and American tourists as the supposed burial-place of Hamlet,
the Prince of Denmark immortalized by Shakespeare. Kronborg Castle is
interesting to us, in addition, as being the place where Anne of Denmark
was married by proxy to James I. of England. Here, also, the "Queen of
Tears," Caroline Matilda, sister of George III., spent some unhappy
months in prison, gazing sadly over the Sound, waiting for the English
ships to come and deliver her.

We pass up the Sound viewing the luxuriant cool green beech-woods of
Denmark, and the pretty fishing villages lying in the foreground. Villas
with charming gardens--their tiny rickety landing-stages, bathing sheds,
and tethered boats, adding fascination to the homely scene--seem to
welcome us to this land of fairy tales and the home of Hans Andersen.

The many towers and pinnacles of Copenhagen, with the golden dome of the
Marble Church, flash a welcome as we steam into the magnificent harbour
of this singularly well-favoured city. Here she stands, this "Queen of
the North," as a gracious sentinel bowing acquiescence to the passing
ships as they glide in and out of the Baltic. The broad quays are
splendidly built, lined with fine warehouses, and present a busy scene
of commercial activity. The warships lying at their moorings in the
Sound denote that this is the station of the fleet; here also we see the
country's only fortress--the formidable bulwarks which surround the
harbour.

Kjoebenhavn in Danish means "merchants' harbour," and as early as the
eleventh century it was a trading centre for foreign merchants attracted
by the rich supply of herrings found by the Danish fishermen in the
Baltic. Bishop Absalon was the founder of the city. This warrior Bishop
strongly fortified the place, in 1167, on receiving the little
settlement from King Valdemar the Great, and had plenty to do to hold
it, as it was continually harassed by pirates and the Wends. These,
however, found the Bishop more than a match for them. His outposts would
cry, "The Wends are coming!" and the Bishop would leave his preaching,
his bed, or anything else he might be doing, gather his forces together,
and fight gallantly for his little stronghold. He perhaps recognized
that this might one day be the key to the Baltic, which it has since
become.

This city, therefore, is not a new one, but bombardment and
conflagrations are responsible for its modern appearance. Fortunately,
some of the handsome edifices raised