Askov American. [volume] (Askov, Pine County, Minn.) 1914-current, 1916-01-27
important Events In Sweden,
Norway and Denmark.
BRIEFS FROM OLD COUNTRY
Interesting items From the Three
Great Kingdoms Of the North Sc
iectsd for Scandlnaviana and
Their Descendants.
BY MARTIN w. ODlAkD.
Norway.

| third of the city of Bergen few days
| ago. The property loss is estimated
1T $f5,000,000 and 1000 persons were
rendered homeless. 1t was the bust
| ness section of the city that was de-
stroycd and business has been tenn
porarily paralyzed In this leading COM
| mercial center of Norway. A relief
ship promptly sailed from Christiania
with food and clothing for the home
less people, and the king and minister
of war hurried to the scene to rem
der whatever aid was In their power.
The difficulties of the 1000 persons
| now without homes were increased
by the fact that the largest storage
houses, filled with provisions for sup
plying the surrounding country. were
burned. II y harder to obtain gro
| ceries today than at any time since
| the outbreak of the war
Bergen never was so fiourishing as
at the beginning of the present year,
these conditions being due largely to
tho Increased merchant marine.
The fire started Saturday evening
In an ironmongers shop and famed
| by hurricane, the flames spread rap
idly and soon enveloped all the bust
ness portion of the city.
All the largest buildings, including
hotels, newspaper Offices and telegraph
and telephone exchanges. were de-
| stroyed. The telegraph officials
worked bravely in sending messages
until their last lines were broken.
The 1iremen endeavored to circum.
scribe the area of the fire, but their
| TASK was hopeless. To prevent
further spread OF the conflagratAon,
they finally blew up buildings on the
| outer edge of the path of the flames.
Next to Christiania. Bergen is the
| largest city n Norway and was for
| centuries the metropolis of the land,
| Christiania having taken the lead in
the nineteenth century. Even today
| II Is the principal seaport. more ships
| entering It's 1arbor than that of the
capital city. 1t has always been prom
inent as commercial center, the big
gest merchants OF Norway being To-
| Gated there until half century ago.
A Christiania dispatch says that the
Norwegian government proposes to
levy special assessments against cer-
tain industries whose earnings have
increased by reason of the war. IN
| order to secure revenue to meet the
| extraordinary expenses incurred by
the government during the war. The
assessments will fall heaviest on the
| shipping industry, the earnings of
| which have been fabulous, and in the
next place on the electro-chemical, cop
per, nickel. pyrites. and wood pulp In.
dustries, all of which have made good
| money since the advent of the Euro.
pean war. The assessments will be
levied I'm the form of fees rather than
when the extraordinary earnings are
being made. while the latter cannot
be collected until considerable time
| after they are levied,
II Ia stated that the whaling indus.
| try, which has been one of the million
aire.making industries OF Norway In
| recent years, showed slight falling
of in 1915. The total value OF the
| industry In 1916 was about $4,000. 900
crowns, which Is about 1000, 900
crowns less than the output for 1914.
| The price OF whale oil was higher the
| past year than II was in 1914 and 1913
and the price will In all proha bility
continue to go up, by far the largest
part of the whole catch was made In
| the Southern ocean. The northern
| fields report the smallest catch In
| years and the African fields have also
fallen on heavily In productivity. The
bulk OF the product has been sold In
the Norwegian and British markets.
| One of the most protracted legal
disputes in Norway is that which fol
lowed the "Samlag' election at Dram.
| Men~~an election to determine wheth.
or the sale of Intoxicating liquors
should be permitted in that city. On
the face OF the returns there was
| HtdltEltg VI ou tNttS akAlIiSt pSsTlEttr
ting the sale of liquors, but the advo.
Gates OF the ''Samlag" maintained that
there were irregularities and appealed
to the courts. About 80 voters have
been examined by the courts and II
Ia said that 200 will be examined I'm
all before the case will finally be de-
cided.
| An airship. believed to be a zeppe-
lin. was seen early I'm the morning re-
Gently passing over Fredrikstad. 1t
sailed high in the air In an easteriy
direction and was apparently return
ing to it's base after tour OF explo.
ration. II had powerful searehlights,
which played upon the landscape be-
ow.
i A London dispatch says that the
Morse steamer Ronhour was sunk by a
submarine. Fifteen members Of the
new were saved.