ten? We were informed that the North Cape was diftant from-
Alten thirteen Norwegian miles ; that is, above a hundred miles
Englilh ; th a t it was impoffible to get there by land, and that
the only way was. to go hy fea. T h e whole of this peninfula they
defcribed as one continuation of mountains, interfered by lakes,
rivers, and impenetrable moraiics, which would intercept our pro-
grefs at every Hep. They affined us, that admitting the poffibi-
lity o f overcoming thofe obftacles, we could not poffibly reach the
North. Cape by th a t way in. lefs time than a. fortnight. A journey
to the North Cape, they faid, had never been undertaken by any
one in fummer, on account of its great length and the aim oil in-
fuperable difficulty of accompliffiing i t .- and as we were limited
in reiped o f time, and had a great diflance to go back to Tor-
nea, we might be too late in the feafon for doing io. I f we were
overtaken by the bad weather, we ffiould not be able to return
till winter had fairly fet in, fo that we might travel in fledges.
After weighing all circumftances, we determined to proceed to
the North Cape by w a te r; and- we propofed, when' we ffiould be
about half way to make fome excurfions into the peninfula.
T h e third day of our flay at Alten, the merchant procured us
four men, and an open boat with four oars. One of thele men
had doubled the Cape before,, and confequently was acquainted
with the courfe to be taken.- The other three were very good
ieamen, and had been on thofe coafts on the bufinefs o f fiffiing.
One of them, who a ¿led as pilot, fpoke the Norfe, or Norwegian
language ; the other three that of Finland and Lapland. I t promifed
mifed on the whole to be a very pleafant and comfortable expedition.
We were furniffied with cuffiions and mattreffes, bed clothes
and coverings. By way of provifions, we had every thing th a t
was good, fuch as white wine, claret, brandy, freffi falmon, roafted
fowls, veal, hams, coffee, tea, with the neceffary utenflls; and, in
a word, all that we could poffibly have occalion for. I t was, indeed,
nothing but a party o f pleafure on the icy ocean. T h e
gulf that I have mentioned, indenting the mountains, offered
every where the moft magnificent and interefting profpeit.
W e fet out from Alten, on Monday the 15th of July, at two
o’clock in the afternoon; and we did not arrive at the Cape till
th e night between the Friday and Saturday following. Three
miles from Alten we paffed on our right a mountain, called in
Norwegian HimeJlar, or Heaven-man, from which there fell into
the fea five or fix cafcades, two or three hundred yards of perpendicular
height. Farther onward was another grand cataradl,
where we quenched our thirft. W e went up into the mountains to
fee the place where it had its fource, and were furprifed to find
at their fummit very beautiful natural meadows; Still farther off,
we again, faw a fine cafcade ruffiing down from another mountain.
All thefe waterfalls were fupplied, no doubt, by the melting
o f the fnow on the diftant mountains, which formed as it
were the back ground of the pifture. The cafcade laft mentioned
was precipitated from a hill, adorned on three fides with a wood
of birch, fpread in the manner of an amphitheatre, fo that it appeared
as if it had been planted by the hand of man. In the midft
of