We hear that a tombstone is to be erected for Leif Ericson here in Chicago. Chicago has about 60,000 Norwegians, and since it had been shown that no worthy monument had been erected for Leif Ericson, it was resolved that Chicago should do it.

For many years the committee in question has been at work, and now we hear of the result: a tombstone! A tombstone over Leif Ericson, and at the same time, over the Norwegians in Chicago!

Some wild stories are abroad about Mr. Sigvald Asbjornsen, the sculptor, and his attitude in this matter. We regret to have to say that certain members of 2the Leif Ericson Monument Society have been instrumental in spreading these stories. The present writer heard the story from the president of the Society, Mr. L. E. Olson, in person, and the gist of the matter was that Mr. Asbjornsen had attempted to force the Committee to pay him an unreasonable price for doing the work. The plain fact is that Mr. Asbjornsen has never received any proposition in regard to the matter. Four years ago Mr. Asbjornsen met one of the members of the Society in a streetcar, and the latter then asked Mr. Asbjornsen about the probable cost of this possible monument. Mr. Asbjornsen gave an indefinite answer to the indefinite question, and since then he has heard nothing about the question and knew nothing of it until he read about it in the papers and was informed by Black and Company that the contract had been signed. And after that, Mr. Black came to Mr. Asbjornsen to ask him if he would make the statue in accordance with Mr. Bjorn's drawing.

Mr. Asbjornsen answered that under any circumstances, if he were to make the statue, he must make it in accordance with his own ideas and not with the drawings of somebody else. Such is the status of the matter now.

Of course, Mr. Black understands that a statue which does not carry the name of a sculptor would be more or less worthless and would not be permitted to be erected in a civilized city. For this reason he is now trying to have Mr. Asbjornsen lend his name to the statue, at a ridiculously low fee.

This piece of history, then, was enacted in Chicago in the year of our Lord, one thousand nine hundred, and the actors in the scene were "representative Norwegians"! And thus the Norwegians will be planting a nice tombstone--over themselves!