her off in the next spring: their only fear was, that she would not withstand the shocks to which she would be exposed by the breaking up of the ice, when the thaw should commence; as the huge masses rushing towards the Gulph might break her to pieces. However, it was unanimously their intention to make another attempt at getting her afloat. We thought, at all events, the materials would be valuable: but vessels are so cheap in the north of the Gulph of Bothnia, that when any one of them is condemned, their owners never think of saving the materials. If a ship be worn out, they set her on fire; taking out of her only what little iron they can; and very little is used in building them. They are all constructed of deal timber; and of this the King of Sweden has enough to supply more navies than all the arsenals of the world will send forth, before the Millennium. In the place where this vessel was launched, the Kiemi is nearly half an English mile wide.

CHAP.

I.

the Rubus

Here we landed, and found in the woods, near Fruit of the shore, the dwarf Arctic raspberry; bearing Arcticus. the first ripe fruit (August 9) we had seen upon this rare plant. The flavour of its berries is finer than that of the hautboy strawberry, which perhaps it more resembles than of any other kind of fruit. These berries are of a dark red

I.

CHAP. colour, équal in size to those of our common raspberry-trees; but the plant is so diminutive, that an entire tree, with all its branches, leaves, and fruit, was placed within a phial holding about six ounces of alcohol, in which state it has been preserved, even with its colours, unaltered; and may be so for any length of time, provided it be kept as free from the access of the external air as if it were hermetically sealed. The smell of the fruit, when fresh gathered, is delicious. The Rubus Arcticus and Rubus Chamamorus, according to Linnæus, are found only in Sweden; and they are not found in the southern provinces even of this kingdom. Sometimes a few plants are found in Dalecarlia, near to Fahlun, and here and there in Finland. In Angermanland, Helsingeland, and all over the two provinces of Ostero-Bothnia and Westero-Bothnia, it is more abundant. In the northern parts of the Gulph

(1) It is in the possession of the Bishop of Lincoln; to whom the Author presented it, after his return to England.

(2) But this is not true: the Rubus Chamamorus is found upon our Northern mountains. The Rubus Arcticus has also been raised from seed in some of the Botanic gardens of this country; and the late Mr. Greville succeeded in making it bear fruit in his garden at Paddington, by covering it with a bell-glass during the whole of the autumn, winter, and spring, until the beginning of June, when the cover was kept off night and day;-thus producing, artificially, an effect similar to the natural habit of the plant; which is always covered by snow until the sudden thaw, caused by a solstitial sun, annually sets it free.

I.

of Bothnia, especially in the neighbourhood of CHAP. Tornea and Kiemi, the fruit of the Rubus Arcticus is annually collected, and sent as a conserve to Stockholm. It is used in that city as a sauce. with meat, and in soup. Casks filled with the fruit of the Rubus Chamamorus are also sent to Stockholm, where it is consumed in the same way; also in the making of vinegar, and for various other culinary purposes. In the evening, we arrived at Ruika, and slept in great cleanliness and comfort in a farm-house; where, for the first time since our return, we enjoyed the luxury of candles; having found some here, and being much in want of them. From half-past eleven until half-past twelve at n ght, we could not now read or write without them; the evening darkness beginning to appear again: and it was very grateful to our eyes, bringing with it a sensation of rest to which we had long been strangers, owing to the continual sunshine and twilight-glare of the Lapland summer nights, We had before used splinters, as torches, in rooms where light was excluded; but this was the first time of our noticing the return of natural darkness.

August 10.-We left Ruika; and, at the distance of four English miles, descended one of the most powerful Cataracts we had yet seen in any of

CHAP. these rivers. The banks of the Kiemi now

I.

Fracture

appeared thick set with farm-houses: its shores resembled a fine garden, through which the river flows broad and rapid. Several varieties of Trap are among the minerals which we collected here; some containing iron pyrites, and others Prismatic exhibiting the prismatic fracture by which Trap of Trap. is generally characterized'. In many instances, the appearance of the stone, after being broken, was strictly that which it is usual to call basaltic; and this appearance was so constant a result of fracture, that the same specimen, broken seven or eight times, regularly exhibited either a quadrilateral, a pentagonal, or an hexagonal surface; and whether with four, five, or six sides, an angle of 124°, which is that of Hornblende, and to which this fracture is due, might be recognised. Between Ruika and Yatila, at Narkaus Cataract, we saw a very extraordinary stratum, constituting the bed of the river; but which had been left high and dry by the water, so as to enable us to examine it attentively; and from

(1) The specimens are now in the Woodwardian Collection at Cambridge.

(2) The pillars of the Giant's Causeway, and of Staffa, are rarely, if ever, destitute of this angle; and it is always obvious in their fracture. The fact is, that the chemical constituents of Hornblende and Basalt are so nearly the same, that the only difference between them consists in the more perfect crystallization of the former.

I.

this stratum we detached, by means of our ham- CHAP. mers, one of the most curious minerals we had found in all Lapland. It consisted of a mass of Beautiful Variety of broad foliated calcareous spar, which we at first Spar. mistook for feldspar, until we perceived its utter infusibility before the blowpipe, and its effervescence in acids. It is of a fine flesh-red colour; and its surface, worn by the torrent, had all the appearance of red feldspar. Upon being broken, its sparry rhomboidal fracture and inferior hardness ought to have decided its real nature, without further trial; but, like feldspar, it was traversed by a vein or layer of white Quartz; and a species of reddish Petrosilex, in colour and appearance resembling bacon, also existed in the same stratum, in a vein about two inches wide. Among the loose detached fragments left by the river, were numerous varieties of Trap. At Yatila, a peasant had prepared a very singular article of commerce for the ensuing fair at Kiemi, which was now near at hand. Having entered his cottage, we found, as it had often happened, that we might take entire possession of it; there not being a living creature to be seen. Upon the floor stood several barrels, containing each from twelve to sixteen gallons of the fruit of the Rubus Chamamorus, the berries having been boiled, in which state they are sent chamamo

Fruit of

the Rubus

rus.