as so far north. The yard was enclosed
by houses on three sides. The dwelling-house, the barn, and the
cow-houses were the largest buildings. There were besides a blacksmith
shop, a storehouse, and a shed for carts. All these buildings were
painted red.

In the middle of the yard was an old-fashioned well, with its sweep,
having at one end a bucket and at the other a heavy stone, and
surrounded by a thick mass of ice. From the well there was a trough
going into the cow-house, which I entered. The cattle were small and
well-shaped and in good order. The building was very low, the windows
very small and giving but little light. The floor was entirely planked
over, and there were pens on each side.

Looking towards the end of the building I saw a girl standing by a huge
iron pot, about four feet in diameter and three feet deep, encased in
masonry. She was putting coarse marsh grass into the pot, which was
filled with water made warm by a fire underneath. "Much of the grass we
gather," said the farmer, "is coarse, and it is so tough that the cattle
cannot eat it; so we have to prepare it in this way before we give it to
them."

A number of sheep were penned in a corner. "Our three horses," said the
farmer, "have a stable for themselves." This farm was one of the good
farms, and there were a number quite as good. In some the dwellings are
of two stories, but these were the great exception.

In the mean time supper had been prepared. Dry mutton as tough as
leather but cut very thin, smoked reindeer meat, hard bread, butter,
cheese, two wooden bowls of buttermilk, and fish were put on the table.
This was a great repast, in my honor. There was no tablecloth, no
napkin, no fork, the flat bread was used instead of plates, we had
wooden spoons for the sour milk, and helped ourselves to it from the
common dish.

A little after supper came bedtime. The girls, looking at the clock,
which marked nine, suddenly got up to make the beds ready. They pulled
out the sliding boxes, in one of which three of them were to sleep. The
boxes were filled with straw and hay, and had homespun blankets or
sheepskins, and eider down or feather pillows. The sofa-like beds were
all along the walls, for there was a large family.

It was well that I was at the farm. A more terrific windstorm than all
those I had seen before, arose during the night. In the morning the snow
swirled to an immense height, hiding everything from sight; the whole
country