Short-Stories | Page 7

table, and sat down again. The priest
counted it.
"It is a great deal of money," said he.
"It is half the price of my gard. I sold it to-day."
The priest sat long in silence. At last he asked, but gently,--
"What do you propose to do now, Thord?"
"Something better."
They sat there for a while, Thord with downcast eyes, the priest with
his eyes fixed on Thord. Presently the priest said, slowly and softly,--
"I think your son has at last brought you a true blessing."
"Yes, I think so myself," said Thord, looking up, while two big tears
coursed slowly down his cheeks.

NOTES
[1] This story was written in 1860. Translated from the Norwegian by
Professor Rasmus B. Anderson. It is printed by permission of and
special arrangement with _Houghton Mifflin Co._, publishers.
[2] 3:28 thwart. A seat, across a boat, on which the oarsman, sits.
[3] 4:21 gard. A Norwegian farm.
BIOGRAPHY
Björnstjerne Björnson, Norse poet, novelist, dramatist, orator, and
political leader, was born December 8, 1832, and died in Paris, April 26,
1910. From his strenuous father, a Lutheran priest who preached with
tongue and fist, he inherited the physique of a Norse god. He possessed
the mind of a poet and the arm of a warrior. At the age of twelve he
was sent to the Molde grammar school, where he proved himself a very
dull student. In 1852 ho entered the university in Christiana. Here he
neglected his studies to write poetry and journalistic articles.
In politics Björnson was a tremendous force. Dr. Brandes has said; "To
speak the name of Björnson is like hoisting the colors of Norway." He
was honored as a king in his native land. He won this recognition by no
party affiliation, but by his natural gifts as a poet. His magnetic
eloquence, great message, and sterling character compelled his
countrymen to follow and honor him. He says of his success in this
field: "The secret with me is that in success as in failure, in the
consciousness of my doing as in my habits, I am myself. There are a
great many who dare not, or lack the ability, to be themselves." For his
views on political issues the following references may well be used:
Independent. January 31, 1901, pp. 253-257; _Current Literature_,
November, 1906, p. 581; and _Independent_, July 13, 1905, pp. 92-94.
Björnson and Ibsen, the two foremost men of Norway, were very
closely associated throughout life. They were schoolmates, and both
were interested in writing and producing plays. Ibsen's son, Dr. Sigurd
Ibsen, married Björnson's daughter, Bergilot. These two great writers
were direct contrasts in nearly everything: Björnson lived among his
people, Ibsen was reserved; Björnson played the rôle of an optimistic
prophet, Ibsen, that of a pessimistic judge; the former was always a
conciliatory spirit, the latter a revolutionist; and Björnson proved
himself a patriotic Norwegian, Ibsen, a man of the entire world.
Lack of space forbids the inclusion of a list of Björnson's writing's.

High school teachers will find suitable selections in the list of collateral
readings that follows. Those who wish a complete bibliography of his
works will find it in _Bookman_, Volume II, p. 65. Translations of his
works by Rasmus B. Anderson, Houghton Mifflin Co., and Edmund
Gosse, the Macmillan Co., will furnish students extensive and standard
readings of this master story-teller.
CRITICISMS
Björnson, in his masterly character delineations, seldom produces
portraits. He gives the reader suggestive glimpses often enough and of
the right quality and arrangement to produce a full and vigorous
conception of his characters. His female parts are especially well done.
His characters present themselves to the reader by unique thinking and
choice expressions. Students should analyze The Father for this phase
of character building. Note also the simplicity of the words, sentences,
paragraphs, and complete story arrangement, the author's originality of
story conception and expression, his short, passionate, panting
sentences, the poetic atmosphere that sweetens and enriches his virile
writing, and the correct, religious pictures he paints of his beloved
northland.
After having read a number of selections from Björnson, students will
see that he has a wonderful breadth of treatment for every imaginable
subject. He is so universal in his choice of subjects that Lemaître in his
Impressions of the Theatre half-humorously and half-ironically puts
these words in Björnson's mouth, "I am king in the spiritual kingdom,"
and "there are two men in Europe who have genius, I and Ibsen,
granting that Ibsen has it."
GENERAL REFERENCES
_Adventures in Criticism_, A.T.Q. Couch.
_Essays on Modern Novelists_, William Lyon Phelps.
"Björnsoniana," _Dial_, January 16, 1903, pp. 37-38.
"Prophet-Poet of Norway," _Cosmopolitan_, April, 1903, pp. 621-631.
"Three Score and Ten," _Dial_, December, 1902, pp. 383-385.
COLLATERAL READINGS
_Lectures_, Volume I, John L. Stoddard.
_The Making of