AKTIESELSKAB
SKANDINAVIEN-AMERIKA LINIEN
Copenhagen, July 3
Honey dear:-
I'll write a few minutes before going to bed. Your letter came today with Olive Alling's inclosed [sic], and I was glad to see it and to hear the news. I would like to know what became of that check, for I don't throw them away! And I think I paid that Hegy bill from the slip on the dress. Look at my last stubs and see. The drss came the day before I packed.
We've had a rich and rare time out in the country - a whole day of it, most exciting. In the morning Alice and I went to call on Prof. Hindhede, the man who is trying to make the Danes vegetarians - and he is more or less of a laughing stock, but yet he manages to get Government grants! His pet subject, Madsen, is now living exclusively on Swedish bread, very coarse, and margarine! with "Frug & Tea", which may be apple tree leaves. Hindhede more or less scorns "witamins." [sic] He's a man of one idea if ever I saw one, launched in as soon as we arrived and kept right at it. We saw the subject Madsen who certainly sprung around the lab. like a grasshopper.
The husband of the girl Alice knows came for us at the lab. and took us out 35 miles in his car (Oakland closed), stopping on the way so Alice could see Roskilde cathedral, which is interesting. Those coffins! The kings and queens lie around in rows in their chapels, and there are lots of interesting things to see. We went on to a suburb of a small town, Holbeck, where Mr. Petersen makes big farm machinery. He's an engineer of very thorough training, after his technical school here about 5 years in America which he knows from Vermont to California. They live in a charming new house, so tastefully and even rather elegantly furnished. It has about the same rooms as ours, but it all feels so different. We had a real Danish lunch - everything exquisitely made, especially a beet salad thing and a dish arranged in three rows
with sprigs of green at the ends. One row, white of egg, one herring, the last yellow egg, all puverized and every speck in its place! Good, too. For dessert we had strawberry shortcake, made with cake, American - and strawberries are still expensive! In the afternoon we went on a long ride in the rain - but we saw things all the same - half a dozen castles of the lesser nobility (a degenerate lot in the main!) each with towers and a moat, one with great clipped hedges, all with parks &c. The moat in one place was white with dainty water crowfoot, exquisite in effect. We took pictures in spite of the rain and I hope they come out well! Our first lot is good, notably the Leviathan in N.Y. harbor. At oen place we went into a wind mill - huge sails on it. And these are mills not pumps. On the second floor were the millstones, turned by a huge wooden clock-work business. They were grinding American Indian corn if you please and the stream of golden meal ran down a chute into a bag below. Several farmers were having grinding done. They use corn for animals, not humans, here, but it doesn't grow here, season too short.
Have I said that the hawthorn is still in blossom, all shades, white to deep pink? And huge old trees of it. Also "Shower of Gold", a laburnum, which we ought to have.
We passed many, many little farms, mostly with tiled red roofs though the barns have thatched roofs with cord wood holding the thatch at the pteak and often with little semi-circular windows in the roof. Everything low, but the barns are often several, around a farm yard, sort of a square on which house and all barns open.
There is a remarkably good dessert which comes all summer with varied fruits as they ripen. It's fruit juice, or even some mashed pulp included thickened with a very delicate sago (or potato?) flour. It's a soft jelly, in a dish, not moulded, and they eat thin cream and sugar on it. We had it made from gooseberries and from rhubarb. You try it - Rödgröd over here. Pronounce it if you can. We miss the abundance of vegetables and salads and ice-cream! but Danish cooking is awfully good! They take so much pains with things, and flavor them so well. Pastry and cakes are ever richer than cousin Emma makes! We don't look forward to Germany.
July 4. No firecrackers. So cold we wear our heavy coats all the time. I've worn my light one only two days. But there is a wealth of green everywhere and such wonderful strawberries just ripening. Alice has gone out to the huge market two mornings - not I! And the things are so abundant and fresh. We've just eaten about two boxes of strawberries on the train - for we left this morning, with regret.
The Petersen family we visited gave Alice a perfectly lovely piece of Jensen's silver - it must have cost $35-$40 I think. She bought her sister a creamer and sugarbowl - so pretty. It is real art, that silver work. The Mulhollands (Americans at the Pension) showed us all their purchases last night, and 'twas helpful. I hope we shall find some nice things in Prague and Vienna.
Yesterday we did odd jobs, more or less. A little shopping, getting German money, more films, a ramble through the Rosenborg gardens, and while Alice went to get her seilver I went to Rosenborg Castle to see the things connected with the Danish kings. 'Twas very near our Pension. There were three huge silver lions, as big as Newfoundland dogs, rampaging in front of a throne made of narwhales' teeth - effect like ivory - very stunning. And the crown jewels in a glass case which slides down into a safe below the floor. Compared to the London Tower it was a small show, but they were rather good-looking! The crown with a huge emerald in front was a beauty, and there was a limpid amethyst as big as a hen's egg. Gold swords & maces, of course. In the museum much inlaid work, stone in table tops &c. And a carved ivory ship, 2-2 1/2 feet long, with ivory sails as thin as paper, exquisite. But compared to Sweden the museums aren't in it. I hope I'll see Stockholm again some time! And that northern museum which we hurried thro' so fast with all the royal and peasant things well displayed. These are relatively, junk shops, though there are wonderful things in them. The painting gallery was better. Norway, Sweden & Denmark are all different as one goes through the national sections, but I don't know how to say it.
We're landing in Germany in a few minutes - I'd better go down to the train. This is a grand train ferry, two hours, a fine steady boat. I'll mail this in Lübeck - and hope to like Germany as well as Denmark.
Berlin 'Tis now July 7 and much has happened. I fear it will never get told properly for I've taken little rests instead of writing and been sleepy at night. Trains are n.g. for writing. But my back is doing well, thanks be.
We got to Lübeck along early in the evening of July 4 and stayed at a hotel guarded by a sleepign and a wakeful lion, quiet [sic] stunning, and with the first good beds since America! We took a walk before dark around a most fascinating town. There are seven tall spires, the two on Marien Kirche 410 ft, two on the Dom 390+ - others also tall. The bricks of these buildings aren't unlike Clapp in pinkish tone, and they are tied together with most fascinating iron things
all sorts of odd shapes. Many patterns in brick. But the most fascinating bricks are the enamelled ones of the Rathaus and some other buildings, almost black, but iridescent in the horizontal sunlight, greens and blues when wet after rain - oh quite surprising! We were crazy about those colors. There are many old houses where the rich merchants lived, with shops in their houses, and various guild halls, &c. We got into the Heilige Geist Hospital, an almshouse for the aged, dating back to 1200 + (?) and with the old men sitting talking on benches under such lovely vaulting, all decorated!
Next day we spent most of the forenoon in Marien Kirche which has a cathedral size and effect and no monuments are knocked to pieces by Cromwell's soldiers, or despoiled by wars - all are there! It is most different from anything I've ever seen and full of interest, much carving, things brought from Holland by these sailors, things put together by the Bergen sailors in their chapel &c. The chapel where letters of indulgence were written has lovely vaulting, held by two monolith pillars, almost like an English chapter house in effect. I have some pictures for Gertrude from there, for it seems unusual to me.
We ate in the Ratskellar, old old vaulting and decoration, and found the Kriegstube in the Rathaus full of wonderful panelling, most elaborately carved and inlaid. I hope the pictures will give a little idea of it. That is later than the old parts of the church. A chapel ahas a Dance fo Death around it, which shows how all the folks looked who lived in the houses with elaborate stone doorways and strange roof-lines. I never found a soul who went to Lübeck - we saw no English or Americans there, though a few German tourists - but it's as excitign as many others more visited, I'm sure. It's off any lines of travel - up north. I'd love to prowl in a lot of those northeast towns for more of the architecture sometime. It would be fun.
We came to Berlin next day, July 5, and had no trials. Our Hospis is a good hotel - we need no better - Mr. Peter Bock helped us select it. We've had a grand time so far - things seem to come on successfully! Found two letters from you. Thanks be, Hooker likes my paper - I'll fix charts in the fall - I thought he'd cut me down on 'em - which was one reason for sending several! So he could cut down! He's cutting almost everybody. I've written him to snd the ms back - so look out for it, please. I can fix it in a day or two. He knows the circulation by his own research so I was anxious about his opinion of the quality of the work. Dr. Drinker wanted it condensed - Hooker suggests expanding the text! Such is life. And I'll write Dr. Cohn in a day or so - also Pres. Woolley.
Well - we've seen the big buildings and the Tier garten, all as expected - ornate and rather splendid, but really not in it with Lübeck! We've eaten at one grand restaurant so Alice could see how they do it - but the food can't compare with the Danish! But our luck has been in music. We've heard one opera, two concerts at the Zool. Garden, and another opera tomorrow night! And they sure are great! We just saw the signs and went in for tickets.
A thing called Robber Baron (?) by J. Strauss was at the big opera house last night - music delicious, acting excellent and setting superb. It wa about like a German Gilbert and Sullivan, we judge, with a rich comedian. I've never seen a more effective settign, sunset over the sea, gay costumes on a full stage and music like Blue Danube! We had a grand time, even if we knew little about the plot. The second act had a ruined castle and a sunrise, the third the return of the army to Vienna after a war, goose step and all.
Today we've been to the big picture gallery and enjoyed it greatly, especially the Rembrandts and Dutch. But I think both the Louvre and the London National much finer, as I remember them. We want to see more - but one cannot do museums all day. So this afternoon we went out to a huge nutrition exposition, at Witzleben in Charlottesburg and it surely deserves allt he praise it has had. We've never had such thorough-going science set out in an exhibition - beginning with anatomy and ending with a fully equipped dining car and a bakery turning out thousands of loaves! The first hall is scientific and there hung Dr. Benedict's picture, one of six "Founders of the Science of Nutrition," - Four Germans, Liebegi, Pettenkofer, Voït & Rubner, and Atwater for the 6th. They're right, too. I never saw such excellent charts, models &c - oh, we got quite excited! Much of the stuff came from the Dresden Hygienic Museum which we plan to see, anyhow. We had a most interesting call on Prof. Atzler, the man I wanted to see. He talked German of which I got 2/3 or so - I talked English! Dr. Thumberg sent me the note of introduction. Prof. A- is head of a gov't & privately supported research institute for industrial physiology and took us all about most kindly. We had studies of all sorts of practical processes to find the best way for loading cargoes on ships, shovellign coat - oh, all sorts of things where human labor is a factor. But it was a funny visit in many ways.
After the nutrition show we came back to the Zool. Garden and ate our dinner to a gorgeous band concert - then adjourned to the Concert Hall and drank lemonade to a Symphony Concert! We left before that was over, after Weber's Invitation to the Dance. Jessee will know when I first heard that! The folks do go in throngs, and there are few English-speaking folks here - we see no "troupes" - though an occasional little family group. Only one German bunch being lectured to in the museum. We'll find 'em later! Taxis are cheap -s carce more than trolleys with us, so we ride in 'em freely. I get less tired than Alice in museums, perhaps because I've done more. But she beats me all out on early rising.
Tomorrow we got to Potsdam - on to Jena Monday - Dresden Tuesday. Leipsic omitted for Jena. The Mulhollands got nothing out of Leipsic - but loved Dresden & Munich, where they stayed some months.
This will be overweight - but who cares? I'll send a bunch of post-cards from Jena, I guess. Look at them, of course. Some are for Xmas cards. I got you some good stamps in Copenhagen, I think - but recent Russian ones are awfully scarce!
Much, much love - Abby
I'm going to write Jessee about the music, but you might send this one for her to read about things in general.
Oh, I left out the Schiffer-Gesellschaft in Lübeck, formerly a Sailor's Chapel, now a Beer shop, with the most wonderful models of old ships hanging all through it -a lso old ship's lanterns, huge things - the whole about the quaintest place I ever saw. Lübeck isn't big - There was a dog dragging a little wagon, quite like Holland, too, and those lovely green spires - I'll never forget.
