Tonsberg was formerly the residence of one of the little sovereigns of
Norway; and on an adjacent mountain the vestiges of a fort remain, which
was battered down by the Swedes, the entrance of the bay lying close to
it.
Here I have frequently strayed, sovereign of the waste; I seldom met any
human creature; and sometimes, reclining on the mossy down, under the
shelter of a rock, the prattling of the sea amongst the pebbles has
lulled me to sleep--no fear of any rude satyr's approaching to interrupt
my repose. Balmy were the slumbers, and soft the gales, that refreshed
me, when I awoke to follow, with an eye vaguely curious, the white
sails, as they turned the cliffs, or seemed to take shelter under the
pines which covered the little islands that so gracefully rose to render
the terrific ocean beautiful. The fishermen were calmly casting their
nets, whilst the sea-gulls hovered over the unruffled deep. Everything
seemed to harmonise into tranquillity; even the mournful call of the
bittern was in cadence with the tinkling bells on the necks of the cows,
that, pacing slowly one after the other, along an inviting path in the
vale below, were repairing to the cottages to be milked. With what
ineffable pleasure have I not gazed--and gazed again, losing my breath
through my eyes--my very soul diffused itself in the scene; and, seeming
to become all senses, glided in the scarcely-agitated waves, melted in
the freshening breeze, or, taking its flight with fairy wing, to the
misty mountain which bounded the prospect, fancy tripped over new lawns,
more beautiful even than the lovely slopes on the winding shore before
me. I pause, again breathless, to trace, with renewed delight,
sentiments which entranced me, when, turning my humid eyes from the
expanse below to the vault above, my sight pierced the fleecy clouds
that softened the azure brightness; and imperceptibly recalling the
reveries of childhood, I bowed before the awful throne of my Creator,
whilst I rested on its footstool.
You have sometimes wondered, my dear friend, at the extreme affection of
my nature. But such is the temperature of my soul. It is not the
vivacity of youth, the heyday of existence. For years have I endeavoured
to calm an impetuous tide, labouring to make my feelings take an orderly
course. It was striving against the stream. I must love and admire with
warmth, or I sink into sadness. Tokens of love which I have received
have wrapped me in Elysium, purifying the heart they enchanted. My bosom
still glows. Do not saucily ask, repeating Sterne's question, "Maria, is
it still so warm?" Sufficiently, O my God! has it been chilled by
sorrow and unkindness; still nature will prevail; and if I blush at
recollecting past enjoyment, it is the rosy hue of pleasure heightened
by modesty, for the blush of modesty and shame are as distinct as the
emotions by which they are produced.
I need scarcely inform you, after telling you of my walks, that my
constitution has been renovated here, and that I have recovered my
activity even whilst attaining a little _embonpoint_. My imprudence last
winter, and some untoward accidents just at the time I was weaning my
child, had reduced me to a state of weakness which I never before
experienced. A slow fever preyed on me every night during my residence
in Sweden, and after I arrived at Tonsberg. By chance I found a fine
rivulet filtered through the rocks, and confined in a basin for the
cattle. It tasted to me like a chalybeate; at any rate, it was pure; and
the good effect of the various waters which invalids are sent to drink
depends, I believe, more on the air, exercise, and change of scene, than
on their medicinal qualities. I therefore determined to turn my morning
walks towards it, and seek for health from the nymph of the fountain,
partaking of the beverage offered to the tenants of the shade.
Chance likewise led me to discover a new pleasure equally beneficial to
my health. I wished to avail myself of my vicinity to the sea and bathe;
but it was not possible near the town; there was no convenience. The
young woman whom I mentioned to you proposed rowing me across the water
amongst the rocks; but as she was pregnant, I insisted on taking one of
the oars, and learning to row. It was not difficult, and I do not know a
pleasanter exercise. I soon became expert, and my train of thinking kept
time, as it were, with the oars, or I suffered the boat to be carried
along by the current, indulging a pleasing forgetfulness or fallacious
hopes. How fallacious! yet, without hope, what is to sustain life, but
the fear of annihilation--the only thing of which I have ever felt a
dread. I cannot bear to think of being no more--of losing myself--though
existence is often but a painful consciousness of misery; nay, it
appears to me impossible that I should cease to exist, or that this
active, restless spirit, equally alive to joy and sorrow, should only be
organised dust--ready to fly abroad the moment the spring snaps, or the
spark goes out which kept it together. Surely something resides in this
heart that is not perishable, and life is more than a dream.
Sometimes, to take up my oar once more, when the sea was calm, I was
amused by disturbing the innumerable young star fish which floated just
below the surface; I had never observed them before, for they have not a
hard shell like those which I have seen on the seashore. They look like
thickened water with a white edge, and four purple circles, of different
forms, were in the middle, over an incredible number of fibres or white
lines. Touching them, the cloudy substance would turn or close, first on
one side, then on the other, very gracefully, but when I took one of
them up in the ladle, with which I heaved the water out of the boat, it
appeared only a colourless jelly.
I did not see any of the seals, numbers of which followed our boat when
we landed in Sweden; but though I like to sport in the water I should
have had no desire to join in their gambols.
Enough, you will say, of inanimate nature and of brutes, to use the
lordly phrase of man; let me hear something of the inhabitants.
The gentleman with whom I had business is the Mayor of Tonsberg. He
speaks English intelligibly, and, having a sound understanding, I was
sorry that his numerous occupations prevented my gaining as much
information from him as I could have drawn forth had we frequently
conversed. The people of the town, as far as I had an opportunity of
knowing their sentiments, are extremely well satisfied with his manner
of discharging his office. He has a degree of information and good sense
which excites respect, whilst a cheerfulness, almost amounting to
gaiety, enables him to reconcile differences and keep his neighbours in
good humour. "I lost my horse," said a woman to me, "but ever since,
when I want to send to the mill, or go out, the Mayor lends me one. He
scolds if I do not come for it."
A criminal was branded, during my stay here, for the third offence; but
the relief he received made him declare that the judge was one of the
best men in the world.
I sent this wretch a trifle, at different times, to take with him into
slavery. As it was more than he expected, he wished very much to see me,
and this wish brought to my remembrance an anecdote I heard when I was
in Lisbon.
A wretch who had been imprisoned several years, during which period
lamps had been put up, was at last condemned to a cruel death, yet, in
his way to execution, he only wished for one night's respite to see the
city lighted.
Having dined in company at the mayor's I was invited with his family to
spend the day at one of the richest merchant's houses. Though I could
not speak Danish I knew that I could see a great deal; yes, I am
persuaded that I have formed a very just opinion of the character of the
Norwegians, without being able to hold converse with them.
I had expected to meet some company, yet was a little disconcerted at
being ushered into an apartment full of well dressed people, and
glancing my eyes round they rested on several very pretty faces. Rosy
cheeks, sparkling eyes, and light brown or golden locks; for I never saw
so much hair with a yellow cast, and, with their fine complexions, it
looked very becoming.
These women seem a mixture of indolence and vivacity; they scarcely ever
walk out, and were astonished that I should for pleasure, yet they are
immoderately fond of dancing. Unaffected in their manners, if they have
no pretensions to elegance, simplicity often produces a gracefulness of
deportment, when they are animated by a particular desire to please,
which was the case at present. The solitariness of my situation, which
they thought terrible, interested them very much in my favour. They
gathered round me, sung to me, and one of the prettiest, to whom I gave
my hand with some degree of cordiality, to meet the glance of her eyes,
kissed me very affectionately.
At dinner, which was conducted with great hospitality, though we
remained at table too long, they sung several songs, and, amongst the
rest, translations of some patriotic French ones. As the evening
advanced they became playful, and we kept up a sort of conversation of
gestures. As their minds were totally uncultivated I did not lose much,
perhaps gained, by not being able to understand them; for fancy probably
filled up, more to their advantage, the void in the picture. Be that as
it may, they excited my sympathy, and I was very much flattered when I
was told the next day that they said it was a pleasure to look at me, I
appeared so good-natured.
The men were generally captains of ships. Several spoke English very
tolerably, but they were merely matter-of-fact men, confined to a very
narrow circle of observation. I found it difficult to obtain from them
any information respecting their own country, when the fumes of tobacco
did not keep me at a distance.
I was invited to partake of some other feasts, and always had to
complain of the quantity of provision and the length of time taken to
consume it; for it would not have been proper to have said devour, all
went on so fair and softly. The servants wait as slowly as their
mistresses carve.
The young women here, as well as in Sweden, have commonly bad teeth,
which I attribute to the same causes. They are fond of finery, but do
not pay the necessary attention to their persons, to render beauty less
transient than a flower, and that interesting expression which sentiment
and accomplishments give seldom supplies its place.
The servants have, likewise, an inferior sort of food here, but their
masters are not allowed to strike them with impunity. I might have added
mistresses, for it was a complaint of this kind brought before the mayor
which led me to a knowledge of the fact.
The wages are low, which is particularly unjust, because the price of
clothes is much higher than that of provision. A young woman, who is wet
nurse to the mistress of the inn where I lodge, receives only twelve
dollars a year, and pays ten for the nursing of her own child. The
father had run away to get clear of the expense. There was something in
this most painful state of widowhood which excited my compassion and led
me to reflections on the instability of the most flattering plans of
happiness, that were painful in the extreme, till I was ready to ask
whether this world was not created to exhibit every possible combination
of wretchedness. I asked these questions of a heart writhing with
anguish, whilst I listened to a melancholy ditty sung by this poor girl.
It was too early for thee to be abandoned, thought I, and I hastened out
of the house to take my solitary evening's walk. And here I am again to
talk of anything but the pangs arising from the discovery of estranged
affection and the lonely sadness of a deserted heart.
The father and mother, if the father can be ascertained, are obliged to
maintain an illegitimate child at their joint expense; but, should the
father disappear, go up the country or to sea, the mother must maintain
it herself. However, accidents of this kind do not prevent their
marrying, and then it is not unusual to take the child or children home,
and they are brought up very amicably with the marriage progeny.
I took some pains to learn what books were written originally in their
language; but for any certain information respecting the state of Danish
literature I must wait till I arrive at Copenhagen.
The sound of the language is soft, a great proportion of the words
ending in vowels; and there is a simplicity in the turn of some of the
phrases which have been translated to me that pleased and interested me.
In the country the farmers use the _thou_ and _thee_; and they do not
acquire the polite plurals of the towns by meeting at market. The not
having markets established in the large towns appears to me a great
inconvenience. When the farmers have anything to sell they bring it to
the neighbouring town and take it from house to house. I am surprised
that the inhabitants do not feel how very incommodious this usage is to
both parties, and redress it; they, indeed, perceive it, for when I have
introduced the subject they acknowledged that they were often in want of
necessaries, there being no butchers, and they were often obliged to buy
what they did not want; yet it was the custom, and the changing of
customs of a long standing requires more energy than they yet possess. I
received a similar reply when I attempted to persuade the women that
they injured their children by keeping them too warm. The only way of
parrying off my reasoning was that they must do as other people did; in
short, reason on any subject of change, and they stop you by saying that
"the town would talk." A person of sense, with a large fortune to
ensure respect, might be very useful here, by inducing them to treat
their children and manage their sick properly, and eat food dressed in a
simpler manner--the example, for instance, of a count's lady.
Reflecting on these prejudices made me revert to the wisdom of those
legislators who established institutions for the good of the body under
the pretext of serving heaven for the salvation of the soul. These might
with strict propriety be termed pious frauds; and I admire the Peruvian
pair for asserting that they came from the sun, when their conduct
proved that they meant to enlighten a benighted country, whose
obedience, or even attention, could only be secured by awe. Thus much
for conquering the _inertia_ of reason; but, when it is once in motion,
fables once held sacred may be ridiculed; and sacred they were when
useful to mankind. Prometheus alone stole fire to animate the first man;
his posterity needs not supernatural aid to preserve the species, though
love is generally termed a flame; and it may not be necessary much
longer to suppose men inspired by heaven to inculcate the duties which
demand special grace when reason convinces them that they are the
happiest who are the most nobly employed.
In a few days I am to set out for the western part of Norway, and then
shall return by land to Gothenburg. I cannot think of leaving this place
without regret. I speak of the place before the inhabitants, though
there is a tenderness in their artless kindness which attaches me to
them; but it is an attachment that inspires a regret very different from
that I felt at leaving Hull in my way to Sweden. The domestic happiness
and good-humoured gaiety of the amiable family where I and my Frances
were so hospitably received would have been sufficient to ensure the
tenderest remembrance, without the recollection of the social evening to
stimulate it, when good breeding gave dignity to sympathy and wit zest
to reason.
Adieu!--I am just informed that my horse has been waiting this quarter
of an hour. I now venture to ride out alone. The steeple serves as a
landmark. I once or twice lost my way, walking alone, without being able
to inquire after a path; I was therefore obliged to make to the steeple,
or windmill, over hedge and ditch.
Yours truly.