The Atlanta constitution. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1885-19??, 1888-03-20
THE LAND OF ICE.
Hardy Residents of Iceland Talk
50 of Leaving.
From the Philadelphia Call.

From the Philadelphia Call
In The western part of Pembina county d.
T., but n few miles from the Canadian bounda-
~, he three townships settled entirely by Ice
lalccTS, most Of whom lived a short time in
Manitoba before crossing into the United
States. Near Sioux Falls. in the same terrific
ny, are Il few ICelanders; there is another set
t!ement ii Iowa, and still another iii Wisoon-
sin, while i'll Manitoba the fourishing settle
mentS OF Chill, Thingvalla and New Iceland
contain several thousand of the same people.
All these settlements, in both countries, have
much the Same history, and illustrate the
painful fact that for the third time i'll its his
tory iceland is threatened with depopulation
For the third time the climate of that strange
ly interesting island is changing for the worse
and this time the change is so prolonged that
scheme is projected in the Canadian north
west to bring all the remaining $4,000 in Ice
laud TO the new world
The extinction of such people would be a
calamity to the sentimental, and we may well
REUSE to believe it possible for no doubt a
re 12nant will remain, will find life much more
tolerabte when the surplus population is re-
moved, and, when nature again becomes genial,
Will thoroughly re-people the old land.
Iceland is the most interesting island in the
world. About rs large as Ohio, it contains as
many volcanoes as this continent; and with a
population never as large as congressional
district, it has produced more poets and ro-
nance writer's than any state, and has his
tory as fascinating as that of any nation. When
all Europe was sunk in the barbarsm that fol-
lowed the Northmen's destruction of Rome,
Irish priests and scholars found n religious
community in Ireland and when civil
}jzaticn had revived in only IL few
Mediterranean prov inces, and that
but feeby, Iceland was i'll its golden age of
poets, preachers and scholars. There is good
evidence that Columbus obtained his iirstideaS
OF the western world i'll Iceland, and there is
undoubted history that people of that race dis
covered America long before the Spaniards.
Once in its OH years of authentic history
blight fell On Iceland, its population sank TO
minimum, and for 200 years it had neither
scholars nor historians; at another time the
cold increased for a term of years and threat
ened general destruction and now the Same
phenomenon is being repeated, with the addi-
tiOnal evil that the ice flow from Greenland
comes later i'll the season and has formed n
permanent mass against the north side of the
island.
No class of foreigners became Americanized
60 rapidly and easily as the Scandinavians.
This is true of the Swedes, Danes Norwegians,
and pre-eminently true of the IcelanderS.
Those i'll Manitoba are enthusiastic for the
confederation, and liberal supporters of all
English Canadian schemes OF progress they
have several newspapers i'll their own lam
guage, and maintain good schools and
churches. In the three Ice,andc townships
III Dakota are some GEO voteIs, and the high
standard of intelligence is remarkable. In the
clurch library in the little village of Noun
tam containing less than fifty hOuSeS) are
several hundred volumes in English, French,
German, Norwegian, Icelandic, Greek and
Latin, and the resident preacher Uutheran)
is most accomplished scholar, both in the
classic and modern languages. There is no
country i'll the world, probably, where educa-
ton is so universal as in Iceland the morals
Of the people are good, save the one vice of
the Scandnavians. We may judge the extent
of that from a clause in the latest trade report
to the efct that the import of brandy has
HNn1
If the 10000 people in Ireland must leave
there (Which all scholars will pray will not be)
Manitoba could not get better settlers, and
should they follow their liinsmen into the
United States, they will add a valuable ele-
ment to the much composite Yankee.
Maddox, a Norwegian viking, discovered
iceland in $50, and four years later Garthar
Svafarrson sailed around it.. Ten years later
NGrWeGianS ColOniZed it, but soon found that
Irish Christians had located there at least 100
yearsbefore. Their record adds that the remain
ing Irish left "when the Morse pagans came. -
The Norwegian settlers were disatfccted cit
izens, unwilling to submit to new form
of government just established in Nor
way and in 928 they made Iceland a
republic; but 354 years afterward they renewed
allegiance to Haco, king of Norway, Iceland
retaining her separate legislature. III 1887
Norway and Denmark were united, and when
again divided Iceland fell to Denmark. to
which ii is still attached In 1874 the Iceland
ers celebrated the 1,00Oth anniversary of settle
ment. which attracted visitors from all parts
of the world. The first era of cold and famine
is but imperfectly reported, but about 1850 a
series of calamties began, including volcanic
crurtonS. Nearly all the domestic animals
died, and the population shrunk to $4,000
Prosperity returned. and the population soon
exceeded 100000. Now it has shrunk to Il, 600,
not by famine this time, but by emigration.
The climate is remarkable. Though the
Arctic circle touches on the north, the average
winter, in the valleys, is milder than that of
Ohio, while the summer temperature very
rarely GO degrees. The ice drifts from Green
land lodge on the north and northwest coasts,
usually in February and March, but for many
past they have remained through the summer,
so chilling the air that no considerable crops
could be raised in the northern valleys. The
only grain used is imported: but heavy crops Of
vegetables are grown. The wealth of the
country is in cattle and sheep, fish and birds.
The latter are wonderfully numerous, among
them the elder duck. whose nests are strictly
protected by the people. The white bear often
comes OH the ice from Greenland. Such are
but few of the interesting points of Iceland.
Its literature is so voluminous that wo cannot
even give list of the more important of its
books.