cultural resources in henrik ibsen's early environment - Ibsen.net

Nielsen's pharmacy, like the former one, Reimann's, was by the humble standards
of the day very inadequately equipped. I can therefore mention that there was no special
room which could be used as a laboratory. When larger decoctions were to be prepared,
the kitchen in the landlady's home had to be used. This occupied half of the ground floor
in the little house, while the pharmacy and the watchroom took up the other half. I have
accordingly seen Ibsen in the kitchen there by an open fireplace, without a stove, engaged
in the cooking of medicines, beside Madame Geelymuyden's kettles. For smaller
preparations a rather small spirit-lamp in the pharmacy was used. At that time one did
not have petroleum instruments. Because of these questionable facilities, of course, the
work of the pharmacy was very inconvenient and took an unduly long time, to Ibsen's
sorrow, since thereby his favorite activities had to be curtailed to a great extent.
Still, it should be noted here that pharmacist Nielsen was a conscientious, dutiful
and hard-working man, who did not stint more than necessary in his capacity to work.
But since he turned over so much in the pharmacy to the care of his single assistant, he
probably found this reasonable and satisfactory, while he had little or no knowledge of
how precious for Ibsen the time was for other business.
It was quite incredible, how much Ibsen accomplished on a daily basis. Besides
the pharmacy's business, which as noted took up the greater part of the day, he had his
reading for the university entrance exam, which he had to pursue to a large extent on his
own. Certainly he had a good private tutor in then candidate in theology Emil Bie, who
died as dean in Toten, but there were, to be sure, as there could reasonably be, several
subjects in which Bie was not fully capable, among which was mathematics, in which
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