His dress bespoke but little of the clergyman,
not differing, that I could perceive, in
any respect from that of an Icelandic peasant.
He even wore the common blue cap, which
concealed but a small portion of his white
and venerable hair that hung over his shoulders.
He offered us milk, fish, or any thing
that his dwelling afforded, which could be of
service to us. His residence was a pretty
srood one, and more extensive O ' than is common
in Iceland, where, generally, a low
Fence of stone or turf encloses a considerable
portion of ground, and, in the midst, stands
a cluster of little buildings or cabins, which,
taken collectively, constitute an Icelandic
house : the walls, formed of alternate layers
of stone and turf, are extremely thick,
especially at the base, and do not stand
perpendicularly, but lean a little inwards:
their height is about seven or eight feet; and
the addition of a sloping roof of turf, laid
on birch boughs, raises the whole edifice to
twelve or fourteen feet. It is to be observed,
that to all these, except one building (which
is, nevertheless, united by walls to the rest),
a single entrance serves: so that, going along
a strait passage, as narrow as it is damp and