and was as white as lard, but the taste was good. The
Icelanders, however, find the taste not sufficiently "piquant," and
generally qualify it with train-oil. Altogether, train-oil plays a very
prominent part in the Icelandic kitchen; the peasant considers it a most
delicious article, and thinks nothing of devouring a quantity of it
without bread, or indeed any thing else. {32}

I did not at all relish the diet at dinner; this meal consisted of two
dishes, namely, boiled fish, with vinegar and melted butter instead of
oil, and boiled potatoes. Unfortunately I am no admirer of fish, and now
this was my daily food. Ah, how I longed for beef-soup, a piece of meat,
and vegetables, in vain! As long as I remained in Iceland, I was
compelled quite to give up my German system of diet.

After a time I got on well enough with the boiled fish and potatoes, but
I could not manage the delicacies of the island. Worthy Madame Bernhoft,
it was so kindly meant on her part; and it was surely not her fault that
the system of cookery in Iceland is different from ours; but I could not
bring myself to like the Icelandic delicacies. They were of different
kinds, consisting sometimes of fishes, hard-boiled eggs, and potatoes
chopped up together, covered with a thick brown sauce, and seasoned with
pepper, sugar, and vinegar; at others, of potatoes baked in butter and
sugar. Another delicacy was cabbage chopped very small, rendered very
thin by the addition of water, and sweetened with sugar; the accompanying
dish was a piece of cured lamb, which had a very unpleasant "pickled"
flavour.

On Sundays we sometimes had "Prothe Grutze," properly a Scandinavian
dish, composed of fine sago boiled to a jelly, with currant-juice or red
wine, and eaten with cream or sugar. Tapfen, a kind of soft cheese, is
also sometimes eaten with cream and sugar.

In the months of June and July the diet improved materially. We could
often procure splendid salmon, sometimes roast lamb, and now and then
birds, among which latter dainties the snipes were particularly good. In
the evening came butter, cheese, cold fish, smoked lamb, and eggs of
eider-ducks, which are coarser than hen's eggs. In time I became so
accustomed to this kind of food, that I no longer missed either soup or
beef, and felt uncommonly well.

My drink was always clear fresh water; the gentlemen began their dinner
with a small glass of brandy, and during the meal all drank beer of Herr