The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1906-06-10

fba deeisesftau mat fherc wss Ht'lr h0re
fgp . aafioo shirh sruusidrfs " ~ nnnfe
lmpeftseep ~ wild fneesiha huters than
fheasees M 10 nnfs ready ~ suppoft ne
kiht NlssioR Than No tft NtseuW Whist
suppuftai hin. Heverthriess IN ne sifiRel"
~ y hlahef n%afianHi sYandaFd ~ rivthea'i"n
sss his here IN the vounH eenefstion
shich he nv his reft. wuuhi M 10 affaid
" he sald ~heH n cane amd sn"ehed ~
his daug For Ne ssa esflaih, ~ he '0ld .
yuoas Nor ssnlaa fpisHd IN isss mat what
may spgess Hee ensdness IN The yo'iha "
shst oil In ne srd prove elctofteual an1
~ pfBthisri IN Htsfrh slrna Ntth ~ ynn'h
N Nufway ~ left nle leader We Hved
to So actually carried ~, ~ a erea' es'eh'
In his native country ne prs"'lcai rr'nr'nH
Witch No had proposed IN iet N" ih'fr'
duc'lon ~ manhood suNraae the etnahc'-
patton ~ woman, and me ahol'ion ~ w"
thurch's rontsol n the national srh""''
The fierce outcry aaains' hia 'social
prohlem' plays, a polra Ho,ise,
'dhos,s,' H. had one pleasaht enec', that
~ bringing njornsun and fba~n toeethef
uNNlNa INF NllNNtN w wv N"NNh WV
had lasted more than . dossn yeara' eeein
10 have hren partly r~"rsonal and partly
eonsected with thu public affairs ~ tho
day. ftyann'a letter- frum Rome reveal
thu ml-unders, andine which followed the
publication ~ Peer Oynt' In 1897, n
Indicate what Influences weTS at work 10
separate tho two authors. In Norway
party divisions wers at that time beginning
TO he more sharply marked, A Right and
n left In both political and intellectual
spheres were forming Bj0rnson. without
hesitation, espoused the oa,iss 81 IN Lett
and rushed enthusiastically Into tho bght
for national Independence and popular
government. Ibsen az tho time was far
away Ind his political prepossessions were
not the same, his hopes lay in the direction
Of a Scandinavia union. and he had no
sympathy with the peasant party, which
was now striving for power In Norway.
Under the circumstances, II was naturai
that an effort should Be made to win him
over to the side OF the Right and to make
use Of him TO further It's interests. To
Ibsen h was not only disagreeable but
painful 10 he thus regarded as the poet OF
a political party; all his work seemed thereby
to be dragged down to a lower level. while
he himself was placed In a false position.
II is true that as regards the political ques-
ions OF that day he might with justice be
considered to belong to the Right, yet mis-
fundamental principles, his radical demand
for liberty were not at all In conformity
with the arguments and aims OF hat party.
Ibsen himself has given expression to the
truth that one cannot think out any thought
TO the end without coming upon self-con-
tradictions. He was in reality what In one
of his letters he calls himself, "a solitary
franc tireur at the outposts,' and he was
inclined to view everything OF the nature
Of q political party as antagonistic to his
philosophy Of life. He considered 1t a vital
necessity for a poet "ooldly to turn his back
on all parties and take up a position for
himself In a word, It was ingrained In
his nature to be In this sense "the enemy
OF the people, This is the explanation
Given BY the editors OF his displeasure at
seeina Bjbrnson ally himself with the Nor
weeian Peasant-Left. He says In a letter
that he could not "deteot in their opinions
an atom more of real liberalism than in those
OF the ultramontane peasant population
OF the Tyrol.' He feared tina the pursuit
OF politics would lead Bjornson to lay aside
his work as an author and thereby neglect
the duties imposed on him by his gifts. 1t
soon appeared to him, too, that his old friend
ves proving .unfaithful" to the Scandi-
c.yian ideal. This was when Bj6rnson In
the autumn Of 1872 called on Denmark to
salter her signals" in the direction Of Ger
many, and give up all thought OF revenge
and Of the ~reconquest Of Danish Schleswig,
In q that the dream OF years should h
be r~elinquished, Ibsen wrote a wrathful
poem aimed directly at Bjornson, who Is
described as the "weathercock" who had
become the priest Of Pan-Germanisn.'
Bjornson, on his side, was enraged by
the assassination" which in his opinion
had beer att upon him in 'The
League Of Youth It was also g great
cause OF offence to him that Ibsen accepted
orders and decorations, and finally, as he
himself a. that time still accepted the doc
trines of Christiauit y, it was a grief to him
to see Ibsen inclining ever more and more
to atheism" Here, obviously, were
causes enough for a breach between the
two authors, and there was an open one
from 1868 onward. 1bsen more than once
had a reconciliation in view, and in 1877
he actually made an effort toward a re-
newal OF friendship. after Bjornson had
expressed himself sympathetically on
the subject Of George Brandes's writings.
He sent through Hegel, his publisher, a
littl e note to Bj0rnson, along with a copy
of "The Pillars Of Society The overture
| seems, however, not to have led to any
result. Nevert heless, the winter OF l8so-s1
saw their friendship firmly oemented.
When travelling In he United States toward
the close Of 1880, Bjorneon wrote Of Ibsen
In a contribution to al American periodical:
Il think that l have q pretty thorough
a~cauaintano with the dramatic lit erature
| Of the world, and I have not the slightest
hesit ation In saying that Henrik Ibsen
POSSESSES more dramatic power than any
! other play writer Of our day. The fact
that I am not always partial to The style
OF his work makes me all the more certain
that / am right in my Judgment Of him.
Ibsen, on his part, In the spring OF 1881
having heard that Bjornson while In the
United States had had a narrow escape
with his life from some great danger, wrote
him a letter in which he declared that his
feeling when he heard the news wal that
II his friend had died he himself could
never nave written anything more, The
edit ors tell us that when, soon after this