The hotel where I
lodged was pretty and clean. My bedroom was a large room, with
which the most fastidious might have been contented. The supper
which they provided for me was, however, most frugal, consisting
only of soft-boiled eggs. They gave me neither salt nor bread with
them, nor a spoon; nothing but a knife and fork. And it is a
mystery to me how soft eggs can be eaten without bread, and with a
knife and fork.
August 25th.
I hired a fresh horse here, with which I proceeded to Kongsberg,
eighteen miles farther. The first seven miles afforded a repetition
of the romantic scenery of the previous day, with the exception of
the sea. But instead I had the beautiful river, until I had
ascended a hill, from whose summit I overlooked a large and
apparently populous valley, filled with groups of houses and single
farms. It is strange that there are very few large towns in Norway;
every peasant builds his house in the midst of his fields.
Beyond this hill the scenery grows more monotonous. The mountains
are lower, the valley narrower, and the road is enclosed by wood or
rocks. One peculiarity of Norwegian rocks is their humidity. The
water penetrates through countless fissures, but only in such small
quantities as to cover the stones with a kind of veil. When the sun
shines on these wet surfaces of rock, of which there are many and
large ones, they shine like mirrors.
Delemarken seems to be tolerably populous. I often met with
solitary peasant-huts in the large gloomy forests, and they gave
some life to the monotonous landscape. The industry of the
Norwegian peasant is very great; for every spot of earth, even on
the steepest precipices, bore potatoes, barley, or oats; their
houses also look cheerful, and were painted for the most part of a
brick-red colour.
I found the roads very good, especially the one from Christiania to
Drammen; and the one from Drammen to Kongsberg was not very
objectionable. There is such an abundance of wood in Norway, that
the streets on each side are fenced by wooden enclosures; and every
field and meadow is similarly protected against the intrusion of
cattle, and the miserable roads through the woods are even covered
with round trunks of trees.
The peasantry in this district have no peculiar costume; only the
head-covering of the females is curious. They wear a lady's hat,
such as was fashionable in the last century, ornamented with a bunch
behind, and with an immense shade in front. They are made of any
material, generally of the remains of old garments; and only on
Sundays better ones, and sometimes even silk ones, make their
appearance.
In the neighbourhood of Kongsberg this head-dress is no longer worn.
There they wear little caps like the Suabian peasantry, petticoats
commencing under the shoulders, and very short spencers: a very
ugly costume, the whole figure being spoilt by the short waist.
The town of Kongsberg is rather extended, and is beautifully
situated on a hill in the centre of a splendid wooded valley. It
is, like all the towns in Norway except Christiania, built of wood;
but it has many pretty, neat houses and some broad streets.
The stream Storri Elf flows past the town, and forms a small but
very picturesque waterfall a little below the bridge. What pleased
me most was the colour of the water as it surged over the rock. It
was about noon as I drove across the bridge; the sun illuminated the
whole country around, and the waves breaking against the rocks
seemed by this light of a beautiful pale-yellow colour, so that they
resembled thick masses of pure transparent amber.
Two remarkable sights claimed my attention at Kongsberg, - a rich
silver-mine, and a splendid waterfall called the Labrafoss. But as
my time was limited and I could only remain a few hours in
Kongsberg, I preferred to see the waterfall and believe the accounts
of the silver-mine; which were, that the deepest shaft was eight
hundred feet below the surface, and that it was most difficult to
remain there, as the cold, the smoke, and the powder-smell had a
very noxious effect on the traveller accustomed to light and air.
I therefore hired a horse and drove to the fall, which is situated
in a narrow pass about four miles from Kongsberg. The river
collects in a quiet calm basin a little distance above the fall, and
then rushes over the steep precipice with a sudden bound. The
considerable depth of the fall and the quality of water make it a
very imposing sight. This is increased by a gigantic rock planted
like a wall in the lower basin, and opposing its body to the
progress of the hurrying waters. The waves rebound from the rock,
and, collecting in mighty masses, rush over it, forming several
smaller waterfalls in their course.
I watched it from a high rock, and was nevertheless covered by the
spray to such a degree, that I sometimes could scarcely open my
eyes. My guide then took me to the lower part of the fall, so that
I might have a view of it from all sides; and each view seemed
different and more splendid. I perceived the same yellow
transparent colour which I had remarked in the fall at Kongsberg in
the waters which dashed over the rock and were illuminated by the
sun. I imagine it arises from the rock, which is every where of a
brownish-red colour, for the water itself was clear and pure.
At four o'clock in the afternoon I left Kongsberg, and drove to
Bolkesoe, a distance of eighteen miles. It was by no means a
beautiful or an agreeable drive; for the road was very bad, and took
me through passes and valleys, across woods and over steep
mountains, while the night was dark and unilluminated by the moon.
The thought involuntarily entered my mind, how easily my guide, who
sat close behind me on the vehicle, could put me out of the world by
a gentle blow, and take possession of my effects.
