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would play them on their way, Next they were in the church and a little later they were married. The young couple then goes up and present their offering to the priest and then to the deacon. The groomsmen follow suit, then the next of kin and then everyone else. Afterwards they headed back to the house where the band once again greeted them with music. The next door neighbors and those who lived near by went home where the men unhooked their horses and the women had an opportunity to change. Everyone then headed back to the party and as they entered the festivities they were greeted by a clarinet player. Once they all were gathered, all of the tables were decked out with rice pudding, dried fish, bread, butter, beer and brandy. As soon as the meal began, the band would start playing a piece of music that signified the newlywed couple entering the banquette room, and the same piece was played as they entered the barn. They went around like that two times, and as they started on their third round, the band leader would place a small plate on a table upon which both of them placed a bit of money to pay for the music. 

He takes the money and puts it in his pocket, thanks them and says; "Greetings from the bride and groom, as well as from our hosts. They would like to invite you all back here tomorrow for lunch." That signified the end of the meal and everyone shakes hands and gives thanks for the food. 

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Everyone realizes that it's now time to make room for the servers to allow them to clear the tables, move things out of the way and sweeping the floor. It was now time for coffee and four of the most respected women were asked if they would be the ones that would sit at a predetermined table and pour the coffee. All the coffee cups and many pots of coffee are placed at one end of the table. The first of the four women pours the coffee. The second one pours in the cream while the third one is tasked with serving the coffee to the guests. Finally, the fourth woman walks around and collects used cups for the first woman to reuse, and so they kept going round and around. 

Now the dancing was about to begin and one of the best dancers at the party was chosen to dance with the bride for her first dance. The two would start with a single waltz followed by a Hamburg (Polka). After that the dance floor was open to everyone but as it became possible, each young man and woman would try to get a chance at dancing with the bride. The idea was that they collectively would dance har into womanhood. Now it's dinnertime but they only set the table that's in the livingroom with such things as bread, butter, cheese, meat, beer and brandy.

The dancing continues uninterrupted and the musicians have to take turns trying to get something to eat. Now it's about 10 or 11 and a singular table is placed in the middle of the dance floor and upon it they place bottles and glasses along with two chairs that were meant for the best men.

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and the guests needed to be invited. However, that wasn't the responsibility of the groom. That particular job fell to the father of the bride or some other close relative. This person would then travel around and deliver greetings from Peer and Mette and inquire if they would honor them by joining them at the church on their wedding day.  Afterwards they were also invited back to the house for a party and a just all around good time. So on the morning of the day before the wedding each invited family was required to bring a big bucket of fresh milk, a large dish of butter and a bottle of cream which was meant to help feed all of the guests that would be in attendance. 

Meanwhile, the bride would have gotten her dress made, either by a professional seamstress or by some other woman, because the bride was under no circumstances allowed to sow her own dress, even if she herself was a seamstress. The wedding day was upon them and the seamstress, as well as the other upstanding ladies in the neighborhood, showed up to help get the bride dressed and bind her head. Only young girls got their heads wrapped, while widows didn't. The traditional bridal headdress consisted of a neck piece made of stiff paper about 8-10 inches across. It was rounded and covered in fine fabric which had been adorned with tight laying lines of pearls 

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of all sizes and colors. It was fastened in the back of the neck, but not before her hair had been braided into pigtails. It was a tough job to get the hair just right because back then it wasn't customary for people to braid hair. You'd then gather every pearl that you could find, bead them all on string and wrap them around the neck piece. Then they would add bows, enough that they resembled a bushel of oats hanging down her back. 

Now the bride was ready and the musicians were out in the street greeting the arriving guests with a little song. A predetermined person would place a small stool by the wagons, assist people who were disembarking and bid them to come inside. The women were in the sitting room, while the men would congregate in the living room or in the barn, depending on where there was room. There were tables everywhere with trays of wheat cake that had been plated. This cake was accompanied by butter, beer and brandy. These aforementioned items were all that were served at such an event, and no one expected anything else. Now it was time to drive to the church, so everyone got in their wagons, and as soon as the procession started moving, the band    

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We then decided to have an action to get rig of everything that wasn't nailed down (personal belongings), which generated 200 crowns. So with a mere 1000 crowns in my pocket, the clothes on our backs, a bit of bedding and with our three children in tow we left our little home in Orup. We were headed out into the great big world where we would seek our fortune. 

It was the 24th of July 1871 when we held our little auction and that very same evening we moved in with Hans Jørgen in Vallebo. On the 25th I went to Roholte to liquidate my account with the co-op. On the 26th we were in Faxe at Lars Jensen's place, then on to Lars Hemmingsen's house in Taagerup and further on to Vibede Overdrev where we finally said goodbye to Hans Jensen and my sister Maria. 

On the 27th we packed our bags and on the 28th we had Hans Jørgen drive us to the Haslev station. We arrived in Copenhagen that very same day where we stayed until the 1st of August which was the day when we headed out to sea and bid farewell to the land of our birth.

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Old customs

One of the oldest customs is of course the idea that people should get married and this was very much the case when I was still living in Denmark. However, back then there were a lot more ceremonies and rules that had to be observed. For example, when a couple had agreed to get married they couldn't just do it where ever they wanted. They had to have an earnest conversation with their parents about it and if no parents were available then they needed to approach some trustworthy friends who were willing to help them out. The first step was to find two witnesses and it was their responsibility to make sure that the young couple wasn't already married to each other or to anyone else for that matter. They simply had to make sure that there was nothing preventing them from forming this union. Then, on a predetermined date, the young man, while accompanied by his witnesses would visit the priest and ask him to publicly announce their desire to wed. 

So the following Sunday, after the sermon, the priest would read out loud; "I would like to announce the first time union of Peer Peersen and the girl Mette. If there is anyone who objects to their union speak now, or remain silent." The same procedure was repeated on the second and third Sunday after which the final wedding day was set. 

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Around Helsingør and into the Eastern Sea. It then got pushed into Køge Bay, across Feddet and all the way down to Præstø. It even went to Kallehave and further towards the islands where it caused much damage along the way. Hundreds of ships wrecked on shore, houses were washed away in the flood and many animals as well as people died.

America fever:

A work shortage spread among the peasants because by now they all had had their properties marled and drained. you couldn't even get a job digging a single hole. Making matters worse was the fact that most farmers now had their own threshing machines that were pulled by two horses. Where you before had enough work for one farmer, two farmhands and a boy, now you could make due with two boys and one girl, when threshing was done. Gone was the need for the really qualified workers, which is why more and more of them began looking to America as a land of opportunity. Many a man from our area journeyed to America and they all wrote back that it truly was a paradise on earth. My wife and myself were also swept up by the spreading America fever 

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and we began looking into whether or not it was possible for us to part ways with good old Denmark. We got connected with Peer Hansen who was supposed to give us 800 crowns in return for us vacating our land. (Which means), he would give us 800 crowns for us to move out of the house after which he would approach the noble family about him taking over the house. 

I then had to go see Counsellor Nielsen in Vindbyholt, where I had to ask, in the humblest of manner, to be released from my land contract. "Released from your house! You have no house! That house belongs to his lordship. Here you're running around, wheeling and dealing with houses that you have absolutely no ownership in. Well, who is supposed to get the house from you?" 

I told him, to which he replied; "I see, and how much have you been offered in order to vacate?"

"800 crowns, really? That's more than the entire property is worth. I imagine it's probably Johan Hylsenberg was the one who wrote you from America. He probably told you that over there, grilled pigeons fly straight into your mouth as long as you open it wide enough. Whatever, I will ask his lordship what he thinks about the entire affair. Come back in a couple of days and I'll let you know what he has decided."

I agreed, and a few days later we received our 800 crowns.

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except for two, then these two remaining members should evenly divide whatever there might be left. It wouldn't surprise me if they had excluded Americans. It also wouldn't surprise me if there wasn't a substantial amount of money left for the final two, because all the guys joining were young men and the interest on the $1600 was probably more than enough to cover expenses for many years. 

I've carried and shaped a lot of large boulders and shale, and I've broken them down until they were only 10 inches thick after which they were delivered out to the country roads and placed every 1/4-1/2-1 fathoms. After which they were broken down further until they were 1 1/2 inches in size and were now called "skjærver"/ballast that were then used to resurface the road. 

I've crushed numerous fathoms of "skjærver."

I've cleaved and split many fathoms of boulders until they were six inches in size and were used for masonry.

Our little Lisbeth who was born on the 5th of February 1868, got croup and died when she was a little over a year old. The exact date escapes me, but I remember there being a lot of snow and we were driving sleighs across the fields. She was buried in the Roholte cemetary, just North of the church, about 20-25 feet from the North-East corner. I placed a     

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ring of cement around her grave. On the ring itself we put a little inscription written in gilded letters. Furthermore, when we left the area we used a large share of our now liquidated belongings in Roholte to pay a woman to take care of the grave for us for as long as she lived. 

Fast forward to the 11th of December 1871 when Jørgen was born just before noon. That afternoon I went down to teacher Melow's house in Roholte to deliver the news. Melow noted how strange it was that I had gotten a son today since it was such a noteworthy day. It was "terminsdag" as well as the day when his wife had passed away. His statement was followed by him folding his hands together as if he was praying.

"Terminsdag"/due date, came around twice a year, on the 11th of June and the 11th of December. On these two days, which happened to be exactly six months apart, all interests, regardless of if it was owed or earned had to be settled before the end of the day. Even the banks wouldn't pay out interest except for on these two days, during what they referred to as the "dues period," and the days were referred to as the "due dates."Later, in the fall of 1872, the waters rose at a tremendous rate and we had a flood. It was a South-West wind that drove the waters in from Kattegat and into the North Sea

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which is why he ended up in the Horsens jail. The elder miller Johansen from Hauby, whom I have mentioned previously, created the insurance company in his younger years, and it was a shame that his son later would get in trouble because of it. However, greed is the root of all evil. During my time in Orup I was one of the founding members of an association, a cooperative store and I remained a member until I moved to America. 

I was also one of the founding members of an insurance company for farmers where they could insure their livestock. I was the president of the organization from its conception and until I ventured to America. 

I was also part of creating a health insurance association for farmers and residents in the parish of Roholte. I remained on the board until I left........

I was also a member of an association promoting better conditions for farmers as well as general laborers and I remained the district president for the entire time I was there. This organization was spreading in several areas across the country before it came to our area but it ended up covering almost all of Zealand. There were counts, barons and

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other learned folk who began to realize that the less fortunate could benefit from their council. These land owners gave us free seed for gardening, instructions on how to tend to the plants as well as handing out rewards for gardening. We had to pay a small sum to assist with the writing and printing of publications which was taken care of primarily by the lords in lieu of them only being passive members. Then, as the association had operated for a number of years, and the nobility could see that it had done a lot of good, a meeting was called at the industrial building near the Rønned Inn. Count Molke from Sydstrup was the chairman and during this meeting they informed us that they had no more advice to give us. To be truthful it wasn't needed anymore since we were up and running now. Their recommendation was that we should go ahead and disband the association, which we did. However, at that point in time we had 1600 crowns in our treasury which we converted into a grant to be watched over by Count Molke from Sydstrup. He was to receive the money for safekeeping, and each time one of our members died, he was to pay their next of kin 5 crowns as long as there was money available. However, when all the members had passed away,  

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civil engineering. It was of course necessary for water to keep running through the pipes, and this job required an engineer. That was exactly what I thought I'd be good at. So I leveled the field, and if I could muster more then I would lay some pipe. The only tool that I had to help me level the area was a 20 foot long board which had a piece of wood attached to one edge. It was 18 inches tall and had a rope with a lead weight attached to one end. This made me the Superintendent of drainage for may of the local farmer's fields, which made me approximately 1 thaler a day. 

I have put in many hundred square fathoms of stone on bridges. It was extremely hard on the knees and while you were afforded a one-legged stool to sit on, one knee was always on the ground, getting wet and cold. I have done carpentry, thatched roofs, bricked a lot of houses and done a lot of work with cement. I have dug and bricked a lot of wells. Carving out several wells that were over 100 yards deep, and it was all done by hand, which took time and was very difficult. I set up and designed several gardens, I have tended to and cut ligustrum/hedges for local peasants/the women as well as making "høkasser" for them to cook lunch in as soon  

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Veterinarian

as they made breakfast. At this point, I was already a rather well known veterinarian who was kept rather busy and actually managed to earn a little bit here and there. However, they didn't always have a lot of money everywhere I went, but people would pay me by giving me cheese, a loaf of bread , some snuff, butter, bacon, malt or other kinds of merchandise. 

It wasn't until a few years after my confirmation that I developed a desire to read and write. Above all else I spent time studying the art of veterinary sciences. After all, my father was a veterinarian, a quack if you will. He left several books behind that contained information both about how to identify animal illnesses as well as what medicines to administer. They also contained information regarding what the medicines should contain, such as herbs, roots and bark. Also, there was information about many other things that gave me much opportunity for studying, reading and writing. 

When I was seventeen years of age, I subscribed to the Faxe newspaper which was a brand new enterprise back then. In order to satisfy my thirst for knowledge I joined a sort of reading club where I received books in exchange for a small fee. When I was eighteen years old I had all of my clothes and belongings insured for $100 and I did so in the very financial institution that miller Johansen from Orup sent into bankruptcy