The lady of the house offered coffee; and though everything looked so dirty as to create a positive feeling of disgust, the travellers could not afford to be particular, and accepted her offer, which put her in a perfect ecstasy of delight.
Quickly she scuttled off to the well for water, and, filling her kettle, set to work to roast fresh coffee.
The old man got up and endeavoured to rouse the sleepers, when he understood that the strangers were in immediate want of boats and rowers.
Leaving him to make the necessary preparations, they went out to take a look at the surrounding scenery; and returning in a quarter of an hour, expected to find them preparing the boats, which lay two or three hundred yards off. But, to their surprise, not the slightest change had occurred in the position of the sleepers; and, after drinking their coffee out of the one cup the Lapps possessed, they grew impatient, and stormed at the young men, trying even to pull them out of bed—but they would not budge.
“The father,” says our authority, “who protested great love for the English, but turned out the biggest rascal we had come across, was as anxious as we were that his sons should get up and row us;—but not a bit of it! He told us that they had been out three days and three nights on the Fells, and were thoroughly exhausted. What was to be done, we could not think. It was getting serious; we certainly could not sleep in this dreadful hole, and there was no other shelter near.
“Money had no power: though I showed the almighty dollar to the weary slumberers, (they had surely never been in America!) they turned away with a grunt.
“Then, O happy thought, I recollected the brandy; and bringing my keg to the bedside, I tapped it, and offered them a glass if they would get up. This was quite another thing; they yawned, stretched their limbs, and stood upon the floor. Poor fellows! we then saw how ill and fagged they looked, though they were splendid specimens of the human race.
“Pouring a glass of the fiery compound down their throats, they put on their coats, and followed us like sleepy dogs; but in a few moments were rowing us like heroes.”
All travellers agree in bearing witness to the passion of the Lapps for alcoholic liquors. If we could spare our apostles of temperance and advocates of Good Templarism, which, alas! we cannot afford to do, few better fields could be found for their admirable labours than Lapland.