Of our hoatmen caught six, by striking a
pole, with three barbed points, at them,
Three or four others also were caught, by
the man leaning over the bank, and suddenly
seizing them with his hands. On wet ground,
near the mill, Splachnum ampullaceum and
Buxhaumiafoiiasa were not uncommon. As
soon as we reached Reikevig in the evening,
j*e were informed that several persons had
called on Mr, Savigniac, to say, that a con,
spiracy was in agitation amongst the Ice,
landers, who intended to surround the govern,
ment-house, and, after having secured such
persons as were in it, to take possession of
the Margaret and Anne b*. surprise, as
they understood the prew consisted only of
twenty-seven men. This tale appeared, at
first, too improbable to deserve attention;
but, on the arrival of the Etatsroed on purpose
to inform us that he had received an
offer from fifty Icelanders to join him, if he
would raise the same number, and seize upon
our vessel, it seemed necessary to take active
measures and put a stop to this projected insurrection.
Accordingly, Mr. .Jorgensen, who
had previously placed arms in the hands of
eight natives, and formed them into a sprt of
troop, set otf with ffis soldiers for the house
of Assessor Einersen, who was supposed to be
one of the chief movers of the conspiracy.
A horse was taken for him, upon which he
was placed, and, guarded by Jorgensen and
his cayalry, was marched, or rather galloped,
into the town, and confined for a few days
in the government-house.
Monday, Three days of tolerably fine wea-
July 3' ther were followed by one of almost
continued rain, and, indeed, it was hardly
possible to stir abroad the whole week, on
Tuesday, account of the wet. I rode, how,
July 4' ever, one morning, to the hotspring,
where I found a tent pitched, and as
many Icelandic women and girls as it could
possibly bold, sheltering themselves in it from
the weather. They had come with their
linen, which was brought on horses from
the town, to the hot-spring, where all the
plothes of the people, for many miles round,
are washed. Some of them had a few
little miserable potatoes *, not so large as a
* These potatoes, t}ie growth of Iceland, and the
best the island afforded this year, were not only
wretchedly small, but vefy bad; not being mealy
within, but full of a yellowish tasteless mucilage.