_The Orkneys in Pawn._--Dr. Clarke mentions a curious circumstance, which
was related to him in Norway, by Bernard Auker, of Christiana. He stated
that Great Britain had the Orkney Islands only in pawn. Looking over some
old deeds and records, belonging to the Danish crown, at Copenhagen, Mr.
Auker found that these islands were consigned to England, in lieu of a
dowry for a Danish princess, married to one of our English kings, upon
condition that these islands should be restored to Denmark whenever the
debt for which they were pledged should be discharged. Therefore, as the
price of land, and the value of money, have undergone such considerable
alteration since this period, it is in the power of Denmark, for a very
small sum, to claim possession of the Orkneys.