| 1864. | 1865. | 1866. | 1867 | 1868 | 1869 | Average Yearly Value in £. | |
| Rye and rye-flour, barrels, | 35,620 | 41,596 | 37,968 | 29,426 | 27,973 | 28,905 | 40,044 |
| Barley, | 17,490 | 19,960 | 16,708 | 12,992 | 10,463 | 10,455 | 24,463 |
| Pease, | 4,524 | 4,177 | 4,481 | 3,158 | 3,173 | 2,775 | 4,953 |
| Wheaten bread, lbs., | 317,216 | 339,511 | 252,511 | 244,754 | 182,783 | 196,068 | 3,494 |
| Rye bread, lbs., | 18,033 | 26,869 | 21,389 | 18,844 | 13,754 | 20,714 | 210 |
| Spirits, quarts, | 567,675 | 608,864 | 529,426 | 479,285 | 385,273 | 351,752 | 12,402 |
| Coffee, lbs., | 393,164 | 462,227 | 483,852 | 403,840 | 403,707 | 389,544 | 12,011 |
| Chicory, lbs., | 87,864 | 120,602 | 108,753 | 102,089 | 102,762 | 133,909 | 9,488 |
| Sugar candy, lbs., | 347,745 | 429,467 | 385,942 | 410,558 | 335,501 | 344,842 | 9,487 |
| Loaf sugar, lbs., | 101,918 | 152,840 | 135,350 | 118,229 | 113,960 | 111,229 | 3,087 |
| Brown sugar, lbs., | 27,751 | 47,020 | 41,602 | 36,456 | 34,268 | 32,043 | 786 |
| Treacle, lbs., | 16,199 | 19,257 | 14,289 | 12,100 | 9,972 | 12,807 | 208 |
| Rice, lbs., | 80,946 | 127,304 | 251,201 | 230,338 | 236,965 | 388,938 | 2,535 |
| Snuff, lbs., | 72,422 | 69,172 | 83,625 | 69,402 | 45,651 | 61,492 | 1,691 |
| Leaf tobacco, lbs., | 5,449 | 11,619 | 8,448 | 3,665 | 4,496 | 2,234 | 176 |
| Chew tobacco, lbs., | 35,011 | 39,908 | 37,081 | 34,727 | 30,617 | 34,527 | 2,972 |
| Tobacco, lbs., | 9,953 | 14,854 | 14,865 | 10,730 | 10,531 | 11,459 | 254 |
| Cigars (pieces), | 274,000 | 236,100 | 262,800 | 191,900 | 170,000 | 301,000 | 266 |
The peculiarity of this table is that while the consumption of colonial goods remains at the usual average, and while rice has nearly quintupled, there has been a decrease in the import of rye, barley, pease, and wheaten bread, a circumstance not easy to account for, with a growing population in an island which produces no cereals.
The collective value of these imports is somewhat over $1,100,000 = £122,222, which is but $100,000 less than the total value of the exports of 1869 ($1,200,000 = £133,333); and, as only the most important items have been mentioned,[268] we may conclude that the two totals almost balance each other. The consumption of brandy, coffee, sugar, and tobacco is alone equal to about $418,000, or one-third of the whole value of the exports.
In 1869, the number of foreign vessels that visited the trading stations was
| From Denmark direct, | 99 | vessels, | with | 9,358 | tons. |
| ” | other countries, | 50 | ” | 4,555 | ” |
| ” | other island stations, | 137 | ” | 13,913 | ” |
Of the 149 direct foreign arrivals
| Cleared | in to Reykjavik, | 31·1 | per cent. |
| ” | Akureyri, | 9·3 | ” |
| ” | Seyðisfjörð, | 9·3 | ” |
| ” | Ísafjörð, | 8·2 | ” |
| ” | Berufjörð, | 6·4 | ” |
| ” | Hafnarfjörð, | 51·0 | ” |
We will now enter the establishment, and see the stock-in-trade of a general “merchant.” The usual dwarf entrance-hall, after the outer door is passed, opens upon two rooms to the right and left: one is the public shop, filled at the “fair season” with jostling boors and drunken loafers; the other is the private store, mostly provided with railed pen for the benefit of the clerk and account-keeper. Besides the mainstays of commerce before mentioned, the rooms will contain the following articles: Dry goods, broad cloths and long cloths, woollen comforters, threads, and a few silks and satins. Hardwares of every description; iron for the blacksmith’s use; hoop-iron and bar-iron (no pig), the metal being preferably Swedish, for the best of reasons; a little steel and brass wire, but neither copper nor zinc; farriers’ and carpenters’ tools; cooking utensils; spades and scythes; sewing machines; and fish-hooks, the smaller sort for long lines, the cod-hooks large and of tinned iron. The arms and ammunition, especially old military muskets and muzzle-loaders, are fit only for the Gold Coast: Copenhagen weapons are cheap and good, £2, 5s. being the average price of a breech-loading single-barrelled rifle. Pistols are not seen, and there is a tradition of the barrels being cut for alpenstock rings. Besides cereals, the stores supply sugars, brown, candy, and white, refined at Copenhagen; hams (rare, and no potted meats, so much wanted by travellers); sausages and sardines; butter (foreign sometimes); figs, raisins, prunes, and olive oil. The Quincaillerie consists of pots and pans, boxes, funnels, kettles and watering-pots, lamps and lanterns. The walls are hung with leather for saddles, thongs, straps, and raw hides for shoes. There is an abundance of cheap crockery and glass ware. Paraffin and petroleum have lately come into general fashion; stearine candles are kept mostly for private use, and the peasants make their own farthing dips.
A narrow back passage, often connecting the public and the private shop, will have a ladder leading to the usual cock-loft, scattered with boxes and bales. Here a few skins and birds stuffed for sale, some of them sadly damaged by rats, hang from the beams; and the following are the chief items:
The falcon[269] (F. islandicus, Icel. Fálki, a foreign word, or Veiðifálki); a good white, stuffed specimen costs $10. This bird, so much valued during the Middle Ages, and considered the elder brother of the gerfalcon (F. gyrfalco) or peregrine, was protected by kings and bishops, who claimed the right of exporting it. A royal mews was established at Reykjavik. In 1770, the falconers paid $7 for the grey bird, $10 for the dark-grey, and $15 for the white, which was considered the most beautiful and docile. Many were sent to England as late as the seventeenth century: in 1871, a few birds were bought for the Hindostan market. This falcon is very destructive to ducks, and ranges far, making upwards of 1300 miles per diem.