The only trees found growing on the island are birch and ash, and they seldom exceed ten feet in height. A few juniper bushes and willows are found here and there.
In the remote and isolated sections most of the dwellings are built of blocks of lava laid one upon another, making a wall six feet thick. Upon these are placed rafters made from ribs of whales, drift-wood, or anything else that will answer the purpose. The roof is then covered with grass and turf. In the hamlets many of the houses are constructed of imported lumber, there being no trees of sufficient size on the island for building purposes.
The inhabitants are very hospitable and every house is open to the traveller. They live in a simple manner, drink sour whey and milk, eat rancid butter, fish, mutton, and occasionally the lichens called Iceland moss. When well cooked, the last named is quite palatable. It is also a sovereign remedy for bronchial ailments.
Notwithstanding their many privations, the people are loyal to their country and lovingly call it "The Maid of the North." They lead pastoral lives and their customs are much like those of the Homeric age. Story-telling is much appreciated by all classes. There are wandering minstrels who gain their livelihood by going from house to house to recite the stories in prose and poetry which they have learned by heart. Spindle and distaff are used in spinning the wool into yarn, which is then knit or woven into cloth on a hand loom.
Education is universal, and no child of twelve years can be found who is unable to read or write. The families are so isolated that there are few schools outside of the capital; but the parents diligently teach their children whatever they themselves have learned.
During the long winter evenings one member of the family reads aloud while the others are busily at work, the men making nets and ropes, or removing the wool from the sheepskins, the women embroidering, sewing, or using spindle and distaff.
In no other country of Europe are so many books and papers published in proportion to the population as in Iceland. On the average one hundred books are issued annually from Icelandic presses. Several excellent newspapers and periodicals are also published.
Every Icelander to-day knows perfectly the sagas, the legendary stories that commemorate heroes and heroic deeds and which are so dear to his heart. It is not uncommon to find an Icelander who is well versed in the ancient classics or one who can speak several languages. They are well acquainted with the writings of Milton and Shakespeare, which have been translated into their own language. During the twelfth and thirteenth centuries Iceland produced a literature equal to that of any other nation in Europe within the same period.