68 NATURAL HISTORY of NORWAY. 



the fea, in its plains, mountains, and vallies, has forefts of diffe- 

 rent kinds of trees, which, from the fize of fome branches which 

 have been drawn up, may be conceived at leaft equal to the 

 largeft fruit-trees in our gardens; but I referve my own obferva- 

 tions upon thefe, till I come to treat in their order, of the Nor- 

 way plants and vegetables. 



SECT. II. 



fe?Song f Ae T ^e Norway ihore is in very few places level, or gradually a£ 

 coaft. cending, but generally fteep, angular, and impendent, fo that 



clofe to the rocks the fea is a hundred, two hundred, nay, three 

 hundred fathoms deep ; whereas, on the long and uneven land- 

 banks, which are generally called Storeg, or by others Haubroe, 

 fea-breaks, the bottom is much more Hoping. Thefe protube- 

 rances run north and fouth along the coaft of Norway, like the 

 Sheers, tho' not within them; in fome places they are but four 

 or fix leagues, in others twelve or fixteen from the continent, that 

 from thence it may be concluded, that the bays are formed by 

 them. Thefe Storegs are another difpofition of the wife Creator, 

 from the abundant filheries they afford, like the Dogger- bank be- 

 twixt Jutland and England ; in a bottomlefs deep the fifh would 

 be out of reach, but here is as it were their daily rendezvous, 

 and the depth being from ten to fifteen fathoms, they are taken 

 with great eafe. 



SECT. III. 



From the fea, particularly on the weft-fide of Norway, leveral 

 able depths, J ar g e anc [ fmall creeks run fix, eight, or ten leagues up the country; 

 rivers and j n thefe the bottom is found to be very different, tho' in general 

 as deep as that of the fea without; but as to the depth under water, 

 the peafants pretend, that the neareft fteep mountains are the mea- 

 fure by which to judge, they correfponding in their height above 

 water, with the depth of the fea : Whether this rule be exactly 

 right I fhall not determine *. This, however, is certain from ge- 

 neral experience, that in the middle of thefe wefterly creeks, runs 

 another narrow channel of a quite difproportionate depth, which 

 therefore is called Dybrende, i. e. the deep courfes ; the breadth 



* This is confirmed by experience in many other countries. Darnpier's Voyages, 

 P. ii. p. 476. 



is 



