Letter
4 Pages
Translation: Francesca Nichols
Transcription
Kjære Kramer!
Ja nù bör jeg vel bede dig og Kreyberg pent
omforladelse for min forsömmelighed, – det er
jo en skam, at jeg ikke har sendt billedet,
eller har ladt höre fra mig paa anden maade.
Men jeg fik altsaa besök af Kinck og maleren
Ravensberg og saa blev her flakking om i bygden
med motorbaaten, – dù skulde været med os; – vi
var ogsaa lidt oppe i fjeldene og ind til bræen
paa flere kanter – til Øvreböfossen o.s.v. og
tilslùt fùlgte jeg Kinck over fjeldet til Brix-
dal og Olden og like til Loen, hvor vi skiltes.
"Bryggen" havde jeg sendt, hvis ikke der havde
været en liden ting, som Ravensberg syntes at
jeg maatte forandre – nemlig lygten – jeg har endnù
ikke faaet det færdigt – (her kom nemlig en ùng for-
fatter og ven af Kinck – Holm – heder han – og han er
her endnù. Saa har vi ogsaa havt besök af konsùl
Mohr og frù og datter og svigerdatter – hyggelige men-
nesker – Mohr vilde absolùt kjöbt "bryggen" og
Ravensberg vilde, at jeg skulde sende bryggen til galleri-
et, – hvor kunstprofessor Schintler – vilde söke at faa
ind noget af mine ting. – Jeg kunde selvfölgelig
ikke sige andet, end at Kreyberg havde kjöbt
det, (men kanske han ikke bryr sig om det til
syvende og sidst, – da maa jeg jo skaffe ham pengene
tilbake eller et andet billede; thi jeg har snart
brugt dem op. Jeg har maattet afbryte arbeidet med
bygningen igjen; thi jeg klarer ikke mere forelöbig, – denne
helvedes veie bygningen, som sender tùsindvis af sten ud
over os daglig og trùer med at slaa hùl i alle hùstak,
den har ogsaa taget mine arbeidere fra mig; – her er
en helvedes salutering hele dagen – saa vi har en stadig
nervös speiding efter börnene, om de er nær mineringen.
Ja dine börn ser vi fremdeles intet til, – de maa
ikke have likt sig her i fjor, – jeg hörer at de er
nede paa Lergrovbakken endnù – eller paa sæteren.
II
Jeg har seet paa flere gamle hùs, – men alle er
dyre; – et gammelt loft paa Myklebùst skal vist-
nok inkjöbes af staten – har vist skrevet til dig
derom för, (hvis mit sidste brev ble sendt, – jeg
kan ikke finde det), – man forlanger henimod
3000 kr. for det hùset, – men det er ogsaa kanske
værd saa meget, – da der er en masse materialer
i det. Nù har jeg seet paa et gammelt hùs paa
Strand, – eieren er selv glad i det og vilde nödig
rive det, men da han nù bygger stort hùs, blir
han nödt at brùke, hvad han kan, for at faa
materialer nok, og da han hörte, at huset kùnde
blive staaende i bygden, vilde han sælge billigt
sagde han; – thi da fik han se det igjen, – det har
rùnde tömmervægge og har to rùm, – og jeg tror alt
er af usedvanligt sterk (bredt) tömmer, – (kanske en
eneste stok er svag, men den kan vist vare længe, hvis den
indbygges i en "gang" som dù antagelig maa ha alligevel)
Jeg prùttede med ham om prisen, og jeg böd ham
500 kr., – han forlangte 800, men jeg tror dù kan byde
lidt over 500, – men jeg tror dù maatte gjöre det
nogenlùnde straks, da han ellers alligevel gjerne straks
bygger det ind i hùset (det nye). Han er en prægtig
mand, – saa jeg tror, at om der ved nedrivningen
skulde vise sig större feil end synligt forùd, saa vil
han sikkert slaa af. Altsaa hvis dù vil reflektere
paa hùset, saa send et par ord telegrafisk til
ham – snarest mùligt, – hans adresse er: Nils
Strand Vasenden Jölster. Jeg tror det vil være
vanskelig for dig at finde et gammelt hùs af saa-
vidt god kvalitet til den pris, – og saa vidt nær –
det er en knap ½ mil herfra. – Men dù maa
telegrafere straks, i fald dù vil tænke paa det, – da hans
bygning er saa langt fremskreden, at han straks har
brùk for tömmeret, – og hvis han intet hörer, – var det
vor aftale, at han bare kunde brùke det gamle hùs til
loft i sin nye bygning. Ja saa maa dù og din frù Aagot
leve vel og være hjærteligst hilset frå os alle her.
Frembær min ydmygste undskyldning til Kreyberg din
Translation
Dear Kramer!
Well I should probably apologize properly to you and
Kreyberg for my negligence, – it’s
a disgrace, that I have not sent the picture,
or got in touch with you in some other way.
But I received a visit from Kinck and the painter
Ravensberg followed by a lot of comings and goings
around the village by motorboat, – you should have been with us; – we
also spent a little time up in the mountains and as far as the glacier
from different approaches – to Øvreböfossen, etc. and
finally I accompanied Kinck over the pass to Brix-
dal and Olden and as far as Loen, where we parted.
“The Wharf” I might have sent, had there not
been a small detail, which Ravensberg thought
I should change – specifically the lamp – I have not
finished doing so yet – (we received a visit here from a young writ-
er and friend of Kinck – Holm – is his name – and he is
still here. And then we have also had a visit from Consul
Mohr and his wife and daughter and daughter-in-law – nice peo-
ple – Mohr wanted absolutely to purchase “the wharf” and
Ravensberg thought, that I should send the wharf to the gal-
lery, – where the art professor Schintler – wanted to enter
some of my things. – I could not of course
do otherwise, but tell him that Kreyberg had purchased
it, (but maybe he is not so interested in it
after all, – in which case I must return the money
to him or give him a different picture; for I have soon
used them up. I have had to interrupt work on
the building again; I cannot manage any more right now, – this
bloody road construction, which sends thousands of rocks onto
our heads every day and threatens to drive holes in all the roofs,
it has also taken my workers from me; – there is a
cacophony of explosions all day long – so we are nervously
scouting for the children, to see if they are in the vicinity of the explosions.
Well your children we have not yet seen a trace of, – they must
not have liked being here last year, – I hear that they are
still down at Lergrovbakken – or on the mountain grazing farm.
II
I have looked at several old houses, – but all of them are
expensive; – an [historic] loft in Myklebùst will
evidently be bought up by the government – have evidently written to you
about it before, (if my last letter was sent, – I
cannot find it), – they are asking close to
3000 kr. for that house, – but it may also be
worth that much, – as is contains a lot of
materials. I have looked at an old house in
Strand, – the owner is very fond of it and reluctant
to tear it down, but since he is now building a large house, he
will be forced to use what he can, in order to have
enough materials, and when he heard, that the house might
remain in the village, he was willing to sell cheaply
he said; – because then he would be able to see it again, – it has
round timber walls and two rooms, – and I believe everything
is made of unusually strong (broad) timber, – (one
single log may be inferior, but it may last for a long time, if it
is built into a “hallway” which you probably must have anyway)
I haggled with him about the price, and offered him
500 kr., – he demanded 800, but I think you can offer
a little more than 500, – I think you should do it
fairly quickly, since he will otherwise readily soon
build it into the house (the new one). He is a fine
fellow, – so I think, that if during the dismantling
it turns out that there are greater defects than visible beforehand, he
will surely reduce the price. In other words if you wish to consider
the house, then send a few words by telegraph to
him – as soon as possible, – his address is: Nils
Strand Vasenden Jölster. I believe it would
be difficult for you to find an old house of such
good quality for that price, – and so close by –
it is less than 5 km from here. – But you must
telegraph immediately, in case you want to consider it, – since his
building is so far advanced, that he will soon be in
need of the timber, – and if he doesn’t hear anything, – it was
our agreement, that he could then just use the old house for
an attic in his new building. Well may you and your wife Aagot
live well then and accept warmest wishes from all of us here.
Relay my most humble apology to Kreyberg your