Europe : — a popular -Physical Sketch. 391 



Scandinavian Peninsula. — If a man supposes himself 

 transported to the Arctic Ocean in order from thence to 

 commence a journey through Europe, he will first have to 

 pass through an elongated peninsula, called Scandinavia 

 (Norway and Sweden), surrounded by the sea and its 

 gulphs, and connected to the rest of Europe by a rather 

 broad isthmus, proceeding from the eastern side of its 

 northern frontier. The length of the peninsula, as well 

 from north to south, as from north-east to south-west, 

 is about 960 geographical miles; the breadth from 200 to 

 380. 



The sea cuts numerous very deep, narrow, and curved 

 friths or inlets into the west-coast, along the shore of which 

 are spread numberless rocky islands, whereas the east 

 coast, formed by the Gulph of Bothnia, is nearly without 

 any friths at all, and containing few islands, and those 

 of small extent. The greater part of the peninsula is occu- 

 pied by one continued chain of mountains, extending from 

 the Varanger Ford in the north, down~to the south-western 

 extremity (from 71° north lat.*). This chain first proceeds 

 under the denomination of ' Lapland mountains,' and Kiolen 

 from NNE. to SSW. forming the frontier between Nor- 

 way and Sweden, then under the name of ( Dovre' from 

 ENE. to WSW., and resumes to the southward its 

 former direction under the appellation of ' Langfield,' ' Sog- 

 nefield,' * Hardangerfield,' situated near the southern coast. 



The north-eastern extremity of the chain slopes gently 

 towards the White Sea, while a number of extensive, lowly 

 sitviated lakes ('. Wenner,' * Wetter,' ' Hjalmar,' ' Malar,') 

 form a natural frontier towards the SE. The chain has no 

 ridge above, but is flat, forming numerous extensive tracts, 

 which although not even, at the most present an undulated 

 surface, and are called mountain-plains. Their height, and 



* The distance between the line (Equator) and the North pole, is 

 divided into 90 degrees, each of which is about 60 geographical miles. 



