Part 5

Odde is situated at the most southern point of the Sör fjord—the last inland effort of the Hardanger; and we left it with regret, although we knew there was a new world before us in sea-coast experiences: the most bracing sea air, together with the excitement of putting into all kinds of out-of-the-way villages nestling behind headlands and huge bastions of gneiss, to protect them from the furious gales which lash this coast from the south-west. We therefore laid ourselves out for thorough enjoyment of steamboat travelling, aided all down the Hardanger by the clearest and most lovely weather. We proceeded down the Sör fjord, _en route_ to Eide, the boats coming off to the steamer at Utne. Some of the costumes were most brilliant in colour. One bright green bodice, the edging of which was blended with other colours, bore the palm, and everything bespoke joy save the face of the poor girl who wore it. She had come to see a brother start for America, and to wish him “God speed.” Then away we went from Eide down the Hardanger to Rosendal, under the Folgefond. We had looked forward to visiting Rosendal, as the last château of Norway. Unfortunately there was not sufficient time to land. Sometimes, late in the season, the steamers visit outlying spots for cargo, and then much may be seen, as, for instance, when the Bergen steamer calls at the sulphur mines of Varalsoe. On one of these occasions we not only had the opportunity of going up to the mines, but through them, as five hundred tons of ore were being shipped for England. Some people find the steamer journey wearying: there is, however, so much information to be gathered from those who come on board, generally for short distances, that the local details are always worth inquiring into.

The whole of the Hardanger is grand and impressive, the Folgefond, with its immensity of snow-spread, being the chief attraction. The peace of fine weather makes one almost incredulous of what it is when winter storms tear up the fjord, and the now unrippled surface is lashed into a fury which defies the stoutest hearts and boats.

We are nearing Bergen, and there is a flutter on board as the town first opens to view—_mirabile dictu_, without rain. On the port side is a fort, and apparently there are fortifications on the starboard bow too. At last we enter the town.

NORWEGIAN FAIRY AND SPIRIT LORE.

Before travelling farther we shall do well to prepare ourselves for any unexpected apparitions, should such be our good fortune. Let us then review their varieties, as we hear them described by some who believe they have seen them. They may be classified as follows:—

The _Trold_, or _Eventyr Trold_—_eventyr_ meaning “fairy tale”—is more frequently introduced into fairy tales than met by tourists, or even sportsmen: it is very shy of foreigners. This particular class is distinguished by having one, two, or three eyes, and sometimes one, three, six, or nine heads—a sort of giant, wild man, or inland Caliban of eighteen feet high.

[Music]

The _Bjerg Trold_, as the name suggests, frequents the mountains, and belongs to the same class as the former, though smaller, attaining a height of only twelve feet; in fact, it is a medium male ogre.

_The Huldre._—This is a great fairy-tale mystery—the refined beauty in peasant Hardanger costume, who sometimes appears—as mentioned in our notes on Thelemarken—at dances and festivities, turning the heads of all the beaux of the evening until, in some swing of the spring dance, her dread cow-tail is revealed, when she vanishes as the music of D. T. A. Tellefsen suggests, leaving many broken hearts behind her.

_Nökken._—Water sprites, generally depicted with Neptune crowns, grey beards, and seaweed garments.

_Nisser._—These are the mischievous little rascals who are always up to tricks here, there, and everywhere, and are closely allied to the sprites known in the Romsdal fjelds as the Höboken. These latter are seriously spoken of as existing, and having blue heads; and while up at the _sæters_ a spare place inside is invariably left for them by the _piger_. The Nisser are depicted with grey clothes, long beards, short bodies, and red caps; the shortness of the body recalling to our minds a remark of days gone by, “Perhaps Mr. Nobody did it.”

_Hauge folket_ are a combination of Huldre and Nisser.

_Tufti folket_ are a peculiar variety of Nisser.

_Drangen_ are the ghosts or spirits of drowned persons.

Having classified these mystic folk, we can only hope that the information we have culled from authentic and local sources will not only help those who have already read Norwegian legends, but give a zest to those that may be forthcoming in future translations. Those interested in early witches will find details of Craca, the witch of Norway, in Olaus Magnus, “De Gentibus Septentrionalibus,” a work probably well known to our immortal bard Shakspere, as Craca was great in using “venomous moisture of snakes.” A caldron, too, was the common instrument of witches, wherein they boiled juices, herbs, worms, and entrails for enchantments.

Norwegian fairy tales are numerous, and traces of Trold lore are found all through the provinces, and constantly referred to in every-day life; at least, so we found. It is, however, possible that “the wish was father to the thought,” and that we rather courted than avoided referring to them. Unfortunately they came not, although a rattle of flying rocks down a _couloir_ was always attributed to them. We shall not find them in Bergen, that is certain; only Huldre appears in public, and she coyly at the festivities: she delights not in war-paint, _gibuses_, or opera hats.

• • • • •

Olaf Kyrre, the old Norse king, built, or rather developed, Bergen into a town about 1070. Easy of access, and naturally adapted as a centre for trade, it has now become the most important commercial town of the west coast. The principal tradition of Bergen is, that ever since the introduction of umbrellas every little Bergenite has been presented with one as soon as born, another being bestowed by the godfathers and godmothers at confirmation; and it is only reasonable to suppose that at a wedding every one gives the bride a Sangster or a Gamp, according to circumstances. Anyhow, it is an indisputable fact that umbrellas are plentiful in Bergen, and, when not devoted to keeping off the rain, they serve as a screen against the occasional visits of the sun. No doubt this humidity is owing to the position of the town, which lies between two mountains not less than 2,500 feet high, upon and around which Jupiter Pluvius reigns supreme.

Passing from the climate, we must notice the town or city. Approaching it from the fjord, it looks picturesque and busy, with merchantmen, steam tugs, steam launches, and coasting steamers entering the harbour. On the left is the old castle or palace, with the remains of its banqueting hall, supposed to have been built by Olaf at the same time as the church. On the right is the landing-place for steamers, above which, on a part of the town abutting on the fjord and forming a continuation of the principal street, is a fort. Proceeding farther down the harbour, with the churches before us, on the left we pass the ship-building yard, and come upon a long line of white wooden houses with wharfs in front of them—a busy scene, fraught with energy and _bouquet de stokfiske_. Alongside lie the Nordland _jægts_, or vessels which bring the fish down dried from the Lofoden Islands, and their crews are in close commercial relationship with the owners of the white wooden structures which are known by the name of the Hanseatic Houses. Olaf Kyrre had favoured the Scotch with certain privileges for trading at Bergen, but in after years the Hanseatic League made great efforts in the same direction, and successfully; for in 1228 they settled and began to trade in Bergen, and by some extraordinary means ousted the Scotch and English entirely by 1312, when they were left in their trading glory. They soon developed the vast fishing trade of Nordland, and made Bergen the great commercial centre which it now is, receiving dried cod-fish and roes from the north. These are sent, in exchange for wine, corn, iron, and so forth, to Sweden, Denmark, Holland, Spain, England, and various parts of the Mediterranean, but especially to the Roman Catholic countries. Still, these German merchants were not entirely happy; they, the Hanseatics, located together on one side of the harbour, were not much liked by the youth and beauty of the Bergen proper side of the town, receiving from the Norske _piger_, or Bergen beauties, the characteristic and appropriate _sobriquet_ of “Pepper Youngsters” (_Pfeffer Junkers_), which still clings to them.

Bergen must have been very imposing in appearance in the old times, when the large Hanseatic craft were warping out of the entrance of the harbour, with their high quarter-deck and taffrail-deck lamps, squarely rigged three masts and steeving bowsprit, jack-yard and water-sail, long pennons and streamers from the yard-arms, the sides of the vessel falling well in, and the guns bristling to frighten any who might take a fancy to the good cargo on board. Now the Hanseatic League is a matter of ancient history, but it did its work well, and will not soon be forgotten. Bergen is at present the source of supply to all places to the north of it, and in itself is interesting to the visitor as being a centre of costume—that charming relic of days almost bygone, when each district had its distinctive dress and its special form of silver ornament, which, however quaint, or, to go further, even ugly, still commanded favour by the respect its presence offered to those who had gone before, and most likely had worn it. The costumes are well seen at the market, when the farmers, or _bönder_, come in with farm produce, bringing their wives and daughters, with the milk in wooden kegs formed like churns, with leather stretched over the top, and hoops pressed down tightly to keep it from spilling. These milk-cans are carried by the women on their backs, with straps or ropes, like knapsacks. One costume is very noticeable here, that of the fish-girls. It consists of a dark blue petticoat and jacket, a kind of Scotch bonnet well pulled over the head, with a white edging of cap coming a little down and showing all round, and roll upon roll of kerchief round their necks. Robust, pictures of health, and muscular, how they row! When their husbands or brothers are with them they row all the same, being quite capable of the first law of nature—self-preservation. They work hard and in earnest, and always look _bien soignées_. For flow of language the early fish market conveys a good idea of the activity of the tongue and power of gesticulation—features of life not common to Norway. The boats are all down below, and the purchasers, generally domestic servants, hang over the woodwork above, craning their necks and stretching down, pointing first to this, and then to that, and possibly pushed aside ere long by some one else worming in for a bargain.

In the meantime the fishermen in the boats are taking it very quietly, sorting their fish, feeling that their purchasers can be supplied _strax_. Now this word in the dictionary is described thus:—“_Strax_, directly or immediately.” Practically, in Norwegian life, the traveller finds that it is no such thing, _strax_ being a movable feast—so movable that it is impossible to say where it will be. It is not even so sure as the “Coming, sir,” mumbled by a flying waiter in the midst of a crowd of customers about one o’clock; for in the latter case, if you wait until two o’clock, you feel there is a probability looming, but with a Norwegian _strax_, especially if applied to getting horses for carrioles, it may be hours, or, in the words of what was thought a charming song in our younger days, though now half forgotten, “It may be for years, or it may be for ever.”

Bergen is especially associated with the registers of the sea serpent; therefore the subject should be referred to here. Crews and captains have voluntarily sworn to having seen in various parts of the ocean strange monsters of the deep, usually of serpentine form; and judging from the illustrations in that interesting work by Olaus Magnus the Goth, “De Gentibus Septentrionalibus” (dated A.D. 1530), the sea monsters depicted therein were enough to frighten any artist, particularly if he were on the spot where the said creatures were visible. Still many wonders of the deep may be studied with advantage at the Bergen Museum. Lately this institution has been brought prominently to light, thanks to the energy of M. Lorange, who has found a grand field for his enthusiasm in Scandinavian relics, flint implements, and specimens of the “glorious Viking period.” But we must not be carried away by this interesting topic from paying due attention to a strange-looking creature in this museum, which is kept in spirits and labelled—

“SILDE KONGE (_Gymnetrus Glesue Ascanius_).

“Length (dried), without tail, 12 feet. Depth, 1 foot. Head blunt, square. Bristles, or capillaries, 3 feet; 8 from above, 6 under the chin.”

The whales are very fine and enormous specimens, being eighty feet long. Why, then, should there not be gigantic _silder_? A Highlander was once speaking of the grandeur and size of Scotland, when a remark was made that the area was small. “Tout, tout, mon! But if you saw it rolled out, just think what it would be then!” So, were we to roll out a ninety-foot whale, should we not have as good a sea serpent as any newspaper might desire?

Now that costume is being fast swept away, the old silver of Norway bought up by travelling dealers for the town silversmiths to export, the old carving replaced by cheap feather-edge boarding, and the _mangel brats_ chased away by “Baker’s patent” or some other brand-new patent, a general national museum like this of Bergen becomes especially desirable, and even necessary, for retaining in the country itself its own characteristics. In flint weapons it is especially rich, thanks to M. Lorange, who has opened many tumuli with reverence and care, his perfect knowledge of the subject being a guarantee that nothing will be overlooked. Natural history, too, is well represented. The corals found at the entrances to the fjords are astonishing, immense, being more like shrubs in size. The Runic inscriptions and carvings, portals, and chairs are most interesting; while the church decorations of early Christian periods, the ironwork, arms, and numismatic records, so useful as collateral history and in the assignment or corroboration of the dates of tumuli, are well cared for. Most heartily, therefore, do we wish success to the national collection now so happily commenced, and so full of promise.

The somewhat modern appearance of Bergen and the absence of old wooden houses are attributable to the disastrous fires which have raged from time to time in different parts of the city; in fact, so much was destroyed by the great fire in 1702, that nearly the whole of the town has been rebuilt, except the old Hanseatic houses. Neither has Bergen escaped its share of scourges, for the black pestilence made sad havoc about 1348 or 1350, and the plague destroyed immense numbers about 1620.

Although Bergen is the most important fish mart in Norway, it will be better to give a detailed description of its working, extent, and season, when we arrive at the Lofoden fishing grounds and islands, and the coast of Heligoland and Salten. It seems curious that these slow-sailing _jægts_ should come five hundred miles with their cargo of fish, when Trondhjem, Molde, and Aalesund are close to hand; but on consideration it will be easily understood what an advantage it must be for them to get a quick and ready sale for their fish, and a selection of every kind of produce from the warmer climates of the Mediterranean, or even the West Indies. Whether articles of necessity or luxury, Bergen can supply anything, from a marlinespike to a sea serpent.

The museum of antiquities at Bergen now deserves attention, and in it the Nordfjord is brought especially before us, as we shall see hereafter. In the meantime we will turn to a few chronological landmarks in the early days of Gamle Norge, which will be most valuable, as the catena of Scandinavian history is complete in specimens of the different periods, corroborated by the archæological treasures of Denmark, now so admirably arranged by Professor Worsaae in the museum at Copenhagen, and the collection of antiquities at Stockholm. Having followed out these different periods, we need only casually refer to the objects themselves when we come to the districts where they were originally discovered or still exist.

_The Flint Period._—For a long time it was supposed that Norway had no stone period: now flint implements of beautiful surface and exquisite finish are found up to lat. 65°, beyond which, and near the North Cape, the implements are of hard schist, the local formation of that part. Among these specimens are found of arrow and spear heads, and knives. The hammers are generally made of whatever the rock of the country may be. This use of hard schist for stone implements is corroborated by discoveries in similar latitudes in Sweden and Finland. A very fine dolmen is still in existence at Frederickshald, in the south of Norway—a spot which, to judge from the number of tumuli in the neighbourhood, generally placed on rising ground within view of the sea, is a perfect cemetery. Their average height is about 3 feet 6 inches to 4 feet, and length about 35 feet. Near Stavanger the flint implements are of exquisite finish.

_The Bronze Period._—It is interesting to associate this period with two systems of burial, namely, Inhumation and Cineration.

_Inhumation._—Wooden coffin—a tree scooped out; at the bottom was placed a bullock’s skin, on which the hero was laid in his garments, and with his arms by his side. An instance occurred in which the following items were preserved quite perfectly:—A _vadmel_; a kind of Phrygian cap; a wool plaid and petticoat, or rather kilt, to the knee; a small box; a comb; and a bronze sword and knife. These, with a belt for the waist, convey a vivid idea of the costume of the period.

_Cineration._—Flint stones seem to have been the base of the grave, which was about seven feet long. Remains of cinders prove that the skin of some animal was first laid down, then the body with extra garments, in the cinders of which the bones were found, accompanied by a bronze sword, with sheath; two knives of bronze; and a cube of wood, not burnt. The bronze implements are so generally known that it is not necessary to illustrate them.

_The Iron Period._—During this period the tumuli were consumed on elevated positions within view of the sea; the bones discovered are burnt, the ashes being in urns. The objects burnt with them were generally small ornaments of bronze or iron, the workmanship of which betrays no Roman influence. Sometimes, also, glass vessels were consumed, as globules of melted glass have been occasionally found. In other cases the ashes are in bronze vases, showing a transition state. Should there, however, be any swords, they are bent and twisted, and are undoubtedly attributable to Roman influence, as some of the bronze vases bear Roman inscriptions. The next stage covered a large space, and was characterized sometimes by cineration, and sometimes by inhumation. In the latter case the objects are placed with great care after the old Roman manner, and consist of urns of burnt clay, bronze, and glass; ornaments, arms, &c. Here we have not only actual Roman work, but Norwegian imitations, such as bracteates, which have been found with Byzantine moneys struck about A.D. 450 or 500. This brings us to an important epoch in Scandinavian history, which is very ably described by Dexter Hawkins, Esq., in a pamphlet on the Anglo-Saxon Race, being an address read by him before the Syracuse University, June 21, 1875:—

“THE ANGLO-SAXON RACE.

“A providential event, not originating from themselves, but from a Roman emperor who intended no such results, occurred at the close of the third century, which, by directing the attention of the Saxons to maritime exploits on a larger scale, with greater prospects, and to more distant countries than before, exerted an important influence upon their own destiny and that of Europe, and finally of America.

“The Emperor Probus, harassed by the annual incursions of the barbarous hordes around the Euxine, now the Black Sea, transplanted a large body of various tribes, including Saxons from the vicinity of the Elbe, to that region to serve as a protection against future inroads. But the attachment of mankind to the scenes of their childhood, and their ardent longing when in foreign lands for the country their relatives inhabit, where their most pleasing associations have been formed, where their individual characters have been acquired, and customs like to their own exist, are feelings so natural to every bosom, and so common to every age, that it is not surprising that these exiles longed to return to their native wilds. Impelled by this desire, they seized the earliest opportunity of abandoning their foreign settlements and possessing themselves of the ships lying in the adjacent harbours; they formed the daring plan of sailing back to the Rhine, though they were more than two thousand miles distant by sea, with no charts, compass, or pilots, and ignorant of the many islands, and shoals, and currents of the Black and Mediterranean Seas. Compelled to land wherever they could for supplies, safety, and information, they ravaged the coasts of Asia and Greece. Arriving at Sicily, they attacked and plundered its capital with great slaughter. Beaten about by the winds, often ignorant where they were, seeking subsistence, pillaging to obtain it, and excited to new plunder by the successful depredations they had already committed, they carried their hostilities to several districts of Africa. They were driven off that continent by a force sent for that purpose from Carthage. Turning towards Europe, they passed the pillars of Hercules, sailed out into the Atlantic Ocean, rounded the Iberian peninsula, crossed the stormy Bay of Biscay, passed through the British Channel, and finally terminated their remarkable voyage by reaching their fatherland at the mouth of the Elbe.