ICELAND — EINARSSON 287 



plunge in tremendous falls, thundering on their way, and where the 

 rivers drop down from the highlands, magnificent and beautiful 

 waterfalls are formed. The most remarkable of these are Dettifoss 

 in the north and Gullf oss in the south. 



The water power in the country is enourmous, and year by year it 

 is being more and more utilized. At present it is giving light and 

 heat to thousands of homes in Iceland. But the rivers in Iceland 

 provide another asset ; in a number of them the salmon are abundant, 

 as are the trout in the many lakes in different parts of the country. 



The lava fields of Iceland are numerous and extensive, especially 

 in the uninhabited part of the country, the most remarkable of these 

 being Odaoahraun, the largest lava field in the world. 



Iceland has often been called "the land of contrasts" and it justly 

 deserves the name. This is a land where the snow-white caps of the 

 mountains cover the intense fire beneath, where you can take a bath 

 in hot-spring water out in the open during the severe part of the 

 winter; the inhabited valleys and plains are friendly, inviting, and 

 charming, the lava deserts desolate, barren and awe-inspiring. Beau- 

 tiful lakes and rivers winding through green pastures and fertile 

 meadows with their gushing geysers are a sharp contrast to the 

 sparkling glaciers, those fields of snow and ice, where no birds sing, 

 and where nature is dead and silent except when the wind sweeps 

 over the white desert. 



THE CLIMATE 



The name of the country and its geographical situation have given 

 rise to the prevalent erroneous ideas about the island. Fortunately, 

 however, there is very little similarity between the name and the 

 country itself. 



The climate of Iceland is a maritime climate: not particularly 

 warm in summer and not very cold in winter. As for the tempera- 

 ture, it is interesting to note that the mean temperature in January 

 in Keykjavik, the capital, is about 30° F. The mean summer tem- 

 perature is 52° F. The mean temperature of the whole year is 39° 

 F., which is similar to Quebec. In Reykjavik we very seldom have 

 snow, and on the lowlands snow rarely lies for long ; on the mountains, 

 however, it lies deep, making ideal conditions for winter sports. 



THE POPULATION 



And now, who are the people who inhabit this "land of frost and 

 fire" as Iceland is sometimes called ? 



The people of Iceland are descendants of Scandinavian vikings 

 who were full of vitality, eager in exploiting new countries and 



