Page:History of the Literature of the Scandinavian North.djvu/202

184 tom of the time already from his childhood intended for the army. But the boy evinced such decided distaste for military life that his parents yielded to his desires and sent him to the Bergen Latin school. In 1702 he entered the Copenhagen University, but being destitute of means he was unable to continue his studies there, and was soon obliged to return to Norway, where he became private tutor in the house of a country parson. Later he was again able to return to Copenhagen for the purpose of passing his theological examinations, whereupon he once more accepted a tutorship in the house of a Bergen clergyman. The latter had travelled abroad and kept a diary of his journeys. The perusal of this diary aroused in Holberg an irresistible desire of seeing the world, and with a very small purse of money he set out for Holland. He did not, however, remain long in this country. His hope of earning his living by teaching failed him, and he found that the Dutch did not rate learning as high as he had expected. The most learned professor ranked even lower than a common skipper, and the result was that he did not profit much from his journey. To Bergen he would not return for fear of being laughed at by his fellow-citizens on account of his unsuccessful expedition. So he now lived for a short time in Christianssand as a teacher of languages, and he found no difficulty in teaching foreign tongues, for his linguistic talents soon made him as renowned "as Mithridates, King of Pontus, who, as history tells us, spoke twenty-two languages." But, as soon as he had accumulated some money, he again longed to leave Norway, which he was destined never again to see, and now he went to England. Here he remained for some years, chiefly in Oxford, where he was a constant visitor in the libraries and devoted himself to the study of history.

On his return from England he began to deliver private lectures in Copenhagen. By this means he was, however, unable to make his living, for his lectures brought him nothing, though he did not lack listeners. He was therefore