THE AMERICAN-SCANDINAVIAN REVIEW 
93 
I n the above sketch I have attempted to give an idea of the town 
of Lund, so full of distinction and so eloquent with charm. I had bet¬ 
ter add, however, that its acquaintance is not won in a day. As Strind¬ 
berg described it, “That little mysterious town which one never 
fathoms, taciturn, impenetrable, friendly but not with open arms, 
serious and industrious like a monastery, to which one does not go vol- 
, br t which one leaves wistfully, from which one makes believe 
to flee, and to which one would always return.” 
Studies and Students at Christiania 
By Fredrik Paasche 
The official name of the University of Christiania is “The Royal 
Frederik’s University.” The man who is immortalized in this name 
is Frederik VI, the last of the Danish kings who enjoyed sovereignty 
over Norway. In 1811, three years before our country was parted 
from Denmark, he agreed to an arrangement by which Norway was 
assured its own university. He agreed to it, but without enthusiasm. 
The new academy took the name of the king as a heritage, but in 
reality its founding was not due to the king. It was the determination 
of the Norwegian people and their generous support that forced the 
issue. 
The people built the University, and for more than a century it 
has been the pride of the Norwegian nation. To be sure, this pride 
has not always been evident in the size of the appropriations which 
our national parliament has voted for the University. Scholarship has 
often worked under difficulties; salaries have been small; the buildings 
have been insufficient and poorly equipped; and, most regrettable of 
all, the State has done very little for the students. It has not provided 
“Students’ Homes” where they could live with a fair degree of com¬ 
fort while in Christiania, and whatever houses their organizations pos¬ 
sess are the fruit of private generosity. Even now there are plenty 
of shortcomings. The students’ reading-rooms at the University are 
few and small; the scientific institutes are insufficiently equipped; the 
largest of the students’ societies, Det Norske Studentersamfund does 
not possess its own house, but has to hold its meetings in a rather dismal 
hired hall, while the shortage of rooms has made living conditions more 
difficult than ever. 
All these drawbacks have occasioned many complaints, com¬ 
plaints that are generally directed to the Storting. It is only fair to 
remember, however, that Norway was for many }^ears a country of few 
