The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1888-08-30

That nation is en- this earth, too, and inhab-
its tie island f Iceland.
DR. Ludwig voa Dolce is the son OF an
lcelandic stadS holder, a gentleman OF re-
finement who was highly educated IN
Sweden, and has Travelled extensively, and
has come TO this country to pract CO ms
pr fession of clect"ologiSt. In the COIL Se II
talk recently ne presented the above strlK-
ing facts concerning his native land lie
doctor speak, Ergish fuent!y, having re-
manned in the count'y twenty-three months
when he first came here in 1914 as commls-
sioner to select the lands i'll Dakota aud
joining British Columbia territory, upon
which colony of 5000 lcelanders settled
later. He says thar 1900 more are com
ing very soon. DR.. Won Dolcke recently
returned TO America from Denmark, and Is
located at Grand Rapids, Mich, Temporal.
rily, but is prospecting in the direction OF
st. Paul.
"A popularsignorance of Iceland pre-
walls" the doctor said, lowing, l think,
largely to the misleading name of Iceland.
The island, of about 1900 square miles, Is
green and fertile in the southern portion
from May until October, when deer and
is abundant. The cent..millennium cele-
bration has attracted travellers to Iceland
lately. A good line of steamers sail from
Copenhagen fortuightly. The country is
under the protection of Denmark, but there
the connection ends There are nine pro-
vinces, each of which elect twelve of the
Oldest and wisest of its men to perform
duties somewhat analogous to state legls-
lature here. There is also a national gather
ing similar to the house of representatives
and a bodY like the senate, which meets
once year. But there is little governing
and no law making to do. Each man
governs himself upon the broadcast prlnci-
pies of personal liberty in everything. The
lcelanders are descended from the old
Morse Viking, the free-born families trac-
ing their lineage to Harold and his men,
who, their rich Morse mythology says,
landed in 613 Your history makes 1t IN
the eighth century The land is owned by
few, and those who work the estates are
serfS, who pay rental Travelling is by
pony or deer, and in the mountains of
northern Iceland, mans foot has never
trod The Icelandic pony will ia ke
you as far as it is safe for you to go. The
city of Redjavik has about 1900 people,
the greater portion of the people living
upon the estates. There is splendid
hunting and fishing, the wild game, similar
to the northern part OF this country,
being nearly all white. Polar bears that
come down with the icebergs furnish popu
lar hunting.
"The Icelander is very proud of his pure
ana courageous NOTUldi Aou hhO"
that the French, English and German aris-
tocracy, if possible, will claim even trace
of Norman blood, and there is people that
have nothing else.
II never heard of but two cases of thiev
ing One was an Icelander who had broken
his arm and whose family in the winter
were suffering for food. He stole several
sheep and was finally detected. He was at
once put under medical care for his injury,
nod his family and
in time he was given work. That was his
punishment. The other case was a Ger
man who stole seventeen sheep. He was in
comfortable circumstances and the theft was
malicious His punishment was to sell all
his property, restore the value of his thefts
| and leave the country, or be executed. he
| left at once"
Disputes and trades are settled by abitra-
| ton, the doctor says, and the decision must
| bs accepted by all concerned. Public dis
grace attaches to any slight misdeed and no
| one can live there and undergo the conse-
| uuent modification. Besides agriculture
which produces barley, rye and vegetables,
the great industry is sheep raising. The
exports are largely eiderdown, picked from
wild Birds lava from the volcano Mt. Hecla,
| which is puElice stone, and sulphur, which
| is found in similar and such varied states as
| salt.
| "Vineland is the name of America used
by all the people except the few who were
| educated abroad" continued the doctor.
st is the old Morse name. No people in
the world are esteemed by Icelanders so
| highly as Americans, and this is whyi The
| Icelanders know that their blood is purer
| than any of the European nations. where
every man is generally lord or a peasant,
as he is born But in America every boy
and girl is born prince or princess. the
Icelander loves his own personal freedom
and princely birth He thinks that the
man who has won both by the possession of
political conditions for which he fought is
his equal"
CHIMNEYR