My friends' large room was filled with men and women. There were no great differences in their manner of dress and what is usual in European lands, although the cloak and robe were more extensively used, giving them somewhat an oriental appearance. The men were well formed. They wore their hair trimmed and all the older men had beards. The women were beautiful. Their dress hung in graceful folds. Grace also was in their carriage, and nothing more could be desired in the matter of form and complexion.

I, of course, was an object of great curiosity; yet, so perfect was their treatment of me that I did not feel in the least annoyed or uneasy. We tried to talk to each other. They smiled good naturedly at me, and I at them. I showed them my watch and tried to explain its use. Then I brought out my precious Bible and they handed it around, turning its leaves and trying to decipher some of the characters.

The first few days I learned some names, and herein was my first surprise. Most of the names are undoubtedly, Biblical. The young man whom I had rescued was named David. His father was Joseph, and the twelve year old sister was Rachel. These names greatly puzzled me at first, but it became perfectly plain when I learned the history of this people.

I had been fortunate in my bone-setting operation, and because of it, David was getting along nicely. I spent much of my time with him as he was pleased with my company. But in a few days I was urged to visit some of the other cities in the land. In fact, the great men and the learned men were asking for me and I had to go. Their lighter vehicles were quite comfortable and their horses took us along roads at a good speed. I found that I was in a land of farms and small cities. All were built on the same plan. I saw no traces of fortresses or buildings erected for defensive purposes. Nearly all the buildings were of stone, some hewn into blocks, and others covered with a plaster or cement.

There was a sameness in the architecture of the dwelling houses, but in others that I took to be public buildings, there was a pleasing variety.

The fields had all been harvested, and the gardens were quite bare; yet I could see that the land was very closely cultivated. All the barley grains were raised, besides an abundance of hay to provide for the winter. There are also grown a variety of vegetables and berries.

As the darkness settled deeper and deeper over the land, the people became more quiet, and there was less hurry and traveling about. Preparations had about been completed for the winter. There were storehouses of wool and flax to be converted into clothing; there were feathers and down from the immense flocks of birds which lived near the ice-sheet.

There were also granaries filled with grain to be made into meal and flour; in fact, there was all manner of raw material to be converted into finished articles. The whole summer season is occupied in gathering this material and the time for manufacturing is the period of cold and darkness. The land is well provided with coal. This is a wise provision of nature to be sure, as wood is not plentiful. A mineral oil is also obtained from the earth, but owing to imperfect refining it is quite crude. However, it is the great blessing during the long period of darkness, as it is burned in camps, both in the houses and in the streets of the towns. The long, dark night is no doubt the reason why the people live in closely built towns and cities.

Heat, light and socialibility is what they need during this period of the year, and these needs are met remarkably well. Sometimes a whole town block is one continuous house built around its town streets, with an open court in the center. A system of heating by stoves and pipes gives comfort to these houses. Large halls warmed and lighted, connect living rooms, school rooms, work shops, and meeting halls, all of which may be located in the one enclosed group. Thus a thousand people may live in a community, each family separate from the other, yet the whole is one great patriarchal society.

In the summer, everybody lives out in the open, warm sunlight, but in the winter the children go to school and the workers repair to the numerous workshops and factories. When darkness had come for certain that first winter I enjoyed myself at the home of Joseph and his wife Bethrah. They were very kind to me, treating me more like a son than like the stranger that I was. David, also, took a great liking to me, and even Rachel's fears were subdued and she would soon permit me to stroke her sunny hair and look into her blue eyes. Sometimes I would sing to her some simple ditties of my far-away home and then she would listen with wonder in her eyes at the strange words and tender melody. Father Joseph, as I have learned to call him, is a foreman in one of the mental work shops - that is, in the winter.