The Fish Can Sing by Halldór Laxness Read Free Book Online Page B

could name; and whereas in other countries there are severe penalties for putting this wretched stuff up in the open in peacetime, in Iceland barbed wire became the most desirable luxury commodity in the land for a while, next only to alcohol and cement. There are few things over which the nation has united over so wholeheartedly as stringing this glorious material round every part of the land, over hill and dale, heath and moor, right up to the mountaintops and out to the farthest sea-cliffs. At first, many people behaved as the Boers had done towards the English, and simply climbed over the barbed wire wherever they came to it, but then the Althing passed a law declaring barbed wire to be inviolate in Iceland. These laws were made more far-reaching by special local regulations in some districts and towns, including our town of Reykjavík; here, a by-law about barbed wire was issued to the effect that anyone caught climbing over these sacred boundary-fences would have to pay a fine of ten
krónur
. ten
krónur
at that time was the price of a yearling ram.
    To come back to us boys on our journey – after great detours and many digressions and the usual boys’ dawdling for much of the day, we eventually reached some hillocks to the south-east of the horse-moors. There were a few scattered farms around, some up on the hills and others in the grassy hollows or dales, and the lands belonging to these farms were festooned with barbed wire for their full length and breadth.
    One of the farms there was called Hvammskot. We halted on the bank of a stream just outside the home-field, where a strong barbed-wire fence had been erected – quite at random, as far as one could see. And as we were standing there, out of sight behind a knoll, one of us volunteered the information that anyone who crossed a fence of this kind would be fined ten
krónur
.
    We quickly agreed that it would be fun to risk a death-leap which was valued at such a high price. And because this crime had all the fascination that any kind of gambling has when there is money involved, we all set to and began jumping over the barbed wire. I will not say that the deed was done entirely without palpitations, and indeed we had a look-out posted to see if therewere any spies about; but as we had really suspected all along, no one noticed the outrage we were committing, and no fines were imposed on us. Now, these lawful fines which were not exacted from us were in effect treasure-trove; so each and every one of us had profited by the equivalent of a yearling ram at the very first attempt. So it was little wonder that we tried again. We could not tear ourselves away from this lucrative work for hours, and it was still not nearly supper-time when each and all of us had become prosperous from unclaimed
ten-krónur
fines; and every time we performed another leap, another yearling ram was added to those we had already. In the end we were beginning to grow a little bored with all the sheep we had collected; and one of us worked it out that for all these sheep we could buy up all the chocolate there was in the country, even including caramels as well; and another said that our sheep would suffice to buy all the chocolate and caramels that had ever been imported into the country since the first settlement of Iceland. And then suddenly we were aware of a huge dun-coloured dog coming bounding towards us, barking fiercely and looking distinctly aggressive. We realized that this dog would scare away from us all the sheep we had accumulated that day, and we started to shout abuse and throw stones at him. At this the dog became twice as furious; indeed, as far as we could see he was undoubtedly a bloodhound and was sure to tear us to pieces, so we saw no other way but to take to our heels across hills and hollows as fast as our legs would carry us.
    “We were beginning to wonder about you, my boy,” said my grandfather and grandmother. “What happened to you?”
    “We were up at the