the fea, in its plains,, mountains, and vallies, has forefts ;of different
hinds of trees, which, from thfe sfize of fome branches- which
ham <been drawn up, may b e . conceived • at leaft. equal to the
larggft,fruit-trees in opr gardens; but I referve ipy .owni.obferva^
tions upon thefe, > till I pome to'treat in their order, o fth e Nor.-r
way plants andryegetables.
i i .
f The Norway ihore is in very few places leyel, or gradually, aft
coaft* cending,t hut^enerally ,ffeep,„ angular, ^ .im p e n d e n t,j/b that
clofe, to. the rocks the fea is'a, hundred, two Jmndr^d^-nay, jthree
hundred fathoms d e e pw h e re a s, qn.the/long, and uneven iand-
banks, which are generally called Stqreg;rforjiPg others gfapbg?e,
Tea-breaks, th e bottom i,s mucfymoiepopping, fcTfrefe prptubej
rances run north and fouth along tjie, coajft ©fMorway,, 4like the
§b|ps£ tho not within them; in fome placeg!5,th,ey ,iar©,-jbut .four
or ftx leagues, in others twelveoi; fixteen-from thejmnfinenfj. that
from ^ eu ce it ,may be .concluded^.thafe^^^ags t^re formed by
them. Thefe Stpregs are another difpoution of, the wife Creator,
from the abundant fifheries they afford; like th^Doggeiv-ibank betwixt.
Jutland and. England ; in a bottornjefs, deep die fifh would
be out of reach, .but here is tit^jgsre i their. d^ily rendezvous,
and the depjth being horn ten tq^fi^en fethoms,;;.thgy are taken
with great ekfc.
S E C T , III.
Unfafl«®»- Ffom the le i, particularly on
^ la r^ a h d Jmaff creeks ninfS^eight, or to fle ^ u e s up the Wintry ;
® Wjjjjt bottom is found to be^^drfferent,^mojingeneral
as deepasthat ofthe fea without; but as to the depth, under 'water
the, jjeafants pretend, that the neareft fteep mountains'
iure'by which to ju%e,^they correfponding m their height above
water, with the depth of the fea : Whether jffus. ruje be exadly
right I fhall not determine *. This, however, is certain from ge-
rieitl expdrienefe, thaf in the middle of theft: wefteriy creeksj runs
another narrow channel of a quite difproportiohate depth, which
therefore is called Dybrehde, i. e. the deep courfesythe breadth
* This is,.tfoiifirnKd.'by experience in many other countries. Dampier^s Vovaees
P. i i . p . 476. • i ' " " • ' ' 6 1
is from fifty to >a'. hundredifetboms ; but allithe fijhermen agree,
-tîÉ%i^Bfd.epth .is feldbm'-lëfiïthan-foüt-hundred fathbms, and they
are very câfreftil in fpread-itfgt their'nets, to caft them as near this
deep) channel i ais-poffible,1 for thé fifh are caught in the greateft
plenty on tits feahfeé, it beingfeds’ it; Were a place of their daily refo
rt;'b u t herein they kfeJbbligbd to pfe no lefs Caution, that-their
»nets be not carried into^thefe depths, for the edrrent, on-'account
of .its narrowhefs being vfejy rapid; they are- hardly' recoverable ;
grid, befidhs,- their line and hèts^wÜltfn%#lfiïfficéfb'f'a 'giilph o f
three'of Tout hundred' fathoms. -The depth of the water, on both
itHes of thisi channel,^is tèbmmonlÿ'abdut ans hundred fUthoms, to
which,- if accotding to the above-mentioned rule, the height of
thV fteep rocks on the- fides. be added, tho-’ many-of thëriï âfe
twice i or Ifelfee times highêry the wholé {pace front 'thé creft of
the mountains*' fb the bottom of thefe narrow depths, is at lfeaft
-five hundredTathoms, ;„<af Tfîftçfen hundred ells.- This >gr
appçarsjto me very worthy of qbfervation^yo tbqfe who would-in-
yeftigate'tne effeéts o fth e general deluge, hhefefdeep creeks, and-
-aeep'jyallies, .being, a,s I conceite, fermed.-oy-tljye eb,b of the
Waters, in ,ther'fobft^pce,pf the rocks, -which has-been ,£hewn to
have^bam-feft and impreffilâe; as a pafte, ox ,a mafs of ipud;f
whicfogradually fubfided and becgxpe a folid bottom to the waters,
through which thé large ftr-eams and floods in their iinpetuous ebb
muft hMéfoiadg an, mcifion, more qr lefs dgep, . according,to the,
heightiqf the» »pl^c^fiom fsyhepee they ifiued. Now if it- be confi-
derèa, tnât theÏÏMg- chain of high and extenfive mountains,
Reaching, no.rth and fopth, the, length of fifty Norway-miles from
,the "middle' of the diôcefe of Chriftianfand to Dofrefield, is .about
fixteen Norway, miles from the furtheft fea-coafl,; îikewifè tnat
^ ||th e weftern creeks run 4èrfiFs ëbm the root of that chain into
thefeay’.we fhall conclude; that the-great depth of the creeks is
little, to be .wondered at,; fh e places, »from whence the- laft waters
fell, being of fuch an isnqrmqus, height, confequcntly the many
waterfalls, which g r a ^ l ly ,dçpreflèd the eminences, and the edges
of |hc.fi,dps. of the mountains, ,mufl haye been'qf extremq,rapidity,
and firqng enougMft^qCçaftonthefe deep channels,[The benefits,
of-them are fuch, that to them the diocefe of Bergen may
be faid to owe its, being habitable, and the communication it en