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

permission, and with the help of two violins and a flute, home-made mulled wine and
punch, coffee or tea and white bread we had the ball quite ready.
I had several times urged Ibsen to take part in these occasions, but weighty
reasons denied him this pleasure. He owned namely no evening clothes, and - what was
worse - he had never danced, which is why he did not dare to make his debut at a ball.
The problem of clothes was solved, however, when one of those "with empty heads and
full pockets" gave him credit. This at first astonished Ibsen, but then at the same time he
found that it only confirmed the cited proverb, and when at year's end the bill for the cost
of the clothing was presented, he found even more confirmation of it, as he declared in
his humorous way: "First he is stupid enough to give me credit, and later he is stupid
enough to expect the bill to be paid." I can state, however, that this debt of Ibsen's was
paid.
Now he was accordingly prepared as a ball-cavalier, but to dare to ask his lady for
a dance and step forward among the ranks of the dancers he found too bold. On this
occasion Ibsen's invited was Miss Sophie Holst, one of Grimstad's many charming young
girls. (She still lives here in Christiania as the widow Toft, and when I saw her a few
years ago, even though she was then over 80 years old, she still preserved a quite unusual
youthfulness.)
We attempted however to put courage in Ibsen, and succeeded, by his lady's and
other good-willed assistance, to see the pair set off in a quick gallop, certainly with some
difficulty in the beginning, but yet without sensational calamities, and soon it went quite
swimmingly, so that the situation was saved. Later he ventured himself in other dances as
well, with equally good results.
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