No. 438.
Mr. Andrews to Mr. Fish.
Stockholm, March 20, 1872. (Received April 11.)
Sir: The following translation of an item now going the rounds of the Swedish and Norwegian press is a specimen of articles sometimes published in the journals here:
Defending laborers.—The Chicago Swedish American, of February 13, says: A contractor, named Jerry Hotchinson, had not for several weeks paid his two hundred workmen a red cent, and was owing them the neat little sum of $14,000. The workmen, mostly Norwegians, finally became frantic, and meeting Hotchinson one day last week at the corner of Canal and Randolph streets they attacked him and threatened to hang him on the nearest lamp-post; and would surely have put their threat into execution if the police had not interposed. Hotchinson fled to a magistrate’s office in the neighborhood, before which the incensed workmen collected, threatening to cut the contractor in pieces if they got hold of him. He slipped out of the back door and thus luckily escaped. Several of the-workmen afterward had him arrested and brought before Justice of the Peace Welsh, who released him on bail in the sum of $500, till the time of trial, which should have taken place last Thursday, but Hotchinson did not appear, and the workmen got information that the swindler had left the city. He naturally enough preferred to lose the amount of the bail than to pay $14,000 to his laborers. The most of these have families, and are in a pitiful condition. Such strokes of rascality are, alas! not uncommon in the country here.
One of the Stockholm newspapers-of this morning contains the following, (as translated:) “A calamity-boding rumor,” says the Norsland, correspondent of Sundsvall, “has lately been flying about the city producing terror among all credulous and superstitious people, who seem to be more numerous than one would fain believe. It is reported that two old women of the town, completely independent of each other, and without knowing each other’s prediction, foretold that Sundsvall, before the expiration of this week, would be destroyed by fire. The details of the prediction gain significance from the fact that one has it that the fire will fall from heaven, while the other supposes it will break out from the interior of the earth. In order more to increase the blind alarm of the simple people a prevailing report has at the same time got out that a comet should dash itself against the earth. It is specially assured that after this comet meets the earth unheard-of downfalls will occur, till about four years thereafter, the last judgment begins.
“How great must not ignorance yet be? How much remains for our ‘folk’ schools to do, before the rays of their instruction will be able to dispel the thick darkness of superstition?
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The editor exclaims that there is much for the popular schools yet to do before the darkness of superstition will be dispelled. Unfortunately [Page 597] these schools will need considerable change before they can accomplish such a work. At present they are under the control of the church to a great extent, and the catechism is made to almost monopolize the time of the pupils.
The great merit of the common-school system of Sweden is that it compels every child to learn to read and write. When this is said the most is said.
I have, &c.,