LETTER XVII.
I was
unwilling to leave Gothenburg without visiting Trolhættæ. I wished not
only to see the cascade, but to observe the progress of the stupendous attempt
to form a canal through the rocks, to the extent of an English mile and a half.
This work is
carried on by a company, who employ daily nine hundred men; five years was the
time mentioned in the proposals addressed to the public as necessary for the
completion. A much more considerable sum than the plan requires has been
subscribed, for which there is every reason to suppose the promoters will
receive ample interest.
The Danes
survey the progress of this work with a jealous eye, as it is principally
undertaken to get clear of the Sound duty.
Arrived at
Trolhættæ, I must own that the first view of the cascade disappointed me; and
the sight of the works, as they advanced, though a grand proof of human industry, was not calculated to warm the fancy. I,
however, wandered about; and at last coming to the conflux of the various
cataracts rushing from different falls, struggling with the huge masses of
rock, and rebounding from the profound cavities, I immediately retracted,
acknowledging that it was indeed a grand object. A little island stood in
the midst, covered with firs, which, by dividing the torrent, rendered it more
picturesque; one half appearing to issue from a dark cavern, that fancy might
easily imagine a vast fountain throwing up its waters from the very centre of
the earth.
I gazed I
know not how long, stunned with the noise, and growing giddy with only looking
at the never-ceasing tumultuous motion, I listened, scarcely conscious where I
was, when I observed a boy, half obscured by the sparkling foam, fishing under
the impending rock on the other side. How he had descended I could not
perceive; nothing like human footsteps appeared, and the horrific crags seemed
to bid defiance even to the goat’s activity. It looked like an abode only
fit for the eagle, though in its crevices some pines darted up their spiral
heads; but they only grew near the cascade, everywhere else sterility itself
reigned with dreary grandeur; for the huge grey massy rocks, which probably had
been torn asunder by some dreadful convulsion of nature, had not even their
first covering of a little cleaving moss. There were so many appearances
to excite the idea of chaos, that, instead of admiring the canal and the works,
great as they are termed, and little as they appear, I could not help
regretting that such a noble scene had not been left in all its solitary sublimity.
Amidst the awful roaring of the impetuous torrents, the noise of human
instruments and the bustle of workmen, even the blowing up of the rocks when
grand masses trembled in the darkened air, only resembled the insignificant
sport of children.
One fall of
water, partly made by art, when they were attempting to construct sluices, had
an uncommonly grand effect; the water precipitated itself with immense velocity
down a perpendicular, at least fifty or sixty yards, into a gulf, so concealed
by the foam as to give full play to the fancy. There was a continual
uproar. I stood on a rock to observe it, a kind of bridge formed by
nature, nearly on a level with the commencement of the fall. After musing
by it a long time I turned towards the other side, and saw a gentle stream
stray calmly out. I should have concluded that it had no communication
with the torrent had I not seen a huge log that fell headlong down the cascade
steal peacefully into the purling stream.
I retired
from these wild scenes with regret to a miserable inn, and next morning
returned to Gothenburg, to prepare for my journey to Copenhagen.
I was sorry
to leave Gothenburg without travelling farther into Sweden, yet I imagine I
should only have seen a romantic country thinly inhabited, and these
inhabitants struggling with poverty. The Norwegian peasantry,
mostly independent, have a rough kind of frankness in their manner; but
the Swedish, rendered more abject by misery, have a degree of politeness in
their address which, though it may sometimes border on insincerity, is oftener
the effect of a broken spirit, rather softened than degraded by wretchedness.
In Norway
there are no notes in circulation of less value than a Swedish
rix-dollar. A small silver coin, commonly not worth more than a penny,
and never more than twopence, serves for change; but in Sweden they have notes
as low as sixpence. I never saw any silver pieces there, and could not
without difficulty, and giving a premium, obtain the
value of a rix-dollar in a large copper coin to give away on the road to the
poor who open the gates.
As another
proof of the poverty of Sweden, I ought to mention that foreign merchants who
have acquired a fortune there are obliged to deposit the sixth part when they
leave the kingdom. This law, you may suppose, is frequently evaded.
In fact, the
laws here, as well as in Norway, are so relaxed that they rather favour than
restrain knavery.
Whilst I was
at Gothenburg, a man who had been confined for breaking open his master’s desk
and running away with five or six thousand rix-dollars, was only sentenced to
forty days’ confinement on bread and water; and this slight punishment his
relations rendered nugatory by supplying him with more savoury food.
The Swedes
are in general attached to their families, yet a divorce may be obtained by
either party on proving the infidelity of the other or acknowledging it
themselves. The women do not often recur to this equal privilege, for
they either retaliate on their husbands by following their own devices or sink
into the merest domestic drudges, worn down by tyranny to servile
submission. Do not term me severe if I add, that after youth is flown the
husband becomes a sot, and the wife amuses herself by scolding her
servants. In fact, what is to be expected in any country where taste and
cultivation of mind do not supply the place of youthful beauty and animal
spirits? Affection requires a firmer foundation than sympathy, and few
people have a principle of action sufficiently stable to produce rectitude of feeling;
for in spite of all the arguments I have heard to justify deviations from duty,
I am persuaded that even the most spontaneous sensations are more under the
direction of principle than weak people are willing to allow.
But adieu to moralising. I have been writing
these last sheets at an inn in Elsineur, where I am waiting for horses; and as
they are not yet ready, I will give you a short account of my journey from
Gothenburg, for I set out the morning after I returned from Trolhættæ.
The country
during the first day’s journey presented a most barren appearance, as rocky,
yet not so picturesque as Norway, because on a
diminutive scale. We stopped to sleep at a tolerable inn in Falckersberg,
a decent little town.
The next day
beeches and oaks began to grace the prospects, the sea every now and then
appearing to give them dignity. I could not avoid observing also, that
even in this part of Sweden, one of the most sterile, as I was informed, there
was more ground under cultivation than in Norway. Plains of varied crops
stretched out to a considerable extent, and sloped down to the shore, no longer
terrific. And, as far as I could judge, from glancing
my eye over the country as we drove along, agriculture was in a more advanced
state, though in the habitations a greater appearance of poverty still
remained. The cottages, indeed, often looked most uncomfortable, but
never so miserable as those I had remarked on the road to Stromstad, and the
towns were equal, if not superior, to many of the little towns in Wales, or
some I have passed through in my way from Calais to Paris.
The inns as
we advanced were not to be complained of, unless I had always thought of
England. The people were civil, and much more moderate in their demands
than the Norwegians, particularly to the westward, where they boldly charge for
what you never had, and seem to consider you, as they do a wreck, if not as
lawful prey, yet as a lucky chance, which they ought not to neglect to seize.
The prospect
of Elsineur, as we passed the Sound, was pleasant. I gave three
rix-dollars for my boat, including something to drink. I mention the sum,
because they impose on strangers.
Adieu! till I arrive at Copenhagen.