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Greenland, although his friends and relations endeavoured, as much as possible, to dissuade him, and ridiculed his plans. Egede now proposed the establishment of a factory at Greenland, to the merchants of Ber­ gen, but the circumstance of the Dutch having previously discovered the trade, proved an in­ surmountable barrier to the undertaking. In the mean time, Charles the Twelfth fell, and peace was restored. Frederick now undertook to countenance the intentions of Egede, but being unwilling to carry on the trade himself, he gave orders to the magistrates of Bergen to summon the merchants, and consult with them on the subject. They again rejected the measure as futile or impracticable ; whereupon the king gave up all further thoughts of assis­ ting the views of Egede. A year now elapsed, during which Egede laboured incessantly to mature his favorite project: he won over to his party some of the most opulent merchants of Bergen, by representing to them, that in the event of trade not proving so beneficial as they could wish, still they would enjo^r the sa