76 LETTERS FROM HIGH LATITUDES. [VII. 



quiring what good fortune had in the meantime befallen 

 him : upon which he gave me such an account of his last 

 night's reception at the farm, that I was almost tempted 

 to bundle tent and beds down the throat of our irritable 

 friend Strokr, and throw myself for the future upon the 

 hospitality of the inhabitants. It is true, I had read in Van 

 Troil of something of the kind, but until now 1 never fully 

 believed it. The Doctor shall tell his own history. 



"No sooner/' said he, "had I presented myself at the 

 door, and made known my errand, than I was immediately 

 welcomed by the whole family, and triumphantly inducted 

 into the guest quarters : everything the house could produce 

 was set before me, and the whole society stood by to see 

 that I enjoyed myself. As I had but just dined an addi- 

 tional repast was no longer essential to my happiness ; but 

 all explanation was useless, and I did my best to give them 

 satisfaction. Immediately on rising from the table, the 

 young lady of the house — (old Van Troil says it is either 

 the mother or the daughter of the house, if she be grown 

 up, who performs this office) — proposed by signs to conduct 

 me to my apartment ; taking in one hand a large plate of 

 skier, and in the other a bottle of brandy, she led the way 

 through a passage built of turf and stones to the place 

 where I was to sleep. Having watched her deposit — not 

 without misgivings, for I knew T it was expected both should 

 be disposed of before morning — the skier by my bedside, 

 and the brandy-bottle under the pillow, I was preparing to 

 make her a polite bow, and to wish her a very good night, 

 when she advanced towards me, and with a winning grace 

 difficult to resist, insisted upon helping me off with my coat, 

 and then, — proceeding to extremities, — with my shoes and 

 stockings. At this most critical part of the proceedings, I 

 naturally imagined her share of the performance would 

 conclude, and that I should at last be restored to that pri- 

 vacy which at such seasons is generally considered appro- 

 priate. Not a bit of it. Before I knew where I was, I 

 found myself sitting in a chair, in my shirt, trouserless, while 



