Askov American. [volume] (Askov, Pine County, Minn.) 1914-current, 1917-05-10
important Events In Sweden,
Norway and Denmark.
BRIEFS FROM OLD COUNTRY
Interesting Items From the rhFOo
Great kinsdoms Of the North, e.
oeeted for Seandinavians and
Their Descendants.
BY MARTIN w. oDLAND.
Norway.

bark bread" SYNONYMOUS In Norwe-
gian history with war and starvation,
may yet be called upon to avert fam
Inc In Norway, If the world war and
the shortage Of food should continue
through another winter But the bark
bread upon which the present genera
ton would feed would not be the bit
ter, unsavory food product Of which
grandfathers Of the present genera
ton told their children. A Norwegian
pharmacist, Einar Guldal, has pro-
duced bread made largely from the
ground meal of the Icelandic moss,
from which the strong, bitter flavor
has been removed making 1t palatable
as well as nourishing. Bread Of this
sort has been tested by the Aker food
supplies commission and has been
given strong Endorsement by that body.
Icelandic moss is a species of edible
lichen which flOurishes from North
cape to the southern extremity of Nor
way. In the dried state 1t contains 80
per cent starch, of which so per cent
Is digestible. A practical difficulty In
the utilization Of the plant as food has
been the presence Of bitter principle
Pharmacist Guldal accomplished the
removal of this element by the use OF
potash I've in a very simple process.
After the moss has been rinsed OF the
I've solution, 1t Is dried and ground
into -four. Used alone, however. this
S~,l11 wfc ,v,hn
dough, but must be mixed with fer
mentable -four. For this purpose rye
and wheat -four are the most suitable.
A bread made in this way still retains
some Of the bitter flavor, but by mix
ing a few caraway seeds in the dough
this can be overcome almost entirely.
The finished bread contains 40 per
cent moss meal and 60 per cent rye
or wheat flour.
The American Scandinavian fOunda-
ton has Investigated the rumOrs that
Germany obtains food supply through
Scandinavia, and has found the ru-
mOrs without foundation. The small
amount of food shipped to Germany,
the foundation declares, Is domestic
produce. and this supply Is strictly
regulated. EARLY in the war;" the re-
port states, "the belligerents demand
ed guarantees against re-eXpOrt Of
goods whether transatlantic or from
the countries ut wary consigned to
persons in Scandinavia, and oil three
countries have passed laws making 1t
punishable Offense to break such
guarantees. This law Is rigidly en-
forced" In Sweden. the report states,
exporters are sometimes permitted to
ship food to Germany in return for
coal, as Sweden cannot get coal from
any other source. For every shipment
to Germany. however, an equal amount
has to be put on the home market at
low rate as compensation"
As was announced In dispatches ten
days ago. there Is great deal Of anxi-
ETY. In Norway, as well as in Sweden
and Denmark over the possibility that
America may place an embargo on all
food shipments except to the allies.
Norway las always depended upon
the outside world for good deal OF
her food supplies, and since the war
has been obliged to rely more and
more upon the United States. Premier
Gunnar Knudsen says that an Ameri
can embargo would cut Off more than
half Of Norway's grain supply, and he
deslgnates the proposed embargo as
undeserved unfriendliness on the part
Of the United States.
It is announced that the amalgama-
ton Of NIL the water power electric
plants OF southeastern Norway. with
government ownership and operation,
ia proposed by a Norwegian Industrial
leader as a means Of overcoming the
fuel shortage OF the country. BY the
development Of the entire system 1t
would be possible to use electric pow
er exclusively on railroads. for auto
mobiles, and for ships plying along the
coast, thereby effecting an enormous
saving Of coal. Cheap electric light
and to some extent heat for cooking
could also be furnished by the same
system. with resulting decrease In
the consumption Of oil.
: A company capitalized Mt a million
dollars has been organized at Fred
rikstad. Norway. for the manufacture
Of titanic coloring materials. These
materials are In great demand Titan
ic white Is used as base In the manu-
facture OF n number OF other colors.
serving the same purpose as white lead
and zinc white.
According to recent dispatch from
Christiania. Trygve Gran, who accom-
panied Scott on his South pole expe-
dltion and on his return to Norway
Joined the Norwegian aviation service,
has been given his discharge by the
Norwegian government. Gran is said
to have made himself guilty Of several
breaches OF military discipline, hav-
ing ms lieutenant dressed himself in
the uniform OF CAPTAIN, and also an