Durango semi-weekly herald., 1901-10-17

train starts at o'clock in the morn
ing. nearly the entire population for
eight or ten miles around gathered at
the station to bid him good-by The
ceremonies were impressive and af-
fecting. The good pastor made a
parting speech commenting his
friends life among them as an exam
pie to the young, wishing him good
fortune in his new field of usefulness.
committing him to the protection of
providence against the snares and
dangers of the world. and expressing
the sorrow felt by everyone at
1.-THE parting. The traveller responded
briefly with tears rolling down his
cheeks. He was presented with sew
eral punches of flowers and enough
luncheons to last him half way to
America. He shook hands twice with
Everybody. he gave his mother long
fearful embrace; he knelt at his
fathers feet. received the farewell
blessing and then entered the rail-
way car that bore him away.
The Dalecariians, whose ancestors
have occupied the county for many
centuries and have hftermarried from
generation to generation are all re-
lated. Everybody is a cousin or
brother-in-law or a great-aunt or every
body else. There is prejudice
against matrimonial connections with
outsiders. A Dalecarlian man wants
a Dalecarlian bride. His parents are
apt to insist upon it because the Gus
toms of the district are peculiar and
| it is difficult for one who has not
grown up with them to practice them
in an orthodox way. This intermar-
| riage has not weakened the race either
intellectually or physically. The peo-
| pie seem to be quite as strong as they
| ever were and are proud of their ex-
clusiveness and peculiarities.
Family names are few 1t is custC-
mary to call everybody by his Chris
tian name, or by some nickname sug
gested by personal peculiarity The
| men are Anders, Axels and so on. The
women are Hildas, Bretas, Annas.
Elias and Marias, but, to distinguish
between them they are called Lame
AxeF' or big Anders." Little Carl"
or Hairy Eriksson." The names OF
the farms upon which they live are of
names, or the place at which they
work; Railroader Oleson, Carpenter
Jacobson, Landhandler Jensen. or
Grosserer Peterson, and titles are ac-
quired by some achievement or pub
lie service or peculiar experience that
may nave fallen to the lot of the per-
son in question. If one LARSEN plays
the violin it is convenient to connect
that accomplishment with his name
in order to distinguish him from his
second cousin, who is in the fishing
trade. The distinctions acquired by
the father often descend to the son.
Thus 'Son-of-Organist Nilsson or
''Thora Daughter-of-U -Upholsterer-Sam-
uelson" or Teacher-Anders-son is the
awkward way in which members of
the community are identified. And
with the multitude of Implications
these names become so necessary that
they are used in publishing the bans
of marriage in church, and engraved
upon tombstones.
About half the proper names in
Sweden end IN 'son" or sen, which
is the same thing. and half the space
in the directories of Swedish cities is
monopolized by the numerous mem
bers of the Oleson. Larson, Anderson.
Johnsen and Peterson families. There
are no Smiths, no Joneses or Browns
or Robinsons. There are no colors
in the nomenclature; the White,
Green, Black and Gray families are
not known here. and it has never been
she custom to call men by their trades
Hence you will find no Goldsmiths or
Carpenters or Taylors in the directory
There is a frankness and an honesty
about the Dalecarilians that is often
startling. The children are taught
the use of those important little words
yes" and no." and are trained to
answer questions directly and with
candor They do not intend to be i'm
pertinent. but have been admonished
that it is wrong to deceive. They
have never been taught the polite
phrases that are used by the Latin
races to conceal their meaning or
break the force of their replies.
Like the Quakers, their conversation
is yea" and may without qualifica-
tion. Another characteristic is their
fearlessness. Careless observers of
ten criticise the young women for
boldness when it is only confidence
and self-possession, the result of their
education and home instruction.
A Dalecarlian child never seems
shy, nor is he impertinent. He sim
ply stands his ground and asserts his
individuality and the child is the
father to the man. He lifts his lit
tie cal out of politeness to strangers
that pass him on the highway and
shows genuine respect for his elders
but he has been told that he should
fear nothing, and generations of such
training have given the people self
confidence that has made them strong
in politics, powerful in battle and sue
cessful in enterprise. The little girls
are modest and deferential, but show
no embarrassment, and their physi-
cal development is such that they are
expected to endure the same labor as