Experiences Sailing Northward. -- Arctic Whaling. -- The
Feathered Tribe. -- Caught in a Trap. -- Domestic Animals. -- The
Marvellous Gulf Stream. -- Town of Hammerfest. -- Commerce. --
Arctic Mosquitoes. -- The Public Crier. -- Norwegian Marriages.
-- Peculiar Bird Habits. -- A Hint to Naturalists. -- Bird
Island. -- A Lonely Habitation. -- High Latitude. -- Final
Landing at the North Cape. -- A Hard Climb. -- View of the
Wonderful Midnight Sun.
After leaving Tromsoee our course was north by east, crossing broad
wild fjords and skirting the main-land, passing innumerable islands
down whose precipitous sides narrow waterfalls leaped hundreds of
feet towards the sea. Along the shore at intervals little clusters of
fishermen's huts were seen with a small sprinkling of herbage and
patches of bright verdure. Here and there were partially successful
attempts at vegetable culture, but the brief season which is here
possible for such purposes is almost prohibitory. Whales, sometimes
singly, sometimes in schools, rose to the surface of the sea, and
casting up tiny fountains of spray would suddenly disappear to come
up again, perhaps miles away. These leviathans of the deep are always
a subject of great interest to persons at sea, and were certainly in
remarkable numbers here in the Arctic Ocean. As we have said, small
steamers are in use along the coast for catching whales; and these
are painted green, to enable them to approach the animal unperceived.
They are armed with small swivel-guns, from which is fired a compound
projectile, consisting of a barbed harpoon to which a short chain is
affixed, and to that a strong line. This special form of harpoon has
barbs, which expand as soon as they have entered the body of the
animal and he pulls upon the line, stopping at a certain angle, and
rendering the withdrawal of the weapon impossible. Besides this an
explosive shell is attached, which bursts within the body of the
monster as soon as the flukes expand, producing almost instant death.
A cable is then affixed to the head, and the whale is towed into
harbor to be cut up and the blubber tried out upon the shore in huge
kettles. This business is carried on at Vadsoe and Hammerfest as well
as at Tromsoee. The change was constant, and the novelty never
ceasing. Large black geese, too heavy it would seem for lofty flight,
rose awkwardly from the surface of the waves, and now and again
skimmed across the fjords, just clearing the surface of the dark blue
waters. Oyster-catchers, as they are familiarly called, decked with
scarlet legs and bills, were abundant. Now and then that daring
highwayman, among sea-birds,--the skua, or robber-gull,--was seen on
the watch for a victim. He is quite dark in plumage, almost black,
and gets a predatory living by attacking and causing other birds to
drop what they have caught up from the sea, seizing which as it
falls, he sails swiftly away to consume his stolen prize. The
movements of this feathered creature through the air when darting
towards its object are almost too rapid to follow with the human eye.
Not infrequently six or eight gulls of the common species club
together and make a combined onslaught upon this daring free-booter,
and then he must look out for himself; for when the gull is
thoroughly aroused and makes up his mind to fight, he distinctly
means business, and will struggle to the last gasp, like the Spanish
game-cock. There is proverbially strength in numbers, and the skua,
after such an organized encounter, is almost always found floating
lifeless upon the surface of the sea.
We were told of an interesting and touching experience relating to
the golden eagle which occurred near Hammerfest, in the vicinity of
which we are now speaking. It seems that a young Norwegian had set a
trap far up in the hills, at a point where he knew that these birds
occasionally made their appearance. He was prevented from visiting
the trap for some two weeks after he had set and placed it; but
finally when he did so, he found that one of these noble creatures
had been caught by the foot, probably in a few hours after the trap
had been left there. His efforts to release himself had been in vain,
and he lay there dead from exhaustion, not of starvation. This was
plain enough, since close beside the dead eagle and quite within his
reach was the half-consumed body of a white grouse, which must have
been brought to him by his mate, who realizing her companion's
position thus did all that was in her power to sustain and help him.
Occasionally domestic animals in small numbers are seen at the
fishing hamlets, though this is very rarely the case above
Hammerfest. Goats, cows, and sheep find but a poor supply of
vegetable sustenance, mostly composed of reindeer moss; but, strange
to say, these animals learn to eat dried fish, and to relish it when
mixed with moss and straw. The cows are small in frame and quite
short in the legs, but they are hardy and prolific, and mostly white.
All domestic animals seem to be dwarfed here by climatic influences.
Long before we reached Hammerfest the passengers' watches seemed to
be bewitched, for it must be remembered that here it is broad
daylight through all the twenty-four hours which constitute day and
night elsewhere. No wonder that sleep became little more than a
subterfuge, since everybody's eyes were preternaturally wide open.
The Gulf Stream emerging from the tropics thousands of miles away
constantly laves these shores, and consequently ice is here unknown.
At first blush it seems a little queer that icebergs here in latitude
70 deg. north are never seen, though we all know them to be plenty
enough in the season on the coast of America at 41 deg.. The entire coast
of Norway is warmer by at least twenty degrees than most other
localities in the same latitude, owing to the presence and influence
of the Gulf Stream,--that heated, mysterious river in the midst of
the ocean. It also brings to these boreal regions quantities of
floating material, such as the trunks of palm-trees and other
substances suitable for fuel, to which useful purpose they are put at
the Lofoden fishing hamlets and also on the shores of the main-land.
By the same active agency West Indian seeds and woods are found
floating on the west coast of Scotland and Ireland.
Hammerfest, the capital of the province of Finmark, is situated in
latitude 70 deg. 40' north, upon the island of Kvaloee, or "Whale
Island." It is overshadowed by Tyvfjeld,--that is, "Thief Mountain,"
thus fancifully named because it robs the place of the little
sunshine it might enjoy were this huge elevation not at all times
intervening. It is the most northerly town in all Europe, and is
located about sixty-five miles southwest of the North Cape. It is a
compactly-built town of about three thousand inhabitants, who appear
to be exceptionally industrious and intelligent. Even here, in this
far-off region of frost, there are good schools and able teachers.
There is also a weekly newspaper issued, and some authorities claim a
population of nearly six thousand, which seemed to be an excessive
estimate.
The harbor presents a busy scene, with its queer Norwegian boats
formed after the excellent but antique shape of the galleys of old.
On a little promontory near the entrance of the harbor is erected a
stone pillar, indicating the spot where the measurement of the
degrees of latitude between the mouth of the Danube and Hammerfest
was perfected. It is called the Meridianstoette. The trading-vessels
are many, and they fly the flags of several commercial nations; but
most numerous of all is the flag of Russia, whose trading-ships swarm
on the coast during the summer season. Many of these vessels were
from far-off Archangel and the ports of the White Sea, from whence
they bring cargoes of grain to exchange for dried fish. Truly has it
been said that commerce defies every wind, outrides every tempest,
and invades every zone. Hammerfest, consisting mostly of one long,
broad street, is neat and clean; but the odor of fish-oil is very
sickening to one not accustomed to it. We were twice compelled to
beat a retreat from certain localities, being unable to endure the
stench. Many of the people were seen to be shod in heavy leather
boots or shoes, similar in form to the fishing-boats, being curiously
pointed and turned up at the toes. Certain tokens in and about the
town forcibly reminded one of New Bedford in Massachusetts. On the
north promontory of the island is situated a picturesque lighthouse,
from which a fine view may be enjoyed of the rocky shore, the myriads
of islands, and the mountainous main-land. The mosquitoes, that
inexplicable pest even in this high latitude, scarcely wait for the
snow to disappear before they begin their vicious onslaught upon
humanity. The farther one goes inland the greater this annoyance
becomes, and some protection to face, neck, and hands is absolutely
necessary. The public crier pursues his ancient vocation at
Hammerfest, not however with a noisy bell, but with a more melodious
trumpet. After blowing a few clear, shrill notes thereon calculated
to awaken attention, he proclaims that there will be a missionary
meeting held at a certain hour and place, or that a steamer will sail
on the following day at a given time, the favorite hour being at
twelve midnight. The crier here understands his vocation, and by
introducing a certain melodious expression to his words, chanting
them in fact, he commands the pleased attention of the multitude.
A wedding-feast in Norway is always looked upon as a grand domestic
event, and is ever made the most of by all parties concerned; but at
Hammerfest and the north part of the country generally, it becomes a
most important and demonstrative affair. No expense is spared by the
bride's parents to render the event memorable in all respects. The
revels are sometimes kept up for a period of three weeks, until at
last every one becomes quite exhausted with the excitement and with
dancing, when the celebration by common consent is brought to a
close. During the height of the revels, street parades constitute a
part of the singular performances, when bride, bridegroom, family and
friends, preceded by a band of musicians, march gayly from point to
point; or a line of boats is formed, with the principals in the
first, the musicians in the second, and so on, all decked with
natural and artificial flowers and bright-colored streamers. As we
started out of Hammerfest harbor we chanced upon one of these aquatic
bridal parties, accompanied by instrumental music and a chorus of
many pleasant voices, the diaphanous dresses of bride and
bridesmaids looking like mist-wreaths settled about the boats. It was
easy to distinguish the bride from her attendants, by the tall,
sparkling gilt crown which she wore.
In sailing along the coast after leaving the point just described, it
is observed that vegetation grows more and more scarce. The land is
seen to be useless for agricultural purposes; habitations first
become rare, then almost entirely cease, bleakness reigning supreme,
while one seems to be creeping higher and higher on the earth. In
ascending lofty mountains, say in the Himalayan range, we realize
that there are heights still above us; but in approaching the North
Cape a feeling comes over us that we are gradually getting to the
very apex of the globe. Everything seems to be beneath our feet; the
broad, deep, unbounded ocean alone makes the horizon. Day and night
cease to be relative terms, while the strange effect and the magic
brightness of a Polar night utterly beggar description. As we rounded
one of the many abrupt rocky islets in our course, which came up
dark, steep, and inaccessible from an unknown depth, there flew up
from the smooth waters into which the steamer ploughed her way a
couple of small ducks, each with a young bird snugly ensconced upon
its back, between the broad-spread, narrow wings. This was to the
writer a novelty, though an officer of the ship said it was not
unusual to see certain species of Arctic ducks thus transporting
their ducklings. One reads of woodcock at times seizing their young
in their talons, and bearing them away from impending danger; but a
web-footed bird could not effectually adopt this mode in any
exigency. It seems however that Nature has taught the ducks another
fashion of transporting their helpless progeny. The birds we had
disturbed did not fly aloft with their tiny burdens, but skimmed over
the surface of the fjord into some one of the sheltering nooks along
the irregular shore. We were further told a curious fact, if fact it
be, that the young ducks of the female species, almost as soon as
they are able to fly, begin to practise the habit of carrying
something upon their backs. That is to say, they are not infrequently
found skimming along the surface of the water with a small wad of
sea-weed, such as is used by aquatic birds in nest-building,
carefully supported between their wings. Just so little girls are
prone to pet a doll, the maternal instinct exhibiting itself in early
childhood. The male and female birds are easily distinguished from
each other by the difference in their plumage. The former do not show
this inclination for carrying baby burdens, neither do young boys
display a predilection for dolls! We commend these facts to the
notice of naturalists.
About forty miles northward from Hammerfest is situated what is
called Bird Island, a hoary mass of rock, famous as a breeding place
of various sea-birds, and where the nests of many thousands are to be
seen. This huge cliff rises abruptly to the height of over a thousand
feet from the surrounding ocean. Its seaward face being nearly
perpendicular is yet so creviced as to afford lodgement for the
birds, and it is literally covered by their nests from base to top.
The Norwegians call the island Svaerholtklubben. It is customary for
excursion steamers to "make" this island in their course to the North
Cape, and to stand off and on for an hour to give passengers an
opportunity to observe the birds and their interesting habits. The
ship's cannon is fired also, when the echoes of its single report
become myriad, reverberating through the caves and broad chasms of
the rock, starting forth the feathered tribes, until the air is as
full of them as of flakes in an Arctic snow-storm. The echoes mingle
with the harsh, wailing screams, and roar of wings become almost
deafening as the birds wheel in clouds above the ship, or sail
swiftly away and return again like a flash to join their young, whose
tiny white heads may be seen peeping anxiously above the sides of the
nests. One or two dwelling-houses, surrounded by a few small sheds,
are to be seen in a little valley near the water's edge on the lee
side of Bird Island, where a dozen persons more or less make their
dreary home. These residents send off fresh milk by a boat to the
passing steamer, though how the cows can find sustenance here is an
unsolved riddle. They also make a business of robbing the
birds'-nests of the eggs, by means of ladders, but do not injure the
birds themselves. Of course there are but comparatively few of the
nests which they can manage to reach at all.
The North Cape is in reality an island projecting itself far into the
Polar Sea, and which is separated from the main-land by a narrow
strait. The highest point which has ever been reached by the daring
Arctic explorer was eighty-three degrees twenty-four minutes, north
latitude; this Cape is in latitude seventy-one degrees ten minutes.
The island is named Mageroee, which signifies a barren place; and it
is certainly well named, for a wilder, bleaker, or more desolate spot
cannot be found on the face of the earth. Only a few hares, ermine,
and sea-birds manage to subsist upon its sterile soil. The western
and northern sides are absolutely inaccessible from their rough and
precipitous character. The Arctic Sea thundered hoarsely against its
base as we approached the windswept, weather-worn cliff of the North
Cape in a small landing-boat. It was near the midnight hour, yet the
warm light of the sun's clear, direct rays enveloped us. A few
sea-birds uttered dismal and discordant cries as they flew lazily in
circles overhead. The landing was soon accomplished amid the half
impassable rocks, and then began, the struggle to reach the top of
the Cape, which rises in its only accessible part at an angle of
nearly forty-five degrees. For half an hour we plodded wearily
through the debris of rubble-stones, wet soil, and rolling rocks,
until finally the top was reached, after which a walk of about a
third of a mile upon gently rising ground brings one to the point of
observation,--that is, to the verge of the cliff. We were now fully
one thousand feet above the level of the sea, standing literally
upon the threshold of the unknown.
No difference was observed between the broad light of this Polar
night and the noon of a sunny summer's day in the low latitudes. The
sky was all aglow and the rays of the sun warm and penetrating,
though a certain chill in the atmosphere at this exposed elevation
rendered thick clothing quite indispensable. This was the objective
point to reach which we had voyaged thousands of miles from another
hemisphere. We looked about us in silent wonder and awe. To the
northward was that unknown region to solve the mysteries of which so
many gallant lives had been sacrificed. Far to the eastward was Asia;
in the distant west lay America, and southward were Europe and
Africa. Such an experience may occur once in a lifetime, but rarely
can it be repeated. The surface of the cliff, which is quite level
where we stood (near the base of the small granite column erected to
commemorate the visit of Oscar II. in 1873), was covered by soft
reindeer moss, which yielded to the tread like a rich carpet of
velvet. There was no other vegetation near, not even a spear of
grass; though as we climbed the steep path hither occasional bits of
pea-green moss were seen, with a minute pink blossom peeping out here
and there from the rubble-stones. Presently the boom of a distant gun
floated faintly upwards. It was the cautionary signal from the ship,
which was now seen floating far below us, a mere speck upon that
Polar sea.
The hands of the watch indicated that it was near the hour of twelve,
midnight. The great luminary had sunk slowly amid a glory of light to
within three degrees of the horizon, where it seemed to hover for a
single moment like some monster bird about to alight upon a mountain
peak, and then changing its mind, slowly began its upward movement.
This was exactly at midnight, always a solemn hour; but amid the
glare of sunlight and the glowing immensity of sea and sky, how
strange and weird it seemed!
Notwithstanding they were so closely mingled, the difference between
the gorgeous coloring of the setting and the fresh hues of the rising
sun was clearly though delicately defined. Indeed, the sun had not
really set at all. It had been constantly visible, though it seemed
to shine for a few moments with slightly diminished power. Still, the
human eye could not rest upon it for one instant. It was the mingling
of the golden haze of evening with the radiant, roseate flush of the
blushing morn. At the point where sky and ocean met there was left a
boreal azure resembling the steel-white of the diamond; this was
succeeded by pearly gray, until the horizon became wavy with lines of
blue, like the delicate figures wrought upon a Toledo blade. In the
Yellow Sea the author has seen a more vivid sunset, combining the
volcanic effects of lurid light; but it lacked the sublime,
mysterious, mingled glory of evening and morning twilight which
characterized this wondrous view of the Arctic midnight sun.