The Lake County star. [volume] (Chase, Mich.) 1873-current, 1874-09-24
The Icelandic nillenniaI.

The Cleveland Herald contains the
following very readable account of the
Icelandic Millennial celebration, c.llated
from the voluminous letters of Bayard
Taylor and DIR. Isaac l. Hayes:
"The first days celebration was at the
seaport of Bejkiavik, the capital of the
Island, the programme including COM
memorative services in the cathedral,
banquet in the hall of the University,
and popular festival on hill at dis
lance from the town, in which there were
songs and speeches and dancing, the
whole winding up with display Of fire.
works, or, to speak by the card, flying
fires The cathedral, a solid, respectable
looking building, without any pretense
10 architectural beauty, is large enough
to accommodate about fifteen hundred
people, and was closely packed. The
dull red interior was everywhere deco
rated with green, festoons of birch and
willow leaves woven with great skill,
ornamented the chancel and galleries,
while the altar and font were. loaded
with flowers from private gardens, and
lights burned in the chandeliers, on the
altar, and between the gallery pillars.
The people were in holiday dress, most
of the men in brown suits and the women
with more or less modernized dresses
many wore square bodices of some dark
color, gown with many plaits about the
waist, with bright blue or red aprons.
Nearly all had fiat cap--or rather cir
cular piece of black cloth on the top of
the head, with long black tassel on one
side, hanging from silver or gilded cy-
lindrical ring, an inch or two in length,
like those which the women of Cairo
wear over the nose, to hold the veil in
its place. Some of the girls had their
hair braided, but many wore it loose. A
few genuine Icelandic costumes appeared,
the women wearing white helmets of a
curious pattern, the horn curving over in
front, six inches above the head, the base
richly embroidered with gold, and
white veil thrown over all and floating
upon the shoulders, closely-fitting jackets
of dark cloth, heavily braided with gold
or silver, and broad belts of silver fila
gree work. The few men in the old cos
tune wore jacket and knee-breeches of
dark gray home-spun cloth, stockings of
the same cloth, seal-skin shoes, and a
round hat with the brim turned up
The only ornament was bow of red
ribbon at the knee.
The Danish King entered the building
at ten o'clock in the morning, when the
services commenced, after the ancient
Lutheran fashion, and conducted i'm the
Icelandic language. The greater part of
the service consisted of singing, q num-
Der of new anthems having been COM
posed for the occasion. An exceedingly
prosy sermon in Icelandic was preached
by Bishop Pjetursson, after which the
event of the morning took place-the
singing of the Psalm of Praise writ
ten and composed for the occasion, and
the first musical work by native Ice
lander. The anthem referred to the com.
pletion of the thousand years of Ice
lands national life, expressed gratitude
to God for the past, and aspirations for
national greatness in the future. The
effect of this anthem upon the hearers is
described as very great. Tears were
everywhere visible. DR.. Hayes says it
was an event in ones life to have wit
messed such thousand heart gushing as
came forth with the chorus, 'Islauds
Thusand Ar 'Icelands Thousand
Yearso. Even the crowd about the
doorway who could not gain access to the
church took itup, and the glorious m, sic
swelled away over the green and was
echoed by the crags; and then all was
still rs if it were calm following a
great storm, and in the midst of it the
King, evidently touched, walked down
the aisle, in the great solemn stiffness,
and this first act of the celebration of
the thousandth anniversary Of Iceland
was at an end.
The banquet in the afternoon was
stag party with the exception of the
Governors wife. Nearly all the materi-
ais for the feast were brought with the
Kings party from Copenhagen, and wine
was not lacking. The first toast was
proposed by the King, and was TO the
honor of Old Iceland No sooner had
his lips pronounced the words and
touched the glass than artillery on shore
and in the harbor gave signal that the
King drinks' and the festive party re-
sponded with loud cheers, the King
waving his glass and leading the cheer
ing. The scene was suggestive of the
time when the Danish King Claudius
took his rouse"
"And as he drains his draught of Rhenish down,
The kettle-drum and trumpet thus bray out -
The triumph of his pledge"
A custom of the country, Hamlet re-
marked, more honored i'm the breach
than in the Observance After this toasts
and speeches followed, and all present
had Jolly time though it was Sunday
afternoon. In the evening there was an
open air celebration on the hill, in which
there came more speaking and singing,
among other things being the reading of
apOem written by Bayard Taylor for the
occasion, and translated into Icelandic
by the chief poet of the Island. The
flying fires was about as successful as
such affairs usually are, the enjoyment
being more in the anticipation than in
the performance.
"The second day of the formal cele-
bration was on Friday, the 9TH of Au-
gust, and the festivities were held in the
plain of Thingvalla, the ancient seat of
the Icelandic Government, surrounded
by Withholding mountains. The historic
Hill of the Law, where for nearly nine
hundred years the Althinger Popular
Assembly held its meetings, and the
Mound of the Judges, whence justice
was dispensed, are in this plain, and on
the Mound the closing acts of the cele-
bration were to take place.
From all parts of the island crowds
had thronged to the Thingvalla plain.
Tents were pitched all over the valley
and on the rocky, grass-topped nights.
Camp fires burned in all directions, flags
ofthe several nations represented futtered
in the chilly breeze, and over the Mount
of the Law waved the ancient banner of
Iceland-a white falcon in blue field.
The arrival of the King on Thursday
evening was marked by an improvised
demonstration. A guard of imposing
looking Icelandic farmers was chosen
from the crowd and met the King about
a mile from the lava field, and on his be-
ing conducted by them to the camping
ground, he was received with a short
speech and tremendous cheering, after
which twenty-four girls came forward,
scattering the native flowers of Iceland