Under the Rays of the Aurora Borealis: in the land of the Lapps and Kvæns [Translated from the Norwegian and] edited by C. Siewers

Front matter

■ 1 ■ I ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ < I t ■ m m ■ m r ■ "Vine ant Bro oks 1) ay Sr S on lith. LAPP BRIDAL COUPLE. Vol I. UNDEK THE RAYS OF THE AURORA BOREALIS IN THE LAND OF THE LAPPS AND KVÆNS. BY SOPHUS TROMHOLT. ORIGINAL EDITION, WITH A MAP, AND 150 ILLUSTRATIONS, PORTRAITS, DIAGRAMS, Ste, FROM PHOTOGRAPHS AND DRAWINGS BY THE AUTHOR. EDITED BY CARL SIEWEES. IN TWO VOLUMES.— Voi-, I. LONDON : SAMPSON LOW, MARSTON, SEARLE, AND EIVINGTON, CROWN BUILDINGS, 188, FLEET STREET. 1885. I All rights reserved.} LONDON : PRINTED BY WILLIAM CLOWES AND SONS, LIMITED, STAMFORD STREtT AXD CHARING CROSS.

Preface

. By the present work the Author has the honour to present himself to the British public. Some thirty years ago he lay crying in his cradle in the little village of Husum, in Schleswig ; the first years of never-to-be-forgotten youth were spent in " the Little Land by the Sound," and the last score of his years have been passed amongst the mountains of Old Norway. Although he cried in the cradle — and who does not ? — his principle is that life has more bright than dark sides, and that although it sometimes rains, sunshine follows. As to his personal appearance, he begs leave to refer those curious to his portrait as he appears on the last page of this work. So much for personalia. And now a few words on behalf of the book which he ventures to lay before the reader. It is not a scientific treatise, nor a novel, but merely a modest narrative of a year's sojourn in the distant regions of Ultima Thule ; not related with pedantic pro lixity or tedious erudition, but sketched, as far as in his power, with light and rapid strokes.

At the same time, the Author trusts that the reader will not throw away the book in disgust because he finds it lacking Preface. IV the brightness, or interest, of other travelling accounts he has read, but will peruse it to the end, as it deals with a land and a race amongst whom the ordinary traveller but rarely sets foot, or, at all events, but rarely has an opportunity of spending the long, dark Polar night. On the other hand, the weirdness of Nature in these regions, and the peculiar characteristics of the fast-dying race of only nomads in Europe, may well claim a few moments' attention. It was as participator in the work of the International Polar Eesearch Expeditions of 1882-83 that the Author visited the most distant regions of the European con tinent. His task was to effect observations of the re markable phenomenon known as the Aurora Borealis, or Northern Lights, and, principally, in conjunction with the Norwegian station at Bossekop, in Einmarken, and the Finnish one, at Sodankyla in the very heart of the wilds of Finland, to effect measurements for determining the height of the phenomenon above the earth's crust.

He chose, as the most favourable spot for his re searches, the lonely and desolate Lapp settlement of Koutokæino, far beyond the pale of civilisation, on the Russo-Norwegian frontier. He took with him thither a photographic apparatus, by the aid of which the light in these high latitudes has delineated the accompanying illustrations, which may contribute to enhance the interest and promote the instructiveness of the book. As regards the former, he may be permitted to point out, that they form the sole complete collection of its Preface. V kind in existence of life, people, and nature in the Land of the Lapps and Kvæns. The map which accompanies the work does not claim absolute geographical accuracy, particularly as far as the interior is concerned, as no official survey map of these regions exists.

It was drawn by the Author from the most reliable sources, and is intended only to serve as a guide map for the reader. With reference to the spelling of Lappish and Finnish words and names, the Author has, in this instance, deemed it most practical to adhere to the mode followed by the Teutonic race, as far as it permits, as the Lapps and Finns have letters and articulate sounds foreign to any other tongue ; while where objects have a Norwegian as well as a Swedish denomination, the former has been adopted, but this does not apply to geographical names. With these explanatory remarks of introduction, the reader is presented with ' Under the Rays of the Aurora Borealis.' Sophus Tromholt. ADDENDUM. " I trust you will not ' kill ' me in the translation, even if my ideas and expressions may seem bizarre.

Le style c'est Thomme." So wrote Mr. Tromholt to me from the Arctic regions. The fact is, that not being sufficiently acquainted with the English language to enter upon writing his narrative in the tongue of the Briton, I called upon the distin guished savant to clothe his thoughts and ideas in that which is most allied to the same, viz., the Norwegian, whence I undertook to transcribe them into the former. Whilst it is obvious that the book cannot, in the strict sense of the word, be said to be a literal translation, I have, in executing my share of the task, adhered as faithfully as possible to the above request, and only effected such alterations and " pruning " as would, in my judgment, enhance the interest and value of the production. The result is the present work. Carl Siewers. CONTENTS. PACE Preface .. .. .. .. .. .. ., ..iii Addendum .. .. .. .. .. .. .. tl vii List of Illustratioks .. .. .. .. .. ..xiii

Chapter I. From Bergen To Alten

Good-bye to the City of Jupiter Pluvius — The Skjærgaard— Magnificent Scenery — The Great Cathedral City of Norway — Griffenfeldt — A Touch of the Arctic Ocean — A Romantic Bit of Norse Folklore — Crossing the " Circle " — The Lofodden Islands — The Great Fisheries — A Picture of Norse Fishing Life — " Paris of the North " — My Welcome from the Aurora Borealis .. .. .. .. l

Chapter II. Bossekop And Alten

An Oasis in the Fab North — The Church of Rome in Ultima Thule — The Bossekop Fairs — Scientific Reputation — The International Polar Research Expedition, 1882-83 — Their Work — Remarkable Contrasts of Temperature in the Arctic Regions — The Norwegian Circdmpolar Station at Bossekop — Midnight at a Circumpolar Station — Science Calls! 32

Chapter III. From Bossekop To

KOUTOKÆINO. Encountering Troubles — The Mail in Lapland — We Start at Last — A Dreary Ride — A Surprise in the Finmarken Wilderness — " Little " Jossa — A Sad Landscape — A Refuge on Contents. X PAOE the Mountain— Another Dreary Ride— A Strange Camp — Donning Lapp Dress — On a Lapland River — A Fatiguing Journey — A Weird Night-scene by the River — Oil ! Oil ! Oil !— A Pleasant Night— My First Visit to a Lapp Tent- Arriving at my Scientific Goal .. .. .. .. •• So

Chapter IV

koutokæino. In the Regions of Sand — Glacial Action — Sad Surroundings — An Old Lapp Cemetery — My Quarters at Koutokæino — Lapp Dwellings— Peculiar Stores and Hayricks — Shut out from the World — Fresh Newspapers — Hospitality in the Frigid Zone — A Vicarage ln the Land of the Lapps — " Sproite " — Favourable Situation of Koutokæino — Marvellous Display of Aurora Borealis — An Event in Lapp History — My Mysterious Paraphernalia — Astonishment and Terror — Photographic Surprises — Work in the Cold — Sport .. .. .. •• .. .. .. •• •• 75

Chapter V

KOUTOKÆINO IN NOVEMBER. Lapland under Snow — Nature's Slumber — Silence, Desolation, Death — Good-bye to the Sun— Nature's Nocturnal Display — Sentimental Thoughts in my Solitude — Arctic Cold — My Winter Dress — Night Work under 50° of Frost — What do we Burn? — Want of Snow — Alarming Prospects — Reinforcements — A Strange Scene by the River — Terrible Fire at Koutokæino — The Moral .. .. .. .. .. 94

Chapter VI

A VISIT TO A REINDEER CAMP. In Darkness — Reindeer in Harness — Lapp Vehicles — Puzzles OF PULK-DRIVING — We ARE OFF AT LAST — My FlRST EXPERIENCE of a Pulk — Who Guides ? — Our Appearance at our Destination — Welcome to the Tent of the Mountain* Lapp — Limited Accommodation — Lapp Toilet — Domestic Utensil — Life in a Tent — Funny Dogs— Entering a Tent — Preparation for a Lait Dinner — The Butcher in Furs — Hungry Dogs — Contents. XI FACE 159 Great Expectations— A Smile at Last— The Dinner — The Pipe — Bundling — A Strange Bedroom — Guarding the Herd — A Grand Scene — Lassoing Reindeer — Milking — A Lapp " At Home" — Reflections in a Tent — The Drive Home .. .. 105

Chapter VII. About The Lapps

Confusing Denominations — The Area of Lapland— Divisions of the Race — The Wanderings of the Lapps — Precarious Existence — Wretched Living — The Stay on the Arctic Coast — Reindeer Swimming — The Kvæns — Their Descent — A Lapp's Travelling Outfit — Splendid Walkers — The " Ski " — Tremendous Speed— River Communication — Shooting the Rapids — Marvellous Boatmen — Domestic Relationship — Lapp Dress — Female Clothing — How the Babies are Carried — Their Heirlooms — The Protection of the " Komse "—The Games of Lapp Children — Ingratitude towards Parents — Servants — Physical Characteristics — Wrestling — " Cleanliness is next to Godliness " — Pedicclus — Welcome at a Tent — Keen Humorists — Immorality — Love of Silver — Banking — Drink — " Never be in a Hurry " — Good-tempered People — True Children of Nature 124

Chapter VIII. About The Reindeer

Their- Importance to the Lapp — Remarkable Yield — Build and Appearance— Strange Shape of Horns — Their Growth — Reindeer versus Stag — Curious Mark of Ownership— Fodder —Reindeer Feeding— Tame or Wild ?— Breaking-in a Reindeer—A Fine Herd— A Splendid Forest Scene— A Comic Incident— Size of Herds— A Rich Lapp — Enormous Totals — Precariousness of Reindeer-Raising— Enemies of the Deer- Travelling with Reindeer— Travellers' Tales — The Speed IN Bad Weather — An Experience to be Remembered — Marvellous Faculty of Orientation— A Night in the Snow The Slaughtering Season — Oestrus tarandi — Killing a Reindeer— A Cruel Method— Lapp Dainties— Charms of the Northern Regions— The Camel of the Arctic Desert Contents. XII

Chapter IX. In The Land Of The Lapps At Christmas

PAGE Night in Mind and Nature — A Great Temptation — A Travelling Epidemic— Longing for the South — My Chronometer Remonstrates — A Soliloquy during the Polar Night — The Cither Pleads — The Chronometer again Remonstrates — The Musical Box Interposes — Days of Depression — A Welcome Arrival — A Grand Pyrotechnic Display — Terror of the Lapps — How the Dead are Disposed of — It i-> Christmas Eve ! — It is Christmas Day ! — Festive People — A Christmas Service — Lapps Singing — Want of Musical Ear — " Juoiking " — A Strange Sermon — Fanatical Emotions — Remarkable Absence of Tradition — Baptizing — Names — The Funeral Service — A Sacrilegious Duty — Risk of Disturbing the Dead — A Night Expedition to a Lapp Graveyard — Waiting for the Ghost — The Chronometer to the Rescue — A Lapp Wedding — Lovely Costumes — A Splendid Crown — The Bridal Procession — Visit to the Bridal House — Celebrating a Wedding — BRaEndetjn — Unsentimental Lovers — " Popping " the Question — A Man of Business — Is the Lapp a Drunkard ? — A Lapp School — Progress of Education — Lapp Vestry Meetings — The Mysterious Stranger from the South — " Oiling " makes Friends — Silence Looms again over the Land — Promise of Dawn . . . . . . . . . . 174

Chapter X. On The Aurora Borealis

192 1. Principal Forms of the Aurora Borealis .. ... .. 195 2. Classification of Forms . . . . . . . . . . . . 209 Auroral Arcs .. .. .. .. .. .. 209 Auroral Bands .. .. .. .. .. .. .. 214 Auroral Streamers .. .. .. .. .. .. 218 The Auroral Corona .. .. .. .. ., .. 220 Auroral Clouds . . . . . . . . . . , . . . 223 Auroral Waves .. .. .. .. .. ., 224 3. My Observations at Koctokæino . . . . . . 228 4. The Geographical Extension of the Aurora Borealis .. 239 5. The Height of the Aurora Borealis .. .. .. 250 6. The Periods of the Aurora Borealis . . . . . . 260 7. The Periodical Movements of the Auroral Zone .. .. 267 8. General Observations on the Influences, the Sound, etc., of the Aurora Borealis .. „ ., .. .. LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS.

TAGE Frontispiece. torghatten . . . . . . . . . .13 De Syv Sostre (The Seven Sisters). ..... 15 Hestmanden (The Man on Horseback) . . . . .10 Fish on "Hjæld" 26 View of Tromso 29 The Catholic Church in Tromso . . . . . .31 View of Bossekop ......... 34 The Church in Alten 35 The Catholic Mission Building in Alten .... 36 View from the Sandfald in Alten 37 The Market-place at Bossekop ...... 37 The Norwegian Circumpolar Station at Bossekop, looking West ........... 48 The Thermometer Cage ........ 52 The " Hotel " at Gargia 59 Johannes Abrahamsen Motka — My Trusted Companion and Friend . . 60 Young Lapp from Koutok.elno . 61 A Halt by the ' ' Gamme " at Loddika 63 A Lapp Boat ... 68 From the Sandy Regions at Koutokæino . . 76 The Church at Koutokæino ....... 78 The Cemetery at Koutokæino. . . .... 79 The New School House at Koutokæino . . 80 The Residence of the " Lensmand " at Koutokæino . . 81 Lapp Farm at Koutokæino .... . . 82 A Lapp " Stolpebod "........ 83 Earth Gamme at Koutokæino 84 Lapp Hayrick .......... 85 In Koutokæino Vicarage 87 My Auroral Station at Koutokæino ... .92 Koutokæino Under Snow. ..... .95 List of Illustrations.

XIV PAGE Reindeer and Pulk • 106 Lapp Tent 114 A Reindeer Camp . . . . . . . . • 120 Mountain Lapps from Koutokæino . . . . • .125 Lapp Family and Tent from Koutokæino . . . 127 Four of My Lapp Friends . . . . . . .131 Young Lapp from Koutokæino. ...... 133 A Group of Lapp " Beauties " . . . . . . . 134 A "Ski" Runner 136 Per Andersen Bæhr ........ 137 Johannes Persen Pentha (45) 138 Birret Mikkelsdatter Hætta (20) . . . . - . . 139 Aslak Johannsen Bals (35) 143 Karasjok Woman 146 Woman with Baby in " Komse " . . . . . .149 Brita Olsdatter Nango, and Baby 150 MlKKEL JOSAFSEN NeCKELA ....... 153 Karen Aslaksdatter Eira, Ravdua Andersdatter Somby, Kirsten Pedersdatter Bals . . . . . .156 Mattis Johannsen Hætta (60).

A Settled Lapp . . .157 Tethered Reindeer ......... 160 A Reindeer Herd Feeding . . . . . . .164 Outside Koutokæino Church on Christmas Morning . . 180 The Interior of Koutokæino Church 182 Lapp Bride and Bridegroom from Koutokæino . . .186 The Two Lapp Teachers at Koutokæino. .... 190 Aurora Borealis at Bossekop, January 6, 1839. 6h. 4m. p.m. 205 Aurora Borealis at Bossekop, January 16, 1839. 10h. 5m. p.m. 210 Phases of an Auroral Arc (Figs. 1-3) 212 Phases of an Auroral Arc (Figs. 4-6) 213 Aurora Borealis at Bossekop, January 21, 1839. 6h. 0m. p.m. 215 Figure 7 . . 217 Aurora Borealis at Koutokæino, October 6, 1882. 7h. 57m. p.m. 223 Figure 8 224 Aurora Borealis at Koutokæino, October 6, 1882. 9h. 30m. p.m. 226 Aurora Borealis at Koutokæino, October 15, 1882. 5h. 30m. p.m. 229 Figure 9 231 Auroral Corona at Koutokæino, November 18, 1882. 9h. 50m. p.m. 235 Aurora Borealis at Koutokæino, February 4, 1883. 5h. 55m. p.m. 237 Facsimile of an Old Drawing of Lapps Hunting by the Aurora Borealis 238 Figure 10 240 Figure 11. 249 Figure 12. 253 Figure 13. • • • • ■ • ■ • .

List of Illustrations. XV PAGE Figuee 14 257 Figures 15-17 263 Figures 18-20 264 Figure 21 265 Figure 22 269 Figure 23 271 Figure 24 279 Figure 25 282 Map. Guide to the Mai.

Chapter I. From Bergen To Alten

Good-bye to the City of Jupiter Pluvius — The Skjærgaard — Magnificent Scenery — The Great Cathedral City of Norway — Griffenfeldt — A Touch of the Arctic Ocean — A Romantic Bit of Norse Folkelore — Crossing the " Circle " — The Lofodden Islands — The Great Fisheries — A Picture of Norse Fishing Life — " Paris of the North " — My Welcome from the Aurora Borealis. It was midnight on August 24, 1882, when I came on board the mail steamer at Bergen, which was to carry me on my long journey to the North along the rugged shores of Old Norway. It rained, of course. It always rains, as is generally known, in Bergen, but it pours in torrents when one sets out on a journey. To sentimental natures there may be something sublime in seeing the very heavens weeping in the sad moments of parting, but to those with a less poetic temperament the prospects of wet feet and neuralgia have a most decidedly opposite effect. vol. I. b When I said just now, that it always rains in Bergen (and on this subject I may meet with sympathy from the dwellers in the British Islands), it was, of course, with licentia poetica, as the meteorological tables tell us that it does not rain or, at all events, only spits for about 100 to 150 days of the year.

Yes, it may even happen that a man desirous of a stroll may leave his umbrella at home for an entire month, and I may mention that it was such a phenomenon which some years ago allured me into contributing a modest article to one of the Bergen dailies : " No more rain in Bergen." For my indiscretion I had to endure chaff from friend and foe, and, to crown it all, the next day Jupiter Pluvius began to open his sluices with a perseverance and determination which caused even the amphibious Bergener to turn his eyes to the East in despair. If all the water which pours into Bergen in a twelvemonth remained, not a single soul would be alive by Christmas, as during that space of time the heavens deposit a layer of water close upon six feet in depth ! If you wish to visit Bergen, do not go on a rainy day when the clouds lie dull and heavy with rain over the house tops, and when the whole atmosphere is a mass of watery dust — Bergen will then remind you of a tipsy man just saved from drowning.

But only enter the town on one of the hundred days, when the ladies exchange their umbrellas for the sun shade ! Then you will find the remarkable old Hanseatic town of Norway, nestling between its seven mountains, attractive and interesting enough. Within this frame unpretentious and poor in appearance, you will then discover vistas so full of beauty and originality that not a town in all Scandinavia can boast their equal. The eye is constantly attracted by the motley crowd of peasants who throng the long, narrow Strandgade, Strand, where it seems as if the Norwegian peasants possessing the most vivid and picturesque National costumes had met by appointment, while the mind rests with interest and delight on the busy commer cial life teeming in the harbour, the streets, and on 'change. And, should the visitor be fortunate enough to visit one of the pretty, bright villas which peep smilingly from the verdant surroundings of the town, he will find that kind-heartedness and hospitality are but little affected by six feet of water, but seem, in fact, like the flora of the town, to thrive doubly thereon.

And, though I admit that the environs of the town cannot bear comparison with those of some other towns in Norway, one need only travel a few miles to alight on scenery which would excite enthusiasm in the most blasee nature. In the Bergen's Stift all the beauties of nature which Norway possesses in various localities have been concen trated in one province : here may be found the grand, the wild, the imposing as well as the lovely, the soft, and the charming features of nature blended together in perfect harmony. Yonder you have the magnificent falls, .the snow-white glaciers, the lofty mountains — and before you, verdant fields charm the eye in pleasing contrast with the pensive fjord and the restless brook. What tourist has not heard of the two famous fjords, the one south the other north of Bergen, where nature has so b lavishly expended her gifts : the imposing Sognefjord, the soft, dreamy Hardangerfjord ?

And these charming bits of scenery have this advantage over those in southern climes, that they lack the varnish of modern civilisation, viz., " Grand " hotels, waiters ancl " tips." But our journey is to the Land of the Lapps ! During the first part of the route, when steaming along the coast of Norway, we catch but few glimpses of the magnificent nature which hides in the deep fjords. Nearly everywhere in the south of Norway the shores are barren and uninteresting, for on one side of the narrow channel, which runs along the coast right away from the Swedish frontier, by Fredrikshald, nearly to the North Cape, lies the mainland and on the other a regular chain of islands and holmes forming a bulwark against the ocean. This chain is the Shjærgaard. Eight or left the view is equally monotonous.

It is first when the little village of Floro lies behind us that we first encounter an interesting point on the route, viz., the grand mountain of Hornelen. Almost perpendicularly its granite wall springs from the ocean to a heio-ht of more than three thousand feet ; the steamer passes rio-ht under it, and threateningly it rears its head above us with weird forms and juttings, which change their fantastic appearance as the vessel moves onward. A few miles further north we have Norway's, most western promontory, Stat, of which few travellers can speak, as the absence of the protecting Skjæro*aard here exposes the steamer to the full fury of the Arctic Ocean which drives most people to rueful reflections on the littleness of human nature in the recesses of the frail craft. Three times I have had the honour of passing this terrible promontory, but each time I have been unable to see it, for the above-mentioned reason.

I therefore trust to be excused from describing it. When, after some hours, Stat is passed, the route lies again for a long time in the quiet waters behind the Skjærgaard, and now the poor sufferers in the clutch of Neptune creep feebly on deck to inhale the soft, fresh air. Little as I know of Stat, I can say no more of the next town where we call, Aalesund. Some straggling houses line the harbour where we cast anchor, but as these can only accommodate some sixty souls, those of the re maining 5,540, which we are told the town boasts, must be sought elsewhere. More attractive is the next town, Molde. As a busy ant-hill greets the wanderer in a lonely forest, the little town hails the visitor from behind the broad, fertile shore with its foliferous trees. It nods smilingly to the lovely forest-covered islands dotting the mirror-like fjord, nods, too, to the sombre Alpine peaks, the Romsdalsfjælde, whose lofty mountain range encircles this magnificent panorama.

In the mountains cone follows cone in perfect order, some showing weird outlines, others dotted with white patches of glittering snow. But we have not time to dwell long in this inviting spot ; only a passing glance may we cast at the attractive views which greet us on our lengthy journey by the coast. We hasten onward ; but still one feels inclined to envy the seventeen hundred inhabitants of Molde, who have such a view before them every day. Some hours' steam further, and we are in Christian sund, a kind of miniature Venice, as the town lies on three islands, between which little steamers and boats ply. Each of the islands is fearfully hilly, for which reason the houses have been laid wherever possible, but the well-meant attempts to make streets ought rather to have been confined to the cutting of stairs.

But a lively, bold commercial life teems on sea and land, and the town boasts a wealth and prosperity, attained by its great export of Klipfisk, salt fish, to Spain, which is excelled by few towns in Norway. We continue the journey, and speed past mountains and barren islands, between which the ocean is seen from time to time, until we arrive in the broad Trondhjems fjord. A couple of hours after we are in Trondhjem, Norway's largest town, after Christiania and Bergen. Here the steamer stays some time, which enables us to have a look at the town. I must really confess that Trondhjem surprised me. Some years ago I had seen the town under a three-days' steady downpour with the temperature near freezing-point ; it formed then but a cheerless, unattractive picture. How different was the impression of the three sunny autumn days of my last visit, while the steamer lay moored in the harbour !

The broad, cheerful streets planted with trees on both sides, under which one feels as if they had smiled benignantly on one's youthful frolics ; the rich and magnificent surroundings of the town, which make the visitor forget that he is in the " Land of Stone" and within two degrees of the Polar Circle ; the gleam of historical romance which the famous old cathedral and the fortress of Munkholmen, looming yonder in the midst of the dark fjord, shed over the town ; the change from the monotonous voyage — all contributed, with the flood of sunlight in which the town lay basking, to make the stay in Trondhjem one of the most charming incidents of my journey. Trondhjem appears more European than one might imagine from its northern position and comparative smallness, but it lies, through railway communication, several days nearer Christiania and Stockholm than, for instance, Bergen.

On the other hand, Trondhjem cannot boast the typical National life, the commercial vitality, which charms the visitor in Bergen ; but then he will find more comfort, more of the attractions of southern towns in Trondhjem, while Bergen does not possess the pleasing neighbourhood and broad streets of the northern city. The celebrated old cathedral, the most remarkable and finest gothic edifice in Scandinavia, how it shines in adversity ! But whatever the Vandal und the ravages of time have destroyed, tbe remains speak still of the work of art which was here raised from stone, while the finely executed works of skilful restoration in progress display the most magnificent fragments of gothic architecture ever executed, and promise that the whole edifice of a thousand years shall some day again raise its cupola proudly to the sky, demonstrating that the fine artistic taste of the Nineteenth Century has superseded the barbarism of the Mediæval Age.

By the perfect restoration of the Cathedral of Trondhjem one of the purest and most magnificent works of gothic art in Europe will stand revealed to view. But accompany me on an excursion from Trondhjem ! Through green, undulating hills, such as are rarely seen in North Norway, past inviting villas with floral gardens, between close hedges where the mountain ash proudly displays its purple berries in tempting clusters, runs the road to the imposing waterfall, Lerfossen. Twice the river Nidelven plunges over the precipice, forming the two remarkably pretty waterfalls some hundred yards apart. The upper fall parts into two arms ; a big saw mil] has been built alongside one of them : the sun's rays, which, from the bed of the oceau, lifted the drops, now ground into snowy froth, are here made productive of labour — of money.

One day I was rowed out to Munkholmen, the old for tress on a rock in the fjord, which is connected with one of the darkest pages in Scandinavian history. Here in a lonely, narrow cell lingered for eighteen terrible years (1680-98) Christian V.'s famous minister Griffenfeldt, a statesman whom all Europe had honoured as the most gifted of his age. What was his crime ? The historical Muse sadly droops her head in silence. Only the wounded vanity of a weak sovereign and the intrigues of those who envied him caused Griffenfeldt to fall from the eminent position which he had attained by the brilliancy of his genius in so remarkably short a time — to fall into the most terrible misery. What inhuman cruelty to condemn this fertile brain to inaction, to slow death, within four bare walls ! It was like depriving the gifted painter of his hands, the famous singer of his voice.

Justly the great statesman exclaimed, when, on the scaffold, the messenger brought the tidings of the king's " pardon ": — " The pardon is severer than the penalty ! " The building in which Griffenfeldt was confined is a large, round tower, the remains of a Norman church, which was formerly connected with a convent here. From tlie outside it resembles a circus or some amphitheatre. It consists of two concentric walls with a cylindrical tower in the centre, and outside this a low, covered corridor. But few relics remain of Griffenfeldt. The window through which he watched the purple sun set in the dark fjord for so many years, two rusty bars, and some bits of wirework — these are all the visible remains of a great man whom a barbarous age imprisoned here. It seems almost as if every effort had been made to efface all traces of the inhuman cruelty with which king and country rewarded Griffenfeldt.