The Iceland year-book - 01.01.1927, Blaðsíða 43

station. On Dec. 31st 1926 the number of tele-
phones is use was 3.320, of which 2.260 were in
Reykjavik. Only four countries in Europe use the
telephone more extensively than Iceland does. At
the end of 192f) (later statistics have not been
published) the total length of the telephone and
telegraph lines was 2804.4 kilometres, and of the
wires 8217.5 km. The length of submarine cables
Avas 89.3 km., and of underground cables 15 km.
The Principal Reykjavik, the capital, is situated
Towns. on the south side of a considerable
inlet of Faxafloi (or FaxafjorSur)
in a shalloAV depression between two hills as A\7ell
as on both these hills. The town may he said to
be of recent growth, for in 1801 its population
AA'as only about 300, by the middle of the 19th
century it had increased to a little over 1.000, and
in 1901 it had reached 6.600, AA'hile at present it
is about 23.000, or somewhat more than one-fith
of the entire population of Iceland. Other towns
of special commercial interest are: Isafjordur
(pop. 2.200) in the West; Siglufjordur (1.500), the
centre of the herring trade, and the beautifully
situated Akureyri (3.000) in the North; Seydis-
fjordur (1.000) in the East; and Vestmannaeyjar
(3.000) and Hafnarfjordur (3.000) in the South.
The distance between the last-named and Reykja-
vik is only 11 kilometres. It has often been re-
marked that on account of its excellent natural
harbour HafnarfjorSur ought to have been the
capital of Iceland. It has lately grown into a \7ery
important fishing base, and, as a consequence, is
undergoing rapid expansion.
37