The Icelandic Canadian - 01.09.1964, Page 35

THE ICELANDIC CANADIAN
33
Iceland, where she married and is now
planning to live permanently. She is
happy at what she described as “the
slower pace of life.”
Laxness has his roots in the old
Sa gas and culture of Iceland. That
culture is precious to every Icelander
and it is for this reason that Laxness
means so much to the nation and its
people. Some may say that Laxness
has shortcomings but when he is
measured by his own yardstick “I’ve
always tried to do my best” he assumes
stature that will continue to grow in
the years to come.
His autobiographical book should
answer questions asked by many
people. But if I understood Laxness,
he will leave many of his thoughts un-
told and questions unanswered. What
he writes will have importance to him-
self and to others because it will put
into perspective viewpoints of an ac-
tive lifetime. They will probably be
weighted by facts and facets to leave
his readers guessing how he truly feels
and what thoughts are predominant.
1 The author, Herman G. Nelson, is an Am-
erican of Scandinavian descent who has been
associated with The Rockford Morning Star,
of Rockford, Illinois, for over 30 years.
2 The title finally selected by Laxness was
“Sktlldati'mi”, The Poet’s Hour.
3 The language used by the author is slight-
ly confusing. The original manuscripts are
not read but many modem editions have
been published, with introductions and
explanatory notes. The manuscript texts have,
however, been scrupulously retained, thus
preserving the original language and literary
style.
4 Latest reports indicate that an agreement
will be reached with Denmark in regard to
the final situs of the manuscripts now in
Copenhagen. —Editor
Walter Thor Johnson on Potash Mining Duties in the Sahara
Fate took a sudden turn for some
young men in south-eastern Saskat-
chewan when modern science un-
corked what is thought to be the rich-
est potash mine in the world.
One of them is Walter Thor John-
son of Churchbridge, Sask., who is
spending a year on the southern edge
of the Sahara Desert as a draftsman
with the International Minerals and
Chemicls (Canada) Limited.
Thor was employed in 1960 in the
forty-million-dollar plant ibuilt by the
company 11 % miles from his home
town. Explorations for the ore began
in 1957. By 1962 mining was In full
swing and the yearly production of
potash was estimated at 1,200,000 tons.
Young men of the area were sharing
in a payroll that neared $20,000 per
day. Many were sent for training
courses at the firm’s expense. Others
found new outlets for skills they al-
ready possessed.
Last April Thor was asked to go to
Taiba, Senegal, where IMC owns an
interest in an open pit phosphate mine.
It borders the southern Sahara Desert
and is approximately 70 miles from
the seaport of Dakar. He is the only
Canadian on a team of 8 agriculture
and chemical personnel sent to provide
technical service to the mine. It is
estimated that improved methods
introduced by this skilled personnel
will increase production of the mine
by one million tons a year.
Thor is the son of Valdi and Dyr-
finna Johnson. His paternal grand-
parents were Sigurdur and Palina
Johnson. His mother’s parents were
Eyjolfur and Ingibjorg Hinriksson, all
pioneers of the Thingvalla district,
near Churchbridge, Sask.