Nordic

Innovations

By Svea No. 253, VOA

DISTRICT LODGE LAKE MICHIGAN No. 8

101st Annual District Convention

29, 30, and 31 May 2009

PROGRAM

Friday, 29 May 2009

Happy 96th Birthday, Svea No. 253

Established 29 May 1913

9:00 am

3:00 pm

3:00 pm – 10:00 pm

3:00 pm – 10:00 pm

3:00 pm – 10:00 pm

3:00 pm – 10:00 pm

5:00 pm – 7:00 pm

5:00 pm – 7:00 pm

7:00 pm

9:00 pm – 10:30 pm

Golf Tournament

Executive Board meeting

Swedish Emporium open

Silent Auction open

Bucket Raffle open

Cultural Displays open

Registration

Hospitality Suite open

Program – Sveaskolan #210

and Dans Norden

Hospitality Suite open

Brookshire Country Club

O’Connor Board Room

Heritage Ballroom

Heritage Ballroom

Heritage Ballroom

Heritage Ballroom

Heritage Ballroom Foyer

Arnold-Dugan Suite

Heritage Ballroom

Arnold-Dugan Suite

PROGRAM

Saturday, 30 May 2009

7:00 am

7:00 am – 8:30 am

7:00 am – 4:30 pm

7:00 am – 4:30 pm

7:00 am – 4:30 pm

9:00 am

9:30 am

12:00 Noon

12:30 pm

4:00 pm

5:30 pm – 6:30 pm

6:30 pm

7:30 pm

9:00 pm – 10:00 pm

New Delegates’ Breakfast

Registration

Swedish Emporium open

Silent Auction open

Bucket Raffle open

Opening Ceremonies

District Meeting

Lunch

Committee Meetings

Adjourn – Choir Practice

Social Hour – cash bar

Banquet Dinner

Greetings and Awards

Maennerchor Concert

Poolside A

Heritage Ballroom Foyer

Heritage Ballroom

Heritage Ballroom

Heritage Ballroom

Heritage Ballroom

Heritage Ballroom

Poolside A

Various locations

Heritage Ballroom

Poolside Dining room

Poolside Dining room

Poolside Dining room

Poolside Dining room

Sunday, 31 May 2009

7:00 am

7:00 am – 12:30 pm

7:00 am – 12:30 pm

8:15 am

9:00 am

12:00 Noon

12:00 Noon

1:30 pm

PDM Breakfast

Swedish Emporium open

Loppmarknad open

Memorial Service

District Meeting

Adjournment

Hospitality Suite open

Board meeting

Poolside A

Heritage Ballroom

Heritage Ballroom

Heritage Ballroom

Heritage Ballroom

Heritage Ballroom

Arnold-Dugan Suite

O’Connor Board Room

District Lodge Lake Michigan No. 8

Executive Board

Extends Fraternal Greetings to

SVEA No. 253

for hosting the

101st District Convention

Welcome to all delegates and guests!

Local Lodges

Siljan-Mora-Tuna No. 134

Thor No. 147

Linné No. 153

Kronan No. 179

Bessemer No. 203

Brahe No. 245

Svea No. 253

Nobel No. 288

Viljan No. 349

Austin No. 466

Linde No. 492

Satellite No. 661

Joe-Harbor No. 534

Bishop Hill No. 683

Hagar No. 721

Nordik Folk No. 761

Lindgren No. 754

Jubileum No. 755

Viking No. 730

Children’s Groups

Vårblomman No. 54

Förgät Mig Ej No. 64

Skansen No. 113

Nordikids No. 208

Pride Of The Family No. 209

Sveaskolan No. 210

DISTRICT LODGE LAKE MICHIGAN No. 8

VASA ORDER OF AMERICA 101st ANNUAL CONVENTION

May 29, 30, and 31, 2009 Indianapolis, Indiana

Hosted by Svea Lodge No. 253

Enjoy our theme: Nordic Innovations

The Nordic countries have been responsible for an incredible number of

discoveries in the natural sciences;

they have developed products that improve our health, extend our lives,

and make our lives more enjoyable; and

they are leaders in setting norms for how modern nations should be

governed and how they should conduct foreign affairs.

We will celebrate these attributes of the Nordic nations in our displays and

in our programs.

We hope everyone will enjoy reviewing the history of the progress of

these nations and also gain new understanding of the great future that

these nations should enjoy.

101

st

Anniversary

Best Wishes to

Svea Lodge No. 253

on a successful and prosperous

District Lodge Lake Michigan No. 8 Convention 2009

LYCKA TILL!

From

Linde Lodge No 492

Milwaukee, Wisconsin

And from SKANSEN

Children’s Club No 113

Milwaukee Wisconsin

The Nordic Nations

The Nordic Council provides the following information about the

Nordic Countries. The information is located on their website:

www.norden.org.

“The Nordic region has a population of 25 million. The Nordic

countries consist of Denmark, the Faroe Islands, Greenland, Finland,

Åland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden. The Faroe Islands and Greenland are

both part of the kingdom of Denmark, and Åland is part of the republic

of Finland.

Denmark, Norway and Sweden are all monarchies. Iceland and Finland

are republics.

Regardless of the form of government, the heads of state in the

Nordic countries have relatively little power. All the countries have a

democratic constitution dating from the 19th century, and, with the

exception of the Norwegian constitution, they have all been revised

several times.”

Swedish Logging Innovations

by Allen Hedeen

Sweden, with its vast forests and rich logging

history, has been a major global source of logging

innovation. Various makes of Swedish chainsaws

were designed, built, and sold on the world market

since 1949. Sweden has also been instrumental in the

development of the Nordic cut-to-length logging

method and its associated high-tech,

environmentally-friendly forest machines.

The Jonsereds Fabrikers AB factory was

originally located in the town of Jonsered near

Göteborg. Their company started in 1833 in the

textile industry and later expanded into the chainsaw

industry. In 1950, Jonsered was asked to make parts

for the rare Comet diesel powered chainsaw. Shortly

after, Jonsered purchased the Norwegian Comet

company and produced its own Raket line of saws

(Swedish for rocket). In 1966, Jonsered introduced

the model 60, the first of the classic red saws that

have made Jonsered famous. Jonsered continues to

sell its famous line of red chainsaws across the world

today.

The Husqvarna Company got its start on the

Husqvarna River flowing out of Lake Vättern where

a water mill was established on the estate of the

Rumblaborg castle. The word Husqvarna takes its

name from the word hus (Swedish for house) and

kvarn (Swedish for mill). The original “house” water

mill was an excellent source of power, so much that

King Charles XI established a weapons factory here

in 1689. As tensions eased in the Baltic region, the

arms factory was sold to private interests. Husqvarna

AB started production of sewing machines in the late

1800’s and is still famous for its sewing machines

today. It was not until 1959 that Husqvarna got into

the chainsaw market with its first Model A90 saw.

Husqvarna and the German company Stihl remain as

the world’s largest chainsaw manufacturers today.

Sweden along with Finland played a major

role in the development of the Nordic cut-to-length

logging method. The Nordic cut-to-length method

consists of a harvester and a forwarder team and is

responsible for about 16% of the global wood harvest

today. The harvester machine fells, delimbs, and cuts

the tree trunks to a specified length right out in the

woods (often times in less than one half minute per

tree). The forwarder machine loads the logs using an

onboard crane onto a self-contained bunk and

transports the logs to the roadside where they are

loaded onto a truck. Both machines resemble a high-

tech robot in many ways and utilize some very

sophisticated computer hardware and software.

The Nordic method is used primarily to thin a

forest thus leaving the best trees standing. The

Nordic method is known for its significantly reduced

fuel consumption per harvested volume, reduction in

required manpower, and precise wood utilization (as

opposed to other logging methods). The machines

are relatively light leaving less of a footprint.

Leaves, needles, limbs, and tops remain on the forest

floor where they can supply nutrients to seedlings

and remaining trees. The remaining debris also

provides support for the forwarder to drive upon

reducing rutting. Less space is needed for the

roadside loading area and fewer overall machines are

needed in the woods. Valmet AB of Umeå and

Rottne Industri AB are two Swedish companies that

are leaders in the innovation of Nordic cut-to-length

logging machines. It is not unusual to find Nordic

cut-to-length machines in many parts of the United

States, particularly in Wisconsin and Michigan’s

Upper Peninsula. It is a technology that is certainly

catching on, despite the production advantages of

other methods and total cost of machinery. Paul

Bunyan would be proud.

GREETINGS FROM

NOBEL LODGE #288

MOLINE, ILLINOIS

Economic Rankings of the Nordic Countries

Invest in Sweden Agency, ISA, has collected economic rankings of the Nordic countries. The rankings are

based, unless otherwise noted, on 2007 statistics. The rankings reflect the Nordic countries’ placements versus all

other countries. They are as follows.

Rankings of the most competitive countries, as

determined by the World Economic Forum:

3. Denmark

4. Sweden

6. Finland

Rankings by a composed competitiveness index,

tallied by ISA based on a number of contributory

rankings:

2. Sweden

4. Finland

5. Denmark

8. Norway

Rankings by investment attraction, based on foreign

direct investment:

16. Sweden

Rankings based on the Global Innovation

Scoreboard:

1. Finland

2. Sweden

9. Denmark

Rankings based on R&D expenditures as a

percentage of GDP (2005):

2. Sweden

3. Finland

7. Iceland

Rankings based on university-industry collaboration:

3. Sweden

4. Finland

Rankings based on networking readiness:

1. Denmark

2. Sweden

6. Finland

8. Iceland

10. Norway

Rankings based on skills in English (at least

conversational knowledge):

2. Sweden

3. Denmark

4. Finland

Rankings based on productivity growth in

manufacturing (2000-2006):

2. Sweden

4. Norway

10. Denmark

Rankings based on engineering salaries, bonuses, and

incentives (2006):

3. Denmark

8. Sweden

ISA, in their publication “Sweden in Fact 2008/09” describes their agency as follows:

“ISA is the government agency responsible for promoting investment and business opportunities in Sweden to

foreign investors. Professional guidance is guaranteed since most ISA staff have corporate backgrounds and

extensive expertise in the investment process. We offer an effective link between your company and the Swedish

business sector. The services provided are free of charge.”

In the same publication, ISA describes their publicity mission:

“ISA assembles and makes available valuable information on its website to give foreign investors an overall

picture of what Sweden has to offer and to facilitate business entries. Publications, fact sheets and PowerPoint

presentations in several languages are published. Find out more at www.isa.se .”

Best Wishes

to

SVEA Lodge #253

from Austin Lodge #466

V.O.A.

Meets 2:00 PM, the 2nd Saturday of each

month unless noted otherwise

at Svithiod Hall

5516 W. Lawrence Avenue

Chicago, Illinois 60630

New Members Always Welcome

Call: Chairman, Robert Oberg

773 - 477 - 0875

Nordikids No. 208 and

Nordik Folk Lodge No. 761

[site of the 2010 District No. 8 Convention]

Congratulate

Svea Lodge No. 253

On a Successful

Convention!

Innovation in Norway

A Norwegian agency, Innovasjon Norge, has the following mission, as stated on its website,

www.innovasjonnorge.no:

“Innovation Norway promotes nationwide industrial development profitable to both the

business economy and Norway’s national economy, and helps release the potential of different

districts and regions by contributing towards innovation, internationalisation and promotion.

Innovation Norway offers products and services intended to help boost innovation in

business and industry nationwide, foster regional development and promote Norwegian industry

and Norway as a tourist destination.

With offices in all counties and in more than thirty countries worldwide, we are easy to get

in touch with. Our staff’s knowledge of local and international conditions will help turn

customers’ ideas into business successes.

According to its objects clause, Innovation Norway is to be backer and promoter of

entrepreneurs, newly-founded and small and medium-sized enterprises that seek to grow, as a rule

in an international market. The organisation’s role is to provide or arrange financing, link

customer enterprises to know-how and help them build networks for their innovation projects.”

Good Luck and Success on your 2009

District Lodge Lake Michigan No. 8

Convention for May 29, 30, 31, 2009

From your friends at Viking Lodge

No. 730, Flint, Michigan.

Gotland, the Viking Island: Paviken Viking Village

SWEDISH INNOVATIONS

Swedes, including those who lived in the

area of Sweden before the country was founded,

have a 1500 Year tradition of innovation.

By the year 500, long before the Viking

era, Swedes used longboats to cross the Baltic

Sea and to navigate the rivers that flow into it.

These travelers were traders and settlers. Their

boats were skillfully constructed and were

wider and deeper than warships, so that they

could carry greater amounts of cargo.

In 791, a king established the first

trading town in Sweden, and named it Birka. It

was on an island in Lake Mälaren, west of

present-day Stockholm. It had 1000 inhabitants

and a fortress where a garrison was based.

Merchants from Northern Europe and even the

Middle East met here to trade.

By 860, according to chronicles,

Swedish military men, called Varangians or

Rus, were invited to establish rule in Novgorod,

setting the foundation for rule in areas that

became Russia. Swedish traders and settlers

traveled through Russian rivers to the Black Sea

and beyond.

In the year 1288, the oldest corporation

in the world was first mentioned in a document

signed by King Magnus Ladulås. The

corporation began as the copper mine in Falun,

Sweden; it was known as Stora Kopparberget—

the great copper mine. Its successor corporation

is Stora Enso, and it has expanded into many

other businesses. The copper mine is no longer

in use.

Allemansrätten is an unwritten law that

everyone has the right to access another’s land,

as long as it is done without damage. Everyone

is entitled to cross--at least on foot--anyone's

land and remain there temporarily. For example,

in the Middle Ages, anyone traveling through a

forest was entitled to gather a hatful of nuts for

nourishment along the way. It is not known

when this custom began, but it probably is 500

years old.

It is also not known when the term

smörgåsbord was first used, but it is also an old

custom, of having a large buffet meal with

many types of food, especially for holidays and

feasts.

In 1523 the Royal Svea Life Guards (the

Infantry part of the Royal Life Guards) were

formed as part of the army of Gustav Eriksson

Vasa during the war of liberation against the

Danish troops of King Christian II of Denmark

and Sweden. They are the oldest designated

military unit in the world. They took part in

nearly all Swedish battles from King Gustav

Vasa onwards.

In 1523 Gustav Vasa’s campaign against the

Danes succeeded, and he was crowned as the

first king of an independent Sweden. Sweden

still maintains a monarchy, although the form of

government is a parliamentary democracy.

Known as the “Lion of the North,” King

Gustavus Adolphus II began his reign in 1611.

He modernized military tactics with the use of

mobile artillery and by stressing offensive

tactics. He was one of the greatest generals and

statesmen of all time. He introduced policies

that brought Sweden to prominence in the 17th

Century.

In 1638, Swedish settlers established the

first colony in Delaware. Swedes continued to

settle in the Delaware River Valley and brought

the log cabin to America. The oldest surviving

log cabin in the United States was built by

Swedes in the 1600’s. Olof Rudbeck the Elder

was a “universal genius.” In 1652 he published

his discovery of the human lymphatic system.

He built bridges, planned water systems and

taught many scientific subjects. He made

pioneering contributions in many of these

fields.

In 1645 Queen Christina and Chancellor

Axel Oxenstierna established the Post och

Inrikes Tidningar. It is the official publication

for bankruptcies and corporate and government

announcements. It is the world’s oldest

newspaper. It is the vehicle for the government

to voice its official view.

In 1668 the Riksdag founded the

Riksbank, and it is the world’s oldest central

bank. It succeeded the Stockholms Banco

(1656), the world's oldest note-issuing bank. It

is responsible for the monetary policy of the

country; it maintains the stability of the national

currency and the money supply.

Christopher Polhem began work at

copper mountain in 1700. He was one of the

leading engineering specialists of the world.

His ideas impacted many technological

developments of his era. During his 90-year

life, he turned out numerous inventions and

ingenious designs.

In 1735, Carl Linnaeus developed and

published his system that is still in use for

classifying and naming plants, animals, and

minerals. He was a natural historian, and he

collected specimens from all over the world.

Many of his specimens are still being studied.

In 1742, Anders Celsius first used his

experimental thermometer, which is now known

as the Celsius thermometer, with 0 degrees as

the freezing point of water and 100 degrees as

the boiling point of water. He was an

astronomer, and made many valuable

observations of eclipses, planet and comet

orbits, and types of stars.

In 1771, King Gustav III began his rule.

He was a great patron of the arts, and a style of

furniture and decoration began in his reign that

has become known as Gustavian style. Several

furniture companies manufacture reproductions

in his style.

In 1772 Carl Wilhelm Scheele

discovered oxygen. He discovered eight other

elements and isolated additional ones. He made

more significant discoveries than anyone else

before him. His discoveries included chlorine,

manganese, casein, aldehyde, hydrogen sulfide,

glycerol and tartaric, oxalic, lactic, mucic, uric,

prussic, citric, malic, and gallic acids. It is said

that Scheele brought to his science knowledge

of a greater number of new substances of

fundamental importance than any other chemist.

In 1809, Sweden developed the role of

the ombudsman, who was a government person

designated to look out for the interests of

citizens who had grievances against the

government.

Sweden last fought a major war in 1814.

Since then, the nation has been able to maintain

international neutrality and often serves

diplomatic roles in world events.

In 1818, Jöns Berzelius developed the

first table of atomic weights, after measuring

the weights of nearly all the 49 elements known

then. He also developed the symbols for the

elements’ names. He was perhaps the last

chemist for whom it was possible to carry all

chemical knowledge in his head. He greatly

improved laboratory equipment and procedures.

In 1844, Gustaf Erik Pasch developed

the first safety match, which used red

phosphorus on the matchbox. In 1855, J. E.

Lundstrom developed a phosphorus-free match.

In 1862, John Ericsson built the Union

Navy’s armored ship Monitor, which fought the

Confederacy’s Merrimac. He also developed the

first practical propeller drive system for ships.

The Monitor was so-christened because it was

to monitor the Confederacy’s ports.

In 1866, Alfred Nobel began

manufacturing dynamite, after years of research

with nitroglycerine. He later developed other

explosives and also synthetic products based on

nitrocellulose such as rubber, leather, thread,

varnish, and silk.

In 1866, Anders Jonas Ångström laid a

foundation for the field of spectroanalysis. In

this year he published a listing of the spectra of

almost 100 elements. He used the number one

ten-millionth of a millimeter in measuring

wavelengths, and this number became

designated as the angstrom unit. (1 Å = .1 nm.)

In 1878, Gustaf de Laval developed the

centrifugal cream separator used for separating

cream from milk. His company became Alfa-

Laval, and the cream separator became

Sweden’s first major manufactured export. He

also developed a high-speed steam turbine

technology that was the most-used type for

steam power.

In 1870 Aurora Ljungstedt’s story,

known in English as “The Hastfordian

Escutcheon,” was published. It was a mystery

story that antedated the first Sherlock Holmes

story by Arthur Conan Doyle by 17 years.

In 1885, Lars Magnus Ericsson invented

the telephone handset. The Ericsson Company

also developed switches and network equipment

and dominated the Swedish market. In 1885,

Stockholm had more phones per capita than any

other city in the world. Ericsson is now known

worldwide for wireless phones.

In the late 1800s and early 1900s, Carl

Larsson was a well-known painter who

popularized a style of interior appearance.

In 1891, Artur Hazelius established the

first open air living history museum, Skansen,

in Stockholm. Over 150 historical buildings

have been moved there from throughout

Sweden. Hosts and hostesses in period costume

demonstrate domestic and manufacturing

occupations.

In 1892, Johan Petter Johansson patented

the first adjustable nut wrench. Overall, he

developed 118 inventions.

In 1900, Gideon Sundbäck developed the

first workable zipper, after other zipping

fasteners had been in use before.

In 1901, the first Nobel Prizes were

awarded, based on funding provided by Alfred

Nobel. They are awarded “to those who… have

conferred the greatest benefit on mankind.”

In 1907, Sven Wingquist founded the

company SKF. He is considered the inventor of

the modern spherical roller bearing.

In 1909, Vattenfall developed as a

company to use water power to generate

electricity. It is now a major supplier of power

in several European countries.

In 1912, the first production household

vacuum cleaners were manufactured by a

company which later merged to form

Electrolux.

In 1927, Assar Gabrielsson and Gustaf

Larsson founded Volvo Cars to build cars based

on car safety, quality, and strength.

In 1941, Viktor Hasselblad developed

precision cameras for aerospace applications

and for personal use. A Hasselblad was used to

take the pictures of the first moon landing in

1969.

In 1942, Astrid Lindgren began

publishing the stories of Pippi Longstocking, a

girl who encourages girls to have fun and to

believe in themselves.

In 1943, Ingvar Kamprad established the

first IKEA store. There are more than 500

million IKEA shoppers each year.

In 1948, the company Astra developed

xylocain, based on a local anesthetic developed

by Nils Löfgren and Bengt Lundquist in 1943.

Xylocain has been a standard local anesthetic

since then.

In 1951, Erik Wallenberg and Ruben

Rausing developed plastic-coated paper

containers for packaging milk and juice. Their

company Tetra Pak produces more than 100

billion containers each year.

In 1953, Helmuth Hertz and physician

Inge Edler developed the first cardiac

ultrasound machine, which performs

echocardiography.

In 1953, Sven Kamph developed a

hovering lawnmower, the Flymo, which floats

above the ground. More than 500,000 have been

made.

In 1955, Lars-Einar Fryklöf, Erik Sandell

and Ivan Östholm developed time-release

tablets, which release the medicine in a pill

gradually after it is ingested. We can take

medication less often, and medicate ourselves

evenly.

In 1958, Rune Elmqvist developed the

first implantable heart pacemaker, in association

with Åke Senning. Pacemakers enable

abnormal hearts to beat in a regular rhythm.

In 1959, Nils Bohlin of Volvo developed

the three-point safety belt, which used a strap

across the upper body as well as one across the

hips.

In 1961, Hans Karlsson developed the

retractable seat belt, which is the type most

widely used now.

In 1628, the warship Gustav Vasa sank

on its first voyage. It was raised in 1961 and is

now on display in Stockholm in its own

museum.

In 1965, Lennart Nilsson took the first

in-vitro baby photographs, which were

published in Life Magazine. They appeared in

the book A Child Is Born; some are aboard the

Voyager Spacecraft.

In 1965, a number of researchers at three

Swedish pharmaceuticals developed beta-

blockers. They are used for heart disease,

asthma, and other illnesses.

In 1965, Nils Alwall and Lennart

Östergren invented the kidney dialysis machine

that performs the functions of the kidneys for

people with kidney disease or failure.

In 1968, Lars Leksell invented the

gamma knife, which is not a knife, but a method

for using gamma radiation to destroy brain

tumors.

In 1984, Perstorp AB, founded 120 years

ago, introduced laminated flooring to the world,

first in Europe. It is now the world’s largest

supplier.

In 1990, Sweden began developing

Hammarby Sjöstad in Stockholm. It will be a

state-of-the-art community of 20,000 residents

and 10,000 jobs. It will have state-of-the-art

environmental programs, including renewable

energy, recycling, ecologically-friendly

building materials and designs, and public

transportation, and pedestrian and bike paths.

Located in a formerly unsightly industrial and

warehouse area, the community is built around

an inner harbor. The buildings will be all new

or renovated and will be very attractive.

GREETINGS AND BEST WISHES FOR A

SUCCESSFUL CONVENTION

FROM BISHOP HILL LODGE #683

HOME OF THE NATIONAL ARCHIVES

SWEDISH CHEMISTS AND THE ELEMENTS

By Dan Anderson

Most of you have probably

enjoyed (or suffered through) at

least one course in chemistry in

either high school or college. You

probably remember that there were 92

recognized elements, of which

everything on Earth is composed. Two

elements, 85 and 87, are not found in

nature, and have been produced only

in a nuclear reactor. It is estimated

that less than one ounce of each

exists on earth. Since the beginning

of the Atomic Age, 10-20 artificial

elements have been made, mostly in

microscopic quantities, by bombarding

heavy elements with subatomic

particles to make a larger atom.

The atomic number of an element

refers to the number of positive

particles (protons) in the nucleus,

balanced by an equal number of

negative particles (electrons), in

orbit around the nucleus. The Russian

chemist Mendeleev arranged the known

elements in numerical order, and

constructed a table in which elements

of similar properties fell in the

same vertical column as the atomic

weights increased. With this tool, he

was able to predict the properties of

several elements which had not yet

been discovered. When found, their

properties came very close to what he

had predicted.

Many elements, such as iron,

tin, gold, silver, mercury and

copper, had been known since ancient

times, and their Latin names are

still used in chemical symbols. Until

after the year 1000, chemistry made

little progress - the closest related

activity was alchemy, whose goals

were to produce gold out of almost

anything, and to produce a potion

which, when drunk, would result in

eternal life on Earth. Rational

science began to appear in the 16th

century, and strong efforts were made

to discover the laws governing the

motion of the earth, sun and stars,

and the composition of matter.

The use of electricity greatly

increased the pace of discovery of

new elements, as solutions and molten

salts could be broken down by passing

a current between two electrodes to

separate the portions of the mix

which were positively charged from

those which are negatively charged.

Although we often think of English

and German scientists in the field of

inorganic chemistry, Sweden was also

prominent in chemical research,

centered at the University of

Uppsala. In fact, Swedes have been

credited with the discovery of more

natural elements than any other

nation!

Andres Gustav Ekeberg had been

a student at Uppsala and studied

abroad for several years, absorbing

many of the new ideas and practices

of the Frenchman Antoine Lavoisier,

one of the founders of modern

chemistry. He eventually returned to

Uppsala as a lecturer in chemistry.

Although he was partially deaf from a

childhood illness and blind in one

eye from an exploding flask in his

laboratory, he pursued many projects,

including the analysis of ores from

Ytterby Quarry, near Stockholm.

(More about that later.) He believed

he had found a new element, but found

it extremely difficult to separate

from another with very similar

properties, so he called it tantalum,

after the mythological Greek

Tantalus. It was not until almost

sixty years later that tantalum and

its close relative niobium were

completely separated and Ekeberg

given credit for the discovery. While

teaching, he encountered a young

student, Jons Jakob Berzelius, who

had entered university with the

thought of becoming a medical doctor.

Although he limped through his

medical studies and eventually earned

an M.D., Berzelius became interested

in chemistry, which became the major

portion of his life's work.

Berzelius learned of the work

of the Italian Volta and was quick to

test Volta’s work in his laboratory.

He invented suitable electrodes and

developed processes for electrolyzing

solutions, which gave him the ability

to isolate several elements. He also

determined the atomic weights of

almost all the elements known at that

time, and found that there was a

definite amount of element A

combining with element B to form a

chemical compound of fixed

composition.

He experimented with electric

treatments on some of his medical

patients, but the results were

disappointing. His elemental

discoveries included silicon,

selenium, cobalt, zirconium and

thorium, the latter bearing the name

of the thunderbolt-wielding Norse

god. During his long life, he was

permanent secretary of the Royal

Academy of Science and was made a

baron by the king.

But Berzelius' contribution to

chemistry most familiar to us is his

introduction of one- or two-letter

symbols for the elements and numbers

representing the number of atoms of

each element in the molecule. For

example, aluminum oxide is Al

2

O

3

,

meaning that in each molecule, there

are two atoms of aluminum and three

of oxygen. The only change in his

system has been to write the numbers

below the line, instead of higher

than the letters in his original

proposal.

Carl Gustav Mosander was also a

medical doctor and pupil of

Berzelius. His chemical contributions

lay mainly in the further analysis of

the minerals from the famous quarry

at Ytterby. Gadolin, a Finn, and

Klaproth, a German, had separated two

types of metal oxide from the ore,

one of which was called ytterbia and

the other ceria. Most chemists of

the day suspected that neither one

was a compound of a pure element, so

Mosander devoted much time to

fractional crystallization, putting

the oxides into acid solution and

taking advantage of the slight

difference in solubilities of the

salts by repeatedly recrystallizing

the salts from solution until what

appeared to be a pure product was

obtained.

Among his discoveries were

erbium, terbium and lanthanum

(Ytterby again) and an oxide which he

called didymium, which was later

separated into two elements,

neodymium and praseodymium. Mosander

taught chemistry at the Carolinska

Institute in Stockholm and headed the

mineralogy department at the Royal

Academy of Science.

Per Theodore Cleve continued

working with the Ytterby ores and

monazite sand, another rich source of

what are called the rare earth

elements. He isolated the oxides of

two additional elements, holmium

(named after Stockholm) and thulium,

from Ultima Thule, the land at the

end of the world, a term often

applied to parts of Scandinavia.

Karl Wilhelm Scheele was born

in Pomerania, Germany, which at that

time was controlled by Sweden. His

career was that of a pharmacist, but

he experimented widely in the

chemical area. He spent much time in

determining the role of oxygen in

combustion, helping to destroy the

old theory that when a substance was

burnt, it absorbed something called

"phlogiston". He is credited with

discovering or isolating the elements

manganese, molybdenum, and chlorine.

Other Swedish scientists and

the elements they discovered were

Lars Fredrikson - scandium (named

after Scandinavia), Axel Fredrik

Cronstedt - nickel, Johan August

Arfwedson - lithium, and Georg Brandt

- cobalt. Two more elements were

named after that quarry near

Stockholm - yttrium and ytterbium. I

believe it's something of a record

when four elements are named for the

same location!

As was mentioned earlier, when

the periodic table was developed by

Mendeleev, there were a large number

of elements (about 16) which had

similar properties, but whose atomic

numbers were almost consecutive.

These, known as "rare earths",

because of the difficulty of

separation, were assigned two

spaces, in the same vertical column,

forming loops in the old periodic

table, but are now listed in a

separate category.

Apparently some of the

artificial elements of atomic numbers

higher than that of uranium follow a

similar pattern, but are unlikely to

be encountered outside of a nuclear

reactor. The rare earths are really

not that rare, and do have some

industrial applications. Separation

is much easier these days with the

use of chromatography and ion-

exchange resins.

So, when we use a chemical

product or plastic to help us with

some of the tasks of daily living,

please give a thought to the diligent

Swedes of two or three centuries ago

who helped "make this a better world

through chemistry."

Dan Anderson was

born in New York

State in 1931 and

majored in chemical

engineering in

college, obtaining a

degree in 1951.

After three years in

the Army, he

worked for two

chemical companies

in northeast Ohio

before moving to

Indianapolis in 1959, where he began work with

an electrical component manufacturer, rising to

the position of Section Head and leading a group

of engineers and technicians in the field of

electrochemistry of aluminum-based products.

Dan and his wife Sophia have been married for 48

years and have had three children. They have

been members of Svea 253 for about 30 years and

also belong to a German choral group. Since Dan

retired in 1987, he and Sophia have been deeply

involved in gardening, and taking part in

community beautification as well as giving talks

on wildflowers and their uses in the home garden.

They also like to travel and have been to Sweden

and other Scandinavian countries several times.

Welcome District Lodge

Lake Michigan No. 8, VOA

Wishing you a most successful

and pleasant convention.

Best Wishes and Congratulations

to Svea Lodge No. 253

hosting the 101st Convention

Marty and Chuck Lindgren

Svea Lodge No. 253

Indianapolis, Indiana

Best wishes Svea Lodge 253

Indianapolis, Indiana

For a Successful

101st Convention

from

Jubileum 755

Madison, Wisconsin

Swedish Art and Innovation

By Professor Michelle Facos, Indiana University

Sweden became more than a provincial

backwater of the art world in 1735, when French

artist Guillaume Taraval established an art academy

in Stockholm, based on the model of the one

established in Paris by Louis XIV in 1648. Swedish

artist Alexander Roslin (1718-1793), who trained at

the Stockholm academy, departed for more

glamorous Paris in 1750, where his precisely

rendered silks and laces and masterful renditions of

elaborate coiffures made him one of Paris’s most

sought after society portraitists; he was a particular

favorite of the Russian nobility. Considering

Sweden’s vast tracts of wilderness, it is no surprise

that early Swedish painters excelled at landscape

painting. Elias Martin (1739-1818) spent twelve

years in London, returning in 1780 and bringing

with him the British picturesque tradition that

prized idyllic depictions of a countryside graced by

fields and cottages. His student, Carl Johan

Fahlcrantz (1774-1861) was the very first professor

of landscape painting at the Stockholm academy

and the first Swedish artist to spend his entire career

in Sweden. His style, a Romantic one characterized

by leafy vegetation and broad vistas punctuated by

the steeples of distant churches, set the standard for

Swedish landscape painting in the nineteenth

century.

Teaching at the Stockholm academy

changed little since its inception in 1735 and by the

late nineteenth century, young artists became

frustrated by a curriculum that seemed hopelessly

outdated. They were tired of spending their student

years indoors, making drawings after casts of

ancient sculptures and, once they had mastered that,

of men posed like those ancient sculptures. They

did not want to represent subjects from history or

literature or paint landscapes according to tired,

outdated formulas. These young art students saw

what was happening abroad, especially in Paris, and

wanted to join the trend to represent contemporary

subjects in a more modern style – to chronicle the

times in which they were living.

So, in 1874, a migration of adventurous

Swedish artists to Paris began with the arrival of

Ernst Josephson, who was soon joined by Georg

Pauli, Carl Larsson, Nils Kreuger, Karl Nordström,

and Richard Bergh. They studied at the small

private art schools of Paris and attracted

international attention when they won medals at the

Paris Salon, the prestigious annual art exhibition.

This was much more impressive than the

accomplishments of their teachers in the academy at

home. The exhilarating atmosphere of Paris, where

anything seemed possible, contrasted with

Stockholm, where the academy had a virtual

stranglehold on the art market. The fact that Sweden

was so poor that few people were interested in

collecting art made thoughts of returning home

seemingly impossible. In 1885, however, these

young artists became impatient and established a

rival organization in Stockholm, the Artists’

Association (Konstnärsförbundet). The Association

organized Sweden’s first regularly held exhibitions,

and cultivated wealthy bankers like Ernst Thiel in

Stockholm and Pontus Fürstenburg in Göteborg,

who spent a fortune on this radically new, modern

art. They opened up the art market and made it

possible for the first time for artists to support

themselves without the endorsement of the

Stockholm academy.

Association artists working in Paris painted

what they saw – farmers plowing fields, their

friends, gatherings in cafes. They didn’t follow any

rules and tried to develop unique styles that

expressed their individuality. They continued this

practice when they returned to Sweden in the late

1880s. Nordström concentrated on the rugged

contours of his native Tjörn, Kreuger turned to the

lush fields of his native Öland, Zorn depicted the

folklife of his native Mora, Larsson painted the

domestic life of his growing family in Sundborn,

and Gustaf Fjaestad pictured the snowy silent

forests of his Värmland. Despite the vast differences

in style and subject matter, these artists were united

in their desire to establish a uniquely Swedish

school of painting, one that reflected the

biomystical connectedness of Swedes to nature.

This movement became known as National

Romanticism because it sought to evoke in its

Swedish audience an emotional attachment to their

homeland, a spirit of fosterlandkärlek (love of

native land) that could unite all Swedes.

As National Romantic artists aged, they too

became a kind of establishment, one against which

younger artists rebelled. Younger artists ignored the

plea of National Romantic to stay home and

celebrate Sweden, to remain untainted by foreign

influences and to further develop a uniquely

Swedish school of art. They, like their predecessors,

wanted to be modern and independent, and Paris

was still the place to go. There, art had changed a

lot since the residence of the National Romantics

there in the 1870s and 1880s. Instead of

Impressionism, Expressionism, Cubism, and

Futurism were the new trends. Ambitious Swedish

painters like Issac Grünewald and Sigrid Hjerten

studied with the renowned Fauve (“wild beast”)

painter Henri Matisse in Paris and became

interested in using colors to express emotions rather

than to describe objects. Instead of quiet paintings

that fostered meditations on Swedish nature,

painters such as Nils Dardel made exuberant

evocations of Paris streets and French harbors.

Although developments in twentieth century

Swedish art kept pace with progressive

developments in the international art scene, it is the

art of National Romanticism that continues to be

most closely linked to Swedishness. Recent scholars

have recognized how adventurous National

Romantics were in creating a wholly new kind of

art – neither Realist, nor Impressionist, nor

Symbolist, but with elements of each.

In Honor of

Gunnard Johnson

Best Wishes from

Satellite 661

Kalamazoo, Michigan

BEST WISHES

SVEA LODGE 253

INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA

FOR A SUCCESSFUL 101ST

CONVENTION

FROM

JOE-HARBOR LODGE 534

ST. JOSEPH MICHIGAN

Nordic Co-operation

The Secretary General of the Nordic Council of Ministers, Halldór

Ásgrímsson, said the following to the Nordic prime ministers in June

2008:

"The Nordic countries come out best in a whole range of

international comparisons. However, we must continue to innovate, work

on areas where we share joint interests and play to our strengths in the

international world in which we live. Globalisation and

internationalisation are not going away. We have to face up to that

fact. We have to be pragmatic, positive but determined.”

Our Swedish National Anthem

We thank Sweden.se, the official gateway to Sweden, and the Embassy

of Sweden, Washington, D. C., for providing us a CD of the Swedish

National Anthem. The performers are the Band of the Royal Guards

Regiment. The anthem will be played in the opening of our

convention.

ERIK BERTIL HOLMBERG (1908-2000)

SWEDISH ASTRONOMER AND THE HOLMBERG GALAXIES

By Janet Holmberg Jegen, Svea No. 253

Erik Bertil Holmberg is an

internationally renowned

astronomer known for his

pioneering work on galaxies,

particularly multiple galaxies.

During the 1940’s, when he was a

professor at the Lund Observatory

in Sweden, and long before the

dawn of the computer era, he

performed a remarkable experiment

to explore the gravitational

dynamics of interacting galaxies.

His experiment consisted of using

light bulbs, photocells,

statistics, and skillful

observation. One of his

conclusions was that galaxies

often merge into one single

larger galaxy, and it was not

until about 30 years later, when

appropriate computers became

available, that his results could

be confirmed.

Holmberg was also a

professor at Uppsala University

and director of the Uppsala

Observatory from 1959 to 1975.

There, he inspired his students

to start work on minor planets,

which at the time was almost an

unknown topic for research in

Uppsala.

There are a number of

galaxies named after Holmberg,

designated from Holmberg I to

Holmberg IX, and there is an

asteroid named Holmberg 3573,

discovered in 1982 by C.I.

Lagerkvist, and later named in

honor of the Swedish astronomer

on the occasion of his eightieth

birthday.

When today’s astronomers

refer to the “Holmberg radius”,

the “Holmberg effect”, “Holmberg

galaxies”, and “Holmberg (3573)”,

they are honoring Erik Holmberg

for his many contributions to

extragalactic astronomy.

Hagar Lodge #721 VOA

Would like to congratulate the Delegates

To the 101st VOA Convention

VOA members and friends are welcome to join us on the

2nd Friday of the month September-June at 7pm

Hagarlodge721@gmail.com

DANISH INNOVATIONS

In 1820 Hans Christian Ørsted

was the first to observe the

phenomenon of electromagnetism. He

saw that an electric current caused a

compass needle to deflect, indicating

that an electric current has magnetic

properties. After he published his

work, electromagnetism became a main

subject of study in physics. In 1825

he advanced research in aluminum by

producing a still-impure form of it.

Throughout his life he continued to

publish many works that helped to

spread the advance and knowledge of

science.

In 1835 Hans Christian Andersen

published the first of his Fairy

Tales, Told for Children. These were

innovative, full of enjoyable

characters and moral teaching. They

were based on folk tales. In Danish,

they are known as Eventyr. He

visited Sweden in 1837 and in 1839

wrote a poem Jeg er Skandinav (I am a

Scandinavian). He wrote a poem about

Jenny Lind, The Nightingale, which

led to her being called the Swedish

Nightingale. Among his best-known

works are Thumbellina, The Little

match Girl, The Snow Queen, The Ugly

Duckling, The Little Mermaid, The

Emperor’s New Clothes, and The

Princess and the Pea.

In 1865 Rasmus Malling-Hansen

invented a form of typewriting

machine known as the Hansen Writing

Ball. It was patented and produced

for sale in 1870 and is considered

the first commercial typewriter. He

also studied the growth of children

and flora and determined that growth

rates are not constant but that the

rays of the sun influence growth

rates in all nature.

In 1887 Frederik Hellesen

designed what is believed to be the

first dry-cell battery. This is the

most widely used type of battery

today, and the flashlight battery is

this kind.

In 1913, physicist Niels Bohr

published his model of atomic

structure. He posited that electrons

travel in orbits around the nuclei of

atoms and that the chemical

interactions of atoms are a function

of the number of electrons in the

outer orbits of an atom. He also

said that electrons could move from a

higher-energy orbit to a lower one

and emit a quantum of energy, a

photon. This introduced quantum

theory. In 1922, he was awarded the

Nobel Prize for physics. He

conceived the theory of

complementarity, which, for example,

leads to explaining light as a wave

or as particles. In 1943 he escaped

from Denmark to Sweden and then made

his way eventually to the US. He

worked on the Manhattan Project and

later campaigned for the peaceful use

of nuclear energy. He was one of the

greatest scientists and visionaries

in history.

In 1932, Ole Kirk Christiansen

began making wooden toys that he

named Legos, after the Danish phrase

leg godt—which means play well. Lego

is now the sixth largest toy company

in the world, and the building

components are now made of plastic.

There are four Legolands in the

world—open air theme parks containing

scale models made with millions of

Lego blocks each.

In 1933, Danish-born Niels

Christensen invented the O-ring.

This is a rubber ring—in the shape of

a donut—that fits in a groove around

a piston that slides back and forth

in a cylinder. The ring makes a

tight seal between the piston and the

cylinder. Christiansen received a US

patent for his invention in 1937.

Aurora Ljungstedt,

Sweden's First Mystery

Writer

by Jean Tygum, Svea No. 253

In 2009, the mystery genre is bursting with

good health. Whodunit stories and novels are

flourishing worldwide and Swedish authors such as

Per Wahlöö and Maj Sjöwall, creators of Detective

Martin Beck, and writer Henning Mankell, creator of

Detective Kurt Wallander, are universally known and

loved. But when did mystery fiction take root in

Sweden?

Some say it began on a foggy morning in

Stockholm in 1870, when a distinguished gentleman

made his way through the chilly streets to ask a favor

of a friend who published the widely circulated

newspaper, Nya Dagligt Allehanda. Would the

friend be willing to publish, in serial fashion, some

new work by the writer Claude Gérard? Specifically,

two short novels, Hastfordska vapnet (The

Hastfordian Escutcheon) and Det obturna brevet (The

Sealed Letter). (Escutcheon = family crest).

The publisher, having previously printed short

pieces by Claude Gérard, readily agreed, and the two

friends shook hands warmly. Thus the books

regarded by some literary historians as the first

Swedish mystery novels saw the light of day,

serialized in the newspaper in 1871.

These two novels perhaps fit better into the genre

of Gothic romance (skräckromantiska , “horror

novel”) than mystery as we think of it today, but they

do feature a detective who investigates and solves a

mystery. Moreover, though confronted with strange

happenings in a large spooky house, with a cast of

characters behaving suspiciously in a shadowy

moonlit atmosphere, the narrator-detective finds a

solution that is rational and realistic, which explains

away the seemingly eerie or supernatural.

Hastfordian Escutcheon, in fact, features not one but

two amateur detectives working in tandem: an elderly

retired judge named Uncle Benjamin and a

chambermaid called Lisslena.

Now, who was this “French” author, Claude

Gérard? Not a Frenchman at all, but the very

Swedish wife of the aforementioned distinguished

gentleman. His name was Samuel Viktor Ljungstedt,

he was a prison board official in Stockholm, and he

dutifully promoted his wife's writing throughout their

marriage.

Her name was Aurora Lovisa Hjort Ljungstedt,

she was 50 years old in 1871, and these two novels

were far from her first literary output. She had been

a scribbler since nursery days, when she shared her

original poems and stories with her family, her

captive audience. Supposedly her family discouraged

her literary ambitions (“Unladylike!”), but she

persisted. At age 25 she married S.V. Ljungstedt and

settled into a pleasant life of domesticity and writing.

Over the course of her 87 years, she wrote three

novels and many fanciful and murky short stories

which appeared, under more than one pen name, in

the Swedish newspapers Aftonbladet and Nya

Dagligt Allehanda between 1857 and 1878, and

likely through self-publishing. Her first novel, Hin

ondes hus (The Devil's House or The House of Old

Nick) appeared in 1853 under the French pseudonym

“Richard.”

Aurora Ljungstedt, née Hjort, was born

September 2, 1821, into an aristocratic family in

Blekinge Province in southern Sweden. During her

childhood, the family moved to Kolmården, south of

Stockholm. Young Aurora grew up in a beautiful

home in a woodsy area that no doubt lent credence to

the ghost stories and funereal legends that her

maternal great-grandmother related in hushed tones

by flickering firelight. Tales involving devils,

graveyard intrigues, and mysterious forest creatures.

Powerful fuel for a child's imagination.

In fact, Gothic tales of mystery and terror were all

the rage among the European reading public during

Ljungstedt's lifetime. Gothic fiction from England,

France and Germany reached Sweden in translation

in the late eighteenth century, works such as Horace

Walpole's Castle of Otranto (1765), Ann Radcliffe's

Mystery of Udolpho (1794) and The Italian (1797),

and Matthew Gregory Lewis's The Monk (1796).

Later, Mary Shelley's Frankenstein (1818) took

Swedish readers by storm, as did the opus of

Ljungstedt's contemporary, Edgar Allan Poe (1809-

1949).

The French were wild for Poe and Swedes were

wild for everything French. Both of Ljungstedt's

pseudonyms come from French stories. Claude

Gérard was a character in a story by Ljungstedt's

favorite French writer, Eugène Sue, whose popular

mysteries featured such unusual characters as a

female pirate. Ljungstedt also devoured everything

Poe wrote and like Poe, gravitated toward the bizarre.

Indeed, the title Det Obturna Brevet (The Sealed

Letter) seems a tip of the hat to Poe's “Purloined

Letter.” Not surprisingly, some literary historians

call Ljungstedt “the Swedish Edgar Allan Poe.”

Some say Hastfordian Escutcheon and Det

Obturna Brevet were “best sellers,” but this seems

unlikely. The newspaper presented Ljungstedt's

novels along with weather reports, news of the day,

obituaries and advertising. The novels were printed,

but were they read? Would her writing have been

published at all if her husband had not actively

promoted her? We cannot know. What is known is

that by 1872, the year after Nya Dagligt Allehanda

serialized the two mysteries, she faded into obscurity.

For decades she was forgotten, until late

twentieth century literary scholars began looking into

the history of the Swedish mystery and found Aurora

Ljungstedt. Her fame, if fame it ever was, did not

last, but she is of interest to us because of what

followed: A worldwide mania for detective fiction,

for the adventures of The Great Detective: Sherlock

Holmes, Hercule Poirot, Miss Jane Marple, Lord

Peter Wimsey, Inspector Jules Maigret, Lew Archer,

Philip Marlowe, Sam Spade, Nero Wolfe, and a

multitude of others. Including, of course, from

Swedish pens, the stellar Martin Beck and Kurt

Wallander.

Aurora Ljungstedt's novels have historic value

because it appears she was a pioneer on the path of

Swedish detective fiction, though it seems doubtful

that any later mystery writers, in Sweden or

elsewhere, ever heard of her. She was a reflector of

light rather than its source, one inspired rather than

inspiring. And yet, even a small star casts a glow.

Swedish detective fiction is alive and well in 2009

and Aurora Ljungstedt's star has a place in the

cosmos.

The Hastfordian Escutcheon and Det Obturna Brevet

(in Swedish, not English) may be purchased from

Swedish bookstores and online websites. You may

also check them out of the public library in Sweden.

An Icelandic Innovation

Icelandic explorers under the

direction of Leif Ericsson

discovered the New World in the

year 1000. Their literary sagas

tell the Viking stories, including

the story of this great voyage.

Greetings to all VASA members

Our best wishes for a successful

convention and a big THANK YOU to

Svea Lodge No. 253

for hosting the 101st annual

District Lodge Lake Michigan

No. 8 Convention

From all the members of

Siljan-Mora-Tuna Lodge No. 134

and the home lodge of

Sten Hult, Past District Master

and the Grand Lodge Deputy,

D. L. No. 8, 2006 – 2010

Lisa Cianci, D. L. Executive

Board member

The local lodge members are the

backbone of Vasa, but the youth

are the future of the Vasa Order.

Remember to support our

children’s clubs.

We thank Professor Annette

Johansson, Svea Lodge No. 253,

for her generous sponsorship

of the appearance of the

pianist for the Sunday

Memorial Service.

We thank Lillemor and Richard Horngren for

their generous donations of Swedish dolls and

pictures for Convention fundraisers.

We are sorry you could not attend, but will see

you next Convention!

We thank Chuck and Marty Lindgren of

Svea Lodge No. 253, who made generous

donations of golf tournament

prizes and gifts for fundraisers.

More than 90 members of Svea Lodge

No. 253 purchased fundraiser items.

They also contributed fundraiser gifts,

food and drinks for the hospitality room,

and most valuable of all, their time and

support for the Convention.

Tack skall du ha!

Thanks to our fellow members of District

Lodge Lake Michigan No. 8 for

supporting our fundraisers, for

contributing to our request for donations,

and for sponsoring advertisements in the

program book.

The Convention program book will

remain as a newsletter on the Vasa

District web site until

1 October 2009 at

www.vasaorder.net/newsletters.cfm?lodge=D8.

If you wish to contribute

to the program book, your input will

be added to the on-line version.

We will accept pictures taken at the

convention or additional articles

about Nordic innovations.

Address contributions to:

nodjehult@att.net.

There is a Grand Lodge restriction

on the amount of space that can

be used on-line for a document,

but we will fit in as many

contributions as space permits.

From 1 October 2009, the next

Convention will use the web site

location for their program book

and/or news about their convention.

Please ‘watch that space’ often.

Enighet

ger

styrka.

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NORDIC MYSTERY WRITERS AND THEIR BOOKS

Icelandic Authors

Arnaldur Indridason

Jar City

Voices

Silence of the Grave

The Draining Lake

Yrsa Sigurdardottir

Last Rituals

Norwegian Authors

K.O Dahl

The Fourth Man

The Man in the Window

Karin Fossum

Don’t Look Back

He Who Fears the Wolf

When the Devil Holds the Candle

The Indian Bride

Black Seconds

Anne Holt

Punishment

The Final Murder

Jo Nesbo

The Redbreast

Nemesis

Devil’s Star

Swedish Authors

Karin Alvtegen

Missing

Betrayal

Shame

Guilt

Åke Edwardson

Sun and Shadow

Never End

Frozen Tracks

Kjell Eriksson

The Princess of Burundi

The Cruel Stars of the Night

The Demon from Dakar

Inger Frimansson

Good Night, My Darling

The Shadow in the Water

Mari Jungstedt

Unseen

Unspoken

The Inner Circle

Camilla Läckberg

The Ice Princess

Åsa Larsson

Sun Storm

The Blood Spilt

The Black Path

Stieg Larsson

The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo

The Girl Who Played With Fire

Henning Mankell

Faceless Killer

The Dogs of Riga

The White Lioness

The Man Who Smiled

Sidetracked

The Fifth Woman

One Step Behind

Firewall

The Pyramid

Before the Frost

Liza Marklund

The Bomber

Studio 69

Paradise

Prime Time

Håkan Nesser

Borkmann’s Point

The Return

The Mind’s Eye

Maj Sjöwall and Per Wahlöö

Roseanna

The Man Who Went up in Smoke

The Man on the Balcony

The Laughing Policeman

The Fire Engine That Disappeared

Murder at the Savoy

The Abominable Man

The Locked Room

Cop Killer

The Terrorists

Johan Theorin

Echoes from the Dead

Helene Tursten

Detective Inspector Huss

The Torso

The Glass Devil

Finnish Author

Matti Joensuu

The Stone Murders

The Priest of Evil

To Steal Her Love

Danish Authors

Peter Hoeg

The Quiet Girl

Christian Jungersen

The Exception

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ALFRED NOBEL

by Sten Hult from Scandinavian Review

Alfred Nobel is perhaps the Swede who is

best-known throughout the world.

On November 27 1895, Nobel penned his will;

he died one year later in his magnificent villa in San

Remo on the Italian Riviera. In his will Nobel

stipulated that the major part of his estate (31 million

Swedish kronor, that have grown into more than two

billion today) was to be invested. The income from

the investments was to be “distributed annually in the

form of prizes to those who during the preceding year

have conferred the greatest benefit on mankind”.

The five prizes are for work in physics,

chemistry, medicine, literature and peace. A prize in

economics “in memory of Alfred Nobel” was added in

1969. There is also a “Right Livelihood” prize

awarded simultaneously, which was founded by the

Swedish philanthropist Jakob von Uexkull.

Alfred Nobel’s will created was contested by

some of his relatives. Swedish King Oscar II claimed

that Alfred Nobel’s donation was not “patriotic”.

Today it is estimated that one-third of the world press

articles about Sweden can be attributed to the Nobel

Prize.

Nobel’s assistant and testament executor

Ragnar Sohlman insured that the will would be

enforced. Sohlman rushed to Paris and St. Petersburg,

with the Nobel family in hot pursuit, and withdrew all

funds and deposited them in a bank in Stockholm. A

three-year long dispute followed before the first prizes

could finally be awarded in 1901.

Alfred Nobel was born in Stockholm on

October 21, 1833. His father, an inventor, moved to

St. Petersburg, when Alfred was five, to start anew

after a bankruptcy in Sweden. The family followed

four years later after Immanuel had established a

successful industry, producing mines for the Russian

army. Alfred was sent on a two-year trip in Europe

and the USA when he was seventeen. He was fluent

in Swedish, Russian, English, French and German.

Immanuel’s company went bankrupt in 1850

and everything changed. Immanuel returned to

Sweden with his wife and sons, Alfred and Emil.

Sons Ludvig and Robert stayed on in Russia and it is

through them that the Nobel family today lives on in

Sweden.

Ludvig, an inventor, developed his own

company, Ludvig Nobels Maskinfabrik, into one of

Russia’s largest industrial concerns, as is still evident

in the blocks of buildings at the Viborg quay in Saint

Petersburg. Robert established a petroleum company

that became one of Russia’s largest industries and the

third power on the international oil market together

with the Rockefellers and the Rothchilds. When the

Communists seized power in 1917, the Nobel

industries were the very first to be seized by the Red

Army and the family had to flee to Sweden.

Immanuel Nobel, after fleeing from Russia,

set up a laboratory to manufacture explosives on a

farm in the south of Stockholm with his sons Alfred

and Emil. An explosion killed Emil and four others

and led to a stroke for Immanuel.

Alfred continued the experiments and found a

safe compound for blasting called “dynamite.” After

inventing dynamite in 1866, Nobel left Sweden and

established factories in several countries in Europe

and the U.S.

Alfred Nobel had a wide range of interests in

many fields of technology: imitation leather, artificial

rubber and synthetic silk, the electrical battery, the

electric bulb and the phonograph. Nobel had 93

factories around the world when he died. Many of the

leading industries in the chemical field today like ICI

(Imperial Chemical Industries) emanate from

companies established by Nobel.

He had homes in six countries complete with

laboratories. He said that “my home is where I work

and I work everywhere.” Towards the end of his life,

he bought the Björkborn manor in Karlskoga. He

lived there for only two years before he died. The

manor and the laboratory are a museum now. In

Stockholm, Nobelmuseet is dedicated to his prize.

Nobel sometimes wrote as many as 30 letters a

day. A year before his death he published the sad

novel Nemesis, which was performed as a play in

Stockholm.

Nobel was full of paradoxes. He was

successful yet felt inadequate. He made fortunes out

of war but fought for peace. He was a staunch patriot,

yet spent relatively little time in Sweden. He was an

accomplished scientist and inventor, yet had only one

year of formal schooling and no university degree. He

loved family life but had none of his own.

Alfred Nobel was an idealist and a realist

both. He hoped that he could encourage future

generations to improve the world’s condition by his

awards. They would reward people who made

achievements that were “the greatest benefit to

mankind”.

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National Anthems

United States

O say can you see, by the dawn’s early light,

What so proudly we hail’d at the twilight’s last gleaming,

Whose broad stripes and bright stars through the perilous

fight

O’er the ramparts we watch’d were so gallantly streaming?

And the rocket’s red glare, the bombs bursting in air,

Gave proof through the night that our flag was still there,

O say does that star-spangled banner yet wave

O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave?

Sweden

Du gamla, du fria, du fjällhöga Nord,

du tysta, du glädjerika sköna!

Jag hälsar dig, vänaste land uppå jord,

din sol, din himmel, dina ängder gröna,

din sol, din himmel, dina ängder gröna.

Du tronar på minnen från fornstora dar,

då ärat ditt namn flög över jorden.

Jag vet, att du är och du blir vad du var.

Ja, jag vill leva, jag vill dö i Norden!

Ja, jag vill leva, jag vill dö i Norden!

Canada

O Canada!

Our home and native land!

True patriot love in all thy sons command.

With glowing hearts we see thee rise,

The True North strong and free!

From far and wide,

O Canada, we stand on guard for thee.

God keep our land glorious and free!

O Canada, we stand on guard for thee.

O Canada, we stand on guard for thee.

Election Results

District Master__________________________________

Vice District Master______________________________

District Secretary________________________________

Assistant District Secretary________________________

District Treasurer________________________________

Hospital Fund Secretary___________________________

Executive Board__________________________________

Executive Board__________________________________

Supr. Child & Youth Clubs________________________

Cultural Leader__________________________________

Chaplain________________________________________

Master of Ceremonies_____________________________

Auditing Committee______________________________

Auditing Committee______________________________

Auditing Committee______________________________

Inner Guard_____________________________________

Outer Guard_____________________________________

Memorial Service

District Lodge Lake Michigan No. 8

Sunday 31 May 2009

Indianapolis, Indiana

*indicates please stand as able

Music for gathering: Fäbodpsalm från Dalarna

Welcome Marv Anderson, Svea No. 253

*Psalm 8 Responsively L=Leader, P=People

O Lord, our Lord,

how majestic is your name in all the earth!

Your glory is chanted above the heavens

by the mouth of babes and infants.

When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers,

the moon and the stars which you have established;

what are human beings that you are mindful of them,

and mortals that you care for them?

You have made them little less than God,

and crowned them with glory and honor.

You have given them dominion over the works of your hands;

you have put all things under their feet.

O Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth!

*Hymn “Praise the Lord Each Tribe and Nation”

Johann Franck, Tr. Augustus Nelson Swedish tune

Praise the Lord, each tribe and nation, Praise Him with a joyous heart;

Ye who know His full salvation, Gather now from every part;

Let your voices glorify, In His temple, God on high.

He’s our God, and our Creator, We, His flock and chosen seed.

He, our Lord and Liberator, Us from sin and peril freed.

And at last His flock shall rest In the mansions of the blest.

Give Him thanks within His portals; In the courts His deeds proclaim;

Hither come, ye ransomed mortals, Glorify our Savior’s Name.

Ever kind and loving, He Keeps His faith eternally.

“Reprinted from The Hymnal, copyright 1925 Augustana Book Concern, Used by permission of

Augsburg Fortress.”

*The Lord’s Prayer Inez Törnblom, District Chaplain, Viljan No. 349

Fader vår, som är i himmelen!

Helgat varde ditt namn;

tillkomme ditt rike; ske din vilja

såsom i himmelen så ock på jorden;

Vårt dagliga bröd giv oss i dag;

och förlåt oss våra skulder,

såsom ock vi förlåta dem oss skyldiga äro;

och inled oss inte i frestelse,

utan fräls oss ifrån ondo,

ty riket är ditt och makten och härligheten i evighet.

Amen.

New Testament Reading: Romans 8, selected

Anthem: “On Eagle’s Wings” Vasa Choir, Wesley Hanson, Director, Svea No. 253

Michael Joncas, arr. Mark Hayes and Wesley Hanson

The Memorial Roll Inez Törnblom

Siljan Mora Tuna # 134

Ester G. Carlson

Anna Nelson

Donald R. Johnson

Kronan # 179

Stina Hirsch

Nancy Johansen

Margaret Carlson

Bessemer # 203

Ellen Jeffers

William Kilstrom

John Pelzman

Brahe # 245

Lola Johnson

Patricia Gelasius

Eugene Blair

Lillie Kraemer

Svea # 253

Howard Jansen

Ann Black

Eva Månsson

Jeanne Metz

Viljan #349

Svea Erd

James Nystedt

Austin #466

Linnea Uppstrom

Linde #492

Evangeline Nelson

Marilyn Bittick

Ralph Scheele

George Childers

Janice Touve

Paul Nelson

Bishop Hill #683

Sonja Anderson

Loren Newman

Shirley Peterson

LeRoy Swanson

Hagar #721

Mats Johanson

Karl Schmidt, Jr.

Viking #730

Helen DeMar

Allen Johnson

Ken Nylander

Lillian Lagerkvist

Art Pierre

Lindgren #754

Janice Touve (dual

member)

Jubileum #755

Miriam Ericson

Frances Johnson

James A. Johnson

Bengt A. Johnson

Commendation Marv Anderson, Svea No. 253

*Hymn “God of the Ages”

Daniel C. Roberts and George W. Warren National Hymn

God of the ages, whose almighty hand

leads forth in beauty all the starry band

of shining worlds in splendor through the skies,

our grateful songs before thy throne arise.

Thy love divine hath led us in the past;

in this free land with thee our lot is cast;

be thou our ruler, guardian, guide, and stay,

thy Word our law, thy paths our chosen way.

From war's alarms, from deadly pestilence,

be thy strong arm our ever sure defense;

thy true religion in our hearts increase;

thy bounteous goodness nourish us in peace.

Refresh thy people on their toilsome way;

lead us from night to never-ending day;

fill all our lives with love and grace divine,

and glory, laud, and praise be ever thine.

*Closing prayer Marv Anderson, Svea No. 253

Music for fellowship and travel

Save the date!

14, 15, and 16 May 2010

Michigan City, Indiana

102nd ANNUAL CONVENTION

DISTRICT LODGE

LAKE MICHIGAN No. 8

VASA ORDER OF AMERICA

Hosted by

Nordik Folk Lodge No. 761

Contacts:

Steve Westlund, Chairman, plncrazy@sbcglobal.net

Linnea Ogrentz, Convention Committee Chairman, ogrentz@gmail.com

Lynda Smith, Convention Co-Chairman, lamsmith@hotmail.com

The Marten House Hotel and Lilly Conference Center

1801 West 86th Street, Indianapolis, Indiana 46260

(317) 872 - 4111 or (800) 736 - 5634

Vasa District Lodge Lake Michigan No. 8 Convention

29 May 2009 – 31 May 2009

Hospitality Rooms Friday evening and Sunday post-meeting:

Dugan Arnold

Executive Board Meeting

Friday 3 PM:

O’Connor

Saturday Lunch and

Saturday Banquet:

Poolside A – B – C

Culture displays, bucket

raffle, silent auction,

emporium, and

loppmarknad:

Depaul/Seton all

weekend

Convention meetings:

Marillac/Laboute/

Rendu

Registration Friday PM

and Saturday AM:

Heritage Foyer