A JOURNEY TO FINMARK. 11 



everywhere covered with fir trees, and on the western slope 

 also, more or less sparingly with birches and alders. Beyond 

 this bank, about half an hour's walk from Bossekop, lies on 

 a quite flat, rather sandy plain, Altengaard, formerly the 

 residence of the governor of Finmark. Some years ago this, 

 with its large house, was purchased by the Catholic Mission ; 

 a church has been erected there, and a Catholic priest resides 

 there, in order to make converts to his views amongst a 

 population already disposed to religious matters. And, in- 

 deed, truly he had converted about fifteen poor sinners, but, 

 as was reported, more through the influence of the purse 

 than of the Word. I was sorry for the poor man, a born 

 Belgian, who had shattered his hand whilst out shooting, 

 and the more so, that of the three languages spoken there 

 he could only mangle the Norwegian. His predecessor, an 

 exiled Russian, who had previously several times changed 

 his religion, had bequeathed to him an innumerable quantity 

 of empty wine and rum bottles, which could only awaken a 

 mournful feeling in the poor man. 



Not far from Altengaard lay close to the Altenelv the 

 village Elvebakken, consisting of a trifling number of houses. 

 Here at its mouth the Altenelv is a broad stream, something 

 like the Elbe at Dresden. From Bossekop, on the left side 

 of the church, runs a sort of road towards the Reipas house, 

 situated on the other side of the river, at rather less than an 

 hour's walk. On the right hand of this road, five minutes 

 beyond the church, is the dwelling of the Skovfoged (wood 

 governor or forester). On the left beyond it there begins, 

 immediately behind the church, a deep depression, which is 

 continued to the Altenelv, and has throughout a marshy 

 character. The marshes here may be divided into grassy- 

 marshes and heath-marshes (mosses). The former are par- 

 ticularly wet, and grown over w^ith grass ; only here and 



