loading/hleð
(71) Page 51 (71) Page 51
PEOPLE AND CLIMATE. 51 skirt also embroidered down the front. The head-dress, worn at the same time, is known as the ‘Faldr,’ and is a high white cap, fixed within a golden or silver coronet, which encircles the brow of the wearer. A long white lace veil is usually worn with the cap. The population of the island at the present time is said to be 72,000 ; over nine-tenths of whom gain their living by breeding sheep and ponies, and by fishing. The sole care of these pastoral farmers is to garner in as much hay as possible ; as upon the greater or lesser quantity secured depends the number of breeding stock he will be able to keep through the winter. There are no agricultural farmers or arable land, but a small patch of swede- turnips and potatoes will be found close adjacent to most of the best farms. The priest is invariably a farmer, and he usually owns the best grass-land in the district. The farmer on the coast is always a sea fisherman as well as a breeder of sheep and ponies. A few lines must be devoted to the Icelander’s dwelling. Timber, having to be imported, is dear, and difficult to transport; therefore the Icelander makes use of as little as possible in building himself a house. With less than a dozen exceptions, all the better class farm-houses, whose interiors the author ventured to explore during his rambles in the wilds of ‘Thule,’ were built on the following plan. A long, low, dark passage, with walls built of rough slabs of lava bedded in turfs by way of mortar, runs from front to back the whole length of the house, a distance varying from fifty to eighty feet, on each side of which at the rear of the two front rooms, which are lighted by windows, are from two to four cave-like apartments, built wholly of the same rude materials as the walls of the passage, lighted only by a hole in the roof, which also serves as chimney, and what little light the doorways admit from the gloomy passage. These back rooms are utterly destitute of wainscot or plaster, and also the passage; which invariably terminates at the entrance to a large apartment quite at the rear of the premises, called the ‘ Ba’Sstofa ’ ; wherein the farmer, his family, and farm servants of both sexes, not only take their meals together, but all sleep in bunks ranged round the walls, similar to what one sees in the steerage of an emigrant ship. The two front rooms are frequently not only very comfortable wainscotted apart- ments, but are also fairly well furnished with a sofa, chairs, and other articles. These rooms are seldom used by the farmer and his family, save when festivities take place ; being reserved for the accommodation of guests ; and are always placed wholly at
(1) Front Board
(2) Front Board
(3) Front Flyleaf
(4) Front Flyleaf
(5) Page [1]
(6) Page [2]
(7) Page [3]
(8) Page [4]
(9) Page [5]
(10) Page [6]
(11) Page [7]
(12) Page [8]
(13) Illustration
(14) Illustration
(15) Page [9]
(16) Page [10]
(17) Page [11]
(18) Page [12]
(19) Page [13]
(20) Page [14]
(21) Page 1
(22) Page 2
(23) Page 3
(24) Page 4
(25) Page 5
(26) Page 6
(27) Page 7
(28) Page 8
(29) Page 9
(30) Page 10
(31) Page 11
(32) Page 12
(33) Page 13
(34) Page 14
(35) Page 15
(36) Page 16
(37) Page 17
(38) Page 18
(39) Page 19
(40) Page 20
(41) Page 21
(42) Page 22
(43) Page 23
(44) Page 24
(45) Page 25
(46) Page 26
(47) Page 27
(48) Page 28
(49) Page 29
(50) Page 30
(51) Page 31
(52) Page 32
(53) Page 33
(54) Page 34
(55) Page 35
(56) Page 36
(57) Page 37
(58) Page 38
(59) Page 39
(60) Page 40
(61) Page 41
(62) Page 42
(63) Page 43
(64) Page 44
(65) Page 45
(66) Page 46
(67) Page 47
(68) Page 48
(69) Page 49
(70) Page 50
(71) Page 51
(72) Page 52
(73) Page 53
(74) Page 54
(75) Page 55
(76) Page 56
(77) Page 57
(78) Page 58
(79) Page 59
(80) Page 60
(81) Page 61
(82) Page 62
(83) Page 63
(84) Page 64
(85) Page 65
(86) Page 66
(87) Page 67
(88) Page 68
(89) Page 69
(90) Page 70
(91) Page 71
(92) Page 72
(93) Page 73
(94) Page 74
(95) Page 75
(96) Page 76
(97) Page 77
(98) Page 78
(99) Page 79
(100) Page 80
(101) Page 81
(102) Page 82
(103) Page 83
(104) Page 84
(105) Page 85
(106) Page 86
(107) Page 87
(108) Page 88
(109) Page 89
(110) Page 90
(111) Page 91
(112) Page 92
(113) Page 93
(114) Page 94
(115) Page 95
(116) Page 96
(117) Page 97
(118) Page 98
(119) Page 99
(120) Page 100
(121) Page 101
(122) Page 102
(123) Page 103
(124) Page 104
(125) Page 105
(126) Page 106
(127) Page 107
(128) Page 108
(129) Page 109
(130) Page 110
(131) Page 111
(132) Page 112
(133) Page 113
(134) Page 114
(135) Page 115
(136) Page 116
(137) Page 117
(138) Page 118
(139) Page 119
(140) Page 120
(141) Page 121
(142) Page 122
(143) Page 123
(144) Page 124
(145) Page 125
(146) Page 126
(147) Page 127
(148) Page 128
(149) Page 129
(150) Page 130
(151) Page 131
(152) Page 132
(153) Page 133
(154) Page 134
(155) Page 135
(156) Page 136
(157) Page 137
(158) Page 138
(159) Page 139
(160) Page 140
(161) Page 141
(162) Page 142
(163) Page 143
(164) Page 144
(165) Page 145
(166) Page 146
(167) Page 147
(168) Page 148
(169) Page 149
(170) Page 150
(171) Page 151
(172) Page 152
(173) Page 153
(174) Page 154
(175) Page 155
(176) Page 156
(177) Page 157
(178) Page 158
(179) Page 159
(180) Page 160
(181) Page 161
(182) Page 162
(183) Page 163
(184) Page 164
(185) Page 165
(186) Page 166
(187) Page 167
(188) Page 168
(189) Page 169
(190) Page 170
(191) Page 171
(192) Page 172
(193) Page 173
(194) Page 174
(195) Page 175
(196) Page 176
(197) Page 177
(198) Page 178
(199) Page 179
(200) Page 180
(201) Page 181
(202) Page 182
(203) Page 183
(204) Page 184
(205) Page [1]
(206) Page [2]
(207) Page [3]
(208) Page [4]
(209) Page [5]
(210) Page [6]
(211) Page [7]
(212) Page [8]
(213) Rear Flyleaf
(214) Rear Flyleaf
(215) Rear Board
(216) Rear Board
(217) Spine
(218) Fore Edge
(219) Scale
(220) Color Palette


Guide to Iceland

Year
1882
Language
English
Pages
216


Direct Links

If you want to link to this book, please use these links:

Link to this book: Guide to Iceland
https://baekur.is/bok/a9023fe1-41b1-478a-b42f-052c2cfbddd7

Link to this page: (71) Page 51
https://baekur.is/bok/a9023fe1-41b1-478a-b42f-052c2cfbddd7/0/71

Please do not link directly to images or PDFs on Bækur.is as such URLs may change without warning. Please use the URLs provided above for linking to the website.