Chilian-Listen, you fellows: what devil is
bestride
you?
Warner - World's Best Literature - v13 - Her to Hux
The touch of the writer of satir-
ical comedy is frequently seen, and the author describes his own
foibles with the same sort of good-humor that goes to the creation
of the types immortalized in 'Den Danske Skueplads,' or collection
of his plays. From this autobiography we learn that Ludvig was the
youngest of twelve children, and was left an orphan at the age of
XIII-464
## p. 7410 (#212) ###########################################
7410
LUDVIG HOLBERG
ten.
He went to school in Bergen, and was then sent to Copenhagen
for an examination. Being without the money needful for university
study, he soon returned to Norway, where he taught for a year in a
clergyman's family, incidentally preaching on occasion in his master's
place, and giving great satisfaction in the latter capacity by the
brevity of his discourses. With the money thus earned, he went
back to Copenhagen, studied French and Italian, and passed a fairly
creditable examination in philosophy and theology. In the autumn
of 1704, with sixty rigsdaler in his pocket, he set out to see the
world.
Holberg's first glimpse of foreign lands was gained in about two
months, and at cost of no little hardship. He got as far as Amster-
dam and Aachen, and then home again. This was the first of the
five foreign journeys that he made in about twenty years. In itself it
was unimportant, but all the five taken together were of great sig-
nificance both for him and his country. For from these excursions
into the larger world of thought and action, he brought back nothing
less than the great gift of European culture to bestow upon his
fellow-countrymen; through him the light of the modern intelligence
shone upon the darkness of the North. The freedom of the human
spirit was asserting itself in many directions abroad; at home it was
held in the shackles of tradition. Holberg learned of such men as
Rabelais and Montaigne, Descartes and Bayle, Newton and Locke,
Leibnitz and Puffendorf, Spinoza and Grotius; and felt called upon
to become their interpreter to his fellow-countrymen. To this task
he gave his life; and, thanks to his efforts, the Scandinavian coun-
tries, in spite of their place apart, have never lagged far behind the
rest of Europe. But it is eminently characteristic of their literature,
from that time to the present, that its main inspiration has been thus
brought from without; and Ibsen in 1864, leaving his country because
its air seemed too sultry to breathe, but repeated the experience of
Holberg a century and a half earlier.
Holberg's second outing took him to Oxford, where he remained
from 1705 to 1707, pursuing his studies and supporting himself by
teaching music and the languages. It has been recently pointed out,
mainly from internal evidence, that Addison was probably numbered
among the friends made during this English sojourn, and that the
germs of several of the comedies may be found in the Spectator and
Tatler. The stay in Oxford was a turning-point in Holberg's life, in
the sense that when he returned it was to Copenhagen, not to Nor-
way, and that he never thereafter set foot upon his native soil. After
lecturing for a while in Copenhagen, he went abroad for a winter
in Dresden, Leipzig, and Halle. Returning in 1708, he spent the six
years following in teaching, and during this period published his first
## p. 7411 (#213) ###########################################
LUDVIG HOLBERG
7411
work, an introduction to European history. The publication of this
work got the author into a literary controversy which is mainly sig-
nificant because it first aroused Holberg's consciousness of his posses-
sion of the gift of satire, and helped prepare the way for 'Peder
Paars and the comedies.
The dedication to the King of a historical work of minor import-
ance won for Holberg an appointment as professor extraordinary at
the University, a purely honorary post. He thought it a good deal
of a joke that he should be appointed to lecture at the University, in
view of his opinion of the subjects most industriously pursued in that
institution. "I could," he says, "by good luck frame a syllogism
after a fashion, but could by no means be sure whether it was in
Barbara or Elizabeth. " The question of subsistence in his unsalaried
position was, however, anything but a joke; for his new dignity
debarred him from giving private instruction, hitherto his mainstay.
But there came presently a traveling stipend of one hundred rigs-
daler annually; and thus slenderly provided, he set out in 1714 upon
his fourth foreign journey, remaining more than two years away from
home, for the most part in France and Italy. In the summer of 1716
he made his way home, and his Wanderjahre were over.
The one
foreign journey subsequently made by him took place ten years later,
when he was at the height of his fame.
For two years after his return, Holberg lived in great poverty. At
this time he published a treatise upon the law of nations, basing his
work upon that of Grotius and Puffendorf. At last a chair became
vacant in the University, and he was called to fill it. In 1718 he was
installed in his professorship, and for the rest of his life remained,
occupying higher and higher positions, in close official connection
with the University. Metaphysics was the subject at first assigned
him, and so with a wry face he became, and remained for two years,
philosophe malgré lui. Brandes very plausibly finds in this enforced
and distasteful occupation a main cause of the irony which was
planted deep within his soul, and the active impulse which led to the
development of his genius in its most characteristic phase.
'Peder Paars,' the first of the works to which Holberg mainly owes
his fame, was published in 1719-20. It is a mock epic in four books,
and extends to upwards of six thousand lines. It is written in rhymed
iambic hexameters of a very pedestrian gait. Although a poem in
form, it is as destitute of the spirit of true poetry as is the 'Lutrin ›
of Boileau, which it suggests. Holberg was not a poet, and could not
become one. The gifts of irony and satire he had in the richest
measure, his humor was all but the deepest, and his imagination was
vivid upon every side but the poetic. His intellectual and human
sympathies embraced nearly all the life and thought of mankind. Hel
## p. 7412 (#214) ###########################################
7412
LUDVIG HOLBERG
was of the Voltairean type, the incarnation of intelligence tempered
by sympathy; and he even had his enthusiasms, although the super-
ficial student might fail to find them. Most of these qualities appear
in this his first great work, which recounts the adventures of a grocer
of Callundborg upon a journey to Aarhus. It pretends to be written
by one Hans Mickelson, and is provided with notes by an equally
mythical Just Justesen. Speaking through the mask of the latter, the
author declares that it is the object of his work "to ridicule the many
ballads that are with so much eagerness read by the common people.
. He has also wished to poke fun at heroic verse. "
The poem
is from beginning to end a travesty of the heroic epic, employing
and turning to ridicule the supernatural machinery and the rhetori-
cal devices of the classics of antiquity. Both the one and the other
seemed absurd enough to this shrewd humorist, and probably the use
to which the classics were put in an institution like the University of
Copenhagen was sufficient to repress any impulse on the part of any-
body to enter into their real spirit.
In the course of his journeyings, Peder Paars is wrecked upon the
island of Anholt; and the following passage, relating to the inhabit-
ants of that spot, may be given to illustrate the poem:-
"Anholt the island's name, in answer he did say,
And daily for seafarers the islanders do pray,
That they may come to shore. And answer oft is given,
For hither storm-tossed ships quite frequently are driven.
Good people are they now, although I fear 'tis true
That they in former days were but a sorry crew.
A very aged man, once guest of mine, I know,
Who told me of a priest that lived here long ago,-
His name I do not give; it need not mentioned be,-
Who for a child baptized a daler charged as fee;
-
And when 'twas asked of him upon what grounds, and why,
He made this double charge, he boldly gave reply:—
(Two marks I am allowed for each child I baptize,
And two for burial. Now, rarely 'tis one dies
Of sickness in his bed, for hanged are nearly all,
And thus my rightful dues I get, or not at all. '
Of yore their lives were evil, as we from this may tell,-
It little touches me, for here I do not dwell,-
But now we see that better they grow from day to day,
For Christian lives they lead, and shipwrecks are their stay. "
A certain worthy Anholter felt so much aggrieved at this descrip-
tion that he petitioned to have the poem burned by the hangman.
Another passage, which gave particular offense to the solemn pedants
of the University, thus describes an academic disputation:-
## p. 7413 (#215) ###########################################
LUDVIG HOLBERG
7413
"The entire hall was seen with syllogisms quaking,
While some their outstretched hands, and others fists were shaking.
From off the learned brows salt perspiration ran,
And most profusely from a venerable man
Who in the pulpit stood. There flew his head about
Greek-Latin shafts so thick, one could no longer doubt
That nothing less than life and honor were at stake;
Since for no trifle men would such a tumult make.
Tell me, Calliope, what deep, what grievous wrong
Hath to such passionate wrath stirred up this learned throng?
What ails these sages now, whose minds the world illume,
That here, like men made drunk or mad, they shout and fume? »
In spite of the indignation aroused by such passages, the poem
escaped burning and the author punishment. Tradition says that the
King read it and found it amusing. And the public read it as no
Danish book had ever been read before. The author had his reward
in the fame that suddenly came to him, and in the proud conscious-
ness that posterity would atone for the injustice done him by his
enemies. Some years later, in verses that come as near to being
genuine poetry as any that Holberg ever penned, he referred to him-
self and his work in the following prophetic terms:
―
"Perchance, when in the grave his body moldering lies,
Perchance, when with his death the voice of envy dies,
Another tone may swell, struck from another chord,
And things now hidden men may view with sight restored.
Admit, the work does not display the scholar's lore,
Admit that 'tis a fantasy, and nothing more:
Although of little use, yet with a work of art
For many learnèd books the wise man will not part. »
We now come to the most fruitful period of Holberg's activity;
the creative period that gave to Denmark a national stage, and to
universal literature a series of comedies that can be classed with
those of Molière alone. The comedies of Aristophanes and Shake-
speare are of course out of court: they constitute a distinct literary
species, with a divineness all its own. We owe the comedies of Hol-
berg to the fact that King Frederik IV. was fond of the theatre,
and the other fact that the foreign companies that gave plays in
Copenhagen were not exactly successful in suiting the public taste.
In this emergency, it was suggested that Danish plays might be vent-
ured upon as an experiment, and Holberg was asked to try his hand
at their composition. After some hesitation he consented, and soon
had a batch of five comedies ready for the players. They were
received by the public with great enthusiasm; and others followed in
## p. 7414 (#216) ###########################################
LUDVIG HOLBERG
7414
quick succession, until no less than twenty-eight had been produced,
all within a period of about five years. When we consider the tech-
nical finish of these comedies, their wealth of invention and humor,
and the variety of the figures that live and breathe in their pages,
we must reckon their production as one of the most astonishing feats
in the history of literature.
The theatre was opened to the public in 1722. Six years later,
Copenhagen was almost wholly destroyed by fire, and there was an
end of theatre-going. In 1730 Christian VI. came to the throne; the
court became strictly puritanical, and the genial days of play-acting
were over. In 1747, under Frederik V. , the theatre was reopened, and
for it Holberg wrote six new plays, making thirty-four in all. These
plays, to which the author himself gave the collective name of 'Den
Danske Skueplads' (The Danish Stage), are the most important con-
tribution yet made by the Scandinavian genius to literature.
To the student of Shakespeare or of Molière, the chronological
order of the plays is a matter of the greatest consequence. To the
student of Holberg it has no significance whatever. The first of them
all is as finished and mature a production as any of those that come
after. The only fact worth noting, perhaps, is that the comedies of
the later period are less effective than those of the earlier; for the
intervening score of years seem to have taken from the author's hand
something of its cunning. One group of the comedies, six or eight
in number, deal with fantastic and allegorical subjects. Here we
may mention the 'Plutus,' an imitation of Aristophanes; 'Ulysses von
Ithacia,' a jumble of incidents connected with the Trojan War; and
'Melampe,' a parody of French tragedy, and the only one of the
comedies written largely in verse. Another group deals with the
popular beliefs of a superstitious age,- beliefs very real in Holberg's
day, and requiring considerable boldness to ridicule. This group of
half a dozen includes 'Det Arabiske Pulver' (The Arabian Powder),
concerned with the impostures of alchemy; 'Uden Hoved og Hale'
(Without Head or Tail), which contrasts the two types of excessive
credulity and excessive skepticism; and 'Hexerie' (Witchcraft), the
hero of which makes a profitable business out of the Black Art.
Many of the comedies depict "humors" in the Jonsonian sense, as
'Den Stundeslöse' (The Busy Man); 'Den Vogelsindede' (The Fickle-
Minded Woman); 'Jean de France,' depicting the dandy just returned
from Paris; Jacob von Tyboe,' depicting the braggart soldier; and
'Den Honnette Ambition' (The Proper Ambition), depicting the per-
sonality of the title-seeking snob. Another group of the plays de-
pend for their interest upon pure intrigue; and of these 'Henrich og
Pernille is perhaps the best, because the most symmetrical in con-
struction.
## p. 7415 (#217) ###########################################
LUDVIG HOLBERG
7415
Four of the comedies deserve more extended mention, because
they display Holberg's highest powers of humorous satire, his keen-
est penetration, and his deepest moral earnestness. They are 'Den
Politiske Kandestöber' (The Political Pewterer), 'Jeppe paa Bierget,'
'Erasmus Montanus,' and 'Det Lykkelige Skibbrud' (The Fortunate
Shipwreck). In the first of these four plays we have a humorous
delineation of the man who, without any practical experience in the
work of government or any knowledge of political science, boldly dis-
cusses questions of public policy, and makes the most grotesque pro-
posals for the welfare of the State. In 'Jeppe paa Bierget' we have
the story made familiar to us by the Induction' to the Taming of
the Shrew. ' In his portrayal of a drunken peasant made for a day
to believe himself a nobleman, Holberg achieved one of his greatest
triumphs. It is not so much the drunken humor as the genuine
humanity of the peasant that appeals to us, and the springs of pity
are tapped no less than the springs of mirth. In Erasmus Mon-
tanus,' which Brandes calls "our deepest work," we have a study of
the country youth who is sent to Copenhagen for his education, and
who comes back to his simple home a pedantic prig, a superior per-
son, scorning his family and old-time associates. Petty and insuffer-
able as his training has made him, he is in some sort, after all, the
representative of the intellectual life; and there is something almost
tragic in the manner in which he is forced finally to succumb to
prejudice, sacrificing the truth to his personal comfort. The special
significance of 'Det Lykkelige Skibbrud' is in the last of the five
acts, which gives us the author's apologia pro vita sua, and strikes a
note of earnestness that must arrest the attention. The hero is a
satirical poet, brought to judgment by his enraged fellow-citizens, and
triumphantly acquitted by a righteous judge.
It must not be forgotten, however, that the comedies, large as they
loom in the history of Danish letters, represent only five or six years
of a life prolonged to the Scriptural tale, and almost Voltairean in its
productiveness. Among the other works that must at least be men-
tioned are the 'Dannemarks Riges Historie' (History of the Kingdom
of Denmark), the author's highest achievement as a historian; and
the 'Hero Stories' and 'Heroine Stories' in Plutarch's manner, which
were among the most popular of his prose writings. The most widely
known of all Holberg's works is the 'Nicolai Klimii Iter Subterraneuin'
(Niels Klim's Underground Journey), published at Leipzig in 1741, and
soon after translated into Danish and almost every other European
tongue. It is a philosophical romance of the type of 'Utopia' and
'Gulliver,' and champions the spirit of tolerance in religious and other
intellectual concerns.
The same liberal spirit breathes in the 'Moralske Tanker' (Moral
Reflections) of 1744. This work, and the five volumes of 'Epistler'
## p. 7416 (#218) ###########################################
7416
LUDVIG HOLBERG
(1748-54), are about the last of Holberg's writings, and embody his
ripest thought upon government, literature, philosophy, religion, and
the practical conduct of life. If hitherto we have thought of Holberg
as the Northern prototype of Molière or Voltaire, he appears to us in
his Epistles' rather in the light of a Northern Montaigne. These
brief essays, between five and six hundred in number, afford the most
intimate revelation of the author's life and intellectual attitude. They
are charmingly ripe and genial work, and close in the worthiest
imaginable way the long list of the writings with which for nearly
forty years he continued to enrich the national literature of which he
had been the creator.
Nearly twenty years before his death, Holberg, who had never
married, expressed a determination to devote to public uses the mod-
est fortune that he had accumulated. He finally decided to apply
this fortune to the endowment of Sorö Academy, a sort of auxiliary
of the University; and the gift was made effective several years be-
fore his death. In 1747 he received a title of nobility; but as Baron
Holberg remained the same conscientious and unaffected citizen that
he had been as a commoner. He accepted his title with simple dig-
nity, as a deserved recognition of his services to the State and the
nation, just as in our own day the greatest of modern English poets
accepted a similar title for similar reasons.
The last summons came to him near the close of 1753, in the form
of an affection of the lungs. When told of his danger, he said:-
"It is enough for me to know that I have sought all my life long
to be a useful citizen of my country. I will therefore die willingly,
and all the more so because I perceive that my mental powers are
likely to fail me. " The end came January 28th, 1754, when he had
entered upon his seventieth year. His body lies in the church at
Sorö, beneath a marble sarcophagus placed there a quarter of a cen-
tury after his death.
The words just quoted strike the prevailing note of Holberg's
character, in their unaffected simplicity revealing the inmost nature
of the man. He was simple in his daily life, and simple in his chosen
forms of literary expression, abhorring parade in the one as he ab-
horred pedantry in the other. Few figures of the eighteenth century
stand out in as clear a light, and none is more deserving of respect.
Holberg founded no school in the narrow sense, but in the wider
sense the whole spiritual life of modern Denmark is traceable to his
impulse and indebted to his example. He was not unconscious of
his high mission, and even in the lightest of his comedies we may
detect the ethical undercurrent. "Ej blot til Lyst"-"Not merely for
pleasure" has long been the motto of the Danish National Theatre;
and it was in the spirit of that fine phrase that Holberg wrote, not
only 'Den Danske Skueplads,' but also the many books of history
―――――
## p. 7417 (#219) ###########################################
LUDVIG HOLBERG
7417
and allegory, of philosophy and criticism, that occupied his long and
industrious days. Denmark may well be proud that such a figure
stands in the forefront of its intellectual life.
Attilayer
NOTE. It is difficult to give any adequate idea of Holberg's work
by means of a few selections, but the attempt must be made. I
have chosen three extracts from the comedies: the first, from Ulys-
ses von Ithacia,' illustrates the author's work in its most fantastic
phase; the second, from 'Den Politiske Kandestöber,' illustrates his
powers and his limitations as a delineator of character; the third,
from 'Erasmus Montanus,' develops the central situation of his most
remarkable play, illustrating his insight, his humor, and his skill in
the management of dialogue. To these dramatic scenes I have
appended two of the most characteristic Epistles,' as examples of
his manner as an essayist in prose. All the translations are my
own, and made for the present occasion.
W. M. P.
―
ULYS
FROM ULYSSES VON ITHACIA ›
Alas, Chilian, I have tried in every way to calm the
wrath of Neptune; but prayers, offerings, are all in vain.
We have now wandered about for twenty years since the
conquest of Troy from one place to another, until we have at
last come to Cajania, where Queen Dido has promised us pro-
vision of ships for the pursuit of our journey; but alas! day after
day goes by, and I fear that it will be longer than we think.
For I am afraid of something I dare not think about.
I am
afraid, Chilian-
LYSSES
-
――――――――
―――――――――――――
Chilian What is my lord afraid of?
Ulysses-I am afraid that Dido has fallen in love with me.
Chilian - Perhaps —
Ulysses — Oh, unfortunate man that I am! If it is true, Chil-
ian, we shall never get away from here.
Chilian — Will my lord not take it ill if I ask him how old
he was when he left home?
Ulysses-I was in the flower of my age, not over forty.
Chilian-Good. Forty years to begin with; then ten years
for the siege makes fifty, then twenty years on the homeward
## p. 7418 (#220) ###########################################
7418
LUDVIG HOLBERG
journey makes seventy. The great Dido must be a great lover
of antiquities, if she is so cold towards the many young men
from whom she might choose, and falls in love with an aged and
bearded man.
Ulysses-Listen, Chilian: I don't want to hear any such argu-
ments; you must have made a mistake in the reckoning. When
you see a thing with your eyes, you mustn't doubt it. If you saw
snow in midsummer, you shouldn't say, "It is not possible that
this should be snow, for it is now summer": it should be enough
for you to see the snow with your eyes.
Chilian-I observe, my lord, that I must leave reason out of
the question in the things that have happened to us. So I will
no longer doubt, but rather think how we can get ourselves out
of this fix.
Ulysses - How shall we escape this impending disaster?
Chilian There is no other way but to steal away from the
land in secret.
Ulysses-You are right there, Chilian. I will go right away
and talk the situation over with my faithful comrades; stay here
until I come back. [Goes away. ]
Chilian [alone]—I wish I had a pinch of snuff, so I could
catch my breath; for my head is almost distracted. I am sure
that when my lord comes back he will say again that it is ten
years since he last spoke with me. We shall get to be five or
six thousand years old before we come home to our fatherland;
for I notice that we do not keep pace with time, but that time
runs away from us while we stand still. I have a piece of Eng-
lish cheese here that I brought from Ithaca thirty years ago, and
it is still quite fresh. And not only does time run away from
us, but the earth on which we stand; for many times, when I
light my pipe we are in the eastern corner of the world, and
before I have smoked it out we find ourselves in the western
corner.
―
Ulysses returns
Ulysses - Oh heavens! is it possible that such things can be
in nature?
Chilian - What is up now, your Worship?
Ulysses-Alas, Chilian, I never could have imagined such a
thing, if I hadn't seen it with these my eyes.
Chilian-What is it, my lord?
## p. 7419 (#221) ###########################################
LUDVIG HOLBERG
7419
Ulysses - O Dido, Dido, what ill have I done thee, that thou
shouldst thus exercise thy magic arts upon my faithful comrades?
Chilian - Are they bewitched?
Ulysses Listen, Chilian, to a marvelous tale, the like of
which has not been known from Deucalion's flood to the present
time. During the four weeks since I last spoke with you-
Chilian-Is it only four weeks? I thought it was about four
years.
―
Ulysses-During the four weeks, I say, I have been planning
with my comrades to journey away in secret. We were all ready
to go on board, when Dido got wind of it, and to prevent our
departure, by magic changed all my comrades into swine.
Chilian-Ei, that cannot be possible, gracious lord! [aside]
because they were swine before.
Ulysses- Alas, it is too true, Chilian. I thought my eyes
deceived me, and I spoke to them. But their speech was trans-
formed with their shape, and for an answer they grunted at me.
Then I took flight for fear of likewise being turned into a hog.
But there they come; I dare stay no longer. [Departs weeping. ]
Enter the Comrades of Ulysses, crawling on their hands and feet,
and grunting
Chilian-Ha, ha! ha, ha! ha, ha! ha, ha! The deuce take
you all! I never saw the like in all my days.
Swine-Ugh, ugh, ugh, ugh, ugh!
Chilian-Listen, you fellows: what devil is bestride you?
Swine-We are swine, little father. Ugh, ugh, ugh, ugh, ugh!
Chilian The Devil take me if you are swine.
Swine-Ugh, ugh, ugh, ugh, ugh!
Chilian [gets down on his hands and feet, and begins to grunt]
– Ugh, ugh, ugh! Listen, you fellows, are you sure you are
swine ?
food.
―
Swine-Ugh, ugh, ugh!
Chilian-Well, since you are swine, you shall have swine's
Eat me up this filth that lies here.
Swine — We are not hungry, little father. Ugh, ugh, ugh, ugh!
Chilian [beating them with a whip]-Go on, I tell you,-eat
it up, or I will cut your swinish backs into strips. Go on, go on;
if you are swine it is the right food for you.
[He flogs them roundly. The swine get up, and become men again. ]
## p. 7420 (#222) ###########################################
7420
LUDVIG HOLBERG
Swine-As sure as you live, you shall pay us for these blows,
my good Monsieur Wegner. * Aren't you ashamed to spoil the
whole story in this way? [They run off. ]
Chilian - I didn't spoil the story,-I made them into two-
legged hogs, as they were before. But there comes my lord
again.
Ulysses Alas! Chilian, have they all gone?
Chilian-Yes, my lord, they have gone. They go on two legs
now as they did before.
Ulysses Are they no longer swine?
Chilian-I don't say that; far from it: but my leechcraft
has gone so far as to make them two-legged once more.
Ulysses-O great son of Esculapius! you deserve to have
temples and altars erected in your honor. From what god or
goddess did you learn such divine arts?
Chilian-I lay down in the field for a while, and with bitter
tears bewailed the misfortune of our people. While weeping I
fell asleep, and there appeared to me Proserpina, the goddess of
leechcraft, (that's her name, isn't it? ) who said to me: "Chilian,
I have heard thy tears and thy prayers. Get up, and cut a
branch from the first birch at your left hand. It is a sacred tree
that no man has hitherto touched.
As soon as you touch your
countrymen with it, they shall rise up and walk on two legs as
before. " Which happened just as she said. Whether they are
still swine or not, I don't say; but it is certain that they look
as they used to, walk on two legs, and speak,- for they abused
me because I hit them too hard with the sacred rod.
Ulysses O Chilian, you have saved me! Let me embrace
you!
—
-
Chilian Serviteur! It would be a pleasure to me if my
lord would also turn hog, so that I might have the satisfaction
of curing him too.
Ulysses — Listen, Chilian, there is not much time to waste; the
ship is all ready. Let us go and gather our people together, that
we may escape hastily and in silence. See, there comes Dido: we
must run.
*The name of the actor who took the part of Chilian.
## p. 7421 (#223) ###########################################
LUDVIG HOLBERG
7421
FROM THE POLITICAL PEWTERER'
[Herman von Bremen, a Hamburg pewterer, has become a dabbler in poli-
tics, and with the freedom of ignorance expresses his opinions concerning vari-
ous affairs of State. He meets regularly with a number of his friends in what
they call a Collegium Politicum, for the discussion of political matters. The
characters in this act are Herman, his wife Geske, his fellow-politicians, and
his servant Heinrich. ]
ERMAN- Heinrich, get everything ready. Mugs and pipes on
That is right.
the table.
HⓇ
[Heinrich makes preparations. One comes in after another, and all take
seats at the table, Herman at the head. ]
Herman-Welcome, good men, all of you! Where did we leave
off last?
Richart the Brushmaker-We were talking about the interests
of Germany.
-
Gert the Furrier-That is so; I remember now. It will all
come up at the next Reichstag. I wish I could be there for an
hour, I would whisper something to the Elector of Mainz that
he would thank me for. The good people do not know where
the interests of Germany lie. When did one ever hear of an impe-
rial city like Vienna without a fleet, or at least without galleys?
They might keep a war fleet for the defense of the kingdom;
there is the war tax and the war treasure. See how much wiser
the Turk is. We can never learn to wage war better than he
does. There are forests enough in Austria and Prague, if they
were only used for ships and masts. If we had a fleet in Austria
or Prague, then the Turk and the Frenchman would stop be-
sieging Vienna, and we could go to Constantinople. But nobody
thinks of such things.
Sivert the Inspector· No, not a mother's son of them. Our
forefathers were a good deal wiser. It all depends upon circum.
stances. Germany is no bigger now than it was in the old days,
when we not only defended ourselves well enough against our
neighbors, but even seized large parts of France, and besieged
Paris by land and water.
Frantz the Wigmaker-But Paris isn't a seaport.
Sivert the Inspector - Then I have read my map very badly.
I know how Paris lies. Here lies England, right where my fin-
ger is; here is the Channel, here is Bordeaux, and here is Paris.
## p. 7422 (#224) ###########################################
7422
LUDVIG HOLBERG
Frantz the Wigmaker-No, brother! Here is Germany, close
to France, which connects with Germany; ergo, Paris cannot be a
seaport.
Sivert Doesn't France have any sea-coast?
Frantz - No indeed; a Frenchman who has not traveled
abroad doesn't know anything about ships and boats. Ask Mas-
ter Herman. Isn't it the way I say, Master Herman?
Herman-I will soon settle the dispute.
Heinrich, get us the
map of Europe.
The Host - Here you have one, but it is in pieces.
Herman - That doesn't matter. I know where Paris is, well
enough, but I want the map to convince the others. Do you see,
Sivert, here is Germany.
Sivert That is all right; I can tell it by the Danube, which
lies here.
[As he points to the Danube his elbow tips over a mug, and the beer runs
over the map. ]
The Host-The Danube is flowing a little too fast.
[General laughter. ]
Herman-Listen, good people,- we talk too much about for-
eign affairs: let us talk about Hamburg; there is plenty here to
think about. I have often wondered how it happens that we
have no settlements in India, and have to buy our wares of others.
This is a matter that the Bürgermeister and his council ought to
think about.
Richart- Don't talk about Bürgermeister and council; if we
wait till they think about it, we shall have to wait a long while.
Here in Hamburg a bürgermeister gets credit only for restrict-
ing law-abiding citizens.
Herman - What I mean, my good men, is that it is not yet
too late; for why should not the King of India trade with us.
as well as with Dutchmen, who have nothing to send him but
cheese and butter, which generally spoils on the way? It is my
opinion that we should do well to bring the matter before the
council. How many of us are there here?
Host
There are only six of us; I don't believe the other six
are coming any more.
―
Herman-There are enough of us. What is your opinion,
host? Let us put it to vote.
## p. 7423 (#225) ###########################################
LUDVIG HOLBERG
7423
Host-I am not wholly in favor of it; for such journeys bring
a good many people here from town, and I pick up some skil-
lings from them.
Sivert-It is my opinion that we should think more of the
city's welfare than of our own interests, and that Master Her-
man's plan is one of the finest that has ever been made. The
more trade we have, the more the city must prosper; the more
ships come hither, the better it will be for us small officials.
Yet this is not the chief reason why I vote for the plan; and I
recommend it wholly for sake of the city's needs and prosperity.
Gert - I can't altogether agree with this plan, but propose
rather settlements in Greenland and Davis Strait; for such trade
would be much better and more useful for the city.
Frantz the Cutler-I see that Gert's vote has more to do
with his own interest than with the good of the republic; for
Indian voyages bring less business to furriers than voyages to
the North. For my part, I hold that the Indian trade is the
most important of all; for in India you can often get from the
savages, for a knife or a fork or a pair of scissors, a lump of gold
that weighs as much. We must arrange it so that the plan we
propose to the council shall not savor of self-interest, else we
shall not make much headway with it.
Richart-I am of Niels Skriver's opinion.
Herman You vote like a brushmaker: Niels Skriver isn't
But what does that woman want? It is my wife, I declare.
Enter Geske
here.
_____
Geske- Are you here, you idler? It would be quite as well
if
you did some work, or looked after your people a little. We
are losing one job after another by your neglect.
Herman-Be quiet, wife! You may be Frau Bürgermeister
before you know it. Do you suppose I am wasting my time? I
am doing ten times more work than all of you in the house: you
only work with your hands, and I am working with my head.
Geske― That's what all crazy folks do: they build air-castles,
and split their heads with craziness and foolishness, imagining
that they are doing something important when it amounts to
nothing at all.
Gert-If that was my wife, she shouldn't talk that way more
than once.
Herman-Ei, Gert! A politician mustn't mind it. Two or
three years ago, I would have dressed my wife's back for such
## p. 7424 (#226) ###########################################
LUDVIG HOLBERG
7424
words; but since I began to dip into political books, I have
learned to scorn talk like that. Qui nescit simulare, nescit regnare
(Who knows not how to dissimulate knows not how to reign),
says an old politician who was no fool; I think his name was
Agrippa or Albertus Magnus. It is a principle of politics all
over the world, that he who cannot bear a few sharp words from
an ill-tempered and crazy woman isn't fit for any high place.
Coolness is the greatest of virtues, and the jewel that best adorns
rulers and authorities. So I hold that no one here in the city
should have a place in the council before he has given proof
of his coolness, and let people see that he cannot be disturbed
by abusive words, blows, and boxes on the ear. I am quick-
tempered by nature, but I strive to overcome it by reflection. I
have read in the preface of a book called 'Der Politische Stock-
fisch (The Political Stockfish) that when a man is overcome
with anger he should count twenty, and his anger will often pass
away.
Gert-It wouldn't help me if I counted a hundred.
Herman - That means you are only fit for a humble place.
Heinrich, give my wife a mug of beer at the little table.
Geske Ei, you rascal, do you think I came here to drink?
Herman - One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine,
ten, eleven, twelve, thirteen -now it is all over. Listen, mother:
you mustn't talk so harshly to your husband, it is so very
vulgar.
---
commission.
Geske- Is it genteel to beg? Hasn't any wife cause to scold,
when she has for husband an idler who neglects his family this
way, and lets his wife and children suffer?
Herman - Heinrich, give her a glass of brandy: she is getting
excited.
Geske Heinrich, box the ears of that rascal my husband.
Heinrich-You will have to do that yourself: I don't like the
___
-
Geske―Then I will do it myself. [Boxes her husband's ears. ]
Herman-One, two, three [counts up to twenty, then acts as
if he were about to strike back, but begins to count twenty over
again] If I hadn't been a politician, it would have been bad
for you.
Gert-If you can't manage your wife, I'll do it for you. [To
Geske. ] Get out of here!
[Geske flings herself out. ]
## p. 7425 (#227) ###########################################
LUDVIG HOLBERG
7425
Gert I'll teach her to stay at home next time. If you have
to be dragged about by the hair by your wife to be a politician,
I shall never be one.
Herman-Ah, ah! Qui nescit simulare, nescit regnare. It is
easily said, but not so easy to practice. I confess it was a great
shame my wife did me; I think I will run after her and beat
her in the street. Yet one, two, three [counts to twenty]. It
is all over: let us talk about something else.
Frantz-Women-folk have altogether too much to say here in
――
Hamburg.
Gert - That is true; I have often thought of making a pro-
posal on the subject. But it is a serious thing to get into trouble
with them. The proposal is a good one, however.
Herman-What is your proposal?
Gert - There are not many articles in it. First, I would not
have the marriage contract lasting, but only for a certain num-
ber of years, so that if a man were not satisfied with his wife,
he could make a new contract with another: only both he and
his companion should be bound to let each other know, three
months before moving day (which might be at Easter or Michael-
mas); in case he was satisfied with her, the contract might be
renewed. Believe me, if such a law were passed, there wouldn't
be a single bad wife in Hamburg: they would all do their best
to please their husbands and get the contract extended. Have
any of you anything to say against the article? Frantz! you
smile in a knowing way: you must have something to say against
it-let us hear from you.
Frantz Might not a wife sometimes find her account in
getting separated from a husband who either treated her badly,
or was lazy, doing nothing but eat and drink, without working
to support his wife and children? Or she might take a liking
for somebody else, and lead her husband such a dance that he
would let her go in spite of his resolve to keep her. I think
that great misfortunes might spring from such a plan. There
are ways to manage a wife, after all. If everybody would, like
you, Master Herman, count twenty every time his ears were
boxed, we should have a lot of fine wives. - Let us hear the
other articles, Gert.
Gert-Yes, you are likely to. You only want to make more
fun of me: no plan can be so good that something will not be
said against it.
XIII-465
―
## p. 7426 (#228) ###########################################
7426
LUDVIG HOLBERG
Herman-Let us talk about something else. Anybody who
heard us would think we met to discuss the marriage relation.
I was thinking last night, when I could not sleep, how the gov-
ernment of Hamburg might be changed so as to shut out a few
families, who seem born to be bürgermeisters and councilors, and
bring back full freedom to the city. I was thinking that we
might choose our bürgermeisters, now from one trade, now from
another, so that all citizens could share in the government and
all kinds of business prosper: for example, when a goldsmith
became bürgermeister he would look after the goldsmiths' inter-
ests, a tailor after the tailors', a pewterer after the pewterers';
and nobody should be bürgermeister more than a month, so that
no trade should prosper more than another. If the government
were arranged that way, we might be a truly free people.
All-Your plan is a fine one, Master Herman.
You talk
like
Solomon.
Franz the Cutler-The plan is good enough, but—
Gert the Furrier-You are always coming in with your
" buts. " I believe your father or mother was a Mennonite. *
Herman Let him say what he means. What do you want
to say? What do you mean by your " but "?
Frantz I was wondering whether it wouldn't be hard some-
times to find a good bürgermeister in every trade.
ical comedy is frequently seen, and the author describes his own
foibles with the same sort of good-humor that goes to the creation
of the types immortalized in 'Den Danske Skueplads,' or collection
of his plays. From this autobiography we learn that Ludvig was the
youngest of twelve children, and was left an orphan at the age of
XIII-464
## p. 7410 (#212) ###########################################
7410
LUDVIG HOLBERG
ten.
He went to school in Bergen, and was then sent to Copenhagen
for an examination. Being without the money needful for university
study, he soon returned to Norway, where he taught for a year in a
clergyman's family, incidentally preaching on occasion in his master's
place, and giving great satisfaction in the latter capacity by the
brevity of his discourses. With the money thus earned, he went
back to Copenhagen, studied French and Italian, and passed a fairly
creditable examination in philosophy and theology. In the autumn
of 1704, with sixty rigsdaler in his pocket, he set out to see the
world.
Holberg's first glimpse of foreign lands was gained in about two
months, and at cost of no little hardship. He got as far as Amster-
dam and Aachen, and then home again. This was the first of the
five foreign journeys that he made in about twenty years. In itself it
was unimportant, but all the five taken together were of great sig-
nificance both for him and his country. For from these excursions
into the larger world of thought and action, he brought back nothing
less than the great gift of European culture to bestow upon his
fellow-countrymen; through him the light of the modern intelligence
shone upon the darkness of the North. The freedom of the human
spirit was asserting itself in many directions abroad; at home it was
held in the shackles of tradition. Holberg learned of such men as
Rabelais and Montaigne, Descartes and Bayle, Newton and Locke,
Leibnitz and Puffendorf, Spinoza and Grotius; and felt called upon
to become their interpreter to his fellow-countrymen. To this task
he gave his life; and, thanks to his efforts, the Scandinavian coun-
tries, in spite of their place apart, have never lagged far behind the
rest of Europe. But it is eminently characteristic of their literature,
from that time to the present, that its main inspiration has been thus
brought from without; and Ibsen in 1864, leaving his country because
its air seemed too sultry to breathe, but repeated the experience of
Holberg a century and a half earlier.
Holberg's second outing took him to Oxford, where he remained
from 1705 to 1707, pursuing his studies and supporting himself by
teaching music and the languages. It has been recently pointed out,
mainly from internal evidence, that Addison was probably numbered
among the friends made during this English sojourn, and that the
germs of several of the comedies may be found in the Spectator and
Tatler. The stay in Oxford was a turning-point in Holberg's life, in
the sense that when he returned it was to Copenhagen, not to Nor-
way, and that he never thereafter set foot upon his native soil. After
lecturing for a while in Copenhagen, he went abroad for a winter
in Dresden, Leipzig, and Halle. Returning in 1708, he spent the six
years following in teaching, and during this period published his first
## p. 7411 (#213) ###########################################
LUDVIG HOLBERG
7411
work, an introduction to European history. The publication of this
work got the author into a literary controversy which is mainly sig-
nificant because it first aroused Holberg's consciousness of his posses-
sion of the gift of satire, and helped prepare the way for 'Peder
Paars and the comedies.
The dedication to the King of a historical work of minor import-
ance won for Holberg an appointment as professor extraordinary at
the University, a purely honorary post. He thought it a good deal
of a joke that he should be appointed to lecture at the University, in
view of his opinion of the subjects most industriously pursued in that
institution. "I could," he says, "by good luck frame a syllogism
after a fashion, but could by no means be sure whether it was in
Barbara or Elizabeth. " The question of subsistence in his unsalaried
position was, however, anything but a joke; for his new dignity
debarred him from giving private instruction, hitherto his mainstay.
But there came presently a traveling stipend of one hundred rigs-
daler annually; and thus slenderly provided, he set out in 1714 upon
his fourth foreign journey, remaining more than two years away from
home, for the most part in France and Italy. In the summer of 1716
he made his way home, and his Wanderjahre were over.
The one
foreign journey subsequently made by him took place ten years later,
when he was at the height of his fame.
For two years after his return, Holberg lived in great poverty. At
this time he published a treatise upon the law of nations, basing his
work upon that of Grotius and Puffendorf. At last a chair became
vacant in the University, and he was called to fill it. In 1718 he was
installed in his professorship, and for the rest of his life remained,
occupying higher and higher positions, in close official connection
with the University. Metaphysics was the subject at first assigned
him, and so with a wry face he became, and remained for two years,
philosophe malgré lui. Brandes very plausibly finds in this enforced
and distasteful occupation a main cause of the irony which was
planted deep within his soul, and the active impulse which led to the
development of his genius in its most characteristic phase.
'Peder Paars,' the first of the works to which Holberg mainly owes
his fame, was published in 1719-20. It is a mock epic in four books,
and extends to upwards of six thousand lines. It is written in rhymed
iambic hexameters of a very pedestrian gait. Although a poem in
form, it is as destitute of the spirit of true poetry as is the 'Lutrin ›
of Boileau, which it suggests. Holberg was not a poet, and could not
become one. The gifts of irony and satire he had in the richest
measure, his humor was all but the deepest, and his imagination was
vivid upon every side but the poetic. His intellectual and human
sympathies embraced nearly all the life and thought of mankind. Hel
## p. 7412 (#214) ###########################################
7412
LUDVIG HOLBERG
was of the Voltairean type, the incarnation of intelligence tempered
by sympathy; and he even had his enthusiasms, although the super-
ficial student might fail to find them. Most of these qualities appear
in this his first great work, which recounts the adventures of a grocer
of Callundborg upon a journey to Aarhus. It pretends to be written
by one Hans Mickelson, and is provided with notes by an equally
mythical Just Justesen. Speaking through the mask of the latter, the
author declares that it is the object of his work "to ridicule the many
ballads that are with so much eagerness read by the common people.
. He has also wished to poke fun at heroic verse. "
The poem
is from beginning to end a travesty of the heroic epic, employing
and turning to ridicule the supernatural machinery and the rhetori-
cal devices of the classics of antiquity. Both the one and the other
seemed absurd enough to this shrewd humorist, and probably the use
to which the classics were put in an institution like the University of
Copenhagen was sufficient to repress any impulse on the part of any-
body to enter into their real spirit.
In the course of his journeyings, Peder Paars is wrecked upon the
island of Anholt; and the following passage, relating to the inhabit-
ants of that spot, may be given to illustrate the poem:-
"Anholt the island's name, in answer he did say,
And daily for seafarers the islanders do pray,
That they may come to shore. And answer oft is given,
For hither storm-tossed ships quite frequently are driven.
Good people are they now, although I fear 'tis true
That they in former days were but a sorry crew.
A very aged man, once guest of mine, I know,
Who told me of a priest that lived here long ago,-
His name I do not give; it need not mentioned be,-
Who for a child baptized a daler charged as fee;
-
And when 'twas asked of him upon what grounds, and why,
He made this double charge, he boldly gave reply:—
(Two marks I am allowed for each child I baptize,
And two for burial. Now, rarely 'tis one dies
Of sickness in his bed, for hanged are nearly all,
And thus my rightful dues I get, or not at all. '
Of yore their lives were evil, as we from this may tell,-
It little touches me, for here I do not dwell,-
But now we see that better they grow from day to day,
For Christian lives they lead, and shipwrecks are their stay. "
A certain worthy Anholter felt so much aggrieved at this descrip-
tion that he petitioned to have the poem burned by the hangman.
Another passage, which gave particular offense to the solemn pedants
of the University, thus describes an academic disputation:-
## p. 7413 (#215) ###########################################
LUDVIG HOLBERG
7413
"The entire hall was seen with syllogisms quaking,
While some their outstretched hands, and others fists were shaking.
From off the learned brows salt perspiration ran,
And most profusely from a venerable man
Who in the pulpit stood. There flew his head about
Greek-Latin shafts so thick, one could no longer doubt
That nothing less than life and honor were at stake;
Since for no trifle men would such a tumult make.
Tell me, Calliope, what deep, what grievous wrong
Hath to such passionate wrath stirred up this learned throng?
What ails these sages now, whose minds the world illume,
That here, like men made drunk or mad, they shout and fume? »
In spite of the indignation aroused by such passages, the poem
escaped burning and the author punishment. Tradition says that the
King read it and found it amusing. And the public read it as no
Danish book had ever been read before. The author had his reward
in the fame that suddenly came to him, and in the proud conscious-
ness that posterity would atone for the injustice done him by his
enemies. Some years later, in verses that come as near to being
genuine poetry as any that Holberg ever penned, he referred to him-
self and his work in the following prophetic terms:
―
"Perchance, when in the grave his body moldering lies,
Perchance, when with his death the voice of envy dies,
Another tone may swell, struck from another chord,
And things now hidden men may view with sight restored.
Admit, the work does not display the scholar's lore,
Admit that 'tis a fantasy, and nothing more:
Although of little use, yet with a work of art
For many learnèd books the wise man will not part. »
We now come to the most fruitful period of Holberg's activity;
the creative period that gave to Denmark a national stage, and to
universal literature a series of comedies that can be classed with
those of Molière alone. The comedies of Aristophanes and Shake-
speare are of course out of court: they constitute a distinct literary
species, with a divineness all its own. We owe the comedies of Hol-
berg to the fact that King Frederik IV. was fond of the theatre,
and the other fact that the foreign companies that gave plays in
Copenhagen were not exactly successful in suiting the public taste.
In this emergency, it was suggested that Danish plays might be vent-
ured upon as an experiment, and Holberg was asked to try his hand
at their composition. After some hesitation he consented, and soon
had a batch of five comedies ready for the players. They were
received by the public with great enthusiasm; and others followed in
## p. 7414 (#216) ###########################################
LUDVIG HOLBERG
7414
quick succession, until no less than twenty-eight had been produced,
all within a period of about five years. When we consider the tech-
nical finish of these comedies, their wealth of invention and humor,
and the variety of the figures that live and breathe in their pages,
we must reckon their production as one of the most astonishing feats
in the history of literature.
The theatre was opened to the public in 1722. Six years later,
Copenhagen was almost wholly destroyed by fire, and there was an
end of theatre-going. In 1730 Christian VI. came to the throne; the
court became strictly puritanical, and the genial days of play-acting
were over. In 1747, under Frederik V. , the theatre was reopened, and
for it Holberg wrote six new plays, making thirty-four in all. These
plays, to which the author himself gave the collective name of 'Den
Danske Skueplads' (The Danish Stage), are the most important con-
tribution yet made by the Scandinavian genius to literature.
To the student of Shakespeare or of Molière, the chronological
order of the plays is a matter of the greatest consequence. To the
student of Holberg it has no significance whatever. The first of them
all is as finished and mature a production as any of those that come
after. The only fact worth noting, perhaps, is that the comedies of
the later period are less effective than those of the earlier; for the
intervening score of years seem to have taken from the author's hand
something of its cunning. One group of the comedies, six or eight
in number, deal with fantastic and allegorical subjects. Here we
may mention the 'Plutus,' an imitation of Aristophanes; 'Ulysses von
Ithacia,' a jumble of incidents connected with the Trojan War; and
'Melampe,' a parody of French tragedy, and the only one of the
comedies written largely in verse. Another group deals with the
popular beliefs of a superstitious age,- beliefs very real in Holberg's
day, and requiring considerable boldness to ridicule. This group of
half a dozen includes 'Det Arabiske Pulver' (The Arabian Powder),
concerned with the impostures of alchemy; 'Uden Hoved og Hale'
(Without Head or Tail), which contrasts the two types of excessive
credulity and excessive skepticism; and 'Hexerie' (Witchcraft), the
hero of which makes a profitable business out of the Black Art.
Many of the comedies depict "humors" in the Jonsonian sense, as
'Den Stundeslöse' (The Busy Man); 'Den Vogelsindede' (The Fickle-
Minded Woman); 'Jean de France,' depicting the dandy just returned
from Paris; Jacob von Tyboe,' depicting the braggart soldier; and
'Den Honnette Ambition' (The Proper Ambition), depicting the per-
sonality of the title-seeking snob. Another group of the plays de-
pend for their interest upon pure intrigue; and of these 'Henrich og
Pernille is perhaps the best, because the most symmetrical in con-
struction.
## p. 7415 (#217) ###########################################
LUDVIG HOLBERG
7415
Four of the comedies deserve more extended mention, because
they display Holberg's highest powers of humorous satire, his keen-
est penetration, and his deepest moral earnestness. They are 'Den
Politiske Kandestöber' (The Political Pewterer), 'Jeppe paa Bierget,'
'Erasmus Montanus,' and 'Det Lykkelige Skibbrud' (The Fortunate
Shipwreck). In the first of these four plays we have a humorous
delineation of the man who, without any practical experience in the
work of government or any knowledge of political science, boldly dis-
cusses questions of public policy, and makes the most grotesque pro-
posals for the welfare of the State. In 'Jeppe paa Bierget' we have
the story made familiar to us by the Induction' to the Taming of
the Shrew. ' In his portrayal of a drunken peasant made for a day
to believe himself a nobleman, Holberg achieved one of his greatest
triumphs. It is not so much the drunken humor as the genuine
humanity of the peasant that appeals to us, and the springs of pity
are tapped no less than the springs of mirth. In Erasmus Mon-
tanus,' which Brandes calls "our deepest work," we have a study of
the country youth who is sent to Copenhagen for his education, and
who comes back to his simple home a pedantic prig, a superior per-
son, scorning his family and old-time associates. Petty and insuffer-
able as his training has made him, he is in some sort, after all, the
representative of the intellectual life; and there is something almost
tragic in the manner in which he is forced finally to succumb to
prejudice, sacrificing the truth to his personal comfort. The special
significance of 'Det Lykkelige Skibbrud' is in the last of the five
acts, which gives us the author's apologia pro vita sua, and strikes a
note of earnestness that must arrest the attention. The hero is a
satirical poet, brought to judgment by his enraged fellow-citizens, and
triumphantly acquitted by a righteous judge.
It must not be forgotten, however, that the comedies, large as they
loom in the history of Danish letters, represent only five or six years
of a life prolonged to the Scriptural tale, and almost Voltairean in its
productiveness. Among the other works that must at least be men-
tioned are the 'Dannemarks Riges Historie' (History of the Kingdom
of Denmark), the author's highest achievement as a historian; and
the 'Hero Stories' and 'Heroine Stories' in Plutarch's manner, which
were among the most popular of his prose writings. The most widely
known of all Holberg's works is the 'Nicolai Klimii Iter Subterraneuin'
(Niels Klim's Underground Journey), published at Leipzig in 1741, and
soon after translated into Danish and almost every other European
tongue. It is a philosophical romance of the type of 'Utopia' and
'Gulliver,' and champions the spirit of tolerance in religious and other
intellectual concerns.
The same liberal spirit breathes in the 'Moralske Tanker' (Moral
Reflections) of 1744. This work, and the five volumes of 'Epistler'
## p. 7416 (#218) ###########################################
7416
LUDVIG HOLBERG
(1748-54), are about the last of Holberg's writings, and embody his
ripest thought upon government, literature, philosophy, religion, and
the practical conduct of life. If hitherto we have thought of Holberg
as the Northern prototype of Molière or Voltaire, he appears to us in
his Epistles' rather in the light of a Northern Montaigne. These
brief essays, between five and six hundred in number, afford the most
intimate revelation of the author's life and intellectual attitude. They
are charmingly ripe and genial work, and close in the worthiest
imaginable way the long list of the writings with which for nearly
forty years he continued to enrich the national literature of which he
had been the creator.
Nearly twenty years before his death, Holberg, who had never
married, expressed a determination to devote to public uses the mod-
est fortune that he had accumulated. He finally decided to apply
this fortune to the endowment of Sorö Academy, a sort of auxiliary
of the University; and the gift was made effective several years be-
fore his death. In 1747 he received a title of nobility; but as Baron
Holberg remained the same conscientious and unaffected citizen that
he had been as a commoner. He accepted his title with simple dig-
nity, as a deserved recognition of his services to the State and the
nation, just as in our own day the greatest of modern English poets
accepted a similar title for similar reasons.
The last summons came to him near the close of 1753, in the form
of an affection of the lungs. When told of his danger, he said:-
"It is enough for me to know that I have sought all my life long
to be a useful citizen of my country. I will therefore die willingly,
and all the more so because I perceive that my mental powers are
likely to fail me. " The end came January 28th, 1754, when he had
entered upon his seventieth year. His body lies in the church at
Sorö, beneath a marble sarcophagus placed there a quarter of a cen-
tury after his death.
The words just quoted strike the prevailing note of Holberg's
character, in their unaffected simplicity revealing the inmost nature
of the man. He was simple in his daily life, and simple in his chosen
forms of literary expression, abhorring parade in the one as he ab-
horred pedantry in the other. Few figures of the eighteenth century
stand out in as clear a light, and none is more deserving of respect.
Holberg founded no school in the narrow sense, but in the wider
sense the whole spiritual life of modern Denmark is traceable to his
impulse and indebted to his example. He was not unconscious of
his high mission, and even in the lightest of his comedies we may
detect the ethical undercurrent. "Ej blot til Lyst"-"Not merely for
pleasure" has long been the motto of the Danish National Theatre;
and it was in the spirit of that fine phrase that Holberg wrote, not
only 'Den Danske Skueplads,' but also the many books of history
―――――
## p. 7417 (#219) ###########################################
LUDVIG HOLBERG
7417
and allegory, of philosophy and criticism, that occupied his long and
industrious days. Denmark may well be proud that such a figure
stands in the forefront of its intellectual life.
Attilayer
NOTE. It is difficult to give any adequate idea of Holberg's work
by means of a few selections, but the attempt must be made. I
have chosen three extracts from the comedies: the first, from Ulys-
ses von Ithacia,' illustrates the author's work in its most fantastic
phase; the second, from 'Den Politiske Kandestöber,' illustrates his
powers and his limitations as a delineator of character; the third,
from 'Erasmus Montanus,' develops the central situation of his most
remarkable play, illustrating his insight, his humor, and his skill in
the management of dialogue. To these dramatic scenes I have
appended two of the most characteristic Epistles,' as examples of
his manner as an essayist in prose. All the translations are my
own, and made for the present occasion.
W. M. P.
―
ULYS
FROM ULYSSES VON ITHACIA ›
Alas, Chilian, I have tried in every way to calm the
wrath of Neptune; but prayers, offerings, are all in vain.
We have now wandered about for twenty years since the
conquest of Troy from one place to another, until we have at
last come to Cajania, where Queen Dido has promised us pro-
vision of ships for the pursuit of our journey; but alas! day after
day goes by, and I fear that it will be longer than we think.
For I am afraid of something I dare not think about.
I am
afraid, Chilian-
LYSSES
-
――――――――
―――――――――――――
Chilian What is my lord afraid of?
Ulysses-I am afraid that Dido has fallen in love with me.
Chilian - Perhaps —
Ulysses — Oh, unfortunate man that I am! If it is true, Chil-
ian, we shall never get away from here.
Chilian — Will my lord not take it ill if I ask him how old
he was when he left home?
Ulysses-I was in the flower of my age, not over forty.
Chilian-Good. Forty years to begin with; then ten years
for the siege makes fifty, then twenty years on the homeward
## p. 7418 (#220) ###########################################
7418
LUDVIG HOLBERG
journey makes seventy. The great Dido must be a great lover
of antiquities, if she is so cold towards the many young men
from whom she might choose, and falls in love with an aged and
bearded man.
Ulysses-Listen, Chilian: I don't want to hear any such argu-
ments; you must have made a mistake in the reckoning. When
you see a thing with your eyes, you mustn't doubt it. If you saw
snow in midsummer, you shouldn't say, "It is not possible that
this should be snow, for it is now summer": it should be enough
for you to see the snow with your eyes.
Chilian-I observe, my lord, that I must leave reason out of
the question in the things that have happened to us. So I will
no longer doubt, but rather think how we can get ourselves out
of this fix.
Ulysses - How shall we escape this impending disaster?
Chilian There is no other way but to steal away from the
land in secret.
Ulysses-You are right there, Chilian. I will go right away
and talk the situation over with my faithful comrades; stay here
until I come back. [Goes away. ]
Chilian [alone]—I wish I had a pinch of snuff, so I could
catch my breath; for my head is almost distracted. I am sure
that when my lord comes back he will say again that it is ten
years since he last spoke with me. We shall get to be five or
six thousand years old before we come home to our fatherland;
for I notice that we do not keep pace with time, but that time
runs away from us while we stand still. I have a piece of Eng-
lish cheese here that I brought from Ithaca thirty years ago, and
it is still quite fresh. And not only does time run away from
us, but the earth on which we stand; for many times, when I
light my pipe we are in the eastern corner of the world, and
before I have smoked it out we find ourselves in the western
corner.
―
Ulysses returns
Ulysses - Oh heavens! is it possible that such things can be
in nature?
Chilian - What is up now, your Worship?
Ulysses-Alas, Chilian, I never could have imagined such a
thing, if I hadn't seen it with these my eyes.
Chilian-What is it, my lord?
## p. 7419 (#221) ###########################################
LUDVIG HOLBERG
7419
Ulysses - O Dido, Dido, what ill have I done thee, that thou
shouldst thus exercise thy magic arts upon my faithful comrades?
Chilian - Are they bewitched?
Ulysses Listen, Chilian, to a marvelous tale, the like of
which has not been known from Deucalion's flood to the present
time. During the four weeks since I last spoke with you-
Chilian-Is it only four weeks? I thought it was about four
years.
―
Ulysses-During the four weeks, I say, I have been planning
with my comrades to journey away in secret. We were all ready
to go on board, when Dido got wind of it, and to prevent our
departure, by magic changed all my comrades into swine.
Chilian-Ei, that cannot be possible, gracious lord! [aside]
because they were swine before.
Ulysses- Alas, it is too true, Chilian. I thought my eyes
deceived me, and I spoke to them. But their speech was trans-
formed with their shape, and for an answer they grunted at me.
Then I took flight for fear of likewise being turned into a hog.
But there they come; I dare stay no longer. [Departs weeping. ]
Enter the Comrades of Ulysses, crawling on their hands and feet,
and grunting
Chilian-Ha, ha! ha, ha! ha, ha! ha, ha! The deuce take
you all! I never saw the like in all my days.
Swine-Ugh, ugh, ugh, ugh, ugh!
Chilian-Listen, you fellows: what devil is bestride you?
Swine-We are swine, little father. Ugh, ugh, ugh, ugh, ugh!
Chilian The Devil take me if you are swine.
Swine-Ugh, ugh, ugh, ugh, ugh!
Chilian [gets down on his hands and feet, and begins to grunt]
– Ugh, ugh, ugh! Listen, you fellows, are you sure you are
swine ?
food.
―
Swine-Ugh, ugh, ugh!
Chilian-Well, since you are swine, you shall have swine's
Eat me up this filth that lies here.
Swine — We are not hungry, little father. Ugh, ugh, ugh, ugh!
Chilian [beating them with a whip]-Go on, I tell you,-eat
it up, or I will cut your swinish backs into strips. Go on, go on;
if you are swine it is the right food for you.
[He flogs them roundly. The swine get up, and become men again. ]
## p. 7420 (#222) ###########################################
7420
LUDVIG HOLBERG
Swine-As sure as you live, you shall pay us for these blows,
my good Monsieur Wegner. * Aren't you ashamed to spoil the
whole story in this way? [They run off. ]
Chilian - I didn't spoil the story,-I made them into two-
legged hogs, as they were before. But there comes my lord
again.
Ulysses Alas! Chilian, have they all gone?
Chilian-Yes, my lord, they have gone. They go on two legs
now as they did before.
Ulysses Are they no longer swine?
Chilian-I don't say that; far from it: but my leechcraft
has gone so far as to make them two-legged once more.
Ulysses-O great son of Esculapius! you deserve to have
temples and altars erected in your honor. From what god or
goddess did you learn such divine arts?
Chilian-I lay down in the field for a while, and with bitter
tears bewailed the misfortune of our people. While weeping I
fell asleep, and there appeared to me Proserpina, the goddess of
leechcraft, (that's her name, isn't it? ) who said to me: "Chilian,
I have heard thy tears and thy prayers. Get up, and cut a
branch from the first birch at your left hand. It is a sacred tree
that no man has hitherto touched.
As soon as you touch your
countrymen with it, they shall rise up and walk on two legs as
before. " Which happened just as she said. Whether they are
still swine or not, I don't say; but it is certain that they look
as they used to, walk on two legs, and speak,- for they abused
me because I hit them too hard with the sacred rod.
Ulysses O Chilian, you have saved me! Let me embrace
you!
—
-
Chilian Serviteur! It would be a pleasure to me if my
lord would also turn hog, so that I might have the satisfaction
of curing him too.
Ulysses — Listen, Chilian, there is not much time to waste; the
ship is all ready. Let us go and gather our people together, that
we may escape hastily and in silence. See, there comes Dido: we
must run.
*The name of the actor who took the part of Chilian.
## p. 7421 (#223) ###########################################
LUDVIG HOLBERG
7421
FROM THE POLITICAL PEWTERER'
[Herman von Bremen, a Hamburg pewterer, has become a dabbler in poli-
tics, and with the freedom of ignorance expresses his opinions concerning vari-
ous affairs of State. He meets regularly with a number of his friends in what
they call a Collegium Politicum, for the discussion of political matters. The
characters in this act are Herman, his wife Geske, his fellow-politicians, and
his servant Heinrich. ]
ERMAN- Heinrich, get everything ready. Mugs and pipes on
That is right.
the table.
HⓇ
[Heinrich makes preparations. One comes in after another, and all take
seats at the table, Herman at the head. ]
Herman-Welcome, good men, all of you! Where did we leave
off last?
Richart the Brushmaker-We were talking about the interests
of Germany.
-
Gert the Furrier-That is so; I remember now. It will all
come up at the next Reichstag. I wish I could be there for an
hour, I would whisper something to the Elector of Mainz that
he would thank me for. The good people do not know where
the interests of Germany lie. When did one ever hear of an impe-
rial city like Vienna without a fleet, or at least without galleys?
They might keep a war fleet for the defense of the kingdom;
there is the war tax and the war treasure. See how much wiser
the Turk is. We can never learn to wage war better than he
does. There are forests enough in Austria and Prague, if they
were only used for ships and masts. If we had a fleet in Austria
or Prague, then the Turk and the Frenchman would stop be-
sieging Vienna, and we could go to Constantinople. But nobody
thinks of such things.
Sivert the Inspector· No, not a mother's son of them. Our
forefathers were a good deal wiser. It all depends upon circum.
stances. Germany is no bigger now than it was in the old days,
when we not only defended ourselves well enough against our
neighbors, but even seized large parts of France, and besieged
Paris by land and water.
Frantz the Wigmaker-But Paris isn't a seaport.
Sivert the Inspector - Then I have read my map very badly.
I know how Paris lies. Here lies England, right where my fin-
ger is; here is the Channel, here is Bordeaux, and here is Paris.
## p. 7422 (#224) ###########################################
7422
LUDVIG HOLBERG
Frantz the Wigmaker-No, brother! Here is Germany, close
to France, which connects with Germany; ergo, Paris cannot be a
seaport.
Sivert Doesn't France have any sea-coast?
Frantz - No indeed; a Frenchman who has not traveled
abroad doesn't know anything about ships and boats. Ask Mas-
ter Herman. Isn't it the way I say, Master Herman?
Herman-I will soon settle the dispute.
Heinrich, get us the
map of Europe.
The Host - Here you have one, but it is in pieces.
Herman - That doesn't matter. I know where Paris is, well
enough, but I want the map to convince the others. Do you see,
Sivert, here is Germany.
Sivert That is all right; I can tell it by the Danube, which
lies here.
[As he points to the Danube his elbow tips over a mug, and the beer runs
over the map. ]
The Host-The Danube is flowing a little too fast.
[General laughter. ]
Herman-Listen, good people,- we talk too much about for-
eign affairs: let us talk about Hamburg; there is plenty here to
think about. I have often wondered how it happens that we
have no settlements in India, and have to buy our wares of others.
This is a matter that the Bürgermeister and his council ought to
think about.
Richart- Don't talk about Bürgermeister and council; if we
wait till they think about it, we shall have to wait a long while.
Here in Hamburg a bürgermeister gets credit only for restrict-
ing law-abiding citizens.
Herman - What I mean, my good men, is that it is not yet
too late; for why should not the King of India trade with us.
as well as with Dutchmen, who have nothing to send him but
cheese and butter, which generally spoils on the way? It is my
opinion that we should do well to bring the matter before the
council. How many of us are there here?
Host
There are only six of us; I don't believe the other six
are coming any more.
―
Herman-There are enough of us. What is your opinion,
host? Let us put it to vote.
## p. 7423 (#225) ###########################################
LUDVIG HOLBERG
7423
Host-I am not wholly in favor of it; for such journeys bring
a good many people here from town, and I pick up some skil-
lings from them.
Sivert-It is my opinion that we should think more of the
city's welfare than of our own interests, and that Master Her-
man's plan is one of the finest that has ever been made. The
more trade we have, the more the city must prosper; the more
ships come hither, the better it will be for us small officials.
Yet this is not the chief reason why I vote for the plan; and I
recommend it wholly for sake of the city's needs and prosperity.
Gert - I can't altogether agree with this plan, but propose
rather settlements in Greenland and Davis Strait; for such trade
would be much better and more useful for the city.
Frantz the Cutler-I see that Gert's vote has more to do
with his own interest than with the good of the republic; for
Indian voyages bring less business to furriers than voyages to
the North. For my part, I hold that the Indian trade is the
most important of all; for in India you can often get from the
savages, for a knife or a fork or a pair of scissors, a lump of gold
that weighs as much. We must arrange it so that the plan we
propose to the council shall not savor of self-interest, else we
shall not make much headway with it.
Richart-I am of Niels Skriver's opinion.
Herman You vote like a brushmaker: Niels Skriver isn't
But what does that woman want? It is my wife, I declare.
Enter Geske
here.
_____
Geske- Are you here, you idler? It would be quite as well
if
you did some work, or looked after your people a little. We
are losing one job after another by your neglect.
Herman-Be quiet, wife! You may be Frau Bürgermeister
before you know it. Do you suppose I am wasting my time? I
am doing ten times more work than all of you in the house: you
only work with your hands, and I am working with my head.
Geske― That's what all crazy folks do: they build air-castles,
and split their heads with craziness and foolishness, imagining
that they are doing something important when it amounts to
nothing at all.
Gert-If that was my wife, she shouldn't talk that way more
than once.
Herman-Ei, Gert! A politician mustn't mind it. Two or
three years ago, I would have dressed my wife's back for such
## p. 7424 (#226) ###########################################
LUDVIG HOLBERG
7424
words; but since I began to dip into political books, I have
learned to scorn talk like that. Qui nescit simulare, nescit regnare
(Who knows not how to dissimulate knows not how to reign),
says an old politician who was no fool; I think his name was
Agrippa or Albertus Magnus. It is a principle of politics all
over the world, that he who cannot bear a few sharp words from
an ill-tempered and crazy woman isn't fit for any high place.
Coolness is the greatest of virtues, and the jewel that best adorns
rulers and authorities. So I hold that no one here in the city
should have a place in the council before he has given proof
of his coolness, and let people see that he cannot be disturbed
by abusive words, blows, and boxes on the ear. I am quick-
tempered by nature, but I strive to overcome it by reflection. I
have read in the preface of a book called 'Der Politische Stock-
fisch (The Political Stockfish) that when a man is overcome
with anger he should count twenty, and his anger will often pass
away.
Gert-It wouldn't help me if I counted a hundred.
Herman - That means you are only fit for a humble place.
Heinrich, give my wife a mug of beer at the little table.
Geske Ei, you rascal, do you think I came here to drink?
Herman - One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine,
ten, eleven, twelve, thirteen -now it is all over. Listen, mother:
you mustn't talk so harshly to your husband, it is so very
vulgar.
---
commission.
Geske- Is it genteel to beg? Hasn't any wife cause to scold,
when she has for husband an idler who neglects his family this
way, and lets his wife and children suffer?
Herman - Heinrich, give her a glass of brandy: she is getting
excited.
Geske Heinrich, box the ears of that rascal my husband.
Heinrich-You will have to do that yourself: I don't like the
___
-
Geske―Then I will do it myself. [Boxes her husband's ears. ]
Herman-One, two, three [counts up to twenty, then acts as
if he were about to strike back, but begins to count twenty over
again] If I hadn't been a politician, it would have been bad
for you.
Gert-If you can't manage your wife, I'll do it for you. [To
Geske. ] Get out of here!
[Geske flings herself out. ]
## p. 7425 (#227) ###########################################
LUDVIG HOLBERG
7425
Gert I'll teach her to stay at home next time. If you have
to be dragged about by the hair by your wife to be a politician,
I shall never be one.
Herman-Ah, ah! Qui nescit simulare, nescit regnare. It is
easily said, but not so easy to practice. I confess it was a great
shame my wife did me; I think I will run after her and beat
her in the street. Yet one, two, three [counts to twenty]. It
is all over: let us talk about something else.
Frantz-Women-folk have altogether too much to say here in
――
Hamburg.
Gert - That is true; I have often thought of making a pro-
posal on the subject. But it is a serious thing to get into trouble
with them. The proposal is a good one, however.
Herman-What is your proposal?
Gert - There are not many articles in it. First, I would not
have the marriage contract lasting, but only for a certain num-
ber of years, so that if a man were not satisfied with his wife,
he could make a new contract with another: only both he and
his companion should be bound to let each other know, three
months before moving day (which might be at Easter or Michael-
mas); in case he was satisfied with her, the contract might be
renewed. Believe me, if such a law were passed, there wouldn't
be a single bad wife in Hamburg: they would all do their best
to please their husbands and get the contract extended. Have
any of you anything to say against the article? Frantz! you
smile in a knowing way: you must have something to say against
it-let us hear from you.
Frantz Might not a wife sometimes find her account in
getting separated from a husband who either treated her badly,
or was lazy, doing nothing but eat and drink, without working
to support his wife and children? Or she might take a liking
for somebody else, and lead her husband such a dance that he
would let her go in spite of his resolve to keep her. I think
that great misfortunes might spring from such a plan. There
are ways to manage a wife, after all. If everybody would, like
you, Master Herman, count twenty every time his ears were
boxed, we should have a lot of fine wives. - Let us hear the
other articles, Gert.
Gert-Yes, you are likely to. You only want to make more
fun of me: no plan can be so good that something will not be
said against it.
XIII-465
―
## p. 7426 (#228) ###########################################
7426
LUDVIG HOLBERG
Herman-Let us talk about something else. Anybody who
heard us would think we met to discuss the marriage relation.
I was thinking last night, when I could not sleep, how the gov-
ernment of Hamburg might be changed so as to shut out a few
families, who seem born to be bürgermeisters and councilors, and
bring back full freedom to the city. I was thinking that we
might choose our bürgermeisters, now from one trade, now from
another, so that all citizens could share in the government and
all kinds of business prosper: for example, when a goldsmith
became bürgermeister he would look after the goldsmiths' inter-
ests, a tailor after the tailors', a pewterer after the pewterers';
and nobody should be bürgermeister more than a month, so that
no trade should prosper more than another. If the government
were arranged that way, we might be a truly free people.
All-Your plan is a fine one, Master Herman.
You talk
like
Solomon.
Franz the Cutler-The plan is good enough, but—
Gert the Furrier-You are always coming in with your
" buts. " I believe your father or mother was a Mennonite. *
Herman Let him say what he means. What do you want
to say? What do you mean by your " but "?
Frantz I was wondering whether it wouldn't be hard some-
times to find a good bürgermeister in every trade.
