ight, and the next day to Djekneboda, sixty
miles farther. The temperature fluctuated about the region of zero, with
a heavy sky and light snow-falls. As we proceeded southward the forests
became larger, and the trees began to show a dark green foliage where
the wind had blown away the snow, which was refreshing to see, after the
black or dark indigo hue they wear farther north. On the 4th of
February, at noon, we passed through Umea, and congratulated ourselves
on getting below the southern limit of the Lapland climate. There is
nothing to say about these towns; they are mere villages with less than
a thousand inhabitants each, and no peculiar interest, either local or
historical, attaching to any of them. We have slept in Lulea, and Pitea,
and dined in Umea,--and further my journal saith not.

The 5th, however, was a day to be noticed. We started from Angersjo,
with a violent snow storm blowing in our teeth--thermometer at zero. Our
road entered the hilly country of Norrland, where we found green
forests, beautiful little dells, pleasant valleys, and ash and beech
intermingled with the monotonous but graceful purple birch. We were
overwhelmed with gusts of fine snow shaken from the trees as we passed.
Blinding white clouds swept the road, and once again we heard the howl
of the wind among boughs that were free to toss. At Afwa, which we
reached at one o'clock, we found a pale, weak, sickly young Swede, with
faded moustaches, who had decided to remain there until next day. This
circumstance induced us to go on, but after we had waited half an hour
and were preparing to start, the weather being now ten times worse than
before, he announced his resolution to start also. He had drunk four
large glasses of milk and two cups of coffee during the half hour.

We went ahead, breaking through drifts of loose snow which overtopped
our sleds, and lashed by the furious wind, which drove full in our
faces. There were two or three plows at work but we had no benefit from
them, so long as we were not directly in their wake. Up and down went
our way, over dark hills and through valleys wild with the storm, and
ending in chaos as they opened toward the Bothnian Gulf. Hour after hour
passed by, the storm still increased, and the snow beat in our eyes so
that we were completely blinded. It was impossible to keep them open,
and yet the moment we shut them the lashes began to freeze together. I
had a heavy weight of ice on my lids, and lon