The National tribune., 1909-12-23
SEEKING THE MIDNIGHT SUN.
One of The National Tribune People Touring to the Far North

VIII even show varying mood in the
same day. 1t is a chilly land even in
Summer, and you will find no heat in
your room, specially in the little inns
where one stops while on driving
trip, tho its principal article of furni-
ture may be a highly ornamental stove
several stories in hight. Neither will
you find the foot of your bed tucked
in even in the city hostelries. The
architecture of the houses, except in
the larger places, is the simplest of the
simple; but a landscape, which other
wise might be thought too colorless
and oppressive, is saved by these gay,
vivid spots of red and yellow which
greet the eye on all sides. The people
are rather too self-contained to suit an
American, but are very interesting
nevertheless. They are refined. supe-
rior-looking race, and many of the wo-
men have delicate features with fine
noses and small mouths. These latter
give the impression of high order of
intelligence, and are found in all the
tourist agencies, the shops. the hotels
and inns; in fact, one usually sees no
one in these latter places except the
porter and the young woman who
speaks English and who is always po-
lite and efficient. In the shops of
Christiania and Bergen we hardly saw
a man, the numerous young females
about apparently running things en-
tirely by themselves. In the north
ern part of the country the
conditions are pretty hard, and it
seems to be n case of all work and no
play for poor Jack. There is crying
need for the picture show business in
Norway. The wages paid Norwegians
in their own country are very small.
The Englishman whom we met at the
hotel in ChriStiania, and who was en-
gagged in some kind of business in the
southern part of Norway, told us that
he could get all the best men he want
ed to work for him for two and a half
krona Il day, which would be about 90
cents in our money. He also told us
that when he was at this place he lived
most comfortably for the same
amount, which included his washing
and mending. There is hardly any
specialized labor there, but almost any
Norwegian can turn his hand to any
thing required of him. They are Won
derfully resourceful in this respect. Ac-
customed It working 16 hours a day
in the Summertime, they are slow, and
cannot be made to squeeze into eight
hours the work of the 16. OF course,
having such an extended period of
daylight accounts for their long hours.
The Norwegians are very religious
people, which is shown by the number
of simple white churches all thru the
tOuHlTS ulSiFiclS, anu tilty are very
temperate people. Some time ago
quite the reverse of this was true, and
the amount of brandy and whisky con-
sumed by them yearly was appalling.
Now, however, Ole never sees an in
toXicated man, and tho beer is to be
found everywhere, it is, think, against
the law to sell anything stronger, at
least, in any except very small Guanti-
ties. The food one meets in the hotels
and small country inns is excellent and
abundant, but there is not much varie-
ty. The beef, when you find it, is not
very Good-in fact, meat is rather
scarce, anyway-and we did not care
for the coffee. tho Norwegians are said
to be very fond of coffee, and you
would naturally expect them to know
how to make it. The piece de resist
ance is always the delicious fresh fish,
and if one did not care for that he or
she might leave the feast with an inner
longing; but, according to my notion,
no one need go away hungry from a
Norwegian table. Everything seems
cheap, yet, somehow, the kronas dis
appear like the mist before the sun,
and one finds himself considerably the
poorer after three or four weeks
visit in the country. Beautiful as is
the scenery along the larger fjords of
the north, ii cannot be compared with
that which these narrow fingers of the
sea in the south open up, and altho a
cruising trip to the North Cape is well
worth crossing the Atlantic to make,
it would be a pity for anyone once in
Norway to miss driving into the in
terror and sailing up these narrow
fjords, along which are scenes not
dreamt of in your philosophy, Horatio,
or words to that effect. The people
impress one as being superlatively hon.
est and you would leave your casket
n nj i0E NIT h
out thought Of their safety, If you
happened to have such thing, and they
are always polite in their way and
willing to do anything required of
them. The Norwegian girls who come
over to us and take places of domestic
service lose many of their principal
National virtues after being several
years under our upsetting influence,
along with their pretty. fresh color.
And that reminds me TO remark for
the last time, really the last, that very
many of the girls in Norway are as
pretty as a peach. If you do not believe
me, go there and find out for yourself.
And now good-by, Norway, fair land
of the far North, from whose great
peaks the daughters of Odin watched
the battle; we love you none the less
that we leave you for fresh fields and
pastures new.
solutely without adventure of any kind
There was apparently no place for us
to sit but the sleeping compartment We
had engaged for the night, so we went
to it at once, and consequently saw
nothing of our fellow-traveIers This
compartment was very nice and most
comfortable, consisting of two rooms
communicating, with a sliding door be-
tween, which we did not close at ALL
and which by making one room of it
gave us really considerable space to
move around in. 1t was a nicer ar
rangement than anything ! have seen
in our country, tho, for aught / know,
we may have the same thing on some
of our railroads. Thru the conductor
we bought a couple of boxes of lunch
con at some station, which constituted
our supper, and so got along all right
We retired early, slept well, and
reached this city about 1880 a. m.
with keen appetite not only for our
which awaited us. Like the tickle low
/ er, we embraced our new sweetheart
with fervor, poor Norway and her
charms for the moment forgotten
| We went to the Phoenix Hotel upon
arriving, where we were shown tremen-
dously swell rooms. Really, mine al
most took my breath away, and / won
dered how i could possibly live up to
it even for the short time we were Ia
be in Copenhagen. 1t was handsomer
even than Elizabeth's, tho hers was
fine enough in all conscience and be-
sides being most spacious was extreme
ly richly and elegantly furnished. The
walls were covered with an EXPENSIVE
embossed paper; ii had the dearest
little CRATE in one corner, with a brjgh,
coal hre burning, for the morning was