place of the former palisades. Svend's son Knud, or Canute the Great, who also became king of England and Norway, was on friendly terms with Konrad the Second of Germany. They met in Rome, in 1027-Knud being there on a pilgrimage, while Konrad was about to be crowned by the Pope as emperor and there they made an agreement that the old boundary line of the Eider should forever be the border line between the two countries, and the "rights," if any existed, and claims to the Markgraf's burg should be wiped out. From that time until 1864, the Eider was the boundary between Denmark and Germany. At the death of King Harde Knud, in 1042, the Norwegian king, Magnus, the son of St. Olaf, inherited the crown of Denmark according to an agreement which the two kings had made. In his reign, he led the Danes and Norwegians against a great Slavic army which had devastated South Jutland. Near Dannevirke he won a great victory over the enemy and saved the country. In the time of King Niels, who ruled from 1104 to 1134, Denmark suffered many attacks from the Germans and Slavs, until his wife, Queen Margaret, a Swedish princess, called "Fredkulla" (the peace maiden), came to the rescue. This good and energetic woman reinforced the weakest part of Dannevirke, from Selk-nor to the place called "Great Dannevirke," and this was afterwards named after her Margrete-Dige (Margrete's Dike). Her nephew, Knud Lavard, as Earl of Jutland, also strengthened the defenses, especially near Slie. Knud Lavard's son, Valdemar the First, who was king of Denmark from 1154 to 1182, began a great reinforcement of Dannevirke, which was completed by his son Knud. A strong wall of burnt brick was built in front of the old stone wall and covered the most exposed part of the fortification, forming a breastwork two miles long and from six to eight feet thick rising above the great earthen wall. This was at that time considered a wonderful protection for the Danish nation, and the period that followed was a time of great development, prosperity, and rising power for Denmark. It has become famous in history as the glorious time of the Valdemars. The early part of the fourteenth century shows an unfortunate decline of internal and external power. Some of the dukes in Slesvig had intermarried with German counts in Holstein and conspired against the kings of Denmark. Many battles had been fought in the meantime on the old battle-ground. Another Queen Margaret, King Christoffer's widow, had bravely driven out the German invaders from Jutland, but finally was defeated in a battle on the plains just south of Dannevirke and, with her young son Eric, was taken prisoner. In a later war, and in the same place, one of the last princes of the old royal house of Denmark lost his life, but his sister, the third Queen Margaret, brought back, at least for a time, the glories of former days. It was under her that the three Scandinavian kingdoms were of their own free will united, but unfortunately she died childless, and princes of Mecklenburg, Bavaria, and Oldenburg were successively elected to the Danish throne. These foreign kings had no understanding of Scandinavian conditions, and the results were dissatisfaction, wars, and revolutions. Instead of guarding the frontier, they favored the German influence, as told in previous articles in the REVIEW. A fatal mistake was made when Christian the Third, in 1536, separated the diocese of Slesvig from the ecclesiastical unity of all Danish bishops under the precedence of the archbishop of Lund and made it one unit with the German province Holstein. Before that time, the law allowed only men born in Denmark to hold ecclesiastical positions in Slesvig, but the union with Holstein in church matters opened the door to the influences of German "Kultur." Its progress was slow, however, and the people remained Danish in thought as in language. Many battles have been fought at the old Dannevirke down through the ages. Its towering walls are sunken, but still the work of the Danish people of long ago stands out plainly in the landscape, reminding us of all that has taken place there, of the labor spent and the blood spilled. In 1862, an examination was made of the old fortification, and it was found that even then parts of the various sections built at different times could be traced; even remains of the old palisades were revealed under the masonry. At the old Dannevirke, where the Danes for more than a thousand years have fought for their country, the Danish army again faced the ancient enemy in 1864, but before them stood the armies of the German Confederacy and Austria, the same enemies that we have been fighting. For the Danes, the task was, of course, an impossibility. In the snow, one gloomy February night, they had to retreat, had to give up the place where, for century after century, the ground had been made red with Danish blood. I remember the time, although I was only a small boy, and never shall I forget the expression of deep sorrow that I saw in my home. There was not much excitement; the sorrow was too deep to find expression in words. "Will not one of the great nations help us?" was asked. The French, our friends, at whose side the Danes had stood in the Napoleonic wars when all others turned against them, or England, or our Scandinavian friends? The Danish soldiers came through the village on their retreat northward. They had just fought and won a small battle at Vorbasse, and had taken thirty-two prisoners. The people laughed and cried, shook hands with the dragoons, and hurriedly brought out hot coffee and sandwiches. But this hour was only like a sunbeam in the gloom. News came of battles lost and a great many of our young men killed. Then the Germans and Austrians came overrunning the country, and-worst of all the "peace" by which Denmark gave up her southern province and the dukedoms. Holstein and Lauenburg were hardly mentioned among us; they were German and had often made trouble, but Slesvig, our own South Jutland, the object of all the fighting through the centuries! England showed her good-will toward Denmark by objecting to Germany's crossing the Eider River and afterwards made the suggestion that Slesvig be divided in such a way that a large part of the northern section would have been left to Denmark. But sentiment and justice were not in Bismarck's line! What followed has already been told in the REVIEW. We young Danes were brought up with the aspiration that some day we should take part in a war for the liberation of our brethren in Slesvig, but many of us got the longing to go out into the larger world, and we became Americans. This great country became our home and our pride, but a man's heart must be narrow indeed if there is not some love left for the home of his childhood. I believe it was Lincoln who said, "A matter is not settled till it is settled right." May not little Denmark hope that the wrong she suffered more than fifty years ago will be remembered when the time comes for a just and lasting settlement! Norway's Father On the Death of BJÖRNSTJERNE BJÖRNSON By VERNER VON HEIDENSTAM Translated from the Swedish by CHARLES WHARTON STORK The late light falls on the mountain crest, The sun goes royally down to the deep. Weep, Synnove, weep! For great was the sun that sank to rest. Thou, sleeping chief, turnest home once more, I' Arthur Hubbell Palmer T seems possible to live a life so consistent that even death conforms. On November 6, Arthur Hubbell Palmer, Professor of the German Language and Literature at Yale University, passed away as quietly as he had lived. Arthur Hubbell Palmer was born at Cleveland, Ohio, June 30, 1859. He graduated from Western Reserve University and, after a year as teacher in a Cleveland high school, returned to his alma mater as an instructor. During the years 1881 to 1883, he continued ARTHUR HUBBELL PALMER his studies at German universities, and at the close of the latter year returned to Western Reserve University as Professor of German. From 1886 to 1891 he served as librarian at Adelbert College, and while there he conceived the idea of raising funds to purchase for his alma mater the splendid collection of Professor Wilhelm Scherer, the first Germanic working library ever brought to this country. Professor Palmer's pioneer work in this connection resulted in his being called to Yale, where he remained until his death. Professor Palmer broadened his study of the Germanic languages to include the Scandinavian and spoke Norwegian with fluency. His mastery of English is best exemplified by his translation of Björnson's poems published in the SCANDINAVIAN CLASSICS. Gifted with a high poetical talent, he was especially inspiring as an interpreter of German poetry, particularly Goethe. As a Trustee of the American-Scandinavian Foundation, Professor Palmer was especially influential in shaping the course of its book publications. His careful judgment and fine literary standards have been of the highest value to the Committee on Publications. Our First Unsolicited Treaty By ADOLPH BURNETT BENSON The ambassador added that it was a pleasure to him to think, T BENJAMIN FRANKLIN to ROBERT R. LIVINGSTON, Passy, France, June 25, 1872. HE recent conclusion of a commercial agreement between Sweden and the Allied powers recalls to mind the fact that Sweden was the first nation, unsolicited, to make a treaty with the United States. True, treaties with two other foreign powers were signed earlier; on February 6, 1778, Benjamin Franklin concluded a treaty of alliance between France and the United States, and on October 8, 1782, John Adams at the Hague signed a treaty of amity and commerce with the Netherlands. These compacts, however, were the result of earnest solicitation. The third treaty, that between Sweden and the United States, was signed at Paris, April 3, 1783, by B. Franklin and Gustav Philip Comte de Creutz, acting as agent of Gustavus III. By this covenant the oldest kingdom of Europe welcomed the free states across the Atlantic into the fellowship of international relations. A most significant commentary is that of Bancroft, the American historian: "The governments of continental Europe vied with each other in welcoming the new republic to its place among the powers of the world. In May, 1782, as soon as it was known at Stockholm that the negotiations for peace were begun, the adventurous king of Sweden sent messages of his desire, through Franklin above all others, to enter into a treaty with the United States. Franklin promptly accepted the invitation. The ambassador of Gustavus at Paris remarked, 'I hope it will be remembered that Sweden was the first power in Europe which, without being solicited, offered its friendship to the United States.' Exactly five months before the definite peace between the United States and Great Britain was signed, the treaty with Sweden was concluded. Each party was put on the footing of the most favored nations. Free ships were to make passengers free as well as goods. Liberty of commerce was to extend to all kinds of merchandise. The number of contraband articles was carefully limited. In case of maritime war in which both the contracting parties should remain neutral, their ships of war were to protect and assist each others vessels. The treaty was |