The boy found a comfortable seat in a cleft branch from which he could
look down over Angermanland. It was a glorious morning! The sunshine
gilded the treetops; a soft breeze played in the pine needles; the
sweetest fragrance was wafted through the forest; a beautiful landscape
spread before him; and the boy himself was happy and care-free. He felt
that no one could be better off.
He had a perfect outlook in every direction. The country west of him was
all peaks and table-land, and the farther away they were, the higher and
wilder they looked. To the east there were also many peaks, but these
sank lower and lower toward the sea, where the land became perfectly
flat. Everywhere he saw shining rivers and brooks which were having a
troublesome journey with rapids and falls so long as they ran between
mountains, but spread out clear and broad as they neared the shore of
the coast. Bothnia Bay was dotted with islands and notched with points,
but farther out was open, blue water, like a summer sky.
When the boy had had enough of the landscape he unloosed his knapsack,
took out a morsel of fine white bread, and began to eat.
"I don't think I've ever tasted such good bread," said he. "And how much
I have left! There's enough to last me for a couple of days." As he
munched he thought of how he had come by the bread.
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