Kjære Kramer og frùe! 

Vi fik idag Eders breve og pakken med rökelaks – 

Tusend tak fra baade Engel og mig! Dette blir

bare nogle faa ord i all hast: – for at naa Dere med

noget brev, förend Dere reiser fra Bergen, maa jeg

skrive dette i nat ùden lampe – og faa det ind til

Fond, som skal reise imorgen tidlig – posten var

nemlig forsinket her i kveld. – Dere maa derfor

undskylde skriften. – Först maa vi sige, at det 

var en skuffelse for os, at Kramer vil reise tilbage 

fra Förde straks igjen, uden at komme op om oss, – ja 

vi forstod brevet slig; – nù har vi tænkt over dette, 

om det ikke lod sig ordne slig, at Fond og jeg kom

nedover med motorbaaten til Vasenden paa nærmere

angivet tid, slig at dù kunde tage skyds fra Förde

til Vasenden (2 mil), straks dù kom til Förde, enten 

det blev nat eller dag, – dù kunde da – selv med heste-

skyds (bilen naar dù neppe den dag) være paa Vasenden 2 ½

time eller 3 timer, efterat dù var kommet til Förde, og

vi brùger knapt en time op hid med motorbaaten, (der

gaar rigtignok et kvarter til opfyringen). ––– 

Fond og jeg skal da kjöre dig afgaarde igjen ^{til Vasenden} med motor-

baaten, naar dù vilde, om det saa var næste dag. 

Hvis dù telegraferer ^{til os} om ankomst-tiden til Förde, skal 

vi faa hesteskyds ned fra Vasenden, (som ^at være parat)

naar motorbaaten (Emil Stenens) kom til Förde, – 

eller resikerer dù at gaa fra Herodes til Pilatùs i Förde, 

förend dù faar skyds, – men det kan jo hænde at

postbilen venter i Förde paa Emil Steens baat, og da

har dù bare en time (eller 1 ½ time) til Vasenden med

bilen fra Förde: – dette kan jeg faa ùndersökt, men dù 

vil kanske ogsaa selv faa det ùndersökt paa postkontoret. 

Skulde det blive knapt med tiden, saa telegrammet

havde vanskeligt for at naa os, – saa telegrafer til 

"Karoline Vasenden – Jölster" og bestil hest, som staar

parat, naar dù kommer til Förde. – men undersok altsaa

först om bilen venter i Förde til Emil Stens baat kom-

mer did. Vor bil – "Fordbilen" gaar fra Förde onsdag

den 30^te jùni kl. 8 om morgenen, men saa tidleg kommer

vel ikke Dere til Förde? –––

Engel har nù tinget melk til dere paa nabogaarden 

hos manden med de ùgudelige saùer – Flùge kom

straks efter til de samme folk og vilde tinge melk 

II

for sommeren til nogle byfolk, som skal bo hos

ham, – det var altsaa, som jeg forudsagde, at Flùge

ikke havde nok melk til sig selv end sige til Dere, 

som han jo saa flott lovede, – og selv om han havde

havt nok, saa vilde han nù havt den til sine egne

byfolk. – Engel var altsaa heldig ude i tide i sidste öie-

blik enda hùn laa i barelseng – hùn fik sin mor til at

gaa ind og tale med de folkene (som vi ellers aldrig omgaaes)

Saa har Engel faaet kjöbt til Dere 2 spekekjödlaar –

som hùn har faaet usedvanligt billigt nemlig for 4,08;

– fire kroner og otte öre pr.kg. – en handelsmand som fik 

höre om prisen blev rent syk av avindsskab, – handels-

mændene giver her 5 kr. pr. kg. og forlanger 6 kr.^igjen; til 

5 kr. pr. kg. skal vi faa kjöbt flere steder, men vilde vente

dermed til vi hörte Eders mening. Saa har Engel 

tinget nogle gùtter til at fiske örret til Dere af og til 

og prùttet prisen ned i 80 öre pr. kg. (vi har selv givet

1 kr. pr. kg. for all den örret vi har kjöbt i vaar, og det

var i "uslöiet stand", – til Dere, forlangte Engel, at den skulde

være "slöiet" ogsaa, – men det veed jeg ikke om folk vil gaa 

med paa). Hos nogle gutter kan vi muligens faa den billegere.

Engel siger Dere maa tage med et melkespand at hente melken

i, – spandet maa da være saa stort, som den melkemængde Dere

vil have om dagen. – Det vanskeligste blir kanske med ovn-

stellet, da vi bare har en komfyr – men jeg haaber vi klarer

den ting, – til kaffekogning kùnde kanske et kokeaparat være

bra, hvis Dere har et sligt staaende ledigt; – i den ufærdige

kjælder har vi opsat en kjælderovn som kan bruges til kok-

ning i nödsfald, – men vi har to i lægnings rùm i komfyren, 

og halve komfyren vor staar da til raadighed, – men det blir

jo lidt trangt om kjökkenpladsen. – Skinkerne har jeg skrevet

til manden om, at han ikke maa sælge fra dere. –––

Om at "tage med sig", som dù nævner, – ja saa mente Engel at

det kunde være godt, om Dere kunde tage med lidt laken og 

haandklær, – da det er det, vi har mindst af. Hvis dere vil 

have jedost af samme gode sort, som i fjor, har vi talt med

de samme folk og kan de skaffe rikelig og muligens billigere

end i fjor, – derom dog senere, – anden ost findes ikke hos os, 

da vi har brugt op Edammeren, som vi kjöbte til Pintse

i paavente af Eder. Grönsaker har jeg desværre ingen af iaar

da vor "gartner" Johannes nù er bleven gartner paa Furuly 

sanatorium-Stord. Jeg selv har været for daarlig til at ordne haven, – 

Ja hjærtelig velkommen da! – det er saa mörkt at

jeg maa slutte nù. Med Bedste hilsen fra os alle

Eders hengivne Astrup

P.S. 

Jeg hadde nettop lavet til rabarbra- 

saften og den stod til klarning da jeg

fik dit brev – jeg forsökte flere ganger

tildlgere ivaar at faa klar saft men 

stilkene var for "spröde" – nù er det den 

rette tid men nù er det altsaa forsent

kanske ––– Den gjær dù fik paa apotheket

har været död. Brùk bare rosiner det er den 

ægte druegjær. – 

P.S. 

Hvis det er aldeles ùmuligt for dig at fölge længer end

til Förde af hensyn til baatens afgang til Bergen igjen, saa

send os en meddelelse, saa jeg kan være i Förde og træffe

dig der. Jeg tager isaafald bilen til Förde dagen iforveien

og bliver da opover hid med din familie – men pröv

at ordne det slig som för nævnt – unskyld skrif-

ten! jeg ser ikke hvad jeg selv skriver. 

Din Astrup

Dear Mr. and Mrs. Kramer! 

We received Your letter today and the package of smoked salmon – 

Many thanks from both Engel and me! This will only

be a few words in haste: – in order to reach You with

a letter, before You leave Bergen, I must

write this tonight without a lamp – and get it to

Fond, who is leaving tomorrow morning – the postal delivering 

was delayed here this evening you see. – You must therefore

pardon the handwriting. – First I must say, that it 

was a disappointment for us, that Kramer wished to return 

from Förde immediately, without coming up to see us, – well 

we understood the letter this way; – now we have thought it over, 

and wonder if it were possible to organise it, so that Fond and I came

down with the motorboat to Vasenden at a 

specified time, so that you might have a ride from Förde

to Vasenden (20 km), immediately upon your arrival in Förde, no matter 

night or day, – you might then – even by horse

transport (you would hardly arrive in time for the motorcar) be in Vasenden 2 ½

hours or 3 hours, after your arrival in Förde, and

we take less than an hour up to us with the motorboat, (it

admittedly takes a quarter of an hour to fire up the engine). ––– 

Fond and I will then drive you back again ^{to Vasenden} with the motor-

boat, when you wished, even if it was the next day. 

If you telegraph ^us about the arrival time to Förde, we 

will arrange horse transport down from Vasenden, (which ^to be ready)

when the motorboat (Emil Stenen’s) arrived in Förde, – 

or else you will risk walking hither and thither in Förde, 

before you get a lift, – but it may be that

the post delivery motorcar will be waiting in Förde for Emil Steen’s boat, and then

you have only an hour (or 1 ½ hours) to Vasenden with

the motorcar from Förde: – this I can investigate further, but you 

will perhaps also want to look into it at the post office. 

If there is not enough time, so the telegram might

have a problem in reaching us, – then telegraph 

“Karoline Vasenden – Jölster” and order a horse, that stands

ready, when you arrive in Förde. – but make sure to first investigate 

whether the motorcar is waiting in Förde for Emil Sten’s boat to ar-

rive there. Our motorcar – “the Ford” runs from Förde Wednesday

the 30^th of June 8 o’clock in the morning, but You will surely

not be arriving that early in Förde? –––

Engel has now ordered milk for you at the neighbour’s farm 

from the man with the ungodly sheep – Flùge came

immediately after to the same people and wanted to order milk 

II

for the summer for some city folk, who will be staying with

him, – it was in other words, as I predicted, that Flùge

didn’t have enough milk for himself and even less for You, 

as he had so gallantly promised, – and even if he had

had enough, he now wanted to have it for his own

city relations. – Engel was fortunately in the nick

of time even in her postnatal condition – she got her mother to 

go in and speak to the people (whom we otherwise never associate with)

And then Engel has managed to buy 2 legs of dry-cured ham for You –

which she has got exceptionally cheap for 4,08;

– four kroner and eight öre per kg. – a grocer who got

wind of the price became sick with envy, – shop-

owners here pay 5 kr. per kg. and take 6 kr.^{in return} ; at

5 kr. per kg. we can get hold of it many places, but wanted to wait

until we heard Your opinion. In addition Engel has

arranged with some boys to go fishing now and then for trout for You 

and haggled the price down to 80 öre per kg. (we have paid

1 kr. per kg. ourselves for all the trout we have bought this spring, and that

was for “ungutted”, – for You, Engel demanded, that it should

be “gutted” as well, – but I am not sure whether folk will agree 

to that). We may possibly get it cheaper from some boys.

Engel says that You must bring a milk pail to fetch the milk

in, – the pail must be as big, as the amount of milk You

you wish to have each day. – The most difficult thing will perhaps be the location

of the stove, as we only have one kitchen stove – but hope we can work

that out, – for cooking coffee a spirit stove might be 

good, if You have one lying about; – in the unfinished 

cellar we have set up a wood burning stove which can be used

for cooking in case of need, – but we have two compartments to keep food warm in the oven, 

and half of our stove is available, – but it will be

a little crowded in the kitchen. – About the hams I have written

to the man, saying that he must not sell them to anyone else before you arrive. –––

As for “bringing with you”, as you mention, – well Engel thinks that

it might be good, if You could bring a few sheets and 

towels, – as that is what we have too little of. If you wish to 

have goat’s cheese of the same good sort, as last year, we have asked

the same people if they can obtain an abundance and perhaps cheaper

than last year, – but more about that later, – we don’t have any other cheese  

since we have consumed the Edam cheese, which we bought for Whitsun

in expectation of Your visit. Vegetables I unfortunately have none of this year

as our “gardener” Johannes has now become the gardener at the Furuly 

sanatorium in Stord. I have been too ill to care for the garden myself, – 

A heartfelt welcome then! – it is so dark that

I must end this now. With best wishes from all of us

Your devoted Astrup

P.S. 

I had just made the rhubarb 

juice and it had been left to clarify when I

received your letter – I tried several times

before this spring to make clear juice but 

the stalks were too “crisp” – now is the 

right time but now it may be too

late ––– The yeast you got at the pharmacy

has gone flat. Use only raisins that is the 

authentic grape yeast. – 

P.S. 

If it is entirely impossible for you to travel further than

to Förde due to the boat’s return departure to Bergen, then

send us a message, so that I can be in Förde and meet

you there. I will in that case take the motorcar to Förde the day before

and will accompany your family up here – but try

to organise it as mentioned before – forgive my hand-

writing! I cannot see what I am writing. 

Your Astrup