'IMII'! i:i.K 187 



\vuul(l iiuliicr tlu'c'llv hoiinds lu leave tlicir iairlN'-cariicd 

 quai'i'N'. and |)()ii. iisuall\- so t ra<'1al>1(', was Ido jealous to 

 obey my buniiiioiis."' 



AVliilc ill T\'dal I was as near luakinn' an end as T luive 

 ever been. The Xorwegiuii ponies have an exhilarating' 

 liabit of gallopino- down the short, steep hills whieh are so 

 fre((uent on ilnir roads. At the foot of one of these the 

 road was raised on a ri\'er wall, I went \- I'eeL higii, without 

 any protection at the edge. The [)on\' was going full 

 gallop to gain an impetus for l he ascent, and I had ashing 

 }>ull on his head, when one of the reins — a plain rope in 

 these less-frequented \alieys — came away from the bit. 

 In an instant we were olf the road, but ha}»pily on the 

 bank side; it was the near rein whieh had givt-n. If it 

 had l)een the other, we must ine\itaiil\' have gone oNcr on 

 to the roeks, and no one would ever \vd\r known how it had 

 happened. 



From Tydal we proceeded to tlie neighbourhood of 

 Levanger. This expedition })roved a comjjlete failure, and 

 I only mention it as a waining to others. ]\ly obse(piious 

 landlord and his too sumptuous abode inspiicil nir with 

 distrust from the first. His house was sph'ndiil. Imt in the 

 matter of elk ground he had been extremely eeoiioinieal, 

 and the little he had secured for me was (bvided into two 

 portions, while on the best part of it a gang of wooibnen 

 were at work. 1 don/t think he meant to be dishonest, 

 but he had never seen an <'lk. and apparently thought they 

 lived like rabbits in stone walls or haycocks, 'i'he next 

 year I went to Jemtland, in Sweden, antl with nun'e 

 experience our bag was a much larger one. J^^ven an elk 

 is, however, easily missed, and a> this chapter is a truthful 



