on, smoked herring, chipped beef, and pickles of various
kinds, which they washed down with one or two wine-glasses of strong
spirit. It seemed to be an obvious inconsistency of purpose. This
ceremony takes place at a side-table just before sitting down to the
regular meal, be it breakfast, luncheon, or dinner. This custom was
noticed afterwards at various places in Scandinavia as well as in
Russia, the practice in the latter country being universal in hotels
and private houses; but it seemed obvious to us that it was only an
excuse for dram-drinking as an appetizer. Bad habits are easily
acquired, and soon make slaves of their incautious victims. More than
one person admitted to us in Russia that without this preliminary
tipple, dinner to them would have no relish.

CHAPTER IV.

Capital of Norway. -- A Grand Fjord. -- A Free and Independent
State. -- The Legal Code. -- Royal Palace and Gardens. -- Oscar's
Hall. -- The University. -- Public Amusements. -- The Ice Trade.
-- Ancient Viking Ships. -- Heathen Tombs. -- An Interesting
Hostelry. -- A Steam Kitchen. -- Environs of Christiania. --
Horses and their Treatment. -- Harvest Time. -- Women's Work. --
The Saeter. -- A Remarkable Lake. -- Wild Birds. -- Inland Travel.
-- Scandinavian Wild Flowers. -- Lonely Habitations. -- A Land of
Alpine Heights.

In approaching the capital of Norway by sea from Gottenburg, the
Christiania fjord is ascended for a distance of seventy miles to its
head, bordered on either side nearly the whole way by finely-wooded
hills, and its surface dotted by emerald isles reflected in the deep
mirror-like waters. It must be understood that a fjord is not a
sound, nor is it a thoroughfare in the full sense of that word; it is
a _cul de sac_. This of Christiania at its _debouchure_ is just
fifteen miles in width, and like many other Norwegian fjords is much
deeper than the sea beyond its mouth. The entrance is marked by a
powerful and lofty lighthouse on the island of Faerder. The ancient
citadel of Akershus, built upon a bold and rocky promontory some six
hundred years ago, commands the approach to the city. In this curious
old fortification are kept the regalia and national records, the
tree-adorned ramparts serving as a pleasant promenade for the
public. One is often reminded while sailing upon Norwegian fjords of
the Swiss lake-scenery. This leading to the capital is not unlike
Lake Geneva in the vicinity of Vevay a