The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1883-07-31
A SWEDISH SERVANT.
By CAROLINE B. LEIGHTON.

By CAROLINE &. LEIGHTON,
We found her at an employment
Office. just arrived from Sweden. Al
I noticed her sunny hair and blut
eyes and etrong, free step, thought
Of what some one said Of Jenny Lind
that she ought to have been called
the Swedish Lioness, rather than the
Swedish Nightingale, from the free.
dom and strength ,ot her bearing,
Not able to speak word of English
she sat looking at me with such con.
fident blue eyes that NO one could
feel otherwise than kindly towards
her, when the world seemed to her
such fair, honest place.
She held out little book, printed
in Swedish and English, by which we
were to converse together. I looked
it over and saw thas it contained d.
reotions. given to servants in their
own country, by which they were to
conduct themselves. Among other
things they were told to ''slep softly,
move lightly, ard desire nothing"
After | came to know more of her
intensely social nature, I often won.
dered how she survived the first few
Weeks, when we never attempted
anything more in the way of CONVEX.
sation tbao "cup," plate" etc. Al
length in al outburst of desperation
she exclaimed, 81 want to taIkl" Sc
did We, but the difficulty was how tC
begin. She solved it herself by ask,
ing if we knew George Washington
and Benjamin Franklin. We in re-
turn asked if she knew Lip@us anC
ISWedenborg, to both of which ques
tons she replied in the affirmative
and also recognized with delight {
picture of Luther. After this, con-
Versation became easy; she was 81
very apt and eager. She was soor
able to give little occoUnt of he
voyage; telling us hbR she with {
hundred other girls came ss steeragt
passengers oE a great steamer; ant
how, in leaving, they gang togethe
the FatEerlaud Song; and how tht
passengers On the upper deck al
clapped their hands. as we'll the
might If the voices were all like hers
They had great luncheon baskets
but she lost hers oVeroeard in {
storm, and also her hat. Now.
must every day say to someone
Please give me little bread. ," Ii
the storm she thought, "By and By
dead" Il ia wonderful, the courage
of these girls, starting alone for al
unknown world. Some of her friend
in Sweden, she said, thought that Il
come to America they would have Il
travel through the earth. But sht
had been taught otherwise at school
taught also to knit, embroider. Gro
Chef and make baskets. The dres
she had on she nad not only fttel
for herself, but had made the WooleI
cloth for it, and had woven her plaiC
shawl. She wore generally on be
head little black shawl. One de-,
she said to me, touching it, Ever
woman in Sweden ali the same"
She readily understood that we en-
| joyed bearing about her country, a
she took so much interest in learnin,
everything possible. She soon begar
to tdll us about the Lapps IS tht
most curious little people in tn
world; very short but wearing tall
pointed hoods, made of reindeer skin
She always talked with great enthu
sissm about the "rein," as she callet
the reindeer; said that if man bat
a thousand rein be was rich; that tn
Lapps travelled about all the time
only lassooing some rein and travel.
ing on to find moss for them, tb
rein furnishing them with all thei
food. When they went 10 churcl
they left their babies outside in LITTLE
holes in the snow, sewed up in skins
They themselves wore one carmen
OF skin. Swedish babies had littl
knit garment that covered them al
lover, arms legs and feet. Lapp bs
bies we're always cold and the Lapp
we're very, very peer. 1 asked
l"Why not come to Boston?" sh
answered. "Oh, Lapp say Laplan
Igood." She Knocked their tunn
way OF talking in monosyllablec
They could not open their mouths
Ishe said, it was SO cold. It Was yer
different froLn reading these things
the geography to near them from on
who had actually seen them, an
toncned the little cold Lapp babies.-