Kjære Kramer!

Tùsend tak for din elskværdighed med

hensyn til træsnittene, – jeg skulde længst

skrevet men en haardnakket forkjölelse-

(eftervirkningen av "den spanske") har hindret

mig fra alt – endog at være med til min

söns barnedaap. – Ja tùsend tak for

pengene – men det var egentlig til dig

træsnittene var bestemt som afdrag paa

gjæld – (flagget og mange andre ting–); men 

da jeg ikke vilde "paa-dùtte" dig ting af mig,

som jeg ikke var sikker paa, om dù vilde

bryde dig om at have paa din væg, saa

bad jeg Meyer at lade dig "tage vare" paa

dem saa længe; – naar jeg da kom ind til 

Bergen og fik vise dig andre ting ogsaa, 

og fik höre din dom om alle, vilde jeg at

dù skulde have de ting, som dù likte bedst,

enten det blev disse eller andre træsnit. 

Ja nù burde jeg være reist, – synes dù vel; – ja

jeg har ventet paa en adr. i Paris paa maleren 

Jean Heiberg, som skal did i vaar, – og da jeg

gjerne vilde indom Paris paa veien, vilde jeg

sætte stor pris paa at træffe en stor maler

som Jean Heiberg der og nyde kunst sammen

med ham, – jeg anser ham for den "soli-

deste" af de ùnge, – men det tog lang tid

förend jeg forstod ham. – Ja nù har dere

vel fùld vaar i Bergen – her ligger sne-

en höiere end den i mands minde har ligget

nogen vaar paa denne tid, – det er kùn saa-

vidt, vi kan ahne vaaren, naar skjærende

"parrer" i de svarte birketoppene udenfor vore

vindùer – "hensigten er ikke til at tage feil af."

De bygger flittig paa de to reder, som de har

her paa garden, men de maa vist have lært

"ùorden" af de menneskelige naboer, thi naar

de mangler kvist i det ene rede, trækker de 

gjerne en kvist ud ad det andet for at spare

sig en ùmage med at lede op en ny – det er

forresten utroligt, hvor store kvister de kan 

bære til sit rede,– vingene slaar ordentlig 

takt i kvistene, saa det smelder; – det er 

riktig morsomt at se paa deres stræv, naar de 

henter mùld fra den bratte skraaning ovenfor

kjökkenvindùet, – det eneste sted hvor

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de kan finde "bar" jord paa denne tid – 

det gjælder vel at faa "taget" tæt og det

er vanskeligt om alt for tiden – endog om 

lorten – siden vi fik nyt W.C – det er

mærkelig at de kan faa sit hùstag saa

tæt med saa "simple midler" – hustaget er

nù ligesom det vigtigste her ùnder vestland-

det`s höieste "nedbörsdistrikt" – det faar jeg

ogsaa föle, som skal holde hustakene tætte 

paa over 20 hytter. –––

Ja söndag havde vi barnedaab, og jeg maatte

som nævnt holde mig hjemme, medens de 

andre var i kirken, – min svoger Alf Basti-

ansen – præst i Balsfjorden – döbte gùtten, – 

han var hjemme en tùr og vilde absolùt, at

jeg skulde reise til Nordlandet istedenfor 

sydover, – men det er nok ikke tilladt. – 

Kanske jeg tar en tur nordover med hele fa-

milien, naar jeg kommer hjem. Eller kanske

jeg skal udsætte turen sydover, hvis jeg ikke

faar brev fra Jean Heiberg, – og saa reise en tùr

nordover först. Vi er nemlig lei av gaarden, 

da vi ikke kan faa tjenere – særlig tjenes-

tepiker er uopdrivelige, – alle reiser ùd, –

og de som blir igjen forlanger 500 kr. og 

klær og sko. – Engel har ikke kunnet op-

drive nogen heller, og hùn kommer derfor

til at faa meget stræv iaar, – vi tænker paa

at lade alt "ligge öde" et aar, – det er 

det 7^de aar, siden vi kom hid, – og hvis 

man skal holde söndagen búrde man ogsaa

holde den ifölge bibelen paabúdte hellig-

holdelse af det syvende aar, da "ager og eng

skal hvile"; – (men theologerne pleier at

være saa flinke til at finde ud smaa bùd

som skal overholdes med störste strenghed, – 

medens store búd, som staar lige foran i bibelen

ikke nævnes engang). Dette klemmer jeg ofte

i bönderne her naar de bebreider mig, at jeg

arbeider om söndagen. 

Nei dette blev theologi – ùndskyld at jeg 

plager dig, – smör er fortiden ùmùligt – for

os at opdrive, da Bergens provianteringsraad kjöber

op og giver over maximalpris; – vi andre syndere

har ikke lov til at give saa meget, – en ùnderlig 

ordning – Men det ordner sig vel snart. Med de bedste

hilsener til dig og dine fra Engel og din hengivne Nikolai. 

P.S. 

Tror dù, at udlagte attest kan 

faaes noget sprit paa? Maleren Krantz har

faaet 3 liter pr. maaned, og om jeg end ikke

er "Bergensmaler" (de andre Bergensmalere har

faaet det samme), saa maa jeg vel ikke være saa

meget daarligere maler at jeg ikke kùnde

faa 3 liter pr. aar, naar de andre faar 3 l. 

pr. maaned – jeg regner mig da, som dù ser til en 

12^te rangs maler eller av 1/12 dygtighed (af de

andres), – og da maa beskedenheden være saa stor, 

at den bör belönnes med sprit; – imidlertid maa 

dù beholde de 2 liter til dit tekniske brúg

og send mig den 3^de ene samt lidt "karveolje" – 

det er nemlig den bedste tilsætning, naar man 

laver "lærredspræparatur." D.S (vedlagt 30 kr. til spriten)

Dear Kramer!

Many thanks for your kindness with

regard to the woodcuts, – I should have 

written long ago but a stubborn cold

(the after-effect of “the Spanish flu”) has prevented

me from doing anything – even participating in my

son’s christenbaptism. – Well many thanks for

the money – but the woodcuts were actually

intended for you as a down payment on

debts – (the flag and many other things–); but 

since I did not wish to “force” any of my things on you,

which I was not sure whether you might

wish to have on your wall, 

I asked Meyer to allow you to “take care” of

them for the time being; – when I would [eventually] come to 

Bergen and show you other things in addition, 

and would hear your opinion about all of them, I would want

for you to have the things, that you liked the most,

whether it was these or other woodcuts.

Well I should have left by now, – you are probably thinking; – well

I have been waiting for the adr. in Paris of the painter 

Jean Heiberg, who will travel there this spring, – and since I

planned to stop by Paris en route, I would

appreciate meeting a great painter

like Jean Heiberg there and experience art together

with him, – I consider him as being the “most

solid” among the young [painters], – but it took a long time

before I understood him. – Well you are probably

experiencing the full bloom of spring in Bergen – here the snow

is higher than it has been in living

memory this time of year, – we can just bare-

ly feel the spring approaching, as the magpies

are “mating” in the black crowns of the birch trees outside our 

windows – “the intention is not to be mistaken.”

They are busily occupied in building the two nests, that they have

here on the farm, but they must have learned

“cheekiness” from their human neighbours, because when

they lack a twig in one of the nests, they gladly

draw a twig out of another’s in order to spare

themselves the trouble of looking for a new one – incidentally

it is unbelievable, how large the twigs they are able 

to carry to their nest are, – the rythmic striking of their wings 

against the twigs is resounding – it is 

quite amusing to watch them struggle, when they 

fetch mould from the steep slopes above the

kitchen window, – the only place where

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they can find “exposed” soil this time of year – 

it’s a question of sealing the “roof” I suppose and it is

difficult to get hold of everything lately – even

excrements – since we have a new W.C – it is

strange that they can seal their rooftop so

well with such “simple means” – a rooftop is

nearly the most important thing here in West

Norway’s number one “rainfall district” – and I know

what I am talking about, since I have to keep the roofs of 

over 20 cabins watertight. –––

Well on Sunday we had a christening, and as I

mentioned I had to stay at home, while the 

others were in church, – my brother-in-law Alf Basti-

ansen – the priest in Balsfjorden – baptised the boy, – 

he came home for a visit and was convinced, that

I should travel to Nordlandet rather than 

south, – but it is probably not allowed. – 

Perhaps I will make a trip north with the whole fa-

mily, when I return home. Or maybe

I will postpone the trip south, if I don’t

receive a letter from Jean Heiberg, – and then make a trip

north first. We are actually worn out by the farm, 

since we cannot get hold of help – housemaids

in particular are impossible to find, – they all leave, –

and those who stay demand 500 kr. in addition to 

clothes and shoes. – Engel has not been able to find

anyone either, and as a consequence she 

will have a hard time of it this year, – we have thought

about letting everything “lie fallow” for a year, – it has been

7 years, since we arrived here, – and if one should

observe Sunday as a day of rest then one should also

according to the Bible observe the command to

hallow the seventh year, when “you shall neither sow your field

nor prune your vineyard”; – (but the theologians tend to

be resourceful in finding small commandments

that must be complied with the greatest strictness, – 

while the large commandments, which are at the front of the Bible

are not even mentioned). This I often throw back 

at the farmers here when they reprove me, for

working on a Sunday. 

This has turned into a theological discussion – forgive me for 

bothering you, – butter is impossible for us to get 

hold of – at the moment, when Bergen’s provisions committee buys it

up for more than the maximum price; – the rest of us mortals

are not allowed to give as much, – a strange 

arrangement – But it will soon be resolved. With best

wishes to you and your family from Engel and your devoted Nikolai. 

P.S. 

Do you think, that one can obtain 

mineral spirits by showing the enclosed certificate? The painter Krantz has

been issued 3 liters per month, and although I am not

a “Bergen painter” (the other Bergen painters have

got the same), I cannot be such an

inferior painter that I don’t deserve

3 litres per year, when the others get 3 l. 

per month – I thus rank myself, as you see as a 

12^th-rate painter or as 1/12 as skilled (as the

others), – and my modesty must therefore be of such magnitude, 

as to be rewarded with spirits; – However you must 

keep the 2 litres for your technical use

and send me the 3^rd last one and a little “caraway oil” – 

for that is best, for 

making “canvas primer.” DS (enclosed 30 kr. for the spirits)