2 FORESTRY OF NORWAY. 
so quiet, so picturesque, by the sea and lakes, by the hills 
and the mountain sides, by the rivers and in the glades, 
that one delights to linger among them. Large and small 
tracts of cultivated land or fruitful glens, and valleys, 
bounded by woods or rocks, with farm-houses and cottages, 
around which fair-haired children play, present a striking 
picture of contentment. Such are the characteristic 
features of Scandinavia, surrounded almost everywhere by 
a wild and austere coast. Nature in Norway is far bolder 
and more majestic than in Sweden; but certain parts of 
the coast along the Baltic present charming views of rural 
landscape. 
‘From the last days of May to the end of July, in the 
northern part of this land, the sun shines day and night 
upon its mountains, fjords, rivers, forests, valleys, towns, 
villages, hamlets, fields, and farms; and thus Sweden and 
Norway may be called “The Land of the Midnight Sun.” 
During this period of continuous daylight the stars are 
never seen, the moon appears pale, and sheds no light 
upon the earth. Summer is short, giving just time enough 
for the wild-flowers to grow, to bloom, and to fade away, 
and barely time for the husbandman to collect his harvest, 
which, however, is sometimes nipped by a summer frost. 
A few weeks after the midnight sun has passed, the hours 
of sunshine shorten rapidly, and by the middle of August 
the air becomes chilly and the nights colder, although 
during the day the sun is warm. Then the grass turns 
yellow, the leaves change their colour, and wither and 
fall; the swallows, and other migrating birds, fly towards 
the south ; twilight comes once more; the stars, one by 
one, make their appearance, shining brightly in the pale 
blue sky; the moon shows itself again as the Queen of 
Night, and lights and cheers the long and dark days of 
the Scandinavian winter. The time comes at last when 
the sun disappears entirely from sight ; the heavens appear 
in a blaze of light and glory, and the stars and the moon 
pale before the aurora borealis,’ 
