GENERAL FEATURES OF THE COUNTRY. 8 
there is another saw-mill. At the fall on which this mill 
stands may be seen what I shall hereafter have occasion 
to refer to as characteristic of the water transport of 
timber trees in Norway. The author of a volume entitled 
Frost and Fire, describing the passage of this fall by trees, 
says :—‘ At every moment some new arrival comes sailing 
down the rapids, pitches over the fall, and dives into a 
foaming ground pool, where hundreds of other logs are 
revolving and whirling about each other in creamy froth. 
The new comer first takes a header, and dives into some 
unknown depth, but presently he shoots up in the midst 
of the pool, rolls over and over, and shakes himself till he 
finds his level, and then he joins the dance. There is 
first a slow sober glissade eastward across the stream to a 
rock which bears the mark of many a hard blow. There 
is a shuffle, a concussion, and a retreat, followed by a 
pirouette sunwise, and a sidelong sweep northwards up 
stream towards the fall. Then comes a vehement whirling 
over and over, or if a tree gets his head under the fall, 
there is a somersault, like a performance in the Halling 
dance. That is followed by a rush sideways and westward, 
when there is a long fit of setting to partners under the 
lee of a big rock ; then comes a simultaneous rush south- 
wards, towards the rapid which leads to the sea, and some 
logs escape and depart, but the rest appear to be seized 
with some freak, and away they all slide eastwards again 
across the stream to have another bout with the old bat- 
tered pudding-stone rock below the saw-mill; and so for 
hours and days logs whirl one way, in this case against the 
sun, below the fall, and they dash against the rounded 
walls of the pool. Such is the effect of these concussions 
that above the fall it has been found necessary to protect 
the rock against floating bodies so as to preserve the way 
of the stream. It threatened to alter its.course and leave 
the mill dry, for the rock was wearing rapidly. Lower 
down, nearer the sea, is a long, flat marsh, between high, 
rounded cliffs; and there these mountaineers, floating on 
to be sawn up, form themselves into a solemn funeral 
