The Arctic Voyages of A. E. Nordenskiöld. 1858-1879. With illustrations and maps

Preface

. The brilliant success which has attended the North- East Passage Expedition under the leadership of Pro fessor Nordenskiold will naturally awaken a desire on the part of the English-speaking peoples for some account of his previous achievements in the field of Arctic exploration and research in which he has won for himself an imperishable name. Professor Nordenskiold's Arctic experience extends over a period of twenty-one years, and more than half that time has elapsed since he carried the flag of his country to the highest latitude that has been reached by a vessel in the old hemisphere. In opening up communication by sea with the great Siberian rivers he has rendered a service of incalculable value to commerce, but he would doubtless prefer that his fame should rest on the contributions which have been made to our know ledge of the past history and present condition of our globe by his own scientific labours and those of his colleagues.

PREFACE.

. An accomplished and skilful mineralogist and geologist, Professor Nordenskiold has examined, on Spitzbergen alone, more than a thousand English miles of rock sections, and in all his expeditions he has been accompanied by a staff of naturalists and physicists who have made thorough and comprehensive scientific surveys of the regions they have visited, and by their collections have made the Swedish museums the richest in the world in objects of natural history from the North Polar Basin. AVith Professor Nordenskiold's kind permission I had undertaken to prepare from the abundant materials that were available, a popular account of his Arctic voyages before the North-East Passage Expedition was planned ; and not to leave my work incomplete, I have added a sketch of the history, so far as yet known, of this memorable voyage, by which, when it is finished, the Vega will have, for the first time, circumnavigated the twin continents of Europe . and Asia.

The slight outline here given will, I trust, increase the reader's appetite for the fuller details of the narra tive which the illustrious explorer will write on his return home. I have thought the valuable and interesting report of Dr. Envall on the hygiene of the Polar Expedition of 1S72-73 deserving of a place in this volume, and the

PREFACE.

. IX scientific reader will find in the List of Books and Memoirs in the Appendix, a sort of index to the large mass of printed matter, consisting of more than 6,000 pages of type and 150 plates, to which the Swedish Arctic Expeditions have given rise. It is my pleasant duty to acknowledge the valuable assistance that has been kindly rendered to me in many ways in the preparation of this volume by my friend Herr Gustaf Lindstrom, Assistant in the Mineralogical Department of the Riks Museum, Stockholm. I am also indebted to the eminent firm of Norstedt and Soner for the use of some of the original woodcuts, to ERRATA. Page ix, line 12 from top, for " Soner," read " Sons." ix, ,, 13 ,, ,, for "Geogological," read "Geological. 117, ,, 12 ,, „ for "bodje," read "lodje." |, 119, ,, IS ,, ,, for " says," read " say." „ 209, ,, 15 ,, ,, for "Our," read "Om." 266, ,, 20 ,, ,, for "guellemots," read" guillemots.' ',', 290, last line, for " oculeatus," read " acuhatus." „ 290, „ ,, for " Eranchiopoda," read " Erachiopoda."

PREFACE.

. IX scientific reader will find in the List of Books and Memoirs in the Appendix, a sort of index to the large mass of printed matter, consisting of more than 6,000 pages of type and 150 plates, to which the Swedish Arctic Expeditions have given rise. It is my pleasant duty to acknowledge the valuable assistance that has been kindly rendered to me in many ways in the preparation of this volume by my friend Herr Gustaf Lindstrom, Assistant in the Mineralogical Department of the Riks Museum, Stockholm. I am also indebted to the eminent firm of Norstedt and Soner for the use of some of the original woodcuts, to the proprietors of the Geogological Magazine for others, and to the proprietors of the Nya Illustrerad Tidning for the one given at page 360, representing the Vega saluting Cape Chelyuskin. ALEX. LESLIE. p4.berdeen, 30th September, 1879. CONTENTS.

Appendix

I. — OFFICIAL REPORT TO THE (SWEDISH) ROYAL BOARD OF HEALTH ON THE HYGIENE AND CARE OF THE SICK DURING THE SWEDISH POLAR EXPEDITION, 1872 — 73, BY DR. ENVALL, MEDICAL OFFICER 391 — 417

APPENDIX.

II, — LIST OF BOOKS AND MEMOIRS RELATING TO THE SWEDISH ARCTIC EXPEDITIONS 418 — LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. PAUE PEOCELLARIA GLAC1ALIS 50 LARUS EBURNEUS 57 GRAVE ON SPITZBERGEN 59 "magdalena" in ice harbour (midsummer dat) Cl " ÆOLUS " IN TREURENBERG BAT 62 GROUP OF POLAR BEARS IN MURCHISON BAY 67 BEAN OF ENTADA GIGALOBIUM. (NATURAL SIZE) 73 SAXIFRAGA FLAGELLARIS 76 CHARLES XII.'S ISLAND AND DRABANTEN 83 REINDEER HUNTING 87 HEAD OF WALRUS 89 MAINLAND AT SMEERENBERG — GRANITE 91 DANES' ISLAND 92 IN THE INTERIOR OF KING'S BAY 97 FOX AND DEAD REINDEER 103 PHOCA BARBATA 126 DRAGGING BOAT OVER ICE 127 THE "SOFIA" I31 SHARK FISHING J32 MUSHROOMS AT ADVENT BAT 138 KING'S BAY — WESTERN SIDE 140 BEDTIME DURING A BOAT VOYAGE 141 MORMON ARCTICUS 148 THE " SOFIA " CROSSING THE ARCTIC CIRCLE, 14TII JULY, 1868 . . 152 INLAND ICE ABUTTING ON LAND LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS.

PAGE inland ice extending into the sea 172 inland ice abutting on the bottom of an ice-fjord .... 172 inland ice abutting on a mud-bank 173 the " polhem " 183 view of gothenburg roads 184 the " gladan " 190 glacier in fair haven 192 lapp with reindeer 198 polhem — winter station 199 burial in 80° n.l. during the polar night 212 astronomical observatory 216 dredging under the ice in winter 217 mussel bay ' 220 cleft in the inland ice (canal) 259 mattilas' winter quarters at grey hook 273 north point of prince charles' foreland 276 winter dress and hunting weapons 277 the "vega" saluting cape chelyuskin, the northernmost point of the old world 360 MAPS. To be placed at the end of the Volume. 1. MAP OF SPITZBERGEN. 2. MAP ILLUSTRATING NORDENSKIOLD'S VOYAGES TO THE YENISSEJ IN 1875 AND 1876. 3.

MAP SHOWING THE COURSE OF THE " VEGA " FROM THE MOUTH OF THE YENISSEJ TO THAT OF THE LENA. THE AECTIC VOYAGES 01 ADOLF ERIK NORDENSKIOLD. NORDENSKIOLD'S AECTIC VOYAGES: 1858—1879.

Chapter I

the nordenskiold family : autobiographical sketch. Adolf Erik Nordexskiold was born at Helsingfors, the capital of Finland, on the 18th November, 1832, the third in order of seven children, four brothers and three sisters, all of whom, with the exception of a sister who died young, still survive. His parents were Nils Gustaf Nordenskiold, a well-known naturalist, chief of the mining department of Finland, and Margareta Sofia von Haartman. The race from which Nordenskiold sprang had been known for centuries for the possession of remarkable qualities, among which an ardent love of nature and of scientific research was predominant. Its founder is said to have been a Lieutenant Nordberg, who was settled in Upland about the beginning of the seventeenth century. His son Johan Erik, born 1660, changed the name to Nordenberg.

He was chief in spector of the saltpetre manufactories of Nyland, iti Finland, and was considered by the enlightened a master NORDENSKIOLD'S ARCTIC VOYAGES. [CI-AP. 2 in agriculture and by the common people a proficient in the black art. His only art, however, consisted in a persevering study of Nature, in closely following her footsteps. In the year 1710, when he heard that the plague had broken out all over Finland, he protected himself against the epidemic in a very peculiar way. He loaded a vessel which belonged to him with provisions and other necessaries, went on board with all his family, and cruised about in the open sea for several months, taking good care to have no communication with the land. If his voyage had a certain resemblance to Noah's in the ark, it had the same successful issue.

About the beginning of 1711, when the plague had ceased, all on board landed safe on Aland. Johan Erik Nordenberg died in 1740, leaving two sons, Anders Johan and Carl Frederik, both of whom, though the latter was only lieutenant, were elected members of the Swedish Academy of Sciences when it was founded in 1739. Both were ennobled in 1751. Carl Frederik is the common ancestor of the families bearing the name of Nordenskiold now living in Sweden and Finland. One of his many remarkable sons, the third in order, Colonel Adolf Gustaf Nordenskiold, became owner of Frugord in Finland. This property, situated in a forest-crowned valley in the department of Nyland, is still in the possession of the Nordenskiolds. Here Colonel Adolf Gustaf Nordenskiold built a peculiar residence, the middle of which is taken up with a hall two stories high, round the upper part of which runs a broad gallery in which collections in natural history are arranged.

Life in this home has always borne a certain old Norse stamp. In the surrounding !•] THE NORDENSKIOLD FAMILY. 3 park a sepulchral mound has been thrown up, which forms the last consecrated resting-place of a portion of the Finnish members of the Nordenskiold family. In these arrangements, as in much else at Frugord, there was something uncommon, indicating a peculiar idio syncrasy in the owner, and undoubtedly not without an influence on the youth that grew up there. Many of the Nordenskiold family were devoted to literature and scientific research. Otto Magnus Nordenskiold, a brother of Adolf Gustaf, after undertaking extensive tours in Holland, France, Germany, &c, for the purpose of studying the commerce of those countries, was the first to introduce " many-bladed " saw-mills into Finland, on an island on the coast of which he planned the foun dation of a manufacturinjr town, for which he wished O •* to secure neutrality in the wars between Sweden and Russia.

His scheme, however, was frustrated by the outbreak of the war of 1742, when the Russians burned down the only manufacturing establishment that had been erected on Fagero, a wind-driven saw-mill. Soon after, the unlucky Otto Magnus drew on himself perse cution and threats of capital punishment both in Sweden, for being concerned in the surrender of Tavastehus in the war of 1742, and in Russia, for a very well-meant proposal made to the Czarina Elizabeth concerning perpetual peace between all Christian nations. He died excommunicated by the clergy of Finland. Colonel Adolf Gustaf Nordenskiold had many children, one of whom, August, was a zealous alchemist, and laboured with Bernhard Wadstrom for the abolition of negro slavery. He died at Sierra Leone from injuries received from the blacks during an attempt at colonisation, b [chap. NORDENSKIOLD'S ARCTIC VOYAGES. 4 undertaken with a view to form a free negro state.

August's youngest brother, Nils Gustaf, was born in 1792. After passing his examination in mining at the University of Upsala he was for several years a pupil of Berzelius, with whom he formed the warmest friendship, which was only broken off by death. Nils Gustaf, early known as a distinguished mineralogist, was ap pointed a government inspector of mines in his native country, and by means of liberal grants of public money was enabled to undertake extensive foreign tours, which brought him into communication with most of the O eminent mineralogists and chemists of the day in England, France, and Germany. After three years of foreign travel he returned to Finland, and was promoted in 1824 to be chief of the mining department, and devoted thirty years of restless activity to the improve ment of that important branch of the industry of his native land.

He travelled through Finland in all directions in the prosecution of his untiring mineralogical and geological researches. His travels extended as far as the Ural. He published his views, discoveries, and experiments, in many scientific periodicals and in several independent works, and a large number of minerals discovered by him afford evidence of his keen research. He was made Councillor of State, and ob tained many distinctions for his scientific services from the sovereign and from learned bodies. On the 21st of February, 1866, he ended his active life at Frugord, and was laid to rest in his father's grave. "His simple frank manner," said A. E. Arppe in his eloge on this veteran of science, "his wit and his extensive expe rience, made his society equally agreeable and instructive. >•] NORDENSKIOLD'S BOYHOOD. 5 The young, who were interested in his researches, could especially reckon on his friendship ; they enjoyed his company, and were strongly attached to him.

He had the uncommon happiness of seeing one of his sons not only devote himself to the same kind of studies, but maintain with distinguished success by his scientific travels and labours the ancient honour of the family name." Frugord, with its old books and natural history col lections accumulated from generations of nature-loving ancestors, was a fitting home for the future naturalist and explorer, Adolf Erik, who was to make the name of Nordenskiold world-famous. While yet a boy he was an industrious collector of minerals and of insects, and was permitted to accompany his father on his tours, acquiring thus early the keen eye of the mineralogist. After studying for some time with a private tutor he was sent to the gymnasium at Borgo, where, as at similar institutions elsewhere, there then prevailed, as he tells us in the autobiographical sketch which he wrote for Bejer's " Swedish Biographical Lexicon," an almost unlimited freedom, the teachers taking no oversight whatever of the pupils' attention to their studies.

"Even in this respect," he says in the sketch already quoted, " the gymnasium was a connecting link between the school and the university — in my opinion a for tunate circumstance, which is now changed. It must, however, be admitted," he continues, " that the liberty was used badly enough by many. This was the case with myself, for instance, during my first year at the gymnasium, for during the first term I distinguished myself, as the rector expressed it, * only by absolute idleness.' At the close of the spring term I was not [CIIAP. 6 only not advanced, but I was marked in my certificate ' unsatisfactory ' in nearly the whole of the subjects. My parents were judicious enough not to attach any importance to this well-deserved mishap. Instead of breaking out in reproaches and increasing the control which my mother's presence at Borgo, and a private tutor installed for the purpose during the first year of our attendance at the gymnasium were intended to exert, the watch kept upon us was now completely removed.

We l were boarded in very modest quarters for five silver roubles a month for board and lodging, and got full liberty to manage our studies in our own way. Self-respect was thus awakened. I became exceedingly industrious, and was soon one of those then attending the gymnasium who obtained the best reports." Among the teachers of the gymnasium at Borgo at this time was Johan Ludvig Runeberg, the distinguished poet. He held the Greek lectureship, and was greatly esteemed both by his colleagues and his pupils, which, however, did not prevent him having much unpleasant ness during the year of his rectorship, 1848. For taking part in an unseemly brawl two of the pupils were condemned to rustication, and two others, according to the school laws, which were then new, to corporal punishment. The two former obtained a mitigation of their sentence by an appeal to the ordinary courts, but the latter had to submit to their punishment, which was inflicted with due severity by the then rector Runeberg.

This was indeed quite legal, but by no means in accordance with the old traditional freedom of the gymnasium, and it took place in the eventful ] Adolf Erik and his elder brother. NORDENSKIOLD AT THE UNIVERSITY. 7 year 1848. Not even Runeberg's rectorship could prevent a revolution, which in the end led near the half of the pupils to leave the institution. Among those who did so were Adolf Erik and his younger brother Otto Nordenskiold. Nordenskiold entered the University of Helsingfors in 1849, devoting himself chiefly to the study of chemistry, natural history, mathematics, physics, and above all, of mineralogy and geology. " Already before I became a student," he writes, " I had been allowed to accompany my father in mineralogical excursions, and had acquired from him skill in recognising and collecting minerals and in the use of the blowpipe, which he, being a pupil of Gahn and Berzelius, handled with a masterly skill unknown to most of the chemists of the present day.

I now undertook the charge of the rich mineral collection at Frugord, and besides, during the vaca tions made excursions to Pitkeranta, Tammela, Par gas, and others of Finland's interesting mineral localities. By practice I thus acquired a keen and certain eye for recognising minerals, which has been of great service to me in the path of life I afterwards followed." After passing his candidate examination in 1853 Nordenskiold accompanied his father on a mineralogical tour to Ural, devoting most of his attention to Denii doff's iron and copper mines at Tagilsk. Here he planned an extensive journey through Siberia, but the breaking out of the Crimean war put a stop to it. " After my return," says Nordenskiold, "I continued to prosecute my chemical and mineralogical studies with zeal, and wrote as my dissertation for the degree of Licentiate a paper * On the Crystalline Forms of Graphite and Chondrodite,' which was discussed under the presi dency of Professor Arppe on the 28th February, 1855.

The following summer I was employed on a work of somewhat greater extent — " A Description of the Minerals found in Finland," which was published the same autumn. Various short papers in mineralogy and molecular chemistry were printed in Acta Societatis scientiarum Fenniœ : I also published along with Dr. E. Ny lander 'The Mollusca of Finland' (Helsingfors, 1856) as an answer to a prize question proposed by one of the faculty. In the interval I had been appointed Curator of the Mathematico-Physical faculty, and had obtained a post at the Mining Office as mining engineer extraordinary, with inconsiderable pay, and an express understanding that no service would be required from me in return. A salary was also attached to my curatorship." "I did not, however, long enjoy these, which were my first paid appointments.

Before I received my second quarter's salary I was removed from my offices in consequence of some political speeches made at the tavern at Tholo on the occasion of a dinner arranged by us on Friday, the 30th November, 1855. The gay circle of youth to which I belonged, instead of cele brating our namedays and birthdays each by himself according to the usual practice, determined to combine all the separate fetes which occurred during the autumn term of 1855 in one giant entertainment with mili tary music, floral decorations, &c. It went off pleasantly, and as a fact the discussion of politics, which was common enough among us, was that day almost wholly forgotten. But we had appearances helplessly against t] A TAVERN SPEECH. 9 us, and justice requires the acknowledgment that we had before dabbled in politics and sinned so much that our truthful account of the occurrences of that day was everywhere received with distrust."

"The way in which the thing happened was this: Some time before Palmerston had made his famous speech about the taking of the Baltic fortresses. Our entertainment was opened by what we considered a well-executed parody of this speech by K. Vetterhoff, on which followed in the course of the dinner toasts to the French wines, Crimean fruits, sardines, &c, all in heedless fun and frolic. We had all been concerned a hundred times before in affairs similar or worse, but on this occasion things were on a grander scale— and that wyis our misfortune. We had a band of music belonging to the Finnish navy, which played tunes to our toasts. The leader of the music thought himself obliged to make a report of the speeches to his chief, with the distinct declaration that the whole appeared merely to be a frolic.

The first who were informed of the unfortunate report by the naval officer, an intimate acquaintance of most of us, were those who had taken part in the entertainment. He swore at us for not having chosen a Russian band, which would not have understood any of our nonsense, and said that he was obliged to let the report go further. But he would delay it as long as possible, in order to give us an opportunity of arranging the affair in the meantime. This seemed at first to be very easy of accomplishment until Governor-general Count von Berg got a list of the delinquents, when, struck with surprise, he probably exclaimed, ' Ah ! these are all old acquaintances ! ' " " Indeed most of us were previously known by name to the Count for a reason that was very unpleasant to him. On accepting the post of Governor-general of Finland during the war with the western powers, Count von Berg — unfamiliar as he was with the position of affairs in a country where all gave free and unreserved expression to their sentiments, but where, on the other hand, there had never been any trace of actual conspiracy, secret societies, or anything of the sort — became much alarmed by the probably untrue and exaggerated reports which he received of the state of feeling in the country.

He endeavoured to procure spies who should give him information of expressions of dissatisfaction, and the like. In this he was com pletely unsuccessful, and he appears himself to have even come to the conclusion that the odious measure was unnecessary. He had succeeded, however, at first in getting a young student to act as his tool, who was sent to Stockholm to find out about the authors of many correspondence-articles which were sent from Finland to the Swedish newspapers, and which at that time attracted the attention of the public to a degree of winch we can now scarcely form any idea. After his return he was to act as a spy among the students. An official of high position, since dead, who had a post in von Berg's office, became acquainted with the fact, and considering the odious and pernicious consequences which would follow espionage in private life, determined to bring about an unexpected disarrangement in von Berg's plans.

He told some students about it, on wkose silence he could rely, and suggested that they should make short work with the rascal. He did !■] A SPY AMONG THE STUDENTS. 11 not require to say it twice. Some leading persons among the students met in a private house. The delinquent was sent for without being informed of the reason. Supposing that it related to some literary society he made his appearance, flattered by the at tention shown him. Scarcely had he entered when the door was fastened, and he was addressed by one of those present with the words : ' We have proof that you are a spy.' Pale as a corpse, he stammered out, after some moments, * I must acknowledge that an offer has been made to me, but I have not accepted it.' The beginning was made, and a full confession soon followed. He was now ordered to leave the university and the town.

The Governor-general, who was nearly out of his wits, especially because we had obtained such accurate information about the greatest secrets of his office, attempted at first to take the discovered spy under his own protection, but was soon obliged to desist. To protect a spy who has been found out is impossible, even for a nearly all-powerful Governor-general. The misguided youth, who was said to be very talented, was removed to some office in Russia, and disappeared from Helsingfors. Von Berg kept the list of the members of the tribunal, and promised to keep them well in mind." "The Tholo affair offered an excellent opportunity for this, as the names of those who took part in the entertainment were mostly well-known to von Berg from the former list, and possibly also from others of which we had no knowledge.

The first sacrifice was the singers invited to the feast, young students who were known as æsthetic, respectable youths, little given to politics. But, fired by the speeches and wine, they had, [chap 12 NORDENSKIOLD'S ARCTIC VOYAGES. while going home through the streets of the town, sung the Marseillaise, with offensive w*ords added by Topelius. They were all rusticated for a term, some for a longer period. I got a double dismissal without further ceremony." " We all bore our misfortune very calmly. I betook myself to two respectable persons, obtained their security, borrowed money, and went abroad by St. Petersburg to Berlin. While driving during my stay in St. Petersburg in an ' isvoschik ' in the Nevski Prospect, I quite un expectedly encountered my father, who had returned sooner than he intended from a new journey to the Ural.

He was exceedingly surprised to meet his son, but, after an explanation, quite approved of my journey, and pro vided me with letters of introduction to the friends of his youth, the brothers Rose, Mitscherlich, &c." " I stayed at Berlin during the spring and early sum mer of 1856, working in Rose's laboratory at researches in mineral analysis. I besides made use of the oppor tunity to make the acquaintance of several of the world renowned men of science of the city, by whom, thanks to my father's well-known name, I was particularly well received." "During the summer of the same year I returned through Sweden to Finland. I was now asked by Pro fessor Arppe, the dean of the mathematico-physical faculty, whether I wished to apply immediately for the newly-established professorship in mineralogy and geo logy, or whether I preferred by getting some of the large travelling stipends of the university to provide myself with funds for extensive foreign travel.

I chose the latter, but on my first application for 'the literary !■] 13 MY MASTER OF ARTS DEGREE. travelling grant ' I was passed over by my friend, the distinguished philologist Ahlquist, under the express promise, however, that I should have as an equivalent the Alexander stipend, which would be vacant some months after. The plan of travel which I gave in to the Consis torium was for a geological excursion to Siberia, and above all to Kamschatka. The plan was abandoned for the time, but I hope now, twenty years after, to bring about a scientific expedition to the same regions, though on another and far grander scale than would then have been possible for me." x " Immediately thereafter I obtained the Alexander stipend for a tour of study through Europe. Before my departure, however, I wished to be present at the Pro motion festival of 1857, when I was at the same time to be promoted to the degree of master (magister) and doctor, with the first place of honour among the masters and the second among the doctors.

This * promotion ' became an unexpected turning-point in my life." " At the invitation of the young men who were to become laureates, there was present at the ' promotion ' a deputation from the universities of Upsala and Lund, consisting of a professor and five eminent younger aca demicians. They were received by us, and everywhere as they travelled in Finland, in the most cordial manner. Innumerable speeches were spoken in their honour, and even the older men did not weigh with any special care the words with which the guests from the dear old mother-country were welcomed, all to the great provo cation of Count von Berg, who was childish enough to consider as treason such a reception, called forth by 1 This was written in 1877. grand and illustrious common memories of many cen turies' old, and a debt of gratitude for culture, freedom, national existence, which can never be forgotten.

In von Berg's favour it may be mentioned that he had not yet been able to comprehend the peculiar Dualism which then prevailed in Finland between Russian despotism and the habit of freedom centuries old." "At the parting festival I, wdio otherwise seldom appeared as a speaker, was asked to propose a toast — a request which from my position among the ' promoti,' I could scarcely decline. My speech was not long, and was naturally in the tone that prevailed during the course of the entertainments, perhaps somewhat more pointed than the others, which had the fortune to fall unnoticed into the sea of forgetfulness. I concluded with a verse by K. Vetterhoff in which he calls for a toast 'to our memories all, and to the time that has been and the time that shall come, if only it does not bring Finland's fall, a toast to the days of memory that have fled and the hope that still remains.' ' " The preceding part of my speech was a repetition of the same clearly very prudent, sensible, and resigned sentiment which the verse contained, naturally embel lished according -to use and wont to some inconsiderable extent with such flourishes as intelligent practical folk describe as ' rhetorical tropes.' It is well known that such figures of speech are as indispensable to a speaker, especially to a speaker at such an entertainment, as salt is to meat."

" Either it was the case that I now ' salted ' too much, or that the temper of the guests from the long continued feasting had become more than usually recep- I.] AN AFTER-DINNER SPEECH. 15 tive of the impressions of the moment. At all events my words were received with a storm of applause from one quarter, mixed with a prudent dissent from another. The affair, however, would certainly have passed un observed, like so many other similar effusions on such occasions, if a highly-esteemed, warm-hearted, and patri otic academic teacher, Professor Cygnæus, had not been seized with the insane and impolitic idea of seeking, while the temper of the meeting was so heated, to counteract the unfavourable impression the behaviour of the youth might make in higher quarters by a speech directed against some verses read a short time before at a student festival at Hasselbacken, in which J. G. Carlen said of Finland : ' Soon a gilded nest of thraldom.' An historian of literature now made Carlen a representative of opinion in Sweden, and our guests were reproached on account of his poetical effusions.