April, 1891. through Norway with the vesey club. 
89 
were made by him with the same wisdom and forethought 
which had been expended by Mr. Stone upon the route of the 
“ overlanders.” Horses and vehicles, for instance, had to be 
collected to time from all over the country side, sometimes 
from places a good day’s journey from where they were 
needed, and hence our cavalcade showed a procession of 
survivals in the matter of vehicles such as probably have 
rarely come together in Norway. Most “ rare and curious,” 
to use the collector’s term, of all were the saddles which were 
unearthed for an expedition which we made a week later on, 
and which was only possible upon horseback. If I remember 
rightly, one of the ladies’ saddles then produced bore the date 
1740. The ordinary lady’s saddle used in rural Norway is 
rather an oddity in its way—somewhat like the seat and back 
of a library chair strapped cn the horse’s back. The uprights 
which support the back are apt to get weak with age, and, as 
the rider relies entirely upon their firmness, accidents are by 
no means infrequent. But gentlemen had to put up with 
an even wider range in the matter of saddles. Not a few of 
us had to be satisfied with a few sacks or rugs strapped on the 
horse’s back, with or without a cushion laid thereon, in some 
cases quite stirrupless, but in others with what was even 
worse, viz., a doubled rope slung over the horse’s shoulders, 
into each end of which a foot was to be placed. This is very 
well so long as the pressure of the two feet is uniform ; but if 
the pressure upon one is greater, down it goes and up comes 
its fellow. Hence in any sudden lateral movement or turn 
of the horse the stirrups were an actual source of danger, and 
happy was the man who had learned by experience to hold 
on by his knees. 
From Olden we, that is “ the faithfuls,” made a most 
delightful and interesting excursion to the Brigsdals glacier, 
one of the ice aprons which come down from the great Joste- 
dal snowfield. Our way thither is partly driving, partly row¬ 
ing, partly walking. The water portion is over a long, narrow 
lake, pinched in between huge mountains towering 5,000 feet 
or more above its waters, and with snow curtains descending 
here and there down gulleys in their upper flanks. Away 
beyond the head of the lake is for miles visible the beautiful 
Melkevolds glacier, while two hours’ walk up a valley at right 
angles to the left is the glacier we are in search of. All the 
way up this valley the smooth, humpy rocks and frequent 
boggy pools betoken the path of an old glacier, so that, although 
the glacier is at present apparently advancing, it has probably 
within comparatively very recent times been far lower than it 
now is. The lowest end of this glacier is probably about 1,000 
