A Sketch of the Red River Valley
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A harvest crew in the Dakota wheat fields, 1887 On the PRAIRIE A Sketch of the Red River Valley KNUT HAMSUN Translated by JOHN CHRISTIANSON KNUT HAMSUN, the Norwegian novelist Hamsun worked for a time in a Madelia who was awarded the Nobel Prize in 1920, lumberyard and later went to Minneapolis is widely knoum as the author of Hunger, as secretary to the Norwegian poet and Uni Pan, and the monumental Growth of the tarian minister, Kristofer Janson. His second Soil, each of which has appeared in several trip in 1886 took him first to Chicago, where American editions. But it is not so well he was a streetcar conductor for a short time. known that he spent several years in the Then during the summer and autumn of United States, and particularly, in Minne 1887, Hamsun hired out as a laborer on a sota. During his first sojourn in the New huge bonanza farm in the Red River Valley. World, from 1882 until the autumn of 1885, Whether he was employed by Oliver Dal rymple cannot now be definitely estab MR. CHRISTIANSON is a native of Mankato and lished. When the season ended, he went a graduate student in history in the University of Minnesota. His previous publications include back to Janson and other friends in Minne an article on the sixteenth century Danish apolis, and remained toith them until his astronomer, Tycho Brahe, which appeared in return to Norway in 1888. His first book, Scientific American for February, 1961. published the folloiving year, was a bitter September 1961 265 attack on the materialism of American The sun was brutal. We went about in society.^ nothing but a hat, shirt, trousers, and shoes; Some years later, in a more mellow mood, and it was impossible to wear less. If some Hamsun described life on the bonanza farm one tore a hole in his shirt, for example, the in a little autobiographical sketch entitled sun would burn a red sore on his hide under "Paa Praerien" ("On the Prairie"), which the hole. first appeared in 1903 as part of a collection We worked a sixteen-hour day during the called Kratskog ("Brushwood"). The sketch wheat harvest. Ten mowing machines drove has been used by Hamsun's biographers, after each other in the same field, day after and part of it lias been rendered into Swed day. When one field was finished, we went ish by John Landquist, but it has never to another and laid it down as well. And appeared in English translation.^ It gives a so onward, always onward, while ten men fine picture of the rugged hands of men who came behind us and shocked the bundles labored in the immense fields of Red River we left. And high on his horse, with a re wheat and recalls an interesting chapter in volver in his pocket and his eye on every Minnesota history. man, the foreman sat and watched us. He exhausted two horses every day. If some THE WHOLE SUMMER of 1887 I worked thing went wrong — if a machine broke on a section of Dalrymple's immense farm down for example — the foreman was there in the Red River Valley of the North. Be immediately to repair the damage or to order sides myself there were two other Norwe the machine sent back to the yard. He was gians, a Swede, ten or twelve Irishmen, and often far off when he noticed something was a few Yankees. We were twenty-odd men wrong, and because there were no roads he all told on our little section — but we were had to ride through the thick wheat all a mere fraction of the hundreds of laborers day, until his horse lathered with sweat. on the whole farm. In September and October it was still The prairie lay golden-green and endless cruelly hot during the day, but the nights as a sea. No buildings could be seen, with were frosty. We almost froze many nights, the exception of our own barns and sleep and because of the cold we never got ing shed in the midst of the fields. Not a enough sleep. We were called out at three tree, not a bush grew there — only wheat in the morning, when it was still dark as and grass, wheat and grass, as far as the pitch. We fed the horses and ourselves and eye could see. Nor were there any flowers, drove the long distance out to the fields, although now and then one might come and then day would finally break and we across the yellow tassels of wild mustard. could see what we were about to begin. Cultivation of this plant was forbidden by Then we would set fire to a pile of straw, law, so we destroyed the prairie's only blos warm the cans of lubricating oil, and warm som; pulled it up roots and all, carted it ourselves a bit at the same time. But it was home, let it dry, and burned it. not many minutes before we would have No birds flew overhead; there was no to clamber upon the machines and set to movement except the swaying of the wheat work. in the wind; no sound but the eternal chir ^ Knut Hamsun, Fra det moderne Amerikas rup of a million grasshoppers, singing the aandsliv (Copenhagen, 1889). For a full account prairie's only song. of Hamsun's Minnesota experiences see John T. We would almost collapse from the heat. Flanagan, "Knut Hamsun's Early Years in the Northwest," in Minnesota History, 20:397-412 When the chuck wagon came out to us at (December, 1939). noon, we would lie on our belhes under ^ John Landquist, Knut Hamsun hans levnad the wagon or the horses, in order to have och verk, 27-29 (Stockhohn, 1931). Landquist in cludes the incident concerning Hamsun and the a bit of shade while we gobbled our food. Swede. 266 ^HNNESOTA Histonj WORKERS on a bonanza farm in Norman County, probably in the 1880s There were no holidays. Sunday was the of it, but I finally asked the foreman to same as Monday. We could accomplish put me somewhere else, and he did. He gave nothing when it rained, however, so on me an excellent job out in the field pitching rainy days we would pass the time playing bundles. He did not forget that I had done casino, chatting, or sleeping. him a favor early in the year. An Irishman there was, an amazing fel It happened like this. My jacket was a low. God only knows what he once had uniform jacket with shining buttons, which been. On rainy days he always sat on his I had worn while I was a streetcar con bunk and read the novels he kept in his ductor in Chicago. The foreman was im locker. He was a big, handsome fellow about pressed with the jacket and with its mag thirty-five years old, and he spoke an ex nificent buttons. He was a regular child quisite tongue, not only in English, but about such finery, and there certainly was German as well. not much finery of any sort out there on This man came to the farm in a silk shirt, the prairie. So one day I said that he could and he continued to wear silk shirts all the have the jacket. He wanted to pay me and time he was there, even while he worked. asked me to name my price. When I in When one was worn out he put on another, sisted upon giving it to him, he thanked me a new one. He was not a good worker — profusely. At the end of the harvest, when he did not have the "knack" — but he was he saw that I had no jacket to wear on my a remarkable person. travels, he gave me a good coat in place of Evans was his name.* the one I had given him. The two Norwegians were not much I remember an episode from the days out good. One of them quit because he could in the field pitching bundles. The Swede not stand the work; the other held out. came after a load one morning. He wore During threshing we all tried to get a his trousers tucked into high boots. We job as far away from the machine as pos began to load the wagon. He was a regular sible, because dust, chaff, and straw puffed demon for work, and I had my hands full out a regular storm from the scoops and trying to keep up with him. I pitched the openings. For a few days I was in the midst bundles up to him, but he stacked them faster and faster, and at last it got on my nerves so that I began to explode angrily 'Hamsun apparently could not keep his Gaels straight; Evans, of course, is Welsh. into the work myself. Each shock consisted September 1961 267 of eight bundles, and we usually pitched We were exceedingly friendly towards one bundle at a time. Now I took four. I one another during those days. Perhaps we flooded the Swede with bundles, .smothered had gotten along only moderately well all him in bundles. summer, but now that we were parting, Then apparently a snake was in one of everything bad was forgotten. Our hearts the heavy loads I sent up to the Swede. It grew greater with every drink, and we slipped into one of his boots. I did not nearly succumbed with emotion as we realize what had happened until I suddenly threw ourselves into one another's arms.