Reporter and farmer. [volume] (Webster, Day County, Dakota [S.D.]) 188?-1946, 1906-08-16
NORWAY.
Christiania.


"Why do Norsemen Emigrate?" ap-
peared recently in the Nylaende, from
the pen of Agnes Mathilde Wergeland,
now member of the faculty OF
sons would seem to be that Norway
by very nature of her rugged, majestic
beauty is too cold, too barren and too
unyielding. to afford to her children
more than the barest of livlngs-and
men cannot live from beauty alone.
But in her own mind DIR. Wergeland
neither this nor that the Morse do not
love their homeland enough, but that
they love one another too little! There
under the high heavens spread over
breezy field and fjord, there is such an
oppressive spiritual atmosphere Of mar.
rowminded intolerance, of unloving
readiness to raise teacup storms, of
caviling, of insolence, private and
political, of clerical and aesthetic
arrogance, that the Norseman, though
scarcely knowing why, longs to get
away from il all and to breathe a
frcsher. sweeter air. No wonder the
people emigrate. eAclaims Or. Verge
land. There is peculiar hardness and
unbendableness i'm the NorSeman'
nature, and the mild virtues of for
bearance grow but sparsely in his sur
roundings. That is perhaps the rea-
son why the Morse emigrant brings
to his new homeland for the first four
or five years nothing but an open
mouth and a silent tongue-sneechless
establishment! And that is why to
come home after spending some years
abroad Is so often like coming from
open fields into narrow alleys, where
the fancies and prejudices of centuries
still lie sleeping in the cutters. But
DR.. Wergeland is too good a patriot to
have written In this fashion," says the
Review Of Reviews, without a definite
hope that 1t would do good. To the
charge that Norway is a poor country
she replies that Norway Is rich In OPP
pOrtunities. Let but a spirit Of love
link her children together I'm a pa
triotic resolve to find these out and
make the most Of them and their re-
ward will not be wanting.
DIR. Andre Hansen. the Norwegian
economic writer. contributes to Sam.
tiden (Christiania) a long descriptive
article on Norway's emigration prob
lem, in which he makes the following
significant reference: after having
educated men better than other coun-
tries, they leave their native land at
the age of productivity. Some esti-
mates have been made as to what the
rearing and educating costs, and at
what sum the man OF age can be
capitalized. In conservative figures
the loss for Norway amounts, thus, to
700,OOO,OOO crowns ($260, OOOOO0). 1.-The
question arises now. why cannot this
great capital be spent at home? The
answer must essentially be the same
as that given by Germany-that is to
say. before industry has reached
another development Norway will.
Just as all other farming countries
send away the surplus Of its popula-
ton. Because Norway is an old farm
ing country, the most productive
ground was occupied long ago: 1t has
even been proved that farms exist on
the same spot where they were laid
down 300 years ago"
There are now, according to official
figures, 100000 Norwegian born in
habitants I'm the United States and a
still larger number Of children Of Nor
wegian parentage. In another genera
ton, or two there will be as many
American citizens Of pure Norwegian
pedigree as there are inhabitants In
the mother country.
King Haakon and Queen Maud
have on three different occasion paid
a visit to Lerfossen. The royal couple
seem delighted with this part of the
country.
The "Mylingen'' departed for Spitz-
bergen u few days ago with party
Of NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS. who go there
to engage In gold prospecting.
Miss Ada Musgrove, a wealthy Eng
l'shwoman, has presented her sum-
mer villa, Solstraaleo, at Tysnaes, to
little Crownprince Olaf