TRAVEL STORIES.

Otago Witness, Issue 3030, 10 April 1912, Page 87

TRAVEL STORIES.

(SPECIAL TO THE OTAGO WITNESS.) By Dr Sigel Rotjsh. The sail from Stockholm to the Baltic ia most charming. Going aboard the Finnish boat, Tornea, lying at anchor almost under the very windows of the Royal Palace, we were soon threading our way »mong delightful islands and tree-clad slopes towards the open sea. Now we are passing through a narrow channel where the steep, rocky embankments, tide-swept end barren, arise on each side to a height of several hundred feet. Again we enter an island-dotted lagoon, land-locked and placid, disclosing many a pretty villa with surrounding gardens and lawns —the sum-mer-houses of Stockholm's well-to-do population. Numerous landing stages occur along these shores from which a winding path leads up the sloping hill or along the water's edge to the several residences served by this station. At every dock a mail box is provided where little • steamers during the day leave the mail, and where later each resident sorts over and selects his letters from the others. It was curious to observe each passenger as he stepped ashore at the close of the business day to mechanically turn to the mail box, lift the lid. and go through the letters and ascertain what the day's delivery had brought for him. At times his face would brighten as he recognised a familiar hand, and again in the absence of letter.* altogether a shade of disappointment would flit across his countenance as he turned into the winding path that led to his home. Often the father or son would be greeted by other members of the family at the little landing stage, and this, too, furnished speculation and entertainment for the foreigner seeking new diversions from his comforable seat on deck. A well-groomed man in middle life, with his roll of papers and documents, is met by a stylishly-dressed woman of half his age. The meeting is unmistakably a cordial one, and the happiness expressed even in their backs as they turn and proceed arm in arm up the shady path and disappear over the hill is plainly evidenced. " Wife or daughter?" is the question to be answered, but before we have fully decided another turn discloses a vista of open sea, and we realise that we have left the bay and have reached the Baltic. At times this course across the Baltic, for we are on our way to Finland, becomes exceedingly rough, and for a few hours those subject to mal-de-mer have a most unhappy experience. But to-night—for the twilight has begun to deepen into darkness—the waters lay like molten lead, with scarcely a ripple to disturb them. Y\ hen I awoke early the following morning the Tornea lay gently riding at anchor, while the soft lapping "sound of wavelets against the sides of the vessel indicated that we were still in the open sea. I looked out through the port and discovered that we were encompassed in a dense mass of fog. We had crossed the Baltic, but • on account of the fog were unable now to pick our way among the numerous islands fringing the southern coast of Finland, through which our course now lay to Helsingfors. An-Island-studded Sea. —. With the coming of the dawn, however, the fog lifted, and we entered the Finnish archipelago, a stretch of islandstudded sea as boldly beautiful as the most fastidious marine artist could desire. I was perfectly amazed at the number and variety of these Finnish islands, varying in size from a wave-polished rock scarcely protruding above the surface of the water to aieas of several acres, on which firs and pines grew in considerable numbers. But these islands for the most part are unfit for habitation. Generally consisting only of irregular reck surfaces, they offer no means of support to mankind, and aside from their aesthetic interest, are of no value to the Finnish people. The granite of these islands, however, as well as that found on the Finnish mainland, is of a superior quality, and it was an island further out in the Gulf of Finland that furnished the material for the beautiful columns that surround the sarcophagus of Napoleon in

Paris. | These islands are so numerous that they give to the traveller the impression of a series of land-locked bays. One approaches what is apparently the shore of Finland, ! only to find that beyond are a number. of additional channels, each forming another series of islands. Navigating these •waters is a oarticular task, and while the channel is marked by numerous daylight guides—such as white-painted signs and directions on the sombre rock, upright poles, and primitive towerSj—still with all , these precautions it requires careful atten-1 tion to the tiller to come through unscathed, and at night, in the absence of liguthouses, the island passage is seldom attempted. A curious condition that must also be taken into consideration by the sailor in these waters is the fact that the north coast of the Gulf of Finland is steadily rising. This "land wave" is constantly lessening the depth of old channels, bringing new rocks to the surface, ! and even converting islands into penin- : sulas by forming necks reaching to the mainland. J Wizards of the Sea.— But Finnish sailors are proverbial wizards of the sea. This reputation has ■ militated, 6trange as it may seem, ] against him, for the Finnish sailor is regarded by sailors of other nationalities as too spooky and uncanny to become a desirable member of their crews. Instances are on record where the whole crew mutinied rather than go to sea with a Finn among them. Superstition plays a prominent part in the life of every sailor, and "Jack Tar" is fully' convinced of the supernatural powers nwsessed by every sailor Finn. " No, Sals," fcu-ys the old coloured cook in ,; Two Years; Before the Mast," " I've seen too much o' dem men to want to see 'em board a

ship. If dey can't have der own way dey'll play de debble wid you." That Finnish sailors can " do stunts" on the sea is unquestioned, though this is, of course, due rather to their consummate seamanship than to the possession of powers occult and mysterious. Practicallv all of Finland lies in the angle formed bv the Gulf of Bothnia striking off from the Baltic Sea to the north, and the Gulf of Finland arising from the same source and bearing almost directlv to the east. It will therefore be seen that nearly all of Finland lies beyond the sixtieth degree, north latitude—a region corresponding to the latitude of Hudson Bay in North America and the province of Kamchatka in Northern Asia. And vet notwithstading this almost Arctic location—indeed, much of Finland actually lies within the Arctic circle—the port of'Hango, at which we called about noon, is open to navigation throughout the entire year. The Gulf Stream is given as the cause of this condition, though it seems to me the cul-de-sac formed by the Baltic Sea. and its divided head, the Gulf of Bothnia and Finland, would not afford a sufficient current to warrant this great deviation in temperature as compared to that of other places in the same latitude. A Culinary Surprise. — Of all my Scandinavian culinary surprises the greatest of all of them was vouchsafed to me abroad the Finnish boat, the Tornea. Having gone aboard after supper, the next morning's breakfast •was naturally our first meal on the ship. Now each nation preserves certain customs and peculiarities in reference to dining aboard their ships, characteristic of their traditions alone, and while I have dined on ships of many nations the culinary arrangements of Finnish ships still remained to be discovered. When I entered the Tornea's dining room, therefore, on that September morning, as we threaded our course among the thousands of islands fringing the south coast of Finland, I was conscious of a feeling of expectancy as one who is about to explore new fields and unfamiliar ways. The saloon was deserted, and I dropped into a chair at one of the side tables and looked about. In the middle of the room stood a long, well-laden table, and I recognised at once my "Smorgasbord" of Norway. "And this*" thought I, 'is to be our breakfast." I had not long to wait for a confirmation of this self-evident conclusion, for in a few moments a number of native passengers began crowding about the central table, and with plate, knife, and fork in hand, commenced to help themselves. As in the Norway railroad restaurants, each diner took his plate to a side table, and there devoured its contents, to again visit the central table at frequent intervals for a fresh supply. There was nothing for me to do but to follow suit and, getting in line, I was soon busily engaged with the demands of the moment. I returned to my table with a small slice of smoked 6almon, a modicum of pickled herring, some anchovies and sardines, a hard-boiled egg, and a little caviare and sausage. These 1 broused over, but not seeming to answer the requirements of my breakfast tastes I reconnoitred again, this time fetching with me some smoked eel, several varieties of salads and pickles, besides some custard, meat ball, butter and cheese. Again I attempted to make a breakfast, but only indifferently succeeded. Such a combination for breakfast on board a ship did not appeal very powerfully to my appetite, and 1 longed for a good cup of tea or coffee and a nice niece of broikvJi steak with butter and rolls. But I consoled myself that the day would see the conclusion of my trip, and surely we would be provided with something more attractive for lunch and dinner. It was while thus philosophising that to my great consternation and surprise a dozen rosy-cheeked, immaculately uniformed Finnish waitresses trooped into the room and distributed themselves among the tables. To me the question as to what 1 would like for breakfast, asked in faultless English, came like a thunderbolt from a cloudless sky. " I—er—breakfast?" I stammered, as the waitress concealed an indulgent smile. "Why, haven't we just had breakfast'/" I managed to ask. "Oh, no," she said complacently, "that was just Smorgasbord—a little appetiser." "We have bsef steak," she ran on. "eggs in any style, coffee, tea, and rolls, chops, potatoes, fruit, and several kinds of breakfast foods." I was simply astounded, and while I knew that I had effectually spoiled my appetite with all that Smorgasbord, still just to "get even" I ordered a generous breakfast and found it to be of the very best, though it remained before me, for e\ ident reasons, practically untouched., —Arrival at Helsingfors.— The day passed pleasantly enough, though the delay on account of the early morning fog brought us into Helsingfors well nigh unto midnight, and as we drove through the deserted streets of Finland's capital I realised with a feeling of strange uniqueness that I was at last in that faraway land associated in my schoolboy days with snow-covered plains, reindeer, frozen lakes, Finlander sledges, and the cold grey glint of northern skies. Even now wrapped in the inhospitable mist of midnight these preconceived ideas were beginning to vanish, to be completely dispelled by the genial glow of the morrow's sunshine.