Additional articles were stowed
away here and there among the boxes. The last instructions
were given by Sigurdr to the guides, and everything was
declared ready for a start. With the air of an equestrian
star, descending into the arena of Astley's Amphitheatre,
the cook then stepped forward, made me a superb bow, and
was assisted into the saddle. My little cabin-boy
accompanied him as aide-de-camp.
The jovial Wilson rides with us tomorrow. Unless we get
his head round during the night, he will have to sit
facing his horse's tail, in order to see before him.
We do not seem to run any danger of falling short of
provisions, as by all accounts there are birds enough in
the interior of the country to feed an Israelitish
emigration.
LETTER VII.
KISSES - WILSON ON HORSEBACK - A LAVA PLATEAU - THINGVALLA -
ALMANNAGIA - RABNAGIA - OUR TENT - THE SHIVERED PLAIN -
WITCH-DROWNING - A PARLIAMENTARY DEBATE, A. D. 1000 -
THANGBRAND THE MISSIONARY - A GERMAN GNAT-CATCHER - THE
MYSTICAL MOUNTAINS - SIR OLAF - HECKLA - SKAPTA JOKUL - THE
FIRE DELUGE OF 1783 - WE REACH THE GEYSIR - STROKR - FITZ'S
BONNE FORTUNE - MORE KISSES - AN ERUPTION - PRINCE NAPOLEON
- RETURN - TRADE - POPULATION - A MUTINY - THE REINE
HORTENSE - THE SEVEN DUTCHMEN - A BALL - LOW DRESSES -
NORTHWARD HO!
Reykjavik, July 7, 1856.
At last I have seen the famous Geysirs, of which every
one has heard so much; but I have also seen Thingvalla,
of which no one has heard anything. The Geysirs are
certainly wonderful marvels of nature, but more wonderful,
more marvellous is Thingvalla; and if the one repay you
for crossing the Spanish Sea, it would be worth while to
go round the world to reach the other.
Of the boiling fountains I think I can give you a good
idea, but whether I can contrive to draw for you anything
like a comprehensible picture of the shape and nature of
the Almannagja, the Hrafnagja, and the lava vale, called
Thingvalla, that lies between them, I am doubtful. Before
coming to Iceland I had read every account that had been
written of Thingvalla by any former traveller, and when
I saw it, it appeared to me a place of which I had never
heard; so I suppose I shall come to grief in as melancholy
a manner as my predecessors, whose ineffectual pages
whiten the entrance to the valley they have failed to
describe.
Having superintended - as I think I mentioned to you in
my last letter - the midnight departure of the cook,
guides, and luggage, we returned on board for a good
night's rest, which we all needed. The start was settled
for the next morning at eleven o'clock, and you may
suppose we were not sorry to find, on waking, the bright
joyous sunshine pouring down through the cabin skylight,
and illuminating the white-robed, well-furnished
breakfast-table with more than usual splendour.
