Tímarit Þjóðræknisfélags Íslendinga - 01.01.1966, Blaðsíða 78

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TÍMARIT ÞJÓÐRÆKNISFÉLAGS ÍSLENDINGA
near the city limits. We were later
informed that the government of
Nova Scotia paid for our food and
lodging at the inn. My grandfather
still thought it strange that the land-
lord requested no payment from
him. We were assigned to a room by
ourselves on the third floor, with a
window facing the street. My grand-
mother sat at this window day after
day to find out whether she could
see anyone wearing Icelandic clothes.
My grandfather soon began to think
it very strange that we should be left
there without comment and yet more
strange that no Icelander should
come there. He certainly understood
when he left Iceland that an Ice-
landic agent would receive all Ice-
landers who arrived in Halifax. With
the help of his textbook in English
my grandfather was able to make
the landlord understand that we
wanted to find the Icelandic govern-
ment’s agent. The landlord, also with
the aid of Halldor’s textbook was
able to make my grandfather under-
stand that he would have to wait for
seven days. The seven days passed
but neither the agent or any other
Icelander came. So also passed the
eighth and the ninth days. The land-
lord, by means of Halldor’s text-
book, always said “wait,” and grand-
father waited, for what else could
he do?
Then came the tenth day that we
had waited there; about noon that
day my grandmother, who always
sat by the window, said “there as-
suredly comes an Icelander across
the street, heading this way.” My
grandfather looked out the window
and said that he could not identify
anyone on the street as an Icelander.
After a few minutes, however, a man
was brought in to us who, as he came
through the door said:
“Komið þið blessuð og sael.” (How
do you do?)
I cannot describe the rejoicing that
we felt to see an Icelander and to
hear ourselves addressed in our
mother tongue. What a joyous occa-
sion.
This man was one of just twenty
Icelandic farmers that had taken up
residence in the so called Moose-
lands pioneering community which
had been founded that autumn. He
said that he was to accompany us to
the new settlement and also in-
formed us that the Icelandic agent
would come to meet my grandfather
that day. Later that day the agent
came. He had not been in the city
when we arrived and had just re-
turned from a long journey, or so
he said. He took us to his home that
evening and played the organ for us.
He told us that he played for all
those who proposed to settle in the
Mooseland community. He also said
that the melodies he played for the
pioneers were all composed by the
world renowned Mozart, for no other
compositions were worthy of the
men who were destined to settle in
the matchless Mooselands.
Thus we were introduced by the
musical tones of the great Mozart
into the primeval forests of Nova
Scotia.
Then we set off for the colony,
which was fifty English miles from
Halifax. When we finally arrived
there, ten weeks had elapsed since
we left Seydisfjord.