As I had hired no carriage, I had a different vehicle at every
station, and these vehicles consisted of ordinary two-wheeled wooden
carts. My seat was a truss of hay covered with the horse-cloth. If
the roads had not been so extremely good, these carts would have
shaken terribly; but as it was, I must say that I rode more
comfortably than in the carriols of the Norwegians, although they
were painted and vanished; for in them I had to be squeezed in with
my feet stretched out, and could not change my position.
The stations are unequal, - sometimes long, sometimes short. The
post-horses are provided here, as in Norway, by wealthy peasants,
called Dschns-peasants. These have to collect a certain number of
horses every evening for forwarding the travellers the next morning.
At every post-house a book is kept, in which the traveller can see
how many horses the peasant has, how many have already been hired,
and how many are left in the stable. He must then inscribe his
name, the hour of his departure, and the number of horses he
requires. By this arrangement deception and extortion are
prevented, as every thing is open, and the prices fixed. {55}
Patience is also required here, though not so much as in Norway. I
had always to wait from fifteen to twenty minutes before the
carriage was brought and the horses and harness prepared, but never
longer; and I must admit that the Swedish post-masters hurried as
much as possible, and never demanded double fare, although they must
have known that I was in haste. The pace of the horse depends on
the will of the coachman and the powers of his steed; but in no
other country did I see such consideration paid to the strength of
the horses. It is quite ridiculous to see what small loads of corn,
bricks, or wood, are allotted to two horses, and how slowly and
sleepily they draw their burdens.
The number of wooden gates, which divide the roads into as many
parts as there are common grounds on it, are a terrible nuisance to
travellers. The coachman has often to dismount six or eight times
in an hour to open and close these gates. I was told that these
delectable gates even exist on the great high road, only not quite
in such profusion as on the by-roads.
Wood must be as abundant here as in Norway, for every thing is
enclosed; even fields which seem so barren as not to be worth the
labour or the wood.
The villages through which I passed were generally pretty and
cheerful, and I found the cottages, which I entered while the horses
were changed, neatly and comfortably furnished.
The peasants of this district wear a peculiar costume. The men, and
frequently also the boys, wear long dark-blue cloth surtouts, and
cloth caps on their heads; so that, at a distance, they look like
gentlemen in travelling dress. It seems curious to a foreigner to
see these apparent gentlemen following the plough or cutting grass.
At a nearer view, of course the aspect changes, and the rents and
dirt appear, or the leathern apron worn beneath the coat, like
carpenters in Austria, becomes visible. The female costume was
peculiar only in so far that it was poor and ragged. In dress and
shoes the Norwegian and Swedes are behind the Icelanders, but they
surpass them in the comfort of their dwellings.
September 14th.
To-day I returned to Stockholm on the Malarsee, and the weather
being more favourable than on my former passage, I could remain on
deck the whole time. I saw now that we sailed for several miles on
the river Fyris, which flows through woods and fields into the lake.
The large plain on which old and new Upsala lie was soon out of
sight, and after passing two bridges, we turned into the Malar. At
first there are no islands on its flat expanse, and its shores are
studded with low tree-covered hills; but we soon, however, arrived
at the region of islands, where the passage becomes more
interesting, and the beauty of the shores increases. The first fine
view we saw was the pretty estate Krusenberg, whose castle is
romantically situated on a fertile hill. But much more beautiful
and surprising is the splendid castle of Skukloster, a large,
beautiful, and regular pile, ornamented with four immense round
turrets at the four corners, and with gardens stretching down to the
water's edge.
From this place the scenery is full of beauty and variety; every
moment presents another and a more lovely view. Sometimes the
waters expand, sometimes they are hemmed in by islands, and become
as narrow as canals. I was most charmed with those spots where the
islands lie so close together that no outlet seems possible, till
another turn shews an opening between them, with a glimpse of the
lake beyond. The hills on the shores are higher, and the
promontories larger, the farther the ship advances; and the islands
appear to be merely projections of the continent, till a nearer
approach dispels the illusion.
The village of Sixtuna lies in a picturesque and charming little
valley, filled with ruins, principally of round towers, which are
said to be the remains of the Roman town of Sixtum; the name being
retained by the new town with a slight modification.
After this follow cliffs and rocks rising perpendicularly from the
sea, and whose vicinity would be by no means desirable in a storm.
Of the castle of Rouse only three beautiful domes rise above the
trees; a frowning bleak hill conceals the rest from the eye.
