88 
THINGEVALLE. 
of cattle, made a pleasing contrast with the rest 
of the country, which was, as the French editors 
of Povelsen and Olafsen term it, “ horriblement 
“ bouleversee par le feu souterrain.” We went out 
at the above-mentioned opening, and, crossing the 
Oxeraa, arrived at the parsonage by a road fenced 
in on each side by a low stone wall. A fine pair 
of rein-deer s horns, fastened against the side of a 
building here, particularly caught my attention. 
These animals were first introduced into this 
country (according to Von Troil) in the year 
1770* from Norway, by order of Governor Tho- 
dal. Ten out of thirteen died on the passage. 
The three remaining ones have done extremely 
well, and bred so fast, that at this time Count 
Tramp reckons that there are about five thousand 
head in the island. They are, however, quite use¬ 
less to the natives, for no attempts have been made 
to domesticate them, nor can the inhabitants af¬ 
ford to buy powder and ball to enable them to 
kill them for provision. They herd together in 
the wildest and least frequented parts of the 
mountains, and are not shot without extreme 
difficulty. We found the priest, whom we were 
come to visit, smoking his pipe * in the front of 
his house, surrounded by his wife and numerous 
* This is a luxury in which only the richer Icelanders can 
afford to indulge. A pipe in the mouth of an Icelander is. 
