quarter of mile of it, would shrink timidly -back into cover, nine times in ten absolutely unharmed. -Now would come, high over head, and altogether free from<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_372"></a>[372]</span> -the chance of shot, a gallant blackcock or a tjäder, who, -having run or flitted under cover for miles, had at last taken -heart of grace, looked his danger in the face, and dashed -across the line with that success which bravery deserves. -Hares would from time to time race along the brow, unable -to make up their mind which way they would head, and -sometimes would draw a fruitless shot or two from a young -and over-ardent sportsman, followed by the grave rebuke of -his steadier skalfogde.</p> - -<p>Meanwhile the Captain had advanced along into the -shooting line, and building himself up a screen of branches, -where he could fully command the passage, waited patiently -for what luck would send him; absolutely despising the -smaller game that occasionally stole across the line and -sheltered themselves in fancied security in the skalplatz, -and not greatly disturbed by the occasional double-shots -from Birger’s look-out place on the cliff above, though this -was not unfrequently followed by a rattle of the twigs, or a -soft <i>thud</i>, as his victim came tumbling to the earth.</p> - -<p>Birger’s post, indeed, had proved an excellent position for -winged game, for the grouse, though by no means plentiful -anywhere in Sweden, had been collected from twenty miles -of country by the continued driving. Many, of course, had -taken wing, and dashing over the heights, had found security -in the higher fjeld, or across the river. But the grouse, -especially the old cock, is a running bird, and numbers of -them had continued toddling away by short and startled -runs, a mile or so in advance of the dref, and now, hearing -the noises in front as well as in the rear, and beginning to -comprehend the precise dangers of their position, were, one -after another, taking wing. Many of these followed the line -of the cliffs, unwilling, perhaps unable to face them, but coasting -their inequalities, and looking out for a lower point; -these would come exactly on a level with Birger’s stand, and -very seldom passed it unharmed.</p> - -<p>All this the Captain left unheeded; his soul was above -black game; and, burning to wash away the disgrace of the -preceding night, he kept his eye resolutely fixed on the -shooting line; something moves—it is a bear—no—a rascally<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_373"></a>[373]</span> -wolf, in that nonchalant style which no amount of -danger will induce him to put off, slouches across—not across, -for he is worthy of the Captain’s rifle; a shot reaches him, -and he rolls over and over to the very foot of the shelter he -had sought. Not a stir is heard from the Captain’s screen, -and when the little puff of white smoke is dissipated into -air, no one would have told where the fatal shot had come -from. There goes a real full-grown bear, in downright -earnest, and followed by two half-grown cubs, crouching and -squatting, and making themselves as small as possible, like -so many rabbits stealing out of cover; but confound them, -they are three hundred yards down the line, the Captain -will not risk wounding or missing them, and they disappear -into the trees of the skalplatz to be headed back by the -hållet when too late to return.</p> - -<p>And now the shouts and cries began to come louder and -louder; and the hares, which had lingered as long as possible -on the edge of the wood, began to creep, or steal, or race, or -bound across the line, and among them several specimens of -better game; the men were actually beginning to show -themselves here and there in what, from the closing in of -the ranks, had now become close order, so that nothing could -have passed their line, when a gallant bear, with head erect -and mouth open, dashed into the opening at full gallop, and -came straight upon the Captain’s hiding-place, as if he knew -where his enemy was lying, and meant, at all events, not to -die without vengeance.</p> - -<p>The Captain fired deliberately,—paused for a moment to -see the effect of his shot—then fired his second barrel; both -took effect on the broad chest exposed to him, though without -checking, for a moment, the rush of the bear. On he -came!—the screen went down like reeds before him; but -the Captain had thrown himself flat on the ground, and, -covered by the branches, had escaped the view of his adversary, -who plunged over them, dashed at the opposite cover, -and disappeared from view.</p> - -<p>“Upon my word, that was a near thing,” said Bjornstjerna, -who cantered up to the spot on his pony; “but a miss is as<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_374"></a>[374]</span> -good as a mile,—not that you missed that rascal; I saw -both shots strike as plainly as ever I saw anything in my -life. Never mind, my boy, you have not lost him; he will -not go far, for all his gallant bearing. Larssen!” he shouted, -“Larssen! come here and take my pony. We must ride the -Apostle’s horse<a id="FNanchor_59" href="#Footnote_59" class="fnanchor">[59]</a> now;” and, leaping off, he proceeded to arrange -his army, causing each skalfogde to muster his own -men, as they came up, on the edge of the shooting line. -Soiled, and wet, and dirty they looked: a Swede is rather a -picturesque animal, when you are far enough off not to see -his dirt, particularly when there is any general muster of -them, for as each parish weaves its own wadmaal, or coarse -cloth, and each wears it of a particular colour or pattern, the -commencement of a skal looks, at a little distance, like a -muster of regular troops, in regular, though rather eccentric -uniforms: but the rains, and the dirt, and the mud-stains had -reduced this to a very general average,—a sort of forest uniform -of neutral tint.</p> - -<p>Advantage was taken of the halt to clean and reload the -fire-arms, most of which had been rendered useless in the -morning’s beat; for though the sun was shining brightly, -there had been no wind, and the rain-drops of yesterday were -glittering like diamonds on the branches, and pattering down -like a shower-bath on all who moved them.</p> - -<p>In the mean time, the two chiefs having completed their -junction, held a short consultation, and it was determined to -advance a strong party from each side, close to the roots of -the cliffs, sufficiently numerous to allow each man to touch -his neighbour, and then to beat the skalplatz out to the -river, which, not being quite so rapid or impassable as was -expected, was guarded by the boats.</p> - -<p>This involved the abandonment of the Captain’s picket, -which reinforced the beating party, the <i>materiel</i> being conveyed, -under the superintendence of Jacob, to the travelling-waggon -which had been brought as near to the scene of -action as the forest roads permitted.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_375"></a>[375]</span></p> - -<p>And now began the real dangers of the skal,—the difficulty -of restraining the men from firing indiscriminately into the -skalplatz, and shooting everything alike,—wolf, hare, fox, or -beater.</p> - -<p>Fortunately the men were sober, and the officers well -aware of the danger. Flags were sent into the forest to -mark the advancing line; strict injunctions were given that -none should be permitted to advance faster than his neighbours, -and a trusty man on the outside of the cover carried -a white flag about five yards before the main body of the -beaters, followed by an <i>extempore</i> provost marshal, with a -party of trusty men, who had orders to tie up and flog on -the spot any man who fired at anything whatever in the rear -of the flags.</p> - -<p>All these arrangements were completed in little more than -half-an-hour, and the bugles on both sides rang out the advance. -The progress was very slow, not only on account of -the necessity of preserving the accurate line, but because the -beasts themselves required so much rousing; many of the -smaller game, and, on one occasion, even a wolf, absolutely -refused to move at all, and was knocked down or speared as -it lay. In no case was resistance made by any of the wild -beasts, with the single exception of the gallant fox, who, -desperate but unsubdued, stood boldly at bay, and bit -furiously at everything within its reach, but in vain,—for as -the line soon became two or three deep, escape was next to -an impossibility. One of the bear cubs, a three-parts grown -animal, was dispatched by a blow of a hatchet, and the other -was shot in the thick cover, by a man who had almost stepped -upon it without seeing it. The Captain’s bear, a full-grown -male, did not live ten minutes after it had gained the cover; -there was no faltering in its gait or symptom of injury, for -no muscle had been cut or bone broken by the shot, and its -pluck and energy had carried it on till it fell suffocated by -internal bleeding.</p> - -<p>And now the shouts rang out from the river-side; the -she-bear had taken the water, and was gallantly forcing her -way across it at a point rather higher than the boats had -expected her. The stream was strong; the boats were at<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_376"></a>[376]</span> -some distance; the Swedes, who were never good at moving-shots, -had blazed away when she first dashed into the -stream, and there was every chance of her escape, for they -are terribly awkward in loading their terribly awkward firearms; -the rowers were pulling away for life and death, and -the heavy boats were forcing their slow progress against the -stream, which was gradually bringing the bear down to them -as she swam across it, when a long-shot from Bjornstjerna -took effect, she rolled over, recovered herself, struck out -again, but was carried down among the boats, secured, and -brought to land.</p> - -<p>The game was then mustered,—so far, indeed, as it could -be recovered, for it was shrewdly suspected by some, that the -whole was not forthcoming. There were four full-grown -bears and three cubs, seven wolves, two lynxes, three or four -badgers, and a queer nondescript animal of the genus <i>canis</i>, -which they called a filfras; foxes there were in some numbers, -and this a much more valuable description of animal -than ours; hares were numberless, and also squirrels,—many -of both these last species of game, too, had been stewed and -eaten on the preceding days. Whether any other description -of larger game had been shot, did not appear. Notwithstanding -what Moodie had said about the herd of stags, none -were paraded at the muster, and as he did not, after all, -make any complaint to the Ofwer Jagmästere on the subject, -it may be concluded that the whole was a mistake or a dream -of his own, and that no such breach of forest law had been -committed by any one,—a fact of which the Captain loudly -declared his complete conviction.</p> - -<div class="figcenter" style="width: 700px;"> -<img src="images/illus8.jpg" width="700" height="460" alt="" /> -<p class="caption">DEATH OF FEMALE BEAR.</p> -<p class="caption-r"><a href="#Page_376">p. 376.</a></p> -</div> - -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - -<div class="chapter"> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_377"></a>[377]</span></p> - -<h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_XXVII">CHAPTER XXVII.<br /> -<span class="smaller">THE BALL.</span></h2> - -</div> - -<div class="blockquote"> - -<p>“Truly my brethren—truly my dear sisters—do you know how it -seems to me—why it seems to me that no one can get along till he has -taken a draught—How so? Eh? Your health, dear soul—</p> - -<div class="poetry-container"> -<div class="poetry"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">Here’s to you day and night,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">New raptures, new delight.</div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -<p>Strike up with the fiddles! beat the drums! a stout pull at the pot!</p> - -<div class="poetry-container"> -<div class="poetry"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">Here’s to ye as is fit,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">The reckoning day endeth it.</div> - <div class="verse indent4">The big bottle hail ye,</div> - <div class="verse indent4">The drums beat reveiller,</div> - <div class="verse indent4">At one draught down send it,</div> - <div class="verse indent4">The reckoning will end it.</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Kajsa Stina stands a drawing,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">All my heart is clapper-clawing,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">From the pot my fingers thawing—</div> - <div class="verse indent4">Thus I sing my dying song.”</div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -<p class="right"><i>Fredman’s Epistle to Kajsa Stina, Karl Bellman.</i></p> - -</div> - -<p>Never had the arches of the old forest rung with such -shouts and screams, and roaring songs, and bursts of laughter, -as they did on the evening of the great skal. A few of the -elderly people, but a very few, had had enough of it, and -went off quietly to their homes as soon as they were released -from duty; as for the rest, no one could have supposed that -they had been worked off their legs, and kept from their -natural sleep, and drenched to the skin for the last three or -four days and nights; they were not over-clean, certainly, -though some of the youngsters had contrived, somehow or -other, to smarten themselves up for the occasion; but the -rest made a great contrast to the women, those at least who -had taken no active part in the skal,—their white woollen -jackets, or scarlet or green spencers covered with embroidery -and buttoned down the front with silver knobs, formed a -pleasing relief to the dinginess and raggedness of active<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_378"></a>[378]</span> -service. As for the unfortunate buglers, who, most of them, -were general musicians, and would play upon anything -that was wanted, these, without the least regard to their -previous fatigues, which had been even greater than those -of the beaters, were placed upon barrels, or carts, or stumps -of trees, fiddling and clarionetting for the bare life, while -men and women tore in wild polska round them.</p> - -<p>Some travellers have characterized the Swedish dances as -indecent; whether they are so or not, English papas, and -mamas, and maiden aunts are very competent judges, for they -are precisely the English polka, as we call it (dropping the s for -convenience of pronunciation); the English polka is, in reality, -the national peasant dance of Sweden; and in their own -country the Swedes dance it with all their hearts and souls -as well as their limbs and bodies—not sliding and mincing as -we do, but downright pounding, so as to leave the print of -the foot, and especially the heel, on the yielding turf.</p> - -<p>It might seem difficult to provide refreshments for such -a ball-room in such a place, where the dancers mustered -somewhere about two thousand strong—but in truth they -were no way nice. The game, which Bjornstjerna had very -liberally given up to them, formed a good part of these -refreshments, a few sheep—“really sheep this time,” the -Captain observed,—with a good supply of rye-meal made into -stirabout, formed the solids, and these, though, with the -exception of the game, they did not grow in the forest, were -easily procurable, for the families of the combatants, knowing -that a party of English gentlemen were engaged in the skal, -and rightly conjecturing that their hearts would be open, -had brought their stores to the meet, and all of these stores -were not exactly solids; the barrels on which the fiddlers -were standing were intended for something better than rye-meal: -in fact, corn brandy, and a hot fiery liquor which they -make out of potatoes—very beastly to the taste, but quite as -efficacious in producing drunkenness as the very best Cognac—was -in plenty, and, the restrictions of the skal being at an -end, there was every prospect that the men would fully -indemnify themselves for their previous abstinence.</p> - -<p>Birger and Moodie were stamping, and polking, and<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_379"></a>[379]</span> -hurrahing, and kissing their partners with the best of them, -and the Captain, also, was not altogether unsuccessful in -his <i>coup d’essai</i>; as for the men, Tom and Piersen had -altogether forgotten the inferiority of the Swedes to the true -Norwegians, and Jacob’s long streaming coat tails had gone -quite mad.</p> - -<p>Torkel, alone, stung by some jest from his friend Tom, -about the peculiar duties and system of self-denial proper for -an engaged man, crept up rather discontentedly to the fire, -at which the Parson was standing and talking over the -events of the day with Bjornstjerna.</p> - -<p>In Norway, which in reality is a republic, and not a -monarchy, there is a great deal of independence and equality -among all ranks, which is not by any means the case in -Sweden; but even in Sweden, a skal is a time of saturnalia; -and besides, Torkel, though in some measure acting in the -capacity of a servant, was, in reality, the son and heir of a -sufficiently wealthy proprietor; and the Englishmen, whom -he ranked infinitely higher than he did the very first of -Swedish nobility, having treated him all along more as a -companion than anything else, he felt not the least shy of -the Hof Ofwer Jagmästere, though he added the title of -Count to his official honours,—and therefore entered very -readily into conversation.</p> - -<p>They were turning over the skins of those beasts the -bodies of which were already undergoing a conversion into -soup; most of these had been purchased by the party, and -were laid aside for packing; but the lynxes and the filfras, -and some others, which are not considered good for eating, -were still hanging by their heels to the lower branches of -the tree.</p> - -<p>The filfras was a curious animal, about three feet long, but -low in proportion to its length, with great splay feet, well -calculated to form natural snow shoes—in fact, he leaves a -track almost as large as that of a full-grown bear, and upon -the whole, very like one, and climbs trees even better and -quicker than his big brother. The present specimen had -been detected on a tree, and being wounded while in the act -of passing from one branch to the other, had come to the<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_380"></a>[380]</span> -ground; but, wounded as he was, he had fought gallantly for -his life, and had bitten so severely the first man who attempted -to handle him, that he was obliged to leave the skal -and go home. The filfras is a harmless beast enough, so far -as sheep and cattle are concerned, and lives chiefly upon -hares and such game, which, though his eyesight be not very -quick, a remarkably keen scent enables him to tire down—he -himself, in return, is even detected by his own scent, -which is perfectly perceptible to human nostrils, and extremely -disagreeable,—few dogs can be got to run him.<a id="FNanchor_60" href="#Footnote_60" class="fnanchor">[60]</a></p> - -<p>The lynx, though of the tiger race, is a very harmless -beast unless attacked; he may carry off a young lamb now -and then, but very seldom kills his own mutton—it is not -for want of spirit, for he fights like any tiger when driven -into a corner; throwing himself on his back, he polishes off -the dogs as fast as they come near him. A pack of English -fox-hounds might settle his business, as they probably would -that of his Bengal cousin himself; but there is not a dog in -Sweden that would look him in the face.</p> - -<p>“It is a great pity,” said Torkel; who was examining the -shot-holes in the bear-skins.</p> - -<p>“What is a great pity?” said the Parson.</p> - -<p>“Why, to mob to death all these fine beasts, that might -have given people no end of sport in the winter.”</p> - -<p>“And eaten up no end of sheep and oxen,” said Bjornstjerna.</p> - -<p>“Ah! well!” that did not strike Torkel very forcibly; he -had, it must be confessed, led hitherto a rather miscellaneous -sort of life; he knew a great deal more about hunting than -he did about farming, and regarded the depredations of the -bear—though some of them had been made on his father’s<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_381"></a>[381]</span> -own farm—much in the light in which an English fox-hunter -listens to tales of murdered geese and turkeys.</p> - -<p>The matter which weighed upon his conscience just then -was, that poor Nalle<a id="FNanchor_61" href="#Footnote_61" class="fnanchor">[61]</a> had not received altogether fair -play. This had not struck him during the heat of the -chase so very much, but, now that the murder had been committed, -and that he was regarding the result of it in cold -blood, he evidently did not feel quite easy in his mind about -it.</p> - -<p>“Ah!” he said, “poor fellow,” turning over the skin of -Bjornstjerna’s own bear, which was yet wet with the water -of the river in which he had been killed; “well! we do not -do such things in our country.”</p> - -<p>“No!” said Bjornstjerna, “you could not get a couple of -thousand people together in your country without knives -drawn.”</p> - -<p>“But how do you manage it in your country?” said the -Parson, who was not a little afraid that his follower’s nationality -would get the better of his politeness.</p> - -<p>“Ah!” said Torkel, “you should see one of our Norwegian -bear-hunts in the winter; it is not an easy thing to -get Master Nalle on foot, and he takes a good deal of -looking after; but, when you do get a chance, it is worth -having.</p> - -<p>“I remember my brother Nils one day, as he was coming -home from church, took a short cut across the fjeld, and put -his eye on a queer-looking heap in the snow, that he did not -rightly know what to make of. While he was looking at it -out came a great fellow—one of the biggest I ever followed,—as -if he would eat him. Down tumbled Nils on his face, -and the Wise One came ploutering through the snow right -over him, but went on, minding his own business, as all wise -ones do, and never stopped to look at Nils.</p> - -<p>“It so happened that my brother Nils had nothing -but a pair of skarbogar on his feet (a rough sort of snow-shoe, -made of wood and rope), and, knowing he could not<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_382"></a>[382]</span> -get over the ground very well, never tried to follow him, but -came home quietly and told me what he had seen. The -weather looked fine, and there was neither snow likely to -fall, nor wind likely to drift what was fallen already, so that -we knew the tracks would lie; and the next morning, before -it was well light, we had each of us our pair of skier on our -feet, our rifles at our backs, a good iron-shod pole in our -hands to shove along by, and a week’s provision in our -havresacs. I took old Rig<a id="FNanchor_62" href="#Footnote_62" class="fnanchor">[62]</a> with me, in case we should lose -the tracks.</p> - -<p>“We soon came up with them, and off we went, taking it -leisurely—for we had a long run before us. It requires some -little exertion to get up hill with these skier; they do better for -such a country as this than they do for the rocky and tangled -fjeld in Norway; but, on flat ground, you get along five or six -miles an hour without feeling it, and as for down-hill, you -may go just as fast as you like, only for standing still and -keeping your feet.</p> - -<p>“For four or five hours the track lay as straight and even -in the snow as if we had been travelling the post road to -Christiania. Old Nalle thought his winter quarters were -not over safe, and meant evidently to make a passage of it, -and had just been trotting along in the snow, not looking -right or left of him.</p> - -<p>“After that the track came doubled and crooked, as if the -old gentleman had been taking a view of the country, to see -whether it would suit his purpose, before lying down for -another nap,—so we had to work it out painfully, step by -step. This was a slow job, for he had taken a turn to every -point of the compass, and had crossed and re-crossed his own -tracks, and had changed his mind so often, that the short -winter’s day began to close, and we feared the light would -fail; so we started right and left of the spot, and succeeded -in ringing him before we met again.”</p> - -<p>“What do you mean by ringing a bear?” said the Parson.</p> - -<p>“Making a circle round his tracks,” said Torkel, “so as to<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_383"></a>[383]</span> -be sure none lie beyond it; in that case you are independent -of a thaw, for you know that the old gentleman must be -within a certain space. When we met we agreed to leave -our friend quiet, and to sleep till morning; so we cut down -a tree or two, and got up a roaring fire in a little hollow to -leeward, where we were sure the bear could not see our -light or smell our smoke, and there we lay, snug and comfortable -enough.</p> - -<p>“No thaw or mischance of any kind had taken place -during the night, and the next morning we were on the -tracks again; for we had marked the place where we had -left off, by setting up one of the poles in it.</p> - -<p>“We soon got puzzled, however, and began to be very -thankful that we had brought old Rig. Rig was a sharp -fellow,—one of the quickest dogs I ever met with at picking -up a scent, or taking a hint either; his namesake, when he -watched at the gates of Asgard, could not have kept a -brighter look-out. The ground soon got very tangled and -sideling, so, as the ring was but a small one, we determined -to give up the tracks, and to hunt for him with the dog.</p> - -<p>“The old fellow was not long in getting a sniff at him, and -made noise enough to wake up the Nornir in the cave of -Hela. I pushed on, and before I could tell where I was, -ran my skier one on each side a little hole in the snow, where -the dog was baying,—a place that did not look big enough -for a fox to get in. I could not very well turn, for the -points of the skier were one on each side the trunk of a great -twisted birch, at whose foot the hole was; and I could not -see what was in the hole, the snow was so dazzling in the -bright sunshine that everything else looked black. I began -to think that Rig had got hold of nothing better than a fox, -and was beginning to be angry with the dog for making such -a row, and running the chance of giving our real game a -hint to steal off. I was looking down between my skier, -with my face as low as my knees, when all at once I felt the -snow heaving up from under me, and over I rolled, head -over heels, and old Fur Jacket with me, and Rig, who had -pinned him as he bolted, on the top of us both.</p> - -<p>“The old fellow was a great deal too much taken up with<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_384"></a>[384]</span> -the dog to mind me; but before Nils could come up, or I -could get my legs again, he had shaken him off, and was -dashing through the deep snow at a rate that kicked it up -in a white mist behind him.</p> - -<p>“I had kept fast hold of my rifle, all through, and the snow -had not done it a bit of harm; in fact, the frost was so -sharp that it came out of the barrel like so much flour; and -besides, we always cover our locks with tallow after loading. -He had got pretty well out of shot before we were in chase, -but for his sins he had taken down-hill, and the ground was -pretty clear, so we slid along after him like Fenrir after -the Sun;<a id="FNanchor_63" href="#Footnote_63" class="fnanchor">[63]</a> when all at once, Nils, who had a little the best of -the race, touched a stump with the point of his skie, and -flew up into the air, pitching head foremost into the snow. -It was, luckily for him, deep enough to save him from a -broken head or neck—at least, so I found afterwards, for I -had not time to stop then. As for the dog, he was a mile -behind.</p> - -<p>“Just at the bottom of the slope, I ran in upon the chase, -and he turned short round when I was not half-a-dozen yards -from him. I could no more stop than I could stop the lightning; -so, setting my pole in the snow, I swerved a little, and -just missed going over him, as Nils had done with the -stump.</p> - -<p>“By the time I had curved round, I found he had taken -advantage of his chance, and was going up again, travelling -three times as fast as I could hope to do, for skier are desperate -bad things up-hill. However, mine had seal-skin upon -them, luckily, for in our mountainous country we are obliged -to do something to prevent slipping back; but, for all that, -he was getting much the best of it, so I took a cool shot at -him, and heard the ball strike just as if I had thrown it into -a piece of dough, but he never winced, or took the least -notice.</p> - -<p>“However, Nils had managed to pick himself up, and -I saw him and Rig together a good way above us, so I<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_385"></a>[385]</span> -waved my cap and shouted: you can hear a shout in the -winter half-a-dozen miles off. Nils changed his course, so as -to cut us off. I followed, loading as I went. By-and-bye -the old fellow seemed to find out that he had enemies on -both sides of him, for he stopped, and growled, and looked -back at me, and showed his teeth. Just then Nils made a -noise above, by breaking through some understuff; and he -turned, and came at me with his mouth open, charging down-hill -as hard as he could lick. It was ‘neck or nothing’ with -me now, I knew that, for there is no turning or dodging on -skier, going up-hill, so I rested my rifle on the fork of a -branch, and, waiting till he had come within a dozen yards -of me, I shot into his mouth. Lord! it seemed as if somebody -had given him a lift behind; his hind-quarters rose up, -and his head went down, and he came sliding along the snow -on his back, wrong-end foremost. I could not move right -or left, hampered as I was, and he took me just across the -shins with his huge carcass, breaking one of my skier, -and carrying me with him as if I were riding in a sledge; -but when we got to the bottom he never tried to hurt me, -for he was as dead as Baldur.</p> - -<p>“That was something like a chase, and we turned a pretty -penny by it, too; we got four specie for sealing his nose, -and fourteen for his skin, to a young Englishman who -wanted to prove to his friends at home that he had killed -a bear, and gave two specie over the market price for -the shot-hole; and, for ourselves, we had lots of fat, most -of which, by the way, had got melted in the race, and -had to be frozen again before we could carry it; and, -for solid meat, the scoundrel weighed hard upon four -hundred pounds. We had pretty hard work in getting him -home, for in those two days we had run on end more than -thirty of your English miles, besides the turns. We had to -go home and fetch a sledge for him, and my sisters had a -pretty job of salting when we got him there; Kari said -that our work was not half so hard as hers.”</p> - -<p>“It is a curious thing, much as I have been in your country, -I never saw a skie,” said the Parson; “I do not even know -what sort of things they are.”</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_386"></a>[386]</span></p> - -<p>“It would be strange if you had,” said Torkel; “we never -keep them at the sœters, for the plain reason that we do not use -them in summer at all, nor inhabit the sœters in the winter. -You have been very little in any of our permanent winter -homesteads since you have been here, and if you had happened -to put your eye upon half-a-dozen long pieces of wood, -with leather straps to them, the chances are, you would never -have thought of asking what such very ordinary-looking -articles were. I will answer for it, Herr Moodie has plenty -of them at Gäddebäck; but they are, most likely, stowed -away at the top of the house, in the winter store-room, where -you would never think of going. They are long, thin strips -of wood, of a triangular form, about three or four inches -broad, with their points curved up for a foot or so, to clear -the obstacles. In this flat country they make the left-foot -skie, which is of fir, ten or twelve feet long; the right one -is generally of ash, and not above five or six feet in length, -or they would never be able to turn in them. I, myself, like -them best both of a size, and not above five or six feet long,—only -then you must have them broader, to prevent sinking -in the snow. This is a disadvantage, certainly, still they -are much handier to dodge about the trees with, than those -unwieldy concerns they have here. Mine are a pair of old -military skier, and there are none better.”</p> - -<p>“What! do the soldiers use them?” said the Parson.</p> - -<p>“That they do,” said Torkel. “I was always a good -runner on skier, but I learnt a good many clever tricks at drill, -when I was serving my time of duty in the militia. Our rifle -regiment have all two light companies of skielobere, and are -drilled to light infantry movements on skates. I did not -like much being called out in the depth of winter for drill, -and not a little did I grumble at the hard work they -put us to,—scaling mountains, which we are obliged to do in -skier, like ships beating to windward; and then charging down -them among trees and stumps,—swinging this way and that, -to keep one’s rifle out of harm’s way, and then suddenly -called upon to halt and fire,—and preciously punished are we -if the piece is not ready for action. However, I did not know<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_387"></a>[387]</span> -what was good for me; I have been twice the man ever -since after the bears and winter game.”</p> - -<p>“I suspect,” said the Parson, “that is pretty nearly the -whole use of your skate-drill; it must be a pretty thing to -see in a review,—but he must be a gallant enemy who undertakes -a winter campaign in Norway, unless he is descended -from the Hrimthursar themselves.”</p> - -<p>“Well! I cannot stand this any longer,” said Moodie, -coming up; “half the party are drunk, and the rest are -half-seas over; and there’s the Captain pounding away to his -own whistling, for the last fiddler has just dropped off his -empty barrel. It is time to go to bed.”</p> - -<p>“Bed, yes! but where are we to find it: Jacob, I -suppose, is by this time numbered with the dead drunk.”</p> - -<p>“You may swear to that, and Tom also; I saw him very -near his end an hour ago.”</p> - -<p>“Well I do not care, for one,” said the Parson; “my bed is -here,” and he pulled out of his cariole his trusty mackintosh, -and folding one of the sails to his own length, he spread the -mackintosh upon it. “I shall sleep here luxuriously; and -Torkel, bring me the cushion of the cariole seat. I will not -forget to tell Lota how faithful you have been to her this -day. Good night, all of you; we have work before us to-morrow.”</p> - -<p>And so they had,—for the sun was not yet far above the -horizon, when the carioles were bumping along the forest -roads to the southward.</p> - -<p>At Amal, Torkel, with good wishes from all, and presents -from some of the party, took his leave to prepare for what -Tom called the amending of his life, and parted on his separate -road through Fjall, and laid under contribution a market -boat from Wagne to Frederickshald, where he hoped to find a -vessel to Tonsberg, or Larvig, on the Norwegian coast. The -party proceeded leisurely along the western coast of the lake, -to enjoy for some time longer the hospitalities of Gäddebäck.</p> - -<p>But the days began to shorten, and the joyous Scandinavian -summer to come to its close. It was necessary to think of -the homeward passage, in time to allow fine weather and<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_388"></a>[388]</span> -sunny days for a leisurely cariole journey along that most -picturesque of countries, the southern coast of Norway. -Torkel’s wedding day, too, was approaching, and the party -were under a half engagement to old Torgensen, which tallied -very well with the necessity of reaching Christiansand for -their homeward passage. “Time and tide wait for no man,” -and a forebud having been laid to Strömstad, the carioles, accompanied -as far as Wenersborg by Moodie, rolled away on -the road to Uddevalla.</p> - -<p>One piece of luck attended them,—they were not yet to -part from Birger, for it so happened that his royal highness -the Crown Prince, was to pay his usual state visit to Christiania, -on which occasion he was to be attended by Count -Birger, our young scamp’s father, whose daughter, Birger’s -sister, held also some appointment in the establishment of -the Princess. Birger, therefore, was able to consult his -pleasure and his duty at once, in going to Norway; to enjoy -the coasting journey with his friends, and then to meet his -family at Christiania after their departure.</p> - -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - -<div class="chapter"> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_389"></a>[389]</span></p> - -<h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_XXVIII">CHAPTER XXVIII.<br /> -<span class="smaller">THE WEDDING.</span></h2> - -</div> - -<div class="poetry-container"> -<div class="poetry"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">When he came into the house at nightfall,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">She was angry with him—his old mother—</div> - <div class="verse indent0">“Son,” she said, “thou lay’st thy snares each morning,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">And each day thou comest back empty handed!</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Either thou lack’st skill, or thou art idle;</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Others can take prey where thou’st taken none!”</div> - </div> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">Thus to her the gay young man made answer:</div> - <div class="verse indent0">“Who need wonder that our luck is different,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">When the same birds are not for our snaring?</div> - <div class="verse indent0">At the little farm that lieth yonder,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Lives a wondrous bird, my good old mother;</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Snares I laid to catch it all the autumn,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Now, this very winter have I caught it.</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Marvellous is this bird! for it possesses</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Not wings, but arms for tenderest embracing;</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Not down, but locks of silky, sunny lustre;</div> - <div class="verse indent0">No beak, but two fresh lips so warm and rosy!”</div> - </div> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse right"><i>The Young Fowler.—Runnèberg.</i></div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -<p>It was the morning of the wedding-day, and that day, of -course, Sunday. Autumn was a little advanced, but the sky -was as serene, and the lake as still and as smiling as it was -on that day on which the fishermen had last looked -upon it.</p> - -<p>The Parson had strolled out with Birger, after a very -hurried and uncomfortable breakfast,—the only time such -a thing had ever occurred under the hospitable roof of Torgensen; -this was not so much for exercise as for the sake of -being out of the way of the good lady Christina, who looked -as if she considered the whole of her daughter’s earthly -happiness to depend on the perfection of the wedding-dinner, -which, even at that early hour of the morning, was in the -course of preparation. Upstairs and downstairs was she, with<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_390"></a>[390]</span> -a face as red as her scarlet stomacher, her great bunch of -keys jingling like a sheep-bell as she moved, and her embroidered -skirt whisking round every corner. She was partially -dressed for the grand occasion, though her head was as yet -muffled in a rather dirty handkerchief, but the glories of her -holiday gown were in a great measure obscured by an -immense apron, which bore indisputable marks of something -more than mere superintendence of her peculiar department. -The whole district would be there, no doubt, for though there -are generally appointed days for weddings, and several -couples were usually married at the same time, and moreover, -the beginning of winter is a very favourite time for -such matters, yet the Torgensens were so indisputably the -squires of the place, that besides their own party which had -been collected from far and wide, and that of one or two of -their dependants who were to be married on the same day, -the chances were that they would have visitors enough from -other and inferior bridals.</p> - -<p>Come as many as there might, there were provisions -enough for them all; there was brandy enough to float a -barge; there were heaps of fish and game of all sorts; and—a -much rarer thing at the beginning of autumn and before -the cattle have returned from the sœters,—plenty of beef and -mutton. Puddings, sweet soups, and all the infinite variety -of gröds had been in preparation for days and nights; still -the good house-mother distressed herself; and rendered uncomfortable -everything around her, lest something should -have been forgotten, and the credit of Torgensen’s hospitality -should suffer in the eyes of the strangers.</p> - -<p>The Captain, who had offered to officiate as bridesman, -was taking lessons in his arduous duties from little Lilla, the -præst’s daughter, who, proud of her English, and not at all -unwilling to get up a flirtation with a good-looking foreigner, -had neglected her own duties as bridesmaid, and enticed the -Captain, nothing loth, to the præstgaard, where he was practising -the required duties of his office; and, to judge from the -time he took at his lessons, he must have been particularly -slow and stupid in comprehending them.</p> - -<p>What was the morning occupation of Lota and her other<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_391"></a>[391]</span> -bridesmaids was a mystery,—not one of them was visible; that -it was something of an entertaining character was evident -from the tittering, and gay laughter, and occasional little -screams that proceeded from a large square-headed window -wide open on the upper-floor, and on the farthest extremity -of the building. The only anxious and unhappy-looking -countenance was that of the happy bridegroom himself, who -having nothing whatever to do, wandered up and down the -terrace with his hands in his pockets, the only idle man, and -consequently in the way of every one. Conscious that he -was the object of every body’s attention, and the butt of -those jokes which are common on such occasions, and no -where more common or less delicate than in Norway, he -laboured hard to be at his ease and succeeded but very ill. -Indeed, his new jacket, which did not come down to his -shoulder blades, and was a little too tight for him into the -bargain, and his stiff glossy trousers would alone have been -sufficient to disturb any man’s self-possession, to say nothing -of the chain of filagree silver balls, each as large as a grape-shot, -which were called shirt buttons, and hung down from -his neck; while a stout broad hat twice as broad in the -crown as in the rim, and stiffly turned up on each side, -weighed on his brows like a helmet,—so very new that it -still exhibited the creases of the paper in which it had been -packed.</p> - -<p>Jan Torgensen, Lota’s brother, who was his other bridesman, -was doing his best to keep him in countenance, for -they had always been great allies, and in fact, Torkel had been -Jan’s preceptor in wood-craft, and, so Lota declared, in every -sort of mischief besides. At this present moment any one -who had seen them both, would have taken Jan for the preceptor -and Torkel for the pupil; and Jan for the happy -bridegroom, and Torkel for the disappointed swain,—so happy -looked Jan and so sheepish looked Torkel. But, in truth, -Jan had his own particular pride and happiness, connected, -though in a remote manner, with that of his friend. He -had just received his appointment as skipper of the <i>Haabet</i>, -vice Svensen, superseded in Lota’s affections by Torkel, and -in the command of the brig by Jan; for the poor fellow,<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_392"></a>[392]</span> -when he found how things were going with him, resigned -the command, settled accounts with old Torgensen, and, -much to the regret of the latter,—for Svensen was a first-rate -sailor,—betook himself to Copenhagen, out of the sight of his -rival’s happiness.</p> - -<p>Jan, who was a thorough partizan, and had never liked -poor Svensen, not so much on account of any of his demerits -as out of affection for his friend Torkel (for Lota it is to be -feared, had coquetted between her admirers much more than -was altogether proper), was singing, or rather roaring, at the -full pitch of a sailor’s voice, the popular ballad of Sir John -and Sir Lavé:—</p> - -<div class="poetry-container"> -<div class="poetry"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">“To an island green Sir Lavé went;</div> - <div class="verse indent0">He wooed a maiden with fair intent;—</div> - <div class="verse indent8">‘I will ride with you,’ quoth John;</div> - <div class="verse indent0">‘Put on helmets of gold, to follow Sir John.’</div> - </div> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">He wooed the maiden and took her home,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">And knights and serving-men are come;—</div> - <div class="verse indent8">‘Here am I!’ quoth John.</div> - </div> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">They set the bride on the bridal seat,—</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Sir John, he bade them both drink and eat.</div> - <div class="verse indent8">‘Drink, and drink deeply!’ quoth John.</div> - </div> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">They brought the bride to the bridal bed,—</div> - <div class="verse indent0">They forgot to untie her laces red:</div> - <div class="verse indent8">‘I can untie them!’ quoth John.</div> - </div> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">Sir John, he locked the door with speed;</div> - <div class="verse indent0">‘Good night to you, Sir Lavé,’ he said.</div> - <div class="verse indent8">‘I shall sleep here!’ quoth John.</div> - </div> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">Word was brought to Sir Lavé there—</div> - <div class="verse indent0">‘Sir John is within, with thy bride so fair!’</div> - <div class="verse indent8">‘That am I, in truth!’ quoth John.</div> - </div> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">At the door, Sir Lavé makes a loud din;—</div> - <div class="verse indent0">‘Withdraw the bolts, and let us in!’</div> - <div class="verse indent8">‘You had best keep out,’ quoth John.</div> - </div> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">He knocked at the door with shield and spear,—</div> - <div class="verse indent0">‘Withdraw the bolts, and come out here!’</div> - <div class="verse indent8">‘See if I do!’ quoth John.</div> - </div> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">‘If my bride may not in peace remain,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">I will go and unto the king complain.’</div> - <div class="verse indent8">‘Just as you like,’ quoth John.</div><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_393"></a>[393]</span> - </div> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">Early next morn, when the birds ’gan to sing,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Sir Lavé is off to complain to the king;—</div> - <div class="verse indent8">‘I will go, too!’ quoth John.</div> - </div> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">‘I was betrothed but yesterday,—</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Sir John has taken my bride away!’</div> - <div class="verse indent8">‘Yes, so I have!’ quoth John.</div> - </div> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">‘If that the maiden to both is dear,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">It must be settled at point of spear.’</div> - <div class="verse indent8">‘I’m very willing!’ quoth John.</div> - </div> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">As soon as the morrow’s sun was bright,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Came all the knights to see the fight;—</div> - <div class="verse indent8">‘Here am I!’ quoth John.</div> - </div> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">The two were mounted, and at the first round</div> - <div class="verse indent0">The knees of Sir John’s horse touched the ground.</div> - <div class="verse indent8">‘Now help me, Heaven!’ quoth John.</div> - </div> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">Once more, and in the second round</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Sir Lavé lies upon the ground;—</div> - <div class="verse indent8">‘There let him lie,’ quoth John.</div> - </div> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">Sir John he rode to his hall in state,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">And his maiden met him at the gate;—</div> - <div class="verse indent8">‘Now thou art mine,’ quoth John.</div> - </div> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">Thus was Sir John made happy for life,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">And the maiden became his wedded wife.</div> - <div class="verse indent8">‘I knew I should have her,’ quoth John.</div> - <div class="verse indent0">‘Put on helmets of gold, to follow Sir John.’”</div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -<p>“Come, come! Jan!” growled old Torgensen, “hold your -saucy tongue; Svensen was a better man than you will ever -be in a year of Sundays. And you, you grinning flirts,”—to -the servant-girls, with whom Master Jan was an especial -favourite, and upon whom the application was by no means -lost—“get along with you, and mind your own business,—as -if you had nothing to do, on such a morning as this, but -to listen to such fooleries! Be off with you, I say!”</p> - -<p>In the meanwhile the Parson and Birger,—who, by the -way, hardly recognised each other in their gala habits, for -the one was habited, in honour of the occasion, in the black -dress of an English clergyman, while the other, with his sword -clinking by his side, blazed in all the blue and yellow splendour -of the Swedish guard,—took up their old position at the lich<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_394"></a>[394]</span> -gate of the church; one as before balancing on the stocks, -the other astride on the dwarf wall, glad to be out of the -din of preparation. It was not a happy day for any of them, -for it was the last day of the expedition, which every member -of it had enjoyed so thoroughly;—Birger’s leave of absence -was running to an end, and the two Englishmen had -taken passage with young Torgensen to the <i>Haabet</i>. They -were to sail—so Torgensen said—that night; but, as it was -quite certain that, before that time, the whole crew would -be drunk, in honour of their young mistress, this probably -meant to-morrow. Still, to-morrow was to be the final break-up -of the party; and Tom had been philosophizing, with -tears in his eyes, on the transitory nature of human pleasures; -and Torkel, bridegroom as he was, would willingly -have postponed his wedding if he could have prolonged the -expedition,—at least, so Lota had told him the evening -before, and he did not look as if he was speaking the truth -when he denied it.</p> - -<p>Neither of the friends felt much inclined for conversation. -They were natives of different parts of the world; their -courses from that point lay in opposite directions; the -chances were very much against their meeting again, and, -though their acquaintance had not been of very long duration, -so far as time is concerned, one week’s campaign in the -wild forest does more towards ripening an intimacy than a -year of ordinary life.</p> - -<p>In the meanwhile the time passed on, and the early peal -rang out, and the groups began to collect as before in the -church-yard, and the lake to be dotted with boats, all pulling -or sailing from its remoter bays and islets to the church, -as a common centre. Here and there a party, as before, -was occupied round a grave, pulling up the overgrown convolvulus -and trimming the withering leaves of the lilies. -By and by a bugle sounded a call, and a couple of fiddles -from one of the nearest boats struck up a polka.</p> - -<p>“Here come some of the wedding parties,” said Birger; -“there seem to be plenty of happy couples in Soberud this -year. Well! there is nothing like fashion,—in this, as in -other things, one fool makes many. Look at that leading<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_395"></a>[395]</span> -boat!—that one, I mean, just pulling round the point of the -island!—there is a crowned bride in her! Holy Gefjon, -Mother of Maids! such a sight as that is rare in Norway! -I should think the chances were that she got some one to -pull her crown off her head before the day was over. She -does not seem much afraid, either, and an uncommonly pretty -girl, too, which makes it all the more wonderful. Well! -well! ‘a virtuous woman is a crown to her husband;’ I hope -he will appreciate his blessings as he ought, such blessings as -that do not fall to the lot of many in this country.”</p> - -<p>“What do you mean by that, Birger?” said the Parson, -getting up, and shading his eyes with his hands as he looked -out on the lake.</p> - -<p>“Ah, you may well shade your eyes before beauty and -innocence,” said Birger; “you do not often see them combined, -in this country.”</p> - -<p>“Well, the fact is this,” said he, dropping his bantering -tone, “what you commonly call virtue—that is to say, -chastity,—is a very rare article indeed, I am sorry to -say, either in Norway or Sweden; the manners of the -people do not tend to foster it. Their promiscuous way of -living in the winter, and the sœter life in summer, makes it -absolutely necessary for a girl either to have a very great respect -for herself, or to be forbiddingly ugly; and whatever the -case may have been in earlier and better times, certain it is that -beauty is now much more common among us than self-respect. -Then, again, the laws which prevail in Sweden, and the -customs, which the Udal tenures in Norway make as stringent -as laws, forbid any to marry who are not householders -(whence your word husband, which simply means huus bonde—a -peasant with a house), and at the same time forbid the -erection of more than a specified number of houses on any -land. All this renders early marriages almost impossible. -The result may easily be imagined. And to make this the -more certain, our wise laws enact that a woman, having any -number of children by any number of fathers, who at any -time of her life shall marry any one whatever, by the simple -act of marriage affiliates all the children she may ever have -had on her unhappy husband; and wherever the Udal law<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_396"></a>[396]</span> -prevails, he is obliged to share his land equally among them. -The consequence of this is, that unchastity is no sort of disgrace. -It is the commonest thing in the world for a noble -to live with a woman all his life, under promise of marriage -to be performed on his death-bed, and the woman is all the -while received much like the Morganatic bride of a German -prince. Frederika Bremer, herself as exemplary a woman as -ever lived, has made the plot of one of her novels to hinge -on a man living in such a manner, and dying suddenly, without -being able to perform his promise. She does not attach -the shadow of disgrace to any one, except the relatives of the -deceased, who refused to acknowledge the woman merely on -account of this ‘unfortunate accident,’ as she calls it. And so -it is. Had she written otherwise, she would have been out -of costume; there is no disgrace in the matter. I do not -mean to say that this girl is not proud of her crown—of course -she is, just as I am proud of this blue and yellow ribbon of -mine,” pointing to the Order of the Sword with which he -had decorated his uniform-coat for the occasion; “but look -how she is kissing that girl in green, who has just landed -from that other boat,—that is another bride who cannot -claim the distinction; she no more thinks her disgraced, than -I should think a brother officer disgraced to whom his gracious -Majesty had not been pleased to give the same distinction -that he has to me.”</p> - -<p>“There seem to be plenty of brides,” said the Parson, “for -there is another green lady, of damaged fame; she seems to -be a rich one, by the number of her fiddlers before, and followers -after.”</p> - -<p>“They generally have one wedding-day for the district,” -said Birger, “and a good plan too; it diminishes the expense -when they all have their festivities together, and diminishes -the drunkenness very considerably, both on the day and on -its anniversaries, for the whole district get drunk together at -once, and get it over, instead of inviting one another to help -them to on their several wedding-days.”</p> - -<p>“But what are the ‘crowns?’” said the Parson.</p> - -<p>“An ancient custom, by which they challenge any imputation -on their fair fame; any one who has anything to say<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_397"></a>[397]</span> -against the chastity of the wearer, is privileged to pull off -the crown and to drive the lady out of the church, only the -accuser is bound to prove his allegations.”</p> - -<p>“It seems a pretty expensive affair, at least, to judge of it -at this distance.”</p> - -<p>“O yes, far too expensive to be the property of any individual; -they hire it for the occasion, and, I will be bound, -pay five or six dollars for the pleasure of wearing that and the -rest of the costume. Just look at her as she comes into the -light; that dress of black bombazine, with the short sleeves -and white mittens, is probably her own,—very likely it was her -mother’s before her, only fresh dyed for the occasion; but that -gay apron, with the ribbons, and beads, and the silver chains -and necklaces, I should think were hired; the dollars round her -neck are her dowry in all probability, and, consequently, her -own; so is the muff, and the handkerchiefs of various colours -that hang from it; and possibly, also, those yellow kid -gloves. But look at the crown itself! why it is silver gilt!—and -that scarf, which hangs down from the spray on the top -of it, is covered with satin lappets, three-quarters long! now -do you think a peasant would buy that? A green bridal, -you see, is a much more modest affair; they wear their silver -chains over their green bodices like the others, but on their -heads, instead of the crown, they have the ordinary wimple -of married women, made of fine white linen, and above it the -triangular snood of unmarried girls.”</p> - -<p>“Here come our party at last! What a host they have -collected! the church will not hold them all. And there is -pretty Lota, with her bridesmaids after her. Well, I hope -no one will pull her crown off; how pretty she looks in it.”</p> - -<p>“Not half so pretty as that little fresh-looking, innocent, -Lilla Nordlingen,” said Birger. “Upon my word I am half -inclined to make love to her myself.”</p> - -<p>“You had better not, Mr. Guardsman, you do not stand -the ghost of a chance; how she would turn up that innocent -little Norwegian nose of hers at a brute of a Swede. Besides, -do you not see how she is making love to the Captain, -how uncommonly smart the Captain has turned out in his<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_398"></a>[398]</span> -red uniform! to which the moustache he has been growing -ever since he has been here, forms so appropriate an appendage. -Your blue and yellow would look dingy to eyes that -have been dazzled with such scarlet magnificence.”</p> - -<p>“Ah, well, we will see. The Captain looks as if he were -saying to her, ‘<i>Aimez moi vite, car je pars demain.</i>’”</p> - -<p>“That’s your best chance,” said the Parson, maliciously; -“but come, the bells are ringing in, and we had better get -into the ranks of the procession. Here comes Nordlingen, -with his long-legged Candidatus at his heels.”</p> - -<p>While the Pfarrherr went in to array himself in his -robes, the different marriage parties, warned by the bells, -had begun to arrange themselves into one grand procession; -while their respective musicians, who together formed a -pretty numerous band, laid their heads together about the -tune to be played on this grand occasion, and tuned their -fiddles into concord.</p> - -<p>The party had by this time increased considerably, and -when at last the band, having settled their harmonious differences, -marched up the nave of the church playing, somewhat -incongruously, a jolly polka, there marched after them -no less than six happy couples, with their followers, each -bride and each bridegroom having a silver ort (ninepence) -tied up under their respective garters, for luck. Only two -of the six were crowned brides, and that, Birger whispered, -as they took their places, was a wonderfully large proportion.</p> - -<p>First after the fiddlers came the Candidatus in his gown, -who had gone out to marshal the procession; then came the -married men related to the parties, in their short blue -jackets and white-fronted shirts, some of which were clean; -then came the bridegrooms with their bridesmen, dressed -something in the same fashion, except that they affected -buckskin breeches and white stockings: each bridegroom, -by way of distinction, had a fine white handkerchief (cambric, -if he could possibly come by it), tied round his right -arm; then came the bridesmaids in green, (which there is -not an unlucky colour as it is with us), with bare heads, and<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_399"></a>[399]</span> -their hair, which was plaited with many coloured ribands, -hanging down their backs in two tails; then the bride-leaders, -married women, who are supposed to encourage the brides -during the ceremony, and lastly, the brides themselves, in all -their splendour. The chancel was as full as it could hold, -the principals disposing themselves round the altar, kneeling, -while the bridesmaids held canopies of shawls and handkerchiefs -over their heads, and the congregation craned in through -the chancel rails, while the priest proceeded with the service.</p> - -<p>Scarcely was the benediction pronounced, when the fiddlers -again struck up their polka, and the happy couples, now -arm-in-arm, marched down after them, (the wedding-party -forming a sort of escort), and proceeded with great ceremony -to the præstgaard meadow, where the marriage feast—an -enormous pic-nic—was prepared for them, and where the -wedding presents, many of them of considerable value, were -set out for public inspection.</p> - -<p>These were not exactly the expensive sort of trumpery -which forms the staple of bridal presents in England,—silver -vessels that no one ever drinks out of, and dressing cases far -too expensive for ordinary use. The presents here were real -honest implements of house-keeping or farming; pots and -pans, and plates and dishes, and chairs and tables,—spades, -pickaxes: a tonne of rye-meal was the offering of one,—a -sack of potatoes of another; here was a pile of oderiferous -salt-fish,—there a flitch of bacon, at which one of the Captain’s -best jokes missed fire—bacon having no allegorical value whatever -in Norway; here again was a good milch cow, tethered -to a tree, or half-a-dozen sheep or pigs folded with hurdles, -while the bride’s feather-beds would have borne a high -value in England. Lota’s were something quite magnificent. -With such hunters in her train, as Torkel and poor -Svensen, and her own brother Jan, (who in his younger days -and before he had found out some one to whom to transfer -his youthful allegiance, had contributed largely to his sister’s -stores), it was not to be wondered at if she easily eclipsed all -the brides of the season.</p> - -<p>At a comparatively early hour, Torkel and his wife took<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_400"></a>[400]</span> -their leave, as they had that evening to reach Lönvik, a pretty -little farm in the interior, on the banks of a small lake of the -same name, which Torkel’s father had given up to him on his -marriage. But this by no means put a stop to the festivities, -which were carried on to a late hour in the night, and at -which, Sunday though it was, Nordlingen himself presided. -Sunday in Norway begins at six o’clock on Saturday night, -when invariably preparations are commenced for the next -day, in the way of looking up Sunday clothes, and brushing -up or washing out the house,—sometimes, in religious -families, by special prayer, though that is not very common,—sometimes -even by washing their own persons, though this, -it must be confessed, is rarer still,—for all of them have a very -great horror of the personal application of soap and water. -Sunday, therefore, even as a day of worship, legitimately -ceases at the same hour on the following day, and, as Nordlingen -himself remarked,—what was a more fitting time for -enjoyment than just after they had been admitted to their -Lord’s presence, and had had their sins forgiven them. It -was surely much more congruous than the English way of -“making a Saturday night of it,” with all their sins yet upon -their shoulders.</p> - -<p>If, however, there was dancing, there was no visible -drunkenness; the Pfarrherr was a man of sufficient influence -to make a stand against the national vice, and if any of the -guests did feel a little the worse for liquor, he quietly took -himself, or was taken by his friends, beyond the glare of the -great bonfire, where no one could see him,—for Nordlingen -was wise enough not to look too closely into what was not -intended for his inspection.</p> - -<p>It was this idea, or perhaps the recollection that the -<i>Haabet</i> was to sail the next day, that induced him to close -his eyes to the fact that that innocent little Lilla had danced -with no one but the Captain the whole evening, on the plea -that no girl of the party, except herself, was able to talk to -him in English. Whatever it was that they had to say to -one another, there was a good deal of it, and it took a good -while saying, and as Birger, who was outrageously jealous<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_401"></a>[401]</span> -remarked spitefully,—“they, as well as the drunkards, preferred -evidently the light of the moon to that of the great -wedding bonfire,” and thinking, probably, how he would -make up for lost time after the <i>Haabet</i> had tripped her -anchor, whistled pensively the Swedish song—</p> - -<div class="poetry-container"> -<div class="poetry"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">“Hence on the shallows our little boat leaving,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">On to the Haaf where the green waves are heaving,</div> - <div class="verse indent6">Causing to Thyrsis so much dismay.”</div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - -<div class="chapter"> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_402"></a>[402]</span></p> - -<h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_XXIX">CHAPTER XXIX.<br /> -<span class="smaller">HOMEWARD BOUND.</span></h2> - -</div> - -<div class="poetry-container"> -<div class="poetry"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">And, now, my good friends, I’ve a fine opportunity</div> - <div class="verse indent0">To obfuscate you all by sea terms with impunity.</div> - <div class="verse indent14">And talking of “caulking,”</div> - <div class="verse indent14">And “quarter-deck walking,”</div> - <div class="verse indent14">“Fore and aft,”</div> - <div class="verse indent14">And “abaft,”</div> - <div class="verse indent0">“Hookers,” “barkeys,” and “craft,”</div> - <div class="verse indent0">(At which Mr. Poole has so wickedly laught);</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Of “binnacles,” “bilboes,” the boom called the “spanker,”</div> - <div class="verse indent0">The best “bower cable,” the “jib,” and “sheet anchor;”</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Of “lower-deck guns,” and of “broadsides and chases;”</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Of “taff-rails” and “top-sails,” and “splicing main braces,”</div> - <div class="verse indent0">And “shiver my timbers,” and other odd phrases</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Employed by old pilots with hard-featured faces;</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Of the expletives sea-faring gentlemen use,—</div> - <div class="verse indent0">The allusions they make to the eyes of their crews.</div> - </div> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse right"><i>Ingoldsby.</i></div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -<p>The <i>Haabet</i> did not sail that night, which indeed was hardly -possible, her Captain being employed in dancing, and making -love, and singing, in the words of Karl Bellman,—</p> - -<div class="poetry-container"> -<div class="poetry"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">“Awake, Amaryllis! my dearest, awaken,—</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Let me not go to sea by my true love forsaken,—</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Our course among dolphins and mermaids is taken:</div> - <div class="verse indent6">Onwards shall paddle our boat to the sea.”</div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -<p class="noindent">Neither did the <i>Haabet</i> sail on the morrow, for the wind -had chopped round to the south-west; neither did she sail -the next day, for there was a dead calm;—there was plenty -of time for leave-taking, and a leisurely journey to Christiansand -besides, which was accomplished in the carioles—their -last journey, as Tom feelingly remarked. The Captain<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_403"></a>[403]</span> -arrived at Ullitz’s, a good hour behind the rest, who would -not wait for the end of his last conference with Lilla Nordlingen.—They -were, besides, a little anxious about the -weather, for the season was somewhat advanced, and everything -was so deadly calm, that it was quite evident a change -of some sort was at hand.</p> - -<p>What that change was, the next morning made manifest -enough, for the wind was roaring round the house, and the -rain pattering furiously against the windows long before the -sun was up.</p> - -<p>However, the old copper lion that surmounted the church -had veered round again, and was turning his battle-axe -towards England, and Jan Torgensen—Captain Torgensen -we should call him now in virtue of his new command, and -in truth he was not a little proud of the title himself,—came -in just as a very sulky breakfast was completed, and announced, -“that as the wind was fair, he did not care the scale -of a herring how much there was of it, and that this night -should be spent at sea.”</p> - -<p>No one was sorry for this announcement, not even -Birger, who was going back to Nordlingen’s, as he said, “in -order to console Ariadne for the desertion of her faithless -Theseus.” The pleasures of the summer had departed, and it -was useless to linger over the scenes of past enjoyments. At -Nordlingen’s perhaps the time might have passed pleasantly -enough, notwithstanding the change of weather, but Christiansand -has but few resources for a rainy day; and besides -this, the very idea of a prolonged parting is depressing. -Torkel was gone, and Tom was much too low for a story -or a joke. There were, however, some marine difficulties—there -always are; papers are never ready, and agents are -always behind time, and thus, though every one was anxious -to be off, and none less than Torgensen himself, who grudged -every blast of the fair wind, it was full five o’clock before the -anchor broke ground; and a cake, the last token of Marie’s -affection, having been previously placed on the taffrail for -Nyssen, the <i>Haabet</i> turned her stern to the blast, and set -her fore-sail, and hoisted a couple of double reefed top-sails to -receive it. The rain redoubled—certainly if Gammle Norgé<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_404"></a>[404]</span> -had received them with smiles, she honoured their departure -with tears.</p> - -<p>The first thing that met the Captain’s eye, as he turned -from waving the last farewell to Birger’s receding boat, was -the pilot, roaring drunk already, and the mate supplying him -with no end of additional brandy. He went forward to draw -Torgensen’s attention to this apparently dangerous breach of -naval discipline.</p> - -<p>“Be quiet,” said Torgensen, in broken English, “the mate -knows very well what he is about, I supplied him with the -brandy myself. That drunken rascal is sure to get us into a -scrape, if he has sense enough left in his drunken body to -fancy he can take charge of the ship; and I am obliged, by -law, to take him drunk or sober. As soon as he gets too -drunk to interfere, which I am happy to say will be the -case very shortly, I shall pilot my own ship, and I should -think I ought to know how to take her out of Christiansand -by this time—we all do that; in fact, these drunken pilots are -nothing but an incumbrance.” And an incumbrance in this -instance he proved, for, Torgensen having safely carried his -brig to the mouth of the fjord, they were obliged to heave -to for the pilot’s boat, which kept them waiting for a good -hour more. The Parson suggested taking him to sea; but -Torgensen swore he had had too much of him already.</p> - -<p>It was long after dark, therefore, when they passed the -lighthouse, which they did in a furious squall of wind and -rain, and stood out to sea under close reefed top-sails and -reefed fore-sail, with two men at the helm, the brig steering -as wild as if the Nyssen were blowing on both quarters at -once, but dashing away through it for all that, and heaping -up the sea under her bluff bows.</p> - -<p>The whole surface was one vast blaze of phosphoric light—the -ship’s ragged wake was a track of wavering flame, the -water that broke from her bows was a cataract of fire, a rope -that was towing under her counter (Torgensen was not at -all particular about these little matters), was ten times more -visible than it would have been by broad daylight, for every -strand in it was clearly defined by lines of delicate blue flame, -while each breaking wave was a flash of brightness. The<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_405"></a>[405]</span> -wind was as fair as it could be, and as they drew out from -under the lee of the land, seemed enough to tear the sails -from their bolt ropes.</p> - -<p>“Hurrah for Nyssen!” shouted Torgensen; but he shouted -a little too soon, for not an hour afterwards they were close -hauled with a south-west wind, dead foul, dancing like a -cork in a mill pond, on the top of a tumbling cross sea, and -plodding along at barely three knots; not even looking up -within four points of their course.</p> - -<p>And the next day, and the next night, and the next, the -same monotonous story; only as the wind settled to the -south-west, the bubble went down, and it was not so difficult -to walk the three steps and a half, which formed the <i>Haabet’s</i> -quarter-deck.</p> - -<p>Still the only answer to the anxiously repeated morning -question of “How is her head,” was, when most favourable, -“half a point southward of west,—think we shall weather the -Naze, please God.”</p> - -<p>Torgensen was always in high spirits, and was as proud of -his new command, the Captain said, as a peacock with two -tails; and she really had qualities of which a commander -might well be proud, as a sea-boat,—but these did not comprehend -either beauty, or comfort, or speed.</p> - -<p>There is no between decks in a Norwegian timber brig, -the whole space being occupied with its bulky cargo, much -of which lumbers up the waist, and forecastle besides; the -crew inhabited a small hurricane-house just abaft the mainmast; -a very small slip of this was bulk-headed off for the -mate,—while the remainder—and a very small remainder it -was—served the crew for parlour, and kitchen and all, for -there was no other cookery place in the ship; in one sense -this was an advantage, for they could cook in the worst of -weathers, and this is not always practicable in a merchant -ship; but if they did get this advantage over the wind and -rain, it was, as the Captain remarked, a very dirty advantage -indeed. All that there was of cover below the deck, was a -very small sail-room aft, also used as a bread-room; before -this was the Captain’s cabin, measuring exactly eight feet by<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_406"></a>[406]</span> -six, which served for Torgensen and his two passengers, and -for a purser’s store-room into the bargain, with all its indescribable -stinks. After a very little practice, the Captain -declared he could always tell the tack they were on, by the -particular description of stink that was uppermost, and -used to say that they had got their starboard or port stinks -on board, as the case might be.</p> - -<p>The bread alone of the ship’s provisions was under cover; -the beef and pork was stored in harness casks, lashed to the -bulwarks, thus diminishing still more the very diminutive -quarter-deck. In fact, a quarter-deck walk was what none -of them ever thought of.</p> - -<p>Hurrah!—the Naze bearing N.N.E., and all dangers of a -lee-shore past: a lee-shore in timber ships is no joke; they -never sink—they cannot, for the Norwegian deals and -baulks being of less specific gravity than water, the ship -that carries them would be buoyed up even if water-logged, -but their very want of specific gravity is the cause of their -danger on a lee-shore; besides being full below, the whole -deck is lumbered up for six feet or more, and the centre of -gravity is so high that they are all crank to the most ticklish -degree; and, though invariably carrying very low sail, require -every attention to keep them on their legs; for this -reason, if caught on a lee-shore in anything like a breeze, -they can never claw off, for they can carry nothing without -tumbling over on their beam ends. For this reason, every -Norwegian is very careful of an offing, it is the only thing he -seems to care much about. When the wind changed, every -ship that the fair breeze had tempted out of Christiansand -that day had put back, and Torgensen only had held on, -partly because he knew the comparatively weatherly -qualities of his brig, but principally because he was young -and foolish.</p> - -<p>Toward evening the wind drew round to the northward, -and the brig was able, first to lie her course, then to shake -out the reefs from her topsails, and lastly, having brailed up -her fore and aft mainsail, to display a very ragged suit of -studding-sails, which together got a fathom or two over six<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_407"></a>[407]</span> -knots out of her—the very top of her speed,—and the Naze -slowly sank below the horizon, fading into blue as it -sank.</p> - -<p>But this good luck was not to hold; fine weather returned, -but with it calm and light baffling breezes, with the -ship’s head looking every way except that which she was -wanted to go. Singular as anything of cleanliness seems -among people who personally rejoice in dirt, there was more -fuss in cleaning decks than is to be seen in many a man-of-war; -the very cabin-deck was holy-stoned every morning, as -well as the quarter-deck; though so far as the latter was -concerned, this was rendered absolutely useless by the -abominable habit of spitting, for which the Norwegians -deserve as much notice as the Americans themselves, and -which they do not yet only “<i>quia carent vate sacro</i>,” because -they have not a Mrs. Trollope to write about them. In the -present instance this was the more inexcusable, because the -northern style of ship-building pinches in their ships so -much aft, that a man with strong lungs might set on -the weather bulwark, and with ease spit over the lee-quarter.</p> - -<p>As for seamanship, there are no smarter seamen in the -world than the Norwegians when there is need, or more -slovenly when there is not; but how they contrive to navigate -their ships is a mystery which none but a Norwegian -can solve. The whole of it is done by dead reckoning, with, -in the North Sea at least, a pretty liberal use of the lead: -besides the deep-sea lead, their only nautical instruments -are the log, and what they call the “pein-compassen.” This -last is a compass-card made of wood, and marked with -thirty-two lines corresponding to the points, and drawn -from the centre to the circumference, on which centre -revolves freely a brass needle of equal length with the -lines.</p> - -<p>On starting, the true bearing of the destined port, or of -some remarkable point or headland which must be sighted -during their voyage, is taken, and the “pein-compassen” is -fixed to the binnacle, with that part set towards the head of -the vessel. This, for that particular voyage, is called “the<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_408"></a>[408]</span> -steering line;” and so long as the true compass tallies with its -wooden brother—that is to say, so long as the ship looks up -for her port,—the whole run is given her at the end of each -watch; but, in traverse sailing, the two compasses must of -course point different ways. In this case, at the end of the -watch if the wind has been steady, or whenever the ship, -from tacking, or any other cause, alters her course or her rate -of sailing, the brass needle on the “pein-compassen” is turned -to that point of the compass to which the ship’s head has -actually been lying, and a line is drawn from that point with -chalk, intersecting the “steering line” at right angles. The -part cut off between the centre of the compass and the -point of intersection gives the actual gain in distance to the -port towards which she is bound, and answers to the cosine of -our more scientific nomenclature. This, with some corrections -for lee-way, is given to her, while the chalk line drawn from -the point of the moveable needle to the point of intersection, -which answers to our sine, gives the number of miles -which the adverse wind has compelled her to diverge from -her course, and which must be compensated for by a corresponding -deviation on the other tack.</p> - -<p>Thus it is that, day after day, the ship’s reckoning is kept, -not by calculation, but by actual measurement, performed by -a pair of compasses on a graduated scale; and, clumsy as -this contrivance may seem, they do navigate their ships with -an accuracy that might put some of our merchant skippers -to shame,—to say nothing of the masters in Her Majesty’s -Navy.<a id="FNanchor_64" href="#Footnote_64" class="fnanchor">[64]</a></p> - -<p>So far as the North Sea goes, which is the principal scene -of Norwegian navigation, this mode of reckoning is considerably -assisted by the lead,—indeed, it would be hardly too -much to say that these timber ships are navigated by the -lead alone. The soundings of the whole North Sea are accurately -marked, and it so happens that there is considerable -variety in the sand which the arming brings up; besides -which there are a good many “pits,” as they are called—that<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_409"></a>[409]</span> -is to say, small spaces, some of them not a mile across, in -which, for some unexplained reason, the depth is suddenly -increased. Should the ship be so fortunate as to strike one -of these, they are so accurately noted in the charts, that it is -as good as a fresh departure.</p> - -<p>It was about a week or ten days after the Naze—the last -point of Norway—had faded from their sight, like a dim blue -cloud, that the Parson was sitting or lying at the foot of the -foremast in a soft niche, which he had arranged for himself -among the deck timber, and had called his study. He was -reading, for the books which they had brought with them, -and which, hitherto, they had had neither time nor inclination -to look into, were now very acceptable indeed. The Captain, -sitting on the bulwark abreast of him, and steadying himself -by the after-swifter, was watching the proceedings of some -visitors who had come on board the preceding evening—a -kestrel and half-a-dozen swallows. The swallows were so -tired when they came on board, that they readily perched on -the fingers that were held out to them, and one of them had -passed the night on the battens in the mate’s cabin. The -hawk did not seem a bit the worse for his journey; he was -seated very composedly on the quarter of the top-gallant -yard close to the mast, where he was pleasantly occupied in -preparing his breakfast off one of the swallows, who had -risen earlier than his companions, and who did not exactly -realise the proverb about the “early bird finding the worm,”—on -the contrary, he had been found himself, and was thus -ministering to the wants of the hungry, while his brethren, -having now recovered their strength by their night’s rest, -were flitting unconcernedly about the masts and yards, just -as on shore they had flitted round the church steeple, and -were wondering, no doubt, what had become of all the flies.</p> - -<p>“As this is only the middle of September,” said the Parson, -looking up at the birds, “it is evident that the migration of -swallows must begin in the North first, and that previous to -their leaving our shores, the English swallows must receive -a large addition to their numbers; a fact which, so far as I -know, naturalists have not noticed.”</p> - -<p>“Or else,” said the Captain, “that they shift their quarters,<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_410"></a>[410]</span> -like a regiment that has got its route, and march by detachments—one -relieving the other. Ah!”—with a long sigh—“I -wish I had wings like a swallow!”</p> - -<p>“Pooh! nonsense!” said the Parson; “we shall get on -shore some time or other; everyone does, except the ‘ancient -mariner.’ ‘Good times, bad times, all times pass over.’”</p> - -<p>“So they do; but all this is so much waste of life. Here -am I, sitting dangling my legs over the sides of this cursed -brig, knowing all the time that my friends are knocking the -partridges about. Who can give me back my 1st of September? -Besides,” he added, in a grumbling tone, “I want -a clean dinner, if it is only by way of a novelty; I can rough -it as well as anyone for the time, as you know, but a course -of such living as this will poison a man.”</p> - -<p>The Parson laughed.</p> - -<p>“It does, I assure you! I have often seen it in the West -Indies; when a nigger takes to eating dirt, he always dies, -and I should think a little of that would go a great way with -a white man.”</p> - -<p>“Well, you know it is said that ‘every man must eat his -peck of dirt in the course of his life.’”</p> - -<p>“That’s exactly the thing; we are allowed a peck of dirt, -as you say, to last our lives, but you see if we stay here much -longer, we shall soon get to the end of our allowance. What -do you think I saw yesterday? When I went below, I could -smell the cook had been there; you say yourself that you are -always obliged to open the skylight whenever he comes near -the cabin. You know what a beastly miserable day it was, -and as I had nothing to do, I thought I would turn in and -try to sleep away a little time, and get a little warm. I felt -the pillow rather too high, and, putting my hand under it, I -found the dish of plok fiske we were to have for dinner -stowed away there to keep it warm! Bother that skipper, -he is going about again,” as the Norwegian equivalent for -“raise tacks and sheets” came grumbling on his ear, and the -men lounged lazily to their stations; “he’s as frightened at -the shore as if it was Scylla and Charybdis, and the Mäelström -into the bargain. If he would only hold on three or -four hours more, we might sight Flamborough Head, and<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_411"></a>[411]</span> -get on board an English collier and enjoy a little cleanliness.”</p> - -<p>“Ah! you will not enjoy that luxury for this voyage,” -said the Parson; “the English ships always keep inside the -line of sandbanks on the Norfolk coast; almost all we have -met outside, as you may have remarked, are foreigners.”</p> - -<p>“Outside barbarians!” said the Captain, who was not in -a good humour.</p> - -<p>By this time the clue-garnets had been leisurely manned, -one at a time, and the mainsail was hanging in festoons from -its yard; Torgensen himself steering, as, indeed, he had done -for the last hour, and also giving the word of command. -The wind was as light as could be, so that it really did not -signify, except for fidgettiness, on which tack she was.</p> - -<p>The helm had been a-lee for about a minute, and the men -were at their stations for “mainsail haul,” while the brig -went creeping and creeping into the wind. The men -began sniggering and joking to one another, but their -jokes being Norwegian, were for the most part lost on the -passengers.</p> - -<p>“What is that young fool about?” said the Parson, who -had not risen from his recumbent posture; “he will have the -brig in irons before he can look round. Jump up and see -what is the matter.”</p> - -<p>The Captain scrambled on to the forebitts, so as to look -over the hurricane-house, and burst out laughing. “Bother -the fellow! if he is not reading ‘Peter Simple,’<a id="FNanchor_65" href="#Footnote_65" class="fnanchor">[65]</a> and jamming -his helm hard a-lee with his hinder end. Why, Torgensen! -Torgensen! what the Devil are you about? the brig has been -in the wind this half-hour!”</p> - -<p>Torgensen started up, flinging his book on the deck, -righted his helm, and bellowed out his next command. It -was loud enough to startle the mermaids in their coral caves; -but noise will not compensate for slackness; the brig was -already nearly head to wind, and there she hung—she would -not go an inch farther for any one, and at last fell off again. -Torgensen was obliged to wear her, after all.</p> - -<p>He swore, however, he did it on purpose, in order to get<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_412"></a>[412]</span> -a cast of the lead, as he had not got one for the whole watch. -This did not seem to the Parson so very indispensable, -seeing that in the whole of that forenoon watch they had -not shifted their position four miles; nevertheless, to suit -the action to the word, Torgensen did lay his main top-sail -aback, and armed his lead with as much gravity as if he -really expected that the sand and shells brought up by this -cast would be different from the sand and shells brought up -by the last.</p> - -<p>“I tell you what, though, ‘it is an ill wind that blows -nobody good,’—we may get a cod while Torgensen is sending -his note to the mermaids; jump below and get up the lines. -The rind of that ham we had for breakfast will be a dainty -such as Tom Cod is not likely to meet with often in the -haaf, and it will be a pleasing variety to that eternal plok -fiske, if we can get one. By the way, that salt fish has got -desperately hard; I saw the carpenter pounding our dinner -with the back of his axe yesterday, before the cook could do -anything with it.”</p> - -<p>Whether Tom Cod would have been duly sensible of the -honour that was done him, and would have accepted the -line of invitation which the Captain had sent him for the -next day’s dinner, it is impossible to say, for, unfortunately, -he never received it. The whole bank abounded with hungry -dog fish, and the bait never got a dozen fathoms over the -side before it was seized by them. However, it was all fish -that came to net; dog fish are not esteemed on shore, but -place the diner on board ship, give him three weeks of -calms and foul winds, short provisions, and those provisions -principally dried fish, with a piece of salt horse for a luxury -on Sunday, and even dog fish will come to be appreciated at -their just value.</p> - -<p>It was about the middle of the dog watch in the same day—when, -according to the theory of the Norwegian marine, -everybody is supposed to be on deck for his own pleasure, -and, according to matter of fact, everybody is below, sleeping, -or talking, or cooking, or mending his clothes,—when the -Parson, whose time began to hang a little weary on his -hands, was yawning about the <i>Haabet’s</i> quarter-deck, with his -hands in his pockets.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_413"></a>[413]</span></p> - -<p>The Norwegian dog watch must not be confounded with -the English watches of the same name. In the Swedish or -Norwegian navy, the twenty-four hours are divided into five -watches instead of seven, as with us. These, beginning at -8 p.m., are called the first watch, the night watch, the -morning watch, the forenoon watch, and the dog watch, respectively, -of which the first four consist of four hours each, -and the last of eight. The dog watch comprehends the time -from noon to 8 p.m. It is, of course, impossible for human -strength and human endurance to keep it properly, but it is -permitted to be kept in a slack sort of way by the whole -ship’s company conjointly, one watch being indeed responsible -for the duty, but not being forbidden to go below, provided -their place, for the time, be taken by amateurs.<a id="FNanchor_66" href="#Footnote_66" class="fnanchor">[66]</a> The natural -effect of this is, that the whole watch is kept very slackly -indeed, even in men-of-war; in fact, at the particular time -specified, there was no one whatever on the deck of the -<i>Haabet</i>, except Torgensen, who, as before, was steering, and -the Parson, who had come on deck because the Captain was -snoring so loud, and who, as luck would have it, was looking -over the bulwarks to windward.</p> - -<p>The day had continued calm and hot, as September days -often are, and the ship was not many miles from the place -in which she had missed stays in the morning. She was -close hauled, but carrying everything that would draw.</p> - -<p>“Torgensen,” said he, “I think you had better look out; -there is something coming down upon us, that looks very<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_414"></a>[414]</span> -like an invitation from your friends the mermaids.<a id="FNanchor_67" href="#Footnote_67" class="fnanchor">[67]</a> I should -like to send an excuse.”</p> - -<p>“O, The Thousand!” said Torgensen: “God forgive me for -swearing, at such a time;” and shoving the helm into the -Parson’s hands, he seized a handspike, and began to belabour -the deck.</p> - -<p>On all ordinary occasions there had been a good deal of -republican slackness on board the <i>Haabet</i>, the men doing -what they were told, but doing it leisurely, and in a <i>nonchalant</i> -sort of way. It did not much signify, for in blue water -and calm weather, it makes little difference whether the -manœuvres are performed smartly or not.<a id="FNanchor_68" href="#Footnote_68" class="fnanchor">[68]</a> But assuming -the handspike was like taking up the dictatorship; there -was no want of smartness now; the men buzzed out from -their hurricane-house, like bees out of a hive, some half -dressed, some stuffing a handful of plok fiske into their -mouths, but all rushing to their stations, as if the very -tautest-handed boatswain in the British service was at their -heels.</p> - -<p>It so happened that Torgensen had been fitting up a fore-sail -of his own, which he called a fok; a stoutish spar held -the place of foot rope, which, though it diminished the area -of the sail, certainly had the effect of making it stand better -when close hauled; but that which he prided himself most -upon, was his substitute for clue-garnets, which consisted of -two ropes, which, rove through blocks at the quarter of the -yard, led before the sail through a block at the clue, then to -the yard-arm, and then along the yard; thus, embracing the -sail, acting as spilling-lines and clue-garnets at once, and -hauling it up, as it were, like a curtain in a theatre.</p> - -<p>The square main-sail was by this time clewed up, and, had<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_415"></a>[415]</span> -not Torgensen’s head been full of this invention, he probably -would have seen the necessity of casting off the sheet of the -fore and aft main-sail, as he passed, supposing he had not -time or hands to man the brails; as it was, the fore-sail came in -most sweetly, and Torgensen, forgetting his captainship, -skipped up the rigging, and was out at the weather earring, -like a monkey up a cocoa-nut tree.</p> - -<p>Just then the squall struck her. Naturally the brig -carried a lee helm, but at this moment, relieved of her fore-sail, -and at the same time pressed upon by the whole force of -the squall in her main-sail, she griped obstinately,—a propensity -which the Parson had originated by steering as near as -he could, in order to shake the wind out of the top-sails while -the men were reefing. Things began to look serious; not a soul -was on deck, every man being out on the yards, which, so soon -as the sails began thrashing in the wind, jumped and jerked so -furiously, that it was as much as any of them could do to hold -on; the brig lay over, so that the water not only bubbled -through her scuppers, but came pouring in over her bulwarks, -and the Parson, with both hands clutching the bulwarks, -was driving the helm a-weather with his stomach, while his -feet were slipping one after the other on the wet and slanting -deck.</p> - -<p>Just at that moment the Captain—his coat and shoes off, -his head tied up in a pocket handkerchief, and his eyes scarce -opened, just as he had roused up from his slumbers,—showed -an astonished face above the hatchway.</p> - -<p>“Hallo! what’s the matter now? who spilt the milk?”</p> - -<p>“Jump! and let go that main-sheet! cut it if you can’t get -at it any other way! but take the sail off her at any rate, -or in two minutes we shall be at Fiddler’s Green.”</p> - -<p>The Captain was wide enough awake to see that things -were rather too serious for a joke, and scrambled up to -windward as well as he could. Round rattled the sheaves, as if -they would set fire to their blocks; away flew the sheet through -them, the slack of it whipping the deck right and left, and -barely missing the Captain, while the end of the main boom -plunged into the water, wetting the sail half way up. The -brig, eased of the strain, slowly and reluctantly paid off,<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_416"></a>[416]</span> -while Torgensen, still seated at the weather yard-arm, with -his legs twisted round it, holding on by the earring with -both hands, with his breast straining against the lift to -which he seemed to be holding on with his chin, and his -hat, the while, which had been secured round his neck by a -lanyard, fluttering and dancing to leeward, just nodded -down on deck, as if to say, “all right my boys, I knew you -would do the needful,” and then went on with his work as if -nothing particular had happened.</p> - -<p>The squall, however, was only the prelude to a change -of wind; in less than an hour’s time she was able, not only to -shake out her reefs again, but to lie her course, and to jog -along it merrily.</p> - -<p>Towards the close of the next day they were looking out -sharp for the Outer Garboard Buoy, which, out of sight of -land, marks the mouth of the Thames, and, strange to say, -after a cruise of three weeks’ traverse sailing, hit it to a -nicety,<a id="FNanchor_69" href="#Footnote_69" class="fnanchor">[69]</a> and on the following morning, when the fishermen -came on deck, they had the satisfaction of seeing, for the -first time since the Naze had sunk in the horizon, not only -land, but land on both sides of them, of which that on their -starboard beam bore a very strong resemblance to the old -South Foreland.</p> - -<p>“England again!” said the Captain. “Hurrah for England -and partridges!—what the deuce are you squinting at on the -French coast, Parson?”</p> - -<p>“A very interesting sight for us,” said the Parson, -putting the telescope into his hands, “though not on the<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_417"></a>[417]</span> -French coast; look at that sail, and tell me what you make -of her.”</p> - -<p>The Captain took a long view. “A lugger I think, coming -down before the wind, wing-and-wing.”</p> - -<p>“The very thing, and of course bound for England: if -all goes right, we shall nearly cross her, and that in less than -an hour.”</p> - -<p>“Then hurrah for a leg of mutton!”—for it should be said -the <i>Haabet</i> was bound for Bordeaux, to exchange her timber -for the light St. Julien’s claret, of which so much is drunk in -the north, and the fishermen had taken their passage in her -on the chance, which amounted to almost a certainty, of -meeting with an English coaster that would put them on -shore somewhere. This they had not been able to meet -with on the east coast, for foreigners are too much afraid -of the shoals to allow themselves to go near a track -which, by English vessels, is as well beaten as a turnpike -road.</p> - -<p>“A leg of mutton!” said the Parson; “you are as bad -as a Swede,—always thinking of your dinner.”</p> - -<p>“Upon my word, I have eaten such a lot of trash in -that country that it is very excusable to long for the sweet -simplicity of English roast and boiled; we have not had one -single wholesome, unsophisticated meal since we got there; -it was all grease, and sugar, and gravy, and preserves, except, -indeed, where we boiled our own salmon on the Torjedahl, -or toasted our own ‘mutton,’ as Moodie calls it, at the -skal.”</p> - -<p>“Ah, poor Moodie! I wonder whether he has found out -yet that mutton is not made out of elk’s meat? But that -lugger is nearing us fast; I think we had better talk to Torgensen -about it, and get our traps on deck.”</p> - -<p>Torgensen was sorry to part with his passengers, and they, -though to a certain extent reciprocating his grief, were much -more sorry to part from Torgensen than from the <i>Haabet</i>. But, -sorry or glad, it was all the same, the brig and the lugger, on -their respective courses, rapidly approached each other; a -weft hoisted by the former was answered by the latter, and,<span class="pagenum"><a id="Page_418"></a>[418]</span> -in a few minutes, her mast-heads were seen bobbing about -over the brig’s lee quarter.</p> - -<p>Less than half a minute sufficed to transfer the fishermen -and their belongings from one deck to the other, and then, -hands shaking,—caps waving,—hoist away the lugs,—and up-helm -for merry England.</p> - -<p>Away flew the lugger, “her white wings flying,”—it could -not be added “never from her foes,” for she turned out afterwards -to be a noted smuggler that no revenue cutter could -ever catch. Up rose the white cliffs,—plainer and plainer -grew the objects on shore: now the white houses of Dover -came in view,—then the sheep on the downs, and the men -on the piers,—then the rising sunbeams flashed back a merry -welcome from the windows,—then the pier-heads opened, -with the tide bubbling up against them like a river in flood, -which, taking the lugger under the counter, gave her a final -slew, as she rushed between them,—then through the inner -harbour, and down sails, carrying on with the way already -acquired,—then run up alongside the Custom-house quay.</p> - -<p>“Home at last!” said the Captain, as he leaped on shore.</p> - -<p><i>Hic longæ finis chartæque viæque.</i></p> - -<p class="titlepage">THE END.</p> - -<p class="titlepage">PRINTED BY COX (BROS.) AND WYMAN, GREAT QUEEN STREET.</p> - -<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> - -<div class="footnotes"> - -<div class="chapter"> - -<h2 class="nobreak">FOOTNOTES</h2> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_1" href="#FNanchor_1" class="label">[1]</a> The families of Lejonhöved and Svinhöved were conspicuous in -the wars of Gustavus Vasa, at which time Sweden threw off the yoke -which Denmark, with the concurrence of Norway, had fixed on them, -by taking undue advantage of the conditions stipulated in the Union -of Calmar. The head of the former family perished in the treacherous -massacre at Stockholm, generally spoken of by the name of the “Bloodbath.” -Both families derive their names from their armorial bearings, -as at that time there were no surnames in Sweden. These signify -Lion-head and Boar-head, or Pig-head, respectively. Hence the Parson’s -sarcasm.</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_2" href="#FNanchor_2" class="label">[2]</a> Långref—a poaching method of catching fish.</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_3" href="#FNanchor_3" class="label">[3]</a> Tjäder—the capercailzie. Taking him in his lek—that is to say, -during his play, a very singular method which both the tjäder and the -black-cock has of calling together the females of their respective species, -is strictly contrary to law.</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_4" href="#FNanchor_4" class="label">[4]</a> Fjeld Ripa—The mountain grouse; a bird something like our -ptarmigan, the pursuit of which is always attended with toil, and sometimes -danger.</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_5" href="#FNanchor_5" class="label">[5]</a> According to ancient Scandinavian mythology, the earth, which is -flat and surrounded by water, is continually guarded by Jörmungard -the Sea Serpent, the daughter of Loki; who is so large that she encircles -the whole earth, holding her tail in her mouth. She is sometimes -called the Midgard Serpent;—Midgard meaning middle guard half way -between the earth and the realms of the Hrimthursar, or Frost Giants, -which is her post.</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_6" href="#FNanchor_6" class="label">[6]</a> The god Kvasir, or Unerring Wisdom, was the joint offspring of -all the gods, and was created to aid their negociations with the Vanir. -His blood, sweetened by mead, forms the drink of Poetic Inspiration, -which was guarded by Gunlauth, the daughter of Thjassi, the chief of -the Frost Giants. Odin, who was her lover, prevailed on her to give -it up to him, and it is at present lodged in the heights of Asgard. That -Poetic Inspiration should be wisdom, sweetened by honey and guarded -by love, is in itself a beautiful allegory—and not less beautiful that it -should be won by the gods and lodged in Heaven;—but the generation -of Kvasir involves a most curious anomaly, and that is, that the gods -should be able to create a being more intelligent than themselves,—unless, -indeed, we interpret the allegory as implying that mutual -council is more unerring than the unaided intelligence of any individual.</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_7" href="#FNanchor_7" class="label">[7]</a> The Indelta has very erroneously been stated, by one or two travellers -in Sweden, to be the militia of the country. Sweden has a -militia, and a very efficient force it is; but the Indelta is a feudal army -raised and maintained by the holders of crown lands. The constitution -of this force will be explained more fully hereafter; it is exclusively a -Swedish institution, and does not exist in Norway.</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_8" href="#FNanchor_8" class="label">[8]</a> “Come over the river.”</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_9" href="#FNanchor_9" class="label">[9]</a> “Quick, here, with the boat! and so you shall have some money -for drink.”</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_10" href="#FNanchor_10" class="label">[10]</a> One of the wild ideas of Scandinavian mythology is, that the sun -is the eye of Odin, and that he once had two like other people; but, -that coming one day to the well of Mimiver, the waters of which are -pure wisdom, he bargained for a draught, and bought the horn gjoll -full at the price of one of his eyes; no such great quantity either, if -gjoll be the original of our English gill. However, this fully accounts -for the fact that the moon is not now so bright as the sun, which it -probably once was. It must be confessed that the whole of this story -is entirely inconsistent with the theory of the sun and moon in the -prose “Edda,” where these are represented as separate and independent -divinities, the son and daughter of the giant Mundilfari,—the sun -being feminine and the moon masculine; a tradition contrary to the -notions of our poets, but fully borne out by our English peasants, who -invariably speak of the moon as “he,” and the sun as “she.”</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_11" href="#FNanchor_11" class="label">[11]</a> Full-grown salmon have two or three ranges of very small teeth, -whereas grauls (Scoticè, grilse) have only one. It is this distinction -which, on the Erne, is technically termed “the mask,” and not the -size, which determines the difference between a graul and a salmon.</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_12" href="#FNanchor_12" class="label">[12]</a> An ort, or mark, is the fifth part of a specie-daler, equivalent to -ninepence or tenpence of our money. A skilling is about the same as -an English halfpenny; the word, however, is pronounced exactly the -same as our English word shilling, the <i>k</i> being soft before <i>i</i>; a circumstance -which rather perplexes the stranger in his calculations.</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_13" href="#FNanchor_13" class="label">[13]</a> Since the abolition of capital punishment in Norway—a measure -that does not seem to answer at all—murderers are confined, like other -criminals, in the castle at Christiania. They may be seen in dresses of -which each sleeve and leg has its own colour, sweeping the streets and -doing other public work; and a very disgusting sight it is. The average -of crime is very high in Norway—perhaps higher than in any country -known, and particularly crimes of violence. This may be accounted -for, partly by their wonderful drunkenness, and partly by the very -inefficient state of the Church, and the almost total absence of the religious -element in an education which is artificially forced by state enactments. -In Norway there is a very great disproportion between intellect -and religion.</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_14" href="#FNanchor_14" class="label">[14]</a> Manchester has its faults, and a good many of them, but among -them all its Anglo-Saxon virtue of order and capacity for self-government -come out in strong relief.</p> - -<p>“Where are your policemen?” asked the Duke, as he glanced at the -masses that thronged the streets during the Queen’s visit,—perhaps the -largest crowd that had ever been collected in England. The streets of -the Borough of Manchester were not staked and corded off, and guarded -by men in blue; but thousands of strong, active warehousemen and -mechanics formed, by joining hands, a novel barricade. And in the -evening, when numbers beyond computation were assembled in the -streets to witness the illumination, amidst all the confusion there was -nothing but good-humour.—<i>Fraser.</i></p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_15" href="#FNanchor_15" class="label">[15]</a> Alluding to a custom in Norway, of mixing the inner rind of the -birch tree with their rye meal, during times of scarcity.</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_16" href="#FNanchor_16" class="label">[16]</a> The fisherman is very much recommended to tie his own flies for -the Tay, or to get them at Edmondson’s. The author bought a good -many pretty-looking specimens in the country, by way of patterns, all -of which whipped to pieces in half-an-hour’s fishing. The fact is, there -is a cheap way of tying flies, which it is impossible to detect by the eye; -and it is just as well that the young fisherman should ask the <i>character</i> -of his tackle-maker before investing his money in such very ticklish -wares; the worthlessness of which he will not find out till he reaches -his fishing-ground. The author, a fisherman of some experience, has -tied a good many flies in his time, and has had a good many tied for -him by his attendants and other professionals on the river’s banks; but -the only tradespeople he has ever found trustworthy, in all points, in -such matters are, Chevalier, of Bell-yard, London, and Edmondson, of -Church-street, Liverpool. Their flies have never failed him, whether -in their hooks, their gut, or their tying. All that the fisherman will -want in their shops will be a little science, to enable him to choose his -colours, <i>and a little money to enable him to pay his bills</i>.</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_17" href="#FNanchor_17" class="label">[17]</a> The real scene of this piscatorial exploit is on the Mandahl river. -There is a Hell Fall on the Torjedahl also; indeed, the name is common in -Norway, and in Sweden too, so as to become almost generic for a dark, -gloomy rush of waters; but the Hell Fall of the Torjedahl is inaccessible -to salmon, which, notwithstanding all that Inglis says to the contrary, -are unable to surmount the great falls of Wigeland about a mile below -it. It is, therefore, worthless as a fishing-place; and, the author -suspects, altogether too dangerous to be attempted without good reason. -When the water is low, the fall of the Mandahl may be fished in the -ordinary manner from a boat, and it is well worth the trial; but if the -river be full, the birch rope will be found necessary.</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_18" href="#FNanchor_18" class="label">[18]</a> The lower part of the Torjedahl is perfectly free from musquitoes, -which cannot be said of all the rivers in Norway; this probably is -owing to its rapidity, and to the absence of all tributaries and still -water.</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_19" href="#FNanchor_19" class="label">[19]</a> It is no inaccuracy to give Birger a Scotch song, for there is a -considerable infusion of Scotch blood among the Swedes, and Scotch -family names are by no means uncommon among the nobility. In fact, -Scotch names are to be met with even in their national ballads: for -instance—</p> - -<div class="poetry-container"> -<div class="poetry"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">It was young Folmer Skot</div> - <div class="verse indent2">Who rode by dale and hill,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">And after rides Morton of Fogelsang,</div> - <div class="verse indent2">Who bids him hear his will.</div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_20" href="#FNanchor_20" class="label">[20]</a> The thirtieth of April.</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_21" href="#FNanchor_21" class="label">[21]</a></p> - -<div class="poetry-container"> -<div class="poetry"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent20">Lie still, my child;</div> - <div class="verse indent20">In the morning comes Fin</div> - <div class="verse indent20">Thy father,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">And gives thee Esberne Snorre’s eyes and heart to play with.</div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_22" href="#FNanchor_22" class="label">[22]</a> Esberne Snorre is the Danish Faust. In no country whatever -was the reformation popular among the peasantry, and therefore the -popular legends invariably assign the leaders and causes of it to the -devil, as in the case of Faust himself, who, whatever Goëthe may say, -really was a very respectable tradesman, and had no more to do with -the devil than is involved in the invention of that art which became so -powerful an instrument in the hands of reformers—printing. Esberne -Snorre was what very few of the Danish Reformers were, a really good -and conscientious man, who might well have built the Church of -Kallendborg, or even have given his eyes for it. Nevertheless, pre-eminently -before all the reformers, the devil carries him off bodily in -every legend of the time, just as he did Faust.</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_23" href="#FNanchor_23" class="label">[23]</a> Equivalent to “spoiling a market” in Ireland, or “opening a -Sheriff’s ball” in England,—“Goth’s garden” being the cant name for -a place of execution in Stockholm, which is adorned with permanent -gibbets, and is so called from the name of the first man who was hanged -there. The saying is Swedish, not Norwegian, not only because it is -local, but because there are no capital punishments at all in Norway.</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_24" href="#FNanchor_24" class="label">[24]</a> Christina, daughter of the great Gustavus Adolphus, a popular -and able sovereign, abdicated voluntarily,—wearied of the toils of -government,—and is said to have uttered some such speech as that -attributed to her by Torkel on crossing the little stream which in those -days separated her late dominions from those of Denmark.</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_25" href="#FNanchor_25" class="label">[25]</a> Between “the two lights,”—that is to say, twilight,—is always the -time in which all spirits of the middle earth have the greatest power; -of course the reason is, that seen indistinctly in the doubtful light of -morning or evening, natural objects take strange forms, and exhibit -appearances which are ascribed to the supernatural.</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_26" href="#FNanchor_26" class="label">[26]</a> A sort of scallop, of very beautiful colour.</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_27" href="#FNanchor_27" class="label">[27]</a> In the Swedish Church there used to be a regular private confession -made to the priest before every Communion, on which occasion an offertory, -called confession-money, was deposited on the altar. It is, indeed, -the rule of the Church still, though, since a royal ordinance, in 1686, -forbade penitents to select their own confessors, confining them to the -priest of their parish, the custom has fallen into disuse; still the old -expressions are frequently retained.</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_28" href="#FNanchor_28" class="label">[28]</a> The mal is said to be a great-headed, wide-mouthed monster, with a -long beard, of the same colour as the eel; and, like the eel, slimy and -without any perceptible scales. It is said to grow to the length of -twelve or fourteen feet, to weigh three or four hundred pounds, and to -carry on his back fin a strong, sharp lance, which it can elevate or depress at -pleasure. It is supposed to lie seeking whom or what it may devour -in the deepest and muddiest holes of rivers or lakes. The author has -heard this fish talked of very often, but has never seen one, and believes -fully that it may safely be classed with the Black Horse, the Mid-Gard -Serpent, and Dr. Clarke’s Furia Infernalis.</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_29" href="#FNanchor_29" class="label">[29]</a> The leading fish of each shoal, or school, as it is called,—usually a -salmon of considerable weight and experience—is so termed by the Irish -fishermen.</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_30" href="#FNanchor_30" class="label">[30]</a> Frue is properly a title of nobility, and is of Danish origin. No -Norwegian titles date earlier than the Union of Kalmar. These, however, -have been all abolished by a Storthing, which, consisting mostly -of peasants, set itself strongly against aristocratical distinctions; and, -taking advantage of that clause in the constitution which provides, that -if a bill be carried three times it overrides the king’s veto, have succeeded -in abolishing them. Habit and custom, however, are stronger -than parliaments; and the mistress of a wealthy establishment is frequently -designated, not by her husband’s name, but as Lady Marie, -Lady Brigetta, or, as in the present case, Lady Christina—for that is -the meaning of the title Frue.</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_31" href="#FNanchor_31" class="label">[31]</a> Not many years ago, the “summer parlour” was the only room in -any house that had windows that would open.</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_32" href="#FNanchor_32" class="label">[32]</a> All livings in Norway have a dowager-house and farm belonging -to them, for the widow of the late incumbent. At her death, it passes -back to the present possessor of the living.</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_33" href="#FNanchor_33" class="label">[33]</a> Deep water.</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_34" href="#FNanchor_34" class="label">[34]</a></p> - -<div class="poetry-container"> -<div class="poetry"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">Here the Neck strikes his harp in his city of glass,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">And the Mermaids comb out their bright hair, green as grass,</div> - <div class="verse indent4">And bleach here their glittering clothes.</div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_35" href="#FNanchor_35" class="label">[35]</a> Those who are drowned at sea, and whose bodies are never recovered, -are said to have been enticed away to the mermaids’ caves beneath the -deep water.</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_36" href="#FNanchor_36" class="label">[36]</a> Those who are lost and starved to death in the forest—a thing which -is of perpetual occurrence,—are said to be detained through the love of -the Skogsfrue.</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_37" href="#FNanchor_37" class="label">[37]</a></p> - -<div class="poetry-container"> -<div class="poetry"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">“We fly from day’s dazzling light,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">But we joy in the shades of night,—</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Though we journey on earth, our home must be</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Beneath the shell of the earth and the sea.”</div> - </div> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse right"><i>Mathisen.</i></div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_38" href="#FNanchor_38" class="label">[38]</a> This legend is taken from the Brage Rädur, which, in the original, -is obscure enough. Finn Magnussen, however, seems to have hit upon -the right interpretation of it, which we have followed here. His explanation, -as given in “Blackwell’s Northern Antiquities,” is this:—“Iduna, -the ever-renovating Spring-being, in the possession of Thjasse, -the desolating Winter,—all nature languishes until she is delivered from -her captivity. On this being effected, her presence again diffuses joy -and gladness, and all things revive; while her pursuer, Winter, with -his icy breath, dissolves in the solar rays, indicated by the fires lighted -on the walls of Asgard.”</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_39" href="#FNanchor_39" class="label">[39]</a> Niord and his wife, Skadi, had naturally some disputes about -their future residence,—he preferring the brightness of his own palace, -Noatun, she very naturally yearning after Thrymheim, the abode of -her chilly father. The dispute was referred to Forseti, the son of -Baldur, the heavenly attorney-general, who decided that they should -alternately occupy Noatun for three months and Thrymheim for nine,—which -is about the Norwegian proportion of summer and winter.</p> - -<div class="poetry-container"> -<div class="poetry"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">“Thrymheim, the land</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Where Thjasse abode,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">That mightiest of giants,—</div> - <div class="verse indent0">But snow-skating Skadi</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Now dwells there, I trow,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">In her father’s old mansion.”</div> - </div> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse right"><i>Elder Edda.</i></div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_40" href="#FNanchor_40" class="label">[40]</a> A proof of the authenticity of this legend is to be found in the -etymology of the word, “gate,” (gatin—the street), being a Norwegian -word.</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_41" href="#FNanchor_41" class="label">[41]</a> Hermod and Baldur were both sons of Odin. That is to say, Courage -and Innocence are both children of Heavenly Wisdom.</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_42" href="#FNanchor_42" class="label">[42]</a> The moral of this legend is admirable. The Principle of Evil is of -itself powerless against the Principle of Good, until it is assisted by -well-intentioned, but blind Prejudice; but that same Prejudice, after -its enlightenment, becomes its partner and ally.</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_43" href="#FNanchor_43" class="label">[43]</a> An attentive reader, who is also a fisherman, will see, by reverting to -the time which the adventures in the Torjedahl and Soberud-dahl must -have taken, that this voyage must have taken place much later in the -year than the 24th of June, and that consequently he could not have seen -the bale-fires he describes. The fact is, the author made two visits to -Christiansand; he arrived there in June, but, finding the snow-water -still in the river, he made a voyage among the islands, to occupy the -time, and visited the place again at the end of July. To prevent unnecessary -confusion, the incidents of both these visits are told together; -but the fisherman must not conclude from this, that anything is to be -done in any of the Tellemarken rivers before the second week in July.</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_44" href="#FNanchor_44" class="label">[44]</a> The whole Norwegian navy consists of one frigate, two corvettes, -two brigs, three schooners, and a hundred and forty of these gun-boats. -The Swedes, who have upon the whole rather a powerful navy, considering -the poverty of their country,—that is to say, thirteen line-of-battle -ships, fourteen frigates, some of them very heavy ones, and -twenty-two steamers—possess also three hundred of these gun-boats. -They carry generally one long tomer forward, and sometimes a carronade, -sometimes a smaller gun aft. They are quite open, except a couple -of bunks for the officers’ sleeping places, pull from twenty to thirty -oars, and are generally sent to sea in squadrons, with a frigate or -corvette to take care of them,—like an old duck with a brood of ducklings. -The frigate forms a rallying point and place of refuge, as well -as a place of rest, for the crews are changed from time to time, and in -their turns enjoy a week’s rest and cover on board of her.</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_45" href="#FNanchor_45" class="label">[45]</a> In Sweden there really is an order of the Seraphim, and in Denmark -one of the Elephant,—for the Goose and Gridiron we will not -vouch.</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_46" href="#FNanchor_46" class="label">[46]</a> That ancient and distinguished family are said to read Gen. vi. 4 -thus: “And there were Grants in the earth in those days.” The word -“giants” being, according to the best authorities in that family, a -modern reading.</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_47" href="#FNanchor_47" class="label">[47]</a> Bjornstjerna, a not uncommon name in Sweden, signifies “bear’s -star.”</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_48" href="#FNanchor_48" class="label">[48]</a> Bör, civilized man,—from <i>beran</i>, to bear; the same etymology as -that of <i>barn</i>, a child. Ymir, Chaos,—literally, a confused noise; the -meaning is, “before civilization had subdued Chaos.”</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_49" href="#FNanchor_49" class="label">[49]</a> It must be remembered that the letter o, in Swedish, is pronounced -like our oo, and that the g before ä e i ö, as well as the final g, is pronounced -like the English y; the word “Modige,” therefore, will be -pronounced very like the English word “Moodie.”</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_50" href="#FNanchor_50" class="label">[50]</a> <i>Rubus Chamœmorus</i>; called in the country, <i>Möltebär</i>.</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_51" href="#FNanchor_51" class="label">[51]</a> Baldur’s Eye-brow—<i>Anthemis Cotula.</i>—<span class="smcap">Linn.</span></p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_52" href="#FNanchor_52" class="label">[52]</a> The Puritan Abbott, Archbishop of Canterbury, got into great -trouble from his sporting propensities. One day, as he was shooting -with Lord de le Zouch, at Branshill Park, he shot a keeper. According -to canon law, a clergyman killing a man becomes, from that time forward, -incapable of performing any clerical function; and three Bishops elect -refused consecration at his hand,—“Not,” as they said, “out of enmity -or superstition, but to be wary that they might not be attainted -with the contagion of his scandal and uncanonical condition.” He was -re-instated by a committee of Bishops, appointed for the purpose, but -never entirely recovered his position.</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_53" href="#FNanchor_53" class="label">[53]</a> According to Scandinavian mythology, the sacred ash of Yggdrasil, -which typifies the Vital Principle of the world, has seated on its topmost -boughs an eagle, bearing perched between his eyes a falcon,—emblematic -of Energy and Activity.</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_54" href="#FNanchor_54" class="label">[54]</a> According to the Prose Edda, the gods had originally no poetry in -their souls. The mead of Poetic Inspiration was in the keeping of the -giant Suttung, who entrusted it to his daughter, Gunlauth. Odin made -love to her,—obtained possession of the mead, and deserted her. He -had, however, the grace to be ashamed of himself, for these are the -words of the Hávamál, in which he evidently alludes to this not very -creditable passage in his life:</p> - -<div class="poetry-container"> -<div class="poetry"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">“Gunlauth gave me,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">On a golden chair seated,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">A draught of mead delicious;</div> - <div class="verse indent0">But the return was evil</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Which she experienced,—</div> - <div class="verse indent0">With all her faithfulness—</div> - <div class="verse indent0">With all her deep love!</div> - </div> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">“A holy ring oath</div> - <div class="verse indent0">I mind me gave Odin,—</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Now, who can trust him?</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Suttung is cheated—</div> - <div class="verse indent0">His mead is stolen—</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Gunlauth is weeping!”</div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_55" href="#FNanchor_55" class="label">[55]</a> A Norwegian slang expression, for “early rising.”</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_56" href="#FNanchor_56" class="label">[56]</a> There is a beautiful superstition—if it is not a real religious truth—in -Norway, that those we have loved best on earth become our unseen -guardians, and follow us always, to warn us of danger.</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_57" href="#FNanchor_57" class="label">[57]</a></p> - -<div class="poetry-container"> -<div class="poetry"> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">“Then shall brethren be</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Each other’s bane,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">And sister’s children rend</div> - <div class="verse indent0">The ties of kin.</div> - </div> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse indent0">“Hard will be the age,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">And harlotry prevail,—</div> - <div class="verse indent0">An axe-age, a sword-age—</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Shields oft cleft in twain,—</div> - <div class="verse indent0">A storm-age, a wolf-age,</div> - <div class="verse indent0">Ere earth shall meet its doom.”</div> - </div> - <div class="stanza"> - <div class="verse right"><i>The Völuspà.</i></div> - </div> -</div> -</div> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_58" href="#FNanchor_58" class="label">[58]</a> Stags are not common so far north, but they are to be met with -now and then. Elks are much more often seen, and are now pretty -plentiful. In the days of which the author is writing, the Game Laws -were, on paper at least, very strict about both elks and red-deer. Time -was, when the former of these were classed with the bear and the -lynx, and were absolutely outlawed as noxious beasts. At the time -the author was in Sweden, the laws had gone to the other extreme, and -they were absolutely protected,—everybody being forbidden to shoot -them; a prohibition which, though it prevented men from going after -them openly, was, in fact, as little regarded as most laws are in the -fjeld. Now, they may be shot, only under certain restrictions.</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_59" href="#FNanchor_59" class="label">[59]</a> A cant phrase in Sweden, for “going on foot.”</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_60" href="#FNanchor_60" class="label">[60]</a> The only time the author ever did get a sight of one was in the -fjeld on the right bank of the Gotha, near Trollhättan, when he was -making his way through some tangled ground in search of a lake, which -lies at no very great distance from the fall. On leaping down from a -low ledge of rock, he very nearly pitched upon the top of a filfras, as -much to his own surprise as that of the beast. He struck at him with -his spiked fishing-rod—the only weapon he had with him. Fortunately -for both parties, as he now thinks, he missed him; so they parted, -much to their mutual satisfaction, and have not met since.</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_61" href="#FNanchor_61" class="label">[61]</a> Nalle is the cant name for the bear kind, as with us Reynard is the -cant name for a fox.</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_62" href="#FNanchor_62" class="label">[62]</a> “Rig,” the earthly name of Heimdall, the watcher of Heaven’s -gate, when he disguises himself to go skylarking on earth. Hence the -slang expression, “Running a Rig.”</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_63" href="#FNanchor_63" class="label">[63]</a> The Sun and Moon are continually pursued by the wolf Fenrir and -her progeny, who sometimes nearly catch her. Hence the eclipses.</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_64" href="#FNanchor_64" class="label">[64]</a> The author will not answer for his orthography in the word “pein-compassen.” -He can work a reckoning by it, but has never seen it -spelt.</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_65" href="#FNanchor_65" class="label">[65]</a> There is no book so popular in Sweden as what they call “Peter -Simpel aff Kapten Marrjatt.”</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_66" href="#FNanchor_66" class="label">[66]</a> In Preadamite times—that is to say, the times of Drake and -Raleigh—this was the custom of the English service also; but it having -been discovered that “what is everybody’s business is nobody’s business,” -and that accidents and negligences were continually happening during -the dog watch, a regular afternoon watch was established, and the -dog watch reduced to four hours, and divided into two; so that the -whole ship’s company could relieve one another systematically, and not, -as before, by private arrangement; and that the whole could have two -uninterrupted hours below, between four and eight in the evening, for -their evening meal, or any other occupation. The whole afternoon -watch was called the dog watch, because in the full light,—and Norwegian -ships did not go to sea in the winter because they were frozen -up,—the work was supposed to be so easy that the dogs were sufficient -to keep it.</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_67" href="#FNanchor_67" class="label">[67]</a> Those drowned at sea, whose bodies are never found, are supposed -to have been invited by the mermaids to their caves, and to have been -fascinated by the beauty of their entertainers. Homer’s story of the -Syrens enticing the comrades of Ulysses, has some such foundation.</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_68" href="#FNanchor_68" class="label">[68]</a> The words “smart” and “smartly,” which, at sea, have a signification -very different from their shore-going meaning, are pieces of -mis-spelling. They are evidently derived from the Norwegian words -“snart” and “snartlig,” which bear precisely the same nautical meaning -as our English words.</p> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"> - -<p><a id="Footnote_69" href="#FNanchor_69" class="label">[69]</a> This is a literal fact. Three weeks after sailing from Christiansand, -and seventeen days after losing sight of land of any kind,—during which -time there had been but two days in which the brig could lie her course,—the -author was in the fore-rigging, on the look-out for the Outer -Garboard buoy. He had but small hopes of seeing it, he admits, for -the brig had been navigated by log, lead, and compass alone; nevertheless -it is true, that within half-an-hour of his taking up his look-out -place, and precisely in the direction in which he was looking, there -was the buoy,—a little black speck, like a dancing boat. This, considering -that the steamer in which he had gone out—a vessel commanded by -a lieutenant in her Majesty’s navy—was fifty miles out of her reckoning, -after a straight course of four days, seemed, to say the least, remarkable.</p> - -</div> - -</div> - -<div style='display:block; margin-top:4em'>*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK FOREST SCENES IN NORWAY AND SWEDEN: BEING EXTRACTS FROM THE JOURNAL OF A FISHERMAN ***</div> -<div style='text-align:left'> - -<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> -Updated editions will replace the previous one—the old editions will -be renamed. -</div> - -<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> -Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright -law means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works, -so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United -States without permission and without paying copyright -royalties. 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