The true northerner. [volume] (Paw Paw, Mich.) 1855-1920, 1886-10-28
A FREAK OF NATURE,
And the Curious Norwegian Legend Con-
nected Herewith.

And the Curious Norwegian Legend Con-
nected Herewith.
The first morning we sighted the
little island Mountain of Lecko, whose
stony outlines are those of a giantess
turned to stone, and miles beyond We
came to the Island of Torghaetta, which
Is the most wonderful freak of nature
along the Norwegian coast. We saw 1t
from afar as giants hat floating on
the water, a huge crown and brim OF
bare granite, the brim rising well above
the water, and the crown more than
800 feet high, pierced nearly at the top
with a hole that runs through the
granite crown like a tunnel. Sailing
toward it on the placid blue water, the
eye came in line with the tunnel, and
We saw straight through it to the sky
beyond. This window through the
mountain was reached by long climb
from the other side, and when we
reached the opening In the mountain
there was q view through it as through
telescope of the sea with score OF
islets beyond. The sides of the tunnel
are as square and true as If they had
been blasted out by a miner, and
beginning with height of sixty-two
feet the floor drops until at the lower
end the vaulted passage is over two
hundred feet in height. The word
torghaetta means "a market hat,
such as is worn by the peas
ants now, and in the age Of legends
was worn by the bad brother OF
the giantess of Lecko. The brother
had intercepted the messengers from
the giantess' lover, Hestmand, and kept
the pair apart for 80 long a time that
the lover, finally enraged, shot an ar
row at the brother while he was in bath
ing one day and pierced hat and skull
both. The arrows flight was something
like 100 miles from Hestmand's bow to
the foot of the giantess, where II finally
fell, and she, seeing the light through
the aperture in her brothers hat, turn
ed him and Hestmand and herself all
to stone in her despair. The trio are
the chief objects of interest along this
stretch of coast, the natives lift their
hats in mock reverence to the giantess
as they pass by, and the tourist fiutters
the leaves of his red guide-book, and
putting his fingers impressively on the
page, recites the tradition and measure
ments to the nearest ear. The tour
ist steamers always stop to land pas
sengers who want to climb up to the
tunnel, and the women and children
from the neighboring farms go with
pitchers of milk to sell to the breath
less climbers on the way. Behind sew
eral of the largest powders that we
rounded on the upward climb stood
women with trays of glasses filled with
milk; women as still, stolid, and i'm
passive as if the glantess had turned
them to stone as well, all flaxen haired,
blue-eyed, and with the universal head
gear of the country-a pointed hand
kerchief drawn tightly over the back
of the head and tied under the chin.
At the entrance of the tunnel a man
had established himself with q bench
for counter, on which he displayed
battered old silver mugs, cups, and
spoons, silver rings and ornaments,
which constitute the stock in trade of
half the curio shops in Norway, for the
reason that the peasants have always
turned their money into such things in
stead of boarding it in the plain coins.
Letter from NOrlCdy.