Midnight Sunbeams; or, Bits of Travel Through the Land of the Norseman. Edwin Coolidge Kimball
islands, in a lake surrounded by beech woods. The islands are connected by bridges, and the situation of the palace, its lofty façades with their finely sculptured windows, its high roofs, and picturesque spires and towers, rising from the transparent water, is very striking. You pass beneath a gigantic gate tower and enter the great courtyard, where in years gone by Christian IV. cut off the head of the Master of the Mint, who had defrauded him. “He tried to cheat us, but we have cheated him, for we have chopped off his head,” said the king. The palace has been thoroughly restored, and since the burning of the Christiansborg Palace in Copenhagen has been converted into a National Museum. There are sixty-four rooms, with ceilings of carved wood painted in bright colors, with elaborately carved doors and chimney pieces, beautiful inlaid floors, and wainscotted and frescoed walls, in which are displayed richly carved furniture, bric-a-brac, suits of armor, historical souvenirs, and statuary and paintings mostly by modern Danish artists. The gem of the palace is the magnificent Ritter Saal, an immense hall with a beautiful inlaid marble floor, the lofty ceiling a mass of intricate wood carving, richly gilded and painted in bright colors, composed of pendants, fruits, flowers, figures of cherubs and angels, and divided into sections with carved figures in high relief representing various trades and industries, the whole furnishing a bewildering study of striking richness and detail.
The sides of the long hall and the deep window recesses are hung with beautiful tapestries, and at the end of the hall is an elaborate chimney-piece of ebony and silver, rising to the ceiling and adorned with statues and sculptured groups.
The palace chapel, where the Danish kings were formerly crowned, has likewise been restored and redecorated. The roof is rich with delicate tracery and carving, the light falls through stained windows upon sculptured capital and decorated arch, the curious prayer chamber where many kings have worshipped rises above the high altar, and around the upper galleries are hung the coats of arms of all the Danish nobles. Opening from the gallery in the rear of the organ is a small room with most beautifully carved doors and exquisitely inlaid wooden walls, framing panels upon which are painted scenes representing the life of Christ, by Prof. Bloch. The fittings and decorations of the room are the gift of Morten Nielsen, the wealthy brewer of Carlsberg beer, the favorite beer of the people of Denmark, and the guide told us the room cost a million crowns (over a quarter of a million of dollars).
An hour’s journey by rail through a pleasant country, amid fertile fields and green beech woods, brought us back to Copenhagen, and at sunset we steamed out of the harbor with its forts, warships, and trading vessels, the spires of the city fading from sight as we sailed up the Sound, passing the great Kronberg fortress with its memories of Hamlet, out into the Cattegat.
Among the passengers were an American widow and her young daughter, who had been turned loose in Europe with a package of Cook’s tickets, and for a year had been wandering around aimlessly. They were going to Norway simply to escape hot weather, and as they could speak nothing but English, and had neither guide book nor fixed plans for their journey, they depended on those they might meet to tell them what there was to be seen, and help them out of their difficulties. We concluded it had been many a day since the aimless widow had had a listener to her complaints, for her tongue was in incessant motion as she unbosomed her troubles. But even its whirr could not drive back the vague uncertain feeling that was creeping over us the farther we advanced upon the rolling Cattegat, and we soon sought the seclusion of our state-room, and passed a restless night until early morning, when we arrived at Gothenburg, Sweden.
ACROSS SWEDEN BY THE
GOTHA CANAL.
CHAPTER II.
ACROSS SWEDEN BY THE GOTHA
CANAL.
A Day at Gothenburg—The Gotha Canal—Life On the “Venus”—keeping our Meal Accounts—The Trollhätta Falls—Pastoral Scenery—Swedish Boarding-School Girls—Lake Mälar.
Gothenburg, a busy commercial place of about 77,000 inhabitants, is, next to Stockholm, the largest city in Sweden. It is situated on the Gotha river, five miles from its mouth, with an excellent harbor. As it has direct steamer communication with England and Scotland, and close business relations with them, and as many English merchants and manufacturers reside here, it seems almost like an English city. On the steamboat quays, at hotels, railway stations, and in the streets, English is spoken, so that our first impressions of Sweden had a decided English tinge.
The city is well built, with solid stone quays along the numerous canals running through it, is regularly laid out with wide streets, and is furnished with horse-cars, parks, theatres, and all the adjuncts of modern civilization.
At dinner at the hotel we first saw a peculiar Swedish institution called the smörgasbord, which is considered a stimulator of the appetite. All the natives, before sitting down to the regular table, went to a small side table laden with salted and smoked fish, sardines, fat herring in oil, boiled ham, smoked tongue, cold boiled eggs, potted crabs, pickles, cheese, bread and butter, and standing around the table helped themselves with a fork to a choice morsel, now here, now there, which they washed down with small glasses of gin, brandy, and a liquor called kummel, made from caraway seeds. At every dinner in Sweden you will see the men, and often many ladies, apparently making a good meal from the varied assortment on this side table, and then they sit down to a regular dinner of several courses. It goes without saying, that to one unaccustomed to its use, the smörgasbord, instead of increasing the appetite, causes it to quickly disappear.
It was Sunday afternoon, and we drove out to a large park, a popular resort of the people, where, under the trees and in shady quiet nooks, families and groups of friends were enjoying basket picnics and a healthful rest, in a quiet and orderly manner. Among the females there was an entire absence of hats and bonnets, all wearing upon the head black silk handkerchiefs edged with lace and bead trimming, while those in mourning wore handkerchiefs with wide borders of crape; these were all alike both for old and young, and the general effect was decidedly funereal, though they heightened the charm of the fresh, rosy complexions of the young maidens.
The park has fine, natural growths of trees, and is laid out into drives and walks; and from a lofty ledge of rock there is an extensive view of the city, harbor, and bay with its numerous rocky islands.
A glance at the map of Sweden will show that the country between Gothenburg and Stockholm is largely occupied by lakes; in fact, it is computed that the lakes of Sweden cover nearly one-eighth of its whole area, and the largest lakes in the country are located in the district between these two cities. Connecting links between this string of lakes have been made by a system of canals furnished with locks; rivers and natural water-courses have been rendered navigable, and a line of internal navigation made, connecting the Baltic with the Cattegat and the North Sea. The whole distance by the canal route from the North Sea to the Baltic is two hundred and sixty English miles. Baedeker states that the artificial part of this waterway, including seventy-four locks in all, is about fifty-six miles in length. Four of the locks are for regulating the level of the water. The highest point of the canal is where it enters Lake Vettern, three hundred feet above sea-level. The canal is forty-six feet wide at the bottom, eighty-six feet on the surface, and is ten feet in depth. About seven thousand barges and small steamers annually ply between the North Sea and Lake Venern, and three thousand between Lake Venern and the Baltic. The different parts of the canal between Gothenburg and Stockholm are known collectively as the Gotha Canal; it is the most important system in Sweden, where engineers have accomplished so much in perfecting internal communication.
We decided to make the journey from Gothenburg to Stockholm by the canal route, rather than by railway, although Baedeker strongly recommends travellers in no case to make the whole journey by steamer, as it would prove extremely tiresome and monotonous, and states that the steamers leave much to be desired in point of comfort. Our experience proved directly the opposite; and we look back upon it as one of the most enjoyable parts of our journey in the North, and it shows that the little red book is not infallible, and that a traveller must use his own judgment in the selection