DINNER AT THE EMBASSY--MANNERS AND CUSTOMS OF THE
DANES--THE SPANISH AMBASSADOR AND THE ENGLISH
EXILE--THE CITADEL--STORY OF THE TWO CAPTIVES--JOE
WASHIMTUM, AGAIN--A DANISH DINNER--VISIT TO THE
THEATRE--POLITICAL REFLECTIONS--FESTIVITIES ON
BOARD THE YACHT--MERRY PARTY AT THE AMERICAN
AMBASSADOR'S--THE DUCHIES OF SCHLESWIG AND HOLSTEIN.
At the Embassy we met, besides other guests, whose names I remember not,
the Baron de B----, a Holstein noble, and the Spanish Minister, from
both of whom, during the time we remained afterwards at Copenhagen, we
received the most marked kindness and attention. These two noblemen had
passed some brief period of their lives in London, as ambassadors to the
English court; and they ceased not telling us how great were the
hospitality, and how sincere the friendship, which had been heaped upon
them by our countrymen; and they said, they could never, either by
expression or deed, show too much gratitude for the happiness they had
felt.
While watching Jacko's gambols on deck this morning, I heard some one
hail the yacht; and, taking up a telescope, I discerned on the quay, the
Spanish Minister waving his handkerchief. The gig was immediately sent
for him. He came for the purpose of conducting us over the town, and
showing us all the public buildings and offices we had not yet seen.
After passing an hour on board, we all started with him for the shore.
I observed to-day, that the houses in Copenhagen, like the houses in
Holland, are inhabited by people equally inquisitive, and who desire to
know all that is going on in the streets, without being subjected to the
trouble of leaving their seats; for all the windows are supplied with
reflecting glasses, which are so placed, that you may see from the top
of one street to the bottom of another. This custom is peculiar, also,
to Norway and Sweden; for, I remember, when I was at Gottenborg, paying
a visit to a Swedish lady, she told me that she knew an Englishman was
in the town, although she had never met me in the streets, or even heard
of me from her friends. I begged to learn the charm. She then took me to
a window, and, directing my attention to a reflecting glass, requested
that I would look in it. I did so; and could see upwards of a mile from
the window while seated in an arm-chair. She had observed me, some days
before, standing on a bridge about three quarters of a mile from her
residence, looking at some Swedish washerwomen hard at their work.
A beggar is rarely to be seen in Copenhagen, since the charitable
institutions for the sick, the poor, and cripple, are very numerous. Now
and then, a little girl or boy, accosts an Englishman in a plaintive
tone; but it is merely for the sake of gaping at him. At an early hour
of the morning prisoners are made to clean the streets; and you may know
them by the attendant soldier, and the heavy chain attached to their
legs. After visiting several public museums, we walked towards the
Spanish Minister's residence. When within a short distance of the house,
turning suddenly round a corner, we met our old friend Mr. C----. His
delight in stumbling upon us so opportunely, as he was on his way to the
yacht, was evident both by his ecstasy of manner and voice. The Spaniard
thought him an acquaintance of ours; and, when we arrived at his gate,
begged Mr. C----, who needed no solicitation, to enter. After we had
taken off our hats, and not yet taken our seats,
"Well, now," began the voluble Mr. C----, "have you seen every thing?
Have you been to the University Library, or the Church of Our Saviour?"
"No, we had not," we said; "but at any rate we were too tired to go
anywhere else to-day."
"Bless me!" he exclaimed, "when I was as young as you are, I could walk
to Elsineur, and back again; and did. Let's go to the Thorwaldsen
Museum, eh?"
"I don't think it is open," replied the Spanish Minister.
"I'll go and see;" and away started Mr. C---- to make inquiry.
"Do you know who that is?" I asked, addressing myself to the Spanish
Minister, as soon as Mr. C---- had left the room.
"Why, yes; I do know a little about him," answered the Spaniard; "but I
deemed him a friend of yours." We then explained the origin of our
acquaintance.
"Exactly," replied the Minister, when he had listened to all. "He is a
man who makes it his habit to introduce himself to all Englishmen who
may come to Copenhagen; and although he may, by his importunate bearing,
torment them, he is, at the same time, of some service; and only desires
to be attentive."
"Is he a respectable person?" I said. "By his dress he seems poor; but
that is not fatal to his respectability."
"Why, no; you are right," the Minister said. "Mr. C---- has no enemy in
Copenhagen but himself. He came here without a friend some years ago,
and received, in pity for his condition of poverty, a lucrative
appointment from the Danish Government. Mr. C---- could have held that
appointment till this moment; but his partiality for the society of
Silenus, and the punctuality with which he every day mounted his ass,
caused him to ride at last out of the bounds of all moderation; and the
Government was compelled to deprive him of his office. From that day
till this morning he has been known as an amiable, inoffensive man, and
as _the_ drunken Englishman."
"He is a man, then," we all three said, "whose intimacy it were wise to
drop."
"Why, I think so," agreed the Spaniard; "for, though no one can accuse
him of a dishonest action, it is as well, for the sake of
appearance,--and society is made of appearances,--to be without him in
public."
"But how can we rid ourselves of him without giving offence, or hurting
his feelings?"
"Allow me," said the Spanish Minister, "to arrange that the best way I
can."
We had scarcely spoken, and the Minister made an end of recounting this
error in the life of Mr. C----, than he entered the room, hurriedly,
panting with the information he had obtained.
"It is open," he uttered, breathlessly,--"it is open;--and I will
conduct you. I have told--the authorities that you are three countrymen
of mine,--and you will receive attention--depend upon it."
"These gentlemen," interceded the Spanish Minister, "do not desire to go
to the Museum to-day; they have altered their minds."
"Oh!--very well," said Mr. C----, nothing daunted; "let's go elsewhere.
Time's my own--time's my own. I suppose time is yours, my Lord,--and
yours, and yours?" addressing himself to us individually, and noting us,
as a shepherd would count his flock, with the tip of his forefinger.
"Yes, certainly," we replied; "yes, time is ours."
"But," again interposed the Spanish Minister, "if these gentlemen do go
anywhere, I have offered to accompany them, and my services have been
accepted. _Both_ of us are needless."
"Of course, your Excellency," replied poor old C----, "I yield; for you
are, by your rank, abler than I am to secure for them that attention
which, as strangers, they merit." He held his hand out to us, which we
received with cordiality; and he took his leave, hoping that we might
find gratification in everything we saw.
When Mr. C---- had gone, the Minister showed us several curiosities in
his possession, and amongst them a beautiful Spanish dagger. The steel
was so hard, that, a Danish copper coin, about the size and solidity of
an English penny, was placed horizontally on a marble slab, and the
Spanish Minister, with one blow, pierced the piece of money with the
dagger's point without blunting it in the least.
The cloudless sky and grateful warmth of the sun made us prefer the open
air to the confined gases of museums, libraries, laboratories,
cathedrals, and their vaults; and, wandering along the fortifications
which surround the city till we reached Fredrikshavn, we passed through
a private way and entered the fortress itself. As we sauntered along,
conversing on various subjects, a culprit of some kind--for this
fortress is full of them--would occasionally cross our path, and add
interest to our discourse by the Minister's recital of some remarkable
incident in the man's life, which had brought him to the condition of a
slave. Although the inner ramparts, or citadel, of Fredrikshavn are not
allowed to be approached by any one, the rank of the Spanish Minister
seemed to cause an exception in his favour; for, as we came near to the
drawbridge leading over the inside moat of all, the two sentinels, who
were on duty, recognised the Minister, and, instead of stopping us,
presented arms.
Within these ramparts, on a wooden bench, from which the Sound, spotted
with the white sails of many ships,--and, faintly, the distant mountains
of Sweden,--might be seen, two black men sat. Removed at a distance of
twenty yards from them, four sentinels stood, resting carelessly, with
folded arms, on the muzzles of their fire-locks; but, even in this
negligence, paying much attention to the movements of these black men.
We stopped and observed the strange group; and our sympathy was moved by
the dress and melancholy demeanour of the two men. The one nearest to
us, who appeared the eldest, rested his chin on the back of his hands,
which were clasped round the top of a large walking-stick; and in that
attitude kept his eyes fixed on the blue waters of the Sound; his
thoughts, no doubt, wandering to his home, some pleasant spot, far away.
His hat was brown by long use, and rent at the rims, beneath which his
white hair, here and there, straggled forth. His coat, once black, was
now thread-bare and worn at the elbows; while his shoes, almost without
soles, kept sad unison with the other parts of his dress. The other old
man, whose clothes were equally squalid, sat more upright, and seemed
livelier, and of a lighter heart, misfortune not having yet touched so
blightingly the natural volatility of his disposition; for, now and
then, he spoke in low tones to his companion, who sometimes smiled, but
rarely made answer.
"You are observing those black men?" said the Spanish Minister. "They
are the most interesting objects in Copenhagen."
"Who are they?" we asked.
"Those two men," continued the Spaniard, "were once men of note in their
own country; and their misfortune resolves itself into this simple
tale. The man with grey hair, nearest to us, seemingly bent with excess
of sorrow, was the king of some Danish colony in the East Indies; and
the other, his favourite minister. After having reigned for many years
with equity and wisdom, and having seen his little island, cradled in
the lap of peace, put forth the strength of prosperity, the old
monarch's bright day of happiness and glory was suddenly overshadowed by
a cloud, which, though, by its insignificance, at first unobserved,
gradually gained bulk and darkness, and replete, at last, with all the
elements of storm and destruction, burst upon his head. A man murdered a
woman, his wife; and, according to the criminal code of his country, was
arrested, tried, and convicted; and this king, by the advice of his
minister, ordered the assassin to be executed. The intelligence reached
the ears of the Court of Denmark, and by command of Christian, the black
monarch and his adviser were arrested, on the plea, that, the one being,
though a monarch, a subject of Denmark, had no power to carry the
statutes of his own realm summarily into effect, without the previous
assent of the Danish Government; and, that, the other, being the
principal minister, was as culpable as his master in permitting such an
infringement of the law. They were both subsequently tried for the
offence, and being found guilty, were placed on board a Danish ship of
war, and brought to Copenhagen, where, within this fortress, they are
doomed to pass, in solitary confinement, the small portion of life which
may yet remain to them."
The guns of the citadel, as I said before, are of immense dimensions;
and I do not think I exaggerate when I state that the body of a child,
nine or ten years old, may very easily be placed inside of them. I never
saw such heavy cannon either at Portsmouth, Plymouth, Dover, or any
other fortified port in England. The sentinels would not allow us to
take a minute survey of these ordnance; but as soon as we walked round
from the muzzle to the breech, in order to examine their really
herculean proportions, a bayonet, thrust before our eyes, would be sure
to interrupt the stream of information which commenced flowing through
them to the mind. I suppose the soldier had read or heard of England,
and thinking the people who lived in it, or came from it, were wonderful
creatures, deemed it not impossible we might put a few of the guns under
his charge into our pockets, and walk off with them; and unless that was
his thought, I cannot conceive what mischief can arise from four
gentlemen looking at four dismounted guns. However, governments, like
men, have their whims; and it is of very little use trying to talk them
out of their fallacies. It is as likely, that, when meeting a maniac in
Bedlam, who fancies himself Napoleon Buonaparte, or any other pagod, you
will be able to point out the delusion under which he labours, and to
assure him that his social position, though respectable, was never
imperial. He will understand you as soon, and as soon assent to the
truth of your observations.
Our scrutiny had been thus interrupted, when the Baron de B---- came up
to us. We had expressed a desire to eat, for the mere sake of saying
hereafter that we had eaten, a real Copenhagen dinner, and the Baron
offered to show us an hotel, where we could gratify our wish to the
utmost extent. Having made no arrangements to dine on board, we started
at once for the hotel; and it turned out to be the identical one at
which my old acquaintance, Joe Washimtum, held the official post of
commissionaire. Like those useful and diligent bees of the great hive of
mankind, Joe was standing, with his black hands in his black breeches'
pocket, beneath the huge arch of the Hotel d'Angleterre, chattering and
laughing with a few other bees of a similar calling, but of a different
colour to himself. Joe raised his white hat five distinct times the
instant he saw our party, and, advancing towards us, he observed, still
with doffed hat and bended body,
"Good accummumdashum, gentlemen!"
"These gentlemen can dine here, can they not?" said the Baron de B.,
appealing to the exquisite Joe.
"No doubt at arl, sir, in de questchums," replied Joe quickly, and with
his AEthiopian face shining like a bright boot.
After the Baron de B., and the Spanish Minister had seen that we were
likely to encounter no difficulties under the protection of Joe, they
left us, expressing much regret they could not remain with us, being
obliged to dine at the Palace. When they had gone, "Dis way, gentlemen,
dis way," Joe breathed softly, and marshalled us his own peculiar way.
Joe soon put the whole hotel in an uproar by his magnificent description
of our personal rank and appearance; and in about ten minutes every
lacquey and scullery maid in the establishment knew that we were the
identical Englishmen who had come to Copenhagen in a yacht.
Joe had ascertained, somehow or other, there was a nobleman among us;
but his sagacity failed on this occasion, and he could not make out
which was the substantive Briton. Joe, however, was not to be done, and
so, after awhile, he addressed us all, as "my Lard;" and, though quite
out of his province, he _would_ stand at the door of the room where we
dined, and see that the waiters attended properly, and were sufficiently
agile in their movements. Joe, moreover, acted as interpreter.
"Waiter, some bread?"
"Es, my Lard," Joe would reply to me, and transfer the command in Danish
to the waiter.
"Hock, waiter;--bring some hock."
"Suttinlee, my Lard," said Joe to P.; then coming up to the table, and,
leaning confidentially over it, observed.
"Me would recumdate, my Lard, de Bunseppalouse, it bery good wine,
cumsiddumrately dan de hock."
"How do you know; have you tasted it?" said R.
"No, my Lard; me only go by de smell--him bery rifferous, bery, my
Lard;" and Joe sniffed till the steam from the vegetables rushed up his
nostrils.
"I say," R called out to Joe, as he was disappearing over the threshold
in search of the _Bunseppalouse_, "you black pudding, you; what do you
mean by my _Lard_? can't you pronounce your O's? what do you with your
A's, when you meet them?"
"Leeb um to himself, my Lard," replied Joe, deferring his exit; "nebber
trouble him; if me do, me bery quick wid him."
"Oh! that's your syntax, is it?" said R.
"Hebben forbid, my Lard, me gib de King money;" answered Joe solemnly.
"Dat d-- bad polumcy."
Joe had evidently mistaken the signification of the word "syntax," and,
catching the last syllable, concluded that R. referred to the system
universally adopted to supply the pecuniary wants of a government; and
therefore the solemnity of his answer.
I cannot say much in favour either of the dinner or the wine, vinegar
being the dominant ingredient of both; and, do what we would with
mustard and pepper, its pungent taste remained.
The evening turned out very wet, so that the only amusement we could
find was to stand at the window, and criticise the different carriages
as they passed on their way to the theatre. I certainly never saw such
rusty old rattle-traps, and I do not except the king's equipage, since
the hackney landaus have been abolished in England.
While we were smoking our cigars, Joe came into the room, and desired to
know if we would allow him to show us the "Coal Holes" and "Cider
Cellars" of Copenhagen; but we told him we were travelling in order to
gather information and reform our morals, and not to pass the night in
revelling. Convincing Joe that we were not in the vein to leave our
arm-chairs, and begging him not to call us all "my Lard," since there
was but one "Lard" between the three, we asked him whence he came.
"Me jist leebe Flora."
"No, no," I said; "in what part of the world were you born?"
"Oh! dat one oder ting. Me barn in Jamaikee, sir; but me leebe um two
tree year ago."
"What made you leave the island?" I inquired.
"Bekase him not de same kind of place, sir, as before--de niggers grow
so d---- imperant."
"But you must find Copenhagen very cold and uncomfortable," I replied;
"and surely impudence in one's own country is more tolerable than
discomfort and winter here."
"No, sir," answered Joe, all the soul of his great namesake, Washington,
beaming through his eyes; "me no tollumrate imperance; one imperant
raskill make me blood cold more dan de winter do. Jamaikee no de place
for de man of eddumcashum."
"In fact, you left it in disgust," I suggested.
"Suttinlee, sir," replied Joe; then seeming anxious to forget Jamaica,
and every thing connected with it, he said,
"Me hope you like you dinner, gentlemen; and will disgest him," he
continued.
"I hope we shall _digest_ it," I answered; "but there was vinegar enough
to stop any human creature's growth."
"Me said so, sir!" exclaimed Joe; "me tell Monsieur Sangnette so; dem
French cooks, debilish fond of souring deir tings. Me nebber widout um
stomick ache; d-- de feller!" and Joe hurried out of the room, before
his anger had cooled, to inform M. Sangnette how dissatisfied we were
with the dinner, and what torture, similar to his own, we should soon
undergo.
Before ten o'clock I was in my berth, listening to the rain pattering on
the deck, the trickling noise of which conveyed to my mind, as I lay in
my warm bed, an absorbing feeling of comfort, which can only be
conceived by those who have a roof to shelter their heads from the
pitiless storm. I remained awake for some hours; and, beside the falling
of the rain, and the sharp bubbling sound of its big drops as they fell
into the sea close to the vessel's side, the night was so still, that I
could hear the sentinels in the citadel of Fredrikshavn demanding the
pass-word, as the officer went his rounds. When our watch, too, struck
the hour, I could follow the echo of the bell, rising and sinking, half
way across the Sound.
Early on Thursday morning, before I had dressed, I heard the scraping of
feet on deck, and a man, in a broad Yorkshire dialect, as I thought,
asking a thousand questions, one after the other, and answering himself
before any person else could find time even to open his own mouth. I
could hear R---- in his berth make reply to the steward; and,
"Say I am in bed," rose in muffled tones above the sheets.
I looked through the sky-light in my cabin, and saw two gentlemen
standing in mid-ship on the lee side, and one of them with a pencil was
writing on a piece of paper, which he placed against the lee-runner
block to supply the conveniences of a desk. As soon as I was dressed, I
learned that the American Minister, Mr. I----, and a Captain W---- had
been on board, and that the Minister had requested us to dine with him
on the following day. R---- hesitated about accepting the invitation,
for he had half made up his mind to leave Copenhagen to-day; but after a
little consideration, it was deemed advisable to defer our departure
till Saturday, and dine with Mr. I----.
At twelve o'clock I rowed myself ashore and passed half the afternoon
under the shady trees on the ramparts of Fredrikshavn. At the mouth of
the harbour lies a Danish frigate at anchor; and, I suppose, from the
position she has taken up, is intended for the guard-ship. The Danish
ships of war are in no way inferior to the British; and, at Elsineur, we
brought up alongside a 36-gun frigate which was the perfect combination
of elegance and strength; nor did I at Portsmouth, or anywhere else, see
a finer model. From the spot where I stand, I can catch a glimpse of the
dockyards, and the hulls of six dismounted men-of-war. I have been told,
that the Danish Government intends to build steam-frigates, and will
have nothing more to do with sailing vessels of war. The Danes may be
right, or they may be wrong; but what will be the result of any future
naval engagement where steam alone, or canvass alone is used, is beyond
the intelligence of any living creature. On all human events, such as
the issues of peace and war, human beings may conjecture, but cannot
determine so precisely.
When I returned on board, I found the cook very busily binding, with a
piece of yarn, an immense round of beef, which had been purchased for
the crew by R----, in order that they might have a regular
_jollification_ to-morrow, it being his birthday. Along the rigging were
white trowsers, check shirts, and all the other paraphernalia of a
sailor's wardrobe, hung up to swing to the wind, and dry; and, as Jerome
sat on the windlass, scraping and screwing his fiddle by way of tuning,
I could plainly be made to understand that Friday, the 21st of May, was
not intended to be passed over with the indifference of any ordinary
day,--at least, not on board the Iris. In a few minutes, while I still
listened to the plaintive screams of Jerome's fiddle, as he urged the
strings to their proper tension, the dingy shot alongside laden with
bundles of brown sugar, multitudes of raisins and currants, and a small
bucket of lemons. Jacko, also, mounted, as wont, on Sailor's back, rode
from end to end of the yacht, like a general officer, reviewing, and
sometimes descending to taste the different dainties as they arrived
from the shore; while Sailor would, for no reason whatever, but from
mere delight, burst into a loud bark, much to the consternation of
Jacko, who would leap from his seat in an instant, and standing, at a
little distance, on his hind legs, chatter with excessive alarm.
We dined early and went to the theatre. A play in fifteen acts was
performed. Tedious by its prolixity, the language, unintelligible to me,
made it still more wearisome. The music played in the orchestra was very
beautiful; and the officer, who had behaved so politely to us in
permitting the gates, on the first night of our arrival, to be opened,
seated on a high stool, rose conspicuously above the other musicians,
and seemed indeed the _first fiddle_. This is an act in no way
derogatory to the dignity of an officer, or a gentleman; for, throughout
our travels in Scandinavia, I often recognised in the orchestra of the
different theatres I visited, officers whom I had met in the streets
during the day. The interior decorations of the house were tawdry, and
could not for an instant bear comparison with the simple adornment of
the Haymarket theatre. The body of the theatre was not illuminated as in
Southern Europe; but large green tin shades cover the lights toward the
audience, and, all the reflection being thrown on the stage, the blaze
of light on the performers is very great and effective. The house was
much crowded; and, as at the casino, the King, the Queen, and the
Princess Louise were part of the audience, and conversed familiarly
with different people about them.
The theatres are entirely supported by the Government, and the actors
and actresses receive their salaries from the same quarter. Whether this
be a system which works well in Copenhagen, I have had no opportunity of
knowing; but I should fancy it would be more beneficial to the
Government, to the players, and the public, that individual labour, or
ability, should seek and find its own remuneration; for I do not believe
it is in the power of any Government to discriminate properly, and
reward the services of a particular class of the community. I do not
think I am at fault when I say, that England has produced more great
men, eminent in every department of the professions, politics, and
trade, than any other nation of the earth; and this superiority of
mental, intellectual, and physical greatness, is to be ascribed to that
timidity which the English Government manifests at all times to
interfere with individual exertions or collective industry.
To-day was our last day at Copenhagen, and the crew seemed determined to
make it the gayest. At early dawn, floating from the mast head to the
bowsprit end, then down again to the boom-end, even to the water; and
from the cross-trees along both back-stays, every flag and pennant on
board the yacht might have been seen.
"There's not a prettier craft in Denmark," I heard one man say, as he
sat in the boat, hauled up close to the port-hole of the cabin, where I
was dressing, "and I don't know as how there's a drier thing in a gale."
"No, nor I neither," replied another; "I'm blowed if it 'taint as good
as a picture to look at her."
This short dialogue had scarcely been brought to a conclusion, when I
heard some one in a raised tone of voice, as if at a distance from the
cutter, ask if Lord R, or P, or I, was up, but being answered in the
negative, the same person inquired what all the flags were flying for;
and being told that it was R's birthday, all further interrogation
ceased. It was the American Minister, who had rowed off to the yacht, to
repeat his invitation. At 12 o'clock, the conviviality of the crew
commenced; and as I sat down with R and P, near the binnacle, toast
after toast could be heard unanimously proposed, and more unanimously
drank. As the afternoon began to decline, their jollity began to rise,
and ere the sun had set, the grog had risen high in their heads.
"Here's to the Governor!" I could distinguish from a multitude of
noises, which issued upwards from the forecastle; and then snatches of
such Bacchanalian songs as,
"He's a jolly good fellow,
He's a jolly good fellow,"
interrupted the calm serenity of the coming evening.
"Now then, 'order,' my lads," I heard D. shout aloud, "and let's drink
the Governor's health, and long life to him!"
"Hurrah!" replied eight or ten voices;--"Hurrah!"
"Where's Jacko?" was then the cry; "where is he? out with the young
lubber, George--give him a glass."
"Ay, give him a glass;" echoed in answer.
"Time, my sons, time," shouted D., "attend to time. One--two--three;
hip! hip! hip! hurra!--hurra!--hurra!--nine times nine, my sons;
hip!"--and his voice was drowned in a perfect uproar. The next thing I
heard was that Jacko, confused by the din of joviality, had decamped
from the middle of the table where they had placed him, and broken his
glass. In the midst of all this merriment, we were rowed ashore to keep
our engagement with the American Minister; and, on reaching the land,
about half a mile off, we could hear the whole yacht's company joining
in the chorus, and Jerome's fiddle screaming the accompaniment, of
"True blue for ever."
Our party at the American Minister's consisted of the Spanish Minister,
the Baron de B----, R----, P----, Captain W----, Mr. A----, the nephew
of Lord F----, a gentleman farmer from Holstein, and myself. The dinner
was an excellent one, and an improvement on the French system of
cookery; and every fruit and wine which could be bought in Copenhagen
were on the table. After we had dined, the American Minister rose, and
drank the health of the Queen of England. P---- immediately replied, and
proposed the President of the United States, and that also was drunk in
a bumper. A pause now took place in the proposal and drinking of
healths, and the conversation turned into a political current, and
flowed towards the merits and demerits of Christian, King of Denmark.
Public opinion was rather in opposition to the king, because he had
shown himself reluctant to give the people that limit of reform which
they asked.
"Well," exclaimed Captain W----, who, though a boisterous, was an
amiable man, "I have not the honour of knowing King Christian; but I
believe him a good fellow."
"Bravo! bravo!" and the Baron de B---- touched the table gently with his
hand.
"And I believe," continued Captain W----, "any reluctance he may show in
acceding to popular opinion is for the ultimate benefit of the country."
"Good, good," said the Baron de B----, and tapped his wine glass with a
small salt spoon.
"And he is partial to the English," added the American Minister,
looking towards our end of the table, "therefore he can't fail to have
some liberality of soul."
"The Danes have always been our old allies," said P----, "and I drink
with sincerity to the health of Christian, King of Denmark, and long may
he be so!"
P---- rose from his seat as he spoke, and held a brimming glass above
his head. The whole company followed his example, and with a round of
"hurrahs," quaffed to the personal welfare of the aged monarch in whose
dominions we had been enjoying ourselves for the last week. The Holstein
gentleman, having learned from the Baron de B---- what P---- had said,
walked round the table, and, cordially shaking hands with us, said
something in Danish which we did not understand, but at the conclusion
of every sentence, each one, except ourselves, exclaimed "Hear, hear;"
and so I am led to conclude it was complimentary. The Baron de
B---- thanked us in English for the kind feeling we had shown in drinking
the health of his sovereign, and which he appreciated the more, because
it came from an Englishman. He drank to P----, and, of course, all
present joined in the toast.
"My Lord," said the American Minister, addressing himself to R----, "I
saw your yacht to-day, looking pretty--excessively--among the other
vessels which lay in the harbour; and, from her mast-head to the
surface of the sea, I also saw streamers resting their full length on
the air. This must be a day of jubilee, and one, no doubt, replete with
good fortune to you, or your two friends; and my guests are desirous,
and I am too, of noting this day with white chalk. If I be not exceeding
the bounds of curiosity, and, in a moment of conviviality, the
conventionalities of society, may I ask the reason of so much
festivity?"
"Oh! nothing," replied R----, laughing carelessly; "I suppose my
sailing-master has merely hoisted the signals to give them an airing."
"That won't do, my Lord. Now, gentlemen," exclaimed the American
Minister, "I am not accredited minister to Denmark, without by secret
sources receiving information of all that passes in Copenhagen. Lord
R----, gentlemen, has done me the honour of dining with me on his
birthday."
This rather staggered R----, for he had no idea the American Minister
knew anything about the matter; and it was the last circumstance he
would have wished the company to know.
"Therefore," continued the American Minister, "I beg to propose Lord
R----'s health with all the honours."
"With all the honours," reiterated Captain W----.
Of course the clatter of glasses, the rapping of knuckles, the bravos,
and hears, are nothing more on all similar occasions than the
reverberations of such an appeal. Captain W---- mounted on his chair.
"Come down, W----," said Mr. A----.
"Not a bit," answered Captain W----. "Let me alone. I'm all right." The
Captain was elevated, and would remain so.
"I beg, with the permission of his Excellency," continued Mr. A----, "to
suggest an amendment,--the health of Lord R----, _and_ his two friends."
"My health has been drunk already," observed P----.
"Never mind. Bravo!" said Captain W----, from his point of elevation,
and, stooping down, he rapped the table. "Lord R---- _and_ his two
friends--good idea!"
"It was my intention to have them one by one," said the American
Minister.
"No, no;" interrupted Captain W----. "All together--three jolly chaps."
"Just as you like," answered the American Minister.
"Yes. We'll have two girls afterwards, instead," replied Captain W----.
"As you are so conspicuous, then," said the American Minister to Captain
W----, "perhaps you had better do the toast with honours."
"To be sure," replied Captain W----, "nine times nine, and one over for
a fair breeze. Gentlemen! _are_ you charged?"
"Yes, yes, yes," came from all quarters.
"Well, then, gentlemen," continued Captain W----, "reserve your fire,
till I give the word.--Now!" and, with all the hubbub of a toast, our
united healths were drunk. R---- was called upon to return thanks, which
he did; and another jingling of spoons, forks, and finger-basins, rose
in reply. The gentleman-farmer from Holstein now commenced a speech,
which none of us, but the Baron de B----, thoroughly understood; but it
evidently alluded to our three selves, for he often turned, and, looking
in our faces, delivered whole sentences without wincing. The Holsteiner
was much applauded. Captain W---- having come down to our level, now
offered to sing a song; and he dashed headlong into a pretty air, which
had an eternal chorus of
"Trik-a-trik, trik,"
or some such monotonous burden at every sixth word. The gallant Captain
had executed but a small portion of his ditty, when the Holstein farmer
rose quickly from his chair, and addressed the songster at the moment
when he had reiterated for the second time,
"Trik-a-trik, trik."
"I don't care," replied Captain W----, who knew the Danish language
slightly; "it means nothing. My friends here have never heard the air,
and that is the reason I sing it."
The Holsteiner still resisted. What could the matter be? The farmer must
be, I thought, a married man, and the song an immoral one. The Captain
made a second attempt with another song, and the Holsteiner resisted a
second time. What could the matter now be? Why, that the farmer was a
loyal subject, and a strenuous supporter of monarchy, and that Captain
W---- had pitched, at last, upon a revolutionary song, which had been
prohibited.
"It is so absurdly radical," said the American Minister, "that it
carries with it its own antidote. I am sure there can arise no harm from
Captain W---- singing it to our English friends, who are monarchy men
sufficiently staunch to disallow any defection from royalty."
"Yes," replied the Baron de B----; "it is not for ourselves my friend
from Holstein feels alarmed; but for those who attend upon us, and who,
knowing us, may disseminate reports prejudicial to our position. God
knows, my Sovereign has no truer subject than myself."
"Perhaps it is better," admitted the American Minister, "that the song
should not be sung, W----. King Christian possesses no heart more loyal
than my noble friend's," and he took the hand of the Baron de B----,
who sat close to him, and shook it.
"A stone," exclaimed Captain W----, "thrown into a brook dams it not,
but swells the current only to make it run swifter. What will you have?
"Min skaal og din skaal,
Alla vackra flickors skaal;"
and chanting these two lines of a Swedish drinking-song, he threw
himself back in his chair, and emptied his overflowing glass. The party
now began to get extremely merry; and from claret we turned to port,
and, by imperceptible degrees, descended to punch. The smoke of our
cigars soon accumulated in a dense mass, and, ascending to the ceiling
of the room, hung like a canopy of clouds over our heads; and Satan
would have envied the hot atmosphere which we now breathed and caroused
in. We were all pretty well elated; and as the wine warmed Captain
W----'s heart and feelings, he sang the sweetest Swedish song I shall
ever hear again. The melodious air, the sweet silvery reiteration of the
words, the language with its soft idioms, and the poetical beauty and
liveliness of the song itself, were a combination of harmony I could
never have anticipated. It would be useless endeavouring to embody "the
viewless spirit" of those lovely sounds; but as the words were then
translated to me, so I write them here:--
"The happy hours,
Amid the flowers,
Familiar to the Spring's warm breast;
When memory burneth,
And the soul returneth,
Day dreaming, to its own unrest.
I know of looks, to me more sweet and clear,
Than Light's glad beam, than heaven's own blue,
The Spring's soft breath, the flower's bright hue;
None so true,
As his I cherish here,
Whose image is so dear.
Will he love, and love me duly?
Fairy flowers, tell me truly.
What shall be my lot hereafter?
Shall it end in sighs, or laughter?
Pull them lightly!
Count them rightly!
Yes! No! Yes! No! Yes! No! _Yes!_
Counted rightly."
Captain W---- received much applause, but no more than his song
deserved. After awhile, I observed to the American Minister, that we had
drunk the health of nearly every one present except the Baron de B----,
and with his permission I would suggest that we toasted him. The hint
was no sooner given than it was adopted.
The probable separation of Holstein and Schleswig from Denmark, then
became the subject of discussion during the remainder of the evening;
and, indeed, this was the topic common in the mouths of all men whom we
met in Copenhagen.
"It is impossible to foresee the decrees of Time," said the Baron de
B----, "and tell what may, or may not befall this country; but all I
hope, is, that my present sovereign may live for many long years to
come, his life being a guarantee of peace to Denmark, and his death the
beginning of disaffection."
"Do you think, Baron," observed Mr. A----, "that the people of Holstein
and Schleswig are so much opposed to the rule of Denmark?"
"No," replied the Baron de B----, "I am not at liberty to say _that_ is
the general feeling of Holstein and Schleswig; for I am one among a
thousand who hold, that the disunion of Holstein and Schleswig from the
Parent Kingdom, would be fatal to the well-being of both, but more
particularly to Denmark; for I do not doubt, but that when Holstein and
Schleswig are lopped off from Denmark, some other State, like Prussia,
for instance, will take the duchies under its protection, and join them
ultimately to its dominions; but such a result could never happen to
Denmark, and she must sink into utter insignificance as a European
Power."
"Why, my dear Baron," said the American Minister, "is not care taken
that these evils should not occur to Denmark? If you do not mind
yourselves, you may rest satisfied no State in Europe will trouble
itself about you."
"The fact is this," answered the Baron de B----, "the present ministers
have not the moral courage, or mental ability to meet the difficulties
of the approaching crisis. When Christian dies, you may say the existing
dynasty of Denmark dies too; and I do not think the Duke of Augustenburg
will listen to an alteration in the law of succession to these realms,
prejudicial to his interest in Holstein, at the coronation of Prince
Frederick. If Denmark desires to retain Holstein and Schleswig, she must
show her determination now. The same trumpet that announces the decease
of Christian, will sound the proclamation of civil contention."
"Will England stand aloof," observed Captain W----, "and see Denmark
mutilated? I think not."
"I hope not," said the Baron de B----; "but as years roll on, who can
divine the political condition of any country. My Lord," continued the
Baron de B----, turning and addressing himself more exclusively to
R----, "you have, by hereditary right, a voice in the legislative
community of your country, and if ever you should hear that Denmark is
threatened with the loss of her dependencies, maintain her in her right;
remember the position of England without the aid and protection in the
West, however ill given, of Ireland; and, calling to mind the words of
myself, an old Holstein noble, be assured, that the apathetic
indifference of England to the dismemberment of this kingdom, her old
ally, will destroy, only for a time, the balance of power in Northern
Europe, but will entail on future generations the misery of restoring by
the sword, what can now be done with the pen, the independence of the
Danish Crown."
"I do not wish, Baron," I said, "to interfere with the opinion you
entertain of the intellectual refinement of men, and their inclination
to have their quarrels arranged rather by the silent aid of the pen,
than the roar of cannon; but of this I am convinced, that, the more
enlightened the human race appear to become, the more frequently
submission and order seem to be appalled by a total disregard of many
social institutions. That day is distant indeed, when the legislators of
two disaffected countries will sit down and calm their differences by
philosophic deliberation."
"I do not quite agree with you," answered the American Minister; "but, I
still think, that the irritability of human nature will overcome reason,
and so, in anger, men seize the sabre while they throw down the pen; but
that is only temporary. 'Ira furor brevis est.'"
"A great deal of mischief may be done in a short time," I replied. "I do
not, however, wish your Excellency to take all hope from the Baron de
B----, but the separation of Holstein and Schleswig from this country
will scarcely be opposed by England, and, if the interference of England
should be tendered, the other Powers will hardly permit it to be
accepted in quietude. I am no prophet, but however much Europe may boast
of her intellectual advancement, and point, as she may, to her sons of
mind, the innate love of destruction is so clearly marked on the
character of mankind, that, at any, the least provocation, war may
trample again on liberty and peace with all the increased malice and
horror of the Bonaparte dynasty."
Not many of the company would support me, but thought better of their
kind. I am now pleased that I then stood alone; for recent events have
shown how, in the midst of the most intellectual era since the world's
formation, glittering not only with the fruit of man's mental garden,
but beautified by the miracles of his manual skill, the total subversion
of conventional and political order is severely menaced; and how
doubtful the contest is between the earnest endeavour of one faith to
overcome every tenet of another, and the outrages of vulgar audacity to
supersede noble sentiment and refinement of manner.
We did not part until much past midnight, and I shall not forget that
last night at Copenhagen for many a long day; and for the time which is
to come I shall ever, lingeringly, look back with memory on the glad
faces which endear the happiness of that evening.