the country people. They are of silver gilt, and very costly. We were altogether much pleased with our stay at this characteristic and agreeable town, where we made some pleasant acquaintances, and experienced a good deal of hospitality.

We visited the cathedral, which exhibits the remains of some fretted arches, of the oldest description of pointed Gothic, like those of St. Patrick's cathedral in Dublin; but it is sadly disfigured by plaster and whitewash. I attended morning service there, and found a full and attentive congregation, a fine organ, plenty of loud singing, and a number of christenings. The font is a flying angel, holding a basin, with gilt wings and clothes, white face, legs, and arms, and brown hair tied with a fillet; and when they want him, they let him down by a chain or something from above, and at other times he is hooked up out of the way. This seems to be a fashion peculiar to the north, for we found it in several churches and cathedrals. According to Mr. Milford, in the Frue-kirke, at Copenhagen, "the baptismal font represents an angel, kneeling, and holding a large shell; a beautiful idea, and admirably expressed. The face is lovely, and the hair is confined by a wreath of flowers."

We also visited the very ancient and curious German church, which I have now no space to describe; the Museum, great in native fishes, and in Scandinavian antiquities; and the Hospitals for Lepers, who are still found in Norway, although the disease is scarcely ever seen in the more civilized countries of Europe. This remarkable and horrible disease is to us, in part, an antiquarian curiosity, although it still has some practical interest, as it yet prevails, more or less, in most parts of the world, and sometimes finds its way to this country. I saw a case of it in London, not two

years ago.

We decided on proceeding to Trondhjem by the unfrequented land-route between Bergen and Molde. Our Norwegian friends kindly tried to dissuade us, as the way was rough, and the accommodation bad; but we persisted, and were afterwards extremely glad we did so. On the 29th of August (it was too late in the year) we rowed out of Bergen harbour, under a bright sun and a clear sky. Numbers of boats were on the water; some with men going out to fish, or taking fish to Bergen; and others with country people, some loaded with hay, and some with fire-wood. Women, as well as men, were rowing indiscriminately; and all were flitting, occasionally, into little coves among the rocks, to pull out capacious pails of sour milk, and boxes of cold stir-a-bout, which they ate with great horn spoons.

We slept at Kylströmmen, where the people were all busy catching herrings. Hundreds of gulls were hovering over. There were

black-backed gulls, large and small grey speckled gulls, fluffy and youthful, herring gulls, kittiwakes, and skuas, besides multitudes of terns. The skua gulls were too lazy to catch fish for themselves, but watched the terns; the latter caught small fish by a light quick glance on the surface of the water, and were then hunted by the skuas, who chased them till they dropped the fish, and then instantly caught it in mid-air with great dexterity.

Here, and at Leervik in the Sogne Fiord, the water was phosphorescent at night. We slept next at Leervik, where our hostess was an old maid (an uncommon animal in Norway), who resolutely maintained her title of Jomfrue, or Miss. Our gamle Jomfrue's quarters proved very clean and comfortable; although it was no joke to be put to sleep, as we were, between two feather beds. There was fine scenery from hence to Trods. Trods is a good station; but, wishing to push on, we unluckily quitted it for Sveen, the next one. Here, the innkeeper being with a social party of his friends, was drunk and insolent; the only time we ever met with such a thing in Norway. We found, moreover, that Sveen was an inn only, and not a posting-station; and therefore pushed on, at eleven o'clock at night, to Eidevik; and here we found a station, but no inn. We, consequently, had to sup on what was left of our own provisions, in a cottage kitchen, black with age and dirt, and then retired to sleep on some hay, in a barn, where we could not safely bring a light. In the morning we woke with bad headaches, and, on examining the hay, found, that being still partially green, it had slightly heated, and was steaming with gaseous exhalations. Out of doors there was a thick, drizzling rain; and as to breakfast, we could get none till we had driven fourteen miles to Havstad. Havstad is a good station, near a magnificent river, in a smiling, level valley We passed on through very fine scenery, to Moe, and thence to Vasenden, where we slept.

September 2.-Quitted Vasenden, and had a tedious voyage across the Jölster Vand, rendered more uncomfortable by cold showers of driving rain. The views on the lake are very fine. Portions of the glacier of the Justedal can be seen from hence; and an arm of the lake, with waters whitened by the melting snow, leads up towards it.

The scenery of the stage between Skei and Förde is most justly mentioned in the Hand-book as "of the grandest description. The road winds through a deep and narrow ravine; in mountains of enormous height, rising perpendicularly in many places." Several masses of rock, as big as a house, stand by the road side. This ravine, or valley, terminates on the Breum Vand; whose cold,

bluish-white waters are here fed by two fine cataracts, one on either side, descending from the mountains. We crossed the lake, and, landing at Reed, a poor collection of huts, took horses for Udvigen. The road leads over a mountain, tolerably steep in going up, and more so in the descent. The scenery, all along, is very fine, and the mountain views magnificent; but the cold cutting showers of rain proved not very comfortable media through which to contemplate them.

September 3.-Started in a boat, very early, for Faleide; thence to Kjosebotn, by a very bad, but winding and pretty road, through a remarkably fine fir wood, with beautiful birch, and pine-like junipers, twelve or fourteen feet high, among the trees. Passing Grodaas and Haugen, by water and land, we then had a very long stage, through wild mountain scenery, to Hellesylt. One mountain, on our left, looked as if it were going to fall down, bodily; and the shapes and magnitude of all were very grand and extraordinary; but the inclemency of the weather, and the frequent showers of cold rain, were a great drawback to our enjoyment. We could see it snowing on the tops of the mountains on each side of the road.

September 4.A long, tedious day of boating; thirty-one English miles to Soholt, with more disagreeable weather; snow falling thick upon the mountains, down to a certain line; below which, it became rain, which descended, cold and steady, upon us unfortunate travellers. Boat, as usual, slightly leaky; always a little water in her, in spite of baling; shoes wet through, and have not been otherwise for some days. The scenery here was very grand on both sides; vast peaks and cliffs, towering to the skies-their summits lost in mist; and many fine waterfalls visible at once. We counted thirteen, between Hellesylt and Soholt, besides minor tricklings. As we passed under one of the cliffs, a portion of rock became detached from the top, and came crashing down, in several pieces, from ledge to ledge, with a noise like volleys of musketry.

The next day we proceeded to Molde; and from thence, by the Gler, screw steamer, to Trondhjem, where we arrived on the 7th of September. There seemed to be an air of comfort and prosperity about Trondhjem; and in the streets were actually a few private carriages. Our hotel was Madame Nielssen's, and here we stopped several days. We had table d'hôte breakfast about nine, dinner at one, and supper about eight. The dinners were scanty and insuf ficient; the other meals well enough, with fish-puddings, pickled sprats, and such Norwegian fare; but if, at any time, there was a paucity of mutton, we certainly got, in lieu thereof, plenty of civility. One afternoon we entered the cathedral just as a well-dressed couple

were being married. Neither of them were beauties; but we recognised the bridegroom as a plain, square-looking man, who had eaten a remarkably good dinner at our table d'hôte an hour before; and he and his bride returned to the hotel, and, for some days after the wedding, took their meals with the rest of us, in the coolest and most substantial manner imaginable.

We inspected what remains of the once-magnificent cathedral, with great interest; also the tiny island-fortress of Munkholm. The town was soon seen, and we speedily started for Christiania, in a barouche. From the top of the hill there is a fine view of the town, which is well situated, with much level and fertile land about it. The harvest was just getting in, and the yield seemed a fair crop. The grain chiefly cultivated is the bere or six-rowed barley.

The Spruce is the prevalent Fir about Trondhjem. Near Hov, some Scotch Firs are intermixed; and, a little beyond, there is nothing but Scotch Fir. About Garlie, there is again a mixture; and, at Bierkager, a profusion of Spruce Fir only, with finer and bolder scenery. From Bierkager to Sundseth, our road lay through a forest of large Spruce; all about Sundseth, the same; and here were also some fields of ripe corn, the elevation being 1578 feet above the level of the sea; but, soon after, as the road rises, and we approach the Dovre Fjeld, the Spruce Firs cease, and a thinner and more stunted growth of Scotch Fir, Birch, Alder, and Juniper, succeeds.

We continued ascending past several stations, until the day began to decline, in great beauty and magnificence; and we pursued our journey in the cold to Rise, where we slept. At 10 P. M. it was freezing hard, and the Aurora Borealis was visible, in a low arch, across the horizon, with pale vibrations of light darting up towards the zenith. Next morning, the ground was white with frost, and the water covered with ice; the air very clear and cold. The end of the valley was bridged over with a horizontal mass of mist, a mile long; opaque, palpable, sharply defined, and of the purest white; on which, and on the grey, snow-patched mountains behind, streamed the first pale rays of the sun; altogether a sight indescribably beautiful.

Our way continued to ascend. At Drivstrun, 2220 feet above the sea, the station-house is very civilized and comfortable. It is, as generally the case in Norway, surrounded by detached portions of house and farm-buildings, and has a grass farm attached to it. The Norwegian farms are everywhere remarkable for their number of buildings, looking almost like so many villages. This is rendered necessary by the length and severity of their winters, which obliges them to house everything-stock, produce, and all. They are,

therefore, compelled to multiply their farm-buildings; and the power to do so is bestowed on them by the bountiful supply of wood throughout the country; the nature of which material also makes it easier to erect a new, separate building, than to add to those already existing. In building, wooden supports or stone foundations are made, from a few inches to seven or eight feet above the ground; then come fir-trees, squared, and deeply notched at the ends, to fit into each other, which are carried up to the required height. The windows and doors are cut out afterwards. The crevices are made perfectly air and water-tight, by a layer of moss. Nothing can be drier and warmer than a house thus constructed, even without anything further; but they finish the better sort of houses more highly, by fixing upright battens, at intervals, along the outside, flush with the projecting ends of the wall-beams, and then weather-boarding them over. Houses so finished, judiciously ornamented with mouldings, and painted white or cream-colour, look both handsome and comfortable.

It is interesting to see how these people live and thrive upon their land. Ownership makes them industrious, for no depressing uncertainties of enjoying the fruits of their labours ever haunt their minds; and their industry, spurred by the necessity of getting something to live upon, enables them to succeed, notwithstanding the general poorness of the soil, the adversities of their climate and seasons, the great elevation of many of their farms, and their imperfect system of cultivation. There is not much want among the Norwegian peasantry.

(To be concluded in our next.)

PREVENTIVE MEDICINE*.

ONE generally turns from anything like physic with an instinctive dislike; books on the subject are either too scientific for the general reader, or are mere puffs of some doctor who has no other claim to success than his forwardness. Little indeed does the world at large know how much may be done in this way by an

*The Progress of Preventive Medicine and Sanatary Measures; being the Thruston Speech on the Wendy Commemoration at Caius College. Delivered on May 10th, 1856, by A. W. Barclay, M. D.-Deighton, Bell, and Co. Cambridge.