THE LIBRARY 
 
 OF 
 
 THE UNIVERSITY 
 
 OF CALIFORNIA 
 
 LOS ANGELES
 
 (^S-*^"^^ 
 
 TALES 
 
 OF 
 
 THE TEUTONIC LANDS.
 
 LONDON: PRINTED BT 
 
 SPOTTISWOODK AND CO., NKW-STBEET bQUAUE 
 
 AND PARLIAMENT STREET
 
 TALES 
 
 THE TEUTONIC LANDS, 
 
 GEORGE W. COX, M.A. 
 EUSTACE HINTON ^ONES, 
 
 AUTHORS OP 
 'POPULAR ROMANCES OF THE MIDULK AGES.' 
 
 LONDON : 
 LONGMANS, GREEN, AND CO. 
 
 1872. 
 
 All rights reserved.
 
 F/V 
 
 PREFACE. 
 
 The stoeies contained in this volume fall into three 
 classes, the first comprising tales for which, so far as 
 we may see, no historical character whatever can be 
 claimed, while to the second belong the legends in 
 which a certain amount of national or local history has 
 been imbedded amongst masses of mythical detail. The 
 third class comprehends those tales which on a careful 
 analysis are found to lie in great part or wholly beyond 
 the province of the comparative mythologist. 
 
 Of this last class it seemed necessary to include some 
 specimens, as I felt it to be my duty to leave no room 
 for the misapprehension that the science which professes 
 to explain completely the myths of Psyche and Eros, of 
 Urvasi and Pururavas, seeks to resolve the whole popular 
 literature of the Aryan nations into phrases which have 
 certainly furnished all the materials for the legends of 
 Hermes and Phoibos, of Sigurd, Helgi, and Baldur. The 
 tales given as specimens of this class belong to Scandi- 
 navian rather than to Teutonic folk-lore ; but their 
 general character and their wide popularity may render 
 it unnecessary to apologise for their insertion. 
 
 No one probably will be disposed to question the 
 importance of determining the degree of credibility to 
 
 664414
 
 viii Preface. 
 
 be attached to the burning of Ilion and the burning oi 
 the house of the Icelandic Njal, if the differences between 
 the two be capable of measurement. This question I 
 have endeavoured to answer in the Introduction, in the 
 hope that the attempt may serve to remove some strange 
 misconceptions of the method which has been applied in 
 the analysis of the popular legends of the Aryan nations. 
 
 This examination might be extended beyond the tales 
 contained in this or the preceding series ; but however 
 far it might be carried, the results, so far as we may 
 judge, would be substantially the same. The work 
 already done may suffice to show how far the method of 
 the comparative mythologists may be applied, and to 
 determine the point at which it must give place to the 
 researches of the historian. 
 
 That the general result of this examination is to prove 
 the wholly mythical character of the vast mass of popular 
 tradition, I can have no doubt; and I venture to think 
 that few will be disposed to dispute it. That it throws a 
 fresh light on the history of the human mind, and invests 
 these stories with a deeper, nay with an imperishable 
 interest, seems to be not less certain ; and if comparative 
 mythology, while it explains the growth of popular 
 stories, have shown that their growth was inevitable, and 
 that it implies no corruption of the human intellect 
 and no debasement of human affections, it will have 
 done a work the importance of which can scarcely be 
 exaggerated. It will, in short, have shown that the 
 multiplication of these myths was a necessary phase of 
 the education of the world, and will have imparted to 
 the epic narratives into which these myths have been 
 developed a higher and more abiding charm.
 
 Preface. ix 
 
 I part reluctantly from a subject to which I have 
 devoted the thought and labour of many years ; but as I 
 have worked throughout under the conviction that my 
 sole object was the ascertainment of fact, the conscious- 
 ness that in however small a measure my eflforts may 
 have furthered the interests of historical science will, if 
 the feeling be justified, be my best reward. 
 
 My contributions to this volume are confined to the 
 Introduction and the stories of Walter of Aquitaine and 
 of Hugdietrieh and Hildeburg. With these exceptions, 
 all the tales have been contributed by Mr. E. H. Jones. 
 
 G. W. C. 
 
 MayZ^, 1872.
 
 CONTENTS. 
 
 INTRODUCTION 
 
 Eecurrence of Myths in Popular Traditions 
 
 Historical and Mythical Elements in Popular Traditions 
 
 Limits of Historical Inquiry 
 
 Coincidence of Names in the Volsung and Nibelung Tales 
 
 Inferences drawn from this Coincidence 
 
 The real Point at issue 
 
 The Helgi Sagas .... 
 
 The Fatal Children . . . 
 
 Connexion of the Helgi and Volsung Stories 
 
 Fafuir and Begin .... 
 
 The Story of Brynhild and Gudrun 
 
 The Nibelungenlied .... 
 
 The Story of Walter of Aquitaine 
 
 The Story of Hugdietrich and Hildeburg 
 
 The Lay of Gudrun the Daughter of Hettel 
 
 The Story of Frithjof and Ingebjorg . 
 
 The Story of Grettir the Strong . 
 
 The Sagas of Gunnlaug and Njal 
 
 Classification of Popular Traditions 
 
 THE STORIES OF THE VOLSUNGS 
 I. The Story of Sigmund and Signy 
 II. The Story of Helgi Hundingsbane 
 in. The Story of Sigurd and Brynhild 
 IV. The Fall of the Giukings . 
 
 1 
 
 3 
 6 
 
 7 
 8 
 9 
 12 
 12 
 17 
 19 
 21 
 23 
 24 
 25 
 26 
 27 
 28 
 29 
 29 
 
 31 
 41 
 
 44 
 69 
 
 THE NIBELUNG STORY 
 
 I. The Wedding of the Queens 79 
 
 II. The Crosslet on the Vesture 96 
 
 III. The Vengeance of Kriemhild Ill
 
 xii • Contents. 
 
 PAGE 
 
 WALTER OF AQUITAINE 
 
 I. The Betrothal of Walter and Hildegimd . . . .133 
 
 II. The Battle for the Golden Hoard 139 
 
 III. The Wedding of Walter and Hildegund in the Basqueland 153 
 
 THE STOEY OF HUGDIETRICH AND HILDEBUEG . .156 
 
 THE GUDRUN LAY 
 
 I. Hagen and the Griffins 167 
 
 IL Hilda's Wooing 173 
 
 III. Gudrun's Lovers . .180 
 
 THE STORY OF FRITH JOF AND INGEBJOEG . . .210 
 
 GEETTIR THE STRONG 
 
 I. The Winning of the Short Sword . . . ' . .247 
 
 II. The Slaying of Biorn 256 
 
 IlL The Curse of Glam 262 
 
 IV. Grettir's 111 Luck 269 
 
 V. The Hunting of tlie Outlaw 278 
 
 VI. The Ladders upon Drangey ...... 300 
 
 VIL The Notch in the Short Sword 311 
 
 VIIL The Happy Good Luck of Thorstein 317 
 
 GUNNLAUG AND THE FAIR HELGA 325 
 
 BURNT NJAL 
 
 I. The Story of Gunnar, Njal's Friend 346 
 
 II. The Burning of Njal 362 
 
 INDEX 389 
 
 Erratum. 
 Page 107, line two from bottom, /or part nor plot read part ncr lot.
 
 TALES 
 
 TEUTONIC LANDS, 
 
 INTBOBUGTION. 
 
 The story of Arthur, as it has come down to us iu the 
 pages of mediaeval romance-writers, has by general ad- 
 mission undergone a series of modifications by Recur- 
 which two or more tales originally distinct have mj-ths ia 
 been welded into one. It can scarcely be said traditions, 
 that much care has been taken to disguise the process. 
 The fortunes of Tristram and Isolte are linked with 
 those of Lancelot and Guenevere ; but of the complete 
 independence of the two stories in their earlier form there 
 could have been no doubt, even if the history of Tristram 
 had not been given by itself in the romance which bears 
 the name of Thomas of Ercildoune. With these three 
 distinct cycles of Arthur, Lancelot, and Tristram are 
 interwoven the cycles of Balin and Grareth ; ^ and the ex- 
 amination of these legends has shown that even these 
 cycles are repeated in the subordinate tales which are 
 introduced in the course of the great epic. Thus the 
 myth of Grareth is reproduced in that of the Knight of 
 the Illshapen Coat ; and the story of the Fair JNIaid of 
 
 ' Popular Romances of the Middle Ages, Introduction, p. 31. 
 B
 
 2 Tales of the Teuioiiic Lands. 
 
 Astolat is but a reflexion of the story o f Elaine the 
 mother of the good knight Galahad.^ The analysis of 
 these tales has perhaps been extended to every feature 
 of any importance in the whole Arthur romance — the 
 result being, as it would seem, that for not one of these 
 features can any genuine historical character be claimed. 
 There remained, indeed, the possibility, or, as some may 
 prefer to say, the likelihood, that King Arthur was a real 
 pei'son — that is, that a chief named Arthur lived at some 
 time and in some place ; but of his life and acts we have 
 no definite knowledge,'^ and so far as we can be said to 
 know anything about them, the exploits of the real 
 Arthur were not those which popular tradition has 
 deliohted to invest with a mao^ic colourinjy. But the 
 analysis further showed not merely that the stories of 
 Tristram and Lancelot, of Guenevere and Isolte, repeated 
 each other, and were again exhibited in the career of sub- 
 ordinate personages in the drama, but that for the most 
 part the incidents of these legends and the sequence of 
 these incidents form the staple of the myths which have 
 sprung up in every Aryan land with an exuberance of 
 growth which half disguises their substantial identity. 
 These incidents the science of Comparative jNIythology 
 professes to have traced back to their earliest form in 
 phrases which spoke not of men and women, but of the 
 Dawn which drives her white herds to their pastures,^ of 
 the Sun which slays the dew whom he loves, of the fiery 
 dragon which steals the cattle of the lord of light <)r the 
 Moon which wanders with her myriad children through 
 
 ' Pcqndar Bomanccs of the Middle Ages, Introduction, p. 52. 
 
 - ' We know neither the period in which he lived, nor the district over 
 which lie reigned.' — Lingard, History of England, i. 72. See further, 
 Popular Romances, p. 5. 
 
 ^ These guardians of the cattle of the sun, i.e. of the bright clouds, are 
 the Sararaa and Ushas of the Rig Veda, and the Lampetie and Phaethousa 
 of the Odyssey. — Mytlwlogy of the Aryan Nat ions, i. 419-421.
 
 Introduction. 3 
 
 the heaven.' For a large number of the stories springing 
 from these phrases a strict etymological connexion has 
 been established ; but the link which binds the myth of 
 the Hellenic Hephaistos with that of the Vedic Agni ^ 
 justifies the inference that both these myths reappear in 
 those of Eegin and of Wayland, or in other words, that 
 the story of the Dame of the Fine Green Kirtle ^ is the 
 story of Medeia, and that the tale of Helen is the legend 
 of the loves of Conall Gfulban.'' It follows, therefore, that 
 the whole Arthur story must take its place in that large 
 family of heroic legends which have their origin in 
 mythical phrases describing the phenomena of the out- 
 ward world, and more especially those of the day and of 
 the year. 
 
 But if these legends cease thus to be for us store- 
 houses of historical facts, it does not follow that the 
 names in any given story are not those of persons Historical 
 who really lived. The childhood of Cyrus is icm uiemeuts 
 made the subject of a story which is historically traditiou. 
 impossible : yet Cyrus was as real a person as the Duke 
 of Wellington. The incidents which belong to the 
 struggle at Ilion as related in the Homeric or other 
 Hellenic poems certainly never occurred on the shores 
 of tlie Hellespontos ; but no attempt has ever been made 
 to show that no conflict ever took place between Achaians 
 and Rians on the banks of Simoeis or Skamandros. All 
 that has been said is that this war, if there was such a 
 war, is not the war of which the epic and lyric poets of 
 Greece have left us a narrative; ^ that, do what we will, 
 we cannot extract the history of the one from the legends 
 
 ' In the myth of Endymion, the Sun who has sunk to his dreamless 
 sleep, the Moon appears as Asterodia journeying with her fifty daughters 
 through the sky. In the Christian myth she becomes St. Ursula with her 
 11,000 virgins— this Ursula again appearing in the myth of Tanhaiiser as 
 the occupant of the Horselbcrg, and as the fairy queen in the tale of True 
 Thomas of Ercildoune. — Mythology Ar. Hat. ii. 131-218. 
 
 lb. ii. 191. 3 /^_ i 291. * lb. ii. 157. ' //'. i. 193, 
 
 B 2
 
 4 Talcs of the TciUonic Lands. 
 
 of the otlier, and that if any portion of this history be 
 recovered (and the possibility of such recovery has never 
 been denied), it will be re-gained not from the myths but 
 from evidence quite independent of the myths. In the 
 poems the cities of Tiryns and Mykenai had an im- 
 portance which they had certainly lost long before the 
 dawn of contemporary history ; and the ruins still re- 
 maining of their walls and buildings fully bear out the 
 truth of the description. It is at the least possible that 
 future excavation or research may make us acquainted 
 with the names of some of the chiefs who ruled in these 
 ancient fortresses, and even with their acts ; but until we 
 liave such evidence, we cannot be justified in assuming that 
 kings named Agamemnon and Menelaos ever reigned at 
 Mykenai or Sparta, still less in asserting that tliey led 
 an expedition to Ilion and that this expedition was 
 successful, for it is also possible that popular tradition 
 may, whether purposely or unwittingly, have given a 
 wrong colouring to certain events, and that Agamemnon, 
 victorious elsewhere, may have failed at Ilion. From the 
 legend of Scarborough Castle we should derive a false 
 conclusion about Oliver Cromwell ; ' and it cannot be too 
 strongly or too often repeated that we are unable to test 
 and to correct the statements of Hellenic tradition by 
 contemporary history, as we can test and correct the 
 legend of Scarborough Castle. In short, for our know- 
 ledge of the Trojan war we are in a position which would 
 also be our position with regard to the history of Eng- 
 land, if all our knowledge of it rested on such a tradition 
 as that which brings Cromwell to a place from which he 
 is known to have been absent. The extent of the his- 
 torical element in these traditions is not the question ; 
 tlie point is that the legends furnish no means which can 
 enable us to answer the question satisfactorily — in other 
 words, that we cannot dig out history from quarries in 
 
 ' Myihulony of Ar. Xat. i. 187.
 
 IntrodiLction. 5 
 
 which history and myth may be mingled together, and 
 that the attempt to dig it out will be rewarded by the 
 discovery of something which may look like bones but 
 which we cannot even piece into the skeleton that once 
 upheld a living form. The story of the fight at 
 Roncesvalles may bring before us a name which was 
 really borne by a prefect of the Britannic march in tlie 
 days of Karl the Grreat.' But we learn the fact not froni> 
 the legend but from the pages of Eginhard, and if the 
 romances in which Karl is introduced reflect his greatness, 
 they are in their incidents not more trustworthy than 
 the Scarborough tradition. The stories which take Karl 
 the Grreat to Jerusalem may be founded on his historical 
 relations with Haroun-al-Kaschid ; but we certainly do 
 not gain our knowledge of these relations from the stories. 
 How much of light researches into strictly historical 
 monuments may throw on the forms assumed by par- 
 ticular traditions, it is obviously not the task of the 
 comparative mythologist to determine ; but he is fully 
 justified in asserting that the conquest of Lydia furnishes 
 no warrant for assuming that the grandfather of Cyrus 
 was named Astyages or Asdahag, when this name is but 
 another form of Azidahaka or the biting snake, the 
 Zohak, who in later romance feeds with human flesh 
 the snakes which cluster on his shoulders." The point 
 for the historian to prove is that he is in possession 
 of evidence by which he is able to test and coirect the 
 statements of the myths : and if he can show this, he 
 will receive from the comparative mythologist attention 
 not less respectful than that which will be paid to liim 
 by any others. But the former will still be compelled to 
 assert that the new knowledge, if any there be, comes 
 from the historical monuments and not from the legend, 
 
 ' Mythol. of Ar. Nat. i. 190. Popular Romances. Iiitrod. 66. 
 ' MytJwlogy of Ar. Nat. ii. 358.
 
 6 Talcs of the Ten tome Lauds. 
 
 the legend being for historical purposes useless in the 
 absence of the means for testing it. 
 
 This repetition would be superfluous and even imperti- 
 nent, were it not that mythologists are Avith a strange 
 Limits of pertinacity charged with intruding into aprovince 
 inquiry.' which does uot tcl 3ng to them, by attempting 
 to explain away history into fable. No such attempt is 
 made. If on evidence not obtained from the fable itself 
 it can be shown that history is mixed up with it, and if 
 the extent of this historical element be pointed out, the 
 conclusion will be at once accepted ; but in the interests 
 of historical truth itself the mythologist must protest 
 against the method which seeks to discover this element 
 in myths which the historian has not the means of test- 
 ing. This Mr. Grrote felt when he saw that he could 
 neither affirm nor deny the occurrence of a war at Troy, 
 while he insisted in words as plain as any man could 
 use, that a war without Helen and Sarpedon and Memnou 
 and Hektor would not be the war of which we read in 
 Hellenic poetry.^ But it may perhaps further be said 
 with justice, that while mythologists commonly express 
 themselves in language which seems to convey its mean- 
 ing clearly, it is not always easy to understand the mean- 
 ing of some who profess to be their opponents. The 
 former have distinctly asserted that the Volsuuga Saga is 
 mythical, or in other words that its chief, if not indeed 
 all its incidents can be traced to phrases which spoke 
 originally of tlie phenomena of the outward world, and of 
 these only ; that these incidents are found in the myths 
 of all Aryan lands ; and that, in short, the story of Volsung 
 and of Sigurd is only another form of the story of Perseus, 
 Theseus, Herakles, or Phoibos. So far as they can see, there 
 is no reason for supposing that the names of any of the 
 personages in the tale were suggested by those of real 
 
 ' History of Greece, Part I. ch. xv. (vol. i. p. 435).
 
 Introduction. 7 
 
 persons. The matter is of the very least importance, as 
 those persons could not have done the deeds attributed to 
 them ; but the possibility that some of the names may 
 have been so suggested has never been denied. Mytho- 
 logists have further asserted that, as the Volsung tale is 
 itself a development of the Helgi Sagas, so the Nibelung 
 tale has grown up in the same way from the story of the 
 Volsungs, the later growth being in its incidents not a 
 whit more historical than the earliest. 
 
 These inferences or conclusions are, it is now asserted, 
 altogether upset, and the results of comparative mythology 
 generally impugned, by the fact that some half- comcidenco 
 dozen names in the Nibelungenlied sound like thevoisung 
 the names of persons who lived in the fifth or iimg tales. 
 sixth centuries of the Christian era. 'The story of 
 ■Sigurd, the hero of the Edda,' we are told, ' with all the 
 accessory characters and all the adventures — a favoiirite 
 example of the solar myth with the new school — is so 
 closely imitated to all appearance in the Nibelungenlied, 
 the great German epic composed centuries after it, that 
 here, if anywhere, comparative mythology appears to have 
 won a great victory. The names are the same, and the 
 adventures are very like. It would then follow neces- 
 sarily that the later poem at all events (if not both) was 
 mythical and not historical. But strange to say, there is 
 an historical basis for this later poem — an historical 
 basis so certain that not even the mythologers can gainsay 
 it. Closely as the names appear to correspond to those 
 of the Edda, they correspond just as closely to historical 
 personages who lived after the Edda was known and 
 referred to in literature. Sigurd represents Siegbert, 
 king of Austrasia 561-75 a.d. Grunther represents 
 Gundicarius, king of Burgundy, in 435 a.d. So Brynhild, 
 Irenfried, Dietrich, and Atli are the reflections of Brune- 
 hault, Hermannfried (Irminfrid ?), Theodoric, and Attila. 
 Here then, where comparative mythology might possibly
 
 8 Talcs of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 have explained everything" ; here, where in default of 
 other evidence we should all have been quite content to 
 accept its explanation, it is shown to be a false and delu- 
 sive guide.'' 
 
 What is the meaning of these propositions? The 
 phrase that the Nibelung song has a sure historical basis 
 Inferences would secm to justify the suppositiou that the 
 thrs^ooiDci™ song contained a certain amount of history — in 
 dence, other words that it recorded a number of facts 
 
 which were done by the men or women to whom they are 
 attributed, and that these persons are known to be and 
 can be proved to be historical. But these sentences are 
 not intended to convey this meaning. It is admitted that 
 the names of the actors in the Xibelung tale are, speaking 
 generally, the same as those of the men and women who 
 play their part in the Volsung story, and that the adven- 
 tures attributed to the former are very like those of the 
 heroes of the latter. The historical basis (astonishing as 
 it seems) is limited apparently to the names. These cor- 
 respond closely to the names of some persons who lived 
 about the fifth or sixth century, and as this resemblance 
 cannot be denied, therefore the poem is historical. This 
 really comes to nothing more and nothing less than the 
 assertion that the Arthur romance would become an 
 historical poem of the nineteenth century, if a version of 
 it were published which for the name of Arthur the 
 British King should substitute that of Arthur Duke of 
 Welling-ton. It would not be pretended that the actions 
 of the duke were those of the Celtic chief ; but if with 
 his name a few other names should be given of persons 
 now living which correspond to those of the Arthur ro- 
 mance, the story would have an historical basis so certain 
 that not even the mythologers could gainsay it. 
 
 The question turns less on the names of the actors than 
 
 ' Mahaffy, Frdegomena to Ancient History, p. 89.
 
 Introduction. 9 
 
 on their career. If the series of deeds attributed to 
 Sigurd and Etzel, Jormunrek and Gunnar were The i-eai 
 done by Siegbert and Attila, Hermanric and issue.' 
 Gundicar, the tradition would certainly become historical : 
 but it is not pretended that this is the case. The resem- 
 blance of the Nibelung- names Siegbert, Brunhilt, Attila, 
 Gunther, Swanhild, to the Volsung names Sigurd, 
 Brynhild, Atli, Gunnar, Swanhild, cannot be denied : but 
 it has long since been remarked that Jornandes, who 
 wrote long before the murder of the Aiistrasian Siegbert, 
 already knew the daughter of the mythic Sigurd, Swan- 
 hild, who was born according to the Edda after the 
 murder of her father, and who was afterwards killed by 
 Jormunrek, 'whom the poem has again historicised in 
 Hermanicus, a Gothic king of the fourth century.' ^ If we 
 liad no other warrant for the inference, this resemblance of 
 names would justify the surmise that popular tradition is 
 tempted to assimilate the names of ancient heroes to those 
 of persons living at the time when the tradition takes 
 shape. But this temptation is not confined to names. 
 The epic poems of a nation may be regarded as giving a 
 tolerably faithful picture of the society of the age in which 
 they are composed : but the age of the Nibelungenlied was 
 in manners and form of thought separated from the age of 
 the Volsung story by no gulf which would render the task 
 of adapting the poem to a later time a matter of any special 
 difficulty. It so happened that the names of some kings 
 and queens and warriors of the fifth or sixth centuries 
 lent themselves easily to the purpose of the more modern 
 poet ; but this facility was purely accidental, and thus 
 the resemblances of name impart no historical character 
 to the poem, if by this term we mean a claim to credi- 
 
 ' Max Miillcr, Chips from a German Workslioji, ii. 112. It may bo 
 added that the character of Etzel in the Nibelungenlied is utterly unlike 
 that of the historical Attila.
 
 lo Tales of the Te2itonic Lands. 
 
 bility for the incidents related in the narrative.' That 
 the colouring thrown over the poem should be made, so 
 far as it was possible, to suit the political and social con- 
 ditions of the age of Attila, Theodoric, Siegbert or Brune- 
 hault, is in no way surprising ; it would be strange indeed 
 were it otherwise. But so far as the incidents are con- 
 cerned, it is scarcely more than a colouring, and writers, 
 who would willingly trace the historical elements of the 
 tale, have found themselves compelled to admit that the 
 real events noticed in the poems are very few in number. 
 The historical Attila had a brother whose name 
 is given as Bleda : the Etzel of the Nibelung lay is the 
 son of Bludi or Budli, not his brother ; and Buusen has 
 acknowledged the difficulty of making an expedition of 
 Attila himself to the Rhine fit in with what we know of 
 the history of those years. ^ All that can be said (and this 
 is willingly granted) is that the poet or poets of the 
 Xibelung lay have adapted the names of the older 
 legend to names of living or recently living persons, 
 whenever it was possible to do so ; that they have 
 
 ' Nothing that I have said, so far as I am aware, would be found incon- 
 sistent with the following words of Professor Max Miiller : — ' There are 
 evidently historical facts round which the myth of Herakles has crystal- 
 lized, only we cannot substantiate them so clearly as in the myths of 
 the Nibelungen, because we have there no contemporaneous historical 
 documents. Yet as the chief Herakles is there represented as belonging to 
 the roj'al family of Argos, there may have been a Herakles, perhaps the 
 son of a king called Amphitryo, whose descendants, after a temporary 
 exile, reconquered that part of Greece which had formerly been under the 
 sway of Herakles. The traditions of his miraculous birth, of many of his 
 heroic adventures, and of his death, were as little based on historical facts 
 as the legends of Sifrit. In Herakles killing the Chimsera and similar 
 monsters we see the reflected image of the Delphian Apollo killing the 
 worm, or of Zeus, the god of the brilliant sky, with whom Herakles shares 
 in common the names of Idseos, Olympics, and Pangenetor. As the myth 
 of Sigurd and Gunnar throws its last broken rays on the kings of Burgundy 
 and on Attila and Theodoric, the myth of the Solar Herakles was realised in 
 some semi-historical prince of Argos and Mykense.' — Chips, ii. 113. 
 
 - God in History, ii. 478.^ — Mythology of the Aryan Isations, i. 289 note.
 
 Introduction. \ I 
 
 introduced some fresh names which were likewise borne 
 by historical persons, and that they have further imparted 
 to the story some appearance of agreement with great 
 events of their own or of a recent age. Nor can the 
 fidelity of the poet to the manners of his time be ascribed 
 necessarily to the narrative of the acts of the several 
 personages in the drama. The subordinate or unimpor- 
 tant details are probably described with exactness and 
 care. There would be no temptation to dejDart from 
 existing customs with regard to dress, weapons, food, the 
 precedence of ranks in the state, religious worship, or the 
 usages of war. But the care of the poets to represent 
 these things aright imparts no credibility to narratives of 
 events which are in themselves impossible ;^ and when we 
 find that these impossible events form the groundwork of 
 a thousand other stories, whether Greek, or Teutonic, or 
 Scandinavian, we are at once justified in asserting that 
 in the common element thus found we discover the real 
 character of these tales ; that of the Helgi and Volsung 
 stories this common element is, in Bunsen's words, ' purely 
 mythological, namely the combat of the Sun-god who is 
 slain by his brother and avenged by a younger brother,' ^ 
 and that this element must also pervade the Nibelung lay, 
 in which, substantially, neither the names nor the inci- 
 dents are changed. Thus the final conclusion is, that the 
 Nibelung romance has no historical character. A certain 
 amount of historical material may have been introduced 
 into a story with which, until it was so introduced, it had 
 nothing to do.^ 
 
 ' Mythology of the Aryan Nations, i. 289. 
 
 * God in History, ii. 474. 
 
 ^ Thus Sigurd cannot 'represent' the Austrasian king Siegbert, nor 
 Gunther the Burgundian Gundicar, unless the poets who first inti-odueed 
 tliese names into the tradition intended that they should represent those 
 chieftains or kings, — in other words, unless the poets of the Edda knew 
 that centuries after their day these kings would rule over Austrasia 
 or Burgundy, and would do moreover precisely those acts which they 
 described as the deeds of the Sigurds and Gunnars of long past ages.
 
 1 2 Talcs of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 The temptation tb regard as generally historical a 
 poem or tale which exhibits vivid pictures of social life, 
 TheHeigi ^^ ^ set-off to a narrative of utterly impossible 
 Sagas. incidents, is, it would seem, widely felt ; but 
 
 when we trace these incidents to a common source, we 
 prove at once that this seemingly historical character, 
 even where it can be shown to exist, is simply a veil 
 thrown by the poet over creations not his own, which he 
 can only venture to some extent to modify. Among 
 these creations the greater number perhaps consist of 
 personages who not merely perform deeds far exceeding 
 all human powers but stand forth as lying under a terrible 
 doom for the commission of enormous and even im- 
 practicable crimes. That the stories of such crimes are 
 the result of deliberate invention, is a supposition which 
 all probably would be glad to avoid if they could : that the 
 mai-riage of Oidipous and lokaste is explained by Vedic 
 phrases which speak of the Sun as the son, the husband, 
 or the brother of the Dawn, is a conclusion which none 
 perhaps would be reluctant to accept, if no overwhelming 
 difficulty lay in the way. That there is much to be urged 
 in favour of this conclusion, and nothing, it would seem, 
 against it, the analysis of that myth has probably proved.* 
 The traditions out of which the Volsung and Nibelung 
 stories have grown exhibit features more terrible and 
 revolting than those of the Theban legends. It is scarcely 
 too much to say that precisely to these features the Helgi 
 Sagas owe their chief value. 
 
 Like the Arthur romance, these sagas are marked by 
 the constant recurrence of the same incidents with 
 The fatal modifications of local colouring, ascribed to 
 children. persous bearing different names. As it is clear 
 that there must be some foundation for these stories, and 
 as the hypothesis which assigns to them an historical 
 
 ' Mythology, Ar. Xai. ii. 69, 314. Breal, Le mjthe d'Edipe.
 
 Introduction. 1 3 
 
 ■character has been found to be untenable, we have 
 nothing to do but to note the points of likeness or repeti- 
 tion and to lU'ge that this fact, like every other fact, calls 
 for explanation. The common element in the stories of 
 Oidipous, Romulus, Perseus, Telephos, Theseus, lason, 
 and other mythical beings, is the destiny wliich makes 
 them, whether wittingly or unwittingly, destroy the 
 beings from whom they have sprung or bring ruin upon 
 their homes and kinsfolk. Some of these become the 
 instruments of a righteous vengeance on those who have 
 sought to deprive them of life ; the birth of others, as of 
 Dionysos or Asklepios, marks the moment of death to 
 their mothers. If it be granted that Greek, Icelandic, or 
 Teutonic myths must be treated by the same method, and 
 if it may now be fairly affirmed that such myths as those 
 of Asklepios, Herakles, and Perseus have been removed 
 far beyond the sphere of human life, we at once begin to 
 see the framework on which these Saga stories have been 
 built up. Unless we have some better evidence than 
 that of mere assertion for the statement that Kephalos and 
 Prokris, Erechtheus and Kekrops, were real human inhabit- 
 ants of Athens, we must see in the legend the simple story of 
 the dew dried up or slain by the heat of the day.' In the 
 northern stories the hero frequently dies before his son, 
 who is to take his place or to revenge him, is born ; or, 
 as the Greek story would have it, Apollon has forsaken 
 Korouis before her child sees the light. This is simply 
 the legend of the birth of Volsung,^ whose father Rerir 
 goes home to Odin, leaving his wife sick at heart, like 
 Leto while she wandered from land to land before the 
 
 ' MytMogy Ar. Nat. ii. 30-91. 
 
 - The story goes that the childless Eerir besought the aid of the god y^\\o 
 sent Freya in the guise of a crow, with an apple which she dropped into his 
 lap. Eerir took it and gave it to his wife, who then became the mother of 
 Volsung. This apple reappears in the myth of Persephone, and in that of 
 Nana the daughter of the river-god Saugarios. — Mythology of the Aryan 
 Nations, ii. 298.
 
 14 Talcs of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 birth of Phoibos. It is told again of Macduff, ' and they 
 say that the youngling kissed his mother or ever she 
 died.' So uniform is the career of children thus born 
 that Grrimm could say generally, ' Aus dem ]Mutterleib 
 geschnittene Kinder pflegen Helden zu werden ; ' ' and 
 the embrace which they barely give to the dying mother 
 is the embrace which Orpheus, Alpheios, and Phoibos 
 seek in like manner to give to Eurydike, Arethousa, and 
 Daphne, as each vanishes away. In a form still more 
 striking, this mythical death of the parents of fatal 
 children is exhibited in the story of Agni, the Vedic fire- 
 god, whose parents are the two sticks from which his 
 flame is kindled, and which he devours as soon as he is 
 born. If the tree which rises through the roof of 
 Volsung's hall has a singular likeness to the world-support- 
 ing Yggdrasil, the story of Odin who thrusts into this 
 tree-trunk the sword which can be drawn out only by him 
 who is destined to wield it, merely reproduces the myth 
 of Aigeus and Theseus. The weapon will yield to no 
 liand but that of Volsung's son Sigmund, and at his 
 touch it leaves the trunk as though it were a feather 
 floating on the water. Here we have the counterpart of 
 the great stone which Theseus, when he had reached his 
 full strength, lifts without effort, to find the sword and 
 sandals which his father had buried beneath it. In the 
 Arthur story it is again a stone, and the pith of the 
 tradition is given in the motto carved upon it, ' Whoso 
 pulleth this sword out of this stone is rightwise born 
 king of England.' This sword, in the Volsung story, is 
 Gram, a weapon from the same armoury with the brands 
 of Arthur and of Eoland, and the spears and arrows of 
 Phoibos, Odysseus, Achilleus, Philoktetes. For this 
 sword there is a deadly contest between Sigmund and his 
 I^eople and the men of king Siggeir who has married 
 
 ' Deutsche Mijthologic, p. 362.
 
 Introduction. 1 5 
 
 Sigmund's sister Siguy. The result is that Sigmund 
 and his ten brothers are bound, the deaths of these ten 
 brothers being brought about in a way which will be 
 familiar to all who are acquainted with modern Hindoo 
 folk-lore. As in the story of the wolf and the seven 
 little goats the wolf swallows six of the kids, but is 
 ripped up before it has swallowed the seventh ^ (a myth 
 parallel to that of Kronos who swallows his children), so 
 here Sigmund alone escapes the she-wolf ^ who each night 
 devours one of the ten, and who is the mother of king 
 Siggeir, the enemy of Volsung and his children. Sigmund 
 now, being loosed from his bonds, dwells in the woods, 
 like many of the heroes in popular German and Norse 
 stories ; and Signy, his sister, sends to him one of her 
 children, the son of Siggeir, to whom Sigmund gives his 
 meal-bag, charging him to make bread. The boy fails to 
 do so, being afraid to set hand to the meal-sack, because 
 somewhat quick lay in the meal ; and at the bidding of 
 Signy, Sigmund slays him. The same fate befalls her 
 next child, and then we come to an incident which shows 
 still more clearly the nature of the materials with which we 
 are dealing. Signy changes forms with a witchwoman 
 whom she leaves with Siggeir, and going into the wood be- 
 comes by her brother Sigmund the mother of Sinfjotli,^ who 
 safely goes through the ordeal before which her children 
 by Siggeir had failed. The child, when he is asked if he 
 has found aught in the meal, answers, ' I misdoubted me 
 that there was something quick in the meal when I first 
 
 ' Mythology Ar. Naf. i. 358. 
 
 ^ This is, in short,, the superstition of Lykanthropy. See Mythology Ar. 
 Nat. i. 63-363. 
 
 Siggeir, it is scarcely necessary to say, is, throughout, the darkness, and 
 the irreconcilable enemy of Volsung, though he has married his sister. 
 Hence also his wife is his persistent enemy — the dawn being the bride as 
 well as the child of darkness, with which, however, she is in instinctive 
 antagonism. 
 
 » Mytlwlogy Ar. Nat. i. 275-279.
 
 1 6 Tales of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 fell to kneading of it ; but I have kneaded it all up 
 together, both the meal and that which was therein, what- 
 ever it was.' Sigmund replies with a laugh 'Naught wilt 
 thou eat of this bread this night, for the most deadly of 
 worms hast thou kneaded up therewith.' This worm is 
 almost ubiquitous in Teutonic and Scandinavian myths ; 
 and unless all the results of comparative mythology are to 
 be overthrown or set aside, it is the Python of Delphoi, 
 the Ahi and Vritra of the Hindu, the Grrendel of Beowulf, 
 the Chimaira and Dragon of Bellerophontes, Perseus, 
 and lason. Its death is the slaying of the darkness, 
 whether of the night or of the winter ; and the weakly 
 children which fail to slay it answer to the ill-fated 
 knights who fail ' in tlieir efforts to pierce the thorn 
 hedge beliind which sleeps Briar-rose, or to leap the 
 barrier of spears which guards the sun-maiden of Hindu 
 fairy tales. When at length the malignant power to 
 whom Signy is wedded, like the wife of Bluebeard, has 
 been overcome, she exults in the thought of her son 
 Sinfjotli, and says : — 
 
 ' I let slay both my children, whom I deemed worthless, 
 for the revenging of our father, and I went into the wood 
 to thee in a witch- wife's shape ; and now behold Sinfjotli 
 is the son of thee and of me both ; and therefore has he 
 this so great hardihood and fierceness, in that he is the 
 son of Volsung's son and Volsung's daughter, and for 
 this and for naught else have I so wrought that king 
 Siggeir might get his bane at last . . . And merrily now 
 will I die with king Siggeir, though I was naught merry 
 to wed with him.' 
 
 Having thus said, she kisses her brother and her son, 
 and going back into the fire dies with Siggeir and his 
 men. Even in this strange part of the legend we may 
 fairly acknowledge both ' the nature and beauty with 
 
 ' Pojvdar liomances, Introd. p. 3-t.
 
 Introduction. 17 
 
 which it is filled' on the one condition that we are not 
 called on to interpret this nature of humanity. There 
 may be possibly parallels to such doings among the 
 savages of Fiji or Dahomey, or in the deeds of some 
 exceptional French and English murderers; but that such 
 things should come into the heads of decent folk without 
 awakening in them, and in those to whom they might 
 speak of them, a feeling of indignant horror, is a simple 
 impossibility. When a like idea was presented to the 
 Grreek mind in the marriage of Oidipous and his mother 
 lokaste, this horror was roused directly by the thought of 
 its bearing on the conditions of human society. Hence 
 the sequel of bitter woes and the terrible drama which is 
 brought to an end in the sacred grove of the Eumenides. 
 Throughout, on the part of the involuntary actors, there 
 is nothing but grief of mind and agony of conscience. 
 Here there is nothing but exultation, as well for the 
 incest as for the wild havoc wrought without any motives 
 higher than those which might prompt the treacheries of 
 Andaman islanders. But when in Greek myths we get 
 away from the circle of human affairs, and find ourselves 
 among the inhabitants of Olympos or of Aither, we 
 discern precisely the same indifference to that which we 
 may fairly call Aryan morality in any of its forms : and 
 in Zeus and Here, Artemis and Apollon, sister and 
 brother, wife and husband, we see tlie original form? of 
 which Signy and Sigmund are the reflexions. 
 
 Another story which we encounter at almost every turn 
 in the popular traditions of iSorthern Europe, is that of 
 the Snake Leaves, or the magic herb which has connexioE 
 the power of restoring life to the dead. This Heigi and 
 story, which we have in the myth of Glaukos and stories. 
 Polyidos, as related by Apollodoros, and in the Hindu tale 
 of Panch Phul Ranee, is obviously connected with the 
 healing and life-giving serpent.' Here the remedy is used 
 
 ' Mythology Ar. Nat. Book II. ch. 2. sect. 12. 
 C
 
 t8 Talcs of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 by Sigmuud to bring back to life his son Sinfjutli. whom 
 he has torn in the guise of a wolf,^ like the Lykeian 
 Apollon or Herakles in the lion's skin. If to these 
 incidents \s& add the slaughter of the younger children of 
 Signy and Siggeir, which merely repeats that of their 
 elder brothers, we have gone through almost the whole 
 mythical history of the sons of Kerir to the days of Helgi, 
 Hunding's slayer. These causeless murders, on any 
 human explanation, are repeated by Grudrun, and they do 
 but reflect the murder of the children of lason by their 
 mother Medeia ; and thus we have scarcely a single 
 feature in the Helgi sagas which is not seen in the 
 myths of other nations, and which may not be again fovmd 
 in the main body of the Volsung story. But although 
 the story and its several incidents, if judged by a human 
 standard, become incredible or impossible, the myth, like 
 the Icelandic Grrettir saga, acquires a deeper and a truer 
 interest, when it is referred to the phrases whicli deter- 
 mined its shape and character. The darlings of Aphrodite 
 and Eos return to life after their early death ; and in one 
 version Sarpedon shares this high destiny with Memnon 
 and Adonis. This thought begins to fade away in the 
 myth of Asklepios, although he himself raises others from 
 the dead, and becomes fainter still in the legends of 
 Achilleus and Odysseus. It is startling to trace precisely 
 the same stream of thought in the stories of Northern 
 Europe. In the lay of Helgi, Hunding's bane, Sigrun takes 
 the place of Eos weeping over the death of Memnon : — 
 
 Helgi, thy hair 
 Is thick with death's rime : 
 With the dew of the dead 
 Is my love all dripping : 
 Dead cold are the hands 
 Of the son of Hogni. 
 How for thee, my king, 
 May I win healing ? 
 
 Her prayers avail so far that Helgi, the phantom horse- 
 
 » Mythol. Ar. Xat. Book 11. ch. 2. vol. ii. p. 23.
 
 Introduction. 1 9 
 
 man in Burger's ballad of Lenore, comes to her on the 
 great mound, where she has dight a bed for him on 
 which she will come and sleep soft as she was wont when 
 her lord was living, and they remain together till the 
 dawn comes, when Helgi must ride on the reddening 
 paths, and his pale horse must tread the highway aloft. 
 The Sagaman adds simply, that ' in old time folk trowed 
 that men should be born again, though the troth be now 
 deemed but an old wife's doting; and so, as folk say, 
 Helgi and Sigrun were born again, and at that tide was 
 he called Helgi the Scathe of Hadding, and she Kara the 
 daughter of Halfdan.' When we reach the story of 
 Sigurd, the destroyer of Fafnir, this old faith, which 
 rested on the re-appearance of Baldur, Osiris, Tammuz, 
 Zagreos, or Adonis, has already grown weaker. The story 
 of Sigurd is the story of Achilleus ; and though dire 
 vengeance may be taken for his death, yet he himself 
 is seen on earth no more, and Gudrun in her agony 
 cries out, ' Oh ! mindest thou not, Sigurd, the words 
 we spoke that thou wouldest come and look on me, yea, 
 even from thy abiding-place among the dead ? ' 
 
 Such is the simpler form of the myth, which is more 
 fully developed in the Volsung tale, and attains its 
 utmost growth in the story of the Nibelungs. Fafnir and 
 At every step the points of connexion may be ^^s^"^- 
 traced without difficulty ; and in all we find that recur- 
 rence of the original myth under different names, which 
 betrays the limited powers of human invention. As in 
 the Arthur story, no sooner are the adventures of one hero 
 ended than another starts up to do the same things over 
 again, or tlie same series of exploits is being achieved by 
 two or more knights at the same time. But the main 
 point to be noticed is that the objects of their career and 
 the mode in which they seek to attain them are always the 
 same, and in most cases tell their own tale with a clear- 
 ness which it is impossible to misapprehend. The story
 
 20 Tales of the TetUonic Lands. 
 
 of Sigmuud is in its main features the story of the son 
 who avenges him, and Signrd's victory is won only with 
 the sword which Odin himself had shattered in his 
 father's hand. It is the myth of Theseus, or of Perseus, 
 or of many another ]\ero of more southern lands ; but the 
 myth has been modified to suit the harsher climates of 
 Northern Europe. In both it is the uncouth smith of the 
 gods who forges the weapon by which the solar hero is to 
 bmite the dragon or worm of darkness and cold, and 
 Pafnir answers probably in name as well as in character 
 to the Delphian Python.^ B\it there is a hatred between 
 Kegin and Fafnir which we do not find between He- 
 phaistos and Python. The northern myth drew a dis- 
 tinction between the gigantic Hrim-thursar, the powers 
 of frost, or the deadly worm which does their work, and 
 the dwarfs who, like Eegin, represent the wonderful 
 properties of the mineral and vegetable kingdoms, the 
 capacity for growth and energy locked up under the surface 
 of the earth. ^ Hence from Eegin comes the command 
 ^vhich charges Sigurd to slay his kinsman Fafnir and thus 
 to end their quarrel for the treasures which Fafnir had 
 contrived to get into his own keeping. The mode by 
 which this antagonism was brought about is among the 
 most significant features of the legend. The treasures 
 are the ransom by which Odin, Loki, and Hahnir,' the 
 gods of the bright heaven, are compelled to purchase their 
 freedom from the sons of Eeidmar whose brother, the 
 otter, they have slain. By way of atonement they are not 
 only to fill the otter's skin with gold, but so to cover it 
 with gold that not a white hair upon it shall remain 
 visible ; in other words, they are to set the earth free 
 from its fetters of ice, and so to spread over it the golden 
 
 ' Grimm, D. M. 345, regards these words as standing to each other in 
 the relation of Qy)p and <^-i\p. 8ee Mythology of A. N. i. 279. 
 " lb. i. 276. Eunsen, God in History, ii. 484. 
 - MyiMogy A. N. i. 372.
 
 Introddction. 2 1 
 
 sunshine that not a single streak of snow shall be seen 
 upon it. 
 
 But the most precious thing among the treasures of the 
 dwarf Andvari is the golden ring from which other golden 
 rings are constantly dropping. It is the- source The story 
 of all his wealth, for in fact it is the symbol of andGudrun. 
 the reproductive powers of nature, which in a thousand 
 myths is linked with the wealth-giving rod of Hermes or 
 of Vishnu.' On this treasure, whether it be tlie dower of 
 Brynhild or of Helen, there rests the curse which leads 
 to theft and betrayal, to vengeance and utter ruin ; and 
 the doom which Eegin brings on Fafnir falls also on 
 himself so soon as Sigurd learns that Eegin seeks to 
 cheat him of the dragon's wealth. No sooner, again, is the 
 story of Brynhild ended, than the woful tale is repeated 
 in the sequel of the gloomy history of Cfudrun. Brynhild 
 is the peerless maiden who has slept in a charmed slumber 
 caused by the thorn of winter thrust into her right hand 
 by Odin, like the Kakshas' claw which leaves Surya Bai, 
 the sun-maiden, senseless in the Hindu story. ^ One 
 knight alone can rouse her, and that knight is Sigurd, 
 But Brynhild knows that she can never be suffered to 
 dwell with the man whom she loves; and the very 
 vehemence of her love drives her to bring about his 
 death as he lies in the arms of Grudrun. Thus Grudrun, 
 who is the companion of the sun in his middle journey, 
 has yet to be wedded to two husbands, the gloaming and 
 the darkness, or the autumn and tne winter's cold ; ^ but 
 she resolves that sooner or later Sigurd shall be terribly 
 
 ' Popular Bomances, Introd. p. 27. Mi/ih. A. K Eook II. ch. 2. sect. xii. 
 
 2 3. ii. 304. 
 
 ' It is possible that the natural fact which underlies this portion of the 
 Volsung story may have coloured such Icelandic stories as the tale of 
 Gunnlaiig and the Fair Helga, which is in substance the same as that 
 of the Lovers of Gudrun, included among the beautiful narratives of Mr. 
 Morris's Earthly Paradise. But this is a point on which it is unnecessary to 
 lay stress.
 
 2 2 Tales of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 avenged. The treasures won by Sigurd were in the 
 hands of Gudrun s brothers, and Atli, her second husband, 
 bent on getting possession of them, invites them to a 
 feast and receives them at the spear's point. Hogni and 
 Grunnar are taken prisoners, and Atli, whose name some 
 would seem to think prophetic of the Hun Attila, insists 
 on their yielding up Sigurd's wealth. G-unnar answers 
 that he will do so, if Atli will bring him the heart of his 
 brother Hogni, and on seeing it he tells the king that 
 now the secret rests with himself alone, and that it shall 
 never be tortured from him. He is then thrown into a 
 pit full of snakes, but with the harp of Hermes or of 
 Orpheus he charms the serpents, until, like Eagnar 
 Jjodbrog, he is bitten to the heart by an adder which is 
 deaf to his charming. The time for vengeance has now 
 come. The Kolchian Medeia slew the children of lason 
 after she had sent the death-dealing robe to Glauke. 
 With fiercer revenge Gudrun feasts Atli at tlie awful 
 })anquet to which Astyages in the old Greek story invited 
 Harpagos, and then having slain him with the aid of her 
 brother Hogni's son, she makes the whole hall his funeral 
 pile, and sends all Atli's men to bear their master com- 
 pany to the dwelling-place of the dead. Gudruu's lot 
 become? darker, like the northern summer drawing to- 
 wards its close. The sea into which she plunges to end 
 her misery bears her away to the land of King Jonakr, 
 and the last act in the terrible drama begins. It is 
 practically a repetition of the scenes which have gone 
 before. Gudrun becomes the wife of Jonakr the lord of 
 tlie winterland, and mother of his three children, Saurli, 
 Hamdir, and Erp. From her summer home she now 
 summons Swanhild, Sigurd's daughter, whom Jormunrek 
 would have as his wife ; but the curse of the treasure still 
 works. Jormunrek's son wooes her for himself, and is 
 slain by his father's command. The beautiful Swanhild 
 is trodden down by the horses of his knights as she combs
 
 Introdtiction. 2 3 
 
 out her long golden locks, and Jormimrek himself is slain 
 by two of the sons whom Grudrun had borne to him. The 
 tlionghts of Gudrun turn to the golden days when she 
 dwelt with Sigurd, and she passes away from the land of 
 living men, like the last expiring flicker of a dwindling 
 autumn twilight.^ 
 
 In this series of incidents which belong to the great 
 tragedy of the year as clearly as the most transparent Vedic 
 descriptions of Ushas or the Maruts, the dawn- ^^^^ ^^^_ 
 light and the storm, we have more than the lungeniied. 
 framework, not only of the Volsung tale, but also of the 
 Nibelung lay. That the former is virtually reproduced 
 in the latter is disputed by none. The few points of 
 difference lie in the change of a few names. The wife 
 of Siegfried in the lay is not Grudrun but Kriemhild ; 
 but Kriemhild, like Grudrun, is the sister of Grunnar, who 
 now becomes Grunther, King of the Burgundians, and, 
 as in the Volsung story, she has to mourn the death of 
 Siegfried, whom Briinhild does to death by means of 
 Hagen. But in its general spirit the story has undergone 
 no change. Siegfried, like Sigurd, is the invincible hero 
 with the sword which no enemy ever withstood. He has 
 bathed his body in the dragon's blood, as Achilleus and 
 Demophoon were plunged into the bath of fire, and no 
 weapon can hurt him except on one spot between his 
 shoulders on which a linden leaf rested while he bathed, 
 as Achilleus could be wounded only in the heel, and 
 Rustem slain only by the thorn, or Baldur only by the 
 mistletoe. On this spot he is pierced by the spear of 
 Hagen, and from that time forth Kriemhild has no rest 
 imtil she exacts a vengeance more fearful than that which 
 
 * For a more minute examination of this Saga, see Mythology Ar. Nat. 
 Book I. ch. xii., and Daseut, Popular Tales of the Norse, Introduction. A 
 shorter summary, exhibiting most clearly the solar character of the whole 
 epic, may be found in Professor Max Miillers Essay on Comparative 
 Mythology, Chips, ii. 107,- et seq.
 
 24 Tales of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 Gudrun wreaked on the murderers of Sigurd, or Odysseus 
 on the robber-suitors of Penelope.' 
 
 These older epics, so massive in their outlines, so rich 
 in their details, could not fail to furnish materials for a 
 Theieprend thousaud Tomauces to writers who sat down in 
 Aquitaine. their closcts to Spin stories for a less robust and 
 hardy generation. Thus the Xibelungenlied was watered 
 down until it assumed the form of the legend of Walttr 
 of Aquitaine, who plays in it the part of Siegfried, Here, 
 as in the lay, we have the names Gibicho, Gunther, and 
 Etzel, and a possible historical element in the hostages 
 taken to the country of the Huns from Basqueland and 
 the banks of the Khine, and perhaps also in the de- 
 scription of the life and court of the Hunnish chief, when 
 he returns to his home and to his wife Helche, or, as 
 some call her, Ospirin. But with tliese exceptions the 
 tale exhibits the old incidents, to which the writer has 
 given a more cheerful ending. Grani, the war-steed of 
 Sigurd, appears here as Lion, and like Grani is able to 
 carry from Etzel's house the heavy treasure which Walter 
 bears away with Hildegund. He is returning to his home 
 in the land where the sun goes down, with the golden 
 hoard which had been the bane of Fafnir and Regin, of 
 Brynhild and Gudrun, of Sigurd and Siegfried. But 
 Walter has to face and to overcome dire perils in the 
 greed and enmity of King Gunther. The lord of Worms 
 resolves that the hoard shall not be carried through the 
 land of the Franks, and with his knights he assails 
 Walter on his journey. But Hagen who accompanies 
 him has lost much of the dauntless corn-age which marks 
 him in the Nibelung story, and his advice to Gunther 
 is that he should feign a retreat, and thus ^athdraw 
 
 ' I havp here noticed only the leading incidents •which form the frame- 
 work or skeleton of the poem. For a detailed analysis of the Nibelungen- 
 lied and the earlier sagas on which it is built up, I must refer the reader 
 to the Mi/thology of the Aryan Nations, Book I. eh. xii.
 
 Introduction. 25 
 
 Walter from the stronghold in which he had placed 
 Hildegund and his treasure. This counsel, which is 
 given after the death of many knights, is followed by 
 Gunther, and in the combat which ensues Walter smites 
 off a leg from Gfunther's body, and is about to deal him 
 the deathstroke when Hagen interposes his helmet, and 
 the blade of Walter's sword is shivered. In a moment of 
 rashness Walter raises his arm to throw the hilt away, 
 and Hagen, quick as lightning, strikes off his right hand. 
 The penalty for this deed is soon exacted. Walter draws 
 with his left hand his short Hunnish dagger, and tearing 
 Hagen's right eye from its socket casts it on the ground ; 
 these incidents being borrowed from the myths which 
 make Zio or Tyr and Indra Savitar • lose each his right 
 hand, and speak of Woden as leaving an eye in pledge at 
 the fountain of Mimir."-* The blood thus drawn is held 
 to wipe away the old enmity; and Hildegund is summoned 
 to perform the office of Asklepios, or Oinone, or Helgi, the 
 healers.^ From this point onwards all is smooth. The 
 rivalry of courtesies follows the rivalry of swords and 
 spears, and even Etzel is bidden to the feast when, having 
 reached the hero's home, Hildegund becomes the wife of 
 Walter. More pure than Helen, but not less radiant, she 
 returns from Helen's exile with Helen's wealth, to shed 
 joy and gladness on all around her. 
 
 In the story of Hugdietrich we have only another 
 version of the tales in which a maiden is shut up in a 
 lonely tower, and none can approach her except ,pj^g ^^^^y ^^ 
 the knight who is destined to win her. Whether Hugdietnch. 
 it be Danae or Eapunzel, or the Eose of the Alhambra,'' 
 all precautions are vain. Craft achieves what force vainly 
 strives to accomplish, and in the guise of the womanly 
 Theseus, or Achilleus, or Dionysos, Hugdietrich finds his 
 
 ' Myth. A. N. i. 385. = 3. ii. 18. ' /i. i. 286. 
 
 * 76. ii. 301.
 
 26 Talcs of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 way to the prison house of Hildeburg, where, like Odysseus, 
 he shows his skill in weaving. The legend of the birth 
 of his child is a travesty of the myths of Cyrus, Eomulus, 
 Telephos and many others.' In all these the beast takes 
 up the child from a kindly impulse ; in the legend of 
 Hugdietrich alone the babe is taken away to be devoured, 
 and it becomes necessary that some one should discover 
 him at once, instead of suffering liim to remain like 
 Romulus or Paris in the beast's lair. 
 
 In the story of GTudrun the daughter of Hettel, the name 
 Hagen is given to a child who is carried away, like Gany- 
 The storj of mcdes or Surya Bai, by a griffin to his nest among 
 Sughter*of the rocks, and who there grows up to the strengtli 
 Hettel. ^£ jjianhood, his only companions being three 
 
 maidens who like himself have been stolen away from their 
 homes. One of these, on his return to his home in Ireland, 
 becomes his wife, and with the birth of his daughter the 
 story starts afresh in the path of the thousand myths which 
 speak of a host of knights wooing a maiden to their own 
 destruction, until the destined hero comes to claim her. But 
 Hilda is scarcely a more prominent person in this portion 
 of the lay than the sweet singer, Horant or Hjarrandi, 
 who appears as Orendil or Aurentil in the Hamlet my ths,^ 
 and is no other than Orpheus or Amphion, Pan or 
 Wainamoinen. The fortunes of Grudrun, the daughter of 
 Hilda and Hettel, are those of the fearless maidens who 
 are born to be the cause of strife and warfare, and who 
 after long suffering and shameful toil are raised to the glory 
 which is their birthright. In vain Hartmuth of Normandy 
 and Siegfried of Moorland ask her in marriage ; in vain 
 Herwig of Zealand seeks to have her as his wife. But 
 more bold than the others, Herwig marches with his 
 knights to the walls of Hegelingen, and in a combat to 
 which he challenges Hettel is wellnigh winning the day 
 
 ' Myth. A. X. ii. 74, S3. ' Popular Eomances, Introduction, p. 76.
 
 Introdtidion. 27 
 
 when Gudruu rushes between them. To her prayer that 
 the battle may cease, Herwig yields assent on condition 
 that she will wed with him. The troth is pledged, the 
 words being added that (xudrun never changes. The 
 sequel of the story is a long comment on her invincible 
 fidelity. In revenge for the slight put upon him Siegfried 
 invades Denmark, and while Hettel besieges Siegfried in 
 the fortress to which he has driven him, Hartmuth witli 
 his father Ludwig makes a raid on Hegelingen, and carries 
 Gudrun with many of her maidens into Xormandy. There 
 Hartmuth seeks vainly to win the love which is pledged 
 for life and death to Herwig ; but the catastrophe of the 
 Danish army, and the death of King Hettel who comes 
 to rescue his child, seem to leave to Gudrun no hope of 
 escape from her bondage. Time goes on ; fair means and 
 foul are alike employed to work a change in her mind ; 
 and the beautiful Gudrun is brought down to the low 
 estate of the royal maidens who, like Cinderella or the 
 Goose Girl of popular stories, are compelled to work 
 among the ashes or the kine. But Gerlinda the mother 
 of Hartmuth, who thinks thus to break her spirit, brings 
 on herself a terrible vengeance, when once more the 
 Danish host comes, and Herwig with them, to rescue 
 Gudrun from her long captivity. 
 
 The Frithiof Saga contains, perhaps, an amount of local 
 history larger than that which may exist in the Nibe- 
 lungenlied ; but some of its most striking The story 
 features it shares with confessedly solar legends. andEngl"^ 
 Frithiof himself is invested with the attributes ^•'°''^" 
 of that large class of solar heroes of whom Herakles 
 may be taken as the most splendid representative. He 
 is the man born to be great, but for a time others 
 are placed at a vantage over him. He is as the son 
 of Alkmene, the bondsman of Eurystheus, the Boots 
 of popular stories, who must not presume to wed the 
 royal maiden on whom he has set his love. Never-
 
 28 Tales of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 theless he carries with him the earnest of his great 
 inheritance. The rising of the bright snn-god Baldur, 
 who comes back from the land of the dead to gladden 
 earth and heaven, is the token of the high destiny which 
 awaits him. He bears in his hand the invincible sword 
 of Perseus ; on his arm is the magic ring wrought by 
 Wayland the smith, which we have seen among the 
 treasures of Andvari the dwarf; and the good ship 
 Ellide does his bidding like the Phaiakian barks or the 
 marvellous ship of the .Esir. But many a dark cloud 
 must cast its shadow on his path before the sky may 
 shine bright and clear before him. Like Herakles, he 
 must pass through a time of madness such as that which 
 falls on Lancelot and on Tristram. The doom of exile 
 also is upon him, and he must be a wanderer over earth 
 and sea, like Siegfried and Sigurd, like Wuotan and 
 Indra, like Phoibos and Bellerophontes. Like these he 
 achieves mighty exploits ; like Herakles and Odysseus he 
 longs to see once more the maiden from whom he has 
 been parted ; and at length, when his unwitting offence 
 has been expiated, he wins her as his bride. 
 
 The three remaining stories in this volume are the 
 Icelandic tales of Grrettir the Strong, of Gunnlaug and 
 The story of Helga, and of Burnt Njal. Taken together they 
 Grettir. havc a significance as showing the differences of 
 material on which the Saga-men worked. The story of 
 Grrettir abounds in impossibilities ; and of these impos- 
 sible incidents all, or almost all, occur again and again in 
 tales which are confessedly mythical. That these are too 
 many in number, and of too striking a character to be 
 the result of accident, I have already endeavoured to 
 prove ; ' and the portrait of Grrettir himself presents an 
 astonishing likeness to that of the heroes who in Norse 
 and Teutonic popular tales are represented by Boots and 
 
 « Mi/thology A. X. Book I. ch. 12.
 
 Iniroduciioji. 29 
 
 Dummling. Hence it may, I think, be fairly asserted 
 that this saga has few or no distinctive features, and can 
 scarcely be regarded as in any sense a record of incidents 
 in Icelandic life. 
 
 This cannot be said of the stories of Gfiinnlaug and 
 Burnt Njal. Neither of these exhibits the characteristics 
 of the Grettir Saga: and if we cannot shake off The sagas of 
 tjie suspicion that the Njal story, in its present andNjai! 
 shape, is the result of greater exaggeration and over- 
 colouring of details, there is little or nothing in the 
 Gunulaug tale which may not have occurred in the 
 annals of Icelandic families.^ 
 
 A comparison of these two stories with those which 
 precede them in this volume is more especially of service, 
 as showing the classes into which the popular Qassigca. 
 traditions of a country may throw themselves. *'°"„°*j. 
 So surely as we approach the limits of the actual traditions. 
 history, whether of nations and tribes, or of families, or 
 of individual men, so surely are we at once removed from 
 that magic circle within which old mythical phrases have 
 produced their magnificent and exuberant harvest : and 
 thus we are enabled to measure the degrees by which the 
 Hellenic traditions of the Trojan war and the Teutonic 
 stories of the Yolsungs and Niblungs are removed from 
 tales which, like the Frithiof and Grettir Sagas, may 
 contain a certain amoimt of local history inextricably 
 imbedded in a mass of mythical details, or which, like 
 the story of Njal, may be simply an over-coloured narra- 
 tive of events which may really have occurred ; or lastly, 
 which, like the Gunnlaug tale, may contain historical 
 statements which, from trustworthy historical documents, 
 we know to be true or approximately true. The myths 
 
 ' The long grief and the repeated marriages of Helga, -which recur in Mr. 
 Morris' poem of the Lovers of Gudrun, may be suggested possibly by the 
 myth of Gudrun in the Volsung tale. But on this point, as I have already 
 said, I do not wish to lay stress.
 
 30 Talcs of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 which liave gathered round the Persian Cyrus in his 
 earlier years, and in the ckisiug scenes of his life, cannot 
 affect the historical knowledge which we may have of his 
 career from sources which are beyond suspicion. So long 
 as these sources are clearly ascertained, there can be, it 
 woidd seem, no possibility of conflict between the com- 
 parative mythologist and the liistorian.
 
 TBE STORIES OF THE VOL SUNG S. 
 
 I. THE STOKY OF SIGMUND AND SIGNY. 
 
 SiGi was the son of All-father Odin. One day he went a 
 hunting in a wood with a thrall named Bredi, and 
 because Bredi slew by far the most and the finest of the 
 deer, Sigi was angry at being outdone by a thrall ; 
 wherefore he rose up against Bredi and slew him, and 
 hid his body in a snow-drift. For that cause fled Sigi 
 from his father's land ; but Odin bare him company lest 
 any should take vengeance on him, and brought him to 
 the sea, and gave him war-ships. Then Sigi went a 
 warring, and made himself a realm in Hunland and there 
 reigned. Howbeit, in his old age they of his own 
 liousehold turned against him, and made a revolt and slew 
 him. 
 
 Then arose Eerir his son, who overcame the rebels and 
 stablished afresh the kingdom of his father. And after 
 many years, when King Eerir had accomplished all his 
 vengeance on his enemies, and gotten together mucli 
 wealth and great possessions, insomuch tliat he was 
 envied of all kings, he was greatly troubled because he 
 and his wife being fallen into age had no child to come 
 after them ; and it seemed to the king as though he had 
 toiled and warred for naught. Then cried they both 
 without ceasing to the gods to give them a child. And 
 Freyja took pity on them and fetched an apple and gave
 
 32 Tales of tJic Teutonic Lands. 
 
 it into the hands of Ljod her handmaiden, daughter of 
 the giant Hrimnir, to give to the king. So the sky- 
 maid put on the dress of a crow, and came fl3'iug to 
 where King Rerir sat musing on a mound, and dropped 
 the apple in his lap. Then the king took the aj^ple and 
 gave it to his wife, and she ate thereof. 
 
 In due season the time of the queen's travail came and 
 passed by, yet could she in nowise be lightened. And 
 while she still lay sick, it befell that King Eerir went on 
 a journey to the wars, and on his way a weariness over- 
 came him, and he went home to Odin. 
 
 Six years the queen lay in her trouble, neither could 
 she by any means be delivered, till finding herself a 
 dying, she bade them cut the child from out her body. 
 They did as she bade them. She kissed the child at 
 his birth, named him Volsung, and then died. Volsung 
 grew a mighty warrior, stronger and more daring than 
 any of his time. He wedded Ljod, the handmaiden of 
 Freyja, and she bare him, first a son and daughter, 
 Sigmund and Signy, which were twin, and after that 
 nine sons. And all his seed were high-minded and of 
 great hardihood and cunning, in which things the 
 Volsungs far surpassed all other folk before or since. 
 
 Now when Volsung's daughter, Signy, was come of age 
 to wed, Siggeir, King of Gothland, came across the sea 
 to ask her for his wife. 
 
 Volsung had built a great mead-hall. So big was it 
 that there stood an oak tree named Eranstock in the 
 midst, the limbs whereof branched all about the roof, 
 and the roots under-ran all tlie benches. In this hall 
 Volsung made a feast for Siggeir, and led forth his 
 daughter Signy, and betrothed her to him in presence of 
 his men. But Signy was very loth to the marriage, 
 liaving no mind towards the King of Gothland ; yet in 
 this as in all things she bade her father rule for her. 
 
 Now on the dav of the wedding feast, at eventide wlien
 
 The Stories of the Volsimgs. ^2} 
 
 the men sate by the firelight at either end of tlie hall, 
 and the great oak was shadowing the midst in gloom, 
 there came amongst them an old man, one-eyed and of 
 great stature. He was clad in a spotted cloak and linen 
 breeches tight as hosen. He wore a slouched hat on his 
 head, and went barefoot ; in his hand was a sword. He 
 took no heed of any, but went straightway to the 
 Branstock and smote the sword up to the hilt into the 
 tree-trunk. Then said he, 'Whoso plucketh out this 
 sword from this stock shall have the same as a gift from 
 me, and shall find in good sooth that never bare he 
 better sword in hand than this.' And the old man passed 
 out : neither durst any question him whence he came or 
 whither he went. 
 
 Then each man hasted to be first to try and pull out 
 the sword, thinking it a very easy matter. But beginning 
 with the noblest they all made trial, yet not one of them 
 could pluck it forth. Last of all came Sigmund, 
 Volsung's son, and no sooner did he set finger on the 
 pommel than it loosed itself lightly to his hand. 
 
 King Siggeir, beholding how goodly a sword it was, 
 prayed Sigmund to sell it for thrice its weight in gold ; 
 and when Sigmund would not, he was very angry, for he 
 coveted the weapon, yet made as though he cared little 
 thereabout, for he was a double-dealing man. 
 
 There was fair weather on the niorrow after Siggeir 
 and Signy were wed, and Siggeir got ready to cross the 
 sea again, neither would he abide as the custom was for 
 the end of the feast. Then came Signy, pleading to her 
 father that the marriage might be undone, for that she 
 had no liking for her husband, and foreknew, besides, 
 that great evil would befall if she went away with him. 
 But Volsung said there was no help for it, inasmuch as 
 they were all pledged to the wedding. King Siggeir 
 made Volsung promise to come over to Gothland with 
 
 D
 
 34 Talcs of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 his men in three months' time, and there finish the feast : 
 then he set sail with his bride. 
 
 At the time appointed Volsimg and his sons went over 
 the sea to Gothland to the feast. But as soon as they 
 were come to land, Signy came and talked with her 
 father and brothers privily, saying : ' Siggeir has made 
 ready a great army to fall upon you, wherefore make all 
 speed back to Hunland, and gather together what war- 
 ships you may, and come and fight with him. But turn 
 l)ack for this time or you will surely be slain.' 
 
 ' Daughter,' answered Volsung, ' all people know that 
 long ere I was born I spake a vow that I would flee 
 neither from fire nor sword. Men die but once, and I 
 have fought a hundred fights and never prayed for peace.' 
 
 Then Signy besought that they would at least let her 
 die with them, and not send her back to King Siggeir. 
 But Volsung said, ' Thou art his ; wherefore go back.' 
 So she went back sorrowing. 
 
 Now at daybreak King Siggeir made ready his host and 
 led them fortli to hunt down Volsung and his handful of 
 folk. A brave fight the Volsungs made against that host. 
 Eight times they hewed their way through, and turned to 
 cut the mass in twain again, but in that fray King Volsung 
 fell and all his men, saving only his ten sons, and these 
 King Siggeir took and bound with cords. Then he carried 
 the ten brethren away to a lonesome wood, and caused a 
 great beam to be brought and set upon their feet. And 
 each night for nine nights as they sate in the stocks, there 
 came ravening from out the wood an old she-wolf, and bit 
 one of the brethren till he died, then ate his flesh and 
 went her way. But on the tenth niglit when only Sig- 
 mund was left alive, Signy sent a trusty man to anoint his 
 face with honey, and to set some in his mouth. That 
 night when the she-wolf came she sniffed the honey, and 
 began licking his face all over with her tongue ; and when 
 she had licked it dry, she thrust her tongue into his mouth
 
 The Stories of the Volsungs. 35 
 
 for more. Then Sio'mund caught her tong-ue betwixt his 
 teeth and held it fast, and the she-wolf started back and 
 set her feet against the beam and tugged. Sigmund 
 gripped hard with his teeth, and the she-wolf pulled, until 
 the beam was broken in the fierceness of their tussle, and 
 the beast's tongue came out by the roots. So the she- 
 wolf had her bane. Men say that she wasSiggeir'smotlier 
 who by witchcraft took the wolf-shape. 
 
 After this, Sigmund being loosed from the stocks dwelt 
 in the woods, and none save his sister Signy knew of hi? 
 liiding there. He made him an earth-house underground 
 and dwelt therein, and Signy nourished him with victuals. 
 
 Signy had two children by King Siggeir, but as soon as 
 ever the eldest was ten years old she sent him away to her 
 brother in the wood, because she would have him trained 
 up to avenge King Volsung's death. One day Sigmund 
 gave the boy the meal-bag and set him to make ready the 
 bread whilst he went to gather firing. But Sigmund, 
 when he came back with the wood, found no bread ready. 
 The boy sat trembling and afraid to put his hand into the 
 meal-bag, saying that there was something alive therein. 
 Wherefore the next time his sister visited him Sigmund 
 said, 'What shall I do with this feeble-hearted brat?' 
 She answered, ' Kill him ; there is none of our blood in 
 him.' Sigmund made no more ado but took and slew him. 
 And when Signy's other son was grown of like age she 
 sent him also to her brother; and for the same cause she 
 bade Sigmund slay him. 
 
 One day, as Signy sat in her bower, there came a wise 
 witch- wife toiler saying, ' Change likenesses with me.' And 
 Signy being willing, the witch-wife took upon herself tiie 
 likeness of the queen, and in that shape abode for three 
 days with King Siggeir. Then Signy in the guise of the 
 witch-wife came to Sigmund in his earth-house, saying, ' I 
 have strayed in the wood and lost my way. I pray thee 
 give me food and slielter.' And Sigmund knew her not,
 
 o 
 
 6 Tales of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 but took ber in and set meat before her. So for tliree 
 days and three nights she abode with him in his earth- 
 house. Then she departed and met the "witch-wife, and 
 they changed themselves to their proper seeming again. 
 
 Afterward Signy bare a child whose name was Sinfjotli. 
 He grew a big and hardy boy ; fair of face like the Vol- 
 sungs. When he was ten years old, Signy sent him to 
 Sigmund. But first she sewed gloves on to his hands 
 through flesh and skin. When she had done the like to 
 the other boys they wept and screamed, but Sinfjotli never 
 winced ; nor yet when she flayed off" his kirtle, though 
 tlie skin came off with the sleeves. So soon as the lad 
 was come to the earth-house, Sigmund set him to knead 
 the meal while he went to fetch firing. By the time he 
 got back the bread was made. Then Sigmund asked if 
 he had found aught in the meal. ' Aye,' said the boy, 
 ' there was something quick therein, I know not what ; I 
 kneaded it all into the bread.' Sigmund laughed and 
 said, ' Thou hast kneaded the deadliest of vipers in the 
 meal.' Then Sigmund ate the bread, but woidd not 
 suffer the boy to taste thereof, for Sinfjotli, though he 
 might take no hurt from venom on the outside of him, 
 dm'st not eat or drink thereof. After that Sigmund took 
 the lad about the woods and trained him to a fierce and 
 hardy life. But he wist not that the boy was his son. 
 They gat VN^olf- skins from before the door of two men 
 that were skin-changers, and clad themselves therein, and 
 came forth in wolf-shape to slay men for their wealth. 
 Whilst in this guise, it was agreed betwixt them that 
 neither should risk the onset of more than seven men at 
 once without howling for his fellow. And because one 
 day Sinfjotli in his wolf-dress fought eleven men and slew 
 tliem all, Sigmund finding him after the battle was angry, 
 and ran upon Sinfjotli and worried him by tlie throat, 
 because he had not called for help. Nevertheless when 
 Sigmund saw the wound he had made in the lad's throat
 
 The Stories of the Volsuiigs. 3 7 
 
 he was sorry and looked how he miglit heal him. And as it 
 fell out, he saw a weasel bitten in the throat and hoAvhis 
 fellow ran to a thicket and brought a leaf and laid it upon 
 the wound, and the creature was made whole. Then Sig- 
 mund got a blade of that same herb, and therewith 
 tSinfjotli's hurt was immediately healed. But when the 
 time came for them to put off their wolf-gear, Sigmund 
 took and burned their dresses lest more harm should befall 
 because of them. 
 
 Now Sinfjotli being come to manhood, Sigmund took 
 counsel with him as to how they should come upon King 
 Siggeir to slay him, and accordingly as they agreed, they 
 stole into the porch of the king's hall in the dusk of even- 
 ing, and hid themselves betwixt the tuns of ale. Signy 
 and the king had two young children ; and as these played 
 in the porch with a golden toy, a ring came off and went 
 trundling away among the barrels. And when the children 
 went seeking it, they saw two fierce, wild men crouched 
 down, and away they ran to tell their father. While the 
 king sat doubting, and thinking it no more than a young- 
 ster's tale, Signy took both the children and brought them 
 out into the porch, saying to Sigmund, 'Here are the brats 
 that have betrayed you. Slay them! ' Sigmund answered, 
 'Nay, for they did it without guile.' But Sinfjotli came 
 forth from his hiding and drew his sword and slew them 
 both. And he took the bodies and cast them into the hall 
 at Siggeir's feet. 
 
 Then up rose the king and his men, and set on so 
 fiercely and in so great numbers that they took Sigmund 
 and Sinfjotli and bound them. The most of that night 
 the king lay awake devising the worst death he could 
 make these men suffer ; and on the morrow he had a big 
 barrow made of turf and stones, and a great flat stone set 
 up endwise for a wall in the midst. He set Sigmund and 
 Sinfjotli one on either side of the stone, so that they 
 might hear each other's speech but in no wise come to-
 
 J 
 
 8 Talcs of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 gether. Then he gave the word to cover in the barrow 
 with earth and turf-sods and bury them quick. But as 
 tlie thralls were working, Signy came and flung an armful 
 of straw into the barrow ; and the men kept her counsel. 
 
 About nightfall the barrow was closed in. And Sinf- 
 jotli began to talk to Sigmund. He said, ' We shall not 
 lack for meat, since the queen hath cast down swine's-flesh 
 on my side wrapped in a bundle of straw ; and in the 
 flesh thy sword is sticking.' Then SinQotli took out the 
 sword and carved at the stone until he wrought a hole 
 therein. And as soon as Sigmimd could grip the sword- 
 point on the other side they set to work and sawed the 
 stone in twain. So being loose in the barrow they cut 
 their way through the earth, and got out into the air some 
 while after midnight. They then went and cut down 
 wood, and set it round about the palace and kindled it. 
 And when the palace was all ablaze Signy came running 
 to the window. Sigmund would have got her out, but she 
 would not. 
 
 And Signy said to Sigmund, ' You have done well ; 
 but judge if I have forgotten vengeance for King Vol- 
 sung ! Did I begrudge to slay the worthless brats I 
 bare to Siggeir ? But I am mother to SinQotli I For 
 Siggeir's bane I lodged with thee those three nights in 
 the witch-wife's shape. Be glad ; thou art Sinfjotli's 
 father. He is the child of Volsung's son and Volsung's 
 daughter, and by him vengeance has come for Volsung. 
 But I ? — / come away ? and miss to see King Siggeir 
 burn ? Nay, brother dear ! Merry was I not to wed 
 with Siggeir, but merrily will I die with him.' 
 
 Then leaned she from the window and kissed Sigmund 
 lier brother, and Sinfjotli, and went blithely back again 
 into the fire and burned with Siggeir and his men. 
 
 After this Sigmund and Sinfjotli came back to Hun- 
 land, and they put down a man there which had made 
 himself king in Volsung's room ; and Sigmund reigned
 
 The Stories of the Vols? nigs. 39 
 
 over Hunland and made himself a name far and wide ; 
 moreover, he took to wife Borghild, who bare him two 
 sons, Helgi and Hamund. 
 
 Now Sinfjotli must needs go to war again for a 
 woman's sake that was very fair. For this cause he 
 fought with the queen's brother, who likewise had set 
 his love upon the same maiden. And Sinfjotli slew him 
 and won his lands and took the damsel to himself. But 
 Queen Borghild was not to be appeased for the slaying of 
 her brother ; and for all Sigmund could do it was a long- 
 while before she would let Sinfjotli look upon her face. 
 Howsoever, she bade many great men to the funeral 
 feast, and Sinfjotli came among the rest. And when tlie 
 queen bare the drink to the guests she filled him a horn 
 saying, with a fair courtesy, ' Drink now, good stepson.' 
 But he looked in the horn and would not taste thereof, 
 for he said, ' A charm is therein.' Then Sigmund 
 laughed and rose up from his seat, and took the horn 
 and drained it at a draught. Again the queen came to 
 Sinfjotli, and mocked him, 'Wilt thou get another man 
 to drink thine ale ? ' He took the horn, and answered, 
 'There is guile in the drink.' So Sigmund came and 
 tipped it off. The third time came the queen saying, 
 'What Volsung doth not drink his drink?' He took 
 the horn into his hand, and said, ' There is venom in the 
 cup.' Sigmund, grown drunken with his ale, cried, 
 ' Then strain it out with thy lips, son.' So Sinfjotli 
 drank, and fell down dead upon the floor. 
 
 Then Sigmund rose up in grievous sorrow. He took 
 the corpse in his arms and bare it away through a wood 
 till he came to a river-mouth. And he was ware of a 
 man in a little boat who asked if he would be ferried 
 across the water ; but the boat was so small it would hold 
 but one, so they laid the corpse therein. And imme- 
 diately corpse and man and boat vanished from Sig-.
 
 40 Talcs of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 mund's sight. So he turned and came home ; and he 
 put away his queen, and soon after that she died. 
 
 King Eylimi had a fair daughter named Hjordis, and 
 Sigmund went to woo her. Thither also came King 
 Lyngi, Hunding's son, on the same errand. And King 
 Eylimi spake to his daughter, saying : ' Thou art a wise 
 woman, wherefore, choose whether of these two kings 
 thou wilt take.' She answered, ' Although he is well 
 stricken in years, I choose Sigmund, since he is the man 
 of greatest fame.' 
 
 So Sigmund was wedded to Hjordis and brought her 
 home to Hunland, and King Eylimi came with them. 
 But King Lyngi gathered together his men and came 
 up against Sigmund to fight with him hecaiise he had 
 taken away his bride. Sigmund sent Hjordis away into 
 a wood, together with a certain bondmaid, and with all 
 the treasure, to abide there whilst they fought. Then he 
 and King Eylimi set up their banners by the sea and 
 blew the trumpets ; but their army was by far the fewest. 
 Old as King Sigmund was he hewed with his sword ever 
 in the thickest of the battle, and smote down men till his 
 arms were red with blood even to the shoulder. Yet 
 neither host gave way. 
 
 Now when the battle had lasted some while, there 
 came into the fight an old man in a blue cloak, with a 
 slouched hat on his head. He had but one eye, and in 
 his hand he bare a bill. And when Sigmund lifted up 
 his sword against him, the old man set his bill in the 
 way, so the blade smote upon the bill-edge and shivered 
 in two. But the old man was no more to be seen. 
 Then great dismay spread through Sigmund's host, 
 because his good-hap was departed from him. And though 
 the king cried on his men all he might, they fell fast 
 about him ; and by eventide King Sigmund and King 
 Eylimi were fallen in the forefront of the battle, and the 
 war-noise ceased.
 
 The Stories of the Volsiings. 41 
 
 At Light came Hjordis stealing out of the wood, and 
 went to and fro among the slain, seeking for Sigmund. 
 There was yet a little life in him, and she said, ' Waken, 
 dear lord, thou shalt not die ; but we will lieal thee to 
 avenge my father.' He answered, ' It may not be ; 
 neither will I suffer myself to be healed since Odin has 
 broken my sword. But, behold now, thou wilt bear a 
 child, and I know that he sliall grow up the most famous 
 of the Volsungs. Him shalt thou nurture to do thy 
 vengeance ; only see thou treasure the shards of my 
 good sword, Gram, for thereof shall a sword be made for 
 him which shall accomplish great wonders. But now I 
 am weary with my wounds, and I would fain go home to 
 my kindred.' So Hjordis sat by him till the dawning, 
 when he died. 
 
 Now at sunrise came Alf the Viking, son of Hjalprek 
 King of Denmark, sailing along the coast, who, seeing 
 two women alone with the dead upon a battle-field, 
 leaped ashore with his men and came to them. Then 
 Hjordis told w-hat had befallen, and lest the treasure 
 in the wood should fall into King Lyngi's hands she 
 discovered its hiding-place to Alf, and they got the 
 treasure out and laded the ships therewith ; and Hjordis 
 and her handmaid sailed away to Denmark with the 
 Vikings, and came to King Hjalprek's palace and there 
 abode. 
 
 II. THE STOEY OF HELGI, HUNDING'S BANE. 
 
 Helgi was Sigmund's son which Borghild bare. Helgi 
 made a name for himself when he went up to battle 
 against Hunding that mighty king, and slew him and 
 took his lands. So was he Hunding's bane. Afterwards 
 came Hunding's four sons with many warriors, and 
 fought to win back their land, but Helgi overcame them 
 and put their men to the rout.
 
 42 Talcs of the Teidojiic Lands. 
 
 Now as he was returning from this victory Helgi met 
 a company of exceeding fair women, and the queen of 
 them was Sigrun, King Hogni's daughter. So fair was 
 she tlmt Helgi could not take his eyes off from behold- 
 ing her, and he spake to her, saying, ' Fare home with 
 me and be my queen.' But Sigrun answered, ' Would 
 that I might, for verily my heart goeth out toward thee, 
 but I have a worse fate to accomplish, since my father 
 hath promised me in marriage to Hodbrod, the son of 
 King Grranmar ; and him I despise. Go, fight him ; 
 win me, and I am thine.' 
 
 Then Helgi sent out men with money to hire as many 
 ships as they might. They got together many vessels 
 and near a score thousand men, and Helgi made sail for 
 King Granmar's country. They made the land at Wolf- 
 stone, and fought their way ashore. Fierce was the 
 battle that befell ; and in the midst there came a com- 
 pany of shield-maidens and fought on Helgi's side, chief 
 of whom was Sigrun, the king's daughter. Then Helgi 
 fell on King Hodbrod and slew him beneath his own 
 banner ; and seeing this Sigrun cried out, ' Thou hast 
 done well, and now I pledge thee my troth. We will 
 share the land between us.' 
 
 So Helgi, when he had overcome King Granmar and 
 his host, became king of that realm and wedded Sigrun. 
 After that Hogni, Sigrun's father, came up against him 
 because he had taken away his daughter ; and with him 
 also came Dag his son. But Helgi slew Hogni, and put 
 his men to the worst ; and as for Dag, after he had 
 taken an oath from him to make war on him no more, he 
 let him go in peace. But Dag went his way and 
 sacrificed continually to Odin, praying that he might 
 avenge his father. And at last Odin lent Dag his 
 spear, and with that spear in his hand Dag came seeking 
 Helgi his brother-in-law, and finding him in a place
 
 The Stories of the Volsicngs. 43 
 
 called Fetter-gTove, thrust him through therewith that 
 he died. 
 
 Forth rode Dag to his sister Sigrun, to tell her the 
 tidings. ' Lo,' said he, ' Helgi have I slain, and our 
 father is avenged I ' Sigrun answered, ' Now are my good 
 days past ; no more shall I tind gladness in the pleasant 
 sunshine. Cursed be thou for a foul oath-breaker. May 
 thy ship linger when it should sweep the swiftest I May 
 thy steed lag when thou wouldest fain flee fastest from 
 thine enemies ! Thy sword, may it never bite till in 
 wrath it singeth roimd thine head I But as for Helgi, 
 my love, he was chief among all other men, as the ash- 
 tree that riseth from the thorns, or as the antlered deer 
 is above the forest-game.' 
 
 Then she raised a barrow above Helgi and gave him a 
 noble burial. And when Helgi was gone up to Valhalla, 
 Odin made him lord over all things there, and Hunding 
 came and served him, and made ready his fire, and tended 
 his hounds and horses. 
 
 In the gloaming of the evening there came one of Si- 
 gruu's handmaidens to Helgi's mound, and behold she saw 
 Helgi and a great company of dead warriors riding fast 
 about the mound. Then she ran and told her mistress, and 
 Sigrun hasted and came thither, and finding the mound 
 uncovered, she went m and took Helgi's cold head upon her 
 lap. Thus she made her moan : ' Helgi, my dead love, 
 I hunger for thee as the hawks of Odin hunger for their 
 quarry. See, I kiss thy hair all dripping with cold dews ; 
 I take thy hands in mine. let me warm thee back to life 
 against my breast, and bring the light to those dull eyes 
 again ! ' And the dead man spake to her. He said : 
 ' Now shall all death-sorrow depart from me if thou wilt 
 dwell with me in my mound ; if thou, a fair white 
 maiden, wilt abide in the arms of a dead man.' Then 
 Sigrun commanded a bed to be made ready in the 
 mound, and for all her folk told her that the dead were
 
 44 Tales of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 stronger and more hurtful in the night-season than in 
 the daylight, she went in thither and lay by her dead 
 lord. But in the early twilight Helgi rose iip, sayingj 
 ' Hark, I hear the crowing of Salgofnir, the golden cock 
 upon Valhalla. I must ride my pale horse along the 
 reddening ways to Windhelm's bridge. Farewell ; the 
 dead ride fast.' Therewith Helgi departed, and after 
 that came no more to tlie mound. Sigrun watched and 
 waited night by night, till the hope of his coming waned 
 away. Then because of her sorrow she sickened and died. 
 Of old it was commonly believed that folk should be 
 born again. And it was said that Helgi the Scathe of 
 Hadding, who lived long after, was none other than 
 Helgi, Hunding's bane ; and they say that Kara the 
 Valkyrie, daughter of Halfdan, was Sigrun. 
 
 III. THE STORY OF SIGURD AND BRYNHILD. 
 
 Now soon after Hjordis was come to Hjalprek's palace 
 in Denmark, she bare dead Sigmund's son. They called 
 his name Sigm-d, and, as he grew up there was no child 
 but loved him. Truly he waxed a man of great might 
 and prowess, and for his high mind and his stout heart 
 he has ever been held above all the men of the north. 
 Regin was his foster-father, and taught him the runes, 
 and to speak with strange tongues, and play at chess, as 
 was the wont of kings' sons. So the boy grew up, and his 
 mother in due time wedded with Alt", King Hjalprek's son. 
 One day Eegin asked Sigurd if he knew how much of 
 his father's treasure the king had, and whether he could 
 trust the king therewith. Sigurd answered, ' Trust him ? 
 Aye ; why not ? I can get it when I want it.' Another 
 time came Regin, saying, ' I marvel truly to see thee run 
 about afoot like a knave. Why doth not the king give
 
 The Stories of the Volsiuigs. 45 
 
 thee a horse to ride ?' Sigurd said, ' I need but ask and 
 liave.' Therewith he went to King Hjalprek and asked 
 for a horse ; and immediately the king bade him go 
 take one for himself, together with whatsoever thing else 
 he desired ; for the king loved him as though he were 
 liis own son. Wherefore on the next day Sigurd went 
 alone into the wood, and meeting there an old, long- 
 bearded man, he said, ' I am come to choose a horse ; 
 give me counsel thereon.' Then the old man drave the 
 horses down into the deeps of the river Busil-tarn ; and it 
 fell out that they all swana back to land save a young 
 grey horse whose back no man had crossed. ' Take him,' 
 said the grey-beard, ' he is of Sleipnir's breed ;' and saying 
 this the old man vanished away. That old man was 
 Odin ; he gave Sigurd the foal Grani which was the best 
 horse in the world. 
 
 Regin came again to Sigurd, saying, ' I can tell thee 
 where there is much wealth for the winning and great fame 
 to be got thereby. On the Grlistening Heath dwells the 
 dragon Fafnir ; he has more treasure than any king ever 
 yet heaped together.' Sigurd said, ' I have heard of this 
 evil worm and how he is so terrible none durst go against 
 him.' Regin answered, ' Nay ; men men make a great 
 tale about him, but he is no worse than other ling- 
 worms. Thy fathers, the old Volsungs, would have 
 recked little of him.' Sigurd said, ' I am scarce out of 
 my childish yeai's, and have not yet the hardihood of my 
 sires ; but why art thou so eager to drive me to this 
 encounter ?' 
 
 Then Regin told him about Fafnir, saying, ' I had 
 two brothers, Fafnir and Otter. Otter was a great fisher, 
 and by day he put on the shape of an otter, the better to 
 take the fish, but he always brought them home to 
 Hreidmar our father, begrudging nothing. As for Fafuir, 
 he was greedy and grasping, and wanted everything for 
 his own. In the swirl where Otter went fishing abode a
 
 46 Tales of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 dwarf called Andvari, in the likeness of a pike, for which 
 reason the swirl was named Andvari's force. One day 
 Otter caught a salmon in the force and brought it to 
 land, and when he had eaten it he lay slumbering on the 
 bank. It befell that Loki passed that way with Odin 
 and Hahnir ; and Loki, seeing Otter asleep, flung a stone 
 and killed him. Then they flayed off the otter's skin 
 and brought it to Hreidmar's house, and showed him 
 what they had done. But when Hreidmar saw that they 
 had slain his son he was wroth, and immediately laid 
 hands on them, neither would he let them go till they 
 promised to fill the otter-skin with gold, and cover it 
 without with gold. Then went Loki to Ran, and having 
 borrowed her net, cast it into Andvari's force and took the 
 pike ; and he made Andvari bring out his gold and fill 
 the otter-skin and cover it without. Andvari gave up all 
 his gold save only one ring, for he said tliat whoso had 
 that gold-ring should find it his bane. But when the 
 gods brought the otter-skin to Hreidmar he looked at it 
 and spied one of the muzzle-hairs uncovered ; and he 
 would have Andvari's last ring to cover that hair withal. 
 Then Loki rejoiced, saying to Hreidmar, " That ring shall 
 be the bane of thee and thy son !" And so it fell out. 
 For Fafnir murdered his father to get the gold, and after 
 that became more grudging than ever. So he grovelled 
 till he grew a worm, the worst of worms, and fell to 
 brooding on his treasure. But I went to King Hjalprek 
 and became his master-smith.' Then Sigurd said, ' If 
 thou wouldst have me slay this dragon, make me now by 
 thy craft a trusty sword.' 
 
 Straightway went Regin to his forge and made a 
 sword. When it was done Sigurd took the sword in his 
 liauds and smote it on the anvil to prove it, but the 
 blade brake and he cast it away, bidding Regin forge a 
 better. So Regin blew up his fire and made another 
 sword. But Sigurd looked thereon and said. ' A plague
 
 The Stories of the Volsungs. 47 
 
 on thy smithying-, Regin I Art thou a traitor like all 
 thy kin ?' And he took that brand and brake it likewise 
 across the anvil. 
 
 Then went Sigurd to his mother Hjordis and asked foi- 
 the shards of his father's sword Gram. And when he had 
 gotten them he came to Regin in the smithy and bade 
 him weld them together. Regin, grown surly by this 
 time, flung the pieces in the fire and took a welding- 
 heat on them. When the sword was joined, and he bare 
 it from the forge, it seemed to the smith that fire burned 
 along its edges. Then Sigurd took and smote the sword 
 into the anvil, and clave the anvil down to the stock ; but 
 the edge of the blade was not turned. He took a lock 
 of wool and flung it in the river against the stream, and 
 cut it clean in two with the sword. And he said, ' It is 
 a good blade.' And Regin said, ' Now I have made a 
 brand for thee thou wilt keep thy troth and go and fight 
 with Fafnir.' But Sigurd answered, ' All in good time, 
 but first I must avenge my father.' 
 
 Sigurd went away to Gripir the seer, who knew things 
 to come, and what should happen to men ; and he be- 
 • sought Gripir to foreshow him his life. Then spake the 
 seer : ' Thou wilt get riches from a dragon, but thou wilt 
 squander them. Thou shalt win fame from many kings, 
 and tliere shall come after thee no greater man than thou. 
 Thou shalt learn wisdom from a woman and yet not be 
 wise against women. Thou shalt forget her thou lovest 
 best and woo her for another, and a woman shall be thy 
 bane.' But Sigurd was angry with the seer, and said, ' How- 
 could I forget her I loved best ?' And he came away. 
 
 A little after Regin met him and said, ' Why tarry 
 longer ? Go and slay Fafnir.' But he answered, ' I have 
 other work to do.' 
 
 Then came Sigurd to King Hjalprek and asked him for 
 men and ships and war-gear wherewith to go and avenge 
 his father on the Huudinss. And tlie kino- ha vino;
 
 48 Talcs of tJie Teutonic Lands. 
 
 furnished him with all he desired, Sigurd steered the 
 noblest of the dragon-keels, and led the way across the 
 green sea-plain. For some days they sailed with fair 
 wind and weather ; then the colour faded from, the sea, 
 the wan sky gathered thick with piling clouds, the wave- 
 momids rose, the storm-wind beat their crests to foam 
 and flung the spume-flakes wide. Like breaking hills the 
 waters tumbled in upon the deck ; yet, for all the storm 
 was so fierce, Sigurd would take in no sail, but rather bade 
 his men crowd on the more. No Volsung ever furled sail 
 for any wind that blew. In the midst of the storm a 
 certain man hailed them from a cliff top, and Sigurd 
 steered that way and took him aboard. When they asked 
 his name he said, ' Once when I gladdened Odin's ravens 
 in the battle, men called me Hnikai\ Call me that, or 
 Feng or Fjolnir, as you will.' Then Sigurd, being ware 
 that Hnikar knew the fates and what was to come, 
 asked him concerning the things which betoken good and 
 evil to a warrior. Hnikar said, ' It bodeth good for him 
 that goeth to war if he see a dark-winged raven, or two 
 young warriors in a porchway, or if he hear a wolf howl 
 from beneath an ash-tree. To trip the foot when clad 
 for battle is a sorry token, for it showeth that the Disir 
 are on either side of thee, and greedy for thy wounding. 
 The warrior should go forth in the morning well combed, 
 well washed, well fed, so he may endure the toils of the 
 day ; but at evening let him fight with his back to the 
 setting sun, that the eyes of his enemy may be dazzled, 
 while his own may see the better.' 
 
 Soon afterwards the storm abated, and Hnikar vanished 
 away. And when the vessels were come to Hunland 
 where King Lyngi the Hunding reigned, Sigurd got his 
 men ashore .and laid waste the country with fire and sword, 
 and drave the folk inland, so that they fled to their king 
 and told him how the Volsungs were pillaging the shores. 
 Then King Lyngi sent messages throughout his realm and
 
 The Stories of the Volsungs. 49 
 
 gut togetlier a great army and came out, he and his 
 brothers, to withstand Sigurd ; and an exceeding fierce 
 tight there was. Sigurd went about the battle with his 
 good sword Grram and smote down men and horses till 
 one could not see his mail for blood, and his foes shrank 
 aback before him. He it was who smote Lyngi down, 
 tlinnigh helm and chine, and slew all the other sons of 
 Hunding ; then his men fell on the discomfited host and 
 put the most part of them to death. So Sigurd won back 
 his father's land, and after abiding there for a short space, 
 he came again to Dennaark. 
 
 He had been but a little while at home when Regiu 
 came and minded him of his promise to go and fight 
 Fafnir. So Sigurd gat him ready and rode with Regin 
 to the heath where Fafnir was wont to go to his w^ateriug. 
 They saw the mighty tiack he made, and how it led to a 
 cliff whereon the drake would lie and hang his head over 
 to lap the water thirty fathoms below. ' Thou hast 
 beguiled me, Regin,' said Sigurd, ' in that thou didst say 
 this drake was no bigger than other ling-worms, whereas 
 I see by the track of him that he is very great.' But 
 Regin counselled him to make a pit in the drake's path- 
 way and sit therein, so that when the worm came to his 
 watering he might smite him to the heart. Then said 
 Sigurd, ' Aye, but the blood of so huge a creature will 
 flood the heath, and fill the pit, and drown me therein.' 
 Regin answered, ' What profiteth it to give thee counsel? 
 Thou hast not the courage of thy kindred.' Howbeit, 
 when Sigurd rode away over the heath to seek the dragon, 
 Regin sneaked oft' and hid himself to save his skin. 
 
 Now when Sigurd was at work digging the pit, he wa:i 
 ware of the same old man with the long beard who gave 
 him his horse. The grey-beard bade him dig many pit3 
 wherein the blood might run, and then vanished away. 
 So Sigurd made pits all about the heath and hid himself 
 in one of them. Presently the great worm came creeping 
 
 K
 
 50, Talcs of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 along his track, snorting venom as he went, and shaking 
 the earth with his roaring. Sigurd had no fear, but from 
 the pit thrust up his sword and smote the drake beneatli 
 the left shoulder to the heart. 
 
 Then Fafnir, when he knew he had gotten his death- 
 thrust, lashed out right and left in his madness, and 
 brake to pieces all the trees about him. And he spake 
 to Sigurd, saying, ' Who drove thee to this deed ? And 
 who art thou that fearest not m}^ terribleness like other 
 folk ? ' Sigurd said, ' My heart, my hand, my sword, 
 these urged me to thy slaying. I am Sigmund the 
 Volsung's son, and " an old sire maketh a hardy boy." ' 
 Then said Fafnir, ' Rejoice not to win the gold ; there is a 
 curse on it, and it shall prove thy bane as it has been 
 mine.' ' Fret not thyself to lose it then,' answered Sigurd, 
 ' for naught it availeth for a man to cling to his gold 
 when his life-day is done ; but as for me I will hold it 
 till that day of days.' 
 
 Now as soon as Fafnir Avas dead, Eegin crawled out 
 i'rom his hiding-place and began to make great ado, 
 .saying, ' Alas ! thou hast slain mine own brother, and 
 verily I am not wholly guiltless in this matter.' Sigurd 
 mocked him for hiding in the heather-bush, and bade him 
 Itake comfort, for that he was guiltless of aught save 
 cowardice. Regin said, ' Boast not thyself, for had it not 
 been for the sharp sword I made thee thou couldst not 
 have prevailed against him.' Sigurd laughed, ' Better in 
 fight is a stout heart than a sharp sword.' Then Regin 
 fell to lamenting again, saying, 'My brother is dead, and, 
 good sooth, but it was I that slew him.' Nevertheless, 
 for all his heaviness, Regin went to the body of the worm 
 and began to drink of Fafnir's blood : and he spake to 
 Sigurd, saying, ' I pray thee cut the heart from out him, 
 bear it to the fire and roast it, and give me to eat.' 
 
 Then Sigurd took the drake's heart and set it on a spit 
 and made a fire and roasted it. But as it sputtered in
 
 The Stories of the Volsiings. 51 
 
 tlie fire he laid bis finger thereon to try if it were done, 
 and set his finger in his mouth. And so soon as Sigurd 
 tasted of the worm's heart-blood, he understood the voice 
 of all fowls, and knew what the wood birds chattered in 
 the bushes. One said, 'Sigurd, give not the meat to 
 another, but eat it thyself — so shalt thou become the 
 wisest of men.' Another spake, ' Eegin doth but beguile 
 thee that he may get the treasure.' ' If I were Sigurd.' 
 said a third, ' I would smite off his head, and save all 
 disjDviting about the gold.' ' Well magged, gossip,' cried 
 another bird, ' for " where wolf's ears are be sure their teeth 
 are not far oif ; " and when he has done so, let him ride to 
 Hindfell, There sleeps fair Brynhild, and from her he shall 
 gain great wisdom.' 
 
 Sigurd thought within himself, ' Eegin shall never be 
 my bane ; so let both brothers ti^avel by one road ' — and 
 with that he drew his sword Grram and smote off Eegin's 
 liead by the shoulders. Then straightway the birds broke 
 out a- singing, and in their songs they told of Brynhild, 
 the maiden that lay sleeping in a flaming hall of gold 
 upon the mountain Hindfell ; told how Odin struck the 
 sleep-thorn into her because, being a Valkyrie, she had 
 chosen for death in battle one he willed not to be slain : 
 told how only Sigurd might wake her from the torment 
 of her sleep. 
 
 Then Sigurd ate of Fafnir's heart and put by the rest ; 
 and after that he went and sought out Fafnir's dwelling- 
 place, which was dug deep into the earth, and got the 
 treasure out. There was more gold than two dray-horses 
 could carry, besides the Helm of Awe and the gold Byrnie, 
 and many other precious things. He set the gold in two 
 big chests and laded them upon his hors3 Grani, whom 
 he would fain have led by the bridle, because the buiden 
 was so great; yet would not that good steed stir till his 
 master leaped upon his back. Then, swift as the wind, he 
 
 E 2
 
 52 Talcs of ike Teutonic Lands. 
 
 syjed away for Hindfell which lies by the land of the 
 Franks. 
 
 Now when Sigurd came to the mountain, he saw as it 
 were a flame of fire and a great light go up from Hind- 
 fell. And wlien he reached the top, behold, a shield- 
 hung castle shining with the glory of the gold ; above, 
 upon the topmost tower, a banner ; but all about was 
 desolate and still. Then went he in. There was silence, 
 save his footfall sounding in the hall. But as he wan- 
 dered hither and thither he came upon a fair maiden fast 
 asleep and lying in her armour. At first he wist it had 
 been a man, till he took her helmet off and saw the golden 
 locks stream all about her head. So fast was the byrnie set 
 upon her that it seemed to have grown to her flesh ; and 
 because of this byrnie in which she went to the wars, the 
 maiden was called Brynhild ; but Sigurd cut it with his 
 sword as it had been no more than cloth, and rent it from 
 the collar and tare the sleeves away. 
 
 Then Brynhild opened her eyes and said, 'Who has 
 prevailed to rend my byrnie and to deliver me from my 
 long sleep ? ' 
 
 He answered, ' I, Sigurd the Volsung, slayer of Fafnir ; 
 I that bear Fafnir's helm upon my head, and Fafnir's bane 
 in my liand ; I rent the byrnie.' 
 
 Brynhild said, ' Long and wearily have I slumbered ! 
 Jfow sweet it is to see the day again, and the bright sky, 
 and the plentiful green earth ! It was when Helm Gunnar 
 fought with Agnar, and Odin promised him the victory, 
 that I rebelled against All-Father and chose for death 
 Helm Cfunnar in his stead ; so Odin pierced me with the 
 sleep-thorn, and doomed me when I woke to love but to 
 ])0ssess not; to wed, but not to have my will. Yet vowed 
 T a vow that I would only love a man which knew nut 
 tV^ar.' 
 
 Then Sigurd V)esought lier to teach him wisdom. 
 J>rvnhild fetched a 1 eaker and made a love-drink and
 
 The Stories of the I'olsungs. 53 
 
 bare to him ; and while he drank she showed him the 
 liidden lore of the runes that are the root of all things. 
 She taught him runes of war, of love, of feasting, and of 
 healing ; showed him words and signs that have power 
 over herbs, and cattle, and men— yea, that compel the 
 .Esir up in Asgard ; showed him how and where to carve 
 them, on gold and glass, on mead-horn, on the sword-hilt, 
 on the rudder of the ship, on bough and fiower-bud, on 
 chariot-wheel, upon the eagle's bill, and on the witch- 
 wife's seat. 
 
 As Sigurd listened, his eyes beheld her beauty whilst 
 she spake ; and he said, ' Surely no wiser nor svveeter 
 woman than thou art may be found in the wide world ; 
 therefore will I have thee for mine own, because thou art 
 grown so dear to me.' She answered, 'Though I bad all 
 the sons of men to choose from, thee would I take beyond 
 them all.' And so they plighted their troth. 
 
 Then Sigurd rode away. His golden shield was wrought 
 with many folds ; pictured thereon was the image of the 
 drake, in brown and red. Gold-wrought were his weapons, 
 gold the housings of his horse, and on them all was 
 blazoned the image ofthedrake, that men might know the 
 slayer of the great worm P^afnir. His hair was golden-red 
 and fell about his face in locks ; his beard of the same hue, 
 thick and short : high-nosed he was ; high-boned and 
 broad his face ; so bright were his eyes that few durst 
 gaze up into tJiem. He was wide as two men betwixt the 
 shoulders ; and as for his height, when he girt on his 
 sword Gram which was seven spans long, and passed 
 througli standing corn, the sheath-point smote the ears as 
 lie went. Persuasive was he of speech, and so wise withal 
 that none could gainsay his words ; gentle to his friends, 
 terrible to his enemies ; and no man ever shamed him or 
 put him in fear. 
 
 Sigurd journeyed till he came to Hlymdale to tiie 
 dwelling of a great chief named Heimir, who had wedded
 
 54 Talcs of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 l^ckkhild, a sister of Brynhild. And since Heimir besoiigbt 
 him to tarry awhile, he turned in thither and there abode ; 
 and daily went out with Alswid, Heimir's son, for sport 
 with hawk and hound. 
 
 Soon after, came Brynhild also to the castle to see her 
 sister ; but Sigurd knew not of her coming, neither saw 
 Jier ; for she came unseen and went up and dwelt in 
 a chamber in a high tower. There she sate day by day 
 embroidering upon a cloth with golden thread the 
 slaying of the dragon Fafnir and his brother Eegin, and 
 the winning of the treasure. But one time when Sigurd 
 came from hunting, his hawk flew up to a high window in 
 that tower ; and climbing after it, Sigurd looked in at 
 the window and saw a maiden, and how she wrought his 
 deeds in gold with wondrous skill and long patience. 
 When he knew that it was Brynhild, he took no more joy 
 in hunting, but left his steed idle in . the stall, and his 
 liawksto pine upon their blocks. 
 
 Then Alswid asked, what ailed him that he would no 
 longer join their games. He answered, ' I have seen 
 Brynhild, the fairest woman, and in her needlework she 
 works the story of my life ; deeds past and deeds to come.' 
 Alswid said, 'It is vain to think of her ; for Brynhild has 
 never let a man sit beside her, nor given him drink ; she 
 is a war-maid and driveth men to battle to win fame ; but 
 none may love her.' ' Nevertlieless,' said Sigurd, ' I would 
 make trial and know for certain.' So on the next day he 
 came to Brynhild in her bower and greeted her. She said, 
 '- Glad am I since thou art here, but who shall say if glad- 
 ness may endure to life's end ? ' Then he sate down beside 
 her on the bench ; and she forbad him not. There came 
 four damsels bearing mead in golden beakers. Brynhild 
 arose and poured the wine and bare to Sigurd, and gave 
 him to drink. He took the beaker ; then took the arms 
 that bare it, and drew them about his neck, and kissed 
 her ; she forbad him not. And he said, ' Thou art the
 
 The Stories of the Volsungs. 55 
 
 fairest maid in all the earth, and I am wholly thine.' But 
 Brynhild said, ' Is it wise to plight all thy faith to a 
 woman ? Thou mayest change and break thy pledge.' 
 He answered, ' If my tongue pledged thee not, my heart is 
 fixed for now and ever. I can never change, however long 
 the day till we are wed.' Brynhild, foreknowing what 
 should come to pass, looked up in pain and said, ' Beloved,' 
 that day will never come ; for it is fated that we may not 
 abide together.' Then waxed Sigurd exceedingly sorrow- 
 ful and said, ' What fruit shall there be of all our life-days 
 if we are sundered ? Harder would it be to bear than the 
 sharp sword-stroke.' She answered sadly, ' Thinkest thou 
 that I have naught to bear ? When as a war-maid I set my. 
 helm upon my head, and go forth to battle to help the 
 kings, will it be to me a light thing to know that thou 
 art wed to Griuki's daughter — thou whom I love so dear ? ' 
 Then Sigurd cried, ' Grod forbid that I should do this thing. 
 Am I a double-hearted man that any maiden should 
 beguile me away from thee ? Thee and no other woman I 
 swear to have for mine own, and naught shall ever sunder 
 us.' So with many like words did Sigurd comfort her, and 
 he gave her moreover for a pledge a gold ring. It was 
 Andvari's ring, the last ring of his hoard, which he had 
 cursed. And after they had plighted their troth anew he 
 went his way and joyously hunted with Alswid and his 
 men. 
 
 South of the Khine dwelt king Griuki and his queen 
 Grimhild. There they ruled a wide realm, and had three 
 sons, Gunnar, Hogni and Guttorm, all men of great valour 
 and renown, and an only daughter named Gudrun, who 
 was bright and fair as the summer sunshine. But one 
 night Gudrun dreamed an ill dream, andher joy departed 
 from her, neither would she take pleasure in anything till 
 she should learn what the dream might signify. And 
 when there was no one found within her palace that could 
 read the meaning of the dream, her maidens counselled her
 
 56 Tales of the Teiitonic Lands. 
 
 to seek out Brynhild because of her great wisdom, and 
 })ecause she knew the runes which are the root of all 
 things. So Grudrun arrayed herself and her maidens in 
 apparel of great price, and took her journey and came 
 seeking Brynhild. 
 
 Brynhild sate in her hall, well knowing who was come 
 seeking her, and she sent to meet Gudrun and her women, 
 and brought them to the castle, and served them there 
 with meat and drink in silver vessels, and gave them good 
 greeting. Then perceiving Cfudrun to be somewhat shy 
 of speech, Brynhild began to talk of the great men of the 
 time and their deeds. And when she had spoken of Haki 
 and Hagbard and Sigar and many more, Grudrim said 
 gently, ' Why hast thou not named my brethren, for in 
 truth they are held to be first among mighty men T 
 Impatient of her words Brynhild answered, ' Of what use to 
 talk of them, or even of those whereof I spake ? Hast thou 
 not heard of Sigurd the Volsung ? He is king of them all, 
 and more renowned than any man.' Then with fondness 
 in her eyes she told of Sigurd's birth and nourishing, and 
 dwelt with pride upon his deeds. Gudrun said, ' Per- 
 chance thou lovest him, and so dost deem him peerless. 
 But lam saddened with a dream, and have no mind to 
 speak of other things. Wilt thou tell me truly what it 
 loetokeneth ? ' 'I will keep back nothing,' answered 
 Brynhild. 
 
 ' I thought in my dream,' said Gudrun, 'that as I 
 Avandered in a wood with many other maidens, we saw a 
 hart with golden hair, that for its beauty and greatness 
 far excelled the other deer of the forest. We all sought 
 I0 take him, deeming him more to be desired than all 
 other things. How it befell I know not, but I got him. 
 Then I took and nurtured him, and he grew so dear to 
 me tongue cannot tell, when suddenly there came a fierce 
 woman — ' 
 
 Brynhild's face grew dark and angry.
 
 The Stories of the Volsiings. 57 
 
 Gudrun looked into her eyes and cried, ' Brjnhild, 
 it was thou ! Thou earnest as I fondled him, — ' 
 
 Brynhild cried fiercely — ' Yea. / came and shot the 
 deer upon thy knees, gave thee a wolf-cub in his stead, 
 and sprinkled thee with thy brothers' blood. Was that 
 thy dream ?' 
 
 (rudrun bowed her head and hid her face. 
 
 • Then hear the reading of it. Thou wilt take Sigurd 
 from me, but thou shalt not have him long. A mighty 
 strife will come by cause of thee and me, and blood will 
 flow. But woe is me ! P"'or I may never win my well- 
 beloved. Away ! lest I seek to tempt the Fates again ! ' 
 
 Then Grudrun and her maidens rose up quickly and 
 journeyed home ; but Brynhild sat and mused upon her 
 punishment ordained of Odin. 
 
 Now Sigurd bade farewell to king Heimir and took his 
 way with his war-gear and treasure and came riding till 
 he reached the hall of King Griuki, who seeing his comeli- 
 ness, and how he shone in golden array, at first deemed 
 him come down from the gods, but when he learned his 
 name and knew him for the slayer of Fafnir, bade him 
 welcome to abide with them. So Sigurd remained with 
 King Giuki and his sons, and proved himself foremost in 
 all their war-games. 
 
 But Giuki's wife, Grimhild, when she saw how goodly 
 a man Sigurd was, and heard him speak continually of 
 Brynhild and his love for her, began to cast about how 
 she might lead him to wed with her daughter Gudrun. 
 For she saw that even her sons held him for a man of far 
 greater prowess than they. So one night when tliey sate 
 drinking in the mead-hall, the queen arose and bare a 
 subtile drink to Sigurd. Sigurd took the horn, but no 
 sooner had he drank thereof than the remembrance of 
 Brynhild and all his love for her straightway departed 
 from him 
 
 And the queen said, ' Why journey further ? Abide
 
 58 Tales of the Teutonie Lands. 
 
 with us ; Giuki will be thy father, I thy mother; Guniiar 
 and Hogni shall be thy brethren. Tarry here, and we will 
 make a kin<;dom stronger tlian any upon earth.' 
 
 Sigurd liked her speech, for his memory was stolen 
 away by the iuchantment of that drink. So he abode 
 with them, and strengthened the realm ; and Giuki and 
 his sons prospered exceedingly and made themselves 
 greatly to be feared of all kings round about, because of 
 Sigurd's abiding there. 
 
 Then it befell that as Gudrun poured the mead one 
 night and gave him drink, Sigurd took note hoAV fair 
 she was and full of courtesy. And ever thenceforward his 
 eyes would follow her about and rest upon her face. 
 Giuki was very glad thereof, and came to Sigurd saying, 
 ' Seldom will a king offer his daughter to any man, but 
 rather will wait to be intreated ; yet because of thy might 
 and worthiness Gudrun shall be thine ; yea, though none 
 other man should get her for all his prayers. Take her to 
 wife and make alliance with us, and go no more away.' 
 
 And the thing seemed good to Sigurd, because the 
 maiden was very fair in his eyes ; and he answered, ' Great 
 is the honour which thou payest me. Let it be as thou 
 hast said.' 
 
 So they made the marriage feast, and Sigurd was wed 
 to Gudrun. He gave his new-made wife to eat of the 
 remnant of Fafnir's heart ; so she grew wise and great- 
 hearted. 
 
 After that Sigurd fared abroad with Gudrun's brothers, 
 and they won lands and wealth and renown, and became 
 great kings. 
 
 When they were returned from their journeyings, 
 Grimhild called Gimnar her son, and said, ' Gold and 
 land hast thou in plenty ; yet one thing thou lackest, my 
 son, in that thou art unwed. Go now and woo Brynhild, 
 for of all women there is none more meet for a king's 
 bride.'
 
 The Stories of the Volsumjs. 59 
 
 80 Guunar spake to his brethren and to Sigurd, and 
 they all rode with him over hill and dale till they came 
 to King- Budli's house, and asked Iiis daughter of him. 
 But Budli answered, ' I cannot say you yea nor nay, since 
 Brynhild is so high-minded ; she will wed whom she will. 
 Go, and may your wooing prosper.' Then came they to 
 Heimir in Hlymdale. He told how Brynhild abode upon 
 the mountain Hindfell, in a castle girt about with fire, 
 and how she swore to wed that man alone who should 
 ride through and come to her. 
 
 So they took their journey and rode up the steep sides 
 of Hindfell, when lo they saw a castle with a golden 
 roof-tree, hedged all about with roaring flames. 
 
 Straightway Gunnar put his horse to face the fire, and 
 smote the spurs into his flanks: but the horse stood 
 shuddering, and backed and reared, but would not go 
 forward. ' Lend me thy horse Grani,' said Gunnar to 
 Sigurd, ' for mine will not tread this fire.' With right 
 good will Sigurd got him down from off his horse, and 
 Gunnar mounted him. Grani galloped to the fire, but 
 there stood still : neither for all Gunnar could do would 
 he go into the flame. 
 
 Then Sigurd said, 'I will compass the matter for thee; ' 
 so he and Gunnar changed likenesses. And Sigurd 
 taking upon himself the shape and seeming of Gunnar, 
 mounted Grani. Now when he bad his master on his 
 back, and felt his golden spurs, Grani leaped blithely into 
 the fire. Fiercer the flames iiprose and licked the sky ; 
 red rolled the clouds ; the earth shook with the roaring of 
 the fire. Yet Sigurd rode on, and with his g-ood sword 
 Gram he cut the flames to right and left, and laid them 
 low. So the fire slaked and he rode on and through, and 
 reached the palace, where sate Brynhild in her byrnie, 
 proud as swan on wave, her helmet on her head, her 
 sword in hand. He lighted off his horse and came into 
 the hall.
 
 6o Talcs of the Tc2i tonic Lands. 
 
 She asked him, ' Who art thou ? What woiildest tliou 
 in my hall ? ' 
 
 Sigurd answered, ' I am Grunnar, son of King- Giuki. 
 For thee I have ridden through the fire, and now I claim 
 thee for my wife.' 
 
 Heavily she spake : ' I have little mind to wed. 0. 
 (irunnar, save thou be the best and chiefest among men I 
 pray thee go thy way. For I have been in battle with 
 the kings ; red is my sword with the blood of warriors ; 
 and still I hanker after war.' 
 
 He said, ' I, Grunnar, have ridden through the fire for 
 thee ; and by thine oath, for weal or woe, do I constrain 
 thee.' 
 
 Then because of her oath Brynhild rose from her seat 
 and greeted him as her lord, and served him at the table. 
 Tliree nights lay Sigurd beside her in her bod ; but 
 betwixt them he set his naked sword-blade. And when 
 she would know why the sword lay there, he told her that 
 so it was fated he should wed his wife. 
 
 And after three days when Sigurd would depart, 
 Brynhild drew from her finger the ring whicli he had 
 given her before — the ring which Andvari had cursed — 
 and set it for a pledge upon his hand. He gave her 
 another ring from F'afnir's treasure ; then rode back 
 through the fire and came to Gunnar. The men changed 
 semblances again and journeyed homeward. 
 
 Then came Brynhild to Heimir her brother-in-law, 
 saying, ' Behold, a king named Gunnar rode through my 
 fire. Truly I weened no man save Sigurd, my beloved, 
 should have dared those flames. But Gunnar trode the 
 fire and I am his.' He answered, * Who can ever tell 
 what shall be ? Who can alter that which is ? ' 
 
 Afterward King Giuki and Grimhild his queen held a 
 great feast, and made a wedding for their son. King 
 Budli came ; with him his daughter Brynhild, and Atli 
 her brother : Sigurd and Gudrun were there. Great was
 
 The Stoi'ies of the Volsiings. 6i 
 
 tlie joy at the feast, and great was the rejoicing throughout 
 tlie realm, because Grunnar was married to the fair 
 Brynhild. They twain sate together at the table in the 
 mead-hall, and pledged each other in the wine-cup. 
 
 But Sigurd went away apart and groaned in spirit ; for 
 at that feast his memory came back. He thought upon 
 his broken oaths ; knew what he had won and lost, and 
 gloom fell on him. 
 
 One day the two queens went bathing in the river 
 together ; and seeing Brynhild go much further out into 
 the water than she dared venture, Gudrun asked where- 
 fore she did this. Brynhild answered, ' Why should not 
 I surpass thee in all things? Thy husband is but King 
 Hjalprek's thrall. Mine is the foremost among men. 
 ( funnar rode through the fire for me.' 
 
 Then (iudrun's anger was kindled against Brynhild 
 because she reviled her husband ; and she answered, 
 • Were it not better to hold thy peace as I have done ? 
 Why revilest thou my lord ? Who but the slayer of 
 Kafuir rode through thy fire and lay beside thee ? Who 
 but Sigurd the first of men ? See on my hand the ring 
 thou gavest him, Andvari's ring ! ' 
 
 Very pale waxed Brynhild. She knew the ring ; and 
 answered not, but clad herself and went her way. 
 
 Next day came Gudrun to Brynhild in her bower, 
 saying, ' Why grievest thou ? Hast thou not wedded 
 him whom thou didst choose ? My brother Gunnar is a 
 mighty man. Sure there is none nobler in thine eyes, 
 none dearer to thine heart, — not even Hjalprek's 
 thrall?' 
 
 Then said Brynhild : ' Cornel and hard of heart art thou. 
 Why wilt thou triumph over me ? Thou hast taken my 
 love, the noblest man upon the earth. I loved him 
 because of his glory and his might. I love him yet, him 
 only. What is Gunnar beside Sigurd? Be satisfied; 
 thou hast him. Love liim, for thy time is short. Aye ;
 
 62 Tales of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 take him fast within thine arms. But hold thy peace. 
 Tempt me not on to break with Fate and snatch him 
 from thee ere the hour be come. Yet how can I bear to 
 know thou hast him even for a little moment ! Thou 
 with thy littleness of heart and poverty of love ! He 
 with his mighty soul and peerless manliness I So cold 
 a thing as thou couldst not have won the man that knew 
 my burning love, save thou hadst drugged his mind to 
 sleep and robbed his memory of my very name.' 
 
 Then went Brynhild up into her chamber, and fell 
 down upon her bed. Wan as a dead woman she grew. 
 She spake no word, because of the bitterness of the 
 thoughts within her. Presently came Gunnar seeking 
 what ailed her, and after he liad urged her long, 
 she cried, ' Go from me I I am not thine. Thou didst 
 not dare tlie tire. With guile hast thou gotten me ; with 
 guile thy mother stole my troth-plight's love from 
 me. No king, no champion thou art, but a common man 
 who in the danger-time turns joale and quakes for fear. 
 I swore to wed the noblest man alive : I loathe thee 
 since thou art not he. Privily hast thou beguiled me, 
 but openly and not without warning will I reward thee. 
 Guard thj^self quickly, for now is tliy death-day come I ' 
 
 Then leapt she from the bed and drew her sword, and 
 fell upon King Gunnar, and straightway would have taken 
 his life, but Hogni, his brother, came running in ; and 
 betwixt them they got her down and bound her fast. 
 
 Nevertheless in a little while it repented Gunnar that 
 he liad bound iier, and he came and set her free. Yet 
 would not Brynliild any the more be appeased. She said, 
 ' Never again in bower or hall shall I make merry or be 
 glad. No words of kindness shall I ever speak or hear. 
 No more my fingers shall do woman's work.' Then went 
 she to her needlework wherein were wrouo-ht in ffold and 
 divers colours Sigurd's deeds, and rent it in pieces ; and 
 she passed up into her bower and set open the doors so
 
 The Stories of the Volsuigs. 63 
 
 that the noise of her wailing was lieard afar ; and ever she 
 made her moan, ' Cfive me Sigurd, or I die.' So she 
 cried out in her bitter sorrow till, grief-wearied, she fell 
 asleep. 
 
 Seven days she slept, and none could waken her. Her 
 bower-maidens feared greatly, and said one to another, 
 ' The wrath of the gods has fallen on her.' 
 
 When Gudrun heard it she repented of her ill words, 
 and had great pity of heart for Brynhild. And trudrun 
 went with Grunnar to seek to waken her, but in vain ; and 
 after that she came with Hogni, yet could tliey not get 
 speech of her. Then Grudrun besouglit Sigurd to go, for 
 she said, 'Peradventure thou wilt waken her; but 0, my 
 lord, be tender to her, for her grief is very sore and hard 
 to bear.' So Sigurd went up into her chamber and lifted 
 up his voice and cried, ' Awake Brynhild ! For the night is 
 past and the sun shineth all about thee.' Brynhild heard 
 his voice and opened her eyes. 
 
 ' Why art thou come ? ' she said. ' Too late hast thou 
 remembered me ; for now thou art become the cause of 
 all my pain.' 
 
 Sigurd answered, ' Never had I aught but tenderness 
 in my heart for thee ; but who can alter fate ? What is, 
 must needs be borne. Thou hast a noble husband ; love 
 him and be happy.' 
 
 ' How canst thou counsel me so ? ' she said. ' Is the 
 past all past ? And hast thou clean forgot thy troth- 
 plight ; and how thou didst ride through the fire and win 
 me for thine own ? My eyes have long been veiled ; 
 and yet, methouglit that thou, not Grunnar, didst tread the 
 flames and come into my hall. And now that I know it, 
 I hate him bitterly.' 
 
 Then Sigurd said, ' I marvel that thou lovest not 
 (nmnar, for he is a brave man ; more to be desired is 
 his love than much red gold. Wherefore turn thine 
 heart toward him and for<ret all else.'
 
 64 Tales of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 She said, ' Sigurd, thou dost root all gentleness from 
 out my breast. How canst thou teach me to love aught 
 but thee ? Eather would I see my sword red with thy 
 blopd than hear this counsel from thy lips. For now am 
 J become loathsome in thy sight ; and thou knowest 
 neither the heart that is in me, nor how fierce the love I 
 l;ear thee.' 
 
 ' Brynhild,' he said, ' I loved thee better than my life ; 
 and when I found too late that I was beguiled, sore was my 
 pain. But I have sought to live it down, and to put 
 my trouble from me as a king should do. I pity tliee, 
 for I have borne a heavy lieart full long.' 
 
 ' Thy grief and pity come too late,' she cried ; ' thou 
 art not mine but Gudrun's ; thou lovest her ; wherefore 
 my life is become hateful to me, and I will not live.' 
 
 He answered, ' It is true. Gudrun has grown dear to 
 me ; I love her. Yet, rather than thou shouldest die I 
 will put her away, and wed with thee.' Thereat liis 
 lieart so heaved within his breast that the rings of his 
 mail- coat burst asunder. 
 
 She cried, ' I will not have thee. Thou lovest her. 
 Go to her ! Leave me t(» myself.' 
 
 With a heavy heart rose Sigurd and went his way. 
 But Brynhild fell weeping afresh ; and when her tears 
 were done very dreadful grew her mind. Gunnar came 
 to her, and she said, ' Sigiuxl has talked with me, and I 
 have showed him all my lieart. Little he careth for my 
 pain since Gudrun has won his love away. He pities 
 me, and bids me give my love to thee. "Now he has 
 gone to Gudrun, to tell my grief for lier to mock at me. 
 It is too hard to bear. She shall not have him ! Either 
 he, or I, or thou shalt die.' 
 
 Then spake Gunnar, ' How can I assuage thy sorrow ? 
 l'\,'r with all thy frowardness to me I love thee ; yet for 
 tliat same cause is my life grown burdensome.' 
 
 And Brvnhild answered : • I cannot bear tliat she shouhi
 
 1 he Stories of the Volsimgs. 65 
 
 have my Sigurd and mock my woe. Gunnar, I loathe thee ; 
 yet if thou wouldst slay him in her arms, I feel almost 
 that I could love thee. I should be merry at her grief. 
 Gro, slay him ; else thou shalt lose thy kingdom and 
 thy wealth, thy life and me ; for of a truth I will not 
 rest till I have shed thy blood. For myself, I care not ; 
 I sliall go away and sleep alone among my kin.' 
 
 Then was King Gunnar sore troubled. He tliought, 
 ' Kather would I lay down my life than lose Brynhild, 
 whose love is dearer to me than all else. Yet how can I 
 break sworn oaths and promises given ? ' So he came 
 to his brother Hogni, and said, ' Much it grieveth me, 
 but Sigurd must needs be slain ; go thou and do it, for 
 he is false and hath betrayed me to Brynhild.' Hogni 
 said ; ' Nay, for we have pledged him our faith, and the 
 sworn oath may not be broken.' Howbeit they took 
 counsel together, and determined to stir up their younger 
 brother Guttorm to the deed, since he was clean of any 
 oath to Sigurd. Then they fetched Guttorm and pro- 
 mised liim power and dominion if he would do this 
 thing : and they took and seethed him a pottage of wolf- 
 meat and of strange worms and fish, and gave him to 
 eat ; so he grew fierce and thirsted after blood. 
 
 In the morning came Guttorm stealthily to the door of 
 the chamber where Sigurd was, and peeped in. Gudrun 
 lay sleeping on his bosom ; her white arms clasped about 
 his neck. Twice Guttorm stole in at the door, and twice 
 shrank back ; for he thought he saw the glitter of his 
 eyes. The third time he ran in, sword in hand, and thrust 
 Sigurd through therewith, so that the sword smote fast 
 into the bed and pinned him there. Guttorm turned to 
 flee, but never reached the door ; for Sigurd caught his 
 sword Gram by the hilt and flung it after him, and cut him 
 clean asunder at the waist ; so he fell dead in the doorway, 
 head and shoulders one way, and legs and groin the other. 
 When Gudrun awoke from her soft sleep, and felt the 
 
 F
 
 66 Tales of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 blood all streaming about, and saw her lord death-smitten, 
 she wept and bewailed so piteously that Sig'urd as he lay 
 a-dying- lifted his head and kissed her. ' Weep not,' 
 he said ; ' death cometh to us all ; this was foretold to me, 
 but when it drew near it was hidden from mine eyes lest 
 1 should fight with Fate. Brynhild has wrought my 
 death because she loved me before all men ; yet little 
 have I deserved this treachery from thy brethren.' 
 .Sigurd closed his eyes ; fast ebbed the life-tide through 
 his wound. He drew a weary breath, and yielded up the 
 ghost. 
 
 Then Grudrun in her sharp sorrow gave a very bitter 
 cry. Brynhild heard it in her bower, and loud laughed 
 she. Grunnar shuddered as he heard her laugh. But 
 Brjmhild, still laughing fiercely, went out and caught up 
 Gudrun's child and slew it. 
 
 Now it came to pass when Gudrun sate over the dead 
 body of her lord, that her anguish fell very heavy on her, 
 so that she was like to die. She sighed not, nor moaned, 
 neither smote she her hands together like other women. 
 She shook as though her heart would break. But she 
 could not weep. Many wise Yarls came seeking to 
 comfort her. 
 
 Hushed sate Gudrun ; she spake not ; the tears came 
 not. 
 
 They said, ' Make her weep, or she will die.' 
 
 There came many noble Yarls' wives arrayed with gold, 
 and !?ate beside hei. Each told the sharpest sorrow she 
 had known. Giaflaug, Giuki's sister, said, ' Of husband 
 and children have I been bereft ; of all my brethren and 
 sisters. Lo, I am left behind to mourn until I go to 
 them.' 
 
 Gudrun wept not. 
 
 Herborg, Queen of Hunland, said, ' My husband and 
 peven sous fell in one fight. A captive was I carried away 
 into a strange land, and there they set me to tie the
 
 The Stories of the Volstings. 6 7 
 
 slioe-latchets of that king's wife who slew them all ; often 
 was I beaten with the lash, and then only did I dare to 
 sori-ow for my dead.' 
 
 Yet none the more might Gudrun weep ; so sad was 
 she. 
 
 Then Gullrond, Giuki's daughter, came. She said, 
 ' No sorrow but her own will bring the tears.' Down 
 from the dead man's face she drew the cere-cloth, and 
 turned the death-cold cheek to Gudrun, saying, ' Sister, 
 look on him ! Come, lay thy lips to his, and kiss him : 
 for he loved thee well.' 
 
 She looked once only : saw the golden hair all stift" 
 with blood ; the body broken with the sword-rent. The 
 tears upwelled and rained upon her knees. Fast wept 
 Gudrun, Giuki's daughter. 
 
 Then she found words and spake : ' Like the bulrush 
 towering from the grass, such was my Sigurd among 
 Giuki's sous. As a pearl of price upon a king's brow, so 
 glorious was my Sigurd among men. How shall I sit 
 upon my seat, or go up to my bed, and miss my Sigurd ? 
 Cursed be thou, Gunnar, for thy broken oaths ! And 
 cursed be the day when Sigurd saddled Grani to go 
 a-wooing of Brynhild on the mountain I ' Then cried 
 Brynhild, ' A curse on her who brought thy tears and 
 gave thee speech again ! ' And Gullrond said, ' Hast 
 thou no pity — no compassion ? Away, thou bane of 
 man, thou woe of woman ! Luckless thou earnest to 
 thy mother's lap, born for the sorrow of all folk.' 
 
 Sigurd's horse Grani, when he saw his master's corpse, 
 made such a pitiful crying that Gudrun was fain to go 
 and speak with him, even as a man talks with his friend. 
 But he drooped his head and sank down on the earth and 
 died. 
 
 By a pillar stood Brynhild, gazing on Sigurd's wound, 
 and gloating over the woe of Gudrun. Howbeit Brynhild 
 went presently up into her chamber and fell weeping
 
 68 Talcs of the Ten ionic Lands. 
 
 hitterly. Gimnar and Hogni came to her, but naught 
 their words availed to soothe her dreadful mind. She 
 ^;aid, ' Sigurd is mine. Whither he goeth I will go ; and 
 none shall keep me from him now.' 
 
 Then Gunnar arose, and took her in his arms, and 
 besought her that she would not die, but live, because of 
 the love wherewith he loved her. But she put him from 
 her, and would suffer none to hinder her. Then com- 
 manded she her people to bring forth gold and scatter it 
 about. And when they had done according to her will, 
 she took a sword and thrust herf;elf through therewith 
 beneath the arm-pit, and sank upon her pillows saying, 
 ' Whoso will, let him come and take my gold and be 
 glad thereof.' 
 
 Lying there, the while her blood flowed fast, Brynhild 
 prophesied, and spake concerning all that should happen 
 to the sons of Giuki and their kin, and of the sorrows yet 
 in store for Gudrun. 
 
 Then her voice grew very tender, and she said to 
 Gunnar, ' And now I beg the last boon I shall ask in this 
 world. I pray thee raise a tall wood pile, and deck it 
 royally about with shields and fair hangings. Uplift me 
 thereon when I am dead, and bring Sigm-d and lay him 
 by my side. Only let there be set betwixt us a drawn 
 bword, even as in those three days when we lay in one 
 bed and were called man and wife together. So, as we oo 
 up to Valhalla, the shining door that openeth for him 
 shall not swing to and shut me out.' 
 
 So saying, the life passed from her. Dead lay Bryn- 
 hild on her pillows. Gunnar did all things as she had 
 taid. He built a mighty wood pile, hung round about 
 with goodly hangings and strewn Avith treasure ; with 
 hawks and hounds at the head and foot. On the pile 
 he laid Brynhild and Sigurd; betwixt them a drawn 
 bvv'ord. Then kindled he the bale-fire. The flames arose 
 and wrapped the pile, and roared up to the sky, ;So 
 ended tboy their life-days.
 
 The Stories of the Volsungs. 69 
 
 IV. THE FALL OF THE GIUKINGS. 
 
 XoAV Gudruii, being very bitter against ber brethren, 
 went away alone to mourn for Sigurd, and made her 
 dwelling in the woods. And after long abiding there, 
 she wandered forth, and came to King Alf's palace in 
 Denmark, wdiere, for seven years she solaced her mind 
 with setting forth in needlew'ork of many colours the 
 glorious deeds of kings and warriors. But when Queen 
 Grimhild knew of lier harbouring in Denmark she came 
 journeying thither with her sons Gunnar and Hogni, 
 and a great company of folk bringing gold and silver, 
 seeking to make atonement to Gudrun for the slaying of 
 her liusband and her son. Softly they spake to her and 
 would fain be reconciled. Howbeit Gudrun answered 
 them nothing, and took no heed either of them or of their 
 gifts. 
 
 Then Grimhild mixed a cold drink, and bare to Gud- 
 run in a horn whereon strange blood-red runes were cut 
 about the rim. The might of earth and sea was 
 mingled in that drink. And it befell when Gudrun had 
 drank of it that the memory of her wrongs passed away, 
 and she remembered no more the blood-guiltiness of her 
 brethren towards her. So after they had held fellowship 
 together and made good cheer, Grimhild spake to 
 Gudrun to wed with Atli, Budli's son, saying it would 
 surely redound to the profit of them all, inasmuch as 
 Atli was a king of great might. Gudrun was very loth 
 thereto, thinking it an unseemly thing for her to wed 
 with Brynhild's brother ; but they so beset her with 
 promises and threats that at last she yielded, saying, 
 • Little joy and great sorrow will come of it.' Lightly 
 esteeming her words, they all made ready and set out 
 and journeyed twelve dajs by land and sea, till they 
 came to Kinff Atli's mead-hall. There the Giukings
 
 70 Talcs of the T at tonic Lajids. 
 
 gave their sister to Atli, to be his wife, and after the 
 feast they rose up and departed to their own land. But 
 (nidrun did not make merry, nor were her eyes bright 
 like a bride's, nor was her heart gladdened when she 
 looked upon her husband. 
 
 Years wore on and there was little fondness betwixt 
 the two. Many times Atli fell thinking of the treasure 
 wliich Sigurd gat from Fafnir, and how by right it should 
 have been Gudruu's dower, whereas her brethren kept it 
 back. And wlien he coveted the treasure very sore, Atli 
 determined to send out men to go to the Griukings and 
 bid them to a feast. But Gudrun got wind of it, and 
 fearing some treachery to her brethren, took a gold ring 
 and cut nmes thereon to warn them not to come: and she 
 knitted a wolf's hair in the ring and gave it to the 
 messengers to take to Grunnar. But while they were on 
 the journey, one of the messengers more subtile than the 
 rest, by name Vingi, perceived how the runes ran ; and 
 he meddled with them in such wise as to make it seem 
 as if Gudrun in her runes had prayed her brethren to 
 come. 
 
 The messengers being come to Gunnar and Hogni in 
 their mead-hall, the kings outpoured the wine and bade 
 them welcome. And when the message was delivered, 
 Hogni took his sister's ring and read the runes ; but 
 misdoubting them, he said : ' Brother, truly Gudrun in 
 her runes saith " Come " ; but what meaneth this wolfs 
 hair in the ring, save a warning that Atli is minded as a 
 wolf toward us ? ' Gunnar hearkened not. ]Merry over 
 the mead he sate and listened whilst the smooth-tongued 
 Vingi told how Atli was grown old, how his young 
 children could not ward the realm, and how the purport 
 of the bidding was to make the Giukings rulers over all 
 the land. Loud laughed Gunnar, carousing with the 
 messengers, and he raised aloft the mead-horn and passed 
 liis word to go. Hogni liked it not. He said: 'Too
 
 The Stories of the Vohiaigs. 7 r 
 
 rasbly bast thou pledged ; but this being so, I will go 
 with thee ; yet very loth am I to the journey.' 
 
 Many tokenings there were of ill. Hogni's wife, 
 Kostbera, who was skilled in runes, perceived that some- 
 one had tampered with the letters upon Grudrun's ring, and 
 this she told Hogni plainly. Moreover, Kostbera dreamed 
 of a rushing river that broke through the mead-hall, and 
 of fire that burned the roof-tree ; of a bear that overthrew 
 the king's high seat, and of an erne that trampled women 
 down and drenched them with warm blood. But Hogni 
 made light of the dreams, or expounded them away in 
 other fashion : for to none is it given to swerve from the 
 fateshapen for him. In like manner Glaumvor, Grunnar's 
 wife, told her lord what she had dreamed. She said : 
 ' Methought I saw thee thrust through with a bloody 
 sword, at either end whereof wolves howled. Sure that 
 betokeneth somewhat ? ' ' Aye,' Grunnar said, ' a bloody 
 sword betokeneth the biting of curs. A dog, perchance, 
 shall snap at me.' She said, ' But I dreamed again, and 
 lo ! three silent women, veiled and gloomy, came and 
 chose thee for their mate. Methought they were thy 
 fates.' He answered : ' Who can tell ? It may be that 
 my life-days are but few.' And when he rose up in the 
 morning, he called his men about him and said, ' Come 
 let us drink the goodliest wine from out the big old tuns, 
 for may happen this shall be the last of all our feasts 
 together.' 
 
 That same day Grunnar and Hogni gathered their folk 
 together and took ship with the messengers. Hard they 
 rowed across the sea-plain till they saw land, and brought 
 the ship ashore ; then leaped upon their steeds, and 
 journeyed through the murky woodland. At last they 
 came out into open country. In front they saw a mighty 
 host of men which King Atli had arrayed, and heard from 
 afar the clanging of their weapons. Fast were the burg 
 gates and full of men ; but the G-iukings brake down the
 
 72 Tales of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 gates and came into the burg. Then spake Vingi : ' How 
 softly and with what sweet words did I beguile you 
 hither! But now, tarry here a little, while I go and 
 choose your gallows-tree.' Hogni answered : ' Little 
 shall it avail thee to have beguiled us,' and so saying cast 
 Vingi to the ground, and slew him with the hammer of 
 his axe. 
 
 Then rode they to the king's hall, where sat Atli with 
 his men about him. Atli gave them no greeting, but 
 said : ' Deliver up Sigurd's gold ; for it is (xudrun's 
 portion, and long have I been minded to be lord thereof.' 
 Gunnar answered : ' Thou shait never have that gold ; 
 and if that be the purport of thy feast behold we are 
 men of might, and shall not shrink to deal with thee in 
 this matter.' 
 
 Straightway uprose the king and his men, and fell upon 
 the Giukings. The tables were overset^ the mead-cups 
 rolled upon the floor. Hot waxed the fighting in the 
 hall, and quickly spread about the burg. Gudrun heard 
 tidings of it, and flvmg off her mantle and ran into the 
 battle. Tenderly she kissed both her dear brethren, and 
 said : ' Vain was my warning, for how shall a man avoid 
 his lot ! But yet there is time to seek for peace.' ' Too 
 late,' they answered, 'for blood is outpoured, and many 
 sleep the sword-sleep.' Then Gudrun put on a mail-coat 
 and took a sword and fought beside her brethren, brave as 
 they. Men fell fast on either side, and heaped the place 
 with dead ; the blood ran all about and mingled witli 
 the mead. Gunnar and Hogni went to and fro through 
 Atli's folk, and wheresoever they went they reaped and 
 men went down. At mid-day there was a lull in the 
 battle; bitter was Atli's mind at the thinning of his host, 
 yet still they were a host, the Giukings but a handful. 
 Then they fell to again. Atli cried on his men to drive 
 the Giukings from the hall, and overwhelm them on the 
 plain ; but so hard the Giukings pressed on Atli's folk
 
 The Stories of the Volsungs. 73 
 
 that they drave them back into the hall ag-ain. Then 
 began within doors the fiercest of fights. Grunnar and 
 his warriors hewed ever with their swords, but fast as 
 they slew their enemies, fresh men poured in to take the 
 places of them which fell. So at length when Gunnar 
 would gather his folk together, he looked about and saw 
 only his brother Hogni left alive. Then they twain set 
 them back to back, and fought for their lives right man- 
 fully. But first Grunnar was hemmed in and taken alive. 
 After that, Hogni slew a score of Atli's stoutest champions, 
 and cast well nigh as many into the fire that burned in 
 the midst of the ball : yet in the end he likewise was 
 borne down by numbers, and with his brother bound in 
 chains. 
 
 Atli was very wroth, and spake to Hogni saying, ' Now 
 will I cut the heart out from thee before thine eyes, 
 because by tliy hand so many of my champions lie bereft 
 of life.' Hogni answered : ' Do it, and thou shalt see a 
 heart that never quailed-' But one came to Atli and 
 counselled him saying, ' Let us rather take and put the 
 thrall Hjalli to death : for naught else is he fit, and 
 there is no ransoming to be gotten for him.' When 
 Hjalli the thrall heard this, he began to cry aloud, 
 weeping and screaming and bewailing himself or ever 
 he felt the point of the knife : for an evil and a bitter 
 thing it seemed to him to be cut off for ever from life 
 and from the feeding of swine. Hogni, hearing him 
 shriek and yell, pleaded for the man's life, saying that he 
 would blithely endure that or any other death himself, if 
 thereby he might be delivered from the thrall's uproar. 
 So for that time Hjalli's life was spared. 
 
 Then were Gunnar and Hogni led away to prison in 
 their fetters, and put in dungeons apart the one from the 
 other. And King Atli came to Gunnar in his prison, 
 saying, 'Tell me concerning Sigurd's gold, where thou 
 hast hidden it, and I will spare thy life.' Gunnar
 
 74 Talcs of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 answered, ' I will tell thee nothing unless I first behold 
 the lieart of Hogni my brother/ 
 
 Atli's men went and laid hold of the thrall and cut the 
 heart out of him, and brought it to King Gunnar. But 
 wlien he saw it, Grunnar said, ' That is a thrall's lieart ; it 
 is the faint heart of Hjalli. See how it trembleth now ; 
 yet not so much as when it dwelt within his breast.' 
 
 Then went they unto Hogni in his prison. Hogni 
 flinched not. Loud laughed he while they cut the heart 
 from out of him, so that all wondered at the might of his 
 manhood. They brought the heart to Gunnar, and he 
 said, ' That is a brave king's heart ; it is the stout heart 
 of Hogni my brother. Little it trembleth now ; and less 
 it trembled when it lay within his breast.' Then Atli 
 asked him, ' Tell me now where is thy gold ? ' But 
 Gunnar laughed him to scorn, saying, ' While Hogni was 
 yet alive I feared, betwixt the two of us, lest the matter 
 should leak out. Now, I alone know where the treasure 
 is ; and the secret is safe.' 
 
 Then waxed King Atli very wroth, and he commanded 
 his servants and they took Gunnar and bound his hands 
 fast with cords and cast him into a pit of vipers. Howbeit 
 Gudrun let a harp down to him in the pit, and thereon 
 King Gunnar harped so skilfully with his feet that none 
 hearing it would deem other than that he played with his 
 hands. And with the might of his music he charmed the 
 vipers to sleep, all save one old and deadly adder which 
 twined up his breast and smote its sting into him that he 
 died. 
 
 After these things King Atli grew highly exalted, and 
 was fain to make himself great in Gudrun's eyes because 
 he had slain her brethren. And since Gudrun made no 
 complaining but rather behaved herself kindlier to the 
 king, saying that since all her kindred were dead and 
 gone she had now none else to hold to but her husband, 
 Atli deemed her heart was rightwise toward him. So
 
 The Stories of t lie Vols^mgs. 
 
 /3 
 
 wlien Gudrun would make a great funeral feast for her 
 brethren, he hearkened gladly, and sent and summoned 
 all his chief men from far and near to come to the mead- 
 hall. Very great and sumptuous he made that feast, for 
 the glory of himself and of his kingdom. And after meat, 
 when all sat drinking round the board, the king spake to 
 Gudrun to fetch their children to the table, for he said, 
 ' It will gladden my heart to look upon the sons of thee 
 and me while we make merry with the wine.' Slie 
 answered him, 'Thy sons are liere. Behold, their skulls 
 are beakers at thy board ; their blood is mingled with the 
 wine which thou hast drunk ; their hearts I roasted on a 
 spit, and thou hast eaten thereof. So was I set to do thee 
 as great shame as I might ; yet in nowise shall the mea- 
 sure of thy deeds be full.' Then the king grew sick at 
 heart, and said, ' Quick and bloody has been thy ven- 
 geance ; but for this deed of thine most meet it were to 
 stone thee and burn thy body on the bale-fire.' She 
 answered, ' For me another death is shapen, but see thou 
 rather and foretell thine own.' 
 
 Now Hogni had a son named Niblung. He came to the 
 feast, the heart within him burning to requite his father's 
 death ; and Gudrun and he took counsel together how 
 they might bring it about. So at night, when the king- 
 had well drunk and was gone up to his bed, they both 
 came stealing into the chamber where he lay. Gudrun 
 bare a sword in her hand, and Hogni's son grasped both 
 hand and hilt in his, and together they drave it into the 
 king's breast. Awaking with the wound. King Atli cried, 
 'Who art thou that hast done this deed?' There came 
 the answer, ' I, Gudrun, thrust somewhat with my hand ; 
 somewhat the son of Hogni thrust ; and we are both 
 avenged!' Then Atli besought her with his last breath, 
 saying, ' Now that the wrong betwixt us has been fully 
 requited, I pray thee do no despite unto my dead corpse, 
 but make me a kingly funeral.' When she had so pro-
 
 76 Talcs of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 mised him, King- Atli died. And Gudiun did according to 
 her word, for she and Hogni's son went out quickly and 
 kindled the palace all about. Within were all the nobles 
 and the mighty men of Atli's realm ; and when they woke 
 and felt the flames they ran hither and thither in their 
 distress, and smote each other down or fell upon their 
 swords rather than abide the fire. So perished Atli and 
 all liis folk with him. 
 
 Then Gudrun, grown weary of her life and longing to 
 die, came down to the sea-shore where the billows tumbled 
 round the rocks and boiled upon the beach. Within her 
 arms she clasped great stones and cast herself into the 
 sea. Yet would not the sea drown her; the waves upbore 
 her on their crests and carried her far away to the burg of 
 King Jonakr. He took Grudruu to wife, and she bare him 
 three children whose names were Hamdir, Saurli, and 
 Erp. 
 
 Xow Grudrun had by Sigurd a daughter called Swanhild ; 
 and she sent across the sea and fetclied her to Jonakr's 
 court. Swanhild was an exceeding fair woman, with eyes 
 bright like her father's, so that few durst gaze up into 
 them. And it came to pass that a certain King Jormunrek, 
 hearing how she far excelled all other women as the sun 
 outshines the stars of the firmament, sent by the hands of 
 Randver his son, and Bikki his counsellor, seeking her in 
 marriage. And Jonakr and Grudrun, thinking it an alli- 
 ance of great honour, gave Swanhild to them to be 
 Jormunrek's wife, and the maiden sailed away with them 
 in their ship. But while they were upon the voyage 
 Bikki counselled Randver the king's son, saying, ' Why 
 take so lovely a woman to that old man thy father to be 
 his wife ? More meet it were to woo her for thyself.' 
 And the saying pleased Randver ; and with many sweet 
 words he began to woo Swanhild ; in like manner also she 
 answered him again. Nevertheless as soon as they were 
 come to land Bikki went to the king and said, ' Truly a
 
 The Stories of the Volsiuigs. 77 
 
 hard tiling it is to speak evil of the king's son, and much 
 it goeth against me ; but Eandver has altogether estranged 
 away the love of Swanhild from thee, and has taken her 
 to wife himself to thy great dishonouring.' So Jormun- 
 rek's anger burned fiercely against his son, and he sent 
 out straightway and had him hanged to a tree. Then by 
 the counselling of Bikki was Swanhild bound hand and 
 foot and led forth to the gate of the burg ; and they 
 brought wild horses and drave them at her to tread her 
 down. But Swanhild looked upon the horses, and they 
 shrank back because of tlie bright shining of her eyes ; 
 neither durst they come near her till Bikki fetched a bag 
 and di'ew it over her head ; then the horses ran in and 
 trampled her to death. 
 
 When (jrudrun heard what had befallen, she went to her 
 sons Hamdir and Saurli, saying, 'What do ye here, rejoicing 
 and making merry all the day ? Rise up and go and 
 avenge your sister upon Jormunrek the king!' But they 
 dallied abovit and had no heart for the enterprise. Then 
 Gudrun gave them strong drink from out of big flagons, 
 and furnished them with weapons, and with coats of 
 mail so cunningly fashioned that steel would not bite 
 thereon. So they set forth on their errand ; but on the 
 way meeting Erp their brother, they asked him, ' How wilt 
 thou help us in this business ? ' And when he answered. 
 ' As hand helps hand, and as foot helj)s foot,' they deemed 
 liglitly of his help, and turned on him, and slew him for a 
 fool. Presently as they went their way both brother"-- 
 stumbled, but Hamdir saved himself with his hand and 
 Saurli with his foot. Wherefore they thought ' Such help 
 as Erp had promised us was not to be despised.' Howbeit 
 they journeyed till they came to King Jormunrek's hall, 
 and they went in and fell upon him both together. 
 Hamdir cut off the king's hands and Saurli his feet. Then 
 said Hamdir, ' His head likewise might we have cut oii" 
 were Erp our brother here.' But by this they had to turn
 
 78 Tales of the Teuionic Lands. 
 
 and fight with many warriors who ran in to slay them. 
 Long they battled in the hall and smote down many a 
 champion, till Jormunrek's folk waxed disheartened, be- 
 cause neither steel nor iron would bite upon their mail. 
 Til en came there into the hall a certain old man, one-eyed 
 and austere to look upon, who said, ' Smite them with 
 stones, so shall you bring these men to their end,' and 
 passed out ; neither wist any whither he went. So they took 
 up stones and stoned Hamdir and Saurli that they died. 
 
 Now Gudrun when she knew of it, went into the fore- 
 court of the palace, and sat musing how all her kindred, 
 root and branch, were clean perished from off the face of 
 the earth, and how she alone was left of all the Giukings. 
 Heavily she called to mind the many things which she 
 had suffered, and being tired of heart and very weary, she 
 sorrowed not to feel death creep upon her. And at the last 
 all tlie troubles of her latter days seemed blotted out, and 
 her mind went back to Sigiu-d. She said, ' Sigurd, 
 remember the pledge thou madest me when we were man 
 and wife together. Now from thy sombre dwelling-place 
 among the dead come forth and look on me a-dying : lift 
 me in thy shadowy arms and bear me tenderly to Hel's 
 pale kmgdom I' So the words of her mourning had an 
 end. 
 
 High they reared the oak-pile, higher than any queen 
 had heretofore : swift burned the fire and thawed her 
 sorrow-bounden heart : black the smoke-clouds rolled and 
 billowed all along the sky.
 
 79 
 
 THE NIB E LUNG STORT. 
 
 I. THE WEDDING OF THE QUEENS. 
 
 In a palace by the Ehine, at Worms in Burgundy, dwelt 
 fair Kriemhild, the loftiest lady in all Ehineland. Her 
 brothers were three mighty men who knew how to guard 
 her well ; Gunther and Grernot well proven in fight, and 
 young Griselher lithe as a sapling tree. As for the liege- 
 men whom they ruled, no king of any country had men 
 like their uncle Hagan and his brother Dankwart, Ortwine 
 of Metz, Volker, Rumold and Hunold, and many more such 
 champions. 
 
 With a strong hand reigned the brothers. They kept 
 a sumptuous court, laughing all ill to scorn ; they ate, 
 they drank, they fought in sport for lack of foes ; their 
 enemies feared them, and their people abode in peace. 
 
 One night there came a dream to the lady Kriemhild 
 as she lay sleeping in her beautiful palace. She dreamed 
 that she had taken a young falcon and nourished it for a 
 long season till it grew very dear to her, when suddenly two 
 eagles darted down and tare it to pieces before her eyes. 
 Weeping she awoke, and coming to her mother, Uta, told 
 her dream. Her mother said, ' I read it thou wilt take a 
 mate, and sorrow shall come of it. Grod's pity, child, on 
 the man on whom thou settest tliy mind ! ' Kriemhild 
 answered, ' If that be all, fear notliing, mother, for I will 
 never wed ; so none shall suffer ill for me.' ' Aye child,'
 
 8o Tales of the Teiitonic Lands. 
 
 said her mother, ' 'tis well enough to talk, but wedlock 
 hath many pleasures, and we weary of a lonely life. And 
 then, how fair thou art ! Grod send thee a proper mate, 
 my daughter, and thou wilt forget tliy dreams.' ' Peace, 
 mother. Pain evermore dogs pleasure's steps. I will 
 have neither pain nor pleasure. I will live and die a 
 maid, and so clieat sorrow.' Thus for a long while 
 Kriemhild remained heart-whole in the palace, gay and 
 frank of speech with all men, hut favouring none. 
 
 Away in the Netherland, in a castle called Xanten, on 
 the Rhine-side, lived the young prince Siegfried, a stain- 
 less youth, so comely he was dear to all maidens, and so 
 strong he was the pride of all men. One midsummer his 
 father. King Siegmund, made him knight, and held high 
 mass and royal festival with a seven days' feast in honour 
 of his dubbing. How willingly the noblest maidens plied 
 the needle to broider jewelled vestments for him to put 
 on that day ! How many hundred noble knights came 
 up to tourney at the feast ! What a glad woman was his 
 mother, Queen Sieglind, when she saw her boy bear down 
 the doughtiest of them, and bravely win his knighthood ! 
 
 The feast being ovei, Siegfried set forth upon his 
 travels, and wandered through many lands, winning every- 
 where great renown. Once as he journeyed he came to a 
 hill-side where the fierce Nibelung and his brother Schil- 
 bung disputed as they counted a great treasure heap in 
 front of a cave. These two brothers offered him tlieir 
 father's great sword Balmung, if he would divide the 
 treasure between them. So Siegfried set to work at tlie 
 task. But never was seen so great treasure : of precious 
 stones there were at least a hundred waggon loads, and of 
 red gold very much more. Siegfried began patiently to 
 reckon up the gems and golden ornaments, but as weeks 
 went by he began to find that his lifetime would noi, 
 suffice to count so great riches. Then, angry at the 
 delav, both brothers set on him with all their band ; but
 
 The Nibehmg Story. 8 1 
 
 Siegfried, gripping tlie sword Balmung, slew them both and 
 put their men to flight. And after that he slew twelve 
 of the Nibelungers' champions and seven hundred of their 
 chiefs. Then waged he battle with the mighty dwarf 
 Alberich, and overcame him, and took from him his cloud- 
 cloak ; and he assembled all the Nibelungers and made 
 them carry the treasure back into the cave again : and 
 Alberich made he keeper of the treasure. So he won the 
 countless hoard of gems and gold and the sword Balmung, 
 and won the Nibelung land. Afterwards he slew a 
 poison-spitting dragon, and bathed in the blood, whereby 
 his skin being turned to horn no weapon would harm 
 liim. 
 
 When Siegfried came home again he heard folk talk of 
 Kriemhild of Burgundy, how beautiful she was, yet so 
 coy withal that she would listen to no man's wooing ; and 
 without heeding his father's warnings he chose eleven 
 comrades, and, having clad them in the richest armour 
 there was in the palace, took his journey to Worms, 
 determined to win this damsel for his wife. 
 
 King Gunther and his uncle Hagan from the palace 
 window saw them coming, and knew him for the famous 
 mau whose deeds were talked of far and wide. Wherefore 
 when they rode into the hall the king received them 
 courteously ; and Siegfried and his conarades bowed 
 themselves before King Gunther. And Gunther spake, 
 saying, ' Siegfried is welcome here ; yet still we marvel 
 what he would seek at Worms upon the Rhine.' 
 
 He answered : ' It is not my wont to hide a matter. 
 Men told me that you have strong champions in Burgundy, 
 and I am come to see. They say that you, King Gunther, 
 are a man strong in fight. I too am a warrior ; and, like you, 
 have land and treasure in abundance. I shall rule my 
 father's kingdom ; and when I sit upon his throne I would 
 have the people say of me, " He has nobly won us lands 
 and liegemen." Wherefore, hear my purpose ; I care not 
 
 o
 
 82 Talcs of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 if you take it well or ill. I come to see whether of us 
 twain is the stronger ; I come to win your castles and 
 your land and all that you possess, and to have you for 
 my vassal.' 
 
 The king could hardly speak for anger, and the cham- 
 pions about him murmured loud. 
 
 Siegfried said : ' If yon cannot keep your kingdom 
 against all comers, let me rule it, for I can. But if you 
 will fight, let your broad lands and mine be thrown into 
 the scale, and whoso overcometh, let him be master over 
 all.' 
 
 Then spake Grernot : ' Our lands are broad enough for 
 us ; we need no more. We are not for seizing a neigh- 
 bour's land ; being rightful masters of our own we are 
 content.' 
 
 Grimly strode forward the burly Ortwine, Knight of 
 Metz, saying, ' Who is this man that defieth tlie king ? ' 
 
 Then answered Siegfried : ' Who is he ? A king. A 
 mere king's man art thou : go, bring a dozen of thy fellows 
 if thou wouldest light with me.' 
 
 Thereon Ortwine called aloud for some to bring his 
 weapons ; but Grernot said, ' Peace : the man is a stranger 
 and a guest ; it may be we shall yet make friends with 
 him. Small honour would be gained, good sooth, to slay 
 a guest.' In like manner went Gemot to the other 
 warriors, and forbade them to answer Siegfried's defiance, 
 or take offence ; and so stayed the broil. 
 
 Then King Gunther led Siegfried to the banquet-table, 
 and when the wine was poured said, ' All that is ours is at 
 your friendly service whenever in honour you choose to 
 claim it.' And Siegfried being thereby appeased in mood, 
 sat down to the feast, and afterwards joined the three 
 brothers and their warriors in knightly sports. But 
 whatsoever the pastime, whether hurling the stone, or 
 flinging spear, or combat with the sword, there Avas none 
 that could approach him. Fair Kriemhild, looking from
 
 The Nibelimg Story. 8 
 
 o 
 
 lier window, beheld a man of nobler presence and hand- 
 somer countenance than she had ever seen ; saw him 
 foremost in all the games ; watched him overcome her 
 brothers and the strong champions of lier land ; and her 
 eyes were never satisfied with beholding him. 
 
 Siegfried remained a long while at Grunther's court, 
 yet caught never so much as a glimpse of the fair maiden 
 on whom his heart was set. Then came tidings how 
 Ludeger the Saxon and Ludegast King of Denmark had 
 leagued together to come up against Burgundy with forty 
 thousand men. And while Gunther and his brothers 
 were ill at ease because of the tidings, Siegfried said, 
 ' Leave me to deal with them. Stay you at home and 
 frolic at your ease. I will take my eleven comrades, 
 and a thousand of your men, and will go and meet 
 these kings. Take you no further thought about the 
 business. ' 
 
 So Siegfried went forth as he had said, with his 
 comrades and only a thousand men ; Hagan and Ortwine, 
 Dankwart, Sindold and Volker going also with him. In 
 Saxony they met the host, and right well Siegfried proved 
 his manhood, while all the champions of King Gunther 
 marvelled at his deeds. They utterly routed their 
 t')}emies and lost but sixty men. They took Ludeger 
 and Ludegast alive, and brought them home with five 
 liundred captives to the city of Worms. Then all the 
 maidens flocked to hear, each what her knight had done 
 in Ijattle ; only Kriemhild durst not come forth, but 
 lovelorn abode in her bower and longed to know. 
 Stealthily she sent for a youth who had seen the fight, 
 and lightly asked him, ' I would know how the battle 
 went, and how my brother Gemot fought, and if Hagan 
 and Dankwart were brave.' He answered, 'There was 
 not a coward in the tight ; Gemot did well, and so did 
 Hagan and Dankwart and Ortwine ; but what were they, 
 with all their prowess, to the Netherlandish knight I The
 
 84 Talcs of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 like was never seen. Alone, lie brake the Saxon ranks, 
 and with his own hand smote down Ludeger and took 
 lAidegast prisoner. No mass of men conld hem him in. 
 Ask Ortwine or Hagan ; all say the victory was Siegfried's. 
 There is no man like Siegfried in all our host.' Then 
 Kriemhild's glad cheek Llushed rosy red at hearing 
 Siegfried's praise, and she said to the youth, ' Take these 
 ten marks of gold and a broidered vesture for thy pains.' 
 He, wondering, went liis way, while Kriemhild fed her 
 mind with thinking on Siegfried's deeds. 
 
 Weeks wore on, yet Siegfried saw her not ; till weary 
 of waiting and yet too proud to speak his wish, he thought 
 to go back to Netherland. But it fell out that Gunther 
 asked Ortwine how he should make the Whitsun feast 
 more famous in honour of their victory, and Ortwine 
 answered, ' What more ennobles chivalry than for knights 
 to have fair maidens' eyes upon them at the tourney or 
 the feast? Wherefore bid the lady Uta, and your sister 
 Kriemhild and all fair dames and damsels, be there.' 
 Therefore came Kriemhild forth from her bower walking 
 to court in royal state, a hundred knights and a hundred 
 damsels at her side. Fair as the morning when the sim 
 makes clouds to blush and quenches all the stars, so 
 Siegfried saw her, and looking, saw not her queenly 
 raiment nor the sparkle of her jewels for the glory of her 
 radiant face. Then gazing yet, he feared before her 
 beauty and her royalness, and mused, 'How coxxld I dare 
 have thought to woo her.' So he stood stock-still, glowing 
 white and red by turns, while spite of all his fear, his 
 heart said, ' Oive her up ? Nay ; rather die.' 
 
 (fernot came to his brother Gunther and said, ' Brother, 
 by way of requiting Siegfried for what he has done for 
 us, bid him come and be greeted by Kriemhild before all 
 the people. To be greeted of her, who never yet greeted 
 knight, will make this peerless warrior wholly ours.' 
 And G-unther, thinking it would prove greatly to the
 
 The Nibelung Story. 85 
 
 profit of their kingdom, sent the noblest of liis kinsmen 
 to bid Siegfried to the com-t. 
 
 Grlad was Siegfried, and he made haste and came to 
 the conit and stood before Kriemhild, — his face all aglow, 
 his cheeks hot as fire beneath her love-bright eyes 
 whereon he dared not look. Then Kriemhild softly 
 said, ' Sir Siegfried, you are welcome— good and noble 
 knight.' Thereon he raised his eyes, and as he looked in 
 liers and she in his, both learned in silence all that either 
 longed to know. Then as her brothers charged her, 
 Kriemhild stooped from her high seat and kissed the 
 knight in presence of all the people. Proudly Sir 
 Siegfried lifted up his head, well paid for all his pains : 
 while she sat blushing, but with pride alone, well know- 
 ing she had greeted the manliest man in all the court. 
 
 Then were the folk charged to make way for Kriemhild 
 to go to the minster. But all the while the mass was 
 singing Sir Siegfried chafed impatient of the song — and 
 she the same — till after mass he came and stood beside 
 her at the altar. Then Kriemhild took his hand, saying, 
 ' God reward you, brave knight, for what you have done 
 for Rhineland ; for all men speak of your fame and 
 worship as it well deserves in my esteem.' He, love- 
 bewildered, looked into her eyes and answered, ' Dear 
 lady Kriemhild, I will ever serve your brethren to my 
 best, both day and night for your sweet sake.' 
 
 All twelve days of the feast it was awarded to Siegfried 
 to walk with Kriemhild and her train each day from her 
 palace to the court. And when the feast was over they 
 ransomed King Ludeger and King Ludegast at the price 
 of five hundred mules' weight of gold, and made a 
 covenant with them not to make war again on Burgundy, 
 and sent them away. Then one by one the warriors took 
 their leave to journey home; and Siegfried, sore against 
 his will, ordered forth his steeds to go back to Netherland. 
 But young Griselher won him to remain, saying, ' Tarry
 
 86 Tales of the Teiitonic Lands. 
 
 on -witli us ; we have noble warriors and fair maidens for 
 your company ; and for our friendship's sake I do con- 
 strain you.' So Siegfried ordered back the liorst^ and 
 lingered on. What wonder, since he saw fair Kriemhild 
 every day. 
 
 Now there lived in Issland beyond the sea a certain 
 war-maiden, Queen Brynhild, who was not only very 
 beautiful but so strong that she cuuld hurl the spear and 
 throw the stone further than any knight. And it was 
 noised abroad that she would only wed the man that 
 conquered her at three warlike games ; but whoso tried 
 and failed should suffer death for penalty. Thus many 
 sought to win her heart and lost their heads, yet mur- 
 mured not since death came from a hand so fair. And 
 when Gunther would take a wife to be queen over 
 Ehineland, he became love-struck at hearing the fame of 
 Brvnhild. and nothing would do but he must go and 
 strive to win her. And Siegfried, when he knew it, spake 
 to Gunther, saying, ' Go not. I tell you it is in vain. 
 I know this terrible battle-maiden ; four men could not 
 withstand her furious strength.' Yet would not Gunther 
 be persuaded, but said, ' Unless I win her, my good days 
 are past. I can but die if she should vanquish me, and 
 if I have her not I would not live. Only help me in 
 this enterprise and I will hold nothing too dear for thy 
 reward." Siegfried answered, ' Give me Kriemhild thy 
 sister for my wife, and I will help thee, and will bring 
 this thing to pass.' And Gunther made a covenant with 
 him, saying, ' I will surely give thee my sister on the day 
 that Brynhild cometh into Ehineland.' Then they took 
 counsel concerning the manner of their going. Gunther 
 was for taking a great army across the sea, but Siegfried 
 said, ' That would not avail against this mighty queen ; 
 her warriors are many ; and the contest is with her alone. 
 We will travel thither with only Sir Hagan and Sir 
 Dankwart for company. Trust me, no thousand
 
 The Nibcluiig Story. 87 
 
 champions will care to fight us four. And since in 
 Brynhild's land the warriors are most sumptuously ar- 
 rayed, we will put on the fairest apparel that can be got, 
 so we be not put to shame before her lieges.' For seven 
 weeks Kriemhild and her maidens wrought precious 
 vestments for the warriors, three changes for every day ; 
 rich garments of silk, trimmed with ermine and skins of 
 birds and fish from distant lands, and sewn with precious 
 stones and golden thread. And when the work was done 
 and the warriors had arrayed themselves, Kriemhild gave 
 her brother into Siegfried's charge, saying, ' I pray thee 
 see no harm befall him from fierce Brynhild's hand ;' and 
 this he promised her. Then went they down to the ship, 
 and Siegfried took the helm and steered along the Khine. 
 On the twelfth morning they saw a mighty fortress on a 
 rock, and fair broad lands with castles all along the coast ; 
 and Siegfried said, ' That is Brynhild's fortress, Isenstein ; 
 those are her lands and castles.' Then charged he his 
 companions that they should say when they landed, 
 ' Grunther is master, Siegfried is but his man.' 
 
 They came ashore and saw a three-fold palace with 
 more than fourscore turrets. The castle gates flew open 
 and the warders took from each man his horse and shield. 
 Then the chamberlain required them to lay aside their 
 weapons ; and when Hagan would not at first, Siegfried 
 told him it was the usage of the maiden's court ; so, 
 grumbling he obeyed. 
 
 Queen Brynhild sat in a fair wide hall of pure green 
 marble, her maidens round her. One cam.e and told her 
 of tlie gviests ; she asked who they were ; he answered, 
 ' I know them not, save only that one is like Siegfried of 
 the Netherland.' Then said Brynhild, ' Bring hither my 
 armour, for' great as is Siegfried's renown I fear him not 
 so deeply as to yield to be his wife.' And Brynhild girt 
 on her golden breastplate and an Indian silk surcoat 
 which no steel could cut, and comino- forth from her hall
 
 88 Tales of the TeiUonic Lands. 
 
 at the Lead of five hundred chosen warriors, drew near 
 to Siegfried, saying, ' Welcome brave warrior ; tell me 
 now thine errand.' 
 
 Siegfried answered, ' Pardon, fair lady, but thy greeting 
 befitteth rather my master. King Gunther, who for love 
 of thee comes hither from Ehineland, and will never 
 return, so he has sworn, till he can take thee with him as 
 his bride. I am but his man.' 
 
 Then said Brynhild, ' If he be thy master and thou art 
 but his man, let him now play with me at three war-games. 
 If he conquer me in all I Avill not scorn to be his wife, 
 but if he fail in one, master and men shall die. He 
 must cast the stone with me, and leap with me, and fling 
 the javelin.' 
 
 Then Siegfiied whispered to Cfunther, ' Fear not, for I 
 will hold you harmless.' So Gunther answered her, 
 ' Fair Brynhild, for your beauty's sake willingly shall I 
 dare the contest and the penalty.' 
 
 A ring- was marked. Seven hundred harnessed cham- 
 pions gathered round to see the fray. Meanwhile Sir 
 Siegfried hasted to the ship, and from a secret corner 
 there drew forth the cloud-cloak which he won from the 
 dwarf Alberich, keeper of the Nibelungs' treasure, and put 
 it on : — such was the virtue of the cloak that it gave its 
 wearer the strength of twelve strong men, yet hid him 
 like a cloud from all men's gaze. 
 
 To the ring came Brynhild, gold spangles glittering 
 on her silken surcoat ; and, rising and falling with her 
 eager breath, the silken vesture gave glimpses of her 
 snowy skin. Four servants staggered bearing her huge 
 golden shield, steel-studded, three spans thick ; its thong 
 a leathern band, grass-green with emeralds. Three men 
 scarce bore along the javelin which she used to fling ; its 
 point three weights of iron welded into one, and sharpened 
 deadly keen. Twelve brawny knights panted beneath
 
 The Nibelung Story. 89 
 
 the load of the great round stone which she hurled ; and 
 when they let it down it shook the solid ground. 
 
 Then said Dankwart, ' Better we had stayed at home, 
 where once we passed for warriors, than die disgraced 
 before a woman without a struggle for it.' 
 
 ' Woman ! good lack,' cried Hagan — ' a bride for a 
 fiend. One thing is certain ; were I Gunther I could 
 deem it sweeter to sleep the sword-sleep at her hand than 
 lie with such a darling at my side. Yet, had we our 
 arms and harness on our backs to help our king, methinks 
 we might abase this maiden's pride.' 
 
 Brynhild heard his words, and looking over her 
 shoulder, answered in scorn, ' Gro get them ; I will deny 
 nothing to my guests. Your puny help will succour him 
 perchance as much as it will trouble me.' So they armed 
 themselves and stood beside Gunther. Brynhild at the 
 far end of the ring, her snow white arms all bare, was 
 poising the spear in hand. Straightway Siegfried in his 
 cloud-cloak came up unseen, and touched Gunther on the 
 hand. The king looked round but saw no man. He 
 said, ' Who touched me ? ' Siegfried answered, ' Hist ! It- 
 is I, Siegfried, thy friend. Quick ; unsling thy buckler ; 
 give it me to bear. Do as I bid thee. Make thou the 
 gestures ; leave me the contest.' 
 
 With all her might the strong maid flung the massy 
 spear. It crashed into the buckler, yet Siegfried's hand 
 which bare it shook not, though the two men staggered 
 with the blow. Then whilst Gunther made as though he 
 would pull out the spear from the shield, Siegfried, unseen 
 in his cloud-cloak, plucked it forth and hurled it butt-end 
 foremost at the maid again, for he thouglit it were a 
 shame to send the point against so fair a damsel. Yet 
 even so, the javelin fastened quivering in Brynhild's 
 sliield ; and with the mighty shock she tottered to and fro 
 and fell upon the plain. Quick she upstarted, crying, ' I
 
 90 Talcs of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 thank thee, Grunther, for that stroke.' For in trutli slie 
 deemed it was his work. 
 
 Angrily she heaved up the great stone and brandished 
 it about her head, then flung it twelve fathoms away, and 
 leaping, sprang beyond the stone-cast. Grunther ran to 
 where the stone lay, and seized it. Men thought that he 
 flung it, not seeing Siegfried grip the rock in his hands 
 and hurl it half as far again as Bryuhild. Then Siegfried 
 caught the king about the waist and bounded witli him to 
 where tlie stone pitched. All men saw the leap ; but there 
 was no one against the stone save Gunther only. 
 
 Sullenly queen Brynhild called her warriors. "- Come 
 hither, men and kinsmen : I am no more your mistress ; 
 bow low to Gunlher, you are his liegemen now.' Then 
 made they all obeisance to King Gunther and owned him 
 as their lord. But Siegfried hasted away to the ship to 
 take off his cloud-cloak ; and when he came back, 
 finding Gunther and his companions in the palace, he 
 said, ' Why tarrieth the king from the games ? Come let 
 us to the ring and see the contest.' 
 
 Brynhild answered, 'Where hast thou been, good 
 Siegfried, not to know that the games are done and King 
 Gunther has overmastered me ? ' Then said Siegfried, ' I 
 was busy in the ship the while ; but truly I am glad to 
 know my master has taught so proud a maiden sub- 
 mission.' 
 
 Some days went by wliile Brynhild made ready for her 
 journey to the Ehineland. She sent to gather all her 
 friends and liegemen to Isenstein, to receive gifts of gold 
 and ricli raiment ; and as Hagan beheld how great 
 companies flocked early and late to the castle, his mind 
 misgave him of some treachery, and he spake Avith 
 Siegfried thereupon. Siegfried said, ' Fear not. I am 
 going a journey alone ; ask not where or why, but tarry 
 here for me.' 
 
 Then went Siegfried down to the sea-shore and put his
 
 The Nibehmg Story. 9 1 
 
 eloud-cloak on, and entering a little boat which he found 
 tied there, pnt out to sea. Men marked the boat as it 
 bounded over the waves, but could perceive neither 
 oarsman nor steersman, and they marvelled, thinking that 
 it was driven by a storm. All night and day Siegfried 
 rowed until he reached a coast where was a meadow and a 
 castle on a hill. He tied the boat, went straightvk'ay 
 to tlie castle and beat upon the gate. A huge earth- 
 shaking giant, the porter at the gate, yawning as he 
 woke, cried gruffly, ' Who knocks so loud ? ' 
 
 Siegfried answered, ' A warrior who is loth to wait 
 till lazy louts have done their snores. Open the gate.' 
 The giant seized a heavy iron bar, and taking his pon- 
 derous shield in hand, flung wide the doors. Then 
 followed so fierce a fight that the sound of the blows 
 reached the hall of the Nibelungers. Alberich the 
 dwarf heard it in his hollow hill, and straightway came 
 hasting to the place, but found Siegfried conqueror and 
 the giant lying bound upon the earth. The dwarf had 
 a golden scourge made of seven heavy knobs of gold 
 which swung from a handle by seven thongs. With this 
 lie beat Siegfried's shield to splinters ; but still the 
 knight of Netherland disdained to draw his sword upon 
 his chamberlain. He flung his broken shield away, and 
 taking the hoary dwarf by the beard shook him to 
 and fro till he roared with pain. 'Hold, master,' cried 
 Alberich, ' for pity s sake let go. I will do all your bid- 
 ding ; but — what is your name, kind sir ? ' He answered, 
 ' My name is Siegfried ; you have heard it I think before 
 to-day.' The dwarf said, ' Well-a-way ! So Siegfried is 
 it ? To think I should not know my master ! Let me 
 go — what must I do ? ' 
 
 ' Go straight and summon a thousand Nibelungers ; equip 
 them well, and bring them with all speed to Issland to 
 Queen Brynhild's castle.' Siegfried let him go, and the 
 dwarf fared blithely on his errand.
 
 92 Tales of the Te7ilonic Lands. 
 
 Queen Brynhild looked out from her castle, and seeinj^ 
 many white-sailed ships coming to land, she said to 
 Gunther, ' What are these ? ' Gunther answered, ' They 
 are guests of mine who come to greet these guests of 
 thine.' And when Brynliild found Siegfried among them, 
 she welcomed them all to land. 
 
 Then said the queen, ' Will someone give away my 
 gifts of gold and silver to the guests ? It is no unthank- 
 ful office, since I have wealth enough in store.' 
 
 Dankwart said, ' Give me the keys, fair queen. Trust 
 me I will so distribute it that all shall be content.' 
 
 But no sooner had Dankwart taken the keys than he 
 scattered gold and silver right and left to all that came ; 
 the very beggars in the street he clad in courtly raiment, 
 and to him that asked a mark he gave enough to make 
 him rich for life. Never had queen so lavish a treasurer 
 before. And when Brynhild spake to Gunther to stop 
 this wasting of her wealth, Hagan said, ' Never fear, great 
 queen, the king of Ehineland hatli treasure in such 
 plenty that we may well afford to squander thine.' 
 Nevertheless, Brynhild was fain to save twenty chests of 
 her vestments and jewels, and these she would not trust 
 either with Dankwart or Hagan. Then with a hundred 
 maidens in her train, a thousand of her chosen warriors, 
 and the thousand Nibelunger knights, Brynhild and 
 Gunther set out for Ehineland. 
 
 A royal greeting Queen Uta prepared for her son's fair 
 bride. With all her knights and damsels in her train she 
 rode to the beach to welcome her. And when Brynhild 
 was come forth from the ship, Kriemhild came down 
 from her palfrey and ran and took her hands and kissed 
 her, saying, ' Welcome, dear sister Brynhild.' Hard 
 would it be to say whether of the two maidens was the 
 more beautiful, she of Issland or she of Ehineland. 
 
 Then King Gunther prepared a royal feast, and spread 
 silken pavilions in the plain before the city, and held
 
 The Nibeliing Siory. 93 
 
 justs and games. And at the end of the tournament 
 came Siegfried to the king, and brought to his mind the 
 promise he had made. Guuther said, ' What I have 
 vowed that will I now perform.' Then sent he to 
 summon Kriemhild to the hall. And the king spake to 
 liis kinsmen and to them which sat at table with him, 
 ' Think you that Siegfried is a worthy man to wed my 
 sister ? ' They all answered, ' He is worthy.' So when 
 Kriemhild was come he said to her, ' Sister, I pray thee 
 of thy kindness to set me free from an oath which I have 
 made ; for I have vowed thee in marriage to a knight.' 
 
 She answered, ' Dear brother, I will do thy will, and 
 take for husband him thou givest me.* 
 
 Then Gunther brought Siegfried to her, saying, ' This 
 is the knight whereof I spake. Wilt thou take him for 
 thy husband ? ' 
 
 Kriemhild blushed, looked gladly in Siegfried's face, 
 and laid her snow-white hands in his — he, naught 
 ashamed, put his strong arms round her and kissed his 
 bride before them all. 
 
 iS^ow at the feast, when Brynhild sat by Gunther, she 
 espied how Kriemhild sat by Siegfried, and being very 
 angry said to the king, ' I cannot rest to see your sister 
 sitting content at a thrall's side. Bid her come and sit 
 by us — not mingle with thy men.' 
 
 He answered, ' Peace. We will talk of this another 
 time. I have given her to wife to Siegfried for an oath's 
 sake. Ask not why ; what is done is done.' 
 
 ' His wife ? Thy sister given to thy man ? Until I 
 know why thou hast done this thing, thy queen I may be, 
 but thy wife I will not be.' 
 
 Gunther said, 'Know then, Siegfried is not my man. 
 He is a very great king, with broad lands and castles of 
 his own. Let that suffice thee.' 
 
 But Brynhild pondered this within her mind and could 
 not rest content. If Siegfried were so great a king, why
 
 94 Tales of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 served he Gunther ? Or if he were but Gunther's man, 
 wherefore should Gunther give him his sister ? 
 
 Night came, and the royal chamberlains, with trains of 
 youths and maidens, led brides and bridegrooms to the wed- 
 ding chambers. But no sooner was Bryuhild alone with 
 Gunther, than she turned fiercely on him and refused to 
 be his wife till he should tell what service Siegfried had 
 done that he must needs give him Kriemhild, and what 
 oath that was whereof he spake. Idle were Gunther's 
 loving words. He dared not tell her what she asked ; she 
 would not suffer his caresses, but in fury flung him half 
 across the room, then kneeled upon his chest, and with 
 the girdle from her waist ^ound her new bridegroom 
 hand and foot, and hung him to a nail, and let him 
 dangle there till daylight, whilst she lay down and slept 
 alone upon the marriage-bed. At morning she untied 
 him, lest the servants bringing the gay marriage-robes 
 should see his shame, and both be sport for babbling 
 tongues. All day King Gunther was a moody man 
 amidst a merry-making court. At last he came to 
 Siegfried, who for the very fulness of his joy cared not to 
 join the noisy crowd but mused apart, and told what had 
 befallen him. ' Look at my wrists and ankles swollen with 
 those cursed cords ; her fingers are like iron ; her clutch 
 is like some dragon's. What can I do ? I love her, 
 terrible as she is.' Siegfried answered, ' Leave all to me. 
 I will tame this fury for thee. To-night, wrapped in my 
 cloud-cloak, I will hie me to tliy chamber. Watch thou, 
 and trust thine honour in my hands.' 
 
 So when night came, Siegfried put on his cloud-cloak 
 and went with Gunther into Brynhild's chamber. He 
 put out the tapers ; then mimicking the voice of Gunther, 
 he spake to Brjmhild and lay down at her side. ' Hast 
 thou forgotten yesternight ? ' she said ; and took up 
 Siegfried like a child in her strong arms, and hurled 
 him with his head ao^ainst an oaken bench. He started
 
 The NibeliLiLg Story. 95 
 
 lip and wrestled with the miglity maiden. They hurtled 
 to and fro in savage fight, now here, now tliere about the 
 room, while Gunther had to dodge on tiptoe in tlie dark 
 from place to place lest Brynhild should light on him 
 and find that the man with whom she struggled was not her 
 mate. Brynhild gripped Siegfried round the arms, and by 
 main force lifted him off his feet, and jammed him up 
 against a press that stood by the bedside. Then, whilst 
 with her shoulder she fixed liim there, she clutched his 
 two hands in one of hers so tight that the blood gushed 
 from his finger-tips, the while with her other hand she 
 sought to loose her girdle wherewith to bind him. Siegfried 
 put forth his strength, and after a great struggle freed his 
 hands, and gat his feet again ; then closing with the fierce 
 woman he threw her headlong backwards on the floor. 
 Heavily she fell, half-stunned, quite helpless, wholly 
 conquered. She said, ' No more will I provoke thy 
 strength. Henceforth. King Gunther, I will be thy docile 
 wife.' Siegfried softly arose and left the chamber ; but 
 bore away two trophies with him — he had slipped 
 Brynhild's ring from off her finger, and drawn the loosened 
 girdle from her waist. And these, whether in wilfulness 
 or sport, he gave to his wife. Kriemhild took the ring and 
 girdle, but for a long time wist not whence they came. 
 
 On the morrow Gunther and his queen sat blithely at 
 the wedding feast, as happy a pair as might be ; and from 
 that morning Brynhild lost all her marvellous strength 
 and became weak as any other woman. 
 
 Soon after this Siegfried took his wife home to Nether- 
 land. And when he came to Xanten, Siegmund his father 
 lifted the crown from off his head and made Siegfried 
 king. So Siegfried remained there to rule that country, 
 and held besides all the land of the Nibelungers in fee. 
 As time went on Kriemhild bore him a son, whose name 
 they called Gunther for his uncle's sake, and about the 
 same season Brynhild bare a son to King Gunther, and 
 they called his name Siegfried.
 
 96 Tales of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 II. THE CROSSLET ON THE VESTURE. 
 
 Now Brynhild continually pondered in her mind why 
 Siegfried came not to do homage for his lands. And she 
 often spake to her lord, saying, ' This Siegfried, since he 
 is thy man, how comes it tliat he does thee no service, 
 pays no tribute, yields no homage ? ' After a wliile. King 
 Gunther, being wearied at her asking, promised to bring 
 Siegfried and his wife to Worms. And since he could 
 not command them to obey, he sent messengers to seek 
 their presence, for friendship's sake, at a great festival 
 which he would hold at midsummer. 
 
 When the messengers told Siegfried their errand, he 
 promised that lie would come, and having loaded them 
 with presents and given them gold treasure as much as 
 their horses could carry, sent them back again to King 
 Gunther. 
 
 At midsummer Siegfried came to Worms, bringing 
 with him fair Kriemhild and Siegmund his father, and a 
 great company of his warriors, but his child he left at 
 home in Netherland. Gunther and his queen received 
 them as befitted royal folk, and day by day held tour- 
 naments in their honour. But still queen Brynhild could 
 not rest from lier desire to know why Siegfried paid 
 no homage, notwithstanding Siegfried had himself told 
 her thai he was Gunther's man. And one evening as 
 Brynhild viewed the justs, Kriemhild, sitting beside her. 
 said, ' Look at my husband, how strong and brave he is I 
 Where is the man that can compare with him in 
 aught ? Am I not right to be proud that he is mine — 
 the most peerless knight in all the world ! ' 
 
 Brynhild answered, ' Aye, thou mayest be proud of him 
 when Gunther is not by. But howsoever strong is Siegfried 
 so much the prouder I ; for I have wedded his master. 
 Nav, deny it not. I had it from his lips as well aa
 
 The Nibclung Story. 97 
 
 Guntlier's. For wlien my lord subdued me in the fight 
 Siegfried himself told me, " Grunther is master, I am but 
 his man." IS'ay, blush not for Siegfried, he is a better 
 thrall than most ; a good vassal to his lord.' 
 
 ' Master ? Lord ? Siegfried hath none,' cried Kriemhild 
 angrily. 
 
 ' He is our thrall,' ansAvered Brynhild ; ' and all that 
 hold of him are our thralls likewise.' 
 
 Kriemhild answered, ' Indeed ! j| And since thou rulest 
 us all, how Cometh it to pass that we pay thee no homage 
 and always deny thee service ? Nay, I will endure thy 
 taunts no longer. Hold thy peace.' 
 
 Then said Brynhild, ' It becometh not a thrall's wife to 
 bear herself too loftily. So since thou wilt be humbled, 
 we will see to whether of us twain shall be paid the greater 
 respect — to thee the vassal's wife, or to me his lord's.' 
 
 Kriemhild said, ' Be it so. I will prove this night that 
 I dare enter the minster with all my train before Grunther's 
 queen.' 
 
 Then flashing with anger both women left the lists, and 
 each went and put on her most costly raiment and richest 
 jewels to outdo the other. Brynhild looked up the very 
 finest Arabian stuffs from her chest wherewith to deck 
 herself. Kriemhild clothed her maidens more sumptu- 
 ously than any women yet were clad in Burgundy ; but 
 she herself put on apparel stiff with jewels, worth the 
 robes of thirty queens, and all to anger Brynhild. Men 
 thought it strange to see the queens walking to the 
 minster apart, their trains wide-sundered, when hitherto 
 they had gone side by side. 
 
 To the minster door came Brynhild, panting with 
 anger scarce controlled, and cried, ' Stay, vassaless ; 
 make way for the lady of the land ! ' 
 
 Kriemhild's blood was up, and she answered, ' Vassaless 
 good sooth ! And how much loftier is a vassal's wanton 
 than his wife ? When Grunther could not win nor tame
 
 98 Talcs of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 thee, my liusband Siegfried did the work. Tliou dis- 
 honoured thing-, abase thyself and let me pass.' Tears 
 started out from Brynhild's eyes for rage and shame. And 
 whilst she wept, and cried ' It is false, vile woman ; Gun- 
 ther shall know of this,' Kriemhild spurned her away, and 
 with her train passed through the minster door. 
 
 All through the service Brynliild sat with a weight like 
 lead upon her mind ; she thought that chant and psalm 
 would never come to an end. But when at last it was over, 
 she hasted forth and stopped Kriemhild outside the church 
 door, whilst knights and ladies gathered round to hear. 
 
 She said, ' You shall go no further. Stop and do me 
 right. You called me wanton. Prove it.' 
 
 Kriemhild answered, * Better ask me to be silent. 
 Remember Siegfried is but a lowly lover — a vassal. But 
 if you will have your shame made plain before the crovvd 
 I care not. See this ring upon my hand. Siegfried 
 brought it to me from your chamber.' 
 
 ' It's a foul lie,' said Brynhild. ' Many a year I missed 
 tlie ring, and now I know the thief.' 
 
 Kriemhild said, ' Thief ? Why will you not hold your 
 peace and hide your shame ? I am no thief. Behold your 
 girdle which I wear about my wjjist. That Siegfried 
 brought me likewise.' 
 
 Brynhild looked and saw that it was her girdle. Well 
 she knew it ; made of Nineveh silk glittering with precious 
 stones. Then breaking out in a passion of tears, she said, 
 ' Go some one ; fetch King Gunther hither. He shall 
 know what his sister says of me.' 
 
 When Gunther came and saw his queen weeping bitterly, 
 he took her tenderly to him and asked what had befallen her. 
 
 She answered, ' Thy sister would rob me of my good 
 name — she says that Siegfried has boasted of my love. 
 And see, she wears my girdle and my ring to put me to 
 an open shame.' King Gunther said, ' If Siegfried has 
 so boasted he shall deny it, or one of us shall die.' And
 
 The NToeluiig Story. 99 
 
 he bade them send for him. Presently came Siegfried, 
 knowing nothing of what had happened, and wondering 
 to see the anger of the queens. Gunther told why 
 Brynhild wept ; then asked him, ' Sir Siegfried, is it true 
 that thou hast won Queen Brynhild's love ? And hast 
 thou boasted so ? ' 
 
 Siegfried answered frankly, ' It is not true, nor have I 
 boasted so ; nor spake I at any time such words to my 
 wife.' Thereto he uplifted his hand and sware before all 
 the men of Burgundy. And he said, ' Sore it grieveth 
 me that my wife should have set thine at naught. But 
 we must teach our women to leave off idle talking and to 
 rule their tongvies. Keep thou thy wife in order ; I'll 
 do the same by mine.' 
 
 Then was King Grunther pacified, and said, ' It is 
 enough. I heartily believe thee free from blame in this 
 matter.' But Hagan and Ortwine of Metz were very 
 angry and would never believe but Siegfried, in some 
 boastful fit, had foully slandered their queen, and that 
 what his \vife spake she heard from him. Wherefore 
 Hagan continually stirred up the king against Siegfried 
 in secret, prompting him ever to spill his blood, and 
 saying, ' If he is guiltless how came he with the ring and 
 the girdle ? So long as Siegfried lives our queen's good 
 name will be bandied about by every prating tongue.' 
 For a long time Gunther heeded him not, or only 
 answered, ' Siegfried was ever true to us in word and 
 deed ;' but as Hagan and Ortwine harped all day upon 
 the wrong done to the queen, showing besides how 
 Gunther might become king both of the Netherland and 
 the Nibelung men if Siegfried were destroyed, and as 
 Brynhild would not let him rest at night for urging the 
 same tiling, he began to hearken. Yet said he, ' Siegfried 
 is so strong of hand that it would be vain for any of us to 
 take this quarrel up.' Hagan answered, ' Fear not but I 
 will compass his death either by strength or subtlety. 
 
 H 2
 
 100 Talcs of the Ten tonic Lands. 
 
 ( )nly give me leave.' So he persuaded Guntlier to get 
 strange messengers to ride as though from Ludeger and 
 Ludegast to defy the Burgundians to battle ; and to see 
 what would come of it. 
 
 Accordingly one morning, as Hagan had arranged, 
 there came two-and-thirty messengers to the king. And 
 Siegfried, seeing them, said to Grunther, ' Who are these 
 men ? And what meaneth this whispering in the court 
 betwixt you and Hagan and Ortwine?' The king said, 
 ' Gfood cause have I for sorrow, since Ludeger and 
 Ludegast threaten to come and ravage all my land again.' 
 ' If that is all,' laughed Siegfried, ' be of good cheer. 
 Stay you at home with your warriors at the hearth 
 side. I and my knights will now go forth and bow these 
 men beneath your yoke again ; and people shall say, 
 " King Grunther had in Siegfried a better friend for 
 friendship's sake than liege had ever vassal that did 
 homage for land or fee."' 
 
 Siegfried made no delay but gat his arms and harness, 
 imd gathered his men together. Then went the wily 
 Hagan to take leave of his cousin Kriemhild. And 
 Kriemhild said to him, ' Is not mine a brave lord, that 
 can give so strong a succour to his friends ! I am glad 
 this has befallen so, for now my husband will make 
 amends for all my folly and my wrong to Brynhild. 
 Perchance she will forgive me then, — when Siegfried for 
 my sake has slain her foes and comes home conqueror. 
 It was my fault, not his. But that you know; for 
 Siegfried said so. You heard him before all the people. 
 He could not lie — not even to shield me — and for his 
 speaking truth and shaming me I love him better than 
 if he had lied. I know not how I could have spoken 
 thus and made such mischief with my tongue. I would 
 not, only Brynhild galled me so.' 
 
 Hagan answered, ' Aye, aye ; we all know that full 
 well. But, lady, tell me, is there any service I might do
 
 Ihe Nibcluiig Story. lol 
 
 for Siegfried in the war ? For in truth I love no man 
 better than I love him.' 
 
 She said, ' 0, I fear not that any man will slay my 
 husband. I know his might and valour.' 
 
 ' Aye, lady ; so do both friends and foes. Yet he is 
 but a mortal man ; and since his life is very precious to 
 us all it was ray thought to watch by him through the 
 fight, lest harm should befall him by any treachery or 
 misadventure. We dare not lose him, lady.' 
 
 She answered, ' It is kind of thee, good Hagan ; and 
 since thou art my cousin I gladly trust him in thy 
 keeping, and will tell thee a secret known to him and 
 me alone. When Siegfried slew the dragon, you know 
 how he bathed him in the hot blood and made his flesh 
 sword-proof. Dear friend, no other creature knows what 
 I am going to tell : I pray thee safely treasure it. — But 
 as he bathed, there fell a leaf from off a linden tree and 
 lay betwixt his shoulders, and that tiny place alone the 
 blood washed not. There only steel may pierce my 
 darling ; often through the battle-time I tremble lest in 
 tlie cloud of darts some one may find its way there and I 
 lose the mate so dear to me. There guard him with thy 
 shield, dear friend, and Grod and I will bless thee.' 
 
 Hagan said, ' I pray thee sew me a token in his outer 
 garment, that I may surely know where most to guard 
 him.' She told him, ' I will sew a little crosslet with 
 fine silk upon his vesture. So shalt thou know. I charge 
 thee keep him safe. Farewell.' 
 
 Afterward Hagan set off with Siegfried and the host. 
 And as soon as they had journeyed a little way and Hagan 
 had carefully espied the crosslet, he sent forward men to 
 go away to a distance and return in guise of messen- 
 gers from Ludeger and Ludegast to off"er submission and 
 beg for peace. 
 
 Fretting to be baulked of his war-play, Sir Siegfried 
 turned his horse and brought the host back again. In
 
 102 Tales of the TeiUonic Lands. 
 
 the palace he found King Gunther who, being counselled 
 by Hagan, said they would all go a-hunting in Oden- 
 wald. And Siegfried, grown restless at not having men 
 to hunt, was glad to go and hunt the wild boar. But 
 (xunther's brethren, Grernot and Giselher, knew the plot 
 against Siegfried's life and either feared or were ashamed 
 to go to the hunt ; yet held they their peace and let him 
 ride forth to his death unwarned. 
 
 But first Sir Siegfried went to bid farewell to Kriem- 
 hild. He took her sweet face betwixt his hands and 
 lifted up her rosy mouth to his to kiss, saying, ' God 
 bring me safe back to see these dear bright eyes again.' 
 But Kriemhild's eyes grew dim because of an ill fore- 
 boding which scarce took shape within her mind. She 
 thought on the secret she had told Hagan, yet dared not 
 own it to her lord ; so she only hid her head in his breast 
 and sobbed. She said, ' Dear lord, go not a-hunting. I 
 dreamed last night I saw thee chased by two wild swine 
 across the heath, and the flowers in the track turned 
 bloody red. My heart is chilled with fear of losing thee. 
 stay!' He answered, ' Foolish child, dry up thy tears. 
 What cause have I for fear ? Not a soul in Rhineiand 
 beareth me ill-will. I go with friends, not against 
 enemies ; for pastime, not for war. Be comforted ; be 
 blithe and merry with thy kinsmen, and, ere thou knowest, 
 Siegfried will be at thy side again.' 
 
 She clung to him and twined her arms about his neck. 
 ' Nay ; go not, I pray thee. Leave me not. Last night I 
 dreamedthat mountains fell above my head and shut me out 
 from thee for ever. My heart will break if thou dost go.' 
 
 Tenderly he unclasped the winding arms ; thrice kissed 
 her ; and passed out. It seemed to Kriemhild that the 
 sunshine went out too, for the gloom that fell on her. 
 
 No hunter surpassed Siegfried that day. The first 
 beast that his lime-hound started was a half-bred boar ; 
 him Sieo-fried struck dead at a stroke. Then found he a
 
 The Nibclung Story. 103 
 
 lion in a thicket and drew his bow and shot him throuojh. 
 He brought down a buffalo, an elk, four strong wild 
 oxen, and many a swift hart and hind. A great wild 
 boar ran furious at him, but Siegfiied, scorning to 
 harry the beast with spears, fought him with his sword 
 Balmung instead, and slew him. He chased a bear, 
 bound him with cords and brought him alive, tied at 
 his saddle-bow, to where the cooks and scullions were 
 making ready the hunters' meal at a great fire in the 
 wood. A savoury smell of roast and boiled and dainty 
 stews rose from the pots and pans about the pine-fire. 
 
 Then sat they all down right merrily to the feast. But 
 Siegfried looked about and began to murmur, saying, 
 ' There is truly no lack of meats of every kind, but 
 where, good comrades, is the wine ?' 
 
 Then said false Gunther, ' Hagan is to blame who 
 makes us die of thirst.' 
 
 And Hagan said, ' I am indeed to blame. I thought 
 the hunting of to-day was to be held in the wood- 
 pecker's haunt ; thither by mishap I sent the wine. But 
 yonder among the trees runneth a little brook ; the water 
 is bright and cold ; there let him drink that is athirst.' 
 
 Now as Hagan had beforetime ordered it, only he and 
 King Gunther rose up to go with Siegfried to the brook. 
 And they made a race as though in sport, which should 
 first reach the linden-tree that grew by the stream-side. 
 But Siegfried far outstripped them both, and gained the 
 tree, and leaned his spear and sword and buckler thereby ; 
 yet for all he was so parched, of his courtesy he would 
 not quench his thirst till the king should first have drunk. 
 And when the two came up, first Gunther stooped over 
 the stream and took his draught, then rose and stepped 
 aside. Afterward kneeled Siegfried down to drink. And 
 while he drank, Hagan came softly and took the sword 
 and bow from against the tree and hid them ; then spied 
 he for the sign on Siegfried's silken coat, and having
 
 I04 Talcs of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 found it, seized the spear and drave it with a trembling', 
 friohtened hand, ri^ht through the crosslet betwixt 
 Siegfried's shoulders. The life-blood spouted on his 
 murderous fingers ; he, white with terror, left the spear 
 sticking there and fled. 
 
 Siegfried felt that he was death-stricken. He gat upon 
 his feet ; he looked round for his weapons, but neither 
 bow nor sword was there. Only his shield remained. He 
 caught it in his hand and ran, while every bound jagged 
 the great boar-spear in his aching back. He ran at 
 Hagan, and step by step gained on the man, till, having 
 well-nigh overtaken him he stopped and Inu-led his great 
 shield at the murderer. It smote the coward's buckler, 
 shivered it in pieces and felled him to the ground, while 
 all the wood resoimded with the blow. Then Siegfried 
 grieved because he had no sword wherewith to slay his 
 enemy. But immediately he sickened with his wound ; 
 death -pallor came into his face ; his strength was loosed ; 
 his sinews slackened ; his eyes grew dim as though a 
 cloud veiled them. Upon his face he fell along the grass, 
 and stained the flowers with his blood. 
 
 Warriors from all sides came running up. They 
 gathered about and lifted up his head. Siegfried, 
 writhing in mortal anguish, upbraided his murderers with 
 his dying breath. ' Foully have you done, cowards, 
 tlnis to repay the service of a faithful friend ! Unwisely 
 have you done, fools ; and you will rue it sore I 
 Cursed be ye and all that henceforth from your loins 
 shall spring. Alas, that I loved tfunther, saved his life, 
 his honour, and his land, for this reward ! ' 
 
 The false king bowed his head and wept for shame. 
 
 ' Nay, weep not,' Siegfried moaned ; ' to plot a murder 
 and then weep for it only maketh a man the more 
 despised. But if thy black heart hath any pity left, I 
 pray thee befriend my dear love and lady. She is thy 
 sister ; guard her, I pray, as king and brother should.
 
 The Nibelung Story. 105 
 
 And that she may find favour in thy sight, remember all 
 I did for thee — forget how thou rewardedst it.' 
 
 He spake no more. Awhile he lay seeming to fight 
 with Death as with some ancient foe ; then hid his face 
 in the grass ; a shuddering went through his limbs ; then 
 came a calm, and the faithful knight lay dead beneath 
 the trees. 
 
 When Gunther's chiefs knew certainly that Siegfried was 
 dead, they took him up and laid him on a golden buckler, 
 and bare him forth from the wood. And every man 
 that went hunting in Odenwald that day sware to keep 
 Hagan's secret, and to abide by one tale — to wit, that 
 Siegfried must needs go hunting alone, and they had 
 come upon his body slain by robbers in the wood. 
 
 In the dark night Hagan and his men carried 
 Siegfried's body and laid it down athwart the threshold of 
 Kriemhild's door, and departed. 
 
 The matin bell, ringing before the dawn, waked 
 Kriemhild and her maids, and straightway they arose to go 
 to matins at the minster as they were wont. Her cham- 
 berlain stumbled on the body in the dusk, and not 
 knowing who it was, ran in to tell his lady how a dead 
 knight lay before her door. 
 
 Quick answered she, ' 'Tis he, my love, my Siegfried 
 lies before my door ! ' She shrieked and fell, blood 
 oozing from her pallid lips. Morning had come when 
 she wakened from her swoon : her women hushed their 
 whispers and tlieir tears. She looked at their white faces 
 and knew lier fears were true. They, thankful not to 
 have to tell her, dumbly led her through the door. They 
 watched her lift the blood-bedabbled corpse within her 
 lily arms ; saw her, ere she stayed to kiss the leaden lips, 
 go searching all about to find the wound, mute as a 
 tigress seeking the hunter's death-mark on the body of 
 her yovmg. Then she lulled it in her arms and rained 
 down tears upon the quiet face. She saw the crosslet
 
 io6 Talcs of the Tentojiic Lands. 
 
 pierced, knew Avell the work was Hagan's, the bidding 
 Brynhild's, and the folly hers. 
 
 The hoary Siegmund came, and, lifting up his voice, 
 bewailed his only son, snatched from him in his age. The 
 Nibelimg men, and they of the Netherland, came crowding 
 up, and fiercely talked in groups, till group by group they 
 made one throng and cried out with one voice and mind, 
 ' To the palace ! Away with Gunther and his men! We 
 will root them from the earth ! ' But Kriemhild spread 
 forth her liands and besought them, saying, 'Waste 
 not your lives for naught. They have thirty men for 
 every one of you. Grod will avenge us ; only wait. Let 
 me find the man that slew my darling. If God forbear 
 to smite him, I will not. But not now, for I must 
 weep. Be ^^atient ; weep with me awhile, good friends, 
 and help me coffin my dear lord.' 
 
 All through the city knights and dames lamented the 
 sad fate of Siegfried, wondering if he died by treachery 
 or mishap. They gossipped on, and marvelled much ; 
 had many tales to tell and hear, but knew not aught. 
 The men that hunted in Odenwald kept the secret as 
 they sware to do. 
 
 They laid the dead man on a bier and bare him to the 
 minster. They set the bier before the altar and sang a 
 requiem. And when the mass was done King Gunther 
 said, ' Alas, my sister, for the sorry mischance which hath 
 bereaved thee.' 
 
 Kriemhild answered, ' If mischance it be, and thou and 
 thy men are guiltless, fear not; but go, each of you — pass 
 one by one before the bier ; so shall tlie guilt of him 
 who did this thing be plainly seen by all the people.' 
 
 Truly it is a great marvel, appointed of old to mark 
 the shedder of blood, that whensoever the murderer 
 approachetli a corpse the wounds break out a-bleeding. 
 80 it befell that when Hagan drew nigh to Siegfried's 
 dead bodv the blood burst from the wound afresh, and ran
 
 The Nibehmg Story. 107 
 
 down off the bier about the altar stone. And seeing- the 
 sign, the people whispered and made room for Hagan till 
 he stood apart. Then said Gunther, ' Let fools pnt faith 
 in tokens and in signs. I give you all to know that 
 Siegfried was slain by robbers. He died not by Hagan's 
 hand.' 
 
 Kriemhild answered, ' Verily he died by robbers — 
 robbers which fawned and licked his bounteous hand, 
 tlien basely stole away the life he spent on them. God 
 and good men avenge me on such shameful robbers as 
 Hagan and Gunther wlio spilled my darling's blood ! ' 
 
 Many a mass was sung. The minster bells tolled all 
 t]ie day. They brought a heavy cofSn braced with iron 
 bands and decked about with gold and silver plates ; 
 therein they laid Sir Siegfried. Little children came 
 from every city street bringing offerings for the dead. 
 But Kriemhild in her sorrow could not bear to give up 
 his dear body to the ground ; and first she begged three 
 days wherein to sit and weep in solitude with the dead ; 
 and when at last they bore him to the grave, she came 
 and fell upon her knees before her brethren and them 
 which stood by, beseeching them so pitifully to break the 
 coffin open and let her see her lord once more, that they 
 could not choose but grant her prayer. 
 
 When the days of mourning were accomplished, and 
 thirty thousand marks had been divided amongst the 
 poor for the good of Siegfried's soul, Siegmund spake to 
 his daughter-in-law to go back with him to Netherland, 
 and she being willing, tliey all made ready to depart. 
 But Kriemhild's mother, LUa, prayed her to remain ; and 
 her brother Giselher entreated her not to leave her own 
 kith and kin to go home and live amongst strangers, for 
 that he would certainly watch over and comfort her, and 
 make amends for her affliction. Gemot also begged her 
 to stay, saying, ' Believe me, I had neither part nor plot 
 in Siegfried's death ; neither knew I before that any bare
 
 To8 Talcs of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 him malice.' Kriembiid yielded to the pleadings of her 
 brothers and remained. Siegmuud tried hard to turn her 
 mind by speaking- of her child at home, but to no purpose, 
 since Siegfried's body lay in Burgundy. Then finding- 
 he could not prevail on her, Siegmund, very loth, bade 
 Kriemhild farewell, and gathering together his knights, 
 departed out of Ehineland. 
 
 For three years and more Kriemhild went away from 
 the palace, and dwelt apart with her maids in a house 
 hard by the minster gate. Each morning- and evening 
 she betook herself to church, and was fain to linger there, 
 or weep on Siegfried's tomb. Her sorrow fastened 
 on her mind. Peace never came from prayer or chant 
 or psalm ; only a sorrow-weariness and listlessness of 
 heart. The people, seeing her sweet face, white and 
 grief-worn, pitied her, and those about were very tender 
 for their pity's sake. Only Queen Brynhild cared 
 nothing- for Kriemhild's tears ; wept never with her, 
 comforted her not ; but sat on high upon her throne and 
 scoffed at her. All those three years and a half 
 Kriemhild would never so much as set eyes on Gunther 
 or on Hagan. 
 
 At last Hagan spake to King Gunther, ' ExcejDt you 
 make the peace with your sister Kriemhild, where is the 
 profit of what we have done ? Without it we shall 
 never get the Mbelung treasure.' Gunther answered, ' It 
 is idle talking. She will not see or speak to me. And if 
 I tried to break in on her sorrow, she would but call me 
 robber to my face again, and make as much ado at being 
 ravished of her grief as when we robbed her of her love. 
 I dare not go. If you are bolder, go yourself.' But 
 having taken counsel together, they sent Gemot and 
 Giselher ; and these coming to Kriemhild said, ' Dear 
 sister, life is too short to grieve so long ; and sorrow for 
 the dead availeth naught except it chasten us to tenderness. 
 King Gunther longs to give you proof that he slew not
 
 The Nibelung Story. 109 
 
 Siegfried. Be reconciled to him.' She answered, ' Verily 
 Gimther slew him not. Nay, brothers, it was I. I am 
 to blame. I who betrayed him — not the poor cowards 
 which thrust the spear into his back, ran from him when 
 he was dying, shrank from him when he was dead. Hagan, 
 not Gunther, struck the blow, but only since Gunther was 
 the greater coward. If I should pardon Gunther it would 
 be because my heart despised him yet more than Hagan, 
 and most because I blame my folly worst of all.' 
 
 They pleaded long, until from weariness she said, ' Tell 
 Gunther my tongue forgives him, but I never can forget.' 
 Then brought they her to Gunther, and brother and 
 sister were reconciled. Moreover Kriemhild greeted all 
 the knights, save Hagan only which struck the blow ; him 
 she would not see, and sooth to say he slank away, know- 
 ing the blood-guiltiness that was upon his head. 
 
 And after this Kriemhild hindered them not from send- 
 ing to the land of the Nibelungs for the treasure which 
 Siegfried gave her for a morning-gift after her wedding. 
 Eight thousand warriors went with Kriemhild and 
 Giselher and Gemot to the mountain where Alberich the 
 dwarf lurked always to mind the gold. 
 
 And Alberich said, ' Siegfried took tlie cloud-cloak from 
 us, and the treasure was his to give to whomsoever he 
 willed. I and the Nibelung men are his liege servants.' 
 With that he took the keys of the treasure-house and 
 delivered them up to Kriemhild. 
 
 Then they began to get the treasure out. It was so 
 great that it took twelve huge waggons day and night four 
 days in going to and fro betwixt the cavern and the beach 
 to lade the ships therewith. It was so great that its price 
 could not be reckoned. It was a heap of gold and chosen 
 gems — a hoard so rich and big that if one had the mind to 
 buy up the whole world, its price would be a mere handful 
 which none would miss from out the heap ; and hidden
 
 I lo Talcs of ihe Teutonic Lands. 
 
 amongst it lay the golden wisliing-rod, which whoso could 
 find should rule the earth and ail therein. 
 
 They brought this mighty treasure away to Worms, and 
 there crammed every tower and chamber in the castle 
 with jewels and red gold, piled up like corn upon a 
 granary floor. Kriemhild recked little of it ; how gladly 
 would she have given it all to win her lord to life again ! 
 With open hand she dealt the treasure out to all which 
 came, to rich and poor alike; until the world rang with 
 the bounty of the widowed queen, and foreign knights 
 from all lands flocked to Worms to share the gold which 
 she showered forth as it had been dross. 
 
 But Hagan was afraid, and put Grunther on his guard. 
 ' This will not do : a few more months and Kriemhild will 
 have bought up all the warriors in the world and won 
 them to her service. She must be stayed.' 
 
 Gunther answered, ' I cannot hinder her : the hoard is 
 hers ; scarce have I regained her favour as it is. I will 
 not give her more offence, neither care I how she scatters 
 her treasure.' 
 
 Hagan said, ' This is folly ; if you care not for yourself, 
 have some regard for Burgundy. If you restrain her not, 
 I must : so lay the blame on me ; she cannot hate me 
 worse.' 
 
 Then Gunther went upon a journey, and while he was 
 gone Hagan prevailed over Kriemhild's cliamberlains 
 which kept her treasure, and got the keys. When Kriem- 
 hild made complaint to her brothers Gemot and Giselher, 
 they feigned to be very angry, and said that if Hagan had 
 not been their kinsman it should certainly have cost him his 
 life ; and as she continually upbraided them. Gemot said 
 to Hagan, ' Better this treasure were flung into the river 
 than cause such a-do ; for if it is spent, it will harm us, and 
 if it is locked, there is no peace within the palace.' After 
 that both the brothers took leave of their sister, saying 
 they also must needs go on a journey ; and so left her alone
 
 The Nibchmg Story. 1 1 1 
 
 with Hagan. He got the treasure out of the castle and 
 bore it awaj^, and cast it into the Rhine at Lochheim at a 
 place he knew of, whence he thought to recover it at a 
 convenient season. 
 
 When the three brothers came back, they all said that 
 they were very angry with Hagan, and they banished him 
 from the palace for a time, and so made peace with 
 Kriemhild. But she being very unhappy, after a while 
 went away from her brothers to dwell with her mother 
 Uta in lier palace at Lorsch, hard by the abbey. Thither 
 also she caused Siegfried's bones to be brought, and had 
 them buried beside Lorsch minster, where they lie to 
 this day. 
 
 III. THE VENGEANCE OF KRIEMHILD. 
 
 It befell after Kriemhild had been thirteen years a widow, 
 that Helcke, wife of Etzel king of the Huns, died ; and 
 Etzel sent messengers with rich presents to ask Kriemhild 
 in marriage. Chief of the messengers was the trusty 
 margrave, Eudeger of Bechlaren. When Grunther knew 
 their errand he was well inclined towards them ; neither 
 was he minded to heed the warning of Hagan, who bade 
 him look well to it, for that Etzel was a powerful king, 
 and Kriemhild as his queen might work them much 
 mischief. Gunther said, ' The mightier the king the 
 greater lionour. The Huns live far away ; I fear them 
 not.' Giselher also rebuked Hagan, saying, ' You have 
 cost my sister many a tear. Already have you robbed her 
 of her mate and treasure ; why hinder her from finding 
 new ? ' Gemot said likewise, ' Fear nothing ; we shall 
 never go on Etzel's land ; there will be peace in your time 
 and in mine.' Hagan answered, ' Do as you will. I know 
 that Kriemhild hateth you all, and chiefly me. Here in 
 Burgundy she cannot work us harm, but whoso setteth
 
 1 12 Tales of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 her on hio-li is a fool ; he putteth a scourge into her hand 
 and bareth his back to the smiter.' ' Peace, Hagau, she is 
 our sister ; we will make amends, though late, for thwart- 
 ing all her life.' So spake Griselher. Hagan frowned, 
 and as he turned away laughed scornfully and muttered 
 'Fools!' 
 
 Margrave Rudeger came praying Kriemhild to bestow 
 her love upon his master Etzel. Courteously she listened 
 while he told of Etzel's might and royal state, of his 
 riches, and how he ruled twelve kingdoms and a score and 
 more of princedoms. She answered wearily, ' I have lost 
 already more than woman ever won before. Of what avail 
 your little heaps of gold to me that owned the Nibelung 
 hoard ? A crown, a kingdom, tempts me not. No king 
 was ever yet so strong as Siegfried. I have been Siegfried's 
 wife — be that your answer. All other kings are less than 
 he.' 
 
 Rudeger said, ' Fair queen, the Huns are many ; they 
 are firm fast friends to all within their borders ; strong to 
 shelter, powerful to avenge a wrong.' 
 
 Then Kriemhild wakened from her listlessness. As one 
 that talketh with herself she said, ' I have no friends ; 
 alone I muse and weep, or sing at mass within the minster 
 the while I let them filch my power away. Lo, what a 
 feeble thing am I become I Hearken, Sir Rudeger ; if 
 I could count on friends — strong helpful friends — per- 
 chance I might be tempted to be queen again.' 
 
 He answered, ' Lady, count on me, upon my kinsmen 
 and my vassals. We will be foremost in avenging you on 
 any man who wrongs our master's queen.' 
 
 ' But Etzel,' she said, ' is he not a heathen man ? ' 
 
 ' Nay, lady, a good man as kings go ; an upright man. 
 He was converted once ; but finding Christians much like 
 heathen folk, he went back to his old faith. His people 
 love him as a just and kindly man. As many Christian 
 kniofhts as heathen sit around his board. He heedetli
 
 The Nibelung Story. 1 1 3 
 
 rites but little, so he can live an honest life, and 
 doubtless would be christened if you willed.' 
 
 Now both Kriemhild's mother and brethren urged her 
 to the match, but each for a different reason. Queen 
 Uta, since a great alliance was for the honour of their 
 line ; King Grunther, because the sight of her brought 
 always to his mind his treachery ; Grernot, because he 
 wearied of her complaints ; but Griselher, since he loved 
 his sister well and sought her good. 
 
 So Kriemhild was easily persuaded to follow the bent 
 of her own mind. A great company of her kinsfolk and the 
 chiefs of Burgundy accompanied her as far as the Danube. 
 There she took leave of her brothers with kisses and fair 
 words, insomuch that they went away light-hearted, 
 thinking that she had clean forgiven and forgotten all. 
 Then with Eckewart, her faithful chamberlain, and her 
 maidens, she followed margrave Eudeger. Of all the 
 Nibelung riches she brought away but twelve chests of 
 gold ; yet when she lamented the smallness of her dowry, 
 Eudeger said, ' If my lady had all dwarf Alberich's treasure 
 back again, I would have left it all behind : it would not 
 make her one whit dearer in my master's eyes.' 
 
 Forth rode King Etzel out of Hungary to meet his 
 bride. With him were knights of well-nigh every land 
 and tongue ; Greek, Eussian, Pole, Wallachian, Thu- 
 ringian, Dane. At Tulna they met the queen, and 
 she, being lifted from her palfrey, laid aside her veil 
 and kissed the twelve noblest men, as Eudeger had 
 taught her that the custom of the Huns was. Then 
 Kriemhild greeted the king, who was greatly enamoured 
 of her beauty and her royalness. They journeyed to 
 Vienna, and there for seventeen days they kept the mar- 
 riage-feast and made a tournament. The city could not 
 hold the knights that flocked thither from every 
 quarter of the earth ; they encamped for miles about the 
 
 I
 
 1 14 Tales of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 country, so that the people said, ' Queen Kriemhild did 
 not scatter the Nibelung gold for naught.' 
 
 After this the king and queen went home to Haimburg, 
 the royal city of Hungary. In due time Kriemhild bare 
 her lord a son ; and she called his name Ortlieb, and had 
 him baptised in Christian manner, for there was nothing 
 that Etzel could withhold from her, since she was so dear to 
 him. For long the people loved their queen, and Ecke- 
 wart her chamberlain, by fair speeches and presents, made 
 hosts of friends for her. 
 
 But Kriemhild continually brooded over her wrongs ; 
 and so one day she said to King Etzel, ' I pray thee send 
 and bid my kinsfolk to a feast. I would not have this 
 people think that I am an outcast without friends.' And 
 the king appointed two noble minstrels, Werbel and 
 Schwemmelein, to go upon the errand. 
 
 And being come to Burgundy, the messengers spake to 
 King Grunther as Kriemhild had bade them. ' Much it 
 grieveth our queen to be forsaken of her kindred all these 
 years. It shameth her in the people's eyes, who, thinking 
 that she hath no friends, esteem her less. Wherefore she 
 doth intreat of her good brothers to come at midsummer 
 to a feast in Hungary ; and since the noble knight Sir 
 Hagan knoweth well the road, she prayeth him to come 
 also. We likewise bear our lady's service and good-will 
 to the lady Uta and Queen Brynhild.' Then Gunther 
 took counsel with his brothers and Hagan. 
 
 Hagan said, ' Let fools fall into an open trap. Eemember 
 all that we have done. Distrust these smooth-tongued 
 inessengers. You dare not go.' 
 
 Gunther answered, ' Right well know I by Kriemhild's 
 kiss at parting that she hath forgiven us all, save you 
 perchance.' 
 
 Moreover Giselher said, ' Shall we, forsooth, be forced 
 to shim our sister, all because' Hagan's guilty heart maketh 
 a coward of him ! He says n}e dare not go. He means,
 
 The Nibelung Story. 1 1 5 
 
 he durst not go. Let Hagan stay at home and save his 
 skin, but we will go up to the feast.' 
 
 Then answered Hagan, 'Despise my warning if you 
 will, but wrong me not. I am no coward. I say that 
 Kriemhild is our sharpest foe. And therefore I certainly 
 will go with you ; for it is not meet that a knight should 
 leave his lords to face their enemies alone.' 
 
 King Grunther equipped ten thousand and threescore 
 men to go with him, that the Huns might see the 
 mightiness of the kinsmen of their queen. But there was 
 many an ill-foreboding at their departure. Eumold, to 
 whom Gunther committed the charge of the kingdom till 
 his return, said, ' Alas, master, that you ride forth to this 
 feast.' And the old Queen Uta dreamed that every bird 
 throughout the land fell dead. 
 
 Now after twelve days' journey, Hagan brought them 
 out upon a place against the Danube side where the swift 
 river was swollen so deep and broad that they could in 
 nowise wade across, neither was there any boat to ferry 
 them over. And as Hagan went along the river bank by 
 himself to look for a place where it might be forded, he 
 came upon two swan-maidens who had doflfed their swan- 
 dresses to bathe. Hagan stole their dresses and made off; 
 but one of the maidens called after him, ' Grive us back 
 our swan-raiment and we will tell w"hat shall befall thee, 
 and of the very great reno\vn and profit that shall come 
 to thee and to the host which journeys into Hungary.' So, 
 being pleased with their speech, he gave back their dresses. 
 Then the other laughed, and said, ' JNIy sister did but lie 
 to thee to get our raiment back. Xow hear truth, and 
 heed it if thou wilt. Hagan, son of Aldrian, thou shalt 
 die in Etzel's land, and every man of the host shall perish 
 there save the king's chaplain ; he only shall go back to 
 Rhineland ! ' 
 
 Hagan answered, ' In vain you lie and cheat, for I will 
 prove you false this very day.' So he left them, and 
 
 1 2
 
 1 16 Tales of the Tetitonic Lands. 
 
 presently espying a ferryman, beckoned him to come and 
 put him across the river. When the ferryman came to 
 ■ land and saw a stranger, lie would not take him into the 
 boat ; but Hagan drew his sword and slew the boatman 
 and carried off the ferry-boat. Then Hagan ferried over 
 all the host in companies. And when only the king's 
 chaplain was left on the other bank, he put the boat 
 across again in the dusk of the evening to fetch him ; and 
 as soon as he had rowed into the midst of the river, Hagan 
 took the chaplain by the waist and flung him in the 
 water, saying, ' There, you lying women ; he shall never- 
 more see Ehineland ! ' The chaplain was a strong swimmer 
 and struck out lustily for shore ; but Hagan followed in 
 the boat and beat his head down with the oar ; yet for all 
 this he could not drown him. The chaplain dived ; God 
 brought him safely to the further side ; there being landed 
 he hied him back to Eliineland with all speed. 
 
 Seeing the chaplain was escaped, Hagan began to 
 despond, and having rowed ashore he set about breaking 
 the boat in pieces ; for he thought, if we are to return no 
 more of what avail will it be to us ? But when Dankwart 
 asked him what he did, he answered, 'Whatever ill 
 betide us on this evil journey, no coward shall slink home 
 again.' With that he cast the pieces in the river. 
 
 Now as they journeyed through Bavaria, Gelfrat the 
 stout margrave came out with seven hundred knights and 
 fell upon Hagan and Dankwart as they marched apart 
 from the host mth only a little band of men — for he 
 sought to take vengeance for his ferryman. Howbeit 
 Dankwart overcame Gelfrat and slew him, and his knights, 
 being worsted in the battle, fled. 
 
 On the borders of Hungary they came upon Sir Ecke- 
 wart, Kriemhild's liegeman, who lay sleeping by the 
 wayside. Hagan sprang on him and took his sword away, 
 not knowing who he was ; but when Sir Eckewart awaked 
 and Hagan knew him, he gave back his sword and offered
 
 The Nibehuig Story. 1 1 7 
 
 him, beside, many rings of gold to be his friend. Ecke- 
 wart said, ' I will not have your gifts. The blood of 
 Siegfried is upon your hands. _ Take heed, for Siegfried's 
 slayer will find no friends amongst the Huns.' Hagan 
 answered, ' If we lack friends we yet can guard ourselves 
 from enemies ; but what we most lack now is shelter, and 
 a lodging for the night ; we would not sleep upon the 
 ground in this bleak land as thou, it seems, art wont 
 to do.' 
 
 Now Sir Rudeger dwelt in a fair house at Bechlaren 
 without the borders of Hungary. Thither Sir Eckewart 
 led them all, and Rudeger and his wife Gfotlind gave 
 hearty welcome to the lords of Burgundy, and lodged 
 and feasted them and all their men sumptuously for many 
 days. And when they had rested and must needs go 
 forward. Sir Rudeger gave gifts to everyone of that which 
 each most set his mind upon. He withheld not his fair 
 young daughter from Giselher, but gave her to him to be 
 his bride, and they were betrothed after the manner of 
 the time. They stood within a ring of youths and 
 maidens, in whose sight they pledged their troth and 
 kissed each other. To Grernot he gave a sword ; to 
 Gunther a mail-coat of proof. But Hagan asked a gift 
 that brought tears to fair Gotlind's eyes. He would take 
 nothing but a shield that was laid by, kept always covered 
 with a broidered veil of samite ; it was decked with stones 
 most precious, worth a thousand marks and more ; yet not 
 for that did Gotelind treasure it — her only son had borne 
 it in the battle where he fell ; on it they brought his body 
 home. But Hagan asked and had it. He knew it was a 
 preciovis thing, but, perad venture, knew not all it cost to 
 give. Yet would not Rudeger keep back anything that 
 was in his house from his guests. 
 
 Then Rudeger brought the lords of Biu-gundy to Etzel's 
 palace, and Queen Kriemhild came down to meet them at 
 the castle gate. Gunther, and Gemot, and Hagan she
 
 1 1 8 Tales of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 passed by, but took her brother Gisellier by the hand and 
 kissed him. 
 
 Then spake Hagan, ' Is this a seemly welcome, passing 
 kings and champions by to greet the youngest and least 
 famous ? ' 
 
 Kriemhild said, ' Tell me ; what have you brought me for 
 a present out of Rhineland, to make you welcome in my 
 sight ? ' 
 
 He answered, ' Lady we have no presents in our land 
 befitting the regard of such a mighty queen.' 
 
 Then said Kriemhild, ' Have you forgot so soon tlie 
 Nibelung treasure ? When a thief would make amends, 
 at least he giveth back the thing he stole. Have you no 
 present out of that great hoard to bring to me from whom 
 you robbed it all ? ' 
 
 Wrathfully he answered, ' The devil a present I bring. 
 The hoard lies at the bottom of the Rhine. It is enough 
 for him that visits foes to bring his arms and armour.' 
 
 Then Kriemhild commanded them to lay their weapons 
 down before they passed into the hall. And when they 
 would not, the queen cried fiercely, ' Some one has warned 
 these men. My brothers even doubt me. If I could find 
 who put them on their guard he certainly should die.' 
 
 Tlien outspake bold Sir Dietrich, one of the trustiest 
 knights about her court : ' Many have warned them, lady; 
 I for one. Grod grant there be no need of warning, for 
 treachery to a guest were a foul sin. But since thou dost 
 welcome them thus, I bid them still take heed, and keep 
 their weapons by them. Now punish me as thou hast said.' 
 
 But Kriemhild blushed red witli shame : she feared Sir 
 Dietrich : and so the knights passed armed into the hall. 
 And Gunther and Dietrich made a league of friendship 
 between them. 
 
 King Etzel from his throne espied the big broad-chested 
 Hagan, his black hair dashed with grey, and asked 
 Kriemhild concernino^ him.
 
 The Nibelung Story. 119 
 
 She told him, ' That is Hagan, son of Aldrian of Tronje, — 
 a strong champion, but cruel of hand and coward of heart.' 
 
 ' Nay,' the king said, ' thou art wrong, fair Kriemhild. 
 If he be Aldrian's son, I cannot but befriend him for his 
 father's sake. Well knew I Aldrian ; I dubbed him 
 knight, and he was ever a true comrade unto me. So he 
 is Aldrian's son ! ' Then he bade Hagan come near, and 
 began to speak with him about his father ; and as they 
 talked the old king's heart waxed young again to hear of 
 days gone by. 
 
 The next day Hagan and Volker crossed the courtyard 
 and went and sat alone upon a bench within a chamber 
 hard by a hall of Kriemhild's. 
 
 About Kriemhild in her hall were threescore Hunnish 
 knights. Straightway she brake out a-weeping ; and when 
 they asked what troubled her she said, ' I have no peace 
 while Hagan lives. friends, these many years have I 
 bewailed my helplessness because I could not smite the 
 man that slew ray lord. Yonder he is, within the 
 chamber ; only one man with him.' They answered with 
 one accord, ' Speak but the word and Hagan dies.' She 
 said, ' Follow me to the chamber-door. Wait you with- 
 out the door while I go in and talk with him. And 
 when you hear from his own mouth wliat he hath done, 
 tarry no longer but rush in and fall on him.' 
 
 Howbeit one listened at the queen's door and ran and 
 told Hagan what threatened him. And Hagan said to 
 Volker, 'Friend, wilt thou stand by me?' — 'Aye, to 
 death,' he answered. ' Then we will try the mettle of 
 these Hunnish men.' 
 
 Presently came Kriemhild to the door. Volker asked 
 his comrade, ' Shall we rise and greet the Queen ? ' — 
 ' Nay,' answered Hagan ; ' rise not from oflf the bench, 
 move not a hair, lest those without should think that we 
 flinch. I care not for her wrath. Sit still and speak no 
 word.'
 
 120 Tales of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 Kriemhild came in, her cro^v^l upon her head, and 
 looked for them to rise. They stirred not, but gazed at 
 her ; she at them. Then Hagan took his eyes from off 
 the queen, and having loosed the great sword from his 
 side, he laid it across his knees, and turned it slowly 
 about as though he needed to examine it. The handle 
 of the sword was gold ; a precious jasper glittered in the 
 pommel ; the scabbard was trimmed with red. 
 
 Kriemhild scarce could endure the torment of the 
 sight. How well she knew that sword — her husband's 
 good sword Balmung — and in Hagan's hands ! 
 
 She drew herself up straight, her cheeks aflame, and 
 anger flashing from her eyes ; ' How dare you, murderer, 
 wear my Siegfried's sword ?' 
 
 He toyed with the blade as though he heard her not. 
 
 ' Quick, answer me. How dare you in your bloody 
 hand bear what his honest fingers held ? ' 
 
 Hagan lifted his eyes again and looked at her. Cold 
 and unmoved he said, ' Because I slew your husband, and 
 being his slayer took the sj)oil. If those men of yours 
 without think that they can take it from me, let them in.' 
 Again he fell to toying with the blade and mused aloud, 
 ' A pretty sword. How keen of edge ! The blade as heavy 
 as an axe. A trusty sword, fair queen.' 
 
 She cried aloud, ' You hear ? He owns the shedding 
 of my husband's blood ! Come in and rid me of this 
 murderer !' 
 
 But the men tarried without, each looking that his 
 fellow should first go in. They feared the two stern 
 champions ; they had heard of Balmung, which Siegfried 
 made renowned throughout all lands, and durst not 
 enter. One by one they slank away and scattered them- 
 selves about the castle quickly lest Hagan should find 
 out which they were that sought his life and should 
 take vengeance on them.
 
 The Nibelung Story. 121 
 
 Then was Kriemhild sore vexed, and went away to her 
 chamber to bewail herself. 
 
 After this, Hagan had little fear by day, because 
 Kriemhild durst not do anything openly for fear of the 
 king, and besides that, many of her best champions 
 would not have suffered treason to be done against a 
 guest. Yet, because of their pride and courage, there 
 was not found one of all the men of Burgundy that would 
 go and tell the king what Kriemhild plotted. Never- 
 theless, at night Hagan and Volker put their armour on 
 and kept watch at the gateway of the house where 
 Grunther and the Burgundians slept. One midnight 
 there stole up a band of Hunnish men whom Kriemhild 
 charged, ' Strike no man but Hagan only ;' but seeing the 
 man whom they wanted armed and watching in his mail- 
 coat, they would not assail him, for they feared to wake 
 the rest. When they went to church the men of Burgundy 
 went with their armour on, their swords girt at their 
 sides; they sat together in a company, and'all the while 
 the mass was singing they scowled at the Huns not know- 
 ing which of them were foes, and the Huns scowled back 
 on tbem. 
 
 Then being baulked in every plan to put Hagan 
 alone to death, the queen's longing to be recompensed on 
 him grew so fierce that she recked not though all should 
 perish so he died. And when the tournament came on 
 she pondered, ' If we could only tempt a Ehinelander to 
 slay a knight of ours, no need then to bespeak our 
 people's hate for them : the tourney would end in battle 
 and I should be avenged.' 
 
 Many a knight she sent into the tilt-yard to vex the 
 Burgundians both with words and blows. Moodily Queen 
 Kriemhild sat beside her lord and watched how Grunther's 
 folk bare down the Huns and cleared the lists without 
 quarrel or mishap. The tilt was over, so thought 
 Gunther's men, and they were masters of the lists, when
 
 122 Talcs of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 lo there came riding forth a Hunnish knight in dainty 
 dress to show his finery before the dames. ' See yonder 
 ladies' darling !' said Volker to his fellows, 'a tap of a 
 spear would fling him. But he shall not come on our 
 ground until the just is over. I will ride at him. If he 
 choose to flee, why let him ; if he stand, Heaven help his 
 gilt and gew-gaws.' So saying he pricked his steed and 
 set his lance in rest. The Hun fled not, but spurred to 
 meet him. Yolker's spear passed through his body and 
 bore him off the saddle, dead. Then all the Huns called 
 out for arms, and setting tliemselves in array against the 
 Rbinelanders, would have straightway given them battle, 
 only that Etzel rode in front and snatched the sword 
 from out the hand of the first man who drew his weapon, 
 crying, 'Back, you brawlers I The man was slain by mis- 
 adventure. I saw the blow. Volker's horse stumbled.' 
 So he patched up a peace betwixt the jealous hosts, and 
 led them to the banquet table. 
 
 When they had feasted together. King Etzel bethought 
 him how to bind the two peoples into friendship; and he 
 sent and fetched his little son Ortlieb, that Kriemhild 
 bare liim. Then he set the boy in the midst of Kriem- 
 hild's kinsmen, saying, ' Behold my son who will sit upon 
 my throne. I will put him in your hands, and you shall 
 take him back with you to Rhineland and bring him up ; 
 for I wish nothing better than that he should grow bold 
 and fearless like the men of Burgundy. When he is 
 become a man and rules this land he will repay yoiu- 
 care, and be your strong ally.' But Hagan, grown surly 
 in his cups, jeered at the boy and said, ' Your weakly 
 youngster has not got the making of a man in him. We 
 none of us shall trouble Ortlieb's court, but we may see 
 his grave.' Grieved was the king to hear this bitter 
 speech, and wrathful waxed the Huns. Yet Etzel kept 
 them back and quieted the tumult because of his honour 
 and his royal word.
 
 The Nibelimg Story. 123 
 
 But Etzel's peacemaking was vain ; for Kriemhild 
 would not rest till she had set the people by the ears. 
 8he bribed Sir Blodel with money, land, and castles to go 
 at all hazards and stir up a deadly strife with any one of 
 Grunther's chiefs. 
 
 Blodel gathered together a thousand Huns and led 
 them to the hall where Dankwart and his comrades sat at 
 meat. Hagan was not there ; and so he came to Dankwart, 
 wlio asked what his errand was with such a company. 
 He said, ' A life for Kriemhild from her lord's foul 
 murderers,' and smote him in the face. Dankwart up- 
 started from the table. ' She shall have a life,' he said ; 
 then swung his heavy sword and struck the head off 
 Blodel's body. Seeing their master dead, the Huns in 
 fury ran on Grunther's men and put numbers of them to 
 the sword. Many had no weapons, having laid them 
 aside as they sat at meat ; these tore up seats and 
 benches, snatched up the heavy settles in their hands, 
 and fouglit like madmen. The meats lay trampled 
 under foot among the corpses ; the floor lan blood 
 mingled with spilt mead which splashed them as they 
 fought. But the Huns were driven out and left five 
 hundred of their dead within the hall. Dankwart and 
 his men, all bloody, pursued them out of doors and 
 Ftruck them down as they fled. Before King Etzel knew, 
 many thousand Huns had armed themselves to avenge 
 their fellows. These came up and drave back Dankwart 
 and his men into the house again and swarmed thick 
 about it for a stone-cast every way. They fought till 
 Dankwart only and twelve comrades were left alive : the 
 hall was heaped up with nine thousand dead. Then 
 Dankwart was fain to beg a boon of his foemen. ' Give 
 us air,' he cried ; ' there is no more room within for dead 
 or living ; we stifle with the blood and heat. Let us out ; 
 few though we be, we do not grudge to die ; but let us 
 breathe the air ajjain and die in fioht like warriors.'
 
 124 Tales of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 The Huns of their courtesy stood from the door and let 
 them out. Then fought they fiercer than before, the 
 twelve against an army, till Dankwart looked for his 
 comrades and he alone was left. Then set he to work to 
 cut a road through all that host. In both hands he 
 gripped his heavy sword ; to right and left he swung it 
 swift as lightning ; the Huns went down on either side 
 like barley bowing to the sickle. So he made a way and 
 came out safe and ran, the Huns all following, till he 
 gained the palace. He bounded up the staircase, over- 
 turning the cup-bearers and men bearing dishes from 
 King Etzel's table, and came reeking with blood to 
 where Hagan and Gunther and their comrades sat over 
 the wine-cup. He told his tale in a breath : a score of 
 Rhineland men ran down with him to keep the door. 
 
 The child Ortlieb was prattling at the table. Hagan 
 said, ' We will pledge ourselves once more together, 
 Burgundian and Hun ; and I will pour you royal wine.' 
 He caught the child and smote it in the neck with his 
 sword : the head rolled into Kriemhild's lap. Then 
 began a great and terrible slaughter. Hagan smote oflf 
 the hand of Werbel the minstrel wherewith he played the 
 viol, saying, ' Take that for bearing the message into 
 Burgundy.' Then Ehinelander and Hun fought for dear 
 life, till corpses piled the floor. 
 
 Sir Dietrich was there in the hall with many of his 
 men, but held himself aloof. He would not fight against 
 Gunther's knights, because of the league which he had 
 made with him, neither would he fight against King 
 Etzel, being his liegeman. Kriemhild crept trembling 
 to him, saying, ' Save me from Hagan, good Dietrich, for 
 he thirsts to have my blood.' He said, ' I will do all 
 that a man may.' 
 
 Then Sir Dietrich leaped upon a table and lifting his 
 voice above all the din of swords, called on Gunther. 
 Guntlier came : ' What would you ? Have we harmed a
 
 The Nibclung Stojy. 125 
 
 man of yours, good friend ? Be sure it was mishap, and 
 we will make amends. But hinder me not, for we are 
 hard bestead.' He answered, 'Nay, dear comrade. All 
 my men are safe. But since we fight not, give me leave 
 to pass out, me and mine. This bloody banquet surfeits 
 us.' Gunther said, ' Gro, take with you whom you will, 
 except my mortal foemen.' And they slacked the fight 
 for a little, that Dietrich and his men might pass in 
 safety. Then Sir Dietrich took the queen beneath his 
 arm, and sheltered King Etzel on his other side ; five 
 hundred of his champions closed about him. Unmolested 
 they passed down the stairs and out through the door. 
 
 The noise of battle in the palace was heard all day ; 
 but towards nightfall it slacked, for Grunther and his men 
 were masters of the hall, and every Hun therein was 
 slain. From the windows and down the staircase they 
 threw the dead in heaps ; seven thousand bodies and 
 more. 
 
 Day after day the multitude of Huns that surrounded 
 them brake down the door and fought their way into the 
 hall ; yet came they not out any more, save through the 
 windows, when Gunther's men tumbled their bodies out 
 upon the corpse-heap. 
 
 Then Kriemhild sent to her brothers, saying, ' Give 
 Hagan up to me, and I will make peace and answer for 
 your lives. You cannot keep him from me long. Why 
 perish with him ? You are my brethren.' But they 
 sent answer back, ' We will not give our brave comrade 
 up. We will have grace for all or none.' 
 
 Then the queen commanded to make fast the door, and 
 burn down the hall. The Huns kindled it on all sides ; 
 a fresh wind rose and wrapped the hoiise in fire. Loud 
 roared the flames ; billows of smoke all flecked with fire 
 went rolling up to the sky. 
 
 The heat was terrible ; but Hagan said, ' There is blood 
 enough within to quench the burning timbers as they
 
 126 Tales of the Teutonic Lands, 
 
 drop. Stand close against tlie walls and get what air 
 there is. The roof is vaulted and will not fall ; the walls 
 are stone. If we can only Ijear the heat and tread the 
 fire-flakes out, we may escape.' 
 
 The smoke grew stifling hot, and parched their tongues 
 so that they hung from their moiiths with drought. 
 They knew not what to do, till they saw one stoop down 
 to a corpse yet warm and draw the blood. Then drank 
 they all the self-same draught, and the blood new strung 
 their sinews, quenched their thirst, and made them fierce. 
 
 So it befell that in the morning when the Huns went 
 to the hall to seek the ashes of their enemies, they found 
 them yet alive, and guarding the smoking doorway sword 
 in hand. Twelve hundred men, urged forward by the 
 queen, stormed a passage in ; but Gunther's men drave 
 out some of them, and slew the rest and ramparted the 
 doorway with their bodies. 
 
 When Kriemhild found it vain for the Huns to 
 contend against her kinsmen, she went with King Etzel 
 to Rudeger and besought his help. He said, ' How can 
 I ? They have eaten of my bread and pledged me in the 
 wine-cup. My daughter is betrothed to Giselher. I 
 brought them hither. I have no cause of strife with 
 one of them. I pray thee ask me not.' Then she 
 reminded him of his pledge : ' Didst thou not promise to 
 be first to avenge me on a wronger ? I hold thee to thy 
 word.' Then Eudeger was heart-sorry, and said to the 
 king, ' Take back, I pray, all the lands and castles I hold 
 of thee, and let me go away and wander over the earth 
 without purse or scrip ; but constrain me not to do this 
 thing.' Then both king and queen fell down at his feet, 
 and clasped his knees and intreated him very sore, till he 
 said, ' God help me, for I put my soul in jeopardy. No 
 man will ever trust Rudeger more ; nor take him for a 
 friend. For my oath's sake I will go, but for my name's 
 sake God grant that I come not back alive.'
 
 The Nibelung Story. 127 
 
 Giselher looked out and saw Eudeger riding at the 
 head of five hundred knights, and he said to his brothers, 
 ' Eejoice, for here cometh an unlooked-for succour from 
 my father-in-law.' When Eudeger was come before the 
 hall he set his shield at his feet, and greeted the men of 
 Burgundy but defied them not. He said, ' It is not of 
 my will I join this fray. I have no choice. Stand well 
 on your defence, for I am become your foe.' 
 
 Then said Gunther, 'God forbid that you should turn 
 against us. You cannot fight with us, nor we with you, 
 for nothing can make us aught but friends.' Gemot said 
 likewise, ' Your gifts are in our hands ; God's blessing on 
 you for your kindness I The sword you gave has never 
 failed me through tliis fight. But how could I strike the 
 giver with his gift?' Moreover Giselher prayed him, 'If 
 thou canst not help us, at least turn back. Thou couldest 
 not smite me, and widow thy daughter ere she be a 
 bride.' 
 
 Eudeger was deeply moved, but he answered, ' I have 
 no choice ; my word is passed. Quit you right manfully, 
 and do not fear to strike for friendship's sake. Think 
 only of me as a foe. You cannot hate me more than I 
 hate myself. But I will not go back.' 
 
 Hagan said, ' I thank thee for the shield which 
 Gotlind gave me. It has warded many a blow, though 
 now being full of rifts and well-nigh hewn in twain, it is 
 scarce fit for a man to bear in fight.' 
 
 Then Eudeger took up his own shield which lay at his 
 feet and gave it to Hagan, saying, ' Wield it well, and 
 mayest thou bear it safe to Burgundy.' 
 
 Even the stern Hagan was melted at the gift. He said, 
 ' Good friend, my hand shall never touch thee in the fray.' 
 
 No more they parleyed. Margrave Eudeger drew his 
 sword and led his knights forward. Gunther and his 
 brothers kept the gate, but stood aside and let him pass ; 
 in part, since they feared to strike the noble Eudeger, and
 
 128 Ta ks of the Ten ton ic Lands. 
 
 partly because they tlioiight to take his life more surely in 
 the hall if his mind was bent to be their enemy. 
 
 Eight faithfully Sir Eudeger behaved himself that day. 
 He fought as a knight well used to battle, and quickly 
 strewed the hall with dead. He would not stay his hand, 
 nor parley with any man. Terrible waxed the slaughter, 
 and the brothers were hard put to it for their live?. 
 Then Gemot made Eudeger turn about and fight with 
 him ; for he said, ' You will not leave us here a single 
 man alive.' Fiercely they leaped upon each other, 
 greedy of fame. Many a deadly stroke they warded, 
 watching each other's wary eyes. Then Eudeger's blade 
 came crashing down through Gernot's helmet, and cut 
 him to the brain. With his last strength Gemot lifted 
 on high the sword which Eudeger had given him and slew 
 the giver therewith, cleaving him through shield and mail- 
 coat down the shoulder to the heart. Together they 
 di-opped dead. After that Gunther and his men spared 
 none in their fury. Many an unwounded knight was 
 trampled down in the press and stifled among the dead. 
 At eventide a little band of the Burgundians were left 
 alive but well-nigh fainting with the heavy strife. Their 
 enemies were slain ; they were masters of the hall again. 
 For weariness they laid them down upon the dead to rest ; 
 but as they espied the bodies of Eudeger and Gemot 
 they wept. 
 
 Kriemhild listened without the hall till the din and 
 clamour ceased. But Eudeger returned not nor his men. 
 Then bitterly she cried, ' woe is me, to trust half- 
 hearted friends ! If Eudeger had been steadfast all would 
 have been well : but he has made some treaty with tliem, 
 and betrayed me. He has lied.' 
 
 Volker heard her, and looked out from the hall window 
 and spake to the queen : ' If anything were a-wanting to 
 reveal the blackness of your heart, it were your deeming 
 Eudeger could be treacherous. Lady, he died for you.'
 
 The Nib dung Story. 129 
 
 And he lifted Eudeger's body at the window that the 
 queen might see. 
 
 Kriemhild saw, and wailed and sobbed in tearless grief. 
 The margrave dead in vain ! Her aching eyelids were too 
 hot to weejD. 
 
 But King Etzel did nothing but moan, saying, ' Would 
 that I had a man to slay this traitor Hagan, and leave 
 the land in quietness ! ' 
 
 Sir Dietrich heard how Eudeger and his men were slain, 
 and he said, ' This is a foul deed of the Burgundians. 
 They never had so fast a friend as Eudeger. His life at 
 least they might have spared and made him prisoner. I 
 never loved a man so well as I loved Eudeger. If they 
 have slain him they shall answer for it.' Then gathered 
 he his men, and there came with him old Hildebrand and 
 Wolfhart, Helfrich and Helmnot, Wolfwine and Wolf- 
 brand, and a great company of warriors. And they 
 came to the hall and demanded to know the truth of the 
 matter. Hagan told them : ' Alas, the tale is all too true. 
 We grieve for Eudeger as much as you can. We bore 
 him no entoity nor he us, but he fought us for his oath's 
 sake to the queen. He wrought us more mischief than 
 an enemy. He would not yield nor parley. To right and 
 left he slew our men. What could we do ? ' Wolfhart 
 said, ' 'Tis vain to make excuse for such a crime. I could 
 not sorrow more for my own father than for Eudeger. 
 Where is the man that loved him not ? And you, his 
 friends and mine, have slain him. Cursed be your friend- 
 ship !' 
 
 Then Hildebrand commanded that they should give 
 up the body of Eudeger to them for burial. But Hagan 
 would not. ' Nay,' said he, ' the margrave's body is ours. 
 He lived and died oiu- friend ; and none can pay him 
 equal honour at his burial. Of dire misfortune, not of 
 malice, we smote him. We honour and love him. We 
 
 K
 
 1 30 Tales of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 mourn most for him. If you would have his body, come 
 and take it if you can, and if you dare.' 
 
 Wrathful at this defiance, the knights of Dietrich 
 thronged on the men that kept the gate : they bore them 
 down and forced a way up stairs into the hall. The 
 dwindled band of Burgundians fought with a lionlike 
 courage and sold their lives full dear. But one by one 
 their champions dropped. Volker was slain by Hilde- 
 brand ; Helfrich struck Dankwart down ; Wolfhart took 
 young Giselher's life. Not unavenged they fell. So 
 fiercely fought that little band that when the sun began 
 to sink the numbers on either side were at last grown 
 equal. Only four were left alive — Gunther and Hagan ; 
 Dietrich and Hildebrand. 
 
 ' You are faint and weary, both of you,' said Dietrich ; 
 ' no renown could we win by conflict. Wherefore yield 
 yourselves up, and I will answer for your lives and see you 
 safely back to Burgundy.' 
 
 ' That were a shameful thing,' answered Hagan, ' for 
 two to yield to two. Never since we have been in 
 Hungary have we fought such easy odds. If you fear, 
 yield yourselves, or get fresh champions. We fear not.' 
 So they fell to ; Hagan with Dietrich, Gunther with 
 Hildebrand. 
 
 Hagan drove Dietrich through the hall and down 
 the stairs into the open plain ; there Hagan's strength 
 failed him, and Dietrich dealt him a sword-wound deep 
 and long that fetched him swooning to his knees. Then 
 warily he approached the fainting man, sprang on him, 
 locked his body in his arms, and bound him with a heavy 
 cord. In like manner Hildebrand served Gunther, for he 
 stunned the wearied king with a mighty blow upon the 
 helm and bound him fast. 
 
 Dietrich brought the tired captives in their bonds to 
 Kriemhild. The queen laughed merrily and loud, and 
 said, ' Thanks, good Sir Dietrich.' Then she spake softly
 
 Tlie Nibelung Story. 131 
 
 to Grunther, saying, ' Welcome, my brother. I give you 
 hearty welcome. And Hagan — he is welcome too.' But 
 there was hunger in her hot red eyes. So Sir Dietrich 
 being beguiled by the gentleness of her speech, and 
 heeding not the strangeness of her way, left both the 
 captives in the queen's charge, commending them to her 
 good care ; and took his leave. 
 
 But no sooner was Sir Dietrich gone than the Queen 
 commanded her servants to lock the prisoners in two 
 dungeons, apart the one from the other. 
 
 Kriemhild went down to Hagan in his prison-house, 
 and looked him in the face with a long wistful stare, but 
 spake not. Then she asked iiercely, ' Where is my 
 gold ? My bright red gold ? Give back my gold and 
 I will set you free.' 
 
 He looked at her, bewildered at the hunger of her eyes, 
 but answered, ' The gold ? I took an oath to tell no 
 living soul where it was hid so long as one of my lords 
 was alive. Two of them are dead, but Grunther lives yet.' 
 
 Then she went away, saying within herself, ' Grunther 
 keeps me from my gold. How dares he ! ' And she spake 
 to her servants, ' Quick, go to Gunther's dungeon. Bring 
 me his head.' 
 
 They brought the ghastly thing all bleeding to her. 
 She took it by the hair and went to Hagan. She spake 
 fast and eagerly — ' See ! he is dead ! Not one of them 
 is left alive. Gunther is dead, and Gemot and Giselher. 
 Naught hinders. Tell me where you hid my gold, my 
 blood-red gold ? ' 
 
 He answered, ' None knows now but God and I. And 
 I will never tell ! ' 
 
 Against her bosom she clutched a sword with a golden 
 handle. A jasper glittered in the pommel : the scabbard 
 was trimmed with red. She flashed it forth ; in both 
 hands lifted up her husband's blade on high and smote 
 off Hagan's head at a blow. 
 
 K 2
 
 132 Tales of the Teutonic Lafids. 
 
 King Etzel sorrowed for Hagan. He bent his grey 
 head upon his hands and leaned his elbows on his tottering 
 knees. He mouthed and whined, ' Alas for Hagan ! Well- 
 a-day ! To think the noblest knight that ever wielded 
 sword should die by a woman's hand at last ! I need 
 must weep for him.' 
 
 But Hildebrand ran down into the dungeon ; saw 
 Kriemhild gloating like a fiend over the headless corpse ; 
 and half in fury, half in pity, drew his sword and struck 
 the mad woman dead. 
 
 In the great mead-hall they served the feast ; the 
 savoury meat was set ; the cup out-poured. Alone sat 
 old King Etzel and Sir Dietrich at the board and wept. 
 They drank not of the mead-horn ; their meat was 
 sorrow : tears had they for drink. So Pain dogs Pleasure's 
 steps. Ended was the feast.
 
 T 1 '» 
 
 WALTER OF AQUITAINE. 
 
 I. THE BETROTHAL OF WALTER AND HILDEGUND. 
 
 From the Eastern lands far away the host of the Huns 
 
 swept on like a whirlwind, and the hearts of all men failed 
 
 for fear, lest on them might fall the sword of Etzel the 
 
 Scourge of Grod. Onward he went to the fair city of 
 
 Worms, where King Gibich ruled his jSTiflungs in the 
 
 vine-clothed land of the Ehine : but there was none who 
 
 dared to lift hand against him, and the Niflung King was 
 
 glad to buy peace of Etzel with gold and blood, for the 
 
 Hun must have hostages for the good faith of him who 
 
 sent the treasure. So the young Hagen was sent to Etzel, 
 
 for Gribich was loth to send his son Gunther, who was yet 
 
 a babe lying on his mother's breast ; and straightway Etzel 
 
 hastened away from Worms to spread havoc through the 
 
 rich lands of Herrich the Burgundian King, From the 
 
 high tower of Chalon the warder saw the clouds of dust 
 
 thickening in the far distance, and he hastened to the 
 
 king with the tidings. ' The hosts of the Huns are rolling 
 
 hither,' he said, ' like the white-crested billows on the sea.' 
 
 But the tidings of the craven pact which Gibich had made 
 
 came even more swiftly than the armies of Etzel, and 
 
 King Herrich knew that he too must buy peace from the 
 
 men with whom his Burgundians dared not fight. So he 
 
 sent messengers who went in the guise of conquered men 
 
 without their arms, and told their errand to the Hunnish
 
 134 Tales of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 king. ' Thy master is no fool,' said Etzel to the bode, 
 ' since he knows that fat peace is better than lean war. 
 I too love a good bargain, and I have a sword. So let 
 your king come to me.' But Etzel would not be contented 
 with gold only, and King Herrich was forced to send his 
 own child Hildegund, the fairest maiden in all the land. 
 
 Further yet to the West swept the Huns of Etzel till 
 they came to the lands of the Basques where Aljahar the 
 father of Walter was the king : and Alphar knew straight- 
 way that the covenant which he had made with Herrich 
 had been made in vain ; for it had been sworn between 
 them that when the youth of Hildegund and Walter 
 should be ripe, they should wed together, and the land of 
 Burgundy and Spain should be one realm. 'The Niflungs 
 and the hosts of Herrich stood not before Etzel,' he said, 
 ' and I too must yield up my treasures and my son.' Griad 
 at heart was the King of the Huns as he feasted his eyes 
 on the treasure : and when he departed homewards to 
 hide it in a strong cairn, Walter the son of Alphar went 
 with him. 
 
 But yet more glad was Etzel, when, as he came once 
 more under his own roof, he looked at the weapon which 
 had smitten down his foes. ' Eest thee, my sword, and 
 be still,' he said ; ' thou hast had thy fill of blood. I too 
 will rest, and the sounds of song and revelry shall be 
 heard throughout my halls, until the whole land shall 
 ring with the glory of my feasting.' So rested Etzel from 
 the toil of strife, and the hostages had kindly treatment 
 at his hand. By his side grew up Walter and Hagen, 
 getting all knightly learning and craft, while Hildegund 
 abode in the chambers of Helche the queen, who trained 
 her in housewifely arts and made her the mistress and 
 guardian of all her treasures. Meanwhile King Gibich 
 had died at Worms in the land of the Franks, and Gunther 
 his son, now that he was king in his father's place, would 
 not keep the shameful pact with the Huns, and from that
 
 Walter of A quitaine. 135 
 
 day forth sent no more tribute to Etzel. No sooner were the 
 tidings brought to Hagen than he fled away, nor stayed 
 anywhere to rest until he reached his home : but Walter 
 was carrying on war for Etzel when the news came, and 
 from this strife too, as from all others, he came back 
 conqueror. 
 
 Full of fear was the heart of Queen Helche, when she 
 knew that Hagen had fled, and she hastened to speak with 
 her lord. ' The props of our sway are tottering,' she said ; 
 ' Hagen is gone, and if we take not good heed, Walter 
 will follow in his steps. Speak then cunningly to him 
 and say, " Never was warrior dearer to me than thou art, 
 and well I know that thou hast not spared thy strength 
 or thy blood in serving me. But Etzel requites not his 
 friends with mere words : and it is time that I should show 
 in deed how much I love thee. Look round and seek 
 throughout the land for a bride, and I will give her a 
 dowry such as no king has ever bestowed on his daughter." 
 Tell him this, and it may be he will remain true to us.' The 
 words of Helche seemed good to Etzel, and he spoke, as 
 she bade him, to Walter. But Walter had long since set 
 it in his heart to break the yoke from off his neck. So, 
 having thought within himself for a while, he thanked 
 Etzel for his proffered bounty, but a wife he said that he 
 could not take. ' If I choose a bride, I shall be tempted 
 to stay at home, wasting my days in pleasant ease, and 
 the thought of war will become hateful to me. Bid me 
 do anything else, and whether it be at morningtide or 
 in the evening, I am ready to do it, and to do it with 
 the more gladness that I have neither wife nor children 
 for whom I need to spare my blood.' Thus he besought 
 the king to press him no more, and Etzel believed his 
 words. 
 
 But now there came to Walter by a sure hand the tidings 
 that the Franks of King Gunther had taken heart, and that 
 the hosts of the Niflungs were making ready to march
 
 1 36 Tales of the TeiUonic Lands. 
 
 against the Huns and King Etzel with bow and shield and 
 spear. The news filled Walter's heart with a fierce joy, and 
 with the choicest of the warriors by his side he set the bands 
 of the Huns in array for a mimic battle. Loud and long 
 rose the war-cries, and oak and ashen lances clashed in grim 
 play together, while the glitter of the spears was like the 
 lightning's flash, or the quivering of snow-flakes driven 
 before the storm. But when spears and arrows were all 
 spent, the heat of the strife was so kindled in their hearts, 
 that with drawn swords they rushed wildly against each 
 other, and soon many a horse and many a warrior lay 
 dead upon the ground. High above all rose the sword of 
 Walter, and the bravest of the warriors shrank away from 
 his stroke, till, at last, he drew from his side a golden 
 horn, and praising his men for their prowess, threw an 
 oak wreath round his head, and amid banner-bearers and 
 warriors hastened in triumph to the castle of King Etzel, 
 where many a squire came forth to hold his horse. ' How 
 went it in the battle, lord Walter ? ' they asked ; but 
 little said he to them, for he was weary, and lie went on 
 quickly to the great hall, where he found the maiden 
 Hildegund alone, and greeted her with the kiss of honour. 
 ' Give me a cup of wine,' he said, ' that I die not of 
 thirst ; ' and Hildegund gave him a golden goblet of 
 sparkling wine, which he drained off at a draught. Then 
 as he gave back the beaker, his eyes rested lovingly on 
 the maiden, and as she looked timidly and blushing 
 towards him, he took her by the hand and said, ' Long 
 have we shared the same lot, and lived as hostages in 
 the land of strangers and foes ; long have we been far 
 from each other, even when we were near ; and long have 
 we forgotten the bond that is between us, and the covenant 
 of our fathers. Why hide it longer from ourselves ? Let 
 us call their oath to mind.' 
 
 But Hildegund feared that Walter was but jesting, and 
 she sat silent awhile till she had put her thoughts in order.
 
 Walter of A quitaine. \ 3 7 
 
 Then she said, ' Thy voice has a sweet sound, if thy words 
 be true. But art thou not mocking me, Walter ? Thou 
 canst make choice from all the maidens of the land, 
 and Etzel himself has pledged thee his word that whoso- 
 ever she be, the maiden whom thou choosest shall be 
 thine. How canst thou, who mightest have a king's 
 daughter, think save in jest on the poor maiden Hilde- 
 gund ? ' ' Away with these dreams,' said Walter ; ' my 
 word is as true as gold. Only look gently upon me, and 
 tell me that thou wilt keep my trust, and I will tell thee 
 all the secrets of my heart.' Then Hildegund sank sobbing 
 on his breast, as she said, ' My greatest joy on earth is to 
 do thee service, and to have thy thanks is my highest 
 reward.' And Walter answered, ' Our exile makes me 
 sick at heart, and in bitter grief my thoughts wander 
 away to tlie Fatherland. Long have I yearned to flee 
 away, like Hagen : but I could not go for very shame that 
 Hildes'und should remain behind me alone.' Then from 
 the depths of Hildegund's heart came the words, ' To 
 follow thee, my lord, in need and peril is the one yearning 
 of my soul : and right gladly will I go to live with thee 
 at home or to die.' ' Listen then to me,' whispered Walter 
 in her ear, ' and give good heed to my words. The 
 treasures of Etzel and Helche are in thy keeping. Take 
 from that treasure the triply-woven coat of mail, and the 
 helmet which thou knowest for its cunning workmanship. 
 Take also two chests and fill them with jewels of gold till 
 thou canst not lift either to thy breast ; and be ready with 
 all that We need for the journey, when the sun shall have 
 sunk seven times in the west. Then will I bid the Huns 
 to a feast, in which the hall shall swim with wine ; but 
 though men and maidens drain the flashing goblets, drink 
 thou but sparingly, and when the women rise up from 
 the banquet, make haste and do that which I bid thee. 
 While the men are slaves to wine, we will speed away 
 at eventide to the land of our fathers.'
 
 v5 
 
 8 Talcs of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 So passed the seven days, and Walter made high 
 festival for King Etzel and Queen Helche and all the 
 chieftains of the Huns. Brightly flashed the wine in 
 gold and crystal goblets ; but the men yet tarried at the 
 banquet board, when the women had gone to Helche's 
 chamber and there let their tongues run free. Then from 
 the nail Walter took down the great horn, and kneeling 
 before the throne of Etzel, he said : ' peerless in war and 
 battle, show us that thou art peerless also in quaffing the 
 blood-red wine.' Taking the horn from his hand, as 
 Walter's drinking song echoed through the hall, the king 
 drained the vessel at a single draught, and after him the 
 horn and the song went round to all the guests. There 
 was hurrying to and fro of busy feet as the menials passed 
 each other, some bringing in the foaming beakers, others 
 going out with empty goblets. Shame was it for the 
 man who should lag in the race ; so all did their best, 
 and the wine did its best also. Loud grew the songs and 
 shouts of the wassailers and the clatter of the wine-cups, 
 till all lay like the dead on a battle-field, and Sleep came 
 down with heavy wings to seize the prey stretched out 
 before him. 
 
 Then hurrying from the hall, Walter bade Hildegund 
 hasten to fetch the treasures, while from the stable he 
 brought forth his mighty warhorse Lion. On either side 
 of the saddle he hung one of the chests which the maiden 
 had filled with golden jewels ; and clad from head to 
 heel in his armour, went forth with the maiden from the 
 court which he should see again never more.
 
 Walter of A quitaine. 139 
 
 II. THE BATTLE FOR THE GOLDEN HOARD. 
 
 All night Walter and Hildegimd hastened on, till the 
 dawn light flushed the sky ; and then, turning aside from 
 the road, they plunged into the woods, lest haply Etzel's 
 men might espy them. But so full of fear was the 
 maiden's heart, that her limbs trembled if the wind 
 moaned through the branches, or if the cry of a beast was 
 echoed through the forest. 
 
 Meanwhile, all was still in the halls of Etzel, until when 
 many an hour had gone by in heavy slumber the chiefs 
 arose and went to seek Walter, that they might thank 
 him for the feast with which he had gladdened their 
 hearts. Last of all came Etzel, holding his aching head 
 in his hands, and half wishing that the same pain had 
 fallen also to the lot of Walter ; and, yet more, when the 
 warriors told him that nowhere could they find their host, 
 Etzel thought that in some hidden corner he must be 
 sleeping off the fumes of the wine. But Helche the 
 queen knew that Hildegund had fled, when she came not 
 to do her wonted duty, and all the house was filled with 
 the sound of her weeping. ' Cursed be the banquet of 
 yestereve which has cost two kingdoms, and has robbed 
 us at one stroke of the best of our treasures. As I fore- 
 boded, so has it all come to pass. Our hoard is gone, and 
 with it are gone Craft and Purity, for Walter, the sun of 
 our land, has fled, and with him has departed Hildegund, 
 the light of my old age.' 
 
 The heart of Etzel swelled with rage and grief, as he 
 rent his clothes and beat his breast ; and his face 
 betrayed the heaving of his soul within him, like the 
 billows on a stormy sea. All that day he neither ate 
 nor drank, and when night threw her shadow over the 
 earth, he sank wearily on his bed. But sleep came not
 
 140 Tales of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 to his eyes ; and many a time he sat up on his couch like 
 one astonished, as thought after thought of sorrow and 
 anger hurried through his mind. At last the morning 
 came ; and the king gathered his chiefs in council. 
 ' Bring me,' he said, ' chained and muzzled the Grothic dog 
 which lias run away, and I will give to the man who does 
 me this service gold so deep that he may stand in it as a 
 stake may stand in the corn.' But brave and strong 
 though his warriors were, yet none dared venture to 
 match himself in single fight wdth the son of Alphar. 
 For them life was better than gold, and none stirred from 
 his place. Thus it came to pass that Walter journeyed 
 on in peace with Hildegund, by night on the open road, 
 by day through the dim forests, until they had seen the 
 sun forty times journey across the wide heaven, and twice 
 beheld the full orb of the moon shed its soft light over 
 hills and streams and valleys. 
 
 Then beneath them they saw the green waters of the 
 Rhine, and the towers of Worms in the far distance. To 
 the ferryman who carried them across Walter gave not 
 money but fish from his net, and leaving him, he wan- 
 dered on with Hildegund by the light of the moon. But 
 when the morning came the old ferryman hastened to the 
 palace of King Gunther to sell the fish which Walter had 
 given him. ' Whence came these fish ? ' asked the king ; 
 'the Ehine never had them in its waters.' Then the 
 ferryman told his story, how yestereve there came to his 
 ferry a warrior clad from head to heel in bright steel 
 armour, with a shield on his left hand and a spear in his 
 right, while close behind him came a maiden leading his 
 warhorse. ' The steed was laden with two chests,' he said, 
 ' and, I take it, they were not empty. When the horse 
 shook them as he moved, there was a sound within, 
 mightily like the rattling of jewels and gold. This knight 
 gave me the fish for the fare across the Rhine.' ' It is 
 Walter my comrade,' said Hagen, as he heard the old
 
 Walter of Aquitainc, 141 
 
 man's words ; ' he is coming- back from the land of the 
 Huns.' ' Eejoice, my brave warriors,' shouted Gunther, 
 so that the hall-roof rang- ; ' the gods are bringing to 
 us again the treasure which King Gribich yielded up to 
 Etzel.' Then at his bidding his war-steed was saddled, 
 and twelve knights with Hagen mounted their horses to 
 go with the king ; for so great a treasure, he said, must 
 not go out from the land. But Hagen was loth that 
 wrong should be done to his old friend ; so he told them 
 of the might of Walter's arm, and that no man yet had 
 been able to withstand him. But the heart of Gunther 
 was fixed on the treasure, and he turned a deaf ear to the 
 warnings of Hagen. 
 
 Meanwhile, the path which Walter took with Hilde- 
 gund led them deep in the forest till they came to a cave 
 so overhung by two huge rocks, that scarcely could any 
 who passed it know that there was aught within. Glad 
 was Walter when he spied this resting-place, for since he 
 left the Huns' land he had not dared to do more than to 
 lean upon his spear, and his limbs were now sorely 
 wearied and his eyes weighed down with the sleep against 
 which he had striven so long. So taking off his armour, 
 he stretched himself on the ground while his head lay in 
 the maiden's lap ; and bidding her watch and wake him if 
 she saw the dust of horsemen afar off, he fell asleep. 
 
 But Gunther had marked the tread of their feet and 
 the point of his horse's hoofs, and he laughed in his heart 
 as he charged his warriors to make haste, for the Goth 
 and his hoard would soon be taken. ' Nay, king,' said 
 Hagen, ' be warned in time. Walter is no child. Hadst 
 thou seen him but once in the fight, thou wouldst have 
 known that this fox is not easily trapped. Many a time 
 have I trod the same path with him, and never have I 
 known him leave a foe alive.' But Gunther spurred 
 his horse, and rode on the more eagerly. 
 
 From the cave Hildegund saw the cloud of dust raise 1
 
 142 Tales of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 by the horsemen, and she woke Walter with a kiss. 
 ' Why raay I not sleep ? ' he asked, raising liis head. 
 ' There,' she answered, ' along the wood comes a troop of 
 horsemen.' Straightway Walter shook the sleep from his 
 eyes, and clothing himself in his burnished armour, stood 
 at the entering in of the cave. But Hildegund trembled 
 as Grunther and his men pressed on. 'They are the 
 Huns,' she said ; ' have pity on me and slay me. If I may 
 not be thy wife, let none other lay hands upon me.' 
 Then with a smile Walter pressed her to his side, as he 
 said, ' My sword longs not for blood so dear to me as 
 thine ; it shall bathe in the life-stream of my foes. So 
 be of good cheer, Hildegund. The weapon which has 
 aided me thus far will help me yet again. Nay,' he 
 added, as the horsemen drew nearer, 'these are not Huns. 
 They are the Niflungs of Frank-land, and with them 
 comes my comrade Hagen.' Then placing himself at the 
 mouth of the cave, he charged Hildegund to be of good 
 cheer, ' for not a Frank,' he said, ' shall ever say to his 
 bride, that he has won without a blow the golden hoard 
 of Walter.' 
 
 There, as Hagen saw the goodly form of Walter, he 
 turned once more to Grunther. ' Be not mad,' he said, 
 ' nor send thy knights to their death. It may be that he 
 will peacefully yield his treasures, if thou wilt send a 
 herald to him, when he knows it is the king who claims 
 them.' This time Gunther followed his counsel, and the 
 high steward Gamelo of Metz was sent to ask Walter 
 whence he had come and whither he was going. ' Comest 
 thou of thyself,' asked Walter, ' or at the bidding of 
 another?' ' Yea,' said Gamelo, 'I come at the bidding 
 of the king, who will know wherefore thou rovest through 
 liis land.' ' Strange dealing is this,' answered Walter, 
 ' to tease strangers with curious questions. But if he 
 will know, go tell him that I am Walter the son of 
 Alphar ; that while I was yet a child I was sent as a hostage
 
 ' Walter of Aqtiitaine. 143 
 
 into the Huns' land ; that through longing for the land of 
 my fathers I have broken my fetters, and that I am going 
 home.' ' Be it so,' said Gamelo ; ' but first thou must 
 yield up to the king thy horse and the burden whicli it 
 carries, and the maiden with them ; and in requital, he 
 will spare thee thy limbs and thy life.' ' Thy beard is 
 grey, old man,' answered Walter, ' but thou speakest as a 
 very child. Will thy master sell the bear's skin before 
 he has caught the bear ? But tell him, nevertheless, that 
 if he will let me go in peace, he shall have from my 
 hoard a hundred bracelets of gold.' ' The word is 
 good,' cried Hagen ; ' the jewels which his steed bears 
 are right goodly. Take them and let him go, for my 
 dreams tell me that there is storm and mischief in the 
 air. I have seen in my vision a wild boar fighting with 
 thee, and twice it bit thee to the very bone, and as I 
 hastened to thy aid, it tore out my right eye with its 
 tusk.' ' Grood,' said Grunther ; ' thou folio west in the ways 
 of thy father, with his faint heart and fine words to hide 
 it.' Full of rage was Hagen, but he curbed his fury, and 
 said only, ' There stands Walter ; go and fight him man to 
 man. I will wait and see the issue.' So going to a 
 hillock hard by, he sat down on his shield to see the 
 battle. Then Grunther laughed with bitter scorn. ' The 
 sermon is over,' he said, ' and the dance may begin with 
 fiddle and shawm.' Straightway, clad in his iron garb, 
 Gramelo called out to Walter : ' Hear, son of Alphar ; 
 yield up all thy treasure to the king of the Franks, or 
 thy life shall pay the forfeit.' But Walter held his 
 peace, and suffered the old man to ride up nearer and bid 
 him again yield up the hoard and the maiden. Then 
 strode Walter from the mouth of the cave, and said, 
 ' Why dost thou come hither, crying like a maddened 
 hound ? Am I a thief, that Gruntlier asks me to yield up 
 that which is in my hands ? Has he lent me money on 
 pawned goods that he seeks such usury ? Do his people
 
 1 44 Tales of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 so hate all strangers as to let none pass through the land 
 without paying toll for the road? Two hundred bracelets 
 I am ready to yield to him ; do ye yet grudge it to me 
 that I should make my journey in peace ? ' 
 
 Wise were the words of Walter, and a fool was he who 
 threw away his counsel. ' Thou bargainest not like a 
 Goth but like a Jew,' said Gramelo : ' not three hundred 
 bracelets, but thy whole treasure will I have, and with 
 that for my prize I bid thee now to join me in the dance.' 
 So with a jest went Gamelo to his death, for Walter 
 swerved aside from the spear which the old man threw, 
 and the weapon was buried harmlessly in the earth. Then 
 quick as thought, Walter's spear pierced Gamelo's shield, 
 and his sword smote off his right hand. JNIad with fear, 
 his horse rose high in the air, and throwing its rider fell 
 back on the earth. Twice fell the sword of Walter, and 
 horse and man lay dead upon the ground. 
 
 Then in deep grief rose up Skaramund, whom some 
 called Gimo, nephew of Gamelo, and said, ' The fight is 
 now mine before all other men : I will avenge his death, 
 or die.' With no vain-glorying he faced the son of 
 Alphar. ' I come not to thee for thy treasure,' he said : 
 ' I demand of thee the recompense for the life of my uncle 
 whom thy sword has smitten.' 'What sayest thou?' 
 asked Walter : ' had I begun the strife, then might thy 
 sword rightfully drink my heart's blood.' Quick as 
 lightning came two spears from Skaramund's hand : from 
 tlie one Walter swerved aside, the other recoiled back from 
 his shield. Short, though fierce, was the strife that 
 followed, until as Skaramund turned his horse, the lance 
 of Walter pierced him imder his chin, and he fell sense- 
 less on the earth. Then in his place came Werinhard, 
 who was famed to have like bow-craft with his forefather 
 Pandaros of Ilion. Thick came the arrows on Walter's 
 shield ; and for a time Walter bore it peacefully ; but his 
 patience was soon pressed too far, and springing forward 
 he said, ' Kow may the dance move free,' and yet a
 
 Walter of A quitai?ie. 145 
 
 little while and Werinhard lay smitten by the side of 
 Gamelo and Skaramund. After him came Eckefrit the 
 Saxon, and threw forth words of foul scorn against 
 Walter ; but he paid the penalty of evil speaking with 
 his life, and Walter drove his horse within his hiding- 
 place. But the strife was not yet ended, for then as the 
 fifth champion came Hadawart, and called to Walter, 
 ' Cunning worm, is thy body proof against all weapons, or 
 against all over which the curse of the runes has not been 
 muttered ?' But for all the words that he spake, and the 
 fierce blows which he struck, Hadawart also lay soon 
 among the dead. 
 
 Then Patafrit, the son of Hagen's sister, thought to 
 avenge on Walter the death of the knights who had 
 fallen, and the tears rushed into Hagen's eyes as he saw 
 his nephew going madly to his doom. * Art thou mad 
 and blind ?' he said. ' Surely the shadow of the Norns is 
 on thee, and the sands of thy life are fast running out. 
 lust of gold, cursed hunger, that grows keener as the 
 feast goes on ! Who shall dry the tears which the longing 
 for thee draws forth ? Who shall cherish a wife, who 
 has first bound himself to thee ? Farewell, farewell,' he 
 cried, as the young man passed on ; and the mourning 
 of Hagen struck on Walter's ears as he kept watch at 
 Waschenstein. The sorrow of his friend filled his own 
 eyes with tears, as he cried to Patafrit, ' Spare thyself, 
 brave youth, and live for glorious deeds hereafter.' ' Why 
 takest thou heed of my life ? My business is with deeds, 
 not words,' answered Patafrit, as he hurled his lance at 
 Walter, who parried it with his spear and sent it like a 
 feather through the air, till it fell at the feet of Hilde- 
 gund. With a cry of fear she sank fainting to the ground ; 
 but when her breath came to her again, and raising her 
 eyes she saw that Walter was still unhurt, the life-blood 
 once more coursed warmly through her veins. Twice 
 yet or thrice Patafrit essayed to smite Walter, in spite of 
 
 L
 
 ' 1 46 Tales of the TeiUo7iic Lmids. 
 
 warnings, until, as be was bringing down bis sword upon 
 bim, Walter bowed beneatb bis sbield, and Patafrit was 
 borne witb bis face to the eartb. Once more be rose, 
 and rusbed witb bis sword against bis enemy ; but the 
 wrath of Walter was now awakened, and witb a single 
 stroke be dashed Patafrit lifeless to the ground. 
 
 More fearful was the combat witb Gerwich, the seventh 
 of the Niflung champions. Not a word was spoken as 
 the play of weapons went on, and fearfully the battle-axe 
 of Grerwich came whirling through the air. But vain 
 were his strivings. Neither eye nor arm failed Walter, 
 who, biding bis time, thrust his spear into his side : and 
 Grerwich's eyes grew dim in death. 
 
 Through marrow and bone the Franks shivered, as 
 they saw his life-blood streaming from the wound, and 
 one and all warned the king that the fight had gone on 
 long enough. But Gruntber's eyes were blind witb rage. 
 ' Noble warriors,' he cried, ' this fear does you shame. 
 Think of vengeance, not of flight. Our names are soiled 
 for ever, if we go back discomfited from Waschenstein. 
 How will the noble ladies welcome us at Worms ? How 
 will the people look on us who are their champions ? 
 And is the Groth to triumph at our cost ? I had rather 
 die a thousand deaths than look upon such foul disgrace. 
 We came for gold and treasure ; but now our prize 
 must be blood. Death only can atone for death ; and 
 vengeance calls us on, till the man who fails to 
 win it rests witb the dead.' 
 
 Again was the fierce flame kindled in their hearts by 
 the words of Grunther, and they hastened to the fight as 
 men may hasten to their sports. Poom was there for 
 two to fight before the wall of rock at Waschenstein ; but 
 Walter was taken at unawares, for when the Franks fell 
 back, he took ofif his helmet and hung it on a bush, that 
 he might rest awhile from the fearful heat of the battle. 
 Witb reins banging loose from his horse's neck, Randolf
 
 Walter of Aquitaine. 147 
 
 came hurrying before all the other knights, and with his 
 mighty ashen spear headed with iron he smote at the^ 
 heart of the Basque warrior ; and had not Wayland done 
 his work well when he wrought the coat of mail, Walter's 
 days had then been ended. For the first time the sport 
 seemed to him grim and dark, and his cheek was deadly 
 pale. He could not get his helmet, for Eandolf stood 
 in the way ; and now his enemy seizing his sword shore 
 off two locks of hair from his head, which lay bare to 
 every blow. But when Randolf brought it down with 
 another stroke, the weapon stuck in the wood of Walter's 
 shield. Quick as lightning, Walter drew in his shield, 
 and Eandolf was hurled from his seat. ' My locks of hair 
 shall cost thee thy head,' said Walter, as he dealt him 
 the stroke of death. 
 
 Then the Niflung knights bethought them of a new 
 device, and Helmnot hurried forward with a grappling- 
 iron fixed to a triple-corded rope, which his comrades car- 
 ried, that, so soon as the iron should fix itself on Walter's 
 shield, they might pull the rope with all their strength, 
 and if so be, drag down Walter himself on the earth. Great 
 would be their glory, if they could take him prisoner 
 alive. Fiercely Helmnot hurled the iron, as he cried, 
 'Bald head, this grapnel brings thee thy doom:' and 
 with a terrible hiss the hook bit into the wood of the 
 shield. With a cry which made the forest ring, the 
 Frankish warriors gave vent to their joy: and Gunther 
 himself tugged at the grapnel sturdily. But vain was 
 all their striving. Walter stood firm as the world-tree 
 Yggdrasil, while three knights, Helmnot, Drogo, and 
 Tannenast, sought with the king to conquer a single 
 man. Then was the wrath of Walter kindled once more, 
 and shieldless as he was and helmless, he strode forward 
 and with one blow dashed out Helmnot's brains ; but as 
 he raised his hand to smite Drogo, the knight of Stras- 
 burg turned to fly. Entangled by the grappling-iron,
 
 148 Tales of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 he struggled to set himself free : but before he could do 
 so, Walter smote him on the leg, and reaching forward 
 grasped his shield. In furious rage Drogo espied a huge 
 stone, which he hurled down on Walter, shattering the 
 shield which Walter had taken from him ; but though 
 Tannenast came to his aid, both were smitten down by 
 the son of Alphar. 
 
 So were ten of the bravest champions of the Niflungs 
 overthrown : and now King Gunther betook himself to 
 Hagen whose warnings and prayers he had despised. 
 But when he sought to appease him, Hagen answered 
 angrily, ' Nay, why dost thou come to me ? Am I 
 not one from whom coldness of blood takes away all 
 strength and courage in the battle-field? Do I not 
 follow in the trembling and womanly ways of my father ? 
 And was not my counsel to thee nothing worth, so long 
 as thou hadst thy brave warriors in whom thou mightest 
 place thy trust ? ' ' Nay,' said Gunther, ' think not of the 
 wronof that I have done to thee : think rather on our 
 comrades who lie here before our eyes, stiff and cold. 
 Grievous is it that we have given cause for any to say, 
 " Look on the Prankish knights whom a stranger slew at 
 Waschenstein, one fighting against twelve." And even 
 as Gunther pleaded, he saw that Hagen's mind was 
 shaken, and he knelt before him, the king at his vassal's 
 knee, while the tears streamed from his eyes. Then the 
 wrath of Hagen melted away like ice before the summer 
 sun. ' Rise up, my lord and king,' he said : ' it is not 
 seemly that thou shouldest kneel to me, thy knight and 
 servant. Thine is my life and all that I have, and thy 
 will shall be obeyed. But two things have I to say. 
 Not for my nephew's sake would I have sought to take 
 revenge on Walter. His blood was on his own head. 
 Nor will I dare to assail Walter in his stronghold. 
 Victims enough, who have essayed this task, lie 
 slaughtered before me. So long as he abides behind his
 
 Walter of Aquitatne. 149 
 
 walls of rock, not a hair of bis head shall ever be hurt by 
 us, though the whole host of the Franks were to dash 
 themselves against the bulwarks. Better far to suffer 
 him to go his way quietly, and to lay an ambush for him 
 on his path.' 
 
 Right glad was Gunther to have this counsel, and falling 
 on Hagen's neck, he kissed him. Then they took their 
 way through the forest, as the sun went down beneath the 
 waters of the western sea and the moon rose up into the 
 heaven. Presently Walter stood on the rocky ledge, 
 looking keenly round to see whether his enemies were in 
 truth gone. All was still, and Walter pondered within 
 himself whether he should hasten away to the Basque- 
 land while it was yet night, or wait till the morning should 
 dawn. One thing alone seemed to him a sign of evil to 
 come. What meant that kiss which Grunther gave to Hagen ? 
 That it meant harm he knew well : but whether they 
 would come again with a fresh host, or lie in wait for him 
 in secret, he could not say. Yet more he thought of all 
 the perils of darkness, if he now left his stronghold with 
 Hildegund ; and so thinking he said boldly, ' Come what 
 may, here I tarry, till the sun laughs in the heavens 
 again. Gunther shall never say that I fled from the land 
 of the Franks like a thief in the night.' So saying, he 
 bound to the willow trees the six horses remaining from 
 those which the slain knights had ridden, for two were 
 dead, and Gunther and Hagen had taken the other three ; 
 and when he had placed a rampart of stakes and branches 
 around his stronghold, he ate and drank with Hildegund, 
 and having bidden her watch during the dark hours, he 
 fell asleep. 
 
 Joyously the maiden kept her trust, glad at heart that 
 Walter had come unhurt from the fearful battle. It was 
 indeed sweet to keep guard over the sleep of such a bride- 
 groom. The ravening wolf might cry in the wood, the 
 roaring of the bear might be heard in the depths of the
 
 1 50 Tales of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 forest : but she was safe while Walter was nigh. So she 
 kept watch, singing many a song which she had learnt 
 in Etzel's house, telling of the deeds of mighty heroes, 
 and of the glorious acts of Walter himself ; and as she 
 sang, the thought would come again and again, ' Am I 
 worthy to be his bride ? ' but then she remembered that 
 she was sprung from the stock of the mighty Sigurd, 
 the Volsung, and she called to mind his light with the 
 dragon of the glistening heath, and the rescuing of 
 Brynhild, and the slaying of Eegin. So thinking, she 
 wrapped herself up in her joy, and in a soft and lulling tone 
 she sang songs of love which fell soothingly on Walter's 
 ear as he lay slumbering peacefully before her. But long 
 before the first streak of dawn tinged the eastern sky, 
 Walter rose from his sleep, and bidding Hildegund 
 rest, looked out eagerly for the morning light. At length 
 the darkness was scattered, and he made ready for the 
 journey. Four horses he led, himself riding on the fifth, 
 while Hildegund rode on the sixth ; but even as they left 
 ■the wall of rock, he looked yet again, and listened for 
 sight or sound of his foes. All was still as it had been, 
 and with Hildegund and the treasure he took once more 
 the way that led to the land of the Basques. 
 ' But the maiden's heart was filled with strange fore- 
 bodings ; and they had scarcely gone a league when look- 
 ing back she saw the forms of two horsemen as they came 
 from behind a neighbouring hill, riding with hot speed 
 ■towards them. ' See, Walter,' she cried, as she well-nigh 
 , fainted for fear, ' yonder come our enemies.' ' Yea, I 
 see,' answered Walter. 'It is Hagen who is playing m^ 
 this trick. He would pluck from my head, I well know, 
 the wreath which I have scarcely woven; but be not 
 ;down-hearted. The peril is not great, if we measure it 
 by that which we had to face yesterday. Do thou take 
 the good steed that bears our treasm-e chests, and tarry
 
 WalterofAquitaine. • 151 
 
 with him in the thickest covert that thou canst find, 
 while I give these men my greetings.' 
 
 Scarcely had Walter slung his shield on his arm and 
 pat his lance in rest when the voice of Grunther was heard 
 uttering words of foul reviling. ' Ha ! venomous dog, 
 hast thou slunk away from thy lair, and dost thou now 
 show thy teeth like a wolf tracked by the hunter to his 
 den ' So we have caught thee at last in the open field, 
 and now we shall see if the end of thy work fits on to 
 its beginning.' Not a word spake Walter to Gunther, 
 for all this foul speech : but to Hagen he turned and said 
 gently : ' Stay, I have somewhat to say to thee. What 
 has thus suddenly changed my friend into an enemy ? 
 Canst thou not call to mind the days when the thought of 
 parting from me was bitter to thee ? Many a hope have 
 I built on thee, and those hopes are all a cheat, if thou 
 Beekest to do me to death who have done thee no wrong. 
 How many a time, in the hours of need and anguish since 
 we left the Hvms' land, have I trusted in thee my ancient 
 comrade ! How often have I said to Hildegund, " Let me 
 but reach the banks of the Khine, and I bid farewell to fear. 
 If Hagen lives, no one shall hurt a hair of our heads. He 
 well knows that we are journeying homeward, and this 
 only I fear, that he may seek to keep me too long under 
 his roof, before he send us away laden with the gifts of 
 his princely bounty, or go with us himself until we reach 
 the march of Spain." Thus often, as I spake of thee to 
 Hildegund, the thought of thee chased away our care 
 and sorrow ; and must all the ancient friendship of the 
 days when we were one heart and one soul go for nothing ? 
 My love for thee knew no bounds : yea, looking on thy. 
 face, I forgot even my father's house : and is it for this 
 that thou huntest me fiercely from thy heart ? Hagen, 
 if thou hast sworn an oath to Grunther against me, forswear 
 it righteously, and as a weregild for the men who have
 
 152 Tales of the Teutonic La7ids. 
 
 been slain, I will yield thee gladly a shield full of goldeil 
 bracelets.' 
 
 But Hagen could not look Walter boldly in the face as 
 he made answer, for his rough words hid the true mean- 
 ing of his heart, ' Nay, Walter,' he said, ' it is thou who 
 doest the wrong. Thy words sound fair ; but thou art 
 the breaker of our troth. Has not thy sword slain my 
 comrades who lie slaughtered at Waschenstein ? Yet 
 had I pardoned thee in this, hadst thou not done a worse 
 deed, when thou didst slay my sister's son in the flush of 
 his early youth, like an opening flower mowed down by 
 the scythe of the reaper.' Straightway Hagen leaped 
 into his saddle, and Grunther did the like, and the warriors 
 stood face to face for the deadly strife. Swift from 
 Hagen's hand sped the lance against Walter's shield, 
 but, glancing off, the weapon was buried to the shaft 
 in the earth. Less swift sped the spear of Gunther, and 
 Bcarce hitting the shield-rim, sank lazily into the sand. 
 For a moment the Niflung warriors looked fixedly at each 
 other, then drawing each his sword, moved again towards 
 the son of Alphar. But naught could they do against 
 him, and in his folly Gunther sware that he would get 
 back his spear which lay at Walter's feet. ' Give heed, 
 Hagen,' he said, * and keep him off me, if thou canst, till 
 I seize the lance.' Quickly thrusting his sword into its 
 .sheath, the king grasped the spear-shaft; but pushing 
 Hagen back with his lance, Walter sprang on Gunther, 
 and would have dealt him his death-blow, had not Hagen 
 covered him with his shield. In that moment the king 
 regained his spear, and the game of blood went on 
 again more fiercely till, weary with heat and toil and 
 watching, Walter cried to Hagen, 'Why do we thus 
 tourney here all day ? Well I know that thy limbs are 
 full of might : make trial of thy strength with me, and 
 let us close together.' So speaking, he hurled his spear 
 and smote Hagen on the side : but the steel of his corslet
 
 Walter of Aquiiame. 153 
 
 so guarded him that the wound was but slight. Tarrying 
 not a moment, Walter drew his sword, and rushing on 
 Gunther dealt a fearful stroke against his leg, and the 
 king's right foot was hurled far away into the bushes. 
 Deadly pale turned Hagen, as he saw Grunther fall, but 
 he hastened to parry with his own body the death-stroke 
 from the sword which gleamed in Walter's hand. Down 
 it came on Hagen's helmet ; but so firmly was it welded 
 that its blade was shivered into bits. Forgetting himself 
 for a moment, Walter raised his arm to hurl away the 
 haft, when Hagen smote off the hand which in a thousand 
 battles no man had ever been able to withstand. But 
 heeding not the fierce pain or the blood which streamed 
 from the stump, Walter thrust his right arm into tlie 
 handle of the shield, and drawing his short Hunnish 
 sword from his left side, smote Hagen fiercely on his face. 
 Eight well the weapon did its work. Cloven to the teeth 
 was Hagen's cheek, and his right eye lay bleeding on the 
 earth. Thus were the treasures shared which Walter 
 brouglit from the Hut's land, and thus was the strife 
 ended between them, for only for Gunther's sake had 
 Hagen fought with Walter. 
 
 III. THE WEDDING OF WALTER AND HILDEGUND IN 
 THE BASQUELAND. 
 
 Then at Walter's bidding came Hildegund, and gently 
 and cunningly she tended their wounds ; but weak though 
 they were in strength, yet neither to Hagen nor Walter 
 did heart or courage fail, and each could jest at the other 
 for his plight without anger or evil will. ' Bring hither 
 the goblet, Hildegund,' said Walter, ' and give it first to 
 Hagen, then to me, and last to Gunther, for Hagen, if he 
 be weak in his troth, hath borne himself right warriorly^ 
 but Gunther's arm has been slack and his blows without
 
 154 Tales of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 weight.' * Nay,' said Hagen, ' I deserve not to drink first. 
 Grive the cup to thy betrothed. He is peerless among all 
 heroes.' So passed between them the merry jest, and 
 Hagen greeted Walter by the name of the sword-god Zio, 
 who left his right hand in the mouth of the wolf Fenrir, 
 while Walter bade Hagen make ready for the welcome 
 which the men of Worms should give to Wodan who left 
 his eye in pledge at the well of Mimir. So was the old 
 love renewed between them, and when the time of parting 
 was come, Hagen said, ' I may not now go home with thee, 
 but I will send one with thee who shall guard thee well, 
 even Volker whose harping none may withstand, and who 
 knows all the paths of the land and the sea.' Then they 
 parted, Hagen to go with Grunther to Worms, and Walter 
 to journey on to Basqueland; and when the next morn- 
 ing dawned, Volker came with many a brave knight to 
 guide the son of Alphar to his home. So was he guarded 
 from the wrath of Ortwine, the heir of Gramelo ; and they 
 went on safely to the march of Spain, whence Walter sent 
 two men to tell Alphar that his son was coming home. 
 Full of joy was the old man, and right glad were all 
 when they heard the tidings. ' Why tarry we ? ' said 
 Alphar. ' If any would have my thanks, let him come 
 with me to greet the hostage-children.' 
 
 Eagerly the warriors went forth, and with them came 
 many a fair maiden whom Hilda the queen sent with 
 gifts of snow-white raiment for Walter's bride. Along 
 the road as they passed, the greetings of the people rose 
 long and loud in the air ; and all, as their eyes rested on 
 Hildegund, thought that never had so fair a face been 
 seen in Basqueland. Then cried Alphar in the ears of 
 all the people, ' The crown has long weighed too heavy 
 on my head. Let Walter wear it now ;' and the shout 
 of 'Walter our king' was echoed over hill and vale. 
 Joyous was the banquet of that day, but the guests spake 
 of a day still more joyous when Hildegund should become
 
 Walter of Aquitai7ie. 155 
 
 the wife of Walter : and near and far went the messengers 
 to those who should be bidden to that high festival. To 
 the Burgundian land they went, and the heart of King 
 Herrich was made glad that his child had been brought 
 from the house of Etzel and that she should share the 
 throne and kingdom of Walter. From Worms were 
 bidden King Grunther and Hagen, and with them again 
 came the sweet harper Volker ; and to Kiel went other 
 messengers to bid Etzel himself to the marriage, and 
 others to Lombardy to summon Hildebrand and Dietrich. 
 Thus were Walter and Hildegund wedded, and the oath 
 was brought to pass which Alphar and Herrich had 
 sworn, before King Etzel with his Huns rushed like a 
 whirlwind from the land of the rising sun.
 
 156 Talcs of the Tezitonic Lands. 
 
 THE STORY OF HUGDIETBICH AND HILDEBUEG. 
 
 Great in name and power, and rich in all things that 
 make men wealthy, King Antzius ruled over the Greeks 
 in Constantinople ; but for all his splendour and might 
 bis heart was full of care, for the cold touch of death was 
 upon him and he knew that he must soon die. So he 
 spake with his trusty friend, Duke Berchtung of Meran, 
 and said, ' Loyal and true comrade, few hours remain to 
 me here. When I am gone, be thou a father to my child 
 Hugdietrich.' ' Of a surety I will,' answered Berchtung ; 
 ' but for many a long day may thine heart be gladdened 
 with the sight of his fair face and his glistening eyes and 
 the golden locks which stream in gk-ry over his shoulders.' 
 'Nay,' said the king, ' it may not be:' and it came to 
 pass even as he had said, and the child remained in the 
 keeping of Berchtung. 
 
 Twelve summers had well-nigh passed over his head, 
 when Hugdietrich spake to his master, ' Give me thy 
 counsel in a weighty matter, and bring it to a good issue. 
 My mind is set to win me a wife. I have honour and 
 power and a wide realm : if I die, whose shall be this 
 heritage?' 'In many a land have I sojourned both far 
 and near,' answered Berchtung, half smiling, ' but never 
 a maiden have I seen who may be a fit bride for thee.' 
 
 Then throughout his kingdom Hugdietrich sent mes- 
 senders to summon all his knio^hts to meet him : and 
 when they were come together, the king put to them the 
 same question. But all answered, ' The counsel must
 
 The Story of Hugdietrich and Hildeburg. 157 
 
 come from thy master ;' and turning again to Berchtimg, 
 the king besought his aid in the matter. Then said 
 Berchtung, ' In Saloniki dwells King Walgund with his 
 fair wife Liebgart : but fairer far is his daughter Hilde- 
 burg, and of all earthly maidens there is none other 
 "whom I deem worthy to wed with thee. But her face 
 no man may see. High up in a lone tower the maiden 
 lives among her women, for her father has sworn that no 
 man shall make her his wife, and though a kaiser him- 
 self should ask for her, he would say him nay. All day 
 long the watchman walks the battlements to spy out any 
 who may draw near to the tower : and all through the 
 night the warder paces round her chamber. To what 
 purpose then do I tell thee this ? With all thy might 
 and for all thy wealth thou mayest never win her.' ' Be 
 not too sure of this,' said the king : ' only give me thine 
 aid, by the troth which thou hast pledged to my father 
 and to me. My heart is fixed upon this maiden : where- 
 fore hearken to me, I will learn to spin and sew, and 
 broider with silk and gold. Seek me out then the best 
 mistress throughout all the Greek-land, who may make 
 me right cunning in all the arts of women. If I may 
 not ask for the maiden openly, I must win her by craft.' 
 Even so they sought him out the best mistress, and while 
 twelve moons went round Hugdietrich learnt his lesson 
 at her side, clad in woman's garb, with his hair streaming 
 over his snow white shoulders. Then, when the year was 
 ended, he spake again with Berchtung, and said, ' Tell me 
 now, dear friend, in what guise I should go to Saloniki :' 
 and Berchtung said, ' Fifty bold knights shalt thou take 
 with thee, four hundred squires, and six and thirty 
 maidens clad in rich attire. Take with thee also thy 
 richest tent, and when thou comest near the towh of 
 Salneck, bid them set it up on the plain, and then sit on 
 thy throne, with thy maidens and horsemen round thee ; 
 and so soon as Kins: Waljjund sends to ask the reason of
 
 158 Tales of the Teiitojiic Lands. 
 
 thy coming, say, " I am a princess from Constantinople *, 
 and my brother Hugdietrich has driven me away because 
 I would not at his will wed with an unbaptised heathen. 
 Let me then tarry with thee till my brother's wrath shall 
 have passed away."' 
 
 Eight glad was Hugdietrich at Berchtung's counsel:' 
 and with the knights and squires and maidens he drew 
 near on the eighteenth day to the town of Salneck. 
 Brightly gleamed his jewelled tent on the plain, and 
 brightly flashed the jewels on his throne, when the 
 knight Herdeger, the messenger of Walgund, stood before 
 Hugdietrich and asked him wherefore he had come into 
 the land. Then Hugdietrich told the tale which Berch- 
 tung had devised ; and Herdeger hastened back to his 
 master with the answer. ' Of a truth, a fairer and a 
 more royal woman I have never seen,' he said : ' greet 
 her then, as it beseems thee, with a royal welcome.' 
 Quickly Walgund went forth from his halls to welcome 
 the noble lady ; but when he reached the tent, Hugdie- 
 trich knelt at his feet. ' Here let me tarry for a while,' 
 he said ; ' and well I know that my brother himself shall 
 thank thee, when he learns, as learn he must, that I have 
 done wisely in withstanding his will.' ' Nay, kneel not 
 to me, fair queen,' said Walgund ; ' I am not worthy the 
 honour, but thou with all thy people shalt have all that 
 my land may give thee.' ' Here must I sojourn alone,' 
 answered Hugdietrich, ' for I have pledged my word to 
 Duke Berchtung that all who came with me shall return 
 straightway to the Greek land.' 
 
 So Hugdietrich remained alone, and Walgund led him 
 to his castle, where Liebgart the queen welcomed him 
 tenderly, and asked him his name. ' jNIy name,' he 
 said, ' is Hildegund.' Thenceforth Hildegund dwelt in 
 the queen's chamber, broidering with threads of silk and 
 gold the forms of men and birds and beasts, of fruits and 
 flowers : and all that she broidered seemed to have life
 
 The Story of Htigdietrich and Hildeburg. 159 
 
 "upon the canvas. ' Of a truth thou sewest deftly,' said 
 Liebgart the queen ; ' thou must teach thine art to two 
 of my best handmaidens.' 'Eight giadly,' said Hilde- 
 gund : and for six months she wrought with them a great 
 work, on which were seen the birds of the air, from the 
 nightingale to the eagle, and in one part noble knights 
 were chasing the stag, in another they were hunting the 
 boar. ' It is a marvellous work,' said King Walgund, as 
 he chanced to see it; 'whose hands have wrought it?' 
 And he marvelled when he knew that the broidering was 
 Hildegund's. Swiftly sjied yet again the maiden's fing'ers, 
 and this time she broidered a crown for the king, glisten- 
 ing with gold and gems like the rays of the sun at noon- 
 tide. ' Now, by my troth, it is a right royal gift,' he 
 said, 'but I will not leave thee the conqueror. Ask 
 what thou wilt — houses, lands, or people ; all shall be 
 thine.' ' Shall it be so in very truth ?' asked Hildegund. 
 ' In very truth it shall be, fair maiden,' answered King 
 Walgund. ' Then let thy child come to me from her 
 tower,' said Hildegund : ' I ask no other reward, for I 
 would not abide here longer alone.' Even so did the 
 king as he had pledged his word ; and Hildeburg was 
 brought from her tower to greet the stranger who had 
 fled from Constantinople because of the wi'ath of Hug- 
 dietrich. With kindly warmth she raised Hildegund as 
 she sought to kneel before her. ' Nay, thou must be as 
 my sister,' she said, as she placed Hildegund on a seat 
 beside her, and hand in hand the maidens looked lovingly 
 'at each other, as they quaffed golden wine in token of 
 welcome. ' Thou must learn her craft, dear child,' 
 whispered King Walgund in his daughter's ear : ' for my 
 oath must be kept, and thou must go back to thy tower 
 with Hildegund.' 
 
 Hugdietrich's heart leaped wildly with joy, as the 
 warder shut the two maidens within the tower, for none 
 might come near them, and their food was passed into 
 
 k
 
 i6o Tales of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 them from a window. But the days wore on, and the 
 weeks, and the secret was hidden still ; and at last 
 Hildegund's cheek grew pale and her eye dim, because 
 the longing of love tormented her as with hunger. 'Dear 
 friend, what saddens thee ? ' asked Hildeburg ; ' hide not 
 aught from me.' ' Then betray me not,' said Hildegund. 
 ' I am Hugdietrich the king of Constantinople. Much 
 toil have I gone through for thy sake, fair maiden, and 
 far more yet am I ready to endure : but my wife thou 
 must be, and at Constantinople thou must sit by my side, 
 my crowned queen.' 
 
 The heart of Hildeburg beat quickly with joy and fear, 
 ' If my father knows this, we die,' she said. ' But he 
 needs not to know it,' answered Hugdietrich. So they 
 abode on together, and the days and weeks wore on 
 joyously, until Hildeburg said, ' I fear me the happy time 
 is coming to an end for us both. I am a mother ; and 
 as we cannot flee away, the doom must come upon us.' 
 ' Nay, sweet love, wherefore should it come ? Our life is 
 in the hands of God ; and He who has given thee to me 
 will guard and bless us.' 
 
 "When, next, the Queen Liebgart came to see her child, 
 they went together to the battlements of the tower, and 
 thence on the plain they saw the white tents of a great 
 army. ' I know them well,' said Hildegund ; ' they are 
 the people of my land, and Duke Berchtung has come to 
 tell me that my brother is no longer wroth with me, and 
 to take me away.' ' Say not so, dear friend,' answered 
 Hildeburg, ' the joy of my life is gone, if thou forsakest 
 me.' ' Nay rather,' said Hugdietrich, ' thou wouldest re- 
 joice if after so long an exile thy friends came to take thee 
 home.' So spake they while the queen was nigh ; but in 
 the night, when none else was near, Hugdietrich spake 
 with his love, and bade her give good heed to his words. 
 ' Let the watchmen and the warder take our child to the 
 church, and see it be baptised. If it be a boy, let him be
 
 The Stojy of Hiigdictrich and Hildcbitrg. i6r 
 
 named Dietrich ; if it be a daughter, let them give it 
 what name thou mayest choose ; and yet more, so soon as 
 thou canst, come thou with the warder and the watch- 
 man, with the nurse and the child, to the Greek land, and 
 all shall be well.' 
 
 Then, hurrying away to the warder, Hildegund be- 
 sought his aid in a weighty matter. ' Only give me thy 
 troth that thou wilt guard the secret well.' 'Maiden, 
 it shall never pass my lips,' said the warder. But when 
 he received the charge about the babe, he wondered 
 much and said, ' What wouldest thou say, maiden ? How 
 can this be when I have so kept guard that no man has 
 ever come near this tower ? If King Walgund knew 
 this he would hang me on these battlements before an 
 hour could go by.' ' Nevertheless, it is as I say,' said Hil- 
 degund. ' I am Hugdietrich the king of Constantinople, 
 and to me Hildeburg has given her love. This is the 
 secret which thou must keep ; and when thou comest to 
 the Greek land, bringing with thee Hildeburg and her 
 child, I will give thee a thousand golden marks with 
 goodly honours and broad lands.' 
 
 In the morning came the Duke Berchtung, and asked 
 of King Walgund, when he rode forth to meet him, 
 ' Whei'e is the princess whom I brought to thee from 
 the Greek land? Her brother is wroth with her no 
 more, and I am come to take her home.' She is with 
 my child Hildeburg,' answered Walgund ; and sorely 
 did Hildeburg's heart misgive her when the hour for 
 parting with Hugdietrich had come. But as Berchtung 
 took Hugdietrich in his arms in the joy of welcome, 
 Hugdietrich whispered in his ear, ' Dear friend, I have 
 wooed and won the maiden ; and now leave me not here, 
 for if I tarry longer we are both doomed.' Then said 
 Walgund, ' Abide with us yet, Hildegund, and broad 
 lands will I give thee, with knights and maidens and all 
 that thou mayest desire.' 'It may not be,' said Hilde- 
 
 M
 
 1 62 Tales of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 gund ; ' my brother is no longer wroth with me. I pray 
 thee, let me go home.' And taking from his hand a 
 golden ring, he placed it on Hildeburg's finger, and said, 
 ' Wear this for my sake, and be true to me always.' In 
 his turn Walgund bade his men bring a beautiful robe, 
 red with gold, and besought Hildegimd to wear it for his 
 sake. So Hugdietrich departed to his own land, and 
 there he dwelt as days and weeks went on, and the long- 
 ing for Hildeburg pressed on him more and more. 
 
 In the meanwhile Hildeburg lay within her lonely 
 tower, and there her child was born ; and between his 
 shoulders she saw a red crosslet, by which she must know 
 him evermore. But no long time after this. Queen 
 Liebgart came to talk with her child ; and the warder 
 said to Hildeburg, ' Thy mother is come. What are we 
 to do with thy child ? If the queen knew of its birth 
 our hours on earth would be numbered. Where may 
 we hide him ?' ' Nay, it is for thee to give counsel,' 
 said Hildeburg. 'Well, then, I see a way,' he said; 'we 
 will let him down by a rope over the wall, so that he may 
 lie safely among the bushes.' 
 
 Presently came Liebgart the queen : and when she 
 saw Hildeburg lying pale and death-like on the bed, and 
 asked her what ailed her, the maiden said, ' I scarcely 
 know. I know only that I was well-nigh dead, and that 
 now my life is come back to me.' Gently did Liebgart 
 tend her, giving her all nourishing food and drink ; but 
 for all her mother's kindness the maiden lay fretting on 
 her bed, for she yearned to know where her child might 
 be. So soon as the queen was gone, Hildeburg rose up 
 and hastened to the moat below the tower, and every- 
 where she sought but nowhere could she find the child, 
 for a wolf had passed by the bushes where the babe lay 
 and had carried it away to her lair. The warder peered 
 through thicket and brake, but he pried about in vain : 
 and when the maiden came to him pale as the dead for
 
 The Story of HugdietjHch ajid Hildebttrg. i6 
 
 o 
 
 very fear and asked him for her child, he looked at her 
 face and thought within himself, * Surely she will die if 
 I tell her that I know not where he is.' So he said, ' He 
 is well, lady : we have baptised the babe, and he lies in 
 the watchman's house.' 
 
 King "VValgund was hunting in the castle woods, and 
 spying the wolf which had borne the child away, he 
 chased the beast to its lair, but the huntsmen bad a 
 heavy task before they could pierce through the thicket 
 where the wolf and her whelps were hidden. When at 
 last they got to the den, there lay the babe, and one of the 
 huntsmen hurried with it to the king. ' A fairer child 
 have I never seen,' he said : and all cried, 'It is but 
 newly born.' Then the king bade them search the wood 
 and see if they could find the mother, if perchance the 
 wolf had not torn her : but no one could they see ; and 
 taking the babe in his arms, for to none else would he 
 yield it, Walgund hastened to Salneck, and hurrying 
 into Liebgart's chamber he cried, ' See here the child 
 which I have found in a wolf's lair : it is but newly 
 born and has not yet been baptised.' So they bare the 
 child to the priests, and named him Dietrich ; but men 
 called him Wolfdietrich because he had been found in 
 the wolf's den. 
 
 "When next Queen Liebgart went to the tower, she told 
 to Hildeburg the story of the babe and the wolf, and 
 Hildeburg's heart beat wildly as she asked, 'Mother, 
 whose child may it be ? ' ' Nay, I know not,' said the 
 queen. Then as soon as she was left alone, the maiden 
 hastened to the warder : ' Tell me truly, friend, how fares 
 my child ? ' 'It fares well,' said the warder : but Hilde- 
 burg felt a strange fear, and she besought him for the truth's 
 sake to tell her where the babe might be. Then said the 
 warder, ' Forgive me, dear lady : but I spake for thy 
 good, lest the grief of the tidings might take away thy 
 life. Everywhere I sought for the babe, but nowhere 
 
 M 2
 
 164 Tales of the Teutonic Laiids. 
 
 could I find it.' Then Hildeburg's grief burst out in a 
 great cry. ' Ah me, that ever I was born : cursed be the 
 hour in which I lost my babe, and my lord Hugdietrich.' 
 ' Weep not thus, dear lady,' said the warder, for no longer 
 could he bear to look upon her agony : ' weep not. Thy 
 father has found the babe : but I feared to tell thee, lest 
 his wrath should be kindled against thee. If thou 
 doubtest my word now, pray thy mother the queen to 
 bring the child that thou mayest see it, and then shalt 
 thou know that my words are true.' 
 
 Then went the maiden to her mother and said, ' Let 
 me see this child which has come from the wolf's den.' 
 But the queen answered, ' So dear is it to thy father that 
 he will scarce let it be out of his sight : nevertheless to- 
 morrow in the morning the nurse shall bring it to thee.' 
 And even so it came to pass that when the morning 
 came and the nurse bare the child to the tower, Hildeburg 
 looked between its shoulders and there lay the mark of 
 the rosy cross, and the maiden clasped the babe to her 
 breast. Presently she sat by Liebgart's side, and said 
 gently, 'May I tell thee, mother, of the things which 
 have befallen me ? ' ' Surely mayest thou, my child,' 
 said the queen : ' thy words are sacred in my keeping.' 
 'Mother,' answered Hildeburg, ' the child is mine ;' and 
 when she told how the child had been placed in the 
 thicket and how the wolf had borne it away, Liebgart 
 asked, ' Daughter, who is the father of thy babe ?' ' That 
 can I tell thee, mother,' said Hildeburg eagerly : ' thou 
 knowest the fair Hildegund who came from Constantinople 
 and taught me so deftly to broider. Tliat maiden was 
 Hugdietrich, the Grreek king. He is the father of my 
 child ; and now, mother, take it for the best, for other- 
 wise than it is, it may not be. Only give me thy counsel, 
 how I may fare hence into the Greek land.' 
 
 That night, as I^iebgart talked with Walgund, she 
 asked him, ' What should a man do with that which mav 
 
 I
 
 The Story of Hiigdietrich and Hildehirg. 165 
 
 not he undone?' 'That must he leave alone,' paid the 
 king, ' if he be wise.' ' Is thy word sure ?' asked Liebgart. 
 
 * Yea,' said Walgund ; ' thou knowest that I never break 
 it.' ' Dear lord,' said Liebgart, ' the babe whom thou 
 didst save from the wolf's den is Hildeburg's child : 
 and I can tell thee who is his father. The maiden Hilde- 
 gund whom thou didst send to teach our daughter to 
 broider is Hugdietrich, the king of the Greeks ; and now 
 thou must take it for the best, for otherwise than it is, 
 it may not be. Only bid Hugdietrich come hither, and 
 gold and lands shall he have for his wife's dower.' 
 
 Stoutly King Walgund struggled with his wrath ; and 
 early in the morning he hastened to the tower. ' Tell 
 me, warder,' said the king, ' who is the father of my 
 daughter's babe?' 'This only do I know,' answered the 
 warder ; ' thy daughter took me by the hand one day, 
 and leading me to a window told me that the maiden 
 Hildegund was the Kaiser Hugdietrich. And where then 
 is my guilt, when thou didst shut a man with thy child 
 in the tower T ' Thou art not guilty, good friend,' said 
 King Walgund. Then answered the warder, ' Where is 
 now the oath which thou didst swear never to give thy 
 child in marriage ? The maiden hath found a lord herself, 
 and must not the oath be put aside ?' Then cried all, 
 
 * Yea, the oath is gone ; and now send for Kaiser Die- 
 trich that he may come to his bride and his child.' ' Be 
 it so,' said Walgund ; and right joyfully his messengers 
 rode presently away to go to the Greek land, and bare to 
 Hugdietrich the bidding of the king. Then they told 
 him all that had befallen, and how his child had been 
 called Wolfdietrich because he had been found in the 
 wolf's lair. And straightway the Kaiser sent throughout 
 all the land to summon his knights ; and with two 
 thousand warriors he took the by-ways to Salneck. On 
 the eighteenth day they saw its towers, and Walgund came 
 forth to welcome his guest. ' The warder hath spoken
 
 i66 
 
 Talcs of the Tctitonic Lands. 
 
 truly,' said Hugdietrich ; * thou wouldest suffer no man 
 to wed thy child : what could I do but win her by craft?' 
 Glad at heart was Hugdietrich, when he saw his child in 
 the nurse's arms, and took it up and kissed it : and right 
 glad was he when Hildeburg came forth with her mother, 
 and Hugdietrich kissed away the memory of all her 
 sorrow. 
 
 Many a day and many a night there was joy and 
 feasting in the halls of King "SValgund, and then Hilde- 
 burg and her child went forth with Hugdietrich to go to 
 Constantinople.
 
 The Gud} tin Lay. 167 
 
 THE GUDBUN LAY. 
 
 I, HAGEN AND THE GKIFFINS. 
 
 SiGEBAND, king of Ireland, had an only son named Hagen, 
 who grew up so hardy that at seven years of age he 
 counted it shame to abide any longer among women-folk 
 and children, and chose rather to handle a sword and 
 spear with his father's men. And for all his fingers were 
 so small that they could scarce close round a weapon, his 
 strength and skill were wonderful, and few had ever seen 
 the like of his sword-play. 
 
 One day King Sigeband made a feast and tournament ; 
 and after the justing and the games there came a minstrel 
 into the hall and harped so sweetly on his harp that all 
 the lords and ladies ran thither to hear. Queen Uta 
 sat there beside the king ; and so wondrously sweet was 
 the song that the warders of the castle abandoned their 
 watch, and all the king's servants, down to the very 
 scullions, left their work and came stealing in to listen 
 to the lay. 
 
 The boy Hagen was left alone in the garden. And 
 suddenly there was a terrible noise in the air : a 
 mighty griffin swooped from the sky and came crashing 
 down through the tree-branches, seized the boy in his 
 great talons, and soared with him up into the air. 
 Hagen's cries broke in upon the minstrelsy ; the king 
 and queen ran out from the hall, and looking up beheld
 
 1 68 Talcs of the Teittonic Lands. 
 
 their son in the g-riffin's claws. But while they yet stood 
 watching, the griffin bore the boy high up among the 
 clouds, and dwindled from their sight. Fast flew the 
 monster, quicker than the wind ; and Hagen, terror- 
 stricken, looked down into the great deep beneath him. 
 He saw the land slip by and his home grow far and faint ; 
 then they passed the coast ; then on for a hundred miles 
 aloft above the cold gray sea to a huge pile of bouldered 
 rocks which dashed to spray the leaping waves that 
 always roared upon them. The griffin wheeled above a 
 pinnacle of the cliff, then hurtled swiftly down upon his 
 nest and dropped his prey among his brood ; then without 
 lighting, skimmed the cliffs and soared again, and fled 
 away to sea. Straightway the brood of gi'iffins began 
 fighting for the morsel of prey ; for Hagen was in sooth 
 no more than a morsel for the smallest of them. But 
 one of the wisest of the young monsters, whilst the rest 
 were tearing each other with beak and talon, took up the 
 boy in his claws and flew off with him to a tree hard by. 
 Howbeit the bough whereon he perched brake with his 
 weight, so that Hagen slipped from the griffin's claws, 
 and tumbled to the ground. The boy scrambled to 
 his feet and crept quickly away through the crannies 
 of the rocks and hid himself. As soon as he was got 
 over his fright and had begun to look about, he saw that 
 he was come into a great cleft between two sweating rock- 
 sides, where of old the cliff had been rent asunder from 
 beneath, and left a thread of sky above. But all below 
 was like a garden for fern and creeping green. And as 
 he walked along a winding pathway there, he came upon 
 three lovely maidens who, like him, had been stolen away 
 from home in childhood by the griffins, though by what 
 means they had been delivered from death, save only by 
 God's mercy, no man knows. 
 
 Wlien these maidens saw Hagen, they ran in mortal 
 fear and hid themselves in the cavern, thinking him
 
 The Gudrun Lay. 169 
 
 some strange creature come to do them harm. But 
 Hagen called aloud and besought them for pity's sake to 
 give him food, for he was famished. So divining from 
 his manner and speech that he must be one of their own 
 kind, the maidens came out from their concealment anl 
 gave him both meat and drink, whilst he recounted the 
 manner of his deliverance. Then were they glad at 
 finding that the boy was of mortal race as they were, and 
 they took care of him. And Hagen abode with them a 
 long time, till from a boy he grew a youth, tall and 
 straight and large of limb. 
 
 Ten years went by, and all that while no other living 
 soul came near the island, till one day a great storm 
 arose. The rocks shook with the thunder of the sea, as 
 the waves beat on them and burst in foam upon the 
 steepest cliff tops. And a ship that chanced to pass that 
 way was driven from its course, whirled up a great green 
 sea-hill, and shattered like a potsherd on the rocks. 
 Afterward, when the fury of the storm was spent, the sea 
 yet all a-work with foam and heaving at ebb-tide, Hagen 
 climbed down the cliffs and peering about, saw the sand 
 strewn with corpses, and how ever and anon the griffins 
 came and carried them off to feed their brood. He 
 espied how one of the bodies was the corpse of a knight 
 clad in armour, having a sword belted at the waist ; and 
 beside it there lay a bow and a quiver full of arrows. 
 Then watching till the griffins were gone off again with 
 their prey, he made haste and came down, stripped off 
 the knight's armour and put it on, girt on the sword and 
 took the bow in hand. Just then one of the griffins 
 came hovering overhead, and Hagen let fly a shaft at him, 
 but it bounded off the creature's hide, and fell harmless 
 to the ground. The griffin darted on the youth, but he 
 avoided its clutch, and turning drew his sword and with 
 one blow smote off a wing of the monster ; and when the 
 griffin sought to tear liim with his talons, Hagen cut off
 
 1 70 Tales of the Teutonic Lajids. 
 
 his paws, and soon after slew him. Erewhile came the 
 other griffin with all the brood, and these all beset Hagen 
 behind and before and on all sides, insomuch that the 
 maidens, who watched from the cliff, gave him up for 
 lost. But his victory over the first griffin made him the 
 more valiant, and he dealt so many blows that his sword 
 could not be seen, but only a flash and glitter that played 
 round about him like lightning ; and before long he laid 
 every one of the griffins dead upon the sand. 
 
 Hagen became so skilful with the bow that he could 
 shoot a bird upon the wing, or a fish as it darted in the 
 sea. Once as he rambled over the island he slew an 
 unknown monster that breathed fire and smoke when it 
 came ravening at him from a gloomy cavern. And 
 Hagen having by chance tasted of the creature's blood felt 
 it strengthen him. So he drank his fill thereof, and it 
 entered into his sinews and gave him thenceforward the 
 strength of twelve strong men ; moreover his voice grew 
 loud and terrible, so that he could make himself heard 
 above the roar of the surf upon the rocks. Soon after, 
 Hagen met a lion in the wood, and he lifted up his 
 voice and shouted at him, and the lion fled in terror at 
 the noise. But Hagen following, caught the lion alive 
 with his hands, muzzled him, and bound up his claws 
 with strips of bark. Then he took the beast upon his 
 shoulders and carried him home to the cavern to make 
 sport for the maidens. 
 
 Moreover, since Hagen had gotten the sword, he made 
 a fire by striking sparks from the rock. Heretofore they 
 had lived on herbs and roots, having no means of 
 taking wild-fowl or flesh, or of cooking it when taken ; 
 but now they had both fish, flesh, and fowl in plenty, 
 which Hagen killed with his bow, and a fire to dress it 
 withal. And the maidens grew exceeding comely and 
 well-favoured on their better fare. They also learned 
 to replace their worn-out garments with kirtles woven
 
 Tlie Gudrim Lay, 171 
 
 cunningly, after the manner of linen, from threads drawn 
 from the soft inner bark of trees. 
 
 Month after month they looked and longed to see a 
 ship. No ship came. They built a watch-fire on the 
 highest peak, and kept it burning night and day through 
 storm and sunshine ; but far as one could look there was 
 nothing save the round sea and the drooping clouds, the 
 drooping clouds and the round heaving sea. No ship 
 came. 
 
 One hot, bright summer day, the throbbing blue sea 
 lay white-fringed on the yellow sands, murmuring 
 slumbrously. The cliffs quivered in the haze of the sun. 
 The maidens looked and saw a sail ; and they ran and told 
 Hagen ; and they were all glad, for they saw the ship steer 
 towards them. 
 
 It was a certain Yarl that sailed with his men in search 
 of booty, and he saw the island and made for it ; but when 
 he perceived three maidens on the beach clad in strange 
 attire, he feared to land, thinking them sea- women, till 
 Hagen lifted up his mighty voice and told who and what 
 they were, and asked that seemly garments for them 
 might be sent ashore. Thereupon the Yarl chose out the 
 best raiment to be found in the ship, and rowed there- 
 with to land in a little boat with twelve of his men. 
 And after the maidens had come back from behind a 
 thicket whither they went to clothe themselves, he mar- 
 velled at their beauty, and persuaded them to go on 
 board the ship with Hagen. There he set meat before 
 them, and made a feast of the best that he had. And 
 after that the Yarl would know concerning their history. 
 So the eldest of the maidens told him that she was an Indian 
 princess who had been carried off by the griffin ; the second 
 said that she was the daughter of the King of Portugal; 
 and the third, that she was a nible lady of Ireland, But, 
 when they told him who Hagen was, and how he had 
 slain the griffins, the Yarl's heart sank within him ; for
 
 172 Talcs of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 Sigehand King of Ireland, Hagen's father, was an enemy 
 of bis, and he bethought him straightway to avenge him- 
 self upon the son, yet feared the might of the man who 
 had slain the griffins and their brood. 
 
 Hagen perceived the Yarl whispering with his men 
 and presently caught them trying to steal away his 
 weapons. Thereat being angered, he asked fiercely what 
 was meant. And the Yarl spake, saying, ' I have suffered 
 great and gTievous wrongs at the hands of King Sigeband 
 and his knights, and now, since thou art his son, thou 
 shalt make amends to me.' Hagen answered : ' If this 
 be true, it is no fault of mine. Nevertheless, steer thou 
 for Ireland with me, and I trow that justice shall be done 
 for any wrong that thou hast suffered.' The Yarl said, 
 ' A man is a fool to go and seek justice with his enemy 
 in his hand.' Therewith he called to his men to seize 
 Hagen and bind him. But Hagen drew his sword and 
 cut down everyone that came against him. He slew all 
 the mass that fought him, until the few left alive were 
 glad to take refuge in the far end of the ship, whence 
 they dared not for their lives come forth. Then Hagen 
 fell upon the Yarl, and him he would have slain likewise, 
 but that the maidens prayed hard for his life. So he 
 bound him hand and foot with sail-cord, and flung him 
 in the bottom of the ship. 
 
 After this Hagen cried to the mariners, ' Come forth, 
 you dogs ! Come, bend to the oars ! And if the steers- 
 man be alive, let him now steer for Ireland.' Never a 
 man disobeyed him. They sat them down at the oar- 
 banks and the steersman steered ; and on the seventeenth 
 day they sighted the green shores of Ireland ; but the 
 mariners feared greatly to come to land, lest King Sige- 
 bard should put them all to death. Then Hagen said, 
 ' Fear not ; for I will send you all to bear the message 
 to my father that his son has come. Be of good cheer i 
 kings do not slay the bearers of glad tidings.'
 
 The Giidmn Lay. 
 
 /v) 
 
 When the messengers came to King Sigeband he 
 would not believe them, nor would he even let his 
 knights go down to the sea-beach to find if the tidings 
 were true ; for he deemed it an idle tale that his son 
 could be yet alive after being carried away by a ravenous 
 monster of the air so many years ago. But the mariners 
 went to Queen Uta and told her ; and she believed, and 
 went straightway to the ship and welcomed Hagen, and 
 brought him to his father. And even then King Sige- 
 band could scarce for joy believe that it was his very own 
 son. 
 
 After this, Hagen released the Yarl from his bonds, 
 and finding that he had been unjustly treated caused 
 restitution to be made to him in full for all his losses, 
 and made peace with him. Then Hagen took to wife 
 the Indian princess, and after King Sigeband's death, 
 Hagen reigned in his stead and became one of the 
 mightiest kings of the earth. And he made noble ladies 
 of the two other maidens whom he brought with him out 
 of captivity, and they wedded two of his dukes. 
 
 II. HILDA'S WOOING. 
 
 "When Hettel, the young king of Denmark, but newly 
 crowned, was minded to take him a wife, he sent and 
 gathered together his high vassals and lieges to his palace 
 in Hegelingen to give him counsel. And Morung of 
 Nifland said to the king : ' There is one maiden that for 
 comeliness surpasseth all others in the world : that is 
 Hilda, daughter of wild Hagen King of Ireland; and she 
 is peerless.' ' That may be so,' answered the king, ' but 
 Hagen is waxed so proud that there is no dealing with 
 him by fair words ; and many kings and yarls which 
 sought to carry her off by strength of arm now sleep the 
 sword-sleep because of her.' Then spake the sweet-
 
 1 74 Tales of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 voiced Horant : ' Full well I know the maiden. She is 
 radiant as the soft new snow beneath the dawai. Stern is 
 her father, and cruel as the north wind that tears the 
 clouds and breaks the sea, and shakes the pines in his 
 fists. Wherefore if the king must send a messenger, let 
 him not choose me.' Frute spake also : ' Neither am I 
 fain to go upon this errand. But let the king send and 
 summon Yarl Wate of Sturmen ; he is more reckless 
 than any man, and heedeth no living thing.' 
 
 But when Yarl Wate was come before the king, and 
 understood what was required of him, he was but ill- 
 pleased, and said : ' I ween Horant and Frute to have 
 counselled thee in this, and to have done in no friendly 
 wise toward me. Howbeit I am not the man to pick an 
 enterprise that hath no peril in it. I will go. But since 
 Horant and Frute esteem my life so lightly, they shall go 
 likewise.' Then Yrolt of Ortland and Morung said : ' It 
 is well-spoken ; and inasmuch as it behoveth none to 
 Jiang back when brave men take their lives in their 
 hands, we also will go with them.' 
 
 So the king made ready a great ship of cypress-wood, 
 in fashion like a dragon. It was all aglow with golden 
 scales ; the anchor was of silver, and the steering paddle 
 overlaid with gold. "Within he furnished it abundantly 
 with victual for the voyage, with armour and raiment, 
 and presents of great price. Then Yarl Wate and 
 Morung, Horant and Frute and Yrolt, entered into the 
 ship with seven hundred of their men. They drew aloft 
 the embroidered sail ; a fair wind arose and bore them 
 out of harbour. For many days they tilled the barren 
 sea-fields, until weary of sea-toil they saw the welcome 
 land, and steered in for Castle Balian, where Hagen the 
 king kept court. 
 
 Being come to shore, Horant and Yrolt took precious 
 jewels in their hands worth many thousand marks, and 
 leaving their men hidden in the ship, came to King
 
 The Gudrtm Lay. 175 
 
 Hagen, saying, ' Behold we have voyaged from a far 
 country where we have heard of thy fame, and we pray 
 thee take these presents at om' hands.' Hagen looked at 
 the jewels and marvelled at their great worth. He said, 
 ' What kings are ye, and whence have you come with all 
 this treasure ? ' Horant answered, saying, ' Banished 
 folk are we. Hast thou not heard of Hettel, who is king 
 in Hegelingen, and of his might and majesty, of the 
 battles he has fought and the riches he has gathered 
 together ? He despiseth such as we, and being well be- 
 friended careth nothing for his men. Wherefore a few 
 of us, weary of his overbearing ways, have left him seek- 
 ing service.' Then said Hagen, ' Ye shall abide with 
 me ; ' and he commanded to make ready lodgings for 
 them in the city. 
 
 But Horant and Yrolt gave gold away so lavishly to all 
 within the city that the people said, ' Of a truth these 
 must be the richest kings of the earth.' And the fair 
 Hilda hearing of it desired greatly to see these strangers ; 
 wherefore her father bade them to a feast. The Danish 
 knights came at his bidding, arrayed most sumptuously. 
 And the feast being over, and the wine outpoured, the 
 queen and Hilda left the table, desiring that the guests 
 might be brought to them in the inner chamber. First 
 Yarl Wate went in, a huge and burly man, with a great 
 rough beard and brawny hands. But when the queen 
 bade him sit betwixt her and the princess he blushed and 
 stammered, and then blundered shamefaced to the seat. 
 ' Thou art strangely ill at ease in company of ladies,' 
 said the queen. ' Aye mistress,' said Yarl Wate, ' I 
 am not over smooth of tongue. I am not skilled to 
 lisp about the weather. What shall I say? This seat 
 is soft enough. I never mind me to have sat so 
 soft before, nor to have wrought so hard in doing it. 
 By my life, good ladies ! ' he cried upstarting, ' a good 
 day's battle with a brisk enemy never wearied me so
 
 176 Talcs of the Teidoiiic Lands. 
 
 much, or made me deem myself so great a fool.' Hilda 
 and her mother laughed pleasantly at his bluff behaviour, 
 and sought to put him at his ease ; but Wate would have no 
 more ; he strode off to the hall among the king and his men, 
 and in an hour or so became himself again. For the king 
 won on him. Hagen's big voice, his battle knowledge, 
 and his love of fight, opened Yarl Wate's heart, and the 
 two were soon made friends. But for the women, there 
 was none in their esteem like the sweet-voiced Horant. 
 He was fair to look upon as a woman, yet had no lack of 
 courage in the battle-time. His wit was quick ; and 
 when he talked his face was in a glow at sight of the 
 strange pictures in his mind, whereby he likened things 
 to one another in curious sort, so that all which heard 
 him wondered and were glad. 
 
 Now Hagen spake much with Wate concerning sword- 
 play, and the mystery thereof. So presently Yarl Wate 
 besought the king to appoint him a master of fence to 
 teach him a little of it, because fencing after their manner 
 was a thing in which he was little learned. Then King 
 Hagen sent for the best fence-master that he had, and set 
 him to teach Yarl Wate the rules of sword-play. But 
 quickly losing patience at the long list of early rules which 
 the fence-master laid down, Hagen caught the foil from out 
 his liands crying, ' Away with you ! Why all this stuff ? 
 In four strokes I will teach this man to use a sword.' So 
 the king fell to with Wate, whom, however, he very soon 
 found an exceeding skilful master of fence. Thereat 
 being somewhat angry, he struck in fiercely ; and they 
 both carried on the sport till the buttons flew off the 
 foils ; yet neither gat the better of the other. Then 
 Hagen throwing down his foil cried, 'In sooth, never saw 
 I youth learn so quickly.' And Yrolt said, 'There is 
 very little wherein the serving-men of our lord's country 
 are not already learned.' 
 
 So as Yarl Wate and his fellows abode continually at
 
 TJie Gudrwi Lay. 177 
 
 the king's court and feasted with him every day, it befell 
 once on a time, when night was past and the day had 
 begun to dawn, that Horant arose and tuned his voice to 
 a song. The birds, waking in the hedges, had begun to 
 sing, but hearing music sweeter than theirs, they held 
 their peace. Ever higher and sweeter Horant lifted his ?ong 
 till it rang about the palace ; and all the sleepers dreamed 
 of Baldur and his home in Granzblick in the sky. Soon 
 they woke ; nor were they sorry to lose their dreams at 
 hearing Horant's song. Hagen heard it, and rose up 
 from his bed. Hilda and her maidens heard it, and 
 arose. Men and women came thronging to thank the 
 singer ; but when they came the song was done. Yet 
 none the more would the birds begin their lays ; they had 
 lost their notes from wonder. Then Hilda besought her 
 father that by any means he should constrain Horant to 
 sing again. And Hagen being no less crazed with the 
 song, recked not for aught else, and he promised the 
 singer a thousand pounds of gold by weight if he would 
 sing again at eve. 
 
 At evening Horant sang. The people filled the hall 
 and flocked about the castle for a great space. The sick 
 came thither and remembered their pains no more. The 
 beasts in the forest and the cattle in the fields left their 
 food ; the worms forgat to go in the grass, and the fishes 
 left swimming in the sea. And when the song was done 
 and the folk went their ways, they heard the minster 
 choirs and the chiming of the bells, but took no more 
 pleasure in them. 
 
 Hilda sent twelve purses of gold to Horant, intreating 
 him to come and sing to her in her chamber. The singer 
 came and sang the song of Amile, the like whereof no 
 man has ever heard save on the wild flute. No gold 
 was ever so good. The maiden laid her hand within the 
 singer's and bade him choose whatsoever he listed for a 
 song-gift. He said, ' I pray thee give me but the girdle 
 
 -&
 
 178 Tales of the Teutojiic Lands. 
 
 from thy waist, that I may take it to my master.' She 
 asked, ' Who is thy master ? ' He answered, ' No ban- 
 ished men are we, but servants of Hettel, king of Denmark, 
 come to woo thee for his bride.' Then Hilda said, 'So 
 thou couldest always sing to me at morn and eve, I would 
 not care whose bride I were.' Horant said, ' Lady, 
 within my master's courts abide twelve minstrels, better 
 far than I ; and yet with all the sweetness of their 
 singing my lord sings best of all.' And Hilda said, ' If 
 that be so, I fain would follow thee and be King Hettel's 
 bride. But I know not how. My father will give me to 
 no suitor with his goodwill. I would go but I durst not.' 
 Horant answered her, ' Since thou wouldest, be it ours to 
 dare. We ask no more.' 
 
 Then Horant and his comrades got ready their ship for 
 sea, and afterward they came to Hagen, saying, ' The time 
 for our departure draweth nigh, and we must sail to other 
 lands. But before we go, we pray you bring the queen 
 and your fair daughter, that they may see the treasures 
 which we have within the ship.' So on the next day, 
 after mass, King Hagen came down to the beach, with his 
 queen, and the fair Hilda and her maids ; with them 
 went a thousand good knights of Ireland. The ship was 
 swung to a single cable, the anchor aboard, the sail tackle 
 free. Upon the sands were spread the Danish treasure 
 chests, filled with costly raiment embroidered with gold 
 and jewels. There was a crowding round the chests to 
 see ; Yarl Wate was there, and Frute, and Horant ; and 
 in the crowding Hilda was parted from her mother. 
 Hagen and his knights saw nothing for the crowd, and the 
 queen forgot her daughter at beholding the glories of the 
 raiment. But suddenly they heard a shout, and looking 
 up beheld Yarl Wate leap on the bulwarks with fair 
 Hilda in his arms ; the next moment Horant and Frute 
 sprang on board with two other maidens. Yrolt smote at 
 the cable with his axe ; it parted. The sail was hauled
 
 The Gudrint Lay. 1 79 
 
 aloft, and twenty oars shot out from either side to lift the 
 ship along. Hagen and his knights ran quickly down into 
 the sea ; but the rowers rowed hard, and armed men in 
 the ship arose, seven hundred strong, and laid about 
 them. Short was the fight, and soon the vessel reached 
 deep water. Loud laughed the Danes to see on the 
 fading shore the angry crowd, the weeping queen, and 
 Hagen raging like a madman, up to his waist in the sea. 
 
 Fast sped the ship, and the wind was fair. The Danes 
 made Hegelingen in ten days, and Hettel was wed to 
 Hilda with great joy. 
 
 But while they yet sat at the marriage-feast Hagen's 
 war-ship bore down upon their coast. Quickly the Danes 
 rose from the tables, put their armour on, and ran down 
 to the shore. Hagen drave his ship upon the sand, and 
 leapt into the water with his men. A shower of arrows 
 thick as hail was his greeting. Hettel rushed foremost to 
 withstand him. There was fierce fighting betwixt the 
 two for a little space ; then Hettel fell, sore wounded ; and 
 over his body Hagen and his knights pressed on and 
 hewed their way to land. Fast fell the men, both Danes 
 and Irelanders. Then Yarl Wate encountered Hagen ; 
 and the battle-anger fell on both the men ; they fought 
 like wild beasts of the wood, till, Wate being wounded in 
 the head, Hagen's war-pike brake at the next blow he 
 struck. Meantime the battle raged furiously. The 
 Irelanders kept their footing, but could not drive back 
 the Danish men ; the numbers slain on either hand were 
 equal, man for man. Then Hettel's wounds being bound up, 
 the Danish king cried out to Hagen, ' Of what avail shall 
 it be to you or me to fight this battle out ? For every 
 man of mine that falls a man of thine goes down. When 
 it is done there will be an end to Danes and Irelanders 
 alike. But if thou must needs prolong the fight, I will 
 now meet thee, and if Hilda weeps for a dead husband 
 she shall mourn a dead father too.' Then Hagen cast 
 
 N 2
 
 1 80 Tales of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 do-wTi his sword, and called ofif his men. And he said to 
 Hettel, ' Give me thy hand ; for in sooth my child has 
 married a brave man ; and had I half a score more 
 daughters they should all come to Hegelingen.' So the 
 kings made peace together. And the marriage-feast was 
 all begun again, and kept for twelve days in King Hettel's 
 palace. Moreover a wise woman brought forth herbs and 
 roots, and healed the warriors of their wounds. And 
 after the feasting, Hagen and his men were loaded with 
 gifts, and they entered into their ship and departed to 
 Ireland. 
 
 in. GUDRUN'S LOVERS. 
 
 Kings have not always the fairest children ; but Gudrun 
 and her brother Ortwin, the children of King Hettel and 
 Queen Hilda, were the comeliest in all Denmark. Words 
 fail to tell how fair was Gudrun ; but they which beheld 
 her beauty felt as though the stars had shone upon them. 
 Many came from far countries a-wooing her, amongst 
 them King Siegfried of the Moorland, with a great train 
 bearing rich presents ; but King Hettel sent him haughtily 
 away. So Siegfried's anger was kindled against the king 
 of Denmark, and he went back raging to his own land. 
 
 Tidings of Gudrun's beauty came to Hartmuth, the 
 young prince of the Normans, son of King Ludwig, and he 
 fell into a great love-sickness because of her ; and choosing 
 out sixty noble knights he arrayed them in the richest 
 mail, and laded them with gold and precious stuffs, and 
 sent them on an embassy to ask her in marriage. But 
 King Hettel and his queen spake disdainfully to the mes- 
 sengers, and sent them away. So these returned into 
 Normandy and came to their master. And Hartmuth 
 said, ' Tell me truly, is the maiden so fair as men have
 
 The Gtidrun Lay. ' " i8i 
 
 said ? ' And they answered him, ' Sire, a hundred days 
 we spent upon the journey home, and since we left King 
 Hettel's court we have seen strange and wonderful things 
 by sea and land. But we cannot remember them, for 
 naught save Gfudrun's image dwells upon our eyes, as 
 when a man has looked upon the sun at noon and seen 
 him burn.' Then Hartmuth sware that he would never rest 
 till he had won this maiden's love ; and he took his 
 journey to Denmark that he might look upon her. He 
 came as an unknown guest, and Hettel gave him stranger's 
 welcome at his table. When Hartmuth beheld Grudrun, 
 he saw that his knights had not told him the half of her 
 beauty, and being consumed with love for her, so that he 
 could no longer hold his peace, he called one of her 
 maidens privily, saying, ' Gro, tell Gudrun, I am Hartmuth, 
 of Normandy ; and for love of her I have come over land 
 and sea.' And when Grudrun knew it she pitied Hart- 
 muth, though she had no mind towards him. ' Bid him 
 depart quickly,' she said, ' lest my father, learning what 
 errand he comes upon, should slay him in his anger.' 
 So Hartmuth went away sorrowing, and in his bitterness 
 thought to come back and win the maiden with the edge 
 of the sword ; yet, loving her too much to force her into 
 wifehood, he forbore. 
 
 Now Herwig, prince of Zealand, came also to Denmark 
 a-wooing of Gudrun, and at the end of many days he 
 spake to King Hettel to give him his daughter to wife. 
 And when King Hettel would not, but mocked at his suit, 
 as he had done at the others, Herwig said within himself, 
 ' This man is wholly puffed up with pride ; let us see 
 whether of the twain is stronger, he of Denmark or I of 
 Zealand;' and with that meaning in his mind, went straight- 
 way back to his people, and gathered together his host, 
 and came up against King Hettel and besieged him in his 
 Castle Hegelingen. When Hettel, King of Denmark, saw 
 Herwig's standard and knew that he was come to fight for
 
 1 82 Tales of the Tetitojiic Lands. 
 
 G-udrun, he said, ' Truly this is a worthy man. Hitherto 
 men have pleaded but with words for Gudrun ; have 
 babbled and chattered to me as though I were a woman, 
 not a warrior. How shall a man defend his wife in 
 perilous times like these, unless he shows that he can 
 win her with his sword ? I like this fellow ; the sword 
 talks a language that I can understand. Good sooth, I 
 love him well-nigh as a son already;' and Hettel laced on 
 his ring mail and went out to fight him. Long raged the 
 battle on the plain, but Herwig's knights pushed so hard 
 upon the Danish host that they drave them back for many 
 a furlong mounded with slain ; till being hotly pressed 
 against the walls, the Danes turned in panic and rushed, a 
 wild disordered rabble, for the castle gates. P^urious at 
 being borne back by the press. King Hettel brake his way 
 through till he encountered Herwig, and then so fierce a 
 battle began that both armies paused to see. 
 
 From a window in the castle Grudrun had watched how 
 Henng smote down the stoutest of her father's knights, 
 and as she watched her eye kindled and her cheek flushed 
 at' the glory of the man who fought for her. But no 
 sooner did she see the deadly combat between her father 
 and Herwig than she seized a shield and ran out from the 
 castle and threw herself between the warriors. ' Father, 
 for my sake,' Gudrun said. ' And you. Sir Herwig, 
 prithee answer me. For my sake also will you make the 
 peace ? ' And Herwig answered, ' If for your sake means 
 all things henceforward for your sake, right gladly will I. 
 Gudrun looked upon the frank, brave face of her warrior, 
 and loved him as he stood there on the battle-plain. And 
 she said, ' So be it as thou hast said.' Then the warriors 
 laid down their weapons, and King Hettel joined their 
 hands, saying, ' I desire no better man to be my son-in-law.' 
 And Gudrun said to Herwig, ' Thee and no other will I 
 have to be my mate, and I will dwell mth thee all the 
 days of my life.' So plighted they their troth upon the
 
 The Gudrim Lay. 183 
 
 battle-field ; and after that a feast was held for many days 
 within the castle. 
 
 And when the festivity was done, Herwig would have 
 taken Gudrun to wife straightway, but her mother. Queen 
 Hilda, said, ' Nay, for her dowry is not yet prepared, and 
 it will take time to make ready a wedding-feast fit for a 
 king's daughter. Is she not yours ? Be content and wait 
 a little ; there is no hurry, and Gudrun is very young.' 
 So Herwig was fain to go back to Zealand with a heavy 
 heart for company. But lagging months make lingering- 
 years. 
 
 Tidings came to Siegfried, King of the Moorland, how 
 Gudrun had given her troth to Herwig, prince of Zealand, 
 and being fiercely wroth thereat he said, ' I shall kindle 
 him a marriage-torch which shall set his land aflame and 
 make Zealand Fire-land, for I will altogether consume it 
 and burn it from the seas.' So he sailed across the sea-ways 
 with twenty wide-breasted ships ; and he turned loose his 
 host of Moor-men upon Zealand and ravaged it with fire 
 and sword. Herwig and his people fought fiercely, but 
 Siegfried drave them back and pushed forward over the 
 bodies of many that counted it sweeter to die upon their 
 land than to yield it. And at last Siegfried and his host 
 overran all the country, save only one strong fortress 
 wherein Herwig and his knights were besieged. Howbeit, 
 Herwig contrived to send a trusty messenger into Denmark, 
 who came to King Hettel in his castle at Hegelingen, and 
 told him of Herwig's extremity. Then King Hettel quickly 
 gathered his warriors together to go and help him. And 
 with the king came also Gudrun's brother, Ortwin, bearing 
 his maiden sword, and Yarl Wate his master ; there like- 
 wise followed Yrolt, Horant, and the greybeard Frute, and 
 a host of redoubtable champions. And these all took ship 
 and coming with speed to Zealand, they fought with 
 Siegfried and overcame him ; and with the scourge of 
 swords they scourged the Moor-men from the land, and
 
 184 Tales of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 burnt their ships, and shut Siegfried up within a rocky 
 castle with water roundabout on every hand. Then King 
 Hettel and his army pitched before the castle to beleaguer 
 it. And Hettel vowed a vow never to rise up from before 
 the walls till Siegfried should yield. 
 
 Now there came certain men into Normandy which 
 spake to Hartmuth after this manner : ' Behold, Hettel 
 with all his doughtiest warriors has left Denmark and 
 besieges Siegfried in a castle in Zealand, neither will he 
 stay his hand till Siegfried yields ; and the fortress is so 
 strong and well victualled that it can hold out for a year 
 at least. Wherefore what hinders now from falling 
 upon Denmark and gaining Gudrun for your bride ? ' 
 Hartmuth turned this covmsel over in his mind, but liked 
 it not. He said, ' Love hinders. Can the sword make 
 love ? Will conquest make unwilling love more willing ? ' 
 But Queen Gerlinda, his mother, said to him, ' Thou fool : 
 did not Herwig with his good sword win her love ? And 
 shall worse fortune follow yours ? This is no soft smirk- 
 ing maid to sigh and prate about, but a grand war-woman, 
 whose frame is stirred already with the blood of the 
 heroes whom she will bear. Go, fight and win her : conquer 
 her and she will glory in you ; for such women glory more 
 in such defeats than men in victory.' So by these and 
 many other subtle speeches being over-persuaded, Hart- 
 muth sailed with his father King Ludwig and all his 
 army across the sea-plain till he came to the shores of 
 Denmark, and saw shining in the sun the white towers of 
 Castle Matalan wherein fair Gudrun and the queen kept 
 court. When Hartmuth gat to land he hid his warriors 
 in the shelter 01 a wood, and sent two of his noblest yarls 
 to the castle to intreat Gudrun with fair words to give 
 him her love. But Gudrun answered ; ' Go again to 
 Hartmuth and say that I have plighted my troth to Her- 
 wig, and so long as I live I shall love none other.' When 
 Hartmuth heard these words he was very angry, and he
 
 The Gudrun Lay. 185 
 
 blew the trumpet and set his host in array, and came up 
 against Castle Matalan and brake down the castle gates 
 and put the guards to the sword. In the great hall of the 
 castle sat Gudrun, her cheeks white with anger but not 
 with fear. Hartmuth bowed himself before her and said, 
 ' Fair Gudrun, I repent me of all, saving only of my love.' 
 And when for a long time she answered him never a word, 
 he besought her to have compassion on his love and speak 
 with him. She told him, ' I am Gudrun, and I change 
 not.' So being wroth because of her steadfastness he 
 no longer hindered his men from pillaging the castle. 
 And they took Gudrun and thirty of her maidens and 
 carried them off captive to King Ludwig's ship where 
 Hartmuth was, and put out to sea and sailed away. 
 
 Men came to Gudrun's father and Herwig as they were 
 besieging Siegfried in his castle in Zealand, and told 
 what had happened in Denmark. Then the king's heart 
 was exceeding heavy because of the oath which he sware ; 
 and he bewailed his lot, and all his warriors lamented aloud 
 the cruel fate which had befallen them. Then spake Yarl 
 Wate, ' It is meet for warriors to blot out grief with blood, 
 not tears. Come let us now hotly beset Siegfried within 
 his fortress, and drive him to make peace. So, having 
 kept our vow we shall be free to avenge this greater 
 wrong.' And the king said, ' It is well spoken ;' and with 
 one accord they made so tierce an assault upon the castle 
 that Siegfried was fain to sally out and fight. The battle 
 endured the whole day, and great numbers were slain on 
 either side. At nightfall Yrolt came to the castle wall 
 and asked a parley. He said, ' King Hettel will make 
 peace if Siegfried does him friendly homage and holds 
 himself at his command for service.' Siegfried answered, 
 ' War will never conquer us, but peace will save a host of 
 lives. Wherefore we are willinof.' Then Sierfried and all 
 his knights lifted up their hands and sware to do warlike 
 service to King Hettel as their liege ; and so they made
 
 1 86 Tales of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 the peace. And when this was done Hettel opened his 
 heart to Siegfried and spake of what liad befallen Gudrun. 
 Then Siegfried made friends with Herwig and said, ' We 
 were foes before for Gudrun's sake, but now for her sake 
 we will make common cause against Hartmuth. Had you 
 not burned my ships we might have quickly started on 
 our errand.' Howsoever, it chanced that a great company 
 of pilgrims were just then come to land, and Hettel and 
 Siegfried seized on their ships and entered into them, 
 both they and their men^ and put out to sea in search of 
 Hartmuth. 
 
 Now Hartmuth and his father were sailing in their 
 war-ships bearing Gudrun away into captivity. They 
 ploughed the salt sea-fields many days till they came to 
 an island called Wulpensand. There they landed to rest 
 them from sea-weariness. And one day as they looked 
 out seawards they descried a pilgrim fleet with great red 
 crosses blazoned on the sails. But as the ships drew near, 
 seeing the glitter of helm and shield and bright spear- 
 points flashing in the sun, straightway every man seized 
 sword and javelin, and put his armour on. Ludwig and 
 Prince Hartmuth shouted their battle-cry and ranged 
 their host upon the beach. 
 
 King Hettel, with Siegfried his ally, and Herwig and 
 Ortwin, ran their ships upon the sand a bow-shot off the 
 shore, and leaped into the sea to fight their way through 
 all the host that met them in the water. With cry and 
 shout they roused themselves to battle fury. Hettel 
 was fighting for his child, Herwig for his bride, and 
 Ortwin for his sister. Fiercely the two hosts met ; the 
 air grew dark with hurtling spears ; the din of war rose 
 high above the wave-noise : the sea lapped blood upon the 
 shingly beach. Yarl Wate was first ashore ; for when King 
 Ludwig hurled his mighty spear at him, Wate held his 
 shield like a rock : so the point stuck therein, and scarcely 
 had the tough ash shaft been shattered with the quiver
 
 The Gicdriin Lay. 187 
 
 of the blow, ere Wate threw himself upon King Ludwig, 
 and flung- him reeling down, and so gat foot on land. 
 The battle lasted through the day ; night, fell and the 
 tumult ceased ; yet not because either host was van- 
 quished, but since both were fain to rest. At dawn King 
 Hettel and King Ludwig fought a mortal strife, and King 
 Hettel gat his death-wound ; but still the old Dane fought 
 on until he dropped, and dying called upon his daughter's 
 name. Then raged Yarl Wate about the battle-field, 
 terrible in his fury as a wild beast of prey, for he loved 
 his master Hettel. And the Normans feared his anger 
 and the vengeance of the Danes. Many a Norman 
 champion had been stricken down that day, and when 
 night fell they that slept in death on either side out- 
 numbered the living who lay down to rest. Far upon 
 the plain the watch-fires marked the camps of either 
 host. Day brake, and a mist lay thick on land and sea. 
 The Danes waited for their enemies, and went hither and 
 thither seeking them, but only stumbled on the slain. 
 They came to the Norman camp ; the watch-fires 
 smouldered still, but no man was by them, for in the 
 night the Normans had betaken themselves to their ships 
 and had carried off Gudrun and her women and sailed 
 away ; and the fog covered them from sight. Loud was 
 the clamour of the Danes, and fierce the wrath of Yarl 
 Wate as a lion's robbed of prey. ' We cannot follow 
 them,' said Frute bitterly ; ' with this fair wind they are 
 full ten leagues away, and we are now too few to venture 
 on another chase.' So they made a mound of the slain, 
 and buried together friend and foe, earth-covered, on 
 a windy ness, and gat them heavy-hearted to their 
 ships, and made sail for Denmark. But when they 
 reached Queen Hilda's castle all feared to tell of that 
 which had befallen them. The queen came out to 
 greet them and to welcome home her lord the king. 
 And when all held their peace, Yarl Wate stood forward.
 
 1 88 Tales of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 and bravely he outspake : * Many years have I eaten of 
 the king's meat. I have served him through field and 
 flood, and how shall I lie to Hettel's queen ? Grudrun is 
 yet a captive. Hettel is slain, and with him the most 
 part of our bravest knights are dead in Wulpensand.' 
 Then the queen covered her face, and went up into her 
 chamber to weep. Many a strong knight lifted up his 
 voice and wept. But Wate said : ' Tears will not bring 
 the dead back, nor rescue Gudrun. It is true there are 
 but a handful of us left, but let us teach our boys to grow 
 up and hate the Xormaus, and let us train their hands to 
 war, and wait with patience for the reckoning day.' 
 
 Meanwhile the Norman ships made a fair voyage. 
 And when land was sighted, King Ludwig called for 
 Gudrun to show her the sun shining upon the green 
 pastures and woodlands of Xormandy. ' Behold,' said he, 
 ' the land whereof thou shalt be queen.' Hartmuth 
 stood a little apart to hear how she would answer. 
 Gudrun said : ' I will never Ije queen of Xormandy ; I 
 will never be Hartmuth's wife. How should I wed the 
 son of him that slew my father ? ' Then said Ludwig, 
 ' Choose betwixt queen and bond-slave, whether of the 
 twain you list ? ' Gudrun answered : ' I liave no choice, 
 nor any mind for choice. My troth I pledged to 
 Herwig, and nothing can ever part me from my troth.' 
 Then waxed King Ludwig very wroth, and he caught the 
 maiden by her long hair, and swung her overboard, 
 saying fiercely, ' Death be thy groomsman and the sea 
 thy priest I ' But Hartmuth leaped into the water, and 
 dived down until he saw the glitter of her golden hair, 
 upbore her in his arms from the depths into the light 
 again, and gave her to her women. And Hartmuth was 
 very angry with his father because he had done this 
 thing. 
 
 Now Queen Gerlinda had prepared a royal greeting for 
 Gudrun, and sought to dazzle her with the splendour of
 
 The Gndrim Lay. 189 
 
 the court. Arrayed in richest robes of gold embroidery 
 she rode forth on a palfrey from the castle gates, with all 
 the noblest knights of Normandy in her train. Beside 
 her rode fair Ortrun, Hartmuth's sister, whose simple 
 heart felt woman's tenderness toward a prisoner for love's 
 sake. And when Ortrun saw Gudrun she ran and took 
 her hand and kissed her. Never a word spake either 
 woman, but the two were friends henceforward from that 
 hour. Then with haughty courtesy the Queen Grerlinda 
 stooped to kiss the captive, but Gudrun turned her red- 
 dened cheek away in sudden pride, saying, ' Gerlinda's 
 kisses would lie harder on me than my wrongs.' Gerlinda 
 made as though she heard not, but she kept that saying 
 in her heart. With feasting and dance, with music and 
 with knightly games, Hartmuth sought to beguile 
 Gudrun of her sorrows ; but she had no mind for beguile- 
 ment, neither would she hearken to his wooing. And in 
 those days Gudrun knew no comfort save when she 
 might lay her head on Ortrun's gentle breast, and there 
 weep out the griefs which she bore dry-eyed before the rest. 
 Ortrun would soothe and hush the stronger woman as a 
 mother lulls her nursling from its pain. 
 
 Months passed and Hartmuth longed for Gudrun's 
 love, yet he refrained from importunity, because her 
 peace was dear to him. So he watched and wailed, 
 thinking she might change, and lived on hope that each 
 day would bring some word or look in earnest of a change. 
 And when none came, his heart grew sick from hope 
 deferred. His very love grew cruel from its fierceness 
 and its hopelessness ; and he hearkened to his mother's 
 counsel. ' Leave her to me ; you are too soft a wooer 
 for this haughty girl.' So spake Gerlinda ; and a little 
 while after, when Hartmuth was by, she talked with 
 Gudrun on this wise : ' Why not wed my son ? Will 
 your pride never bend, that you must tempt me on to 
 break it ? Is Hartmuth not a comely man, and prince
 
 TQO Talcs of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 of Normandy ? Know you not tliat you shall sit upon my 
 throne and reign with him ? Why would you madden me? ' 
 Gudrun answered : ' You know that I am troth-plighted. 
 Why weary me ? If I were not, I would not wed your 
 son. The blood of my kindred is upon his hands. Your 
 palace is my dungeon ; your crown a golden fetter red 
 with my father's blood. How shall I do this wickedness, 
 and break my troth, and break my heart, and bring 
 disgrace upon my kinsfolk ? ' Loftily she left them, the 
 red anger mounting to her cheek. Then said Hartmuth 
 bitterly, ' Always the same : scorn and hard words. 
 Mother, I will forget this woman ; I will go away ; and 
 when far off, will feed my memory only with her unkind- 
 ness.' Then, since the violence of his unrequited love 
 was chilled, his heart became a thought more tender to 
 her womanhood, and he said : ' Do with her as you will 
 when I am gone ; only treat her kindly, as becometh a 
 king's daughter, remembering that she has suffered many 
 things already because of us.' 
 
 So Hartmuth set out in quest of knightly adventures. 
 But no sooner was he gone than Queen Gerlinda came to 
 Gudrun, saying, ' Now, you despiser of the love of a 
 prince and the kisses of a queen, I shall shortly break 
 your stubborn will. You, who count Ludwig's throne 
 too low to satisfy your pride — how say you if I send 
 you down among the scullions to scour and scrub with 
 base-born drudges ? ' But though Gudrun's cheek 
 whitened, she answered straitly, ' Do with me as you 
 will ; I am in your hands ; all that you lay upon me that 
 will I strive to bear, but nothing shall ever break my 
 troth.' Then the queen took Gudrun and stripped off 
 her courtly raiment, and clad her in rags, and set her to 
 drudge in the kitchen. With her also her thirty maidens, 
 who were all dukes' daughters, were made to do the like ; 
 and they gathered sticks and made the fires, and cleaned 
 the pots and kettles, and scrubbed the floors, and did all
 
 The Gudrun Lay. 191 
 
 the foulest work in the castle ; and if a filthier task 
 could be found for one than for another, it was given 
 to Gudrun. And their meat was beg-gars' fare. Thus 
 for three years toiled Grudrun among the scullions, 
 dui'ing all which time Ortrun was forbidden to go near 
 her ; but often Queen Gerlinda would come and mock her 
 as she toiled, asking whether she found court life to her 
 mind. Yet Gudi'un meekly endured, saying only, ' A 
 constant heart for love's sake makes malice easy to be 
 borne.' 
 
 Now when three years were over Hartmuth came back, 
 having gained great renown for his valorous exploits in 
 far countries. He had never ceased thinking of Grudrun. 
 He remembered not her unkindness, but only his love ; 
 and in the tournament and the battle her name had been 
 his war-cry. But when he came and knew how Gudrun 
 was set to do the work of a bond-slave, he was angry and 
 rebuked his mother, saying, ' Cruelly have you treated 
 the noblest woman in the world ; ' and he spake no more 
 at that time to his mother, but went down among the 
 scullions to where Gudrun was, and took her hand and 
 made obeisance to her as to a queen, and said : ' Dear 
 lady, believe me I have had neither part nor lot in this. 
 Will you not hear me now ? See, I would take you from 
 these noisome tasks and clothe you in richer apparel than 
 ever queen yet wore, and you shall sit upon the throne of 
 Normandy. Dear Gudrun, have you not one gentle word 
 for me ? For your sake I went away, striving to forget 
 you, but in vain ; for I can love no other woman.' 
 Gudrun said : ' These hardships are less hard than your 
 intreaties. My troth is given, and my mind can never 
 change.' Being vexed he said : * Did I not seek you 
 over land and sea ? Have I not, all these years, dared all 
 things for your sake ? Your very life belongs to me who 
 snatched it from the wave ; yet you spiurn me. Is this 
 a fit reward for deeds like these ? ' Gudrun answered ;
 
 192 Talcs of the TetUojiic Lmids. 
 
 • You snatched me from all that I hold dear — home, 
 kindred, and the man for whom alone I would leave both. 
 You brought my father to his death. For which of these 
 good deeds should I reward you ? ' Whereat, losing 
 patience, Hartmuth said in a rage, ' Drudge on among 
 the drvidges then I My mother was not far wrong if this 
 be still your temper.' So he left her there to slave. 
 But do what he might Hartmuth could not help loving 
 Grudrun, and after a while he went to his sister Ortrun, 
 saying, ' Dear sister, intercede for me with Gudrun. She 
 has borne much and long : wherefore do you take her up 
 out of the kitchen and clothe her in seemly raiment, and 
 let her dwell with you in your bower. Comfort her, and 
 make amends for what she has suffered, and seek to turn 
 her mind towards me ; for if cruelty will not soften her 
 heart, perchance kindness may.' 
 
 At these words Ortrun rejoiced greatly, for she had 
 grieved heavily at being separated from Gudrun, and 
 bewailed her cruel lot with many tears. So for a long 
 space henceforth Gudrun dwelt with Ortrun, and Ortrun 
 comforted her, and they loved each other as sisters. 
 Very sweetly Ortrun prayed Gudrun that Hartmuth might 
 find favour in her eyes ; for indeed she loved her brother 
 and admired him with a sister's pride, neither could she 
 understand how he could be displeasing in the sight of 
 any woman. And she pleaded yet the more earnestly, 
 fearing lest worse things might be in store for Gudrun if 
 she still turned a deaf ear to his suit. But Gudrun 
 always told her that she could never break her troth to 
 Herwig. Long after Ortrun knew this, she yet contrived 
 delay, and put her brother off, saying, ' Wait a little ; see 
 what another month will do.' Thus more than a year 
 slipped by, till Hartmuth's mother urging him, he would 
 wait no longer. Then once more he intreated Gudrun 
 for his love's sake, to give him hers. She said, ' I cannot ; 
 it is given.' Hartmuth said, ' Bethink you yet again.
 
 The Gudrun Lay. 193 
 
 Herwig without doubt is dead or faithless long ago. 
 Would I have left my promised bride in a strange land 
 all these years, whilst I might draw a sword or fling a 
 spear ? Would Herwig if he loved you ? Of a surety he 
 is a worthless knight or a faithless lover.' Gudrun 
 answered him, ' I cannot tell why Herwig comes not. I 
 have looked for his deliverance, and hoped till hope has 
 waned to wanhope. But whether he has forgotten me or 
 not I keep my troth until I die.' 
 
 Then Hartmuth no longer hindered his mother from 
 wreaking all her wicked will upon Gudrun. So Queen 
 Gerlinda clad her again in the coarsest weeds, and set her 
 to harder tasks than before. She was sent daily to the 
 seashore to wash clothes from daybreak till dark, and pun- 
 ished with ill words and blows if the full tale of her task 
 was not accomplished. Gudrun miurmured not, neither 
 for the hard labour, to which she had never before been 
 used, nor for the harder sayings which the Queen con- 
 tinually cast in her teeth. Gudrun set herself so 
 steadfastly to her work that before long no woman in the 
 land could wash clothes whiter than she. All Gudrun's 
 maidens remained faithful to her, and to their land, save 
 one, Heregard by name, who being beguiled by the king's 
 cup-bearer went away and abode with him, and grew 
 hard of heart, and jeered alike at the sorrows and the 
 constancy of her mistress. But for the rest, their hearts 
 were like to break at seeing the hard tasks which Gudrun 
 did so meekly ; and the fairest of them all, named 
 Hildeburg, who was daughter of a prince, spake openly 
 to the queen of her cruelty. Enraged at this, Ger- 
 linda sent Hildeburg also to the seashore to wash with 
 Gudrun. But this was just what Hildeburg wanted, and 
 she rejoiced greatly in her mind at being able to share 
 the toils of her mistress. With her pleasant talk she 
 cheered Gudrun's heart and lightened her labour, so 
 that the long v.eary days passed quicker. And though 
 

 
 194 Tales of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 they had to trudge daily through the deep snow to their 
 work on the seashore, bearing their heavy burdens of 
 linen, Gudrun was greatly comforted by Hildeburg ; and 
 she would often stop her work for a moment to put her 
 arms round Hildeburg's neck, saying, whilst the tears 
 stood in her eyes, ' God reward thee, Hildeburg, for all 
 thy faithful love.' And Hildeburg would answer with a 
 smile and kiss, ' I have my reward to be with thee.' 
 
 Time sped with Gudrun at her toils, till since the 
 battle on the Wulpensand many a spring had come 
 and gone, and many an autumn had yielded up its golden 
 grain. Seedlings of King Hettel's time grew up and 
 blossomed and bare fruit ; saplings had grown young 
 trees ; and Danish boys, trained by Yarl Wate in hatred 
 of the Normans, were grown up stalwart men, swift 
 javelin-throwers, strong wielders of the sword, with all 
 the mind to put their vengeance in their fingers. 
 
 Year by year Queen Hilda had set the smiths of 
 Denmark to make javelin-heads, and sword-blades, and 
 ring-mail. These she stored up in Hegelingen against 
 the reckoning day ; and she commanded her ship- 
 wrights to build seven great dragon ships of war and two 
 and twenty smaller ships to be ready against that day. 
 Queen Hilda had long given Gudrun up, thinking in 
 truth that Hartmuth had forced her to wed with him. 
 But she wanted vengeance for her lord King Hettel ; and 
 there was scarce a woman in Denmark that did not 
 cry likewise for vengeance for a husband or a brother or 
 a son. So all those years mothers suckled their babes to 
 war, gave bows and spears for playthings to their boys, and 
 trained them to a hardy life, and patiently waited for the 
 day. 
 
 At last, grey old Yrolt said to the queen, 'The day 
 has come.' A glad woman was the queen ; and straight- 
 way gathered she her vassals together, Yarl Wate and 
 Moruug and Frute and Horant, with all their warriors :
 
 The Gtidrujt Lay. 195 
 
 and she sent and fetched Herwig out of Zealand. 
 Ortwin was a-rivering with his hawks when the mes- 
 sengers came to him. Blithely he loosed the jesses from 
 the birds, took off their hoods and let them fly, saying, 
 ' Now I have a better quarry I ' 
 
 When all was ready the ships set sail. Many Danisli 
 women were there to see. Fiercely they rejoiced, becau.se 
 the day had come. 
 
 Yarl Wate steered first for Wulpensand. And as they 
 drew near the island, a storm arose and the winds blew ; 
 and ever there came upon the wind a sound of grievous 
 moaning and lamentation from the spirits of the slain ; 
 for the dead Danes lay restless in their graves. Where- 
 fore as soon as the storm had abated, the warriors landed, 
 and passed many days upon Wulpensand, watching about 
 the mound, communing with the voices on the wind, and 
 praying for rest for the souls of their kinsfolk. Each 
 night, for nine nights, they kindled the bale-fire, and 
 watched thereby till dawn. 
 
 One day, as Grudrun and Hildeburg were washing linen 
 on the beach, they saw something like a white swan, 
 which seemed to rise up from where the red sun sank 
 into the golden sea. But as it drew nigh to them they 
 perceived that it was a sea-maiden of rare and wonderful 
 beauty. And the sea-maiden spake to them, saying, ' Ask 
 something of me, for I know the secrets of the sea.' 
 Then Gudrun besought, her to speak concerning her 
 home and kinsfolk, and how it fared with her mother 
 Queen Hilda, and Ortwin her brother. The sea-maiden 
 answered ; ' To-night, before the sun set, I was sixty 
 leagues to northward, and there passed a fleet of many 
 Danish war-ships on the waters above my head. I heard 
 the warriors talk. Ortwin is there, Yarl Wate, and Yrolt, 
 with a host of mighty-handed men ; and they steer for 
 Normandy. Hilda the queen fares well, and sends them 
 on their errand.' Grudrun said, 'These are of a truth 
 
 o 2
 
 196 Tales of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 glad tidings ; but tell me of Herwig ; does he live, and 
 has he forgotten Gudrun ? ' The sea-maiden answered, 
 ' Herwig is with them ; he has not forgotten, for I heard 
 him speak of Grudrun as his dear and only love. Be of 
 good cheer, maiden, there are strong hands at the oar- 
 banks, and the ships will make no tarrying.' Having 
 thns spoken the sea-maiden sank into the water, and the 
 golden sea closed over her. Then was Gudrun right 
 glad of heart, yet for very joy dared scarce believe the 
 words she had heard ; and Hildeburg and Gudrun forgat 
 to finish their tasks, being fain to speak one to another 
 of their dear friends on the sea. 
 
 But when they got home at night, and Queen Gerlinda 
 found their work not so much as half done, she be- 
 called them the foulest names, and gave them only a 
 mouldy crust and a cup of water for their supper ; more- 
 over, she took away the bed whereon they were wont to 
 sleep, and made them lie upon the hard boards. And 
 when morning brake, and they looked out of their 
 window, they saw the ground covered deep with snow, and 
 the wind was blowing very bleakly. Then Hildeburg 
 found her way to the queen's chamber where Gerlinda 
 slept upon a bed of down, and besought her with tears 
 that if they were to be sent out to wash in the bitter cold 
 they might at least have shoes to wear because of the 
 snow. Gerlinda awoke in a rage, and turning on her 
 soft pillows said, ' You shall both do double task to-day 
 for this ; and if you fail you shall be flogged. Shoes, 
 forsooth 1 You shall not have them. Let your pride 
 warm you ! ' Hildeburg prayed, * Have pity on us, or 
 we shall perish in the bitter snow.' But Gerlinda 
 answered, ' Then perish ! What care I if you live or if 
 you die ? It is naught to me.' Then Gudrun, who had 
 ventured to follow a little behind Hildeburg, said, 'A 
 day may come when you will remember these cruel 
 words.' But the queen had the maidens driven out from
 
 The Gudrun Lay. 197 
 
 the castle, and made them walk with naked feet through 
 the snow to their hard task on the cold sea-beach. 
 
 Now at noon the Danish war-ships drew nigh shore, and 
 Yarl Wate ran the vessels aground just off a headland 
 where a forest stretched down to the water's edge. There 
 the Danes encamped with all their host, both of men and 
 horses, and hid themselves in the shelter of the forest till 
 they might learn how the land lay. 
 
 When they had taken counsel together they determined 
 to send out spies ; and Herwig and Ortwin being bent on 
 going, these two went forth to spy out the country, saying 
 to their comrades, ' If we are taken, ransom us ; if we 
 fall avenge us ; ' and gat tliem into a little boat, and 
 rowed along the shore and round the woody headland till 
 they saw a bare bleak beach and two maidens standing by 
 the sea. 
 
 Grudrun saw the boat and said to Hildeburg, ' Perad 
 venture these be the men whereof the sea-maiden spake. 
 I should die of shame if any kinsfolk of mine saw Hettel's 
 daughter in this wretched plight.' And Hildeburg being 
 likewise ashamed, they left their washing on the beach 
 and fled. Then Ortwin and Herwig called after them to 
 stay, saying, ' Grood washerwomen, do not flee from us ; we 
 will not harm you.' But the maidens made as though 
 they heard not. 
 
 Then said Herwig, ' For the sake of womankind we 
 would have speech with you.' 
 
 Grudrun answered, ' You shall not plead that name in 
 vain.' 
 
 Then they turned and came back. And when they 
 came before the warriors, Herwig and Ortwin were 
 astonished at beholding them ; for though they shivered 
 with the piercing cold, and were only clad in rags and 
 went barefoot, and though their hands were roughened 
 with hard tasks, they were royal women as a man might 
 see.
 
 1 98 Tales of the Teiito7iic Lands. 
 
 ' Fear not,' said Ortwin, ' we will do you no hurt. But 
 tell us, does your master keep many maids so fair to wash 
 his clothes ? ' 
 
 Grudrun answered, ' Yonder in the castle are maidens 
 fairer than we. But, good sirs, if you mean us well, 
 hinder us no longer from our work, for we shall smart for 
 it at night.' 
 
 Then Ortwin took out rings of red gold, saying, ' These 
 will we give you if you will only answer us the questions 
 that we shall ask.' 
 
 ' Gifts are of no use to us,' said Grudrun, 'they would be 
 taken from us. Ask your questions quickly, but do not 
 keep us idling from our work. We will answer, even if 
 each word should cost a stripe to-night.' 
 
 Then Herwig asked, ' Tell us whose is the castle 
 yonder ? ' 
 
 They answered, ' That is King Hartmuth's castle, these 
 are his lands.' 
 
 ' And Hartmuth, is he within the castle ? ' 
 
 They answered, ' Yes : and with him four thousand of 
 his strongest warriors keep the walls.' 
 
 Now the maidens might have gone back to their work, 
 for the warriors had learned all that they wanted to know ; 
 but Grudrun and Hildeburg tarried on, because the Danish 
 tongue was so sweet to them and sounded like old music 
 to their ears. 
 
 Ortwin said, ' Why does Hartmuth keep so many 
 warriors within walls? Is he then at war with his 
 neighbours, or has he need to rule his people with the 
 sword ? ' 
 
 Gudrun answered, ' Nay. But he used to fear some- 
 times that a people far across the sea would come and 
 take vengeance for a king of theirs whom he slew. Now, 
 perchance, it is old habit ; it is long ago, and Hegelingen 
 is so far.' But at the mention of her home the tears
 
 The Giidrun Lay. 199 
 
 came up in Gudrun's eyes, insomuch that she was fain to 
 turn aside to hide them. 
 
 Then seeing them shiver in the snow, Herwig and Ortwin 
 took off their furred mantles and besought the maidens to 
 wrap themselves from the cold ; but Gudrun said, ' God 
 reward you for your charity, but it is not meet for a maid 
 to wear the garment of a man.' 
 
 Now as Herwig steadfastly beheld the face of Gudrun 
 he saw continually how like she was to Hettel's daughter, 
 yet never so much as thought that it was Gudrun herself, 
 believing that Hartmuth had long ago forced her to be 
 his wife. And Ortwin said, ' Many years ago, was not a 
 company of noble maidens carried captive to this place ? 
 And was not one of them called Gudrun ? ' 
 
 Gudrun told him, ' Yes : Hartmuth brought them. I 
 knew Gudrun well ; and better than most I know how 
 much she suffered, and how long. If you know any friends 
 of Gudrun's, I pray you tell them, " She suffered, and she 
 kept her troth, and died." ' For Gudrun thought, it is 
 better that my kinsfolk think so than know of my 
 disgrace. 
 
 When he heard these words a great trembling fell upon 
 Herwig, and he cried out in the bitterness of his soul, ' 
 Gudrun, thou that wast and art my only love I What can 
 I do ? Too late I too late ! ' 
 
 Gudrun said quickly, ' Man, do not lie to me. Thou 
 Herwig ! Herwig died long ago. I tell you I have seen 
 him with his spear bear down an army when he came and 
 fought before Hegelingen. No. Herwig is dead, or long 
 ere this he would have come to save his faithful maid 
 from shame ! ' 
 
 Then said Herwig, ' Who art thou ? ' 
 
 Gudrun answered, ' One of the captive maidens.' 
 
 ' If you were one of Gudrun's maidens,' he said, ' you 
 should know this ring upon my hand, for it was Gudrun's 
 ring. She gave it me.'
 
 200 Tales of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 Then a light came into Grudruu's face and the tears into 
 her eyes. ' I know the ring,' she cried. ' I gave it ; and to 
 thee. I am Gudrun. Behold thy ring is yet upon my 
 hand ! ' She fell upon his breast, and there he folded her. 
 Who shall tell the tears they wept at greeting after so 
 long sorrow ? So they all knew each other, and Gudrun 
 found her lover and her brother both in one day. 
 
 Herwig would have carried Gudrun off straightway to the 
 Danish camp but for Ortwin. Gudrun pleaded likewise to 
 be delivered immediately from her hard bondage ; but 
 Ortwin would not. He said, ' How can I steal thee, sister, 
 like a thief? Fear not. We will certainly deliver thee.' 
 
 And Herwig said, ' Ortwin is right. We cannot do this 
 thing. But be of good courage ; we have many thousand 
 stalwart Danes with us, and the day is nigh at hand.' 
 But Gudrun's heart sank within her, for she knew that a 
 short delay had cost already all the years of her captivity. 
 Herwig said, ' Only a little while and we will never more 
 be parted.' So the two men entered again into the boat 
 and rowed away to their camp behind the headland. 
 
 When they were gone Hildeburg said, ' We have tarried 
 too long from our task to get it done to-night, but let us 
 set to work and try . what we can do, if peradventure it 
 may lighten our punishment.' Proudly spake Gudrun : 
 ' Away with your tasks ! I have talked with kings to-day, 
 and they have held me in their arms. I will no longer 
 slave. Gerlinda may do her worst. I care not.' And 
 with that she took up all the heap of linen clothes and 
 flung them in the sea. 
 
 Now it befell that Heregard, that same faithless damsel 
 which left her mistress for love of the king's cup-bearer, 
 seeing afar off how the men met Gudrun on the beach, 
 ran and told the queen that Gudrun had been kissing two 
 fishermen ; for such she thought them, seeing their boat 
 and their rough furred mantles in the distance. So at 
 night when the maidens got back to the castle, Gerlinda
 
 The Gudrun Lay. 201 
 
 bowed herself before Gudrun in mock obeisance, saying, 
 ' proud and modest maiden, once a despiser of kings' 
 sons, now not too coy to kiss base fisher-people on the 
 beach, have I broken your pride at last ? Nay ; lie not, 
 woman : Heregard, here, saw you.' 
 
 Then said Gudrun in disdain, ' It is not true. Never 
 kissed I a man save he was of my kindred.' 
 
 The queen cried in a rage, ' Do you tell me to my face 
 that I lie ? ' Then casting her eyes on the empty washing 
 baskets, she said, 'Where are the clothes, you idle 
 drudge ? ' 
 
 Gudrun answered, ' I threw them into the sea. There 
 they may stay ; I will no longer wash your clothes.' 
 
 Gerlinda's very fingers itched to strike Gudrun. 
 Quickly she commanded to fetch a bundle of sharp thorns, 
 and bade her servants strip Gudrun and bind her to the 
 door-post for a flogging. 
 
 Then while all the women made doleful lamentations, 
 Gudrun bethought what she should do. And presently she 
 spake to Gerlinda, saying, ' How can I wear the crown 
 after being scourged in sight of all the servants in the 
 hall ? ' 
 
 ' What mean you ? ' asked the queen, scarce believing 
 her ears. 
 
 Gudrun answered, ' I am tired of drudging at your 
 tasks, weary of rags and beggar's fare. My mind 
 is changed. I will be queen. Go and tell Hartmuth 
 so.' 
 
 Then Gerlinda, rejoicing greatly in her triumph, made 
 haste and came and told her son. And Hartmuth, not 
 yet daring to believe the words he heard, ran in, and 
 though Gudrun was still clad in her dripping rags, would 
 have taken her in his arms and comforted her from her 
 long hardships. But Gudrun drew back and avoided 
 him, saying, ' Let not my lord the king be angry, but 
 to-day I am a serving-maiden, and in these tattered
 
 202 Tales of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 garments I shrink from before the king's state and magni- 
 ficence. Array me first in royal raiment, that I may 
 shame neither myself nor thee.' 
 
 Hartmuth said, ' Thou art queen already. Command 
 what thou wilt and it shall be done according to thy 
 word.' 
 
 Then said Gudrun, ' I would have a bath made ready 
 to-night and all my women set free to wait on me.' So 
 Hartmuth sent and commanded her thirty maidens to 
 be brought from their tasks, and caused them to be 
 clothed in garments fitting their high degree, and set 
 them to wait upon Gudrun. And next morning when 
 they were brought before the king, Gudrun walked 
 queen among them all as the moon sails among the stars. 
 
 Hartmuth commanded the tables to be spread and piled 
 with delicious meats ; and they poured ovit the ale and 
 mead and held a feast. The king set Gudrun upon his 
 right hand and next to her the gentle Ortrun. Glad was 
 Ortrun because they were reconciled, and she said to 
 Gudrun, ' Sweet sister, I am happy because of thy relent- 
 ing. My brother would have wed no other woman, and I 
 was the next heir to the throne. I am not wise enough 
 nor fair enough to wear a crown, but thou art worthy. 
 Dear sister, I am glad.' And Gudrun being touched at the 
 gentleness of her good friend, said, ' Dear Ortrun, God 
 forbid I should ever forget all thy love and tenderness to 
 me in time of need.' 
 
 Now when the feast was ended Gudrun spake to the 
 king, saying, ' My lord Hartmuth, it is the custom in our 
 land whenever a king would wed, that he should first 
 gather together all his nobles to a feast, that they may 
 see their queen and approve the king's choice, and so have 
 no excuse for after strife.' 
 
 Hartmuth answered, ' After thine own manner will I 
 wed thee.' So he sent out messengers to go all round the
 
 The Gudrtcn Lay. 203 
 
 country and summon his lords to the banquet. But 
 Gudrun went away to her chamber, and when she was 
 alone with her handmaidens she bade them be of good 
 courage for deliverance was certainly nigh at hand ; and 
 she spake to them concerning Herwig and her brother 
 whom she had met on the sea-beach. Then were they all 
 glad, and Gudrun laughed aloud for joy. But a certain 
 damsel of the castle passing by the chamber door, heard 
 her laugh and went and told the queen. And Gerlinda 
 went and told Hartmuth, saying, ' Gudrun laughed to- 
 night. She has not laughed for years. This is an ill- 
 foreboding ; I feel as though some evil hung above our 
 heads.' But Hartmuth answered, ' What idle fear is this ? 
 Gudrun laughed ? Why not ? It is lit she should make 
 merry, and rejoice to end her toil, and wed with me, and be 
 the Queen of Normandy.' So with a smile he bade his 
 mother go to rest ; but he went down into the hall and 
 walked among his guards and set the watches for the 
 night. Gerlinda lay and tossed upon her bed of down, 
 and sleepless longed for day, yet feared to see it break. 
 
 Two of Gudrun's maidens watched at her window 
 through the night ; a wild March night, when the clouds 
 were torn in the windy sky and the very heavens 
 seemed adrift with the stars. So softly gathered the 
 Danes about the castle walls that no noise was heard save 
 the sea leaping on the sounding beach and the gust that 
 shook the trees and howled among the castle battlements. 
 But in the first grey dawn the maidens saw things move 
 beneath the window, and ever and anon the glint of a 
 spear, till as the darkness lifted they perceived the Danish 
 host and their banners, and ran to Gudrun, saying, ' Wake 
 mistress, wake, for help has come.' 
 
 Just then the warder sounded an alarm, and the castle 
 woke into atumult of noise and clangour as Hartmuth and 
 his knights girt on their armoiu* and hurried to the 
 battlements. Thence they looked out and saw the
 
 204 Tales of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 avenging banner of the son of Hettel blazoned with dagger 
 points over stripes of blood, and Siegfried's escutcheon 
 marked with a red-gold head upon a field of brown. They 
 saw a white banner with gold streaks which Queen Hilda 
 wrought for old Yarl Wate ; and foremost of all, the flag 
 of Herwig, King of Zealand, with sea-weed figured on an 
 azure field. Then came Hartmuth down to the great 
 hall with his father Ludwig, and put himself at the head 
 of all his warriors and gave command to open the castle 
 gates. But his mother came and besought him, saying, 
 ' Why go out and fight, my son ? Is there not victual 
 in the castle for a year ? Then let them rage against the 
 walls, whilst you hurl missiles and great stones upon them, 
 or shoot out quarrels from the loopholes. Go not out 
 against them, for I fear evil will come of it, and some- 
 thing tells me I shall never see you more.' 
 
 But Hartmuth said to his knights, 'Take her away. 
 This is no place for women.' And when they had so done 
 he cried, ' Fling open the gates ! ' and with his mighty 
 following, swarmed out upon the foe. First he met 
 Ortwin, and they brake a spear together, but the crush of 
 battle parted them. Then again they met, and Hartmuth 
 clave Ortwin's helmet and rejoiced to see the blood of his 
 enemy. But a hundred spears pressed forward and strong 
 Danish hands were there to drag Prince Ortwin from his 
 death. Then far as a man might see the war-waves rolled 
 upon the plain, and the hosts swayed to and fro in one 
 great angry battle-tide. And as here and there upon a 
 sea a billow swells more angry than the rest, so round 
 Yarl Wate and Herwig, and round about Hartmuth and 
 King Ludwig, the war-waves raged most furiously. 
 Ludwig and Herwig fought ; Herwig burning to avenge 
 King Hettel's death ; but Ludwig brought him to his 
 knees and struck him senseless for the moment with his 
 heavy blade. A sturdy Dane put forth his body in that 
 instant and took the death-blow meant for his master.
 
 The Gudrim Lay. 205 
 
 P'ull of bitter shame was Herwig that Gudrun should see 
 him on his knees before the slayer of her father ; and he 
 arose and snatched his sword again, and while King Ludwig 
 raised his arm to strike, smote him through the armpit 
 to the heart ; so the king rolled down and sobbed his life- 
 blood out upon the sand. King Ludwig being slain, 
 the Danes gave a great shout and tare the Norman 
 host to pieces like clouds tattered in the blast. Hart- 
 muth made a great stand against Wate before the 
 castle doors, but the old Yarl's blows were like a sledge- 
 hammer beating a smith's anvil ; and in the midst of the 
 fray Hartmuth heard his sister's voice shrieking for help, 
 for a murderous Dane had got into the castle and she was 
 struggling for her life. Yarl Wate knew it and let him 
 go ; so Hartmuth turned to the castle gate and saw the 
 man come running out, for Gudrun's women had fought 
 for Ortrim and driven him down, and he was thinking to 
 escape ; but Hartmuth killed him in the gateway, and then 
 ran to fight Yarl Wate again. 
 
 Now Ortrun looked out from the window, and beheld 
 how the Normans were slain on all sides by the fierce- 
 hearted Danes, and she fell down at Gudrun's feet and 
 besought her, saying, ' Have pity on my people, on my 
 friends and kindred. For the dead's sake spare the living. 
 Scarce a handful of our men remain. My father has 
 been slain as thine was. Have pity on us : you have had 
 blood for blood. And see, — sister, see how Wate is 
 pressing on my brother Hartmuth ! He will kill him in 
 his cruel war-rage. Hartmuth is faint and staggers ! 
 Save my brother, sweet Gudrun ; pity us, and bid the 
 battle cease.' 
 
 Then Gudrun took Ortrun in her arms and kissed her, 
 and said, ' Sister, God forbid that I should forget all thy 
 tenderness to me ; but what can I do ? How can I end 
 tliis bitter strife?' And Ortrun took her kerchief, saying, 
 ' Wave it to Herwig. ]\Iake no tarrying, for the love of 
 
 \
 
 2o6 Talcs of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 G-od, or Hartmuth will be slain ! ' So Gudrun waved it 
 from the window and by good fortune Herwig saw it and 
 came to the wall, (rudrun said, ' Quick I stay the battle, 
 as you love me. Save Hartmuth. See ! Make haste ! ' 
 
 Then Herwig hasted, and ran in betwixt Yarl Wate and 
 Hartmuth and cried aloud, ' Gudrun bids the battle cease. 
 Let no more blood be shed.' But the battle-madness was 
 on Yarl Wate and he was terrible to friend and foe. 
 ' What ! cease at a woman's bidding ? ' and he took 
 Herwig by the middle and flung him far afield, then ran 
 again on Hartmuth hungering ravenously for his life. 
 But they blew the trumpet and the battle was stayed ; 
 and the host came up, and some with their shields sheltered 
 Hartmuth ; others, a great company of them, hustled 
 Wate away. So Hartmuth was saved from death ; and 
 they took and bound him and carried him off captive to 
 their ships. Then the Danes hewed down the castle doors 
 with their axes and brake in for plunder. They carried 
 oflf King Ludwig's treasure chests with all his gold and 
 jewels, and beat down all that hindered them. 
 
 Ortrun sought Gudrun and came weeping, saying, 
 ' Thy people are athirst for blood. They slay on all 
 hands men and women. They will have my life : save 
 me, good sister ! ' Gudrun answered, ' Fear not, thy 
 life is dearer to me than my own. Come in with us, 
 thou and thy maidens. No evil shall come nigh thee, 
 dear sister.' 
 
 Then came also the Queen Gerlinda wringing her 
 hands and wailing bitterly. She knelt down and kissed 
 Gudx'un's feet, and covered them with her tears, and 
 craved for mercy, saying, ' mighty queen ! deliver me 
 from this blood-thirsty band.' 
 
 Gudrun said : ' Did ever prayer or cry of mine once 
 melt your stony heart ? Have you not turned a deaf ear 
 to my sharp distress ? Yet I will let you in. Be in my 
 chamber as one of my maidens.' Then Gudrun let her
 
 The Gudrtcn Lay. 207 
 
 in, and made fast her chamber door ; and all the women 
 crowded together for fear at hearing the terrible sounds 
 in the castle. 
 
 There came a mighty blow which brake down the 
 chamber-door. Yarl Wate ran foaming in among the 
 women ; blood upon his jaws and beard, blood upon his 
 hands ; his armour reeking with fresh blood ; he, like a 
 wild war-beast, blood ravenous still. Fearless, Gudnm 
 went to him. ' Away, thou man of blood ! this is no fit 
 guise for women's company.' The old yarl blundered to 
 his knee. ' Pardon, Queen Gudrun, but I would know 
 who these women be.' 
 
 Grudrun said : ' That is Ortrun, my friend and sister, 
 see thou touch her not. Those are her waiting women. 
 These are my maidens that came with me from Hege- 
 lingen. Now begone.' So he went off grumbling. 
 
 Then quickly ran the false Heregard into the chamber, 
 intreating to stand with Gudrun's maids. Gudrun said, 
 ' Of your will you left them ; you shall not return to them 
 of mine. Go stand with Ortrun's women if you choose.' 
 
 Yarl Wate raged up and down the castle seeking 
 Gerlinda, but at last came back to Gudrun's chamber in 
 a fury. ' Where is that woman ? Give her up to me. 
 I tell you she is here : and I will have her.' 
 
 Gudrun answered boldly, ' She is not here.' 
 
 Wate said, ' Then I will slay them all, for one I know 
 is she.' Now Queen Gerlinda had crouched down behind 
 the other women, and at these terrible words the rest fell 
 down upon their knees ; so Wate saw her. Then he came 
 and dragged her to the door by the hair, and saying 
 fiercely, ' Have you any more clothes for my queen's 
 daughter to wash to-day ? ' cut off her head ; whereat the 
 women shrieked in terror. He said, ' Now I will have 
 her that sold herself to that dead woman ; ' and at this 
 so many of the maidens looked towards Heregard, that
 
 2o8 Talcs of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 Wate seized her, and at one blow sent her head rolling 
 on the floor. 
 
 Xow after the strife was done and they had buried the 
 bodies of the slain, the Danes carried off live hundred 
 captives to their ships and much treasure, and set sail for 
 Denmark. Ortrun went with Gudrun in one ship, and 
 Hartmuth went in keeping of Yarl Wate. Proudly they 
 sailed home to Castle Matalan, and joyful was the greet- 
 ing that Queen Hilda gave her warriors. They held a 
 royal feast with music and with dance, and day by day in 
 the mead-hall the skalds sang of the deeds that each man 
 had done in battle. 
 
 Long pondered Gudrun in her mind how the long 
 strife between the Danes and Normans might be ended ; 
 for she thought, a day will come when the Normans will 
 grow strong again and seek revenge ; first they, then we 
 may conquer, and the feud will never cease. So she 
 went to her brother Ortwin, and said, ' Brother, let us 
 make a lasting peace with the Normans ; and thereto that 
 we may bind both peoples do thou take the gentle Ortrun 
 for thy wife.' Ortwin said, ' I am in nowise loth, for 
 Ortrun is both fair and tender of heart. But would 
 Ortrun wed with me ? Have we not slain her father and 
 her mother? ' Gudrun said, 'Ask her ; she is all gentle- 
 ness.' 
 
 And a little after that came Ortrvm shyly to Gudrun, 
 saying, ' Shall I ? ' Gudrun answered, ' You have called 
 me sister ; will you be my real sister ? ' Ortrun kissed 
 her — ' Dear sister, I will.' 
 
 Then Gudrun made intercession with the queen her 
 mother that Hartmuth might be set at liberty ; and this 
 being granted, he was brought into the great hall, not 
 knowing whether life or death should be his portion. 
 Gudrun came and led him away a little apart and spake 
 with him. ' Hartmuth, look forward many years ; think 
 of the children of our peoples, and their children's
 
 The Gtidrun Lay. 209 
 
 children. What if this strife go on through many 
 generations, and our boys be only born to die in battle, 
 and our girls to grow up mothers weeping for their dead? 
 Is it not better to establish peace for ever ? My brother 
 would wed thy sister, and we offer thee the noblest 
 maiden in our realm, the lady Hildeburg, that was ever 
 a sweet and faithful friend to me, to be thy wife. Wilt 
 thou thus make alliance with us and put an end to many 
 sorrows throughout many ages ? ' 
 
 Hartmuth walked to and fro upon the pavement, and 
 for a long while answered nothing, but went on turning- 
 over many things in his mind, and weighing his long 
 love against the long future of his people. Presently he 
 spake : ' When Ortwin weds with Ortrun, I will take 
 Hildeburg to wife.' Gudrun was moved to tears, and 
 took him by the hand and called him friend, and kissed 
 him for the first and only time ; and that in sight of 
 Herwig and of all the people. Then lightly ran she off 
 to Hildeburg with these glad tidings, knowing aforetime 
 the seci'et of her heart. 
 
 Such a day was never known for rejoicing in Denmark 
 as when Gudrun and Herwig were wed, and with them 
 Ortwin and Ortnm, and Hartmuth and Hildeburg. The 
 five hundred captives were set free, and Danes and 
 Normans made a solemn vow that peace should hence- 
 forth be betwixt them, since they were become of one 
 blood. Thenceforward, in the long years of quiet, when 
 both peoples prospered and grew rich, their children's 
 children sitting by the fireside told the tale of Gudrun, 
 and blessed her that she made the peace.
 
 2IO Tales of the Teutonic Lands, 
 
 THE STOBY OF FBITHJOF AND INGEBJOEG. 
 
 King Bele of Xorroway had a little daughter named 
 Ingebjorg. The boy Frithjof was her playfellow in her 
 father's palace. No king's son nor royal prince was 
 Frithjof: he was only Thane Thorsten's boy. But the king 
 and the thane were friends ; and because friendship 
 makes all men equal, there was no more constraint 
 betwixt king and thane than betwixt their two children 
 which played together in the palace. 
 
 When Ingebjorg was six years old it came into King 
 Bele's mind to send her to the sage Hilding, to learn the 
 wisdom of men and the knowledge of the gods ; but 
 liking not to part the children, he asked leave of 
 Thorsten and sent Frithjof also, to be brought up with 
 her in all the learning of the time. 
 
 Hilding dwelt by the sea. Above the windy cliffs, far 
 up a bleak down -side, was a garden in the hollow of the 
 hills, sheltered by wood and mountain ; a garden where 
 one might always hear the breaking of the waters on the 
 beach. There Hilding dwelt; there he taught Ingebjorg 
 and Frithjof many years. You have seen the bud that 
 swells and pinkens till the glory of the rose unfolds ? So 
 fair grew Ingebjorg. You have seen the sapling oak 
 grow up and lift its arms to brave the storm ? So strong 
 grew Frithjof. Hilding taught Frithjof the Eunes 
 because he was the elder ; but Ingebjorg learned them of
 
 The Story of Frithjof and Ingebjorg. 21 1 
 
 her playmate. In the open air she learned them, from 
 his lips, wandering with him across breezy hills, or 
 through forests of murmurous pine, or sitting at his feet 
 by the sea-shore, watching the white-fringed waves curl 
 in. The first spring flowers of the year, the first summer 
 fruit, Ingebjorg took from Frithjof 's hands. For her he 
 climbed the tallest trees to bring down birds' nests ; for 
 her he clambered up the steep black crag upon the 
 promontory, and robbed the eagle's eyrie. Sometimes in 
 a little boat the boy would venture with her far out upon 
 the heaving sea ; but if the wind blew and heeled the 
 boat a-list, or drave the spray in sheets upon them, 
 Ingebjorg would only clap her hands for joy : she had no 
 fear where Frithjof was. 
 
 As their childhood wore away Ingebjorg stayed oftener 
 at home, learning embroidery and womanly work ; 
 Frithjof grew up a great hunter. Yet ever he brought 
 his spoils to Ingebjorg — no longer flowers and fruit, but 
 heads of wild boar, skins of bear. 
 
 In the long winter evenings, sitting round the hearth, 
 Hilding would tell them stories of the gods. Some- 
 times he spake of Freyja and her golden hair which is 
 praised in all lands ; but Frithjof would smooth Ingebj org's 
 shining tresses, and think, ' Freyja's hair is less beauti- 
 ful and golden than this.' Sometimes he talked of 
 Frigga, and how she had the most lovely eyes in all the 
 world ; but Frithjof looked into Ingebj org's 6,weet blue 
 eyes, and believed it not. 
 
 Hear a story Hilding told them : — 
 
 Baldur^s Death. 
 
 Baldur was fairest of all the sons of Odin Allfather. 
 Radiant and shining was his body ; when he rode his white 
 horse through the sky, light streamed out from him over 
 all the earth. Who so dear to gods and men as Baldur ! 
 
 p 2
 
 212 Tales of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 Wise and sweet were bis words. The gods kept silence in 
 Asgard when he spake. Baldur made wells of water on 
 the earth. Wheresoever he thrust his spear into the 
 ground a spring of water gushed forth, and a grove of 
 trees sprang up. Those springs never fail and those trees 
 are evermore renewed ; and so long as the world lasts the 
 groves shall be holy sanctuaries which no man may pro- 
 fane, but wherein priests continually shall sacrifice. 
 
 Baldur's home was a palace called Breidablick, built 
 on pillars in the heavens, far above the clouds, farther 
 tliau eye can see ; far above storm and rain ; where 
 flowers never fade and summer never dies. There Baldur 
 dwelt with Nanna, his soft-eyed wife, in perfect happiness ; 
 for no evil thing could pass the pillars of his palace. He 
 loved all things in heaven and earth. Asgard was filled 
 with joy because he was glad, and beneath his smile the 
 eartli laughed. 
 
 But evil dreams came to Baldur in his sleep. He 
 dreamed that he should die ; and when he was awake the 
 like sad foreboding fastened on his mind, so that a gloom 
 came over him. Nanna sat and sighed because of his 
 sorrow ; his mother Frigga, goddess of earth, wept secretly, 
 and all Asgard was saddened. Odin Allfather took counsel 
 with the gods, and meditated day and night, but all in vain. 
 Neither could his wise ravens, Huginn and Muninn, who 
 know the thing that has been and is, tell him aught of 
 what should befall Baldur. 
 
 Then Odin determined to go down to the pale kingdom 
 of Death to find out what it was that threatened the son 
 most dear to him. He mounted his steed Sleipnir ; and, 
 his two wolves following and the two wise ravens circling 
 round his head, he sped down like lightning through the 
 air and coming to earth took the path that leads to the 
 cold regions underground where pitiless Hel holds sway. 
 In a kingdom of fog down a horrible depth lives Hel, the 
 restless goddess of Death. Loki, whose heart is Malice,
 
 The Story of Frithjof and higebjo7'g. 213 
 
 is her father, and Hel's sisters are the terrible wolf Fenrir^ 
 and the great earth-encircling serpent. 
 
 Hel sits on a throne of skulls and bones. Her face is 
 loathsome with corruption like a corpse. Her plate is 
 Hunger ; her knife Greed ; Misery her hall ; Silence her 
 threshold ; her bed is Wasting ; her bed-hangings men call 
 Pest ; Sloth is her hand-maiden. Foul and black is her 
 habitation, noisome with slime and death-dews ; tlie 
 pillars of her house are serpents' bones ; a river trails 
 through the hall, thick and sluggish with its load of 
 rotten dead. Nidhoggr sits on the banks sucking the 
 corpses of murderers. 
 
 Odin came along the path which no living foot has trod. 
 The death-hound howled ; but he baw the king of gods and 
 men, and slunk back to his lair. Odin looked down through 
 rolling fogs that came up from the halls of Hel, and dimly 
 he saw the pale Death-kingdom. Behold, there was a 
 table newly spread, a cup fresh filled with mead, and a 
 golden bed made ready ; but no man sat at the table, nor 
 drank of the cup, nor lay upon the bed. Then Odin came 
 to the grey stones beneath which the Norns lie sleeping. 
 He sprinkled sand on one of the stones, and with his 
 sword-point wrote in the sand three times the Eunic 
 words wliich wake the dead. The Norn awaking, spake 
 from beneath the hollow stone : ' What would you ? I am 
 weary ; let me sleep.' Odin said, ' In Hel's pale palace, 
 lo, I see a bed made ready, a table spread, and mead 
 outpoured. Say, for whom are these things prepared ? ' 
 The Norn answered, ' Baldur will sit at the table ; Baldur 
 will drink of the cup ; Baldur will lie in the golden bed. 
 I am weary ; let me sleep.' 
 
 Swiftly sped Odin back to Valhalla, his glorious palace, 
 built of shining spears and roofed with golden shields. 
 Heavy-hearted sat Allfather in his radiant hall ; and the 
 ^?^sir made lamentation with him because it was written 
 that Baldur should die. Then Baldur's mother, the
 
 2 14 Tales of the Tejitoiiic Lands, 
 
 Queen Frigga, thought of a plan. She said, ' Let us take 
 au oatli of all things in heaven and earth that they will 
 not harm Baldur.' And all the ^sir said, ' This is well 
 spoken.' 
 
 Then the gods sware ' We will do Baldur no hurt.' 
 ►Spear, and sword, and arrow, axe and javelin, every manner 
 of weapon whereof the pattern is in Valhalla, clanged 
 against his fellow, saying, ' We will do Baldur no hurt.' 
 Sun, moon, and stars, as they rolled, sang, ' We will do 
 Baldur no hurt.' The clouds sware it, and all that is in 
 them ; lightning, and rain, and ice, and tempest, and the 
 howling winds. Sickness, Plague, and Famine came forth 
 from their lurking places, and said with one accord, ' We 
 will do Baldur no hurt.' The Night sware it, and the 
 shadows, and the dews and mists; the Fire leaped up to take 
 the oath. 
 
 Frigga, goddess of the earth, came down to her 
 kingdom, and prayed all things to do her son no harm. 
 The multitudes of people cried with one glad voice, 'We 
 will do Baldur no hiurt.' Then the sea and all that is 
 therein sware it ; the air and every fowl and insect that 
 moveth above the earth. The earth and all things under- 
 ground murmured, ' We will do Baldur no hurt.' Every 
 beast and creeping thing that goeth on the earth, all 
 trees and herbs that spring from the ground, made a 
 covenant with Frigga, saying, 'We will do Baldur no 
 hurt.' 
 
 Neither was there anything in heaven above nor in the 
 earth beneath which took not the oath, save only a little 
 spray of mistletoe which had no root on the ground but 
 grew upon an aged oak and sapped the life out of the 
 tree. 
 
 Happy was Frigga ; happy Allfather. The gods made 
 merry and rejoiced. And after that Baldur would stand 
 among them for sport, whilst they flung spears and 
 javelins at his body, or smote at him with swords. No
 
 The Story of Frithjof and Ingebj'org. 215 
 
 weapon harmed him ; neither point nor edge would so 
 much as scratch his skin, because of the oath which all 
 things had taken to do Baldur no hurt. So the livelong- 
 day Baldur's ringing laugh sounded through the halls of 
 Asgard, whilst he played among the gods and caught their 
 spears and arrows in his naked hands. 
 
 But Loki was envious of Baldur. Loki has no pleasure 
 unless he can bring sorrow to tlie hearts of gods and men. 
 Loki found out that the mistletoe alone, of all things in 
 heaven and earth,had not taken the oath ; and he hasted and 
 cut it down, and made an arrow of the twig, and pointed it 
 very sharp. Tlien came Loki to the wood of Glasir, outside 
 Valhalla, where the ^sir were shooting at Baldur. 
 
 Hoder, the blind god, stood apart from the rest, laugh- 
 ing to hear the merriment, but took no part in the games 
 — how should he, being blind? 
 
 Loki came to Hoder, saying, * Come, join the sports 
 You will know where Baldur is by the sound of his laugh. 
 Take this arrow. Fling it ; and show that a blind god 
 can do as well as the rest.' Hoder took the arrow from 
 his hand and flung it at Baldur with a merry laugh. 
 
 Baldur fell dead ; pierced to the heart. The blue faded 
 from his eyes, and his radiant body grew pale and cold. 
 Quick the Maix gathered round their favourite. Nanna 
 was there, and Frigga, calling on his name. But Baldur 
 was far away in the dusky kingdom of Hel, sitting at the 
 golden table, and drinking the mead from the golden cup 
 before lying down upon the golden bed. Sharp was the 
 sorrow of the gods, and bitter the sound of their wailing 
 in Valhalla. ' Baldur is dead. Dead ! Baldur the 
 Beautiful is dead — is dead ! ' All things on eartli made 
 lamentation, saying, ' Baldur is dead ! Dead ! Baldur 
 the Beautiful is dead — is dead ! ' 
 
 Loki could not be found. Not even the anger and 
 grief of Odin Allfather could find him. Blind Hoder 
 wept bitterly, because Baldur was very dear to him.
 
 2i6 Tales of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 Tliey bore Baldur's body to his good ship Einghorne that 
 lay beached upon the margin of the sea. But for all they 
 are so strong, the -^sir could not push the ship into the 
 water, it was so heavy. Then they called Firesmoke the 
 giantess, who came riding on a wolf with a bridle of ser- 
 pents. She, by her great strength, pushed the ship into 
 the water : so swiftly it ran down the beach that the 
 rollers caught fire as it rushed into the sea with a mighty 
 noise. Thor was angry at the fire and smoke, since it is 
 his alone to shake the earth with thunder and lighten 
 from the sky ; and with his hammer he would have slain 
 the giantess, only the other gods besought him, and he 
 spared her. 
 
 Then they made a pile upon the ship's deck, and laid 
 Baldur thereupon. With his own hand Odin took the torch 
 and lighted up the fire, and when the flames leaped high 
 and wreathed round Baldur's body, Odin cast his ring 
 Dropnir therein, and sent the vessel sailing on the sea ; 
 whilst all the ^sir cried, ' Baldur is dead 1 — dead ! 
 Baldur the Beautiful is dead! — is dead!' But the gentle 
 Nanna wept not : Nanna mourned not for Baldur. She 
 was with him. Grrief had killed her. 
 
 Odin sent down to Hel in her cold kingdom under- 
 ground, ' What ransom wilt thou take, and give me back 
 my bright and radiant boy ? ' Hel answered, ' Treasures 
 are naught to me ; I will have tears. Is Baldur verily 
 so dear to gods and men ? Let all things weep for him, 
 and I will give him back ; but I will first have tears from 
 everything in earth and heaven.' 
 
 So the command went forth. ' Let all things weep for 
 Baldur.' 
 
 The winds wailed ; the clouds wept ; the stars hid their 
 faces ; sun and moon grew wan and pale ; dews rose from 
 the earth ; every tree and flower bowed its head ; tears stood 
 upon each blade of grass ; the birds ceased their songs ;
 
 The Story of Frithjof and Ingebjorg. 217 
 
 the wide sea moaned on every shore. There was nothing 
 on earth which did not weep for Baldur. 
 
 In Asgard there was mourning and lamentation among 
 the gods. Was there anything that mourned not for 
 Baldur ? Loki was not in Asgard. Loki was not to be 
 found. But far apart there sat a grey old woman, nursing 
 her knees, who sat and munched, and muttered the while : — ^ 
 ' Baldur gladdened me never in life — I will not weep for 
 Baldur.' Peradventure that old crone was Loki in dis- 
 guise. That is why Baldur comes not back. 
 
 But will he never return to brighten earth and heaven ? 
 It is written that Baldur shall not always dwell beneath the 
 ground. His radiance shall break out from Hel's dark 
 prison-house, and burst through lock and bolt and bar. 
 The sky will know when Baldur is coming, and will shine 
 again as in the olden days when he sped across it on his 
 swift white horse. The earth will know, and for gladness 
 flowers will spring up from the ground ; the trees will lift 
 their heads and blossom, and all the birds of the air shall 
 sing ; yea, everything shall make music and be glad when 
 Baldur the Beautiful comes back. 
 
 That was how Hilding taught them of the Death of 
 Summer time. When it thundered he would say, ' Hark, 
 that is the rumbling of Thor's chariot wheels over the 
 clouds ! ' And when it lightened, ' See how his hammer 
 flashes across the sky ! He is flinging at the Trolls.' So 
 Hilding joined earth and heaven in their minds, and 
 showed them the parables of trees and hills and clouds. 
 
 What wonder that, as they grew in years, great love 
 sprang up between the two ? What wonder if they saw the 
 beauty of the gods within each other's eyes ? Frithjof was 
 Ingebj org's Baldur ; she, his soft-eyed Nanna. And when 
 Frithjof would tell Ingebjorg that she should be his wife
 
 2i8 Tales of the Teuto7iic Lands. 
 
 some day, it made her glad : in truth she wished no better 
 lot. 
 
 But Hilding when he knew of this was sorry and said : 
 ' Frithjof, root out this love from thy heart before it 
 grow up and bear thorns. Thou art a bondsman's son. 
 Ingebjorg is daughter of King Bele, whose generation 
 springeth from the gods.' 
 
 Frithjof answered, ' Hast thou not taught me that 
 before the gods a man is what he is, not what his 
 fathers were ? Do not the gods deny their own offspring 
 if they prove unworthy, and take instead to sit with 
 them in Vallialla the noble-minded and the fierce in 
 war ?' 
 
 But Hilding only bade him think no more of his love, 
 for that evil would certainly come of it. 
 
 King Bele waxed old and feeble. One day as he sat 
 in his palace he leaned on the hand of his friend, the grey 
 old thane Thorsten. And the king said, ' Good friend, 
 our life-day is far spent, and the night draws on. The 
 steel helmet presses heavily on my weary head ; the mead 
 has lost its flavour. It is time to rest. But through the 
 darkness we will muse upon the brightness of the gods — 
 so shall our thoughts be like stars to cheer the night, until 
 the day breaks on the golden splendour of Valhalla. 
 Summon hither my sons, and with them thy son Frithjof, 
 that I may bless them while I have strength, and bid 
 tliem hold together as we have done.' 
 
 Thither came the king's sons, Helgi and Halfdan to the 
 palace ; Frithjof was with them. Dark and gloomy was 
 the countenance of Helgi : he came from communion with 
 the priests ; blood fresh upon his hands from the noon- 
 tide sacrifice. Halfdan, the younger, bright as sunshine, 
 had the face and form of some fair wilful girl who had 
 girt on sword and ringmail for a merry jest. Frithjof
 
 The Story of Frit hj of and Ingebjorg. 2 1 9 
 
 stood a head above them both, and nobler, as the noon is 
 twixt the night and day. 
 
 King Bele said : ' When I am gone I would have you 
 three dwell in one mind. As the spear-ring bindeth 
 the spear-shaft together, so fellowship shall make you 
 strong. Let the sword-point guard your borders, but 
 cover ye the kingdom with the shield. In the people is the 
 strength of a king. He is a fool that oppresseth them ; 
 the tree withers when the roots lack nourishment. 
 There be four pillars which do carry the heavens, but 
 only one pillar supporteth the throne of a king. Law is its 
 name ; and that king which doeth his own will instead of 
 the law, puUeth down the seat whereon he sitteth. Son 
 Helgi, be strong, but forget not mercy. Mercy adorneth 
 might as a flower is an ornament to a brazen shield. The 
 mighty should be tender ; the best blade bendeth most. 
 Trust not to auguries ; the signs in the altar-victim may 
 deceive, but never the Eunes that Odin writes upon an 
 honest heart. Get trusty friends ; they are to a man like 
 bark to a tree, to shelter the heart in the evil day of 
 winter storm. Boast never of thy sires. What profiteth 
 a mighty bow to him that cannot bend it to send forth the 
 arrow ? Every river roUeth to the sea on his own waves. 
 Halfdan, thou art bright and pleasant ; but the sweetest 
 honey without hops will make no mead. Let thy sword- 
 hilt glisten with gems, if so thou hast the mind, but when 
 thou drawest it let all men know that the blade is steel. 
 Get knowledge ; fools are many, wise men few. Remember 
 folk will come to thy feasts because thou art a king's son ; 
 they will eat thy dainty meats and drink thy mead ; but 
 if a fool sitteth at the head of the table, they will turn 
 and listen to a wise man in a lowly seat. Choose not too 
 many friends ; only an empty house is open to every- 
 body.' 
 
 Tliorsten likewise spake to Frithjof : ' INIy son, honour 
 the gods. Though their dwelling-place is in Disirsaal,
 
 2 20 Tales of the Teiitojiic Lands, 
 
 they see everywhere, even into the hearts of men. As the 
 flowers are gladdened when they look up to the sun, so is 
 a man's heart when he thinketh of the gods. Honour 
 the king : it is needful that there should be one master in a 
 kingdom ; the bright day hath one sun, but the darksome 
 night hath many stars. Tlie people is the kingdom's 
 swoid against the enemy : one man may take the sword 
 by the hilt, but many grasping it by the blade shall wound 
 themselves. Son, thou art strong, and strength is the 
 gift of the gods. Nevertheless, be not proud of thy 
 strength : for a bear hath the strength of twelve men, yet 
 one man taketh him. ]\Iany a one that stilteth himself 
 up with pride, cometh down to walk on crutches. Death 
 is sure to every man : his might faileth and his strength 
 dieth with him, but his fame liveth after he is gone, and 
 sweet is the savour of good deeds.' 
 
 Then after the two old friends, king and thane, had 
 counselled their children, they gave commandment to be 
 laid side by side in two mounds on the seashore, where 
 the murmur of the waves might hush them in their sleep. 
 And it came to pass soon after that they closed their eyes 
 and died. Never, all his life, had King Bele faced fight 
 without the trusty Thorsten at his right hand ; and even 
 in death the thane went with him down to Hel's dark 
 kingdom. 
 
 They which go by the mounds to this day hear often- 
 times strange murmuriugs like far-off voices. Some say 
 that it is nothing but the wash of the sea upon the beach, 
 or the wind blowing through the crisp brown grasses on tlie 
 cliffs ; others lift a finger and say, ' Listen, King Bele and 
 his faithful thane are whispering in their sleep ! ' 
 
 Then Helgi and Halfdau began to reign in Norroway, 
 ruling the kingdom between them. 
 
 But Frithjof went away to take possession of his in- 
 heritance of P^ramnas : three miles of farm and pasture 
 bordered by the sea. Birchwoods crowned the heights :
 
 The Story of Frit hj of and Ingcbjorg. 221 
 
 on the slopes waved yellow barley and rye, tall as a man ; 
 sleek herds browsed in the lush green meadows ; on the 
 plains the woolly sheep slow drifted, white as the eload- 
 flocks in the sky ; the lakes were full of fish, the forests 
 of broad-antlered elk. Twelve pair of chargers, bridled 
 storm-winds, champed impatient in their stalls ; their 
 manes knotted with scarlet, their hoofs bright with iron. 
 The mead-hall, built of pine, would seat six hundred men. 
 Holm-oak benches and tables were ranged round against the 
 walls. A black, glossy bearskin, with a mouth of scarlet, 
 and silver claws, lay thrown across the chief seat at the 
 end, where Thorsten had been wont to sit ; and on either 
 side were carven in elm the images of Odin, All-ruler, 
 and Frig the god of rain and sunshine. In the midst of 
 the liall was a hearth of polished stone, whereon was 
 always a merry blaze, sweet-scented of the resinous pine- 
 wood, and above it a great chimney, so wide that at night 
 one might look up and see the stars twinkle. Against 
 the walls hung suits of mail and arms enough to furnish 
 a host of men ; well filled were the cellars with good ale 
 and mead, and the chests in the store-rooms were heavy 
 with booty. 
 
 But greater riches had Frithjof than these, for he in- 
 herited three far-famed treasures. 
 
 The first was Angurvadel, bright as the northern light, 
 the wondrous sword made by the dwarfs, the hilt whereaf 
 was gold, and on whose blade were written mystic Eunes 
 which none might read. In time of peace the Eunes grew 
 dull and pale, but in the battle-day they blazed forth red 
 as blood and fierce as fire. 
 
 Next was a golden arm-ring, wrought about the hoop 
 with pictures of the gods, and in the midst a glittering 
 ruby. Lame Wayland the smith made it for the fiist 
 of Thorsten's race. But a Viking named Sote stole it 
 from Thorsten, and taking ship hasted to Britain. Thither 
 Thorsten pursued him. King Bele also bearing him com-
 
 22 2 Talcs of the Teutonic Lajids. 
 
 pany. On the rocky sliore they found a cavern wherein 
 was a mighty tomb. Thorsten and Bele looked in and 
 saw a fearful vision of the black ship of the Viking, that 
 moved and shimmered like to flame. Upon the vessel's 
 mast, in a robe of fire, sat a skeleton scouring a sword- 
 blade to get the blood-stains out, but all in vain ; and 
 on his arm of bone there shone the bracelet. Then they 
 knew that Sote was dead, and that this was his spirit : and 
 King Bele said, ' Let us both go in ;' but Thorsten answered, 
 ' Nay, shame it were for two to fight with one.' Then 
 went he in. King Bele listened and heard the clash of 
 swords, and horrible wailiugs which cannot be uttered. 
 Then came a long and fearful cry ; then silence. Thorsten 
 came running out, white as a stone, with cold dews upon 
 his face ; but the ring was on his arm. What had hap- 
 pened King Bele never knew, and Thorsten would not 
 tell. Once only the thane spake of it, and said ; ' Would 
 rather I had died than bought the ring so dear.' 
 
 The third great treasure was the ship Ellide. It was 
 in likeness of a dragon, with golden head and open jaws 
 at the prow ; the belly thereof was scaled with blue and 
 gold ; and it ended at the stern with a twisted tail of 
 silver. The planks of the ship were not joined by the 
 shipwright, but had grown together. It had black sails, 
 bordered curiously with red, like to a dragon's wings ; and 
 when they were outspread the ship flew over the calmest sea 
 as though before a storm. One of Thorsten's forefathers, 
 when out at sea, picked off a sinking wreck an old man with 
 green tangled locks like seaweed, and brought him home, 
 warmed him at his fire, and gave him mead. Not know- 
 ing who he was, he would have sheltered him through the 
 night ; but the old man said that it was time to be away at 
 sea, and vanished, none knew whither. That was the great 
 god ^Egir, the sea-ruler : he sent the ship for a present 
 for befriending him. 
 
 Those were the treasures of Frithjof.
 
 The Story of FritJijof a?id Ingcbjorg. 223 
 
 Frithjof came to the mead-hall to the funeral feast. 
 Twelve champions sate round his board. At his right 
 hand was the fair-haired Bjorn, bright as a flower among 
 withered leaves. There in the wine-cup, Frithjof and 
 Bjorn sware fellowship for life. Then silently all drained 
 the mead-horn to the memory of good Thane Thorsten. 
 The Skalds came in and sang the praises of the dead. 
 
 Helgi and Halfdan sate in judgment by the gravemound 
 of their father. To them came Frithjof, sailing across 
 the sea in Ellide his dragon-ship, Bjorn and his compan- 
 ions with him. Lightly stepped Frithjof from the ship, 
 and coming into the circle of men thus spake : ' King 
 Helgi and King Halfdan, are we friends, even as our 
 fathers were ? I crave a boon of you. I am not of kingly 
 race as ye are, and might have waited till with my strong 
 hand I had won a kingdom for myself, made myself your 
 equal, and then, with a crown of red gold on my head, 
 come and proffered my request. But love of the land and 
 the throne is strong in me, and I would rather stay and 
 fight for Norroway, to keep her kings in safety on the 
 throne, and her peasants secure within their homesteads. 
 Wherefore I pray you give me Inge bj org to wife. Have 
 we not grown together from childhood, till love has made 
 us part and parcel of each other? Surely King Bele 
 willed it so in training us together. Here, by his mound 
 I ask it : beneath the earth he hears me : let it be accord- 
 ing as he willed.' 
 
 Helgi's face grew dark, and with a sneer he answered : 
 ' The thane's son, bred upon my father's alms, would 
 seek to mate with Odin's line ! Bounty is wasted on a 
 bondsman. Eaise a peasant from the dunghill, and he will 
 want to elbow thee from off the throne. Kind it is of thee 
 to offer to guard my people and my land. Know that the 
 king is the people's shield. Cease from presumption, and 
 perchance, for my father's sake and the odd liking he
 
 2 24 Talcs of the Teutonic Lajids. 
 
 bare to thine, I may find room for thee among my hired 
 servants.' 
 
 Frithjof laughed bitterly, and to his sword cried, 
 * Wake, Angurvadel ! ' The good blade leaped from the 
 scabbard, blood-red its runes. But Frithjof said, ' Helgi, 
 I cannot smite thy black heart from its bone-house ; thou 
 art son of my father's friend.' Then went he to a tree 
 where Helgi's shield of gold and brass hung upon a bough, 
 and at one blow of his sword cleft it in twain. ' That 
 was well struck, good Angurvadel : back to thy scabbard 
 and dream of war till I awake thee next.' Then whilst 
 Helgi and his men stood silent, cowering for fear, Frithjof 
 cried scornfully, 'Birth! Lineage! He says we are not 
 equal ! Look at the sons of Odin's line, trembling before 
 the thane!' Angry he gat him to his dragon-ship, and 
 crossed the sea-ways home. 
 
 Far away north dwelt old King Ring, gentle as Baldur, 
 wise as Mimir. His people loved his silver hairs ; his 
 ear was ever open to their cry ; the wronged he righted, 
 the distressed he comforted. No war-ships anchoi-ed in 
 his bays, but merchant-ships came thither from all lands 
 to barter. No war-steeds trampled down the standing 
 corn on the peasant's land. Eing dwelt in peace, the 
 father of his people. From every home prayers went up 
 continually to Odin for his welfare. But King King's 
 wife was dead, and he had mourned her long, till, being 
 desolate, and his folk urging him, he looked to find a 
 mother for his dead wife's child, and a queen for the com- 
 fort of his people. And hearing the fame of Ingebjorg, 
 who men said was gentle as she was fair, the king sent 
 messengers with costly presents to woo her from her 
 brothers. 
 
 But King Helgi spake austerely to the messengers, and 
 bade them wait three days for an answer, whilst he sought 
 auguries from the entrails of falcons and horses new-killed 
 upon the altar-stone. On the fourth day Helgi returned
 
 The Story of Frithjof and Ingebjorg. 225 
 
 from communing with the priests, and said to the messen- 
 gers, ' Many victims have we slain to learn the will of the 
 gods, and the augury of them all is, Nay. King Ring must 
 be a man of evil heart : he is displeasing to the gods : I 
 have no will but theirs.' Halfdan said merrily, 'Tell 
 old Grreybeard to come himself, and see how quicklv 
 we will help him on his horse again.' And with that 
 they turned and left the messengers without so much as 
 a farewell or a courtesy. 
 
 So the messengers returned to their king and told him 
 how they were treated. King Eing pushed back his golden 
 seat and stood upright. He said, ' Old Greybeard will go 
 himself.' Then strode he to the courtyard, and smote upon 
 the great brazen war-shield of the land that rusted there 
 upon a lime-tree. Quick gathered he his warriors, and iilled 
 the bay with war-ships, numberless and terrible. 
 
 Helgi was afraid and knew not what to do when he 
 learned that King Ring was coming to fight him. But he 
 took Ingebjorg and shut her up in the temple of Baldur 
 for safety ; for Baldur's temple is safe against unhallowed 
 feet amongst all Northmen. Moreover, Helgi prevailed 
 upon old Hilding to go and intercede for him with 
 Frithjof and to persuade him to come and help them 
 against King Ring. 
 
 Hilding found Frithjof playing chess with Bjorn, at 
 a board with gold and silver squares. Frithjof greeted 
 his old tutor gladly, but would not listen to his message : 
 he poured out a horn of mead and bade him refresh him- 
 self whilst they finished the game. 
 
 Then Hilding said, ' Frithjof, cease to be angry 
 with Helgi and Halfdan. Haste to help them, for King- 
 Ring Cometh with all his men to fight against us.' 
 
 Frithjof made as though he heard not. ' Bjorn, heie 
 is check to the king. Will you save it with the pawn ? 
 But what is a pawn, a paltry pawn, that it should save 
 the king?' 
 
 Q
 
 2 26 Tales of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 Hilding, well knowing for whom the speech was meant, 
 said, ' My son, be not high-minded : Helgi and Halfdan 
 may be weak against King Ring, but against thee they are 
 strong enough to lay waste thy house and take thy land.' 
 
 Frithj of laughed : ' So Bjorn, you would have my castle? 
 Well, I have guarded it with my knights ; so try your 
 worst.' 
 
 Hilding said, ' Leave the game, Frithj of, for the game 
 of war. Behold Ingebjorg weeps day and night in 
 Baldur's grove. Let her tears intercede with you.' 
 
 Frithj of cried, ' Bjorn ! Bjorn ! would you take my 
 queen away ? But the queen shall be saved ! ' 
 - Frithj of left his game and stood up, and took Hilding 
 by the hand. ' You have heard my answer. Go, tell 
 Helgi, " The king is the people's shield," and I will not be 
 his thane.' 
 
 Hilding answered, ' Son, I have done my duty ; but I 
 blame thee not.' 
 
 At sunset Frithj of led Bjorn to the beach where Ellide, 
 his dragon-ship, pulled impatient at her cable. They got 
 into the ship. ' Whither goest thou ?' asked Bjorn. ' To 
 Ingebjorg,' he said. 
 
 ' What ! To profane the grove of Baldur ? ' 
 
 Frithj of answered, 'I care not, and I dare. I must see 
 Ingebjorg. I will see Ingebjorg. Friend Bjorn, the gods 
 see everywhere. Baldur knows that my heart is clean of 
 ill-intent. An honest heart defiles no temple. I will go.' 
 
 Baldur's grove was bounded by a wall which reached 
 the sea. No man might enter that holy place on pain of 
 death, save after sacrifice and purification by the priests. 
 Frithj of heeded not: he climbed the steep wall by 
 the sea, and came to Ingebjorg, who trembled for fear 
 because he had profaned the grove. ' Fear not, dear 
 Ingebjorg, but come, let us seek Baldur's pardon, and 
 Baldur's blessing on our love.' Together they walked 
 through the silent grove, and came into the temple and
 
 The Story of Frithjof and Ingebjorg. 227 
 
 bowed themselves before the altar of the god. When 
 they arose a calm fell upon Frithjof s mind. Ingebjorg 
 said, 'Dear Frithjof, they who worship here, being 
 sanctified, may listen to the promptings of their hearts, 
 for Baldiir from his altar sheddeth peace. What wouldst 
 tliou do?' Frithjof answered, 'My anger against thy 
 brethren is turned away. I will do all to make the peace 
 save give thee up. I will go to Helgi in presence of 
 all the people, will give my hand to him in friendship, 
 and ask him to forget the past, to give thee to me, and to 
 take the faithful service of my life.' Ingebjorg kissed 
 him, saying, ' Go ; they are Baldur's words and mine.' So 
 he went upon the errand. 
 
 Three days passed by ; then Frithjof climbed the wall 
 again, and came into the grove to Ingebjorg. Pale and 
 cast-down he came. She saw the answer in his face, yet 
 asked him, ' It has failed ?' 
 
 He answered, ' It has failed. Hear what I have borne 
 with a patient and a steadfast mind. I came to them as 
 they sate by the mounds ; thousands were with them, tak- 
 ing counsel about the war. Meekly I said to Helgi, " 
 king, I have been hasty and impatient, and maybe have 
 presumed too much. Let all the past be past. The enemy 
 is near. Let us be friends. What do I seek ? I ask 
 thee to make thy sister happy and our land strong against 
 the foe. Give me Ingebjorg, and bid me fight against 
 this Eing or any man. By Thor ! you shall see how strong 
 my arm is." All the people urged him, saying, " Give him 
 thy sister, for there is no better mate for her in all the 
 Northland." Then spake old Hilding long and wisely, 
 urging him, and even Halfdan thy brother, sitting at his 
 side, turned round and likewise spake for me. But 
 Helgi sat listening to their words and mine as a stone 
 upon the altar listens to the pleadings of a victim. He 
 would not take my hand, nor yet refuse it, but sat still as 
 an image. There was silence. He cannot speak without a 
 
 <a2
 
 2 28 Tales of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 sneer : he said, " I am well-nigh minded to make friends. 
 Forced by sore need to buy my friendship dear, I would 
 be fain to give my sister to a thrall's son ; but never to 
 him that has profaned the sanctuary. Perchance it is 
 not true ; yet I have heard how one brake into Baldur's 
 temple, and defiled his holy grove. Is this so ? Answer 
 me — was it thou?" Up rose the people's cry, "It is not 
 true! Frithjof has not done this abominable thing!" 
 My Ingebjorg, it was hard to answer ; to turn the people's 
 clamour in my cause to hate ; to lose thee, almost won. 
 But I never thought to lie. I answered, " Unbidden I 
 climbed into Baldur's grove, since Ingebjorg was there. 
 Where she is I will go, in Asgard or in Hel, and neither man 
 nor god shall keep me back. Yet hearken ; I defiled not 
 the temple of the god ; judge ye, for lo I entered it burn- 
 ing with hate — peace fell on me there, and thence, straight- 
 way, I came to thee with gentle words which Baldur 
 put into my mind." Then I became accursed in men's 
 sight, and folk drew back and shunned me like a leper. No 
 longer any raised his voice for me. Helgi said, " Death 
 is the penalty, but my judgment shall be as gentle as the 
 god whose temple you have polluted. Away in the western 
 islands dwelleth Yarl Angantyr, who paid us tribute till 
 King Bele died ; now he holdeth fast his gold. Men say 
 he sleeps upon it as the dragon Fafnir did upon the trea- 
 sure. G^o, wrest the tribute from him. If you bring it, 
 well ; if not, return no more." Such, Ingebjorg, is my 
 sentence. Men think it just and merciful. Ellide swims 
 at anchor yonder, and I go.' 
 
 ' And leave me, Frithjof?' 
 
 ' J^ay, sweet one, nay, I will take thee with me. Come, 
 where none shall point the finger at thy mate, and say, 
 " Profane !" and shudder and turn aside. See, Ellide 
 spreads her wings all eager for the sea. Come to Yarl 
 Angantyr's islands. He was my father's friend, though 
 Helgi knows it not, and he will welcome us.'
 
 The Story of Frithjof and higebjorg. 229 
 
 ' And wouldst thovi break thy word and not bring back 
 the tribute ?' 
 
 ' Never fear but we will send Helgi back his dross, and 
 be for ever free of him. Come !' 
 
 ' Frithjof, I was to blame. My heart goes with thee, 
 but I cannot come. Helgi is in my father's place. I 
 dare not disobey him. It is theft to steal the happiness 
 forbidden ; not less so when it hangs within our reach, but 
 only harder to refrain from plucking it.' 
 
 ' Hast thou no other word for me ? ' 
 
 ' Gro, Frithjof, alone. I will not have men say of thee, 
 he lurked about and stole his wife and fled lest he should 
 face her brother.' 
 
 Heavily turned Frithjof away. ' Proud daughter of a 
 king, I go alone : farewell.' 
 
 ' Proud ? Aye proud ; but only proud of thee, dear 
 Frithjof.' She came and leaned upon his breast and covered 
 him with kisses. ' Do I not love thee, Frithjof, that thou 
 wouldst go away without a kiss, whilst I shall sit and weep 
 till thy return ? Go, with a brave, strong heart, and 
 trust in me.' 
 
 Then Frithjof felt that she was right, and he kissed her 
 and drew forth the armlet of Sote and set it for a pledge 
 upon her arm. So they parted ; and he gat him to his 
 dragon-ship and sailed away. 
 
 When Frithjof had been many days at sea, the wind 
 blew cold, the hoar-frost whitened deck and spars, the 
 rigging grew stiff with ice, and the oarsmen's hands were 
 numbed with cold. The clouds piled black and brooded 
 down ; the sea, moved from its depths, rolled in great 
 tossing hills, and seethed and roared. P'urious the 
 storm-waves leaped upon Ellide to swamp her. The 
 good ship quivered with the blows, and lurching, shook 
 herself, then fearless swooped down the yawning water- 
 valleys, and darted up the green sea-hills. Afar they 
 saw the storm-fiends riding on a whale ; one like a white
 
 230 Tales of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 bear, the other the great storm-eagle, fanning the tempest 
 with her huge black wings. They are the sea-witches 
 Heyd and Ham ; and it was Helgi who sent them to raise 
 this storm to swallow up his enemy. Then Frithjof 
 took the tiller in hand and steered straight on the fiends. 
 ' Help me, brave Ellide ; show thyself the sea-god's gift. 
 On, on, with all thy speed.' And when the good ship heard 
 her master's voice, all her deck-planks creaked as she flew 
 on and smote the whale with her bow so mightily that 
 he sank into the depths ; and the storm-fiends were left 
 tossing on the water, till the sea-weed tangled them 
 and the storm went down. The sun shone out, the sea 
 grew calm and blue, and Frithjof anchored off the island 
 where Angantyr dwelt. 
 
 Yarl Angantyr was feasting in his castle. He looked 
 out of his window and said, ' That is Thane Thorsten's 
 dragon-ship Ellide.' Then arose Atli, fiercest of his 
 Vikings, and said, ' If this be Frithjof, I will know if there 
 be a spell in his sword as men have said.' The battle- 
 madness came on Atli as he went forth to fight. 
 
 Frithjof had landed with twelve of his men. They had 
 brought food and kindled a fire, and being very tired, sate 
 them down on the beach to eat their meal. Atli came 
 haughtily, and called with a loud voice, ' Choose ! Fight, 
 flee, or yield ! ' 
 
 Frithjof answered, ' We are men already wearied with 
 fighting the sea ; but we will neither flee nor yield.' 
 With that they fell to and fought, till Frithjof, with 
 Angurvadel, cut Atli's sword in twain. 
 
 ' There is witchery in thy sword,' cried Atli. 
 Frithjof said, ' Try my hands then,' and flung away his 
 sword and wrestled with the Viking. Back he bent the 
 big man like a reed, and held him arched upon a balance, 
 till he overcame his quivering sinews and flung Atli 
 heavily upon his shoulders. 
 
 Kneeling on his enemy's breast, Frithjof said, ' Had I
 
 The Story of Frithjof and Ingebjorg. 231 
 
 now my sword I would still that tongue of thine, that it 
 should no more boast itself against tired men.' 
 
 ' Fetch it. I will not stir. Valhalla for the brave 1 
 for you to-morrow, for me to-day.' So spake the Viking. 
 
 Frithjof fetched his sword, but Atli quailed not. He 
 drew the blade, and the fierce runes shone red ; the 
 Viking stirred not, but with a quiet eye awaited death. 
 Frithjof put back his sword into its sheath, and taking 
 Atli by the hand, said, ' Man, arise ; thou art too brave 
 to die : let us be friends.' So they went together to 
 Angantyr's castle. 
 
 Frithjof marvelled at the richness of the mead-hall. 
 The walls were hung with gilded leather curiously wrought 
 with flowers. The hearth was marble. White tapers in 
 silver candlesticks shone everywhere like stars. There was 
 glass in the windows of many colours : the doors had 
 locks. In the chief seat, on a chair of silver, sat Yarl 
 Angantyr, clad in armour of gold and steel. From his 
 shoulders fell a purple robe sprinkled witli silver stars. 
 The meats were served in silver dishes. Many warriors 
 sate round the board, and when Frithjof entered all rose 
 and hailed him, and having drained the mead-horn to his 
 lionour, led him to a seat on Yarl Angantyr's right hand. 
 
 The Yarl said, ' Son of Thorsten my old friend, thou art 
 welcome.' Then Frithjof told his story, and wherefore 
 he had come ; told of his love for Inge bj org, and the sen- 
 tence laid on him by Helgi. 
 
 Angantyr answered, ' Never yet paid I tribute to any 
 man, but I gave King Bele of Norroway many gifts for 
 friendship's sake. As to his sons, I know them not ; and 
 for tribute, bid them first unlock my coffers with their 
 swords. But I will give a gift to thee for Thorsten's sake. 
 I loved him, and his son is dear to me.' Then he called 
 for a purse, and his daughter fetched one which she had 
 broidered with needlework and precious stones. On it 
 was the likeness of a castle in a forest, with golden
 
 232 Tales of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 beasts among the trees, and it was fringed with pearls. 
 Angantyr filled the purse to the brim with gold, and gave 
 it to Frithjof, saying, ' Take it : it is thine : a gift of wel- 
 come to my friend. Do with it as thou wilt. Only abide 
 with us for a while.' So the good-hearted Yarl persuaded 
 hinti to tarry on from day to day, till whilst he lingered 
 winter passed and springtime came. Then, longing for his 
 home and Ingebjorg, Frithjof pushed Ellide into the sea 
 and stood for the Northland. 
 
 Seven days he sailed the sea ; then looking out afar he 
 saw the land ; a long blue line of cliff and hill, soft as a 
 cloud betwixt the earth and sky. His heart beat fast, 
 for he was nearing home ; and as the blue waxed grey he 
 strove to make out Framnas, the dwelling of his fathers — 
 looked for its birch-crowned heights, its mellow fields 
 dotted with flocks and herds. But as he looked the view 
 faded ; a mist came over the sun and dwelt on sea and 
 land. So he ran Ellide to shore, and coasted till he 
 reached the well-known creek and heard the waterfall 
 leap down the hills of his home to the sea. He beached the 
 ship, and with a glad heart set foot on the misty shore, 
 and took the path up by the cliff's. 
 
 His homestead gate was gone. His home was gone. 
 There was a wild and a waste where Framnas was. He 
 trode on ashes everywhere. Black ashes heaped on 
 scorched grass : trees cindered into black stumps of arms 
 where they stood : ruin and blackness — that was Framnas. 
 And in the midst a neap of charred timber, and stone 
 cracked and powdered white with fire — that was his mead- 
 hall. His favourite hound, half starved, crept up and 
 licked his hand. His horse came neighing for some corn 
 and thrust his nose against his master's fingers. 
 
 That was Frithjof's welcome home. 
 
 There had been a great battle with King Eing, Half- 
 dan fought bravely, but was beaten ; Helgi took flight, 
 and as he fled fired Framnas betwixt him and his pur-
 
 The Story of Frithjof and Ingebjoi'g. 233 
 
 suers to keep them back. Then Bele's sons had begged 
 for peace. Ring bade them choose whether they would 
 give up the land or give him Ingebjorg to wife. They had 
 given up their sister. King Eing had wedded her and 
 taken her away. 
 
 Old Hilding told him : Hilding that would not lie. 
 He said, ' I saw her wed. They set her on a black horse ; 
 she, white as a ghost upon a thunder cloud ; and led her 
 to Baldur's temple. There she fell down and made her 
 prayer to Baldur so pitifully, that all which heard her 
 wept. She alone wept not. But I — I know. Often by 
 night when she has deemed herself alone, I have heard 
 her walk and weep, and call upon thy name, and wrestle 
 with her grief. The stricken sea-mew dives that none 
 may see her bleed. She said, " Baldur hath brought all this 
 to pass because we profaned his temple." " Heaven pity 
 Aim," she said ; " for he will live, but I shall fade and die." 
 Yes. I saw them wed ; and when the Skalds had done 
 their songs, Helgi caught sight of your armlet on her 
 cold white arm. With an oath he snatched it from her 
 and set it on the arm of Baldur's statue. Straightway I 
 drew my sword : fury made me strong ; I could have cut 
 him down in the temple where he stood. But she laid a 
 finger on my liand, and whispered, " Good friend, forbear : 
 Allfather sees and knows ; leave judgment unto him."' 
 
 Frithjof said fiercely, ' Allfather judgeth by the hand 
 of man. The gods put vengeance in our hearts to do 
 their will. Beware of me ; I am harmful to friend and 
 foe : henceforth I am a firebrand on the earth.' So tlie 
 berserk madness fell on Frithjof. 
 
 In Baldur's temple they kept the feast of the longest 
 day. Though it was midnight, the sun lay dusky-red 
 upon the mountains. A ruddy twilight glimmered 
 through the grove ; within the temple the pine-fire
 
 234 Talcs of the Ten ionic Lands. 
 
 crackled on the hearth. Priests in white bearskin robes 
 stirred the wood-pile, and made the sparks fly up. King 
 Helgi in his royal robes stood sacrificing before the altar. 
 Suddenly there was a noise at the temple-gate, and a sound 
 of voices. 
 
 ' Bjorn, keep the door ; let no man pass alive ! ' 
 
 Frithjof and his men pushed their way through priests 
 and people to the altar. 
 
 Then cried Frithjof, ' Helgi, I have done your bidding : 
 I have brought the tribute ; but I will first be requited 
 of you. You have robbed me of home and wife ; and 
 now, before Allfather, you shall answer for it. Nay, seek 
 not to skulk away ; I have tracked the rat to his hiding 
 place and stopped his hole. Here, by the light of Baldur's 
 flames, uncovered by shield, we will fight together with 
 sword, or knife, or hand-gripe.' 
 
 In terror at his fierceness Helgi slank down against the 
 altar and cowered upon the altar-steps. 
 
 Frithjof cried, ' Pitiful coward, my sword despises thee! ' 
 He took the heavy purse of tribute money, flung it full in 
 Helgi's face, and stunned him there, saying, ' Take thy 
 tribute ! ' and spurned him with his foot. Then to the 
 threatening priests, ' Put up your sacrificial knives, you 
 wool-clad mob ; lest our thirsty swords mistake you for 
 the victims, us for priests.' 
 
 Then perceived he the armlet upon Baldur's arm, and 
 he said, ' By your good leave, dear god, lame Wayland 
 forged it not for thee. That ring is Ingebj org's and I will 
 have it ! ' Fast was the ring upon the arm ; but Frithjof 
 pulled and plucked until he tare it ofif ; when lo ! with 
 his violence the statue fell into the fire. The fire leaped 
 up and lapped it in its arms ; the flames rose high and 
 licked the rafters of the roof, until the temple was ablaze 
 and the gold plates of the ceiling melted and dripped 
 gold upon the floor. In vain they made a chain of men 
 to the sea, and passed buckets of water hand to hand to
 
 The Story of Frithjof and Ingcbjorg. 235 
 
 Frithjof mounted on the roof. The flames would not be 
 quenched. A wind arose and the grove took fire ; dry 
 with the summer heat, bough kindled bough, and when 
 the morning brake, grove and temple were a smouldering 
 heap of ashes. 
 
 Frithjof in horror gat him to his ship, and put to sea. 
 He saw the smoke go up to Odin to accuse him, and he 
 said, ' There is no hope for me, and no forgiveness for 
 my sin. A wanderer will I be. The sea is free. There 
 will I dwell. I have no home ; but thou, my grim 
 dragon, henceforth shalt be my Framnas ; no wife — be 
 thou, my black-winged Ellide, my bride.' 
 
 Then came Bjorn and touched him while he mused. 
 ' See yonder ! Helgi with ten war-ships gives us chase.' 
 Quick he forgathis sorrow, and put tlie ship about, and 
 made ready his men for fight. But Bjorn was very cool ; 
 while the rest shouted the battle-cry and clanged their 
 weapons, he sat still upon the oar-bank watching. 
 Presently the ten ships sank like stones, and all on board 
 were drowned save Helgi, who contrived to swim ashore. 
 And when Frithjof and his men marvelled greatly, Bjorn 
 laughed aloud ; he said, ' I bored holes in them last night. 
 Ho! Ho!' 
 
 Thenceforth Frithjof and his men became Vikings and 
 roved the seas. Very strict were the laws which he made 
 for his champions. No man might take shelter from storm 
 or sun, by night or day. The deck was the Viking's bed, 
 a shield his pillow, the sky his coverlid. His sword 
 must be short to bring him near his enemy. The 
 Viking never furls sail in a storm : the hiu-ricane carries 
 him the way he would go ; the force of the storm helps 
 the arms of the rower. He shall protect merchant ships, 
 but they shall pay him tribute ; the merchantman is a 
 slave to gain, but the Viking's steel is worth as much as 
 his gold. Booty shall be shared by lot without murmur- 
 ing ; all shall sliare it alike, save their chief; for him the
 
 236 Tales of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 glory alone sufficeth. The Viking shall board the enemy's 
 ship to fight ; and he that yieldeth so much as a hair's 
 breadth shall be thrust out of the company. The plea for 
 mercy shall be heeded : he that giveth up his weapon is 
 no more an enemy. No man shall dress his wounds until 
 the fight be done ; battle-scars are the ornaments of the 
 Viking. 
 
 Three years fought Frithjof, unconquered through all 
 seas, till victory cloyed on him and he grew sick of spoil- 
 ing. A lonely man, the longing grew and strengthened 
 in his mind — ' If I might look upon her face again ! ' 
 Fierce fighting lulled it for the time, but ever it came 
 back strong and stronger. So at last he turned the good 
 ship's head to Northland, and like an eagle, Ellide stretched 
 her black wings and sped as though before a storm. 
 
 King Ring kept Yule-feast in his hall. The winter of 
 old age had snowed his hairs, yet noble was his counte- 
 nance. Beside him at the board sat Ingebjorg his queen, 
 pale and drooping as a lily-flower. There was clamour 
 in the liall from noisy warriors merry over the mead-cup, 
 mingled with the sound of pipe and harp. 
 
 On the beggars' bench against the door there came and 
 sat an old man bent with age, wrapped from head to foot 
 in a tattered bearskin. He laid aside his staff and rested on 
 the bench. A bluff old warrior, the bully of the board, 
 now blustering in his cups, came up to jeer the beggar- 
 man for the others' sport. The beggar-man's eye kindled, 
 and in a moment he took the warrior by the middle 
 betwixt his hands, twirled him head over heels, and set, 
 him on his feet again. 
 
 Then said King Eing, ' By all the gods, that is a strong 
 old man ! Come hither stranger ! Who art thou ? 
 Whence comest thou ? What is thy name, thy country, 
 and thine errand here ? '
 
 The Story of Frithjof and Ingcbjorg. 237 
 
 The old man answered, ' Sorrow nurtured me ; want is 
 mine inheritance ; my last lodging was a wolf's den. 
 Once I rode a winged dragon. Foi years I have ploughed 
 green fields, yet left no furrow, reaped no crop but 
 salt. Now in mine age I have journeyed far to hear thy 
 wisdom, which is famed throughout the North.' 
 
 The king said, ' Thy grasp is strong ; thy voice is clear. 
 Thou art not old. Wherefore, throw off thy disguise that 
 we may know our guest.' 
 
 Then Frithjof threw off his bearskin, and behold a 
 young man, bright like Baldur, strong of limb like Thor, 
 golden his hair as simshine. From his shoulder a blue 
 mantle fell ; his coat was girded with a silver belt 
 whereto a sword was slung ; and on his arm were many 
 rings of gold. 
 
 Did anyone know him ? In the queen's cheeks the 
 colour came and went like the red north-light flushing 
 the snow-fields. But King Ring gave no sign. 
 
 There was a blast of horns, and serving-men bare in 
 upon a lordly dish the wild boar on bended knees, served 
 whole, and decked with garlands in Freyr's honour. And 
 when the dish was set upon the table. King Ring- 
 laid his finger upon the boar's head and thus spake : 
 ' Helgi and Halfdan have I conquered, and hereby I vow 
 by Freyr, whose is this feast and offering, that Frithjof 
 likewise I will overcome.' 
 
 Frithjof upstarted, wrathful and fierce. ' The man you 
 speak of is my friend. I swear I will protect him with 
 all I have and am ! ' 
 
 The king smiled gravely. ' Stranger, whoever thou 
 art, I like the bold of speech. Be our guest through the 
 winter. Nay, deny me not.' Then spake he to the 
 queen to fill the cup of honour and bear to him. 
 
 Trembling she poured the yellow wine into the gold- 
 ringed horn. Scarce could she bear the cup, her hand 
 was shaking so that the mead was spilled upon the floor. ,
 
 238 Tales of the TeiUonic Lands. 
 
 Her eyes fastened on the pavement as she bare it, so the 
 stranger should not see her face ; but he saw the blushes 
 coursing- on her fair white arm. He took the cup and 
 drained it at a draught. Long sate the warriors at their 
 carouse, to the sound of merry music and the brave songs 
 of the Skalds. 
 
 While Frithjof tarried with King Eing the sea froze 
 hard ; and the king commanded swift horses to be yoked 
 to his sledge, for he would go upon the ice-plain. 
 
 ' Gro not,' said Frithjof ; ' for treacherous is the ice- 
 bound sea ; Ean, wife of the sea-god, lurks beneath the 
 brittle ice to drag men down.' 
 
 Eing answered not, but cried to his steeds, ' Away, and 
 show yourselves of Sleipnir's breed ! ' So saying, he 
 shook loose the reins, and away went the coursers athwart 
 the ringing crust of ice. Then quickly Frithjof fastened 
 his skates upon his feet and overtook the king's sledge 
 and skated circles round about it, whilst for all the horses 
 might do they could not so much as pass him. Suddenly 
 brake the ice : sledge, steeds, and king went down into 
 the sea. But Frithjof came to the hole, planted his skates 
 firmly in the ice, and griping the horses by the manes, 
 dragged sledge and all upon the ice again. 
 
 ' Stranger, that was a brave hand-grip,' said the king ; 
 ' Frithjof himself could not have done better.' Frithjof 
 laughed, for he deemed that the king knew him not. 
 
 While yet he tarried, springtime came. The birds 
 made music in the new-leafed trees ; loosed from their 
 frost-bonds the brooks sang merrily down the valley-sides ; 
 and pink as Freya's cheek the rose brake from its coverlid. 
 And as it befell, the king and queen would go a hunting. 
 With them went a multitude of their people to join the 
 sport. Frithjof went also. Like a star upon a fleecy 
 cloud the queen seemed on the proud white horse that 
 bare her. Her hunting-gown was green and gold, and in 
 her hat blue feathers waved. Frigga, earth goddess —
 
 The Story of FiHthjof and Ingebjorg, 239 
 
 Rota, the bright-eyed battle-maid — was scarce more fair 
 than she. 
 
 Now, in the midst of the hunting the king grew weary, 
 and fell back from the rest with Frithjof only for company. 
 Afar they heard the baying of the hounds, and the 
 frightened game breaking through the wood ; saw the 
 falcons soar and dart for prey, and the herons swoop 
 in their circles. And lagging still they came into a lone- 
 some place, shut in three sides by trees, but on the fourth 
 was a yawning chasm rent in tlie cliff — above, a mighty 
 rock-side, and far down the narrow cleft uprose a steam 
 and the faint noise of water plashing in the abyss. 
 
 ^For a while neither spake ; but at the last King Eing 
 gat off his horse and said, ' stranger, I am weary ; I 
 would rest awhile.' 
 
 Quick answered Frithjof, ' Nay, rest not here. There is 
 danger in this lonely place ; I cannot stay with thee. We 
 will hasten to the castle. There shalt thou rest.' 
 
 The king said, ' Not so ; slumber cometh at the will 
 of the gods, unlooked for, but when sought avoideth us.' 
 So he prevailed on him, and Frithjof came down from off 
 his horse, and sate under a beech-tree against the trvmk ; 
 he spread his mantle on the groimd, and the old king 
 lay down. On Frithjof's lap he laid his head, and closed 
 his eyes ; gentle was his rest, as a child's upon his mother's 
 knee, fearing no evil. 
 
 Frithjof looked on his quiet face and sat a thinking. 
 This was the man that stood betwixt him and Ingebjorg. 
 His fingers wandered scarce knowing to his sword-hilt, 
 but feeling it they shrank away again. 
 
 There came two birds and sate in the tree, the one coal- 
 black, the other white as snow. The black bird sang : — 
 
 Quick! t'will never be known nor seen, 
 Kill the king and win the Queen ; 
 For she is thine with plighted kiss, 
 Aud a man may take his own, I wis.
 
 240 Tales of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 But the white bird sang : — 
 
 Allfather sees, and he will know 
 The man that slays a sleeping foe ; 
 Odin can make thy winning vain, 
 Or turn thy patience into gain. 
 
 Then, fingering at his sword with trembling hand, he 
 drew it forth and shuddering flung it from him. It 
 turned glittering in the air, and dropped far off among 
 the dark trees of the wood. Immediately the black bird 
 fled down to Nastrond, the night kingdom ; but lightly 
 the snow-white bird unfolded her wings and soared up into 
 the blue sky, making music in her flight, sweet as the 
 sound of harpstrings. 
 
 And the old king awakened upon Frithjof'slap and said, 
 ' Sweetly, my friend, have I slumbered ; for a pleasant 
 thing it is to enter the shadow of sleep guarded by a brave 
 man's blade. But where is thy sword ? Where is Angur- 
 vadel, the lightning's brother?' 
 
 Frithjof answered, ' It availeth little ; there are other 
 swords in the Northland. But it is not well to commune 
 always with Angurvadel. Sharp is its tongue ; it thirst- 
 eth evermore for blood, for a dark spirit from Nifl- 
 heim dwelleth in the steel. It hath no respect for slumber 
 nor grey hairs.' 
 
 Then said the King, ' Frithjof, I know thee. When 
 first thou didst cross my threshold I knew thee ; yet I 
 made as though I knew thee not, for I had heard of 
 Frithjof, called of men the Wolf, Frithjof which defiled 
 the sanctuary, the strong-handed one that brake up shield 
 and ship and temple when he willed. And I said I will 
 know this man and prove him. Frithjof, I slept not; I 
 put my life into thy hand to try thee. I know what came 
 into thy mind. Friend, I have tried thee and thou art 
 true. Yet one thing passeth my knowledge — how, being 
 tlms true and brave, thou couldst have stolen into my 
 house in beggar's guise to rob me of my wife.'
 
 The Story of Frithjof a7td Ingebjorg. 24 1 
 
 Frithjof said, ' The gods well know I never came to rob 
 thee of her — only to look upon her face. Had I the 
 mind to have taken her, who should have hindered me ? 
 But I have my punishment to bear. Thou hast not 
 wronged me. She pledged herself to me ; she was mine ; 
 but Baldur took her from me for my sin and gave her to 
 thee. For this same cause men shun me — call me Wolf 
 of the Sanctuary ; the very children shrink away when I 
 draw near ; Baldur, the gentle god that loveth all things, 
 hateth me, and hideth his face before tlie blackness of my 
 sin. So I became a wanderer and ploughed the dreary 
 sea. But the longing came on me to see her yet once 
 more ; I strove against it, yet I came — a beggar, to look 
 on her sweet face — disguised so that none, not even she, 
 miglit know me — then without word or sign to go back to 
 the waste wide sea unto my banishment. Thou madest me 
 throw off my beggar dress, and day by day didst urge me 
 to remain, till, deeming myself unknown to all but her, 
 and since my wish was stronger than my will, I yielded. I 
 wronged thee not in word nor thought. But I have stayed 
 too long. To-morrow I will go away, and thou shalt never 
 see me more. Good Ellide ! thou hast rested all too long. 
 To-morrow thou shalt spread thy wings to the breeze, and 
 bathe thy dusky bosom in the welcome sea. The thunder- 
 storm, the roaring hurricane, and the battle-din shall be 
 to me, henceforth, instead of any sweet voice of wife or 
 child, until I die in fight and go up to Valhalla.' 
 
 Tearfully answered the grey old king : ' Dear friend, I 
 blame thee not for loving her. Who that hath seen her 
 can help loving her ? I call to mind the fires of my 
 youth, even though in my age the embers have grown 
 cold. Gro not away. Stay with us yet. I am old ; my 
 days are few ; bear with me for a little while until I die ; 
 then shalt thou take the queen and all my kingdom for 
 her dower.' 
 
 King Eing sat on the morrow upon his royal throne ; 
 
 E
 
 242 Tales of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 Ingebjorg, all white and trembling sat at his side, know- 
 ing what had come to pass. His warriors stood round 
 about. 
 
 Haggard and worn came Frithjof into the hall. He 
 had not slept. 
 
 He said, 'The livelong night I have thought and 
 thought. It must not be. I cannot stay ; I cannot look 
 on her and love her not. I dare not stay ; I dare not 
 stay to break her peace. But I have brought the arm- 
 ring back. When I am gone I pray thee put it on her arm 
 — 'tis hers ; 'twill comfort me to know that she is wear- 
 ing it. One other word, and then farewell. Gro not with 
 Ingebjorg to the sea-shore, lest after all I cannot tear 
 myself away, and Angurvadel drink my life upon the 
 sand ; or lest, dying on the sea, my very bones drift back 
 to whiten on your beach.' 
 
 He turned to go. 
 
 The king cried, ' Stay ! It behoveth never a warrior 
 to be bowed down like a woman. What is death for a 
 king to fear, save only lest he meanly languish out his 
 days and die on straw ! To me, alas, it was never given 
 to rise to Valhalla from the battle-plain. The unkind 
 Valkyries chose me not. But Frithjof — I am old and 
 thou art young. To me Death's message cometh, my 
 friend — to me ! ' 
 
 So saying, he thrust his sword into his breast, and 
 whilst his life-blood spouted to the ground he signed to 
 Frithjof to come near, and placed Ingebj org's hand in his. 
 Then lifted he the mead-horn high, and with a cheerful 
 countenance cried, ' I drink to my land, to the old 
 Northland. Hail ye gods ! Hail warriors of Valhalla ! 
 I greet you ; and 1 come ! ' 
 
 So died King Ring of the Northland. The people made 
 his grave-mound, and the bards sang of his wisdom and 
 his gentleness.
 
 The Story of Frithjof and Ingebjorg. 243 
 
 After this the folk gathered to the Thing-stone to 
 choose a king ; and with one voice the people said, ' Yarl 
 Frithjof shall be our king, for Eing's boy is too young.' 
 But Frithjof took the little gold-haired child and set him 
 on his shield, and lifted him aloft in sight of all the 
 multitude, saying, ' This is your king ! Howbeit, until 
 he be grown I will protect the land, and hold the throne 
 for him. Here swear I never to seek my own, but his 
 in all things ; and if I am false may Baldur smite me 
 with a yet more heavy punishment ! ' 
 
 The child sprang fearless from the shield to the groimd 
 and took Frithjof's hand ; and the people shouted : 'The 
 boy is king ! Yarl Frithjof keeps the throne for him, 
 and he shall wed with Ingebjorg.' 
 
 But Frithjof went away alone and said within himself — 
 ' How can I wed with one so sweet and fair, when I am 
 yet accursed in the sight of the gods and before the 
 people of my land ? ' Then he took his journey and 
 came to his father's grave-mound by the sea-beach. 
 There he sat all one weary night praying Baldur to take 
 the curse away. And Baldur showed him a sign in the 
 darkness ; for lo ! he saw a temple in the air, which shone 
 out from the gloom, rose up, and waned away. So Frith- 
 jof hasted back, and came to King Eing's palace ; and he 
 sent for artificers in wood and stone, and smiths that 
 could work in gold and silver, and he began to build a 
 temple to Baldur after the pattern which he had seen in the 
 vision. All the while it was building he took no pleasure 
 in hunt, or feast, or sound of harp. And when it was 
 done, behold a grove of trees which no man planted 
 sprang up round about, and shut it in on three sides ; on 
 the fourth the sea washed the rock whereon it stood, 
 and pictured the temple on its shining face. 
 
 The temple was the wonder of the land. It had a 
 gate of brass inwrought with curious work. Huge 
 pillars upbore the roof — a mighty golden shield. The 
 
 K 2
 
 244 Tales of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 altar was one hewn stone of Northland marble, bright- 
 polished, and carved with Runic words of power. Above 
 it stood the image of Baldur wrought in pure, shining 
 silver. 
 
 When all things were ready, Frithjof went up to the 
 dedication of the temple to make atonement. As he 
 came into the hall twelve youthful priestesses in white 
 robes walked two and two about the altar, singing a 
 sweet hymn to Baldur. Frithjof listened, leaning on his 
 sword, and as they sang, his soul grew restful ; his 
 burden seemed to pass ; and from above the altar the 
 god shone mildly as the moon upon the peaceful night. 
 
 With stately tread came forth the grey high-priest, 
 hoar m the service of the god ; a man of lofty stature, 
 whom age had not bent ; noble his visage, stem of line, 
 yet from his eyes was shed a kindly light. 
 
 Thus he spake : — ' Son, welcome to the holy place. 
 The strong man cometh tired home. 
 
 ' Baldur has set a parable in the heart of man. To every 
 child Hel gives back Baldur ; but as the child grows, 
 Hoder the blind god comes ; then steals Loki into his 
 heart, making Hoder's hand to swerve, and Baldur is 
 slain, to dwell thereafter only as a shadow in his grown- 
 up mind. A man must fight with Loki even as the gods 
 must do. What careth Baldur that thou heap up stone 
 on stone ? Thrust Loki from thee, if peradventure the 
 bright god may dimly shine within thy heart again as 
 in thy childhood's days. He careth not for sacrifice, 
 save only sacrifice of that which keepeth him from thee. 
 
 ' Wherefore lay neither horse nor falcon on the altar, 
 but lay thereon thy pride, thine anger, and thine hate of 
 Bele's sons. Why dost thou hate them ? For their 
 pride of birth ? Thou art prouder of thy strength ; yet 
 it is not thine. The gods gave to thee thy strength, and 
 to them their lineage. Have they wronged thee ? For- 
 giveness is very sweet to Baldur. But thou hast been
 
 The Story of Fjdthjof and Ingebjorg. 245 
 
 high-minded and high-handed with them. They have 
 suffered ; suffered wasting of their kingdom ; their 
 women mourn for warriors sleeping in the great war- 
 mounds ; their sister was carried away ; Helgi died 
 
 wretchedly ' 
 
 Frithjof stopped him. 'Helgi dead — nay, nay, kind 
 priest ! say not he is dead, and I forgave him not I ' 
 
 ' Helgi is dead. Whilst yet this temple was a-build- 
 ing he warred with the Finns, and laid waste their land. 
 On a cliff there stood an ancient temple to Yumala. No 
 man had entered it for years, because of a saying among 
 the people, " He that first goeth in shall meet the god 
 upon the threshold." Helgi cared not. Eashly he sought 
 to spoil the temple of them which he called heathen — 
 men which worship Grod beneath another shape. The 
 rusty key would not turn in the lock. He tore away 
 the pillars, and shaking down the door, ran in. The 
 heavy idol tumbled from its rotten seat, and fell on him, 
 and crushed him in the temple's dust. 
 
 ' Frithjof, forgive the dead. Lay by all bitterness and 
 malice against the living. Make peace with Halfdan. 
 Be at peace with all ; so peace shall come into thy heart. 
 Baldur hath spoken through me his priest.' 
 
 Then Frithjof beheld and saw Halfdan standing timidly 
 upon the brazen threshold, fearing to come in. Quick 
 loosed he the sword from his side ; and he took the 
 sword and his golden shield and laid them for an offer- 
 ing on Baldur's altar. And he ran to where Halfdan 
 stood, and put his hand in his. The men spake not. 
 Their cheeks reddened ; and as they looked into each 
 other's eyes, neither man saw, for that which gathered in 
 his own. 
 
 So they were made friends ; and the high-priest took 
 off the curse from Frithjof. 
 
 Then was heard a sound of music, and from behind the 
 altar, lo there came a band of maidens clad in bridal
 
 246 Tales of the TeiUoiiic Lands. 
 
 white, and foremost among them walked Ing-ebjorg in 
 an ermine robe. She came to Halfdan, meekly to do 
 his bidding in her father's place. He took her hand and 
 said, ' My sister ! ' and he took Frithjof s hand and said, 
 ' My brother ! ' then placed them hand in hand. The old 
 priest lifted up his hands and blessed Frithjof and Ingeb- 
 jorg in Baldur's name, and the temple was lightened all 
 about with the shining of the god.
 
 Grettir the Sti'ong. 247 
 
 GEETTIR THE STRONG. 
 
 I. THE WINNING OF THE SHORT SWORD. 
 
 G-EEY old Asmund had his homestead and farm-land at 
 Biarg in Iceland. His elder son Atli was good natured 
 and well-spoken, so that most men liked him ; but Grettir 
 the younger son was a froward boy, chary of speech and 
 mischievous in his play ; his father cared little for him 
 because of his unruliness, but his mother Asdis loved him 
 well. Grrettir was slow of growth ; at ten years old he 
 was stout-built but short of stature for his age ; his hair 
 was red : his face broad and much freckled. Many were 
 the scurvy tricks that he served his father in his boyhood. 
 Being set to tend the geese, he twisted all their necks. 
 And one day being told to rub his father's back before 
 the fire he caught up a spiked wool-comb from off a seat 
 and harrowed it up and down old Asmund's shoulder 
 blades. Asmund danced up on his feet, mad wroth, and 
 cried, ' Thou good for nothing, foolhardy brat ! What shall 
 I do with thee ? ' ' G-ive me a man's task, not a milksop's,' 
 answered Grettir. ' Well, then,' said his father, ' go out 
 upon the mountains and tend the horses. Among them 
 is Keingala, the weatherwise dun mare. Keep an eye on 
 her; so shalt thou know when to turn the horses out 
 and when to keep them under cover ; for when Keingala 
 will not stay out to graze a storm will surely follow.'
 
 248 Tales of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 ' Tliat is manly work,' said Grettir, ' but I shall put little 
 faith in the mare.' 
 
 So the boy went out upon the mountain-neck to watch 
 the horses. But about Yule-tide, when the snow lay 
 on the ground and the wind was stinging cold, Grrettir's 
 limbs grew numbed and bitten; for he was but ill- clad 
 and little hardened to the frost. There was scarcely a 
 bite of grass for the horses ; yet Keingala would go out 
 early every morning, no matter how rough the weather, 
 and idle about in the windiest place she could find, 
 grubbing the scanty herbage ; and there was no getting 
 her home before nightfall. Then Grettir thought that he 
 would cure her of this trick. So very early one morning 
 he came to the stable and found Keingala champing away 
 at her fodder just as though she was not always eating the 
 whole day long. Grettir leapt on her back and set to work 
 with a sharp knife to flay the mare. Keingala kicked 
 and bounded about the stable ; but Grettir mastered her, 
 and though twice she flung him off he flayed her hide in 
 a strip from wither to flank. Then he set open the stable 
 doors and drave the horses out to pasture. Keingala 
 browsed about, then bit at her back, then browsed again ; 
 but finding it perilous cold, trotted back to stable long 
 before noon. Grettir drave all the other horses imder 
 cover, locked the stable doors, and came back to the 
 house. 
 
 ' What ails now ? ' said Asmund. ' Rough weather is 
 coming, I trow,' said Grettir, ' for Keingala will not bide 
 out to graze.' ' Aye,' answered his father, ' we shall have 
 a storm to-day.' But never a storm came. The next day 
 Grettir drave the mare out again, but not being able to 
 endure the cold she soon came into the stable, and 
 Grettir went home to sit by the fire. But the day 
 went by and there was no storm. ' This is passing strange,' 
 said Asmund ; ' the mare never deceived me heretofore.' 
 And next morning he went himself with Grettir to turn
 
 Grcttir the Strong. 249 
 
 the horses out. But when he began to stroke the mare 
 and the skin came off beneath his hand, he was the 
 maddest man, and he called his son every ill name that 
 came to his tongue. Grrettir said naught, but stood and 
 grinned. 
 
 When Asmund told Grettir's mother of these things 
 she said, ' Poor lad. Whose fault is it ? Thou seest how 
 he turns out everything he does, and yet thou settest 
 him to work. Who then is to blame ? ' So for all that, 
 and many such like mischievous deeds, his mother 
 Asdis contrived to keep the peace betwixt his father and 
 him. 
 
 As Grettir grew up he waxed very strong and big of 
 body ; but he was always short for his age, though stout 
 and well-knit together. For a while he had not skill to 
 turn his great strength to account ; but as he began to 
 mix with older lads in wrestling games it was plainly seen 
 that he had more might than most men. 
 
 Asmund had been wont to ride year by year to the 
 Thing, with his friend Thorkel who ruled Waterdale ; but 
 one year when Thorkel came to fetch him Asmund pleaded 
 that he was grown too old for wayfaring. Then said 
 Thorkel, ' Let Atli go instead.' But Asmund answered, 
 ' I cannot spare him from the farm-work, for he is of use 
 to me ; Grettir will do nothing for his victuals, but he 
 has some wit ; maybe he can take my place in setting 
 forth the laws. Let him go with thee.' So Grettir rode 
 forth with Thorkel and his men. 
 
 On their way over the moors they laid them do\\Ti to 
 sleep one night, leaving their horses to graze about with 
 saddles on. Next morning Grettir found that his horse had 
 been rolling, for the saddle was slipped round under the 
 horse's belly, and the meal-bag, which he had left strapped 
 to the saddle, was gone. One of Thorkel's house-carles, by 
 n.ime Skeggi, also missed his meal-bag in like manner ; 
 and after tbev had both searched some while about the
 
 250 Tales of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 moor Skeg'gi picked up a bag- which he said was his. 
 However that might be, Grrettir claimed it and would have 
 it. So they fell to wrestling about the bag, and Skeggi 
 getting the worst of it drew his axe and smote at Grettir ; 
 but Grettir caught the axe by the handle as it came 
 down, wrested it away, and drave it into Skeggi's brain. 
 Then he took up the meal-bag, and rode after his fellows. 
 Skeggi was missed presently from the company ; and 
 when some asked Grrettir what was become of him, he said 
 that he had seen the man lying- on the moor with an axe 
 in his head, and he trowed some rock-troll had done it. 
 Howbeit to Thorkel he told all about the fray. Thorkel 
 said, ' This has fallen out badly, for Skeggi came of good 
 kindred ; nevertheless I will do all I may for thee. But 
 consider now whether thou wilt still go to the Thing and 
 take the chance of matters or turn back home.' Grettir 
 said he would go to the Thing ; and the end of it was that 
 Skeggi's kindred made a lawsuit, and Grettir was doomed 
 to three years' outlawry and a fine. Thorkel paid up the 
 fines for him, but Grettir had to go abroad. Yet he took 
 it lightly enough, and on his way home from the Thing, 
 when he came to Sledgehill he caught up a great rock in 
 his hands and flung it down upon the grass. There it 
 lies to this day. Folk call it Grettir's Heave, and wonder 
 how any man could have lifted it. 
 
 Asmund was vexed enough when Grettir came home 
 and told what had befallen, and deeming his son good for 
 nothing, he bade him go off with skipper Haflidi, who had 
 a sailing-vessel lying up Whiteriver. He gave the lad 
 neither victuals nor goods for the voyage, nor any weapon 
 to take with him, but packed him off with just the 
 clothes on his back. Grettir had few friends, because 
 of his rough temper, and of those he had, when he wished 
 them goodbye, not one bade him come back anymore. So 
 he set out and trudged off towards Whiteriver ; but he had 
 not gone far along the road when his mother came run-
 
 Grettir the Strong. 2 5 1 
 
 ning after bim and drew a sword from beneath her cloak, 
 saying, *I grieve to see thee so ill-provided, my son, 
 but thou shalt not go quite empty-handed ; here is the 
 sword of Jokul my grandfather. Often it stood him in 
 right good stead. Take it, and may it prove as trusty 
 a friend to thee!' Grettir was very glad to get the 
 sword, and now recked little of his lack of goods. So 
 having taken leave of his mother, he came on to Haflidi 
 and entered the ship ; and soon afterwards the mariners 
 hoisted sail and stood out to sea. But the skipper could 
 get him to do nothing. Grrettir would not labour about 
 tlie ship, he would not haul a rope, nor help shift a sail to 
 please anybody, neither would he buy himself off his work ; 
 he just went and made himself a comfortable corner in 
 the bow, where he could be sheltered from the wind ; 
 there he lay down and would not budge. All day long 
 he would lie there jeering at the shivering sailors, 
 whose fingers were blue with cold from handling the 
 frozen ropes. By and by there came a storm, and the 
 crew had to bale night and day without ceasing ; but 
 Grettir only lay and mocked them. The men got so 
 mad that they vowed they would pitch Grettir over- 
 board ; and in sooth they would have tried to do so, only 
 Grettir tui'ued his wit against Haflidi, and made sport of 
 him as a 'shouting skipper,' which pleased the sailors 
 greatly. But the storm getting worse, the ship, la- 
 boured so much that it sprang a leak ; and what 
 with the sea coming in below and the waves dashing 
 in above, the balers could not keep the water under. 
 Then Grettir rose up lazily, and after he had stretched 
 himself, came aft, and taking a cask began to bale. 
 He filled the tubs and handed them up to another man 
 to empty, but he filled them so full and so quickly that 
 first two men, then four, and at last, as some say, eight 
 men had to stand above to keep him going. So from that 
 time the sailors held Grettir in high esteem. After the
 
 252 Talcs of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 storm ceased there was nmcli thick weather, and one dark 
 night the ship ran on a rock off the island of Haramsey in 
 Norway. Thorfinn was lord of that island, and at daybreak 
 seeing their peril, he put off a boat and brought the 
 skipper and his crew safe ashore, together with the most 
 part of their goods ; and in a little while the ship went 
 to pieces. The mariners abode a week with Thorfinn, and 
 then went away southward overland to their homes. 
 
 But Grrettir remained at Haramsey. Thorfinn gave 
 him food and lodging, but could make little of him, 
 Grettir being so short of speech and caring neither for 
 Thorfinn's fine table nor yet for his company. Grrettir 
 liked better to loiter about at his own will than to follow 
 Thorfinn. He made friends with Audun, a farmer who 
 lived near, and would go and idle about his farm or sit 
 in the homestead and chat with him from morning till 
 night. Late one evening when Audun was walking 
 home with him, Grettir saw a fire break forth from 
 a mound, and he said, ' What place is that ? In our 
 land night-fires upon the ground betoken a hid treasure.' 
 Audun answered, ' That is the barrow of Karr the Old. 
 He was Thorfinn's father, and in his time held only a 
 small farm ; but since his death he has so haunted the 
 place that he has driven out all the farmers from their 
 lands, and now the whole island has come to belong to 
 Thorfinn.' 
 
 Grettir said very little, but next morning he got some 
 digging tools together and told Audun that he was going 
 to Karr's mound. ' Let it alone,' said Audun ; ' for Old Karr 
 will surely do thee a mischief.' Grettir said he would 
 take his chance of that, and seeing him determined to 
 go, the farmer accompanied him to the mound. There 
 Grettir set to work, and digged all day ; and it was not 
 until nightfall that he reached the rafters of the barrow 
 and began to break them through. Then Audun earnestly 
 besought him not to go into the barrow to provoke the
 
 Grettir the Strong. 253 
 
 hatred of the wicked dead ; but Grrettir heeding nothing, 
 called for a rope, and letting himself down thereby, went 
 in and began to grope about. The place was very dark 
 and noisome ; but as he stumbled hither and thither 
 over horse-bones which strewed the floor, he ran against 
 the arm of a chair. Old Karr sat in that chair ; around 
 him were heaped his treasures of gold and silver, and 
 beneath his feet for a footstool was a chest of silver. 
 Grrettir recked nothing for the skeleton in the chair, but 
 gathered up the treasures and took away the chest from 
 under Old Karr's feet and brought them to the rope to 
 make them fast. Suddenly he felt a mighty grip upon the 
 shoulders that held him fixed. He knew that the barrow- 
 dweller had wakened from his slumber, and he let go the 
 treasure, and turned and wrestled with the hideous dead. 
 Now up, now down, the two, close locked, reeled all 
 about the floor, till the place echoed with their scuffle. 
 Over the horse-bones, across the chair, each sought to 
 trip the other up. In turn each fell upon his knee ; 
 but at last, with a great noise, Grrettir flung Old 
 Karr upon his back, then drew his sword, smote off 
 the barrow-dweller's head, and laid it at his thigh that 
 the dead might come to life again no more. Then went 
 Grrettir to the rope and having fastened the treasures 
 thereto, called out for Audun. But the farmer had fled, 
 hearing the noise of the wrestling, and deeming Grettir 
 certainly doomed for death. So Grrettir climbed the 
 rope by himself, and then hauled up the treasure. This 
 he set upon his back, and hied off to Thorfinn's mead- 
 hall, and there he spread out all the things upon the 
 table — all save a short sword, a better weapon than 
 he had ever seen. This he held still within his hand 
 because he coveted it. When Thorfinn asked concerning 
 the treasure Grettir answered, 'Many little matters 
 happen late of an evening,' and told how he had broken 
 open Karr's barrow and fought with him. Thorfinn
 
 254 Talcs of the TeiUonic Lands. 
 
 answered, ' No man beforetime has had will or courage 
 to break open the barrow, and I blame thee not ; for 
 wealth is wasted in the ground ; but how came that 
 sword within thy hand ? ' Gfrettir told him, and praj^ed 
 that he might keep that sword for himself. But Thor- 
 finn answered, ' It is an heirloom of the house. My 
 father would never give it to me while he was alive, 
 though many a time I besought him. Thou must first 
 do some famous deed to win that sword.' So Thorfinn 
 took all the treasure to himself, and the sword he hung 
 over against the head of his bed. 
 
 Now at Yule-tide Thorfinn went off to the mainland, 
 he and all his men, to hold Yule-feast on his farm 
 Slys-firth, leaving no men folk save Grettir in his home- 
 stead. And it came to pass that twelve berserks which 
 had been outlawed by Yarl Eric, ruler of Norway, for 
 their misdeeds in ravishing men's houses of their goods 
 and of their womankind, trowed this to be a good time 
 to plunder in the island of Haramsey, and accordingly 
 they came sailing thither on Yule-eve. 
 
 Grrettir espied them come to land, and guessing pretty 
 well what their errand was, went down on the beach to 
 meet them. He said, ' Good sooth, but you are in luck's 
 way, my masters, for Thorfinn is gone with all his folk 
 to the mainland. There is only the goodman's wife and 
 daughter at home, and there is plenty of ale to drink and 
 of treasure to carry away. So come along with me to the 
 homestead, and I promise you we will make good cheer.' 
 The berserks being not a little pleased to find a man so 
 ready to their mind, followed Grettir into Thorfinn's 
 house. The goodwife stormed and raged at the men 
 as they came swarming into her clean and new-decked 
 hall ; and she said to Grettir, ' Wretch ! did not Thorfinn 
 befriend thee in thy need, and save thee from shipwreck, 
 and dost thou now requite his goodness by bringing 
 robbers to the house ? ' Grettir sharply bade her hold
 
 Grettir the Strong. 255 
 
 her tongue, and bring the men dry clothes, and set out 
 the tables for a feast, saying that they were all come to 
 spend Yule there, and meant to make merry. And 
 Thorir, chief of the gang, spake, saying, ' It is no good 
 squealing, mistress, nor making ado. I warrant that 
 amona'st us we shall find a better mate for thee than 
 Thorfinn, and as to thy daughter and the house-women, 
 we will spouse them all before we go. We have wives 
 in every haven.' 
 
 'Spoken like a man,' cried Grettir, 'and of a truth 
 they have small cause for bewailing.' The poor scared 
 women ran weeping from the hall. But Grettir went 
 down into the cellar and fetched up the strongest ale ; 
 with great draughts of it he plied the berserks till they 
 made din enough in the hall. Far into the night they 
 kept up the carouse. They could scarce make too much 
 of Grettir, and would have him swear to join their 
 fellowship ; but he put off the oath till next day, saying, 
 ' Ale is another man, my masters ; but if ye be like- 
 minded to me in the morning I shall freely join your 
 company.' Now when the robbers were grown heavy with 
 drink, Grettir said that he would lead them to Thorfinn's 
 cloth bower, which was moreover the place where he 
 kept his treasure. Well pleased at this they all followed 
 him to a strong store-room, a little without the house. 
 Grettir took in a light and showed them many rare and 
 precious things ; but the men were noisy in their cups, 
 and fell to tumbling about and pushing one another as 
 they looked at the treasures ; and in the midst of the 
 riot Grettir slipped out and made fast the door with 
 lock and bar. They, thinking that the wind had blown 
 the door to, paid no heed. 
 
 Away ran Grettir to the house and hammered at the 
 good wife's chamber-door. She, deeming it to be one 
 of the berserks, screamed out in affright. But he said, 
 ' P'ear not, mistress, it is I. I have trapped them in the
 
 256 Tales of i he Teutonic Lands. 
 
 store-room, but there is no time now to talk. "What 
 weapons are there in the house ? ' ' Now Grod be thanked,' 
 answered Thorfinn's wife, ' for old Karr's weapons are 
 here ; they will not fail if thine heart does not.' There- 
 with she brought out a big barbed spear, a helmet and a 
 byrni, and the good short sword. Then Grettir armed 
 himself, and came to the store-room just as the ber- 
 serks were hewing down the door. He ran in amongst 
 them, and slew two as they were coming down the steps. 
 The others caught up logs which they found upon the 
 green, and defended themselves as best they might ; but 
 they soon found with how strong a man they had to deal. 
 There Grettir slew four of them, and when the rest took 
 to flight he followed, and killed two which sought shelter 
 in a barn, and two more that had hidden themselves in 
 the boat-house on the beach. The other two got off in 
 the darkness, but were found next day lying among the 
 rocks, dead of their wounds. 
 
 When Thorfinn came home and learned how well his 
 winter-guest had guarded his homestead, ther^ was 
 nothing wherewith he would not have rewarded him. 
 Indeed by this exploit Grettir's name became renowned 
 over Norway, for the berserks had been the terror of every 
 homestead in the land. But Grettir would have only 
 the short sword of Old Karr ; and, much as Thorfinn 
 treasured it, he gave it to him freely. 
 
 II. THE SLAYING OF BIOEN. 
 
 Xow as soon as the winter was past Grettir took leave 
 of Thorfiinn, who was very loth to part with him, and 
 entered into a ship and came to Salft in Heligoland, 
 where he abode with a man of hi^h birth named Thorkel.
 
 Grettir the Strong. 257 
 
 One of Thorkel's chief men was called Biorn, and 
 being a blustering fellow of quick temper, who moreover 
 thought no one so good as himself, he and Grettir were 
 mostly at variance about some matter or other. Now it 
 happened when winter drew on, that a very fierce bear 
 took to roaming abroad at night on Thorkel's lands, and 
 grew so savage that he spared neither man nor beast. 
 Biorn, making great boast of his prowess, must needs 
 go off to hunt this bear by himself. To that end he 
 tracked the beast's lair, and went and lay down beside 
 it, covered with his shield, to await the bear's return. 
 The bear soon came up, roaring horribly, and clawed 
 away his shield ; whereat Biorn fell in such affright that 
 he took to his heels, and ran home as hard as he could 
 go, followed so perilous close by Bruin that he felt the 
 hot breath of him all the way, and a close shave he had 
 of it to get the house door to betwixt his heels and tlie 
 bear's muzzle. 
 
 There were plenty to jeer at Biorn over this ending to his 
 exploit, and Grettir in particular with his taunts stung 
 him not a little : but Biorn seemed as though he heeded 
 nothing, having already made up his mind to be repaid. 
 And a few days after, when Thorkel and he and half-a- 
 dozen more went to harry the bear, Biorn caught up 
 Grettir's fur cloak and cast it into the bear's den. Grettir 
 saw it lying there, and saw the bear sit growling over it, 
 but he trowed after all it was no such great matter. He 
 waited till evening came, and when the rest turned about 
 to go home, Grettir went along with them for some way, 
 but presently made excuse that the thong of his leggings 
 had come undone, and he must stop and fasten it. So he 
 lagged behind till the others were out of sight, and then 
 went off to have ado with the bear, not choosing to share 
 the honour of the conflict with anyone. 
 
 When he got to the den's mouth, he slipped the loop 
 of his short sword over his wrist and went straight in. 
 
 s
 
 258 Tales of the Tetitonic Lands. 
 
 Up rose the bear, and rushing to meet him, smote at 
 Grettir with one of his paws ; but Grrettir hewed oflf that 
 paw with his sword. Then the bear must needs lift up 
 the other paw wherewith to strike, and in doing so down 
 he dropped upon the stump, which, being shorter by a 
 foot than he reckoned for, rolled him over into Grrettir's 
 arms. Howbeit the beast got upon his hind legs and 
 wrestled with him as a man would do with another. 
 Grettir caught him by the ears and held his head back so 
 that he could not bite : the bear struggled hither and 
 thither, and bent him to and fro, but none the more would 
 Grettir leave go his hold on the bear's ears ; till in the 
 tussle they rolled together out of the lair, and, still grip- 
 ing one another, fell headlong over a ledge of rock on to 
 a stone-heap below. The bear being heaviest fell under- 
 most, and greatly bruised he was withal. Grettir soon 
 ran his short sword into the heart of him, and then taking 
 up his tattered fur cloak and the bear's paw came home to 
 Thorkel who sat drinking with his men, and flimg them 
 down upon the table. 
 
 Then Thorkel began to fear for Biorn's life, and sought 
 to make friends betwixt the two men, offering Grettir 
 money to make the peace. But Biorn bade him put his 
 money to better use, saying he was quite ready to deal 
 with Grettir himself if need were, for that it behoved 
 every block of wopd to look after his own chips. Neither 
 would Grettir take the money. Notwithstanding, at 
 Thorkel's intreaty he agreed to do nothing against Biorn 
 so long as they both remained with him. 
 
 But in the spring Grettir bade Thorkel farewell, to 
 journey northward, and after wandering about all the 
 summer, came to the island of Gartar, which lies in 
 Drontheim lirth. Biorn also went away as master of 
 Thorkel's ship, and made a voyage to England ; but on liis 
 return the vessel, being driven by stress of weather up 
 Drontheim firth, came ashore upon the island where Grettir
 
 Grettir the Strong. 259 
 
 was. Grrettir soon found Biorn and renewed the quarrel, 
 saying, ' Noav, thou braggart jester, save thou wilt fight I 
 will rag thy coat for thee as thou didst mine, and dub 
 thee coward beside.' And when Biorn found that he could 
 not talk himself out of the mess, he went off with Grettir 
 and fought, and in that fight got wounded so badly that 
 he presently fell dead. 
 
 Yarl Svein heard of Biorn's slaying from Hiarandi, 
 brother of Biorn, who was in his service, and straightway 
 summoned Grettir to come before him and answer for the 
 man's life. But Grrettir went and saw on his way his 
 friend Thorfinn, who, being glad to have opportunity to 
 repay Grettir's defence of his homestead, came with him 
 to Yarl Svein, offering to pay the blood-money. When 
 the matter came to be sifted, it was found that Biorn had 
 provoked Grettir in many ways ; and what with this, and 
 Grettir's having rid the land of the berserks, whereof 
 Thorfinn failed not to remind him, Yarl Svein put such a 
 price upon the deed as he deemed befitting Biorn's kin- 
 dred, and Thorfinn told out the money. But Hiarandi 
 would not touch the gold : he said, ' Nay, I will either 
 avenge my brother, or go after himi the same road.' So 
 there being nothing else to be done, the meeting broke 
 up. But from that hour Thorfinn got his kinsman 
 Arnbiorn to go about with Grettir, for fear Hiarandi 
 might come upon him unawares. And a good thing it 
 was ; for one day as the two walked down a street, 
 Hiarandi, who with five other fellows had hidden himself 
 in a courtyard, rushed out with axe uplifted in both hands 
 and drave it down at Grettir's head; Arnbiorn had just 
 time to thrust Grettir a little on one side to avoid the 
 blow, but as it was the axe came down on his shoulder 
 and cut him a grievous wound crosswise, against the arm- 
 pit. Grettir drew his short sword, and in a moment 
 hewed off Hiarandi's arm ; and so smartly did he and 
 Arnbiorn behave themselves, that Hiarandi and four of 
 
 s 2
 
 26o Tales of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 his men were quickly slain, and the other one ran off to 
 tell the tidings to Yarl Svein. 
 
 The Yarl was very angry at this new slaughter, and 
 summoned the Thing, and set forth the accusation against 
 Grrettir. Thorfinn came up again, bringing many of 
 Grettir's friends ; and these all pleaded that he might 
 either be allowed to make atonement or to leave the land. 
 Grettir also urged that he did not seek the fight, but that 
 it was either his life or theirs. Then said the Yarl, 
 ' Far better it had been thine, for thou wilt always be 
 brawling, and if thou livest, many a man will get his bane 
 of thee.' Howbeit, after much talk a respite was granted 
 to Grettir till the spring, in order that they might hold a 
 court to settle the matter at Tunsberg, where Gunnar, 
 brother of Biorn and Hiarandi, dwelt. 
 
 Meanwhile Thorfinn interested himself mightily in his 
 cause, and so did Bessi, son of Skald-Torfa ; and when 
 they were all come to Tunsberg in the spring, Grettir 
 found his brother Thorstein Dromond, who was a court 
 owner there, and he likewise promised to help him. But 
 Yarl Svein somewhat delayed his coming, and one day as 
 Grettir sat drinking alone in an alehouse, the door was 
 burst open and in ran Gunnar with three other armed 
 men to take vengeance on him. Grettir caught up his 
 weapons and set on fiercely. He struck down two of them 
 with his short sword dead upon the floor, and then 
 rushed furiously upon Gunnar to drive him to the thresh- 
 old. Gunnar was driven back because he could not with- 
 stand Grettir's strength, but he backed fighting all the way, 
 with his shield in front of him. But no sooner did he get 
 to the door than Grettir slammed it on his hands, holding 
 the door with his foot, so that Gunnar's shield and both 
 hands remained within the room jammed fast in the 
 doorway whilst his body was without. Then Grettir 
 lopped off the hands at the wrist, so that Gunnar's shield fell 
 within doors, and his body on the door-step, and straight-
 
 Grettir the Stronz. 261 
 
 <i>' 
 
 way sallying out dealt Grunnar his death-blow. The 
 fourth man fled away. 
 
 Now when Yarl Svein came to Tunsberg and heard of 
 this he was madly wroth, insomuch that a man could 
 scarce get speech of him. The Tiling was thronged witli 
 men, and Thorfinn, and Bessi, and Thorstein Dromond 
 said all they might, offering blood-money to boot, as 
 much as the Yarl might doom. But Yarl Svein spake 
 angrily saying, ' It is all too late to offer atonement or to 
 seek respite for Grettir. Here has this man slain three 
 brethren one after another, and it is idle to talk about 
 breaking the laws by giving respite. It matters nothing 
 how strong Grettir may be, or what friends he may have, 
 or what he has done for the land. In this court all men 
 are of equal esteem, and whatever it may cost we will 
 have Grrettir's life, and nothing short of it.' And the 
 Yarl arose up and would listen to no more. 
 
 At that Thorfinn and Thorstein Dromond, and Bessi, 
 and the rest of his friends took Grettir and went home 
 to Thorstein's court, and began to barricade the place. 
 And when Yarl Svein sent to them to give up Grettir 
 they said plainly they would not, for that he was not 
 so greatly to blame, and one fate should befall them all. 
 Thereupon the Yarl gathered his men together, and there 
 would straightway have been a fight, had not men of 
 repute in the town come and prayed him not to carry 
 the matter so far as to do battle with his own people 
 and make a war which would stop no one could say 
 where. So, by this his mind being somewhat changed, an 
 agreement was made whereby lieavy fines were to be 
 taken for the slayings, and Grettir was to be banished 
 from Norway, and go off to Iceland. Thorfinn cheerfully 
 paid the money and parted from Grettir in great friend- 
 ship, giving him gifts of raiment for himself and capari- 
 son for his horse, and bidding him come and see him 
 whenever he came to Norway again. After tliat Grettir
 
 262 Tales of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 took ship with some chapmen, and came to his father's 
 house at Biarg in Iceland. 
 
 Old Asmund had prospered in all things whereto he set 
 his hand, and was become one of the greatest farm- 
 liolders in Midfirth. Moreover Asdis had borne him 
 another boy, whose name was lUugi. But Grettir cared 
 not to abide in the homestead ; he was always wandering 
 about, getting into some brawl or other. He sought out 
 his old companions who had been lads when he was a boy, 
 and picked quarrels with them, from sheer desire to show 
 his manhood ; and when he found that of those who used 
 to get the better of him in a wrestle by reason of their elder 
 years, not one could stand against him now, he waxed so 
 overbearing that there was no dealing with him. He 
 deemed himself well matched to fight any three men 
 either with hand or sword, neither would he flee from 
 four ; but against a greater number he would not tight of 
 his own seeking. 
 
 III. THE CURSE OF GLAM. 
 
 Away up Waterdale was a homestead in a place called 
 Shady-vale. It belonged to farmer Thorhall, and the 
 most part of it was grazing land, for there was no man 
 about that part who bred so much live stock as he. But 
 he never could get a shepherd to stop with him. It was 
 not that Thorhall was not a liberal-handed master and a 
 pleasant enough spoken man ; but the place was haunted. 
 One man after another took the job, but they all threw it 
 up in turn, because of what they heard and saw upon the 
 downs after nightfall. Nor did it rest with hearing and 
 seeing, for many got badly hurt into the bargain. How- 
 ever, one day Skapti, the Law-man, met Thorhall at the 
 Thing and said to him, ' I know of a shepherd who will 
 stop with thee ; a big, strong man, a Swede, named Glam ;
 
 Grettir the Strong. 26 
 
 J 
 
 a terribly rough and surly fellow to have to do with ; but 
 if thou canst only put up with his ways, I'll answer 
 for it he will keep thy sheep.' Thorhall said he recked 
 nothing how uncouth the man might be either to look at 
 or to talk to, so long as he could do this. 
 
 Not long after there came to Thorhall a great bluff 
 man, with wolf-grey hair, and strange grey eyes with a 
 queer glare in them. He said his name was Glam. 
 Thorhall stared at him, and not without reason, for he 
 had never seen so frightful a boor. He said, ' Wilt thou 
 keep my sheep ? ' ' Aye,' said Glam, ' if no one meddles 
 with me ; but I am apt to be rough of temper when any- 
 wise crossed.' Thorhall answered that he should be left 
 to have his own way, but told him that the place was 
 badly haunted. Glam said, ' Am I a man to be scared by 
 bugbears ? ' Thorhall looked at him and said truly that 
 he did not think he was. So they struck the bargain 
 together. 
 
 All through summer Glam watched the sheep upon the 
 hills : he liad a great lusty voice, and they all came running 
 together at his hallo. But no one about the farm could 
 abide him, because of his gruffness and ill-temper ; least 
 of all could Thorhall's wife. Glam was a dreadfully un- 
 godly wight, with some loathsome oath or other always in 
 his mouth. There was a church on the farmstead, but 
 he shunned it like pestilence. For all that he kept the 
 sheep well, and up to Yule-tide not a head was lost or 
 strayed. 
 
 Now though folk feast abundantly enough at Yule-tide, 
 it is well known that all good Christians keep fast on 
 Yule-eve. But Glam came blustering into the house as 
 if it had been any other evening, and cursing all the 
 home-folk for a pack of fools, called loudly for his meat. 
 Thorhall's wife durst not disobey him for the life of her, 
 and after trying to persuade him to fast like the rest, and 
 enduring much of his ill language, she brought him out
 
 264 Tales of the Teuto7iic Lands. 
 
 the food, saying moreover, ' Thou hast done a mightily 
 evil thing ; take heed nothing befall thee because of 
 it.' Glam finished his meat and went out to fold the 
 sheep upon the mountains, grumbling and swearing as he 
 went. 
 
 The day had been greatly overcast and bitterly cold, 
 and at twilight a great snowstorm swept over the place. 
 Glam never came home that night. When it grew late 
 and he did not come, the men about the house talked 
 of going out to look for him ; but it was pitch dark, 
 and the snow-flakes fell so thick that a man could scarce 
 see his hand before his face. Morning broke ; still Glam 
 did not come. Then they all made a party and fared 
 abroad after him. They saw the sheep all scattered 
 and strayed about the mountains ; some dead, some 
 huddled together arainst the rocks for shelter from the 
 storm. But it was long before they found any trace of 
 Glam. Late on in the day they came upon mighty 
 foot-prints, big as cask-heads ; these they tracked to a 
 steep cliff side, whereabout the giound was all tramped 
 down as though a great scuffle had gone on there. 
 Rocks had been uprooted, earth and snow were churned 
 to mud, which had frozen and marked the stampings of 
 the wrestlers. Glam lay there, dead and blue and 
 swollen, his wide grey eyes glaring horribly. Putting 
 this and that together, they deemed that the haunter of 
 ^hady-vale had fought with Glam and killed him, but 
 did not get off without mortal wounds, whereof he 
 doubtless must have died, for he haunted that place no 
 more. Glam looked so evil in his death-sleep that the 
 men were adread of liim ; nevertheless they went and 
 fetched horses and harnessed them to his body to drag 
 it to the church. But the horses could not stir it that 
 way, for all the road lay downhill. Another time the 
 men came bringing tlie priest with them ; but that dav, 
 though they searched from morning till niglit about the
 
 Grettir the Sti'ong. 265 
 
 place, they could not find G lam's body at all. The 
 morning after, coming without the priest, they foimd the 
 body, and the horses failing again to move it, the house- 
 carls strove no more to bring it to the church, but made 
 a cairn and buried it where it lay. 
 
 It was not long after Yule that the folk found that 
 Glam did not rest quiet in his grave. He was seen of 
 many about the farm in the dusk of evenings, and he took 
 to riding the house-roofs at night fit to break them in. 
 If a man had an errand after dark across Shady-vale, no 
 mitter how pressing, he would leave it till morning 
 rather than venture in Glam's way. The hauntings 
 lasted all the winter, but as summer drew on they ceased. 
 Thorhall got a new shepherd that autumn from a distant 
 part, a strong man called Thorgaut, who had the strength 
 of two, but next Yule-day he was found lying against 
 Glam's cairn with his neck broken ; and the hauntings 
 grew worse than ever. One morning when the house- 
 wife went to milk the cows in the byre she heard such 
 terrible noises and cracklings hard by, that she ran back 
 screaming for fear ; and straightway the whole herd took 
 fright and began goring one another. The neat-herd 
 went out to them but never came back ; and when they 
 found him he Avas lying on his back in the cow-house, 
 with his neck broken, and all the cows were dead. Day 
 by day Glam killed cattle and sheep and horses. Things 
 came to such a pass that at last Thorhall would abide no 
 longer on the farm, but gathered together all he durst 
 go after, and fled away to spend the winter with his 
 friends. Whatsoever live thing he left, that Glam slew : 
 and every horse and hoimd that crossed the place met 
 the same fate. 
 
 Next spring, as soon as the sun got power, Glam lay in 
 quiet, and Thorhall came back to his farm ; but it was 
 as much as he could do to get servants to abide with him ; 
 and towards winter the hauntins-s bea"an again as bad as
 
 266 Tales of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 before. A girl on the farm was set upon and killed ; 
 and what to do Thorhall could not tell. 
 
 Now Grrettir heard by chance of these strange doings, 
 and making up his mind to searcli the matter out, set 
 oif and rode to Thorhall-stead. Thorhall gave him 
 a hearty welcome, but bade him look well to his horse 
 if he treasured it, for that none could keep a liorse many 
 days upon his farm. However, Grettir said that horses 
 were plenty enough, and he would risk that. So they 
 locked up the horse in a strong stable and went to bed. 
 But that night Glam did not ride the roofs nor break 
 open the doors, and at daylight the horse was safe and 
 sound. The next morning it was the same ; and Grettir 
 began to think the tale of the hauntings an idle one ; 
 but the day after, when they arose and went out they 
 found the stable shattered, and the horse lying dead 
 outside the door, with every bone in his body broken. 
 Then said Grettir, ' It is not too much to ask, as the 
 price of my horse, for a sight of the man who did this.' 
 So when night came he took a rug with him, and came 
 to the stable, and laid him down in his clothes upon a 
 locker, wrapping him from head to foot in the rug, but 
 leaving an opening for his eyes. There was one strong 
 beam left at the end of the seat, and against this he 
 set both feet. All the rest of the place was a wreck, 
 and the splintered door was only held in its place by 
 broken fastenings. There was a light burning, and 
 Grettir lay awake, but for a long time heard nothing. 
 A while after midnight there came a great noise, a sound 
 as of some one riding the roof-tree and digging his 
 heels against the rafters till they cracked again ; and 
 the thatch came tumbling down by armfuls. Presently 
 Glam came down oflf the roof and thrust the door open. 
 He was monstrous big, and thick-set withal. When he 
 stretched himself up his head reached above the eaves. 
 He stood there glaring about with his awful grey eyes ;
 
 Grettir the Strong. 267 
 
 then he took the cross-beam of the house in his hands 
 and shook it till the crazy, broken stable rocked. Grettir 
 lay quite still. By and by, Glam, seeing a bundle lying 
 on the seat, caught hold of the coverlid and pulled it. 
 Grettir would not move, but set his feet faster against 
 the beam and griped the rug in his hands. Harder 
 pulled Glam, but the thing would not come away. Then 
 he put both hands to it and dragged with all his might, 
 and drew Grettir upright from off the seat. But Grettir 
 held on to the rug till it rent asunder between them. 
 While Glam wondered who it might be that could pull 
 so hard against him, Grettir ran in beneath his hands, 
 clutched him round the middle, and bent himself with all 
 his strength to double him backwards. But Glam was 
 stronger than he knew of, and stood it like a tree. Back 
 he bore Grettir to the seat, and thence from place to place, 
 till every beam and panel of the house was broken with 
 their struggling. Then Glam sought to drag him to the 
 door and out into the open. Against this Grettir strove 
 with all his might, well knowing that outside he had 
 no chance. But in vain he knit himself back and bowed 
 the thrall's great body towards him. He felt that he 
 was going, and could not save himself ; he gat no foot- 
 hold, and was being dragged yard by yard towards the 
 doorway. Nothing could save him. Then he thought that 
 if he must go it should be with a rush; and, from pulling 
 against Glam, he suddenly drave forward his hardest 
 and hurled him reeling back the way he was going. 
 Unprepared for this, Glam staggered backward with a 
 run, his head smiting the lintel of the door, and breaking 
 the roof away, but the door-sill tripped his heels, and 
 down he fell upon his back without the house, Grettir 
 atop of him. 
 
 Just then the moon sailed up from behind a black 
 sheet of cloud, and shone upon Glam's eyes. Hideously 
 they glared up at the moon, and Grettir was dismayed 
 
 I
 
 268 Tales of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 for the only time in all liis life. He could not draw the 
 short sword for the horrible staring of Glam's eyeballs. 
 
 Glam said, ' Little shall this encounter profit thee. 
 For thy strength was not near come to the full, and 
 would have increased twofold ; but since thou hast met 
 me it shall wax no greater. Moreover, ill luck shall 
 cleave to thee in all things. Thou shalt become an 
 outlaw, and a lonesome man ; and in thy lonesomeness I 
 lay this curse on thee — ever in the darkness to behold 
 these eyes of mine. They shall follow thee whithersoever 
 thou goest, and there shall be no hiding from them. 
 That shall make it hard for thee to dwell alone. That 
 shall lure thee to thy death.' 
 
 When he had thus spoken a cloud scudded past the 
 moon and hid it ; the spell that had lain on Grettir fell 
 from off him ; he drew forth the short sword and there- 
 with hewed off Glam's head, and set it over against his 
 thigh that thereafter the ghost might walk no more. 
 
 Then Thorhall, who had been watching afar off but 
 durst not come nigh, came up and thaiiked God and 
 Grettir heartily for this deliverance from the unclean 
 spirit. And the two men took Glam's body and kindled 
 a fire, and burned it to ashes, and they wrapped the 
 ashes in the skin of a beast, and buried them in a place 
 apart from the ways of men or cattle. 
 
 Soon after that Grettir took his departure, loaded with 
 presents which Thorhall gave him, and rode off to Biarg. 
 There he passed the winter at his home. But since that 
 affray he was grown restless and shorter of temper than 
 heretofore. He feared to be in the dark, and durst not 
 go forth alone at night because of Glam's ejes whicli 
 fastened on him. And from that time it passed into a 
 proverb concerning them which see strange and horrible 
 things in the darkness, that Glam has looked upon them, 
 or that thev have Ghim siffht.
 
 Grettir the Strong. 269 
 
 IV. GRETTIR'S ILL-LUCK. 
 
 TiiEKE lived in Eamfirth an exceeding strong man, named 
 Thorbiorn Oxmain. He had a kinsman and namesake, a 
 sailor, called Thorbiorn the Tardy, who had a very ill- 
 natured tongue which was always wagging. Grettir 
 bore no good blood towards either of them ; for some 
 while before Thorbiorn Oxmain had come up with his 
 men and parted him and Kormak in a fight of some half 
 dozen a side on Eamfirth-neck ; and ever since Thor- 
 biorn the Tardy had jeered him behind his back for 
 giving over after blood had been shed, the more so 
 because one of the men that fell in the fray was his 
 brother Atli's house-carle, and no vengeance was taken 
 for him. But time went on, and Thorbiorn the Tardy 
 still made his jibes. Grettir, though he heard of it, 
 cared not to seek out a man whom all knew for a brag- 
 gart ; and living far apart they had not met. 
 
 Now in the spring Grettir made up his mind to go 
 over to Norway ; for tidings came how Yarl Svein had fled 
 the country, and how Olaf the Saint, who ruled in his stead, 
 gave right good welcome at his court to men of prowess ; 
 beside which there was some sort of kindred between 
 them, for Grettir's great-grandfather, Onund Treefoot, 
 and Olafs great-grandmother, Gudbiorg, were brother 
 and sister. Many other men were likewise going to see 
 how things would fare with them at King Olafs hands. 
 
 There had never been over much love at any time 
 betwixt his father and himself ; yet Grettir seemed very 
 loth to leave him now, notwithstanding his mind was set 
 on going. For old Asmund was grown decrepit and bed- 
 ridden ; he had given up tending the farm, and had 
 committed that and all other matters about the home- 
 stead into the hands of his eldest son Atli. Wherefore
 
 270 Tales of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 it was -with no light heart that Grrettir took leave of the 
 old man. But he bade farewell to his father and to Atli, 
 and his young brother Illugi, and made his way to 
 Groose-ere in Eyjafirth, where, having taken a passage by 
 the next ship, he tarried with other folk waiting for it to 
 sail. 
 
 Now Thorbiorn the Tardy also had a mind to go to 
 Norway, and though many sought to hinder him from 
 going in the same vessel with Grrettir he heeded nothing, 
 but made ready at the last minute, and came down to 
 Groose-ere just as the ship was ready for sea. 
 
 One and another gathered round him on the beach to 
 ask for tidings ; but Grrettir kept himself apart. Thor- 
 biorn eyed him and laughed, and said to them which 
 stood about, ' Tidings ? Grood sooth, there is naught 
 to tell of any account. Old Asmund down in Biarg is 
 dead, and high time too. Old dotard ! Would you ask 
 of what ? Grood friends, the chamber smoked, and 
 smothered him in bed. I pray you laugh. A champion 
 dead of chamber smoke ! ' 
 
 Nevertheless none joined his merriment. They said, 
 ' If Asmund of a truth be dead, a good and worthy man is 
 dead. But as for thee, see to it and beware lest Grrettir 
 hear thy words.' Thorbiorn laughed them to scorn, 
 saying, " What reck I of Grrettir ? He must wield a sword 
 more deftly than he did at Eamfirth-neck before I shape 
 my words to please his mind.' 
 
 But Grettir had heard it all, and now walked up to him. 
 He said, ' Thorbiorn, I will foretell thee a little thing. 
 Thou wilt die neither of chamber smoke, nor yet of old 
 age. But now for this time take back thy words, for I 
 care not to have to do with him that mocketh at the help- 
 less.' Then began Thorbiorn to brag aloud of his valour, 
 daring Grettir, moreover, to fight, until, being taimted 
 very sore, Grrettir drew his sword and hewed at liim. 
 Only one blow he struck. Thorbiorn flung up his arm to
 
 G7''ettir the Strong. 2 7 1 
 
 guard it, but old Karr's blade flashed through his wrist 
 and through his neck, and hand and head fell down upon 
 the beach. None of the folk deemed other than that the 
 quarrelsome wight had gotten his just reward. 
 
 Then they all went on shipboard and sailed across tlie 
 sea to Hordaland which lies in the south of Norway. But 
 when they were come ashore Grettir heard how King 
 Olaf was gone up to Drontheim ; so he took ship again in 
 a trading vessel northward bound to go thither. 
 
 They had hard weather, and the snow froze and fell sting- 
 ing cold upon them ; and it was so when they were come 
 off a haven against Stead, that they had not wherewithal 
 to make a fire. Then they lay to, and being starved with 
 cold, they watched wistfully a homestead on the shore 
 where a bright blaze flickered day and night. And at last 
 Grettir's shipmates said to him, ' Thou art the strong- 
 est of us ; wilt thou go ashore and bring fire aboard ? ' 
 He answered, ' Aye, I will go ; but see to it that ye all 
 stand by me, whatever come of it.' And they said to him, 
 ' Deem us not so shameful as not to uphold thee in aught 
 thou doest for our sakes.' 
 
 Then Grettir threw off his' clothes and slipped a rope 
 about his middle, for those on shipboard to pay out, and 
 taking with him a cask wherein to bring the fire, he 
 leapt overboard and swam to shore. 
 
 The house they had seen was a house of refuge, built 
 upon the strand for the shelter of mariners. The sons of 
 Thorir of Garth, a man of great esteem in Iceland, had 
 been driven into the haven by the stress of weather, and 
 were carousing: there with a dozen of their crew. 
 
 Grettir saw the house and ran in. There was a great 
 fire burning in the midst, and all about was straw whicli 
 had been housed there out of the snow. But Thorir's 
 sons, seeing a great strong naked man, with icicles hang- 
 ing from his hair and beard, trowed that he was a troll or 
 some unearthly wight, and so set on and smote him with
 
 272 Talcs of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 the first things which came to hand, which were the fire- 
 brands from off the hearth. 
 
 Grrettir recked nothing of their disturbance, nor would 
 he fight with the men ; he only wanted fire. He put the 
 blows from off him as best he might, snatched a fire- 
 brand from out one man's hand, and made his way back 
 to the ship. When he got aboard he looked towards the 
 shore and saw no house, but only a great pile of flame ; the 
 straw had kindled in the scuffle and burned the house, and 
 Thorir's sons, and all the men that were therein. Tlie 
 mariners seeing this shunned Grrettir for the rest of the 
 voyage ; and at every place whereat the vessel stopped 
 they noised abroad how they were not guilty of the mishap, 
 but that Grettir had done it ; until at last they put in 
 shore, drave him from their ship, and would have no more 
 truck with him. They told the people that Grettir had 
 burned Thorir's sons in the refuge-house, and straightway 
 turned him adrift and sailed away. So the folk on shore 
 looked on him askance and would have naught to do with 
 him. Grettir, caring for no man, wandered on alone to 
 Drontheim to meet the king. 
 
 As Olaf sat in the council on a certain day Grettir 
 came, making obeisance before the king. Olaf knew him 
 for a kinsman, and being well minded towards him said, 
 'Art thou Grettir the Strong?' Grettir answered, 'So 
 men have called me. But my strength availeth nothing to 
 deliver me from an evil slander laid upon me, wherefrom 
 I pray the king to give me quittance.' The king said, 
 ' I have heard the tale told of thee ; and I do not think 
 that of thine own will thoii didst burn these men. 
 Neither do I see why thou shouldst not cast the slander 
 from thee.' Then Grettir declaring himself ready to do 
 whatsoever might hold good in law, the king appointed 
 a day whereon he might clear himself by the ordeal of 
 bearing hot iron. 
 
 Grettir, well pleased thereat, betook to fasting to pre-
 
 Grettir the Strong. 273 
 
 pare himself for the trial, and when the day was come tlie 
 bishop and much people gathered to the church, and the 
 iron was made hot for him to bear in his hand. Greatly 
 marvelled the folk to see his muscle, and the cords upon 
 his limbs. But as Grettir walked through the midst of 
 the church, there started up from the church-floor a boy 
 of strange countenance, who pointed a finger at him and 
 wagged his head, saying, ' Strange times these when every 
 thief may free himself by calling for a trial ! Are there 
 ordeals, forsooth, for a man who burnt a half score guile- 
 less folk because they had fire and he had none ?' Then 
 Grettir could not withhold his anger, but clenched his 
 fist and smote the boy behind the ear so that he fell upon 
 the floor. But though they saw him fall, the folk which 
 pressed forward could not find the boy's body ; for it was 
 an evil spirit raised up for Grettir's hurt. And there 
 arose a great clamour in the church, insomuch that it 
 was told the king ' Grettir is smiting all about him.' 
 And the king came forth and said, ' Grettir, strength like 
 thine is given to few men, but of a truth thine ill-luck 
 passeth all things. Blame thine own heedlessness that 
 this trial is stayed. I do not condemn thee ; maybe thou 
 didst not burn these folk, but I cannot have to do with so 
 unlucky a man. Go away home. I will not hinder thee 
 from tarrying in Norway through the winter, but I will 
 see thy face no more ; and in the spring get thee back to 
 Iceland, for after this I can have no moi^e to do with thee. 
 I am sorry ; but there is no dealing with ill-luck.' 
 
 Grettir was very down-hearted thereat ; but in nowise 
 despairing, he determined to go and seek out his brother 
 Thorstein Dromond. On his way he fell in with a rich 
 bonder named Einar, who had a wife and a fair daughter 
 called Gyrid ; and Grettir abode at his house through 
 Yule-tide. One day in Yule there came certain berserks 
 to Einar, chief of them Snoekoll, a big strong man, who 
 challenged him to fight for his women. Einar was old 
 
 X
 
 2 74 Talcs of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 and past fighting, and Snoekoll stood before the door rail- 
 ing at him, and threatening him with many foul words. 
 Snoekoll set his shield on end upon the ground while he 
 talked, resting his mouth upon the rim of it. Grettir 
 heard him, and came forth ; he lifted his foot, and catch- 
 ing the tail of the shield with his toe, kicked it so hard 
 that the shield flew up and reft Snoekoll's jaw asunder 
 and tare his throat open. Then he drew the short sword 
 and smote off the berserk's head. Seeing this, the other 
 berserks fled. 
 
 When Yule was over Grettir travelled east to Tunsberg, 
 and dwelt awhile with his brother Thorstein Dromond, 
 and much good-fellowship they held together. One 
 morning as the two brethren lay in their beds, Thorstein 
 awoke, and saw Grettir's great sinewy arms lying outside 
 tlie coverlid ; and when Grettir waked he said, ' Brother, I 
 deem it nowise strange that men cannot withstand thee, 
 for never have I seen arms so huge as thine. Pity it is 
 they were not more slender and more lucky withal.' Then 
 Thorstein bared his arms and laid them alongside Grettir's. 
 And seeing the gaunt thin arms of his brother, Grettir 
 laughed loud and long. ' What arms ! A pair of tongs ! 
 Sure, Thorstein, thou hast scarce a woman's strength.' 
 Thorstein answered him, ' The day will come when thy 
 great arms sliall avail thee naught ; but these lank arms of 
 mine shall be strong enough to avenge thee.' 
 
 While Grettir tarried witli Thorstein in Norway many ill 
 things befell in Iceland. And first of all his father, the 
 grey old Asmund, grew feebler every day, till, finding death 
 draw nigh, he gathered his sons Atli and Illugi, and all the 
 home-folk round his bedside. To Atli lie gave his farm and 
 all his goods, making him ruler of the household in his 
 stead, charging the folk to obey him in all things. And 
 he laid his hands on the head of Illugi his youngest-born 
 and blessed him, saying that one day he should become a 
 man of great prowess. Then he thought of Grettir, who
 
 Grettir the Stroncr. 
 
 tb 
 
 275 
 
 was far away, and be said, ' His life will be restless as a 
 rolling- wbeel. A migbty man is my son, yet will bis 
 mig'bt be of little service to bis kindred, for be will scarce 
 find it suffice to deliver bim from bis own troubles.' A 
 little after that Asmund died, and was buried in a cburch 
 wbicb be bad built on tbe bomestead. 
 
 Now Tborbiorn Oxmain was mad wrotb to bear bow 
 bis kinsman Tborbiorn tbe Tardy bad been slain by 
 Grettir ; and since Grrettir was out of tbe way, be deter- 
 mined to be avenged upon bis brotber Atli. To tbat 
 end be made a league witb Grunnar and Tborgeir tbe sons 
 of Tborir of the Pass, who were likewise ill-friends witb 
 Atli ; for they were in tbat fray on Eamfirtb-neck, when 
 Atli's house-carle was slain ; and he prevailed upon them, 
 together with six other men, to go and waylay Atli as he 
 came home from a journey^ Atli had but five folk witb bim, 
 and when be espied Gunnar and bis fellows, he would not 
 take it tbat their errand was aught but peaceable, and so 
 bespake them witb tbe same gentleness wbicb it was liis 
 wont to use to all men. When he bad welcomed them all 
 and asked their tidings, be turned to Gunnar, saying, 
 ' There is tbat house-carle of mine wbicb fell in tbe strife 
 at Eamfirtb-neck by thine band. I have made no stir about 
 it hitherto, well knowing tbat when I should next meet 
 thee thou wouldst offer atonement. Is it not so ? ' Gun - 
 nar answered, ' It ill befits tbe men of Biarg to talk about 
 atonement, witb the blood of Tborbiorn on their bands. 
 We are bere to take our vengeance for tbat slaying, and 
 we heed no other suit.' Atli said, ' Your pardon, but I 
 am not tbe man to answer in tbat cause, neither art thou 
 a suitor in it.' ' But I cboose to take up the suit, and 
 thou sbalt answer for it,' said Gunnar ; and therewith be 
 cried on bis men, saying, ' Lay on stoutly and fear nothing, 
 for Grettir is not witb them now.' Then, there being no 
 help for it, Atli drew bis sword, and though tbey were 
 but six to eiaht, he and bis folk defended themselves so
 
 276 Tales of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 well that they presently slew Gunnar and Thorgeir, and 
 three of their fellows. They made peace with the other 
 three and let them go. 
 
 When Thorbiorn Oxmain knew how the affray ended, 
 he took up the suit for the slaying of the sons of Thorir 
 of the Pass, and it was tried before two wise judges at 
 the Thing. Atli had many friends, and was known to 
 be a peace-loving man ; it was shown moreover that he 
 was attacked and fought only to defend himself. 
 Wherefore he was adjudged only to pay half fines. 
 So far as words went the peace was made, but the 
 judgment rankled in Thorbiorn's mind. 
 
 Thorbiorn had a somewhat unruly house-carle named 
 All, self-willed and sullen of temper ; and Thorbiorn 
 worried him greatly about his work, whereas the man 
 would only work in his own way. When Thorbiorn 
 found fault with him he got idle and would do nothing 
 at all, till, being always at loggerheads, Thorbiorn one 
 day beat him soundly, and sent him about his business. 
 After that the man came over to Biarg and asked Atli 
 for work. Atli said to him, ' Are you not one of Thor- 
 biorn's men ? Gro back to him. I have plenty of work- 
 men.' The carle told how Thorbiorn had turned him 
 away and besought earnestly to be taken on, for that he 
 had no food and no friends, and knew not where to go. 
 Pitying his strait, Atli gave him work, and the man was 
 grateful ; and getting only kind words from his new 
 master, he worked so hard and so well that soon there 
 was not a better labourer upon the farm. However, 
 in the summer, Thorbiorn, hearing how well the man 
 was going on, got fretful, and rode off to Atli at Biarg, 
 saying, ' Atli, thou art always working some despite 
 against me. Why hast thou harboured this man of mine ? 
 I meddle not with thy workmen ; give him up to me.' 
 Atli answered, ' I understood that thou hadst cast him 
 out. But if he is thy man take him. I want him not.'
 
 Grettir the Strong. 277 
 
 Howbeit the house-carle would not go back with Thor- 
 biorn, but ran into the house and hid himself, and prayed 
 that he might not be given up. Thereupon Atli said, ' I 
 will not hinder thee from taking him, but he shall go 
 with thee of his own free will or not at all. I will not 
 have him dragged from my house.' Then Thorbiorn said, 
 ' Mark you well, that man is mine ; and I forbid him to 
 work here. Next time I come after him perchance it may 
 be in no friendly way.' Atli made answer that threats 
 would not frighten him — he was mostly to be found at 
 home, and he had a welcome for a friend and a sword for 
 a foe. With that Thorbiorn rode off. On a wet day 
 at the beginning of hay-harvest, when all Atli's men were 
 out mowing, Thorbiorn came riding up to the door with his 
 harness on and a barbed spear in his hand. It was 
 about noontide, and there were no folk in the house save 
 Atli and his mother Asdis. Thorbiorn smote upon the 
 door, and then stole on one side and hid himself. Atli 
 heard the knock, and thinking that it must be one of the 
 farm folk with an errand, came to the door and opened 
 it, but seeing how the rain poured down he went not 
 out, but stood with a hand on either door-post peering 
 all about. He saw no man. Suddenly Thorbiorn rushed 
 out with his spear in both hands and smote it through 
 the midst of him. Atli gave a groan and fell forward. 
 Dead he lay before his doorway, and the rain rained on 
 him there. Folk mourned for Atli, for he was good and 
 wise and gentle. There was no more mowing done that 
 day. Ali the house-carle came and wept bitterly, re- 
 proaching himself for his master's death. Asdis the 
 house-wife sobbed and moaned, tearless, as the aged do. 
 They buried Atli in the church upon the homestead, 
 beside his father. But no blood-money was taken for him, 
 since it was for Grettir to take up the blood-suit if he 
 listed. 
 
 But this was not all that happened while Grettir was 
 
 1
 
 27S Talcs of the TaUonic Lands. 
 
 away. Tidings came to Thorir of Garth how his sons had 
 been burned at Stead, and he straightway rode off to the 
 Thing, seeking vengeance. He would take neither money 
 nor blood for atonement, but claimed that Cfrettir should 
 be made an outlaw throughout the land. There was 
 none to speak for Grrettir, neither any that knew the 
 rights of this house-burning. Skapti the Lawman said 
 it was not rightwise for any to put their hands to a judg- 
 ment until Grettir's story bad first been heard. But 
 Thorir was a man of might, a friend of King Olaf ; Bishop 
 Sigurd had hallowed his ship ; most men befriended him ; 
 all feared him. So it fell out that when he pushed matters 
 to the hardest none dared gainsay him, and the end of it 
 was that Grettir was made an outlaw, and a price set on 
 his bead, the same as was wont to be done with the worst 
 of robbers and vagabonds. 
 
 Now at the end of the summer Grettir took leave of 
 his brother Thorstein Dromond. In great friendship they 
 parted, and they never met togetlier more. So when 
 Grettir landed in Iceland he learned these heavy tidings ; 
 first, that his father was dead ; next, that his brother, the 
 head of the household, was slain ; and last, that he himself 
 was outlawed, without a hearing, for a deed he had never 
 done. Yet he took his troubles lightly enough. He said, 
 ' These are heavy mishaps, but maybe there shall come a 
 time when other folk shall find themselves more forlorn 
 than I am this day.' 
 
 X. THE HUNTING OF THE OUTLAW. 
 
 Somewhile Grettir abode in the ship, till he could get 
 a horse to his mind. Presently he fell in with a merry 
 fellow named Svein, who had a famous black mare very 
 swift of foot, called Saddle-fair. Grettir stole the mare one 
 night from S vein's home-field and bridled her, threw a black
 
 Grettir the Stroiig. 279 
 
 cape over his clothes to disguise himself, and rode away. 
 He never drew rein till he came to Grim Thorhallson's 
 house. Grrim was one of the six which fought with Atli 
 against Gunnar and Thorgeir, and learning who it was, 
 he welcomed Grettir freely enough, though in some fear 
 of harbouring an outlaw. Svein missed his mare, and 
 followed her from place to place till be tracked her to 
 Grim's bouse. But Grettir told him a horse was not 
 worth quarrelling about, and they had better be good 
 friends ; and the farmer, learning who it was that had taken 
 her, made no more ado, but came in and stayed that 
 night at Grim's ; and a merry time he and Grettir made 
 of it together, parting next morning in the best of fellow- 
 ship, and Grettir kept the mare. 
 
 Afterwards Grettir rode over to the old farm at Biarg, 
 and for fear of being seen, came there at dead of night. 
 All were asleep save his mother, who was a light sleeper, 
 and lay long awake. She heard his footfall and went 
 down and let him in. She told him all the trouble that 
 had come upon their house. Grettir said that he knew 
 it all full well, but bade her be of good cheer, for that he 
 would either better or worsen things before long. For a 
 while Grettir abode in the farmstead, none knowing of it 
 save the folk about the house, and they kept their counsel. 
 
 Now it came to pass at the end of hay-harvest, when 
 Thorbiorn Oxmain and his son Arnor were down in the 
 home-field binding the hay, that they espied a man ride 
 over the meadow bearing sword and spear. Thorbiorn said 
 to his son, ' Of a truth that is Grettir, Asmund's son. 
 Wherefore leave the sheaves and let us meet him stoutly.' 
 Thorbiorn's shield and sword lay among the hay. The 
 lad bore a hand-axe at his side. Thorbiorn took up his 
 weapons, saying, ' I will meet Grettir in front ; do thou 
 go round and come behind him, and drive thine axe with 
 both hands betwixt his shoulders.' 
 
 Grettir got off his horse, and taking his spear loosed the
 
 iSo Talcs of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 socket-nail which held the spear-head to the shaft, so that 
 Thorbiorn should not cast the spear back again. Then 
 he drew nigh and flung the spear ; but the socket being 
 looser than he knew of, the spear swerved in its flight, and 
 the head fell down off the shaft upon the field. Thor- 
 biorn ran upon Grettir and began to assail him furiously, 
 that the lad might the better steal up behind his back. 
 But Grettir chanced to turn his head, and seeing how 
 things were, contrived to keep himself somewhat free to 
 tiu-n about, and when the lad was come within reach he 
 swung the short sword round and drave it do\vn into his 
 skull. Then Thorbiorn smote at him, but Grettir put 
 the blow aside with his shield, and lifting his hand clave 
 Thorbiorn's shield in two, and the sword-point entered his 
 brain ; so Thorbiorn fell down dead. 
 
 Grettir sought all about the meadow for his spear-head, 
 but could not find it ; neither was it found till within the 
 memory of old folk now living, by which token it is cer- 
 tainly known that Thorbiorn fell in that place, and not in 
 Midfit, as some were wont to say. And for that cause 
 the place is called Spear-mead to this day. 
 
 After this slaying Grettir went home to Biarg and told 
 his mother how he had avenged Atli ; but fearing to 
 abide there longer lest he should bring trouble on her, 
 he fared abroad, and sought shelter with one and auotlier 
 as best he could. 
 
 Now Thorod Drapna-stump took up the blood-suit for 
 Thorbiorn, and with a great company of Eamfirth men 
 hunted Grettir hither and thither, so that he was hard 
 put to it to find harbourage anywhere ; and when any 
 took him in for a night or two, they never left off praying 
 him to begone. At last the Eamfirthers having hunted 
 him as far as Samstead, heard that he was departed out of 
 their borders, and gave over piu'suit. Grettir came on to 
 Eeek-knolls, to the house of one named Thorgils, a boun- 
 tiful man, who already sheltered two foster-brothers, Thor-
 
 Gretiir the Stroncr. 281 
 
 <i> ' 
 
 geir and Thormod, rough men and fierce, who had been 
 outlawed long ago for high-handed slayings. Thorgils 
 bade Gfrettir welcome to food and lodging provided he 
 could dwell with the foster-brothers without strife. 
 
 In Olaf s isles, some way out in the firth, was a great 
 ox belonging to Thorgils, which he was fain to have home 
 against Yule-time. Grrettir went with the two brothers to 
 fetch the ox. They sailed over in a very heavy ten-oared 
 boat, but the wind being fair the weight of the craft 
 mattered little as there was no rowing. When they were 
 come to the isle, the two brothers asked Grettir which he 
 would do, fetch the ox or mind the boat ; and since he 
 cared not whether of the twain he did, they left him with 
 the boat, for the surf ran strong about the coast. Howbeit 
 Grettir went into the water, and clipping the boat amid- 
 ships with his hands held her fast ; and though the waves 
 broke over his shoulders and the boat tossed and beat 
 madly about, Grettir would not let go his hold. Thorgeir 
 and Thormod came dragging down the ox, and in a 
 great sweat tliey were ; but by dint of one taking the 
 beast behind, and the other before, they heaved him into 
 the boat. Grettir went aft, and left the brothers to row ; 
 but when they rounded Goat-rock there came such a squall 
 that they could make no headway. Thorgeir moreover 
 with the force of his pulling broke the thole-pins. Then 
 he bade Grettir row while he mended them. Grettir 
 took the oars and pulled till both snapped asunder. And 
 while Thormod laughed, and Thorgeir whittled at new 
 thole-pins, he caught up the mast and boom, and cutting 
 notches in the gunwale to pull against, rowed so mightily 
 that the ten-oared craft creaked and bowed beneath his 
 strokes, and presently came to land. Then Grettir asked 
 whether they would haul the boat ashore or take home 
 the ox. But having had enough of the ox, which was 
 strong and big and very unruly, they chose to see after 
 the boat. That ox was the stubboruest brute ; he would
 
 282 Tales of the Teiitoiiic Lands. 
 
 go nowhither that a man wanted ; and a weary dance he 
 led Grettir. Thorgeir and Thormod stowed the boat and 
 overtook him half way to the farmstead. Grettir was 
 pulling with all his might, and the beast had set his fore- 
 hoofs down in front of him and would not budge. How- 
 ever, the brothers said that they should not meddle with 
 the job, and walked off home. Grettir was getting well- 
 nigh tired, and finding that the brute would neither drag 
 nor drive, he caught him by the hind legs and flung him 
 across his back. Tliorgils came out to look for him, and 
 lo there was a man coming up the hill with an ox upon 
 his shoulders ! Much marvelled the folk at Grettirs 
 strength. 
 
 But Thorgeir grew envious of him, and one day, going 
 down upon the beach with his brother, they met Grettir 
 coming up out of the sea from his bath. And Thorgeir 
 said to him, ' Grettir, is it true that thou hast boasted 
 thou wouldst never flee from before any one man?' He 
 said, ' I have never seen the man from whom I would run. 
 Mayhap there be such men, but thou art not one of them.' 
 Thorgeir had an axe in his hand, and lifted it on high. 
 Grettir had nothing in his hands, but he ran under Thor- 
 geir's arms and flung him a great fall on the shingle. 
 Then Thorgeir cried aloud to his brother for help ; and 
 Thormod came quickly and strove to pull Grettir from off 
 him, but could not. A sword was by his side and he was 
 going to draw it, but Thorgils came up and bade them 
 cease brawling or they should no longer abide with him ; so 
 the men turned it to a game, and said they wrestled but 
 in sport. And Thorgils had great praise from all folk, in 
 that he could keep such reckless men from doing mischief 
 either to one another or to their neighbours. 
 
 Now the time for the Thing being come, Thorod 
 Drapna-stump brought on the suit for the slaying of 
 Thorbiorn Oxmain. Atli's kinsmen made interest with 
 Skapti the Lawman, and got him to defend Grettir.
 
 Grcttir the Stroncr. 28 
 
 o 
 
 Skapti said he thought that he could make a good case, 
 and one that should free him fr'om his outlawry. When 
 the judges had heard what was to be said on either side, 
 they came to believe that, Atli and Thorbiorn having 
 been bonders of equal worth, the two slayings should be 
 taken to overset one another. Then said Skapti, ' Why 
 so ? Our side is not guilty of a slaying at all. The indict- 
 ment against Grettir is clearly wrong unless you can show 
 that he was outlawed since the slaying of Atli, because 
 an outlawed man is wholly shut out from law whether for 
 or against him.' Now when it came to be reckoned up it 
 was found that Grettir's outlawry began a week before the 
 death of Atli. 
 
 ' Wherefore,' said Skapti, ' the suit is brought against 
 a man who was at that time shut out by law from prose- 
 cuting the case, and for that cause the suit must fall 
 through. Beside which it is still open for him who is 
 nearest of kin to take up the blood-suit for Atli's slaying. 
 For an outlawed man is as one dead, and can neither take 
 it up nor avenge it.' 
 
 Then said Thorod Drapna-stump, ' This is all very well, 
 but who is going to answer to me for the slaying of my 
 brother Thorbiorn Oxmain ? ' 
 
 ' That is your business,' said Skapti ; ' see you to that.' 
 Thereby the suit against Grettir failed. 
 
 Next, Skapti got the nearest of kin to Atli to set up a 
 suit against Thorod Drapna-stump for Atli's slaying, and 
 in the end Thorod was doomed to pay two hundred pieces 
 of silver. * Now,' said Skapti, ' if you take the outlawry 
 off Grettir we will give up the money-tine ; and if you do 
 not, you will find it an ill thing to keep such a man as he 
 at enmity with all folk.' Thorod grumbled not a little at 
 this, but for his part would have taken the offer. How- 
 beit, since Grettir had been outlawed at the suit of Thorir 
 of Garth, they had first to learn what he had to say about 
 setting him free.
 
 284 Taks of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 Thorir, when he heard what was wanted, waxed exceed- 
 ing wroth, and said, ' Never with my will shall he be freed, 
 and I will put more money on his head than any man yet 
 put upon an outlaw.' And with that he came to Thorod 
 Drapna-stump, and prevailed on him to pay down the 
 money for Atli's slaying, and make no bargain with Grettir. 
 Thorod was loth enough, but he counted out the two 
 hundred pieces of silver, and paid them over to Atli's 
 kinsmen. Then, since he had lost his money for naught, 
 and gotten no atonement for his brother, he joined with 
 Thorir of Grarth, and they each set a price of three marks 
 of silver upon Grettir's head. Nevertheless, when the folk 
 rode home from the Thing, they were nowise pleased to 
 have Grettir still abiding in outlawry, for they knew full 
 well that many a man would liave to suffer for it. 
 
 After this Grettir fared away into the dales and preyed 
 fearlessly upon the goods of all the petty bonders in Ice- 
 lirth : he carried off their horses and cattle, their victuals 
 and clothes and weapons ; yet none durst withstand him by 
 force. Howbeit the farmers took counsel together, and set 
 on spies to watch for Grettir, and seek out where he hid 
 himself at night. They found that he lurked in a wood 
 on Waterfirth dale ; and thither the farmers gathered 
 together, thirty men in all, and came upon Grettir as he 
 lay asleep. Nevertheless they had great dread of him as 
 he lay there, and considered for some time how they 
 should take him. Then they settled that ten men should 
 leap on him at once and hold him down whilst the others 
 bound his legs. This they did, and cast themselves upon 
 him altogether ; but Grettir struggled mightily and gat 
 upon his knees, and sent one stunned and sprawling here, 
 and another there. But the men were so many that at 
 last they had him down and set the bonds upon him. 
 Then the farmers fell to talking what they should do with 
 Grettir now they had got him, and each man was for 
 wanting his neighbour to take Grettir home and keep him
 
 Grettir the Sti'ong. 28 
 
 D 
 
 inward through the winter ; but there was found none 
 willing, for they said, ' Whosoever has him will have to 
 stop farming, and set all his house-carles a watching him.' 
 They thought, ' What are we to do with him ? It is so long 
 before the Thing is held.' At last, after they had turned 
 the matter over, and saw that they durst neither keep him 
 nor let him go, they determined to hang him ; and with 
 one accord they fell to work and got a rope over a trusty 
 bough of a tree, and so made a gallows. 
 
 Now who should come riding by but goodwife Thor- 
 biorg and her servants. She was wife to Vermund, the 
 chief farmer about those parts. Vermund was away 
 from home, and at such times the goodwife ruled the 
 neighbourhood ; for she was a wise woman and of sturdy 
 will. Thorbiorg espying Grettir in bonds said, ' Who is 
 yon big-necked man, and wherefore have you bound him ?' 
 They told her, and she said, ' Great ill-luck it is for a 
 man like that to be taken and bound by a pack of milk- 
 sops such as ye. And what will ye do with him ?' They 
 answered, ' Hang him ; for what else can we do ? ' 
 
 ' In sooth you will not,' said the good dame ; ' doubtless 
 he is guilty enough, but he is a famous man and of good 
 kindred, albeit his ill-luck is passing strange. Grettir, 
 what wilt thou do for thy life if I give it thee ? Wilt 
 thou take oath to plunder no more in Icefirth, and to seek 
 no revenge on them which bound thee ?' He said that he 
 would, and thereupon she made the Icefirthers cut the 
 bonds. Moreover Thorbiorg bade Grettir ride away with 
 her, and she gave him shelter in the farmstead till Ver- 
 mund came home. Vermund was not well pleased with 
 his wife for delivering Grettir from the Icefirth carles, 
 and he asked wherefore she had done so. ' Goodman,' 
 she said, ' the folk will deem thee a greater man than ever 
 in that thou hadst a wife with mettle enough to do this 
 thing.' Then Vermund spake to Grettir, saying, ' Thine 
 is a troublesome life, and I have some pity for thee ; yet
 
 286 Tales of tJie Teutonic Lands. 
 
 I care not to harbour tbee longer, to get the ill-will of 
 my neighbours. Wherefore, seek out thy kinsmen, if per- 
 chance they be minded to take thee in.' 
 
 Then Grrettir journeyed away and sought lodging here 
 and there ; but one thing and another befell that scarce 
 any would give him shelter ; and he was forced to take 
 goods and victuals from such men as he waylaid, in order 
 to get food. And this he did for many winters. But he 
 grew very tired of his lonely life, and by and by he sought 
 out Skapti the Lawman, and prayed him to take him in. 
 Skapti said, ' 111 things are told of thee, Grrettir. Folk 
 say thou layest hands on other men's goods ; and it be- 
 iitteth not a man of thy kin to rob and plunder like other 
 woodfolk. 1 cannot harbour thee ; for how shall a law- 
 man break the laws by sheltering outlawed men ? But 
 take my counsel : give up pillaging, and seek out some 
 place where thou mayest live by thy hands. But see 
 thou dwell alone, and put no trust in any man, for there 
 are few that would not betray thee for thy head-money.' 
 
 Grettir thanked him for this wholesome counsel, 
 and soon after fared off to Ernewater heath among the 
 mountains. There he made himself an earth-house over 
 against Fishwater lake, and dwelt therein. He made 
 also nets and a boat, and caught fish for his food, being 
 fain to do anything rather than rob. 
 
 But the mountains were drear and lonely. He had none 
 to speak to ; there was no sound but the wind whistling 
 through the heath and the waters lapping in the lake. 
 Very terrible he found it to be alone ; for in the dark 
 Glam's eyes shone out and fastened on him, dreadful as he 
 liad seen them in the moonlight. So fearsome waxed 
 Grrettir that he could not bear his life ; and he longed for 
 company of his kind. 
 
 Now there was an outlaw, named Grim, a ruffianly 
 fellow, with whom the Northlauders made a bargain that 
 he should seek out Grettir and slav him, for which deed
 
 Grdtir the Strong. 287 
 
 he should be rewarded both with freedom and a price in 
 money. He came to Gfrettir in his earth-house, and 
 sought for shelter. 
 
 Grettir was so glad to see a man again that he took 
 him in and welcomed him right heartily. Grrim dwelt 
 there all the winter, and all that time he sought oppor- 
 tunity to fall on Grettir unawares ; but Grettir always 
 had Ins weapons by him night and day. One time Grim 
 had been out all night fishing, and very early in the 
 morning he came home and found Grettir lying in bed 
 with the short sword over the bed's head. And that he 
 might know for certain whether Grettir were asleep. Grim 
 trampled hitlier and thither about the floor, making a 
 great noise with his feet ; yet Grettir stirred not nor 
 opened his eyes. Then Grim crept softly up to the head 
 of the bed, and stealthily drew out the short sword from 
 its sheath. He lifted it aloft, but in that moment Grettir 
 sprang up and wrested it from out his fist, flung the man 
 headlong on his back, and smote him to the heart. 
 
 After this, Thorir of Garth, yet burning for vengeance 
 for his sons, set on another outlaw called Eedbeard to go 
 and slay Grettir. For that cause came Eedbeard to 
 Grettir's hut, saying, ' I pray thee give me harbourage 
 through the winter. Thou art right enough to mistrust 
 outlaws, and an ill name have I gotten for slayings and 
 other misdeeds, but I am not the one to betray a friend. 
 Grettir misdoubted the man for all his fair words, but his 
 loneliness was grown so irksome that he was fain to let 
 liim in. Nevertheless he held himself very warily towards 
 Eedbeard. So time sped on, and two winters slipped away, 
 yet Eedbeard never got a chance against his life. And 
 Eedbeard worked so hard, and was so handy about boat- 
 craft and fishing, that Grettir took a liking to him. How- 
 ever, one night a great storm arose, and Eedbeard got up 
 in the middle of the night, saying that he would go and 
 see after the boat. When he came down to the beach
 
 288 Tales of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 Redbeard took the nets and flung- them into the water, and 
 then stove in the boat ; and having cast the pieces about 
 the shore, came presently back to Grrettir, shouting, ' Tlie 
 storm has broken the boat to pieces, and the nets are all 
 afloat. Come down and let us see what is to be done.' 
 Grettir rose up, and taking his short sword with him came 
 down to the waterside. He saw the nets adrift, and 
 bade Redbeard slip off" his clothes and swim out to them. 
 Redbeard said, ' I am not skilled in swimming, but all men 
 say that thou art ; wherefore do thou go after them.' 
 G-rettir said, ' So be it then. Only betray me not, for I 
 trust in thee.' Redbeard answered, ' Deem not so ill of me. 
 Lo these two years have we dwelt together, and by this 
 time thou shouldst know I am well-minded toward thee.' 
 Then Grettir stripped off" his clothes and his weapons and 
 laid them on the beach. He swam off" to the nets, gathered 
 them in his hands, and- came in shore at a little jutting 
 neck of land. But as he set foot upon the bank Redbeard 
 ran upon him with the short sword and smote at him. 
 Grettir fell backwards into the water and sank like a 
 stone. Redbeard stood waiting in case he rose to smite 
 him again, and keep him off" from the shore. But Grettir 
 dived and felt his way along the bank, under water, till 
 he got round the other side of the neck of land. Then 
 he rose softly and came behind Redbeard, who was peer- 
 ing down into the water on the other bank. Grettir 
 caught him suddenly by the middle and flung him back- 
 wards over his head. The short sword flew out of Red- 
 beard's hand in the fall ; Grettir took it up and smote 
 the head from off his body. 
 
 From that time Grettir would take in no more outlaws 
 to abide with him. Yet his loneliness oppressed him 
 very sore. 
 
 NowThorir of Garth heard of the slaying of Redbeard, 
 and being determined to rid the land of Grettir, he 
 gathered together in all about eighty men and went forth
 
 Grettir the Strong. 289 
 
 to hunt liim down. But there came a message to Grettir 
 from one of his kindred of what was brewing ; so being 
 ware of it, he went no more home to his hut but betook 
 himself to the mountains, and lurked about a certain pass 
 where a mighty rock had gaped open and made a narrow 
 cleft, walled high on either hand. There Thorir and his 
 folk found Grrettir, and thinking that he had now caught 
 the great outlaw in a trap, Thorir parted his men into two 
 companies, whereof he set on one to enter the pass and 
 fight Grettir face to face, while the other should go 
 round the mountain and come in at the far end of the 
 pass and take him in the rear. The pass was scarce wide 
 enough for two men to walk abreast, and Grettir had 
 little fear of holding it against them which came in front. 
 Man after man that stood forth to meet him got his 
 death-wound from the short sword. Grettir gave no 
 ground and fought at his ease ; for no matter how fiercely 
 they assailed him they could only come on one, or at 
 most two, at a time ; and if they came two, they hustled 
 one another and could make no weapon-play. But he 
 knew that the rest were gone round to get in at the back 
 of him, and continually looked about, thinking that when 
 they came it would fare hardly with him. Yet they came 
 not. And Grettir marvelled greatly. However, when many 
 of the men which faced him had been slain, and many more 
 wounded, Thorir saw that they could do nothing and so 
 drew off his men. What troubled Thorir most was, that they 
 which went in at the pass behind Grettir fared no better than 
 they which assailed him in front. So from this deeming 
 it useless to fight further with Grettir upon the mountains, 
 he and his people rode off. They left eighteen dead men 
 over that encounter and took away many that were sorely 
 wounded. And when Thorir got home again he was 
 greatly jeered at ; for folk deemed it a shameful journey 
 to leave Grettir whole and lose so many men. 
 
 After Thorir's folk were gone. Grettir, yet marvelling 
 
 U 
 
 I
 
 290 Tales of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 about the fight, walked down the pass, and there he saw a 
 huge strong man, sore wounded, leaning against the road- 
 side. 'Who art thou ?' he said. The big man answered, 
 ' I am Hallmund. I dwell up here in a cave. I got an 
 inkling of the fight, and had no mind to see a brave man 
 slaughtered like a sheep. I kept the pass this end for 
 thee, and thou canst count the dead.' Grettir did so 
 and found Hallmund had slain twelve. Then said Grettir, 
 ' Thou hast shown great manliness towards me ; and so 
 long as I live I will never forget it.' Hallmund answered, 
 ' It is little enough to help a man in time of need. But 
 come and abide with me, for it is lonely for thee in thy 
 Init upon the heath.' 
 
 Glad words they were to Grettir. He went home with 
 Hallmund, and they twain made friends together, and 
 Hallmund's wife tended the wounds of both of them. 
 
 Now that Grettir had company he was greatly cheered 
 in mind and temper. He abode with Hallmund through 
 the summer and well-nigh forgat his fearsomeness of the 
 dark. Then his old love of wandering came strong upon 
 him, and he must needs fare away to the dwellings of men ; 
 moreover he longed to see his kindred again. 
 
 First he journeyed to Burgfirth, and thence to Broad- 
 firth Dales, where he sought out a kinsman of his named 
 Thorstein Kuggson, and asked of him in what part 
 of the country he might with safety abide. Thor- 
 stein Kuggson said, ' Thine enemies are now grown so 
 many that scarce any man may harbour thee. Thou art 
 not safe here ; but fare away south to the marshes ; it is 
 likely thou mayest find hiding there.' 
 
 So Grettir came south and dwelt in Fairwood-fell the 
 winter through. Many lost goods at his hands, but could 
 get no redress, for Grettir had housed himself in a strong 
 place and was ever a good friend to those in need. 
 
 There was a seafaring man who came down to Whiteriver 
 called Gisli ; an arrant dandy, who prided himself beyond
 
 Grettir the Strong. 291 
 
 measure in his smart new clothes and polished weapons, 
 and was withal somewhat given to boasting. He spake 
 to the folk, saying, ' How cometh it to pass that you do 
 not rid yourselves of an outlaw that doth so much mis- 
 chief ? ' They said, ' Thou knowest little of the might 
 that is in Grrettir. Many have desired to win his head- 
 money; for, beside the price put on him beforetime, 
 Thorir of Garth last summer added another three marks 
 of silver, making nine in all ; nevertheless most men deem 
 the money will have to be earned full dear.' Grisli 
 answered, ' Like enough he may scare such folk as you ; 
 but I would have you to know that I have fought in battle 
 along with the great King Cnut and am no common sort 
 of a man. The people in that battle said they never saw 
 the like of my fighting. They were wonderstruck. I do 
 not brag, my friends ; I only say what others say of me. 
 But set your minds at rest. If this Grettir comes across 
 my path I will terrify him.' He smoothed his beard, 
 settled his fine clothes in order, and strode away. 
 
 Grettir was stopping with Biorn, the Hitdale cham- 
 pion, a bluff hardy fellow who would harbour outlaws in 
 spite of any man. And Biorn said to him, ' Try and hap 
 upon this fop. I would not slay him, but only have 
 some sport with him.' Grettir laughed but answered 
 nothing. 
 
 In the autumn Grettir made a sheep-fold for himself 
 upon the moimtains, wherein to drive the sheep he stole 
 from the bonders. One day he had taken four wethers 
 from a flock and was driving them up the hill-side, when 
 six bonders beset him and sought to get their sheep 
 away; but Grettir caught up two of the men and hurled 
 them down the hill, whereon the rest held off a space ; 
 nevertheless when they called, the sheep were fain to 
 follow them. And Grettir waxing very angry at the 
 trouble the sheep gave him to drive, laid hold of them, 
 locked them together by the horns, and flung them two 
 
 u 2
 
 292- Tales of the Tetiiofiic Lands. 
 
 by two over each shoulder. So he gat home with them 
 to his lair. 
 
 Now the bonders having put Gisli in mind that near a 
 year had passed and he had as yet done nothing against 
 the outlaw, Gisli arrayed himself in the finest coloured 
 clothes which he had and came riding with two of his 
 shipmates to the hills where Grettir lurked. Grettir 
 espied them riding, and coming down the hill-side he 
 took hold of the bridle of Gisli's horse and laid hands 
 upon the saddle-bag. Gisli said, 'Robber, knowest 
 thou with whom thou hast to do ? ' ' Nay,' said Grettir, 
 ' and I care very little, for never was I a respecter of 
 persons ; but I shall have this saddle-bag.' Then the 
 three men leaped off their horses, and Gisli cried stoutly 
 to his fellows, ' On to him, good comrades I Be not afraid 
 of this uncouth boor, for I am with you ! ' Howbeit he 
 sneaked behind their backs and feigned a little play with 
 his dainty sword from time to time. As for Grettir, he 
 mounted to a piece of rock, and swinging round the short 
 sword, qiuckly laid Gisli's two companions dead ; but 
 Gisli never ventured witliin sweep of the blade. Then 
 he leapt down to have ado with the dandy. But Gisli 
 flung down his weapons and ran for very life ; and as he ran 
 he threw off his finery, garment after garment. Grettir 
 followed, somewhat at his ease, meaning to give him time 
 to put off his clothes. So Gisli ran and Grettir after 
 him, till they came to Haf-firth-river, and by that time 
 Gisli had nothing on but his shirt and breech ; and the 
 river was bitter cold and full of ice-drift, and being 
 swollen with winter rains was too deep to ford. Gisli 
 was in a sweat for fear, and trembled from head to foot. 
 Grettir caught him by the shoulders and flung him on 
 tlie ground. ' Now,' said he, ' art thou that Gisli that 
 was so fain to meet Grettir Asmundson ? ' He answered, 
 ' In sooth I am, but now more fain would I be rid of him. 
 Keep all thou hast and let me go.' Grettir said, ' Aye,
 
 Grettir the Strong. 293 
 
 aye ; but first I must teach thee a lesson thou shalt not 
 quickly forget.' Therewith he pulled off Gisli's shirt, 
 and having uprooted a prickly bush which grew hard by, 
 he laid it about the dandy's back and flogged him through 
 and through, while Gisli cried and blubbered for mercy. 
 As soon as Grettir let him go, he leapt headlong into 
 the river and swam to the other bank, and so gat home. 
 A whole week Gisli lay in bed with his body swollen, a 
 fearful sight, and when he durst go out he told the folk 
 that a fiend had met him on the mountain. Not a word 
 he spake about Grettir. But people took note that from 
 that time he did not swagger as was his former wont. 
 
 After Grettir had been two winters at Fairwood-fell, 
 he went off to Hitriver and joined himself with two other 
 men ; and many sheep and beasts they stole. They three did 
 a great fight there with twenty bonders which caught them 
 driving away cattle. They got the cattle and slew eight 
 bonders, but the affray was so noised abroad that Grettir 
 came back to Fairwood, where he abode another winter. 
 Then he went on to Hallmund and abode the next 
 winter with him in his cave. But after Grettir journeyed 
 away, Hallmund, who was ever good to wanderers, took 
 in an outlaw named Grim who was a wondrous lucky 
 fisherman. Hallmund misliked the luck of the man, and 
 half in sport and half in spite would come at night and 
 steal away the fish that hung before his door. Grim 
 could not find who the thief was, so he sat up and 
 watched one night in the dark ; and when Hallmund 
 came and had lifted the fish upon his back. Grim stole 
 softly up to him and with both hands drave his axe down 
 deep into Hallmund's shoulder and wounded him to 
 death. Some say Grim knew not then that it was Hall- 
 mund ; but however that might be, Grim had no after- 
 sorrow for the deed, for he afterwards said, ' It served 
 him right ; what business had he to steal my fish ? ' 
 
 Now Thorir of Garth again took up the pursuit after
 
 294 Tales of the Teuto7iic Lands. 
 
 Grettir, and hunted liim over hill and dale with a greater 
 company of horsenaen than before. So Grettir was forced 
 to move from place to place and keep close hiding as best 
 he might. There was another man with him, and one 
 day on Eeekheath, when, thinking themselves safe from 
 any following, they rode more openly abroad, on a sudden 
 Grettir spied Thorir and his troop close upon them. By 
 goodhap there was a mountain dairy a little in from the 
 wayside, and Grettir cried to his fellow, ' Quick, in with 
 the horses ; ' and in they went and hid themselves there 
 till the pursuers went past. Then Grettir bethought that 
 he would send Thorir on a fool's chase. So he changed 
 clothes with his fellow, and put on the garments all awry, 
 and slouching his hat to look like a boor, came round by a 
 short cut to the place where he should meet Thorir on the 
 way. Thorir, seeing a great lout of a carle by the wayside, 
 said, ' Tell me, hast thou seen aught of a couple of horse- 
 men riding over the heath ? ' And Grettir, disguising his 
 voice, answered, ' Aye, good sir ; but a little ago I mind 
 seeing two villanous-looking rogues ride by ; one of them 
 a stout-built man. They branched off the track down 
 there to the left, and I should deem they will not be above 
 a mile away.' Thorir thanked the carle and rode off, he 
 and his men, at full speed down the hill to the left. 
 Grettir laughed and watched them ; and presently the 
 whole troop were floundering about in a bog, the horses 
 up to their bellies in mire, and Thorir and his folk 
 cursing the boor which had beguiled them. It took 
 them all day to drag the horses out, and all night to 
 clean themselves from the mire. But Grettir and his 
 comrade sped away to Garth at their swiftest, and never 
 drew rein till they reached Thorir's homestead. They 
 went in and found Thorir's daughter, and Grettir said to 
 her, ' My little gold-haired lass, when father gets out 
 of the mire, wilt thou tell him that Grettir and his 
 comrade have been to Garth to see him?' The little
 
 Gretiir the Sf?'0?ig. 295 
 
 maid wondered what it meant, and they rode off. But 
 Thorir was right mad when he came home : and no one 
 could help laughing at the way the outlaw had befooled 
 him. 
 
 But there were set so many spies upon Grettir that he 
 deemed it best to part company with his fellow. So 
 Grettir sent him away westward with the horses, and 
 betaking himself to the mountains, wandered off north- 
 ward in disguise. 
 
 Xow Grettir learnt that there were strange doings in 
 the house of one Stein, a priest who dwelt at Sand-heaps, 
 over against Isledale-river. P'or two Yule-eves past, the 
 house-carle that had been left at home to guard the house 
 whilst the goodman and his wdfe went to church, was 
 carried off and seen no more, but blood-tracks were 
 found on the door-lintel next morning. "SVherefore 
 G-rettir came that Yule-eve to Stein's homestead seeking 
 shelter. The goodman of the house was gone his way to 
 church, and his wife Steinvor was arraying herself to 
 follow after him, both she and her little daughter. 
 Steinvor asked him his name ; and Grettir, fearing to 
 make himself known, said his name was Guest. ' Well, 
 Guest,' she said, 'thou art welcome to guesting; but thou 
 kuowest doubtless the illhaps which befall in this house 
 on Yule-eve ; so take thy meat and drink, and tarry not.' 
 Grettir thanked her but said, • I am minded to abide 
 here this night, and I will keep the house for thee.* 
 She looked at him, and seeing him to be of great growth 
 and well knit together about neck and shoulders, she 
 said, ' Thou art a brave man ; " and Steinvor tarried talk- 
 ing with him till the time drew on for oliuroh. Then 
 Grettir accompanied the goodwife and her daughter down 
 to the river which they had to cross. That morning the 
 ice had been souud and good, but it had thawed last, and 
 now the river roared along, crashing the cirift-iee as it 
 went. Steinvor said, ' What shall we do, for there is no
 
 296 Tales of the Teuto7tic Lands. 
 
 ford here, and there is no time to get round higher up, 
 and neither man nor horse can cross this flood ? ' 
 
 Grettir said, ' Never fear but I shall carry thee 
 over.' 
 
 ' Nay,' she ansvp'ered, ' but carry over the little maiden 
 first, for she is the lightest.' 
 
 ' I have no mind to make two journeys of it,' said 
 Grettir ; and with that caught up wife and daughter in 
 his left arm, and waded into the river breast high. The 
 stream ran very swiftly ; the ice-floes in great packs came 
 swirling down upon him, but he warded them off with 
 his right hand, and came to the other bank. Then having 
 set Steinvor and her child ashore, he came back to Sand- 
 heaps about the time of twilight. And after he had 
 eaten his meat he shut the homefolk in a chamber 
 against the gable end of the hall, made a strong barrier of 
 timber before the chamber-wall, and set a bench in front 
 of it. Thereon he laid himself down in his clothes to 
 guard the hall. 
 
 At midnight there was a great noise, and a mighty 
 troll-wife brake in through the door. In one hand she 
 bare an axe, and in the other a trough, and as soon as she 
 espied Gi'ettir she ran in and grappled him. They 
 wrestled about the hall till everything therein was broken. 
 The troll- wife was the stronger of tbe twain, and dragged 
 Grettir out of the doorway. They brake the door-framings 
 away with their shoulders as they burst through. All 
 that night they struggled betwixt the door-way and 
 the stream, the troll-wife seeking to drag him to the 
 river-bank, and cast him into the gulf, Grettir withstand- 
 ing her with all his craft ; but he had clutched the witch 
 fast about the waist and durst not leave go. At last she 
 got him to the bank ; there Grettir gathered up his might 
 and suddenly swung the witch-wife round. It was but for 
 a moment, but he freed one hand, drew forth the short 
 sword and smote off the arm which grappled him. The
 
 Grettir the Strong. 297 
 
 "witch fell backwards into the stream and was swept away 
 down into the force. 
 
 Grrettir was waxed so stiff and swollen from the en- 
 counter that he scarce could crawl back to the homestead, 
 and when he reached it he long lay sick and weary in 
 bed. Stein the priest, and his wife Steinvor, tended him, 
 and did so much for his welfare that Grrettir revealed 
 his name ; and after that they harboured him none the 
 less willingly, because of the deliverance which he had 
 wrought. 
 
 As soon as he got his strength again, Grrettir bade 
 Stein come out with him and bring a rope, for that he 
 was bent upon going down into the force whither the 
 witch-wife was carried, neither would he suffer the priest 
 to gainsay him. A cliff rose fifty fathoms sheer above 
 the water in that place, and down below the whirlpool 
 foamed and roared about the rocks. Grettir bound a 
 great stone to one end of the rope and sank it in the 
 water ; the other end he made fast to a peg upon the 
 cliff-top, and having made Stein promise to watch the 
 rope, plunged off the cliff and dived into the force. He 
 swam down through the water, and past it, till he came to 
 some jutting rocks, whereabout the sand was dry, and the 
 river rolled by overhead. A great cave was there, and 
 within, by a blazing wood-fire, sat a huge and dreadful 
 ogre. Seeing Grettir, the ogre caught up a glaive and 
 smote at him. But the glaive had a wooden handle, and 
 Grettir lopped it in twain with the short sword, and 
 before the ogre could reach up for the sword which hung 
 in the cave, that same short sword had hewed him well- 
 nigh to pieces. The priest who watched above the force, 
 seeing the foam stained with blood, and pieces of flesh 
 tossing about in the water, deemed Grettir dead, and 
 fared off home. But Grettir swam up through the force, 
 and brought with him the bones of Stein's two house- 
 earles which he found in the ogre's cave. Much marvelled
 
 298 Tales of the TciUoiiic Lands. 
 
 the priest when he saw those bones, and he laid them in 
 earth in the churchyard. And folk in that valley were 
 never haunted more. 
 
 That winter Grettir found good hiding at Sandheaps, 
 but certain rumours of these exploits being spread abroad, 
 Thorir of Garth was well assured that none but this 
 mighty outlaw could have done such deeds, and so sent 
 men there to take him. For that cause Grettir was 
 minded to go to a little island in Skagafirth called 
 Drangey, which was a good place for defence, inasmuch 
 as it was so rocky that it must needs be scaled by ladders ; 
 but so fearsome was he grown of the dark that not even 
 for the saving of his life could he bear to be alone. So 
 he hasted home to Biarg, and there abode for a few nights 
 with his mother and his brother Illugi. There learning 
 how Grim had slain his friend Hallmund, he went 
 forth seeking him ; but Grim had gone away two years 
 and more. Thorstein Kuggson, his kinsman, had also 
 fallen in fight, but neither could Grettir light upon his 
 slayer. And while he yet wandered about the Dales 
 seeking to avenge these two slayiugs, Grettir was met 
 by Thorod the son of Snorri, a man of some prowess, who 
 withstood him up in the fell. Thorod drew his sword 
 and laid on madly. Grettir did but jest at him the while, 
 nor did he draw the short sword, but only warded the 
 blows off with his shield, till presently growing weary of 
 the strife Grettir said, ' Leave this child's play, for thou 
 canst do naught against me.' And when Thorod would 
 not, but set on the more fiercely, Grettir laid by his 
 shield, and taking him in his arms put him down upon 
 the ground, saying, ' I can do with thee as I will ; but 
 thy father, the grey old Snorri, is a good and wise man, 
 highly esteemed are liis counsels, and I cannot bring 
 sorrow to him by slaying thee. Wherefore arise and go 
 thy way, and another time seek not an enterprise beyond 
 thy strength.' So Thorod rose up, a little abashed, and
 
 Grettir the Sti^ong. 299 
 
 parted good friends with Cfrettir. And when Thorod 
 told his father how he had fared at Grettir's hands, 
 Snorri said, ' Grettir has dealt gently by thee, and if 
 my counsels may avail aught at the Thing to better his 
 lot, I shall give them in his favour.' And ever there- 
 after the old man spake a good word for the outlaw. 
 
 Afterwards Grettir went again to Biarg and spake to 
 his mother, saying, ' So lonely is my life and the darkness 
 is so terrible, I pray thee let me take my brother Illugi 
 for a companion. Then I can hie me off to Drangey 
 and fear no man.' And his mother Asdis was very heavy 
 at heart, and said, ' He is my youngest-born, the last of 
 all my boys, and I had hoped to keep one of all my 
 sons about me while I live.' But Illugi said, * Mother, 
 Grettir's lot is very hard. I trow not if he may find my 
 help of great avail ; but of this one thing he may be 
 sure, I will never run from him while he is alive ; 
 and perchance he may find solace in my fellowship. Let 
 me go, I pray thee.' Then spake Grettir, ' Thou glad- 
 denest my heart, dear brother ; and if my mother will 
 spare thee I am fain that thou shouldst go.' 
 
 Asdis wept and said, ' Take him, Grettir. Needs be 
 thou shouldst have comfort of some in thy loneliness. 
 But my sons, I know that I shall never look upon 
 your faces more.' 'Weep not, mother, even if so it 
 be,' said Grettir, ' for whatever befall, folk shall say that 
 thou hast borne braver children than any woman.' Then 
 Asdis busied herself about their departure, and gathered 
 together much of her goods and money, more than they 
 could take, and furnished them for the journey. Grettir 
 said, ' Farewell, mother ; live on, hale and hearty,' and 
 therewith they parted. Glad was Illugi at going with his 
 brotlier. So they set out together, but all that autumn 
 they tarried about the country-side and saw their kindred 
 by stealth. 
 
 When winter was come they drew nigh Skagafirth ; and
 
 300 Tales of the Teutotiic Lands. 
 
 there met them at Dinby a gaunt lazy fellow, who thrust 
 himself into their company. He was a merry tom-fool 
 whom men had nicknamed Noise, big and idle and empty- 
 headed, and Grrettir had great sport with him ; and be- 
 cause of the diversion which he made Grettir forbade him 
 not to go with them. So they all came on to Reekstead, 
 which is by the firth side ; and Grettir prayed of the 
 bonder there to put him across to the island. He would 
 not at first, but when Grettir gave him the purse he had 
 gotten from his mother, and the bonder had seen how full 
 it was, he called out his house-carles and rowed them 
 over the same night. 
 
 VI. THE LADDERS UPON DRANGEY. 
 
 Now Drangey Island lies somewhat within the firth mouth ; 
 and on the shore on either side, scarce a sea-mile away, 
 were farmsteads owned by bonders of more or less 
 account. All these bonders had shares in the island 
 according to the bigness of tlieir holdings on the mainland. 
 Thorbiorn Angle and Hialti, the sons of Thord, owned 
 the most of Drangey, because their farms were biggest, 
 but nigh a score in all had some share therein. They 
 kept rams and ewes there to fat for slaughter, because the 
 herbage was good. The island all round about was cliff, 
 which rose up sheer from out of the sea, so that none 
 might come upon the pasture land atop save when the 
 ladders were let down ; and if the topmost ladder were 
 drawn up, no man could scale the rock-side. In summer 
 the cliffs are full of sea-fowl, and the winter Grettir came 
 to Drangey there were eighty sheep upon the island. So 
 Grettir drew up the ladders and set himself down in peace, 
 for he had now both food and company, and was in a 
 place whence none might oust him.
 
 Grettir the Strong. 301 
 
 At midwinter the bonders rowed over to Drangey to 
 fetch their fat sheep. Greatly they marvelled when they 
 drew nigh at seeing men upon the island, and deeming 
 them shipwrecked mariners they hailed Grettir, and called 
 to him to let down the ladders. ' Nay,' shouted he, ' we 
 have men enough upon the island ; but if ye are bent on 
 coming, come up as best ye may.' The bonders were 
 greatly chopfallen at this, and besought him, saying, 
 * Only let us come up and fetch our sheep and thou shalt 
 come ashore with us, and we will freely forgive thee for 
 all thou hast slaughtered.' Grettir said, ' I deem it better 
 that each should keep what he has got. That which I 
 once lay hands on I seldom let go. So waste no more 
 words.' 
 
 Fair speeches they made after that, and proffers of 
 money, but Grettir only laughed at them and went his 
 way. So the bonders turned their barge about and rowed 
 back to land, and with woeful countenances came and told 
 their neighbours what a wolf had got into their sheep-fold. 
 They laid their heads together and talked the matter 
 speech-bare, but winter passed and they could not hit on 
 any plan to get Grettir out of the island. 
 
 That spring much people flocked to the Thing which 
 was held at Heron-ness ; and it being no further from 
 Drangey than up the fork of the firth, Grettir set his mind 
 to go thither, for he always grew weary of abiding long in 
 one place. So having charged Noise and Illugi to stay 
 upon the island and see after the ladders, he swam ofif at 
 night to the mainland. Disguised in a cloak and hood, 
 Grettir came along byways, and reached Heron-ness. 
 There he found a host of folk assembled from all the 
 country-side, holding sports and merrymaking whilst the 
 suits in the court went on. Booths were spread all about, 
 and there was much wrestling-play. The two sons of 
 Thord, Thorbiorn Angle and Hialti, were the strongest at 
 that game ; and these laid bold on whatsoever man they
 
 302 Tales of the Teuto7iic Lands. 
 
 chose and dragged him willy nilly into the ring to fare at 
 wrestling as he might. 
 
 Thorbiorn Angle, beholding a stout-built man sit upon 
 a bench with a hood slouched over liis face, went and laid 
 hold of him and pulled his hardest. But the man sat 
 still and budged never a whit. Thorbiorn said, ' Thou 
 art the first man I have found withstand me this day, and 
 I reckon myself somewhat strong of hand. Who art 
 thou ?' The man said his name was Guest. ' And a 
 welcome guest thou shalt be,' said Thorbiorn, ' if thou 
 wilt but show us a little wrestling-play for our merriment, 
 for methinks thou hast the knack.' Many more came up 
 and likewise prayed him to wrestle with some one. ' Xay,' 
 answered Guest, ' time was when it was a sport of mine, 
 but I have left wrestling.' But when they prayed him yet 
 more and more, Guest said, ' I am greatly loth to wrestle, 
 being a stranger here ; but if I must needs be dragged 
 about for your pastime, you must do so much for me as to 
 make a covenant to hold me scatheless until I come back 
 to my home.' To this they were all right willing, and 
 they gathered about wliilst one proclaimed that peace 
 should be established betwixt all standing there and the 
 new comer called Guest ; that he should be free to depart 
 when the games were done, despite aught that might 
 befall ; and that they would hold him safe until he was 
 come back to his homestead wheresoever that should be ; 
 so witness God and all good men ; whereto they laid 
 their hands together. 
 
 Then Guest stood up in the midst and flung off his 
 cloak and hood and his outer garments, and lo Grettir 
 Asmundson stood before them ! They gazed at him, and 
 then at one another, and were exceeding vexed, as men 
 which had befooled themselves. They began to break up 
 in twos and threes and to upbraid one another. And 
 Grettir said, ' Keep me not here unclad, but straightway 
 determine whether or no ye will hold to the peace which
 
 Grettir the Strong. 303 
 
 ye have made ; for I trow it is more to your profit than to 
 mine.' Nevertheless they were long at debate about 
 the matter ; but at last Hialti spake up, saying, ' We 
 have been beguiled ; yet since we have plighted our 
 word, we will hold to it, lest we be accounted shame- 
 ful in men's eyes.' And thereto the folk became of one 
 accord and thought his words brave and rightwise ; but 
 Thorbiorn Angle moved away and mumbled, but said 
 naught. 
 
 Thereupon the men went to the playing-ground. 
 Grettir stood up stiffly at one end, and first Hialti took 
 a long run and drave forward with all his might to 
 overthrow him ; but Grettir abode the shock and moved 
 no more than a wall. Grettir put forth one hand over 
 Hialti's back, caught him by the breech and sent him 
 whirling over his head. Then it was settled that both 
 brothers should go against Grettir at once. And so they 
 did. But though either of the Thords by himself had 
 the strength of two strong men, the twain could not fling 
 ^im. Grettir had always one of the brothers down under 
 him ; and he wrestled with the pair till they gave in 
 from weariness, and their bodies were black and blue 
 with the gripe of his strong fingers. And men that saw, 
 tliough they bare no goodwill towards the outlaw, could 
 not help glorying in Grettir's exceeding manliness. So 
 they let him depart, and Grettir held his way in peace 
 and got safe back to Drangey. 
 
 But the poorer bonders fretted continually because 
 they could not get over to the island, and one by one 
 they came and offered to sell their shares to such as were 
 better off. Hialti would not buy, but his brother 
 Thorbiorn Angle dallied with them and made at one time 
 as though he would buy, then said them nay, then put 
 them off from month to month, and so at last bought 
 their holdings for a mere trifle. And after that Thor- 
 biorn drave a bargain with Hialti his brother and
 
 304 Tales of the Teiitonic Lands. 
 
 bought his share ; so that by the summer he had gotten 
 the greater part of the island at a very little price. And 
 he was well minded to get possession thereof. 
 
 That same summer Thorbiorn Angle manned a barge 
 and came over to Orangey, and having brought the boat 
 to an anchorage, he talked with Grettir, who stood with his 
 fellows high up on the cliffs edge, and sought to coax 
 him to give up the island. And when Grettir did but 
 mock at him, Thorbiorn spake, saying, ' Come now, 
 Grettir ; what wilt thou take in money-price to depart 
 out of Drangey ? ' So Grettir said, ' Wherefore shouldst 
 thou busy thyself so greatly about a matter which con- 
 cerneth a score of other folk ? ' Thorbiorn answered, 
 ' Sooth to say I have bought the shares of many of the 
 bonders which had holdings herein, and the most part of 
 it belongs to me.' ' Then spare thy pains,' said Grettir ; 
 ' for, if the holding of the island now lieth betwixt 
 m.e and thee, we are not like to smother each other 
 with our friendship. So go thy way.' ' Well,' said 
 Thorbiorn, ' every dog has his day, and when thine is 
 done it will be ill for thee.' ' That is my look-out,' 
 said Grettir, 'and I will risk it.' So Thorbiorn went 
 home. 
 
 By the time they had been two years on Drangey, 
 Grettir and his comrades had killed all the sheep in the 
 island save an old pied ram, which they called Speckle- 
 sides. And he grew so tame that they had no heart to 
 slay him. He was very big, and frolicsome withal ; 
 whithersoever they went he followed like a dog, and each 
 night he would come and rub his great horns against the 
 door of their hut before lying down to sleep. But they 
 had no lack of food, because of the sea-fowl and their eggs. 
 Howbeit firing was very scarce, and the two brothers set 
 Noise to watch continually for drift-wood from the sea, 
 and they likewise made him tend the iire, charging him 
 straitly to be thrifty of their stock of wood. But Noise
 
 Grettir the Strong. 305 
 
 was an idle fellow and loathed his work, and for that 
 cause ofttimes got a shaking from Grrettir or Illugi. He 
 never got wood enough, and some days the fire was very 
 low. 
 
 One night Noise let the fire out, and they were sore 
 vexed, having no means of kindling it again. Grettir 
 beat the thrall, and becalled him many ill-names. Then 
 having stripped to his breeches, and bound his cloak into 
 a bundle to take with him, Grettir leapt into the sea at 
 eventide and swam off to the mainland to fetch fire. It 
 was dark when he got ashore, and he went and entered 
 into the homestead at Eeeks where that bonder dwelt 
 which at the first had taken him over to Drangey. All 
 the folk were asleep ; and he groped his way about till 
 he came to an empty chamber where was a bed, and the 
 embers of a fire glowed yet upon the hearth. So Grettir 
 lay down upon the bed, and what with his weariness and 
 the warmth of the chamber, he fell into a sound sleep ; 
 daylight came, and he still slept on. 
 
 In the morning the bonder's daughter and her hand- 
 maid rose up to do their house-work, and coming into 
 the chamber they espied a man lying bare upon the bed, 
 and the bed-clothes kicked off him on to the floor. 
 They whispered together, and the handmaid said : ' As I 
 may thrive, it is Grettir Asmundson ! But who would 
 have deemed a man so big about the neck and shoulders 
 would be so small of growth below ? ' ' Hold thy prating 
 tongue,' said the bonder's daughter, ' or he will wake.' 
 But the handmaid answered, ' Good sister, I cannot help 
 it. Only look I I never saw so strange a thing.' And 
 with that she ran up on tip-toe to take a peep at Grettir. 
 But as soon as she came nigh, Grettir, who only feigned 
 to sleep, caught her up in his arms, and drew her to him ; 
 and she struggled with him and he with her ; and tlie 
 bonder's daughter ran out of the room and screamed ; 
 but none the more would Grettir let the handmaiden go
 
 3o6 Tales of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 till he had kissed her soundly. And at last she got away, 
 laughing and blushing, but not so greatly ill-pleased. 
 
 Presently Grettir arose and went to the goodman of 
 the house. And when the bonder knew of the strait he 
 was in for fire, and how he had swum a sea-mile after it, 
 he not only gave him tii'e, but got out a boat and put 
 him ashore again upon the island. 
 
 That summer there came to Thorbiom Angle a young 
 man named Heering, who was very agile of foot and a 
 great climber ; and Thorbiorn promised that it should 
 prove greatly to his profit if he would scale the cliffs on 
 Drangey. They laid their plan on this wise ; they were 
 to row out to Drangey in a boat, and Thorbiorn was to 
 land Hsering secretly on the rocks at one part of the 
 iriland, and then go round to the side where the ladders 
 were, and hold Grettir in speech whilst Haering climbed 
 the cliffs and came up at the back of the outlaw and 
 smote him down. So they put off to the island, and 
 Thorbiom having landed Haering before it was light, 
 straightway set him a-climbing. Then Thorbiorn rowed 
 round to the other side about daybreak, as though he 
 were just come from the mainland, and he began to talk 
 earnestly with Grettir and Illugi, making them large 
 promises if they would only give up the island. But it 
 so befell that as they talked, Illugi chancing to turn his 
 head, beheld a man running towards them axe in hand. 
 And he said to Grettir, ' There is some guile at work, for 
 lo, a man runneth hither with his axe aloft.' ' Go thou 
 and deal with him,' said Grettir ; ' I will abide here and 
 watch the ladders.' But Hsering, seeing they had 
 knowledge of him, took to his heels and ran. Hlugi 
 sped away after him, and they raced across the island till 
 Htering came more suddenly than he reckoned upon the 
 brink of the cliff, and not being able to stay himself, 
 leapt down headlong, and was shattered to pieces upon 
 the rocks below ; and the place is called Hsering's Leap to
 
 Grettir the Strong. 307 
 
 this day. "When Illugi came back, Grettir asked how it 
 had fared with his enemy, and inugi answered, ' He 
 would not stop to let me ask how it had fared with him, 
 but must needs go and break his neck over the clift-side." 
 Thorbiorn Angle hearing that put off from the island, 
 saying to his folk, ' Lo these two journeys which I have 
 made to Drangey have come to naught, but the third 
 time I go it shall not be in vain.' 
 
 Now in the nineteenth year of G-rettir's outlawry died 
 Skapti the Lawman : and that was exceedingly ill-timed 
 for Grettir, inasmuch as Skapti had promised to bring 
 about his acquittal so soon as the years of his banish- 
 ment should be fultilled. And the next spring died 
 Snorri also, the man of all others who would have stood 
 his friend. And when the summer came on, and the 
 Thing was held, there was a talk about Grettir's outlawry, 
 for his kindred came and urged that the time was come 
 when he should be set free. But there were many whicli 
 held blood-suits against Grettir, and these said that since 
 he had done so many slayiugs whilst he was an outlaw, 
 his time ought to be lengthened. Now Stein, the new 
 Lawman in the room of Skapti, was a wise and just- 
 dealing man ; he gave forth the law that no man could 
 bo kept in outlawry more than twent}' winters in all, no 
 matter w^hat ill-deeds he had done meanwhile. And the 
 old records being searched, it was found that this was 
 indeed the twentieth summer since Grettir was outlawed, 
 but that liis time would not be fully accomplished in 
 whole years until winter. Howbeit as the Things wen- 
 held in summer, Grettir must needs serve either half a 
 year more or less, inasmuch as it was needful to declare 
 him free either at that Thing, when he would havt- 
 fulfilled but nineteen years and a half, or at the one next 
 year when he would have served twenty years and a half. 
 Rut Thorir of Garth rose up and spake very fiercely 
 against the outlaw. Thorir was grown old and grey ; 
 
 X 2 
 
 I
 
 3o8 Tales of the Teutonic La7ids. 
 
 through Grettir's mishap he was a childless man ; and all 
 these years had failed to slake his thirst for vengeance. 
 He demanded that Grettir should work out his punish- 
 ment to the uttermost ; and since the law said twenty 
 winters, Stein the Lawman adjudged that Grettir's 
 freedom should be delayed till next summer. 
 
 Xow many folk were in great fear because the time 
 drew nigh that Grettir should be free, and they stirred 
 up Thorbiorn Angle to give himself to any manner of 
 craft, so he might compass Grettir's destruction, rather 
 than have him turned loose on them again. And at last 
 Thorbioi-n bethought him of his foster-mother, Thurid, 
 who was very old and withered, and could scarce crawl 
 about, but had much cunning in forbidden lore. And 
 when he had told her his desire, the old witch said : ' I 
 will help thee in the matter if thou wilt let me have my 
 will herein ; but seek not to know wherefore I do this or 
 that.' This Thorbiorn promised her, and she said: 'Take 
 me out with thee in a boat to Drangey, that I may look 
 on Grettir and know where his luck will fail him.' So 
 Thorbiorn made ready a ten-oared boat and came over to 
 Drangey with the witch-wife lying in the stern, muffled 
 up in wrappings. And Thorbiorn hailed Grettir, and 
 began to talk to him as aforetime concerning giving up 
 the island. He offered him much money, and also to 
 hold him scatheless for all past deeds if he would go 
 away. But Grettir said : ' Why wilt thou pester me 
 these many times ? Do as thou wilt, I shall abide here.' 
 Thorbiorn answered, ' I might have known what an un- 
 toward thief I had to deal with, and spared my journey. 
 But it will be a long day that brings me hither again.' 
 ' I shall not pine for thy company,' said Grettir, ' nor yet 
 if thou breakest thy neck like the last man that came 
 here at thy bidding.' 
 
 Then the witch-wife moved in her wrappings and stood 
 up, tottering and shaking. She looked upon Grettir and
 
 Grettir the Strong. 309 
 
 said : ' Many good things have been offered thee, and 
 thou despisest them ; behold now, evil things I cast 
 upon thee. From this time forth, good-heed, good- 
 health, good-hap, shall fail thee.' And laying this weird 
 on Grrettir, she spread forth her trembling hands, and 
 mumbled at him, 
 
 Grettir shuddered exceedingly when he heard her, and 
 he said to Illugi, ' Curse this foul hag. She has set my 
 blood a-cold. I fear me lest she work us evil by her 
 cunning.' With that he caught up a great stone, and 
 flung it wildly down into the boat : it smote the thigh of 
 the witch and brake it. Thorbiorn's men bent 'to their 
 oars and rowed away. 
 
 ' I would thou hadst not done that,' said Illugi. 
 
 ' So would I,' answered Grettir, ' but I fear her so. 
 Would I had done more or less ; and either killed her 
 outright or never flung at all ! ' 
 
 Thorbiorn's foster-mother lay a month in bed till the 
 thigh-bone was grown together again ; and as soon as she 
 could limp about, she came down to the sea-shore and 
 looked here and there for something whereby to wreak 
 her vengeance. A tree-trunk was lying on the beach, as 
 big as a man miglit carry ; and she went to it, and with 
 her knife smoothed a flat space thereon, and cut runes on 
 it. Then she went backwards and forwards about the 
 tree, and cast spells over it. And having got men to 
 thrust it into the water, she spake -witch-words to the 
 tree that it should drift out to Drangey. 
 
 Now as Grettir and Illugi walked about the island 
 looking for firewood, they perceived a tree-trunk drifted 
 ashore on the westward side ; and Illugi said, ' Brother, 
 here is firewood ; let us take it home.' But Grettir 
 regarded the log, and misliked it. He said : ' Xay, 
 Illugi, we will not have this tree ; it is an evil-looking 
 tree, and there is ill-luck about it. See thou touch it
 
 310 Talcs of the Tc2itonic Lands. 
 
 not.' Grettir kicked it with his foot and thrust it back 
 into the water. 
 
 Another day they went, and behold the log was 
 drifted up again close to the ladders. This time Grettir 
 drave it far out to sea, and charged Illugi- by no means 
 to take it for firewood if it should ever be borne back 
 again. 
 
 It was the spring-time, and Grettir rejoiced more that 
 year than any other to see the days lengthen, and the 
 green spread over Drangey, and the flowers come ; for he 
 knew that the end of his outlawry drew nigh. One 
 evening that spring the wind blew up into a gale and 
 the rain poured down. Neither Grettir nor Illugi cared 
 to go abroad ; but the fire getting low they sent Noise 
 out to seek for wood. Noise grumbled, saying that he 
 always had to trudge about on hard jobs in ill weather, 
 but he went off to the beach, and the first thing he spied was 
 the witch-wife's tree against the ladders. Not a little glad 
 to have found a log so ready to his hand, he laid it across 
 his shoulders, and bare it up the ladders, and bringing it 
 to Grettir's hut, cast it down before the door. Grettir 
 heard something cast down outside, and taking his axe 
 went out in the twilight to find what it might be. He 
 saw that Noise had brought a goodly tree, and bade him 
 split it up. But Noise was sweating and sulky moreover, 
 for his burden had not been light, and he said, ' Split it 
 thyself, for I have done my part.' Then Grettir losing 
 temper with the thrall, bade him get out of his way, and 
 he took the axe in both hands, and not heeding wliat 
 log it was, smote mightily into it. But the axe pitched 
 flatwise on the tree-trunk, and glanced off into Grettir's 
 thigh, and smote fast into the bone of it. Then Grettir 
 knew the tree, and cursed it, and the witch-wife, and 
 Noise. He staggered back into the hut, and there Illugi 
 washed his wound and swathed it up. 
 
 The wound bled little, for all it was so great ; it gave
 
 Grettir the Strong. 311 
 
 no pain ; and for the first three days the edges of the 
 flesh seemed like to grow together again. But on the 
 third night Grettir tossed in his bed and could in nowise 
 rest, and when Illugi had got a light and loosed the 
 swathings, he saw that all the leg was blue and swollen, 
 and the wound broken open anew and festering. Nigh" 
 after night Grettir lay and tossed and could not close hi* 
 eyes for the sharpness of his pain ; but none the less die. 
 his spirit bear up bravely, though sleep came not to 
 assuage his torment. He sang of the mighty deeds 
 which he had wrought through life ; and Illugi would 
 not leave his side, but sate by him night and day to com- 
 fort him. 
 
 But Grettir fretted much about the ladders as he lay. 
 He had no mind to send Illugi from him, and so was 
 fain to leave Noise to see after them. Always at night 
 he would ask the thrall if he had drawn the ladders up ; 
 and oftentimes Noise would wax surly and say that with 
 such gales blowing no boats would venture out in the 
 firth, and that he deemed it folly to take such pains 
 each day for naught. But Grettir never ceased warning 
 him, saying that their lots were all cast in together, and 
 ill-hap for one would prove ill-hap for all. Howbeit 
 Noise was wont to do much as he listed ; for he was 
 very wise in his own eyes, and wist not that any man 
 could teach him aught. So a fortnight passed, and 
 Grettir's wound swelled each day ; the edges turned out 
 and waxed so foul that he was like to die; and all that 
 while the wind blew and the rain came down without 
 ceasing. 
 
 VII, THE NOTCH IN THE SHORT SWORD. 
 
 As Thorbiorn Angle sate in his house there came limp- 
 ing in at the doorway his old foster-mother, who spake, 
 saying, ' Arise quickly, get men together, and go over to
 
 312 Tales of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 Drangey, for I see that it shall now prosper with thee.' 
 He answered, ' Nay, mother, no boat can put out with 
 such a storm blowing ; let us w^ait for fair weather.' ' Do 
 as I bid thee,' said the witch. 
 
 So Thorbiorn went and gathered eighteen men, and for 
 all the waves were raging so madly, he entered with them 
 into a boat and put off to sea. The witch-wife stood 
 upon the beach and mumbled, waving her hands as one 
 that weaves in the air. And it was so that, in spite of 
 all the storm, there was a space of blue-smooth water 
 always before the boat ; and by the time it grew dusk 
 they reached Drangey. Thorbiorn looked up the cliff- 
 side, and behold the ladders were let down I Wondering 
 greatly how this might be, he and his men mounted to 
 the top and came upon the island. Noise was lying there 
 fast asleep and snoring hard. Thorbiorn took him by the 
 ear saying, ' Wake up, thou careless dog ! Ill betide him 
 that putteth his life in thy keeping.' Noise well nigh 
 lost his wits when he saw eighteen men before him and 
 knew what his folly had brought about. Straightway 
 he began to bawl aloud if peradventure he might make 
 (rrettir hear ; but Thorbiorn bade him hold his peace or 
 they would kill him. Then was the thrall in great fear 
 for his life, and being threatened of them all, he told of 
 Grettir's hurt, and how he lay nigh death's door, with 
 Illugi watching him. So they charged Noise to bring 
 them to the hut, and he durst not say nay, but led them 
 thither, crying bitterly as he went. But Thorbiorn 
 despised him beyond measure and said, ' Thou art a 
 cursed knave thus to betray thy master, although he is a 
 man with no good in him,' and being come within sight 
 of the hut, he took the thrall and kicked and cuffed him 
 about till he fell down on the ground and lay there as 
 dead. 
 
 Illugi was tending Grettir within the hut, when 
 suddenly there came a mighty smiting at the door.
 
 Grcttir the Strong. 3 t 3 
 
 Illugi deemed it was the ram, and said, ' Brother, Speck- 
 sides is knocking at the door.' ' And wondrous hard,' 
 said Grettir. As he spake the door burst open. Illugi 
 caught up his weapons and sprang into the doorway. 
 So well he guarded it that never a man could pass. 
 They could do naught against him save with spears, and 
 Illugi smote off every spear-head from its shaft. When 
 the men found that there was no getting in through the 
 door, they mounted to the roof and began to tear away 
 the thatch. 
 
 Now Grrettir was so sick that he could not stand, and his 
 leg was so greatly swollen that he might not lift it ; but he 
 kneeled up in bed upon the other knee, and reaching 
 forth a spear, thrust it up betwixt the rafters, and 
 thereby ran one man through and through. Then 
 Thorbiorn Angle called to his men to leave the midst of 
 the roof and come and strip away the thatch from the 
 far end of the ridge-beam, where Grettir might not reach 
 them, telling them they were safe from Illugi because 
 he durst not leave the doorway. This they did, and 
 presently came leaping down into the hut. The first man 
 that sprang upon the bed Grettir cleft asunder in the 
 midst with the short sword, insomuch that the one half 
 of his body fell upon the floor, but the other half tmnbled 
 upon Grettir, and somewhat encumbered him. In that 
 moment Thorbiorn Angle thrust him through, a great 
 and grievous wound, betwixt the shoulder-blades. Grettir 
 cried out to his brother, and Illugi came and flung his 
 shield over him and guarded him full well. Long time 
 they fought, and Illiigi slew three of Thorbiorn's fellows, 
 and gave the most part of them some wound or other ; 
 and all that while he never lifted his shield from warding 
 Grettir. Nevertheless at the last, when they could come 
 at him in no other manner, they bore Illugi down with 
 beams and took and bound him fast. Then they went 
 up to Grettir ; but he was fallen forward upon his face
 
 314 Tales of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 and lay in a swoon ; and his leg was a dreadful sight, for 
 it was decayed right lip into his body. And one and 
 another went and hewed fiercely at him with their 
 swords. But Grettir moved not, for he was long past 
 speech, and the wounds they gave him scarce bled 
 
 And when they all deemed him to be dead, Thorbiorn 
 Angle laid hold on the short sword, but Grrettir's fingers 
 at all. 
 
 yet griped it so fast that he could in nowise wrest it 
 away. Eight of them came, and pulled and twisted with 
 all their might, but could not loose the sword from his 
 holding. Thorbiorn called for a block of wood and laid 
 Grettir's wrist thereon, and smote off the hand. Then 
 only did the fingers loose themselves from the sword- 
 handle. And after that Thorbiorn took the short sword 
 and hacked not once nor twice with both hands at 
 Grettir's neck before he could smite the head from off his 
 shoulders. But the short sword might not abide that 
 stroke, and a great notch was broken in the midst of the 
 blade where it smote on Grettir's neck-bones. 
 
 So died Grettir, the most famous ovitlaw that ever 
 lived in Iceland. He was but fourteen years of age when 
 he slew Skeggi, and all things worked together for his 
 glory till, being twenty years old, he met with Glara. He 
 was twenty-five when he fell into outlawry, and he lacked 
 but one winter of forty-five years old wlien he was slain. 
 He abode longer in outlawry than any man ; he was more 
 mighty than all his fellows which have lived before or 
 since ; and none could overcome him while he was hale. 
 
 Then Thorbiorn Angle bethought what he should do 
 with Illugi, and he spake to him, saying, ' I will give 
 thee thy life if thou wilt pledge thyself to seek vengeance 
 on none of us for this day's work.' Illugi said, ' I will not 
 take so base an oath to save my life. Though I am 
 bound both hand and foot, I tell thee. Angle, that if 
 thou durst loose these cords, I will do what I may to
 
 Grdtir the Strong. 315 
 
 avenge my brother upon tbee.' Wherefore Thorbiorn 
 went and took counsel with his fellows, and afterwards came 
 back to Illugi, saying, ' Since thou art thus minded, we 
 have determined to slay thee.' Then said Illugi, 'Do 
 thy worst ; my heart is not afraid.' So they took Illugi, 
 bound as he was, to the eastern side of the island, and 
 there hewed him in pieces with their swords ; but they 
 could not kill his courage, for Illugi stood and laughed 
 aloud whilst the sword-blades smote into his flesh. 
 
 Then Thorbiorn went home ; and he took with him 
 Grettir's head and laid it up in salt. 
 
 Now when the time of the Thing was come, there was 
 a great gathering of folk ; and Thorbiorn Angle came, 
 and set down Grettir's head upon the table before them 
 all, boasting of the great deed he had done, and claimed 
 the head-money. But Thorir of Garth said, ' True it is 
 that I, more than any other man, brought about Grettir's 
 outlawry and set the price upon his head. But though I 
 had better reason than other men to hate him, I count 
 it shame to have taken his life through subtlety and 
 witch-craft ; and for that cause I will not pay the price.' 
 ^Moreover there came many of Grettir's kin, who laid 
 their suits against Thorbiorn Angle for the slaying of 
 Grettir and Illugi, and for dealing in sorcery and for- 
 bidden lore, and again for bearing weapons against a sick 
 and helpless man. And it was so, now that Grettir was 
 dead and gone, that the hearts of most folk were turned 
 towards him, and they deemed him to have suffered hard- 
 ships through his life and to have been ill dealt with in 
 his death. So it befell that very few were on Thorbiorn's 
 side. And Stein the Lawman gave judgment on the 
 suit, and said that the head-money should not be paid 
 for so shameful a deed. Moreover he adjudged that the 
 slaying of Thorbiorn's fellows should be taken to quit for 
 the slaying of Illugi and no more ; but for the blood-suit 
 for Grettir, Thorbiorn Angle should be banished out
 
 3i6 Talcs of ike Teutonic Lands. 
 
 of Iceland, and never come back while any of Grettir'g 
 kindred lived. 
 
 Men went out to Drangey and brought away the bodies 
 of Grettir and Illugi, and laid them in the church3^ard 
 at Keek-strand. But Grettir's head was taken to Biarg 
 and given to his mother Asdis. She buried it in the 
 church upon the homestead. Thereafter she spake but 
 little ; and she was too old to weep. She would sit in 
 the old homestead crooning over the fire all the day. 
 Her folk were very gentle to her, and let no care nor 
 trouble vex her latter days. 
 
 But Thorbiorn Angle took ship and went to Norway. 
 He wandered from town to town, and came at length 
 to Tunsberg, where he abode a while, till hearing 
 that Grettir's brother, Thorstein Dromond, dwelt there, 
 he deemed his life scarce safe in that part, and so jour- 
 neyed away to Micklegarth, and took war-pay from the 
 Varangians. Now Thorstein Dromond knew not of 
 Angle's being in Tunsberg till after he had gone away ; 
 but as soon as he was ware thereof, he called to mind the 
 words he had spoken when Grettir made sport of his 
 lean arms. Thorstein thereupon sent out spies to follow 
 after Angle and send word wliither he went. And w^hen 
 he had tidings that Angle was in Micklegarth, thither 
 he journeyed after him. But there was much people in 
 that place, making ready to go out to war, and Thorstein 
 could learn nothing of the man he sought. They held a 
 weapon-show, as was the custom before battle, and the 
 Varangians thronged about it. Now Thorstein Dromond 
 had never in his life set eyes on Thorbiorn Angle, neither 
 could he tell by what token he should know him. But 
 each day he went in and out among the crowd at the 
 weapon-show, and watched the men which came to show 
 their weapons. 
 
 One day there came a man who showed a short sword 
 notched in the blade. Folk praised the weapon greatly,
 
 Grcttir the Strong. 317 
 
 but said it was an ill-hap that so good a blade should 
 have had a shard broken out from tlie midst. Then 
 said the bearer of the short sword, ' With this blade I 
 slew Grettir the Strong, the great Iceland champion, and 
 so hard were his neck-bones that I notched the sword in 
 smiting off his head.' And the people which stood there 
 took the short sword in their hands and passed it about 
 from one to another wondering at the tale. And Thor- 
 stein Dromond also was fain to look upon the blade 
 which had done so great a deed. They gave it to him. 
 Straightway he clutched the short sword with both hands, 
 uplifted it, and smote it into Angle's skull down to 
 the jawbone. So Thorbiorn Angle got his bane from the 
 sword of Grrettir. 
 
 But the people laid hold on Thorstein and carried him 
 away to the Chancellor of the town to answer for the 
 slaying. Thorstein told what good cause he had against 
 Angle, and how far he had travelled to avenge his 
 brother's death ; but the rulers of the city said that his 
 tale might be true 'or not, he had no witnesses, and they 
 had one law only for whosoever slew a man, and this was 
 that he must die. So they thrust him into a dungeon to 
 abide his doom. 
 
 VIII. THE HAPPY GOOD LUCK OF THORSTEIN. 
 
 Thorstein was a man of the greatest good luck in all things 
 which he did. There was a wretched prisoner already 
 in the dungeon, who, being cast for death did nothing 
 but weep and bewail himself. ' Never lose heart, comrade,' 
 said Thorstein, ' for if our days be few, the more need 
 is there that we use up all our merriment before we die.' 
 Therewith he began trolling out a merry ditty, and all 
 that night made the dungeon walls ring witli his cheer-
 
 3i8 Tales of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 ful songs. Moreover Thorstein had a goodly voice and 
 was well skilled to use it. 
 
 And it fell out that a certain great lady of the land, 
 called the Lady Spes, was passing by and heard him 
 singing ; and she thought within herself, ' Great pity it 
 were that so merry a singer should die. And it is certain 
 that he is a brave fellow to sing with death hanging over 
 his head.' So she called to him down in the dungeon 
 and said, ' Wilt thou take thy life from me , if I can 
 bring about thy ransom ? ' He answered, ' Xay, good 
 mistress, I fret not over much about so poor a thing as 
 life ; but there is a wretched fellow down here who fears 
 to die. Eansom him, and thou shalt do a kindly deed.' 
 * Nay,' said the lady, ' since thou art generous as well 
 as brave and merry, I am more than ever determined to 
 save thy life ; but I deem thy comrade no great prize.' 
 Thorstein answered, ' Fair lady, of this one thing I am 
 determined ; I will share my comrade's fate, whatever it 
 be. Yet now I confess I should be sorry to die ; for 
 since my life has been esteemed of thee it is growing 
 precious unto me.' And the Lady Spes thought to her- 
 self, ' He is courteous, beside.' So she went straightway 
 to the city rulers and offered a gi'eat ransom for the two 
 men doomed to die. The Varangians needed money 
 for their war ; they haggled awhile about the price, 
 but took the lady's gold and set the prisoners free. 
 
 Now the Lady Spes had wedded for wealth's sake a 
 man far beneath her in kindred : a very rich man, old 
 and covetous, whose name was Sigurd ; and they had 
 little fellowship. So as soon as Thorstein came out of 
 gaol she brought him to her own house, and lodged him 
 there unknown to her husband, for their hearts were 
 tiu-ned to one another. She gave Thorstein money in 
 abimdance, and in sooth she herself began to spend it 
 with a liberal hand. And Sigurd her husband came to 
 her, saying, ' Strange ways are these. ]\Iy money is
 
 Grettir tJic strong. 319 
 
 being squandered at a wondrous rate ; and as for thee, I 
 scarcely see thy face at all. Strange ways ! ' he mur- 
 mured, and shook his head. The Lady Spes tossed hers, 
 and answered : ' If a man wed above him, he must look 
 for things a little strange. My kindred told thee at the 
 first that I should not spare thy goods. Neither have any 
 been wont to say to me " So much and no more shalt 
 thou bestow," nor shall I ever suffer them. Talk not 
 then of thy dross ; but if thou hast aught to lay to my 
 shame, say on.' He answered, ' Nay, dear lady, I know 
 not aught for certainty ; but at times — I do misdoubt 
 me — whether — lest — some other man — ' 'How dare you 
 slander my good name ! What cause have you to think 
 — ' (she burst out weeping). ' This matter shall come 
 before the law but I will be righted.' ' Nay,' said he, ' I 
 only meant, but I may be wrong — ' ' You meant,' she 
 cried, ' to slander a true wife. This comes of wedding a 
 man of low kin ! ' and flounced out of the room. 
 
 But Spes and Thorstein loved always together ; and 
 so many friends they made by squandering Sigurd's gold 
 that none cared to say aught against them. And it fell 
 upon a day when the pair were talking merrily together 
 in a loft, that the lady bade Thorstein sing her a ditty. 
 Yqx she said, ' My goodman is sitting over his drink, and 
 never comes this way.' With that she made fast the 
 door and Thorstein began to sing. But he had scarce 
 got through a stave when the husband at the head of all 
 his servants came hammering without. In a moment 
 the lady opened a chest wherein she kept her fairest 
 raiment, locked Thorstein therein and sate upon it. 
 ' Pray come in,' she cried : ' or stay, is the door fastened ? 
 I will undo it.' She shot the bolt, saying, ' Haste thee, 
 husband ; for surely thy foes are in pursuit, that thou 
 makest such an uproar.' ' Woman,' he said, ' I Jiave 
 found thee out ; where is the man that was singing here 
 but now ?' She said, ' Thou art surely crazed. I see no
 
 320 Tales of the Teutonic Lands, 
 
 man here. Thou art all too cunning. But a fool is wise 
 if he will hold his tongue.' The old man searched about, 
 hut could find nothing. ' Why dost thou not take the 
 man,' said the goodwife, ' if he be here ? ' Sigurd shook 
 his head ; and he said to his servants, ' Did ye not hear 
 a man singing in this place awhile ago ? ' But his 
 servants would have naught to say against their mistress, 
 so they answered : ' Of a surety we thought we did, but 
 it is plain we are mistaken. None can say certainly as 
 to sound whence it comes. Sounds have strange ways.' 
 v?o Sigurd gave it up ; and after that his dame led him 
 such a life that for a long time he durst not spy on her 
 any more. 
 
 Another day it befell, when the Lady Spes was in the 
 cloth-bower with Thorstein, that Sigurd came and rum- 
 maged all about, but could find no man ; for the good- 
 wife had hidden him underneath the pile of store-cloths ; 
 and the cloths were all smoothed out so trimly that none 
 would have deemed them to have been disturbed. 
 
 The castle wherein the Lady Spes dwelt was built over 
 the sea, the water flowing underneath it, and round the 
 pillars ; and she had a secret way made, with a little 
 trapdoor leading from the floor of her chamber down to 
 the sea, and fitted fo cunningly that it seemed but the 
 joints of the boarding. Now one time Sigurd told his 
 wife that he must needs go away on a long journey ; but 
 instead of going, he hid himself about the place and 
 watched. When they thought him gone, Thorstein and 
 Spes made merry together and were seldom apart. One 
 day Sigurd came out from his hiding, and after spying 
 about awhile he saw the Lady Spes let a man in at the 
 gateway of the castle. Then he heard the sound of sing- 
 ing in a chamber, and clambering up to the window, lo I 
 he saw a man with her ; and they were both laughing as 
 merrily as might be. The goodman stole away softly, 
 and went and called his neighbours, and gathered half
 
 Grettir the Strong. 321 
 
 the town together to come and see if what he told tlieiu 
 was not true. But the Lady Spes heard the clamour of 
 the crowd, and sent Thorstein down through the trap- 
 door into the sea, bidding him give her a token if be 
 came safe to land. So when one part of the folk came 
 and looked in at the window, there was naught to be 
 seen save a lady sitting all alone, and toying with the 
 rings upon her hands. And the other part of the folk, 
 which went into the castle with Sigurd, found the 
 chamber door ajar, but no man therein. So all that 
 Sigurd gat for his pains was the jeering of the crowd for 
 bringing them- on a fool's errand. ' Gfood people,' said 
 he, 'I certainly beheld a man within this chamber.' Tlie 
 folk believed him not, but said, ' Overmuch wine will 
 make a man see double ; the double of a woman is a 
 man, to make a pair ; old eyes will have strange ways.' 
 Then was the goodman very wroth, and said to his wife, 
 ' Lo, these three times hast thou outwitted me ; but 
 since I am now befooled in sight of all the people, thou 
 shalt go before the bishop, and purge thee by oath in this 
 matter.' She answered, ' Thou hast done very foolishly ; 
 nevertheless for my own sake, and to free me from the 
 slander, I deem it meet that I should go.' 
 
 When the folk were gone away, the lady watched all 
 night, and toward morning saw a fire burning on the 
 land. Then she knew that Thorstein was come safe to 
 shore ; for that was the sign they had agreed on. And 
 while Sigurd was gone next day to lay the accusation 
 against her before the bishop, Thorstein and she were 
 together planning how she should be cleared. 
 
 Now the day being come when the Lady Spes should 
 go to make her oath, she attired herself in the richest 
 apparel that she had, and went forth with a great 
 company of noble ladies to the church. The rain had 
 fallen heavily for many days -before, and over against the 
 porch was a slough of mire which must n^eds be crossed
 
 32 2 Talcs of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 to get to the church. A great multitude of folk was 
 gathered together, and aniong them were many beggars 
 asking alms of the passers-by. And a certain cripple, a 
 hoary-bearded man, in tattered garments, who went on 
 crutches, perceived how fairly Spes was arrayed, and 
 came to her saying, ' Suffer me, I pray, to bear thee over 
 the mire.' She answered : ' How shalt thou bear a 
 burden that scarce canst bear thyself? ' ' Nay, lady,' said 
 he, ' but it may be that thou shalt fare none the worse for 
 making thyself lowly toward the poor.' Then she suffered 
 herself to be lifted on the churl's back, and he hobbled 
 along with her into the slough. But when they were 
 come into the midst of it, the beggar man seemed to get 
 but poor hold for his crutches, for he began to stumble 
 and to stagger from side to side. ' Grather up thy 
 strength,' cried the lady, 'for if thou lettest me fall it 
 shall go hard with thee.' The old man staggered 
 wildly forward, and missing his crutch-hold, swooped off 
 sideways, and scarce had cast the lady upon land, when 
 he fell headlong in the mire. He floundered about and 
 sought to catch the hem of her skirt to save himself. 
 She, with a shudder for fear her sumptuous robe should be 
 polluted, snatched it smartly from him, so his miry hand 
 came down on her bare knee. The Lady Spes sprang up 
 and cursed the churl, and vowed that he should be beaten. 
 He pleaded his great age and misery ; and the people 
 seeing how poor and wretched he looked, made inter- 
 cession for him. So the goodwife took the purse from 
 her side, shook the gold pieces into the beggar's lap, and 
 blaming still his awkwardness, went straightway to the 
 church. 
 
 Then when they were come before the bishop, the accusa- 
 tions against her were fully set forth. And the Lady Spes 
 declared herself a good woman, and made oath saying, ' I 
 swear that I am clean as concerning all other men beside 
 my lord, save of that cripple who openly defiled me this
 
 Grettir the Strong. 323 
 
 day ; and to none other have I given at any time of my 
 husband's gold.' Now this being deemed a full oath, her 
 kindred began to say that it was a shame for false charges 
 thus to be brought against a lady of high estate. And so 
 hard they pushed matters that they prevailed upon the 
 bishop to make out a divorce betwixt her and Sigurd. 
 And inasmuch as Sigurd was held to have forsworn himself 
 and to have done very wickedly in bringing such lying 
 slanders to her charge, he was driven out from the land, 
 as a warning to other husbands who might else be minded 
 to do the like ; and all his possessions were adjudged to 
 the Lady Spes to make amends for what she had suffered. 
 All people pitied her and held her to have been greatly 
 ill-used. But soon afterwards it began to be wliispered 
 that the cripple which had carried her over the slough 
 was none other than Thorstein, and that some wise man 
 had taught her how to swear an oath that sounded sooth 
 the while it beguiled the bishop. However that may be, 
 it came to pass that, not very long after Spes was divorced 
 from her husband, and had taken to herself all his money, 
 Thorstein came wooing her. And since her kinsmen left 
 her free to do as she desired, Spes wedded with Thorstein 
 and brought him all her riches. Thereafter they dwelt 
 in the goodliest fellowship one with another. All things 
 prospered whereto they set their hands, and their pos- 
 sessions increased continually, for all that they were the 
 most bountiful in their dealings. 
 
 But after a time Thorstein being minded to go back 
 to his home and kinsfolk, they sold their lands and their 
 chattels and went away into Norway. There they dwelt 
 many years together in great love and contentment, until 
 old age crept upon them both. 
 
 And when Thorstein was threescore and seven years 
 old, yet hale withal, he bethought him to go up to the 
 court of King Harald to do him service ; but his wife 
 besought him saying, ' Husband, there is somewhat I fain 
 
 T 2
 
 324 Tales of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 would speak, that has often been on my mind of late.' And 
 he said ' Say on.' Then spake she, ' More meet it were 
 to go to another King to whom we have more to pay. 
 For lo, our youth is departed, and our days have been 
 given overmuch to the pleasures of this world. Where- 
 fore I will that we change our ways and seek after those 
 things which shall make our everlasting welfare ; to which 
 end let us fare away to Eome-town and get our souls in 
 health.' Thorstein answered, ' In all things I will as thou 
 wiliest.' 
 
 Then Thorstein gathered all his kinsfolk together, and 
 spake to them concerning the journey whereon he was 
 bent. And he divided his goods before them, and gave 
 one half to his kindred. And the portion that remained 
 to him he divided again, and gave half of it for the 
 founding of churches and chantries, and to distribute 
 amongst the poor and needy. When he had so done he 
 bade farewell to them all, and he and his wife fared away 
 to Rome. There they made their shrift, and confessing 
 by what subtile craft they had been joined in wedlock, 
 gave themselves wholly to prayer and penance for the 
 amending of their lives. Thenceforth they made a vow 
 to dwell apart in chastity, to the end that they might more 
 surely count on fellowship together above. So they told 
 out money to build two stone cells; and when the cells 
 were ready they prayed together, and parted at the doors. 
 Thorstein entered into his cell ; Spes into hers. The 
 doors were shut ; and neither looked upon the other's face 
 again in this world.
 
 325 
 
 GUNNLAUG AND THE FAIR HELGA. 
 
 Thoestein Egilson was chief among the Icelanders in 
 Burgfirth, and kept house at Burg. Egil's kin have ever 
 been renowned amongst the Marshmen ; Thorstein was, 
 moreover, a man of great estate ; and his coimsel was 
 highly esteemed at the Thing, for he was well versed in 
 law, wise-minded withal, and temperate of speech. 
 
 One summer Thorstein rode [off to the coast, as his 
 wont was, to buy wares out of the merchant ships that 
 came from the mainland. He bought such goods as he 
 stood in need of against the winter from the master of a 
 Norse vessel, and getting friendly over their bargain, he 
 and the skipper lodged together some days and went up 
 to the Thing together. 
 
 And on a sunny afternoon Thorstein fell dozing in a 
 booth and laboured heavily in his sleep. The skipper 
 watching beside him marked how hard a time he had of 
 it, but would in nowise disturb him till his sleep was out. 
 And when Thorstein woke up wearied from his restless 
 tossing, the skipper asked him, ' Hast thou dreamed 
 aught ? ' 'I dreamed,' said Thorstein ; ' but a dream is 
 naught. I will tell it thee if thou wilt, to pass the time. 
 Methought in my dream that I beheld the roof-ridge 
 of my house at Burg, and a goodly white swan had 
 lighted there. The swan seemed mine, and very fair and
 
 J 
 
 26 Talcs of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 precious it was in my sight. Then came an eagle, black 
 of e3'e, which swooped down from the moimtains and 
 nestling against the swan, cooed lovingly to her ; and the 
 swan seemed glad thereof. But presently another eagle 
 came flying from southward and sought to woo the swan. 
 The first eagle ruffled up his plumes and set on him : 
 they fought fiercely together, beak and claw, till both 
 being torn and covered with blood, the eagles fell dead 
 together, and tumbled backwards, one on either side the 
 roof-ridge. The swan sat lonely on the house-roof, 
 drooping and very sad. An idle dream, my friend, 
 betokening perchance that the wind will blow next 
 winter from the quarters whence the eagles flew.' 
 
 But the skipper answered, ' Make not so light of 
 dreams ; and as for this one which thou hast dreamed, I 
 will foreshow thee what it signifieth. The fair white 
 swan thou sawest on thy roof-ridge is a daughter which 
 thy wife shall bear to thee. The eagles are two men of 
 high kindred that shall love her overmuch, for which 
 cause they will fight together and both lose their lives.' 
 
 ' An ill dream-reader art thou,' said Thorstein, ' and I 
 deem thou hast read mine in no friendly fashion.' The 
 skipper's words misliked him ; and he parted company 
 with the man and came home to Burg. 
 
 Now as next summer drew on Thorstein was in some 
 fear lest the skipper's words should be fulfilled. And 
 before he rode off to the Thing he called Jofrid his wife 
 and said to her, ' Now I charge thee straitly concerning 
 thy child when it shall be born ; if it be a woman-child 
 thou shalt cast it forth, but if a man-child thou mayest 
 nurture it.' Then Jofrid pleaded with him, saying, 
 ' Surely a wicked thing it were for a man of thine estate 
 to do a deed that is looked on with ill-favour even when 
 wrought by poor folk who have many children and 
 scarce bread enough to feed them.' But he answered,
 
 Gumilaug and the Fair Helga. 327 
 
 ' Thou knowest my mind ; take heed and do as I have 
 bidden thee; ' and therewith rode off to the Thing. 
 
 Soon after he was gone Jofrid gave birth to a woman- 
 child, fair as eyes ever looked upon, and being in fear of 
 her lord, she sent privily for her shepherd and said, ' I 
 cannot cast forth this little one. Wherefore take and 
 saddle my horse and carry the babe westwards to Herd- 
 holt. My husband's sister Thorgerd dwells there. Pray 
 her to nourish it for me for kindred's sake, and not to 
 tell my lord. Here are three marks of silver for thee. 
 Thorgerd will get thee away across the sea, where Thor- 
 stein shall never know.' The shepherd took the child 
 and wrapped it warm and rode away with it to Thorgerd. 
 She gave it to a woman on her homestead to nourish and 
 bring up ; moreover she gave the shepherd an outfit for 
 sea-faring and got him out of the land. 
 
 "When Thorstein came home Jofrid told him that tlie 
 child had been cast forth as he had commanded, and also 
 that their shepherd had fled and stolen her horse. Thor- 
 stein was well pleased, thinking that a horse more or 
 less, or a runaway herdsman, was naught to make ado 
 about. So for six years he wist not that the child was 
 alive. 
 
 But as time went on it befell that Thorstein was bidden 
 by his brother-in-law to a feast, and so came over to Herd- 
 holt. And one day after meat Thorgerd his sister brought in 
 three little maidens, and setting them on a bench over 
 against Thorstein, asked what he thought of them. He 
 answered, ' They are fair children, sister ; but one is by 
 far the fairest ; and that one has more the look of us 
 Mere-folk than of thy husband.' ' Aye,' she said, ' and so 
 it may well happen, for that is not my husband's child.' 
 ' How cometh tliat to pass,' said Thorstein, ' for surely 
 she is thy daughter ? ' ' Nay,' said his sister, ' not mine, 
 but thine,' and with that told him what had been done, 
 and besought his forgiveness both for his wife and for
 
 3 28 Talcs of the TeiUonic Lands. 
 
 lierself. And behold as Thorstein looked upon the little 
 maid there came into his heart a great love for the child, 
 and he said to his sister, ' I blame neither of you, but am 
 debtor to you both for thus hiding my folly. And now 
 tell me how you have named her ? ' Thorgerd answered, 
 ' Helga the Fair.' Thorstein took his little daughter in 
 his arms and kissed her, saying, ' Eightly have you named 
 her, for she is fairer than all others.' And he bade his 
 sister make ready the child to go home with him ; and he 
 took her back to his wife Jofrid, and the little maid 
 endeared herself to her father and mother and all her 
 kindred by her winning ways. 
 
 Next after Thorstein, Illugi the Black was the man of 
 most account in Burgfirth. He had many sons, but the 
 goodliest was the youth Grunnlaug, who had dark eyes 
 and waving red hair; he was thin in the flank, broad-chested 
 and stately of growth ; frank of speech and a good skald ; 
 and forasmuch as his words were apt to be stinging, men 
 called him Gunnlaug of the Worm-tongue. 
 
 When he was fifteen years old his father sent him to 
 Tliorstein to learn law-craft, and he abode with Thorstein 
 some seasons. Grunnlaug and Helga were then near of 
 an age, and Grunnlaug liked far better to sit at chess- 
 playing with Helga than to puzzle over law-craft with 
 her father. They were always together, and a great love 
 grew up between them, albeit for long none knew of it 
 but they twain. Very fair was Helga ; fairer than any 
 maid in Iceland before or since. Her hair was like braids 
 of gold, and so plentiful that it clothed her to her feet. 
 
 As Thorstein made merry one day in his hall with many 
 other folk Grunnlaug came to him and said, ' Much of law 
 thou hast showed me, but there is one other thing I fain 
 would learn, and that is how to woo a wife.' So Thorstein 
 told him how ; but none the more content was Gunnlaug. 
 He said, ' Nay, but I would that thou shouldest try if I 
 imderstand it aright. Wherefore let me now make as
 
 GiuiukuLo^ mid the Fair Helm. 
 
 i> 
 
 though I were wooing thy daughter Helga.' Thorsteiu 
 liked this little ; howbeit to please the company he 
 consented, but said, ' Take notice, all folk present, that 
 this wooing is but in sport, and whatsoever words are 
 spoken shall go for naught, neither shall any pledge 
 follow hereon.' Then Helga came forth, blushing like 
 snow at sunrise. And Gunnlaug took the right hand of 
 Thorstein her father, and wooed Helga of him, and 
 named to himself witnesses from them which stood by. 
 Then Grunnlaug asked Thorstein if wooing in that sort 
 would stand good in law. ' Aye,' said he, ' methinks thou 
 hast learned this lesson quicker than thy wont.' And 
 the folk at Thorstein's table waxed merry at all this. 
 
 To the south of Biu-g, down in Mossfell, dwelt Onund, a 
 man of very great riches, who had a bold strong son just 
 come of agO; called Kafn the Skald. And Onund gave his 
 son money and a goodly outfit that he might fare away 
 into other lands and see the manners of strange countries 
 and make himself a name. 
 
 And after Grunnlaug had sojourned three winters with 
 Thorstein, he also, being minded to fare abroad, came 
 home to Illugi his father and asked for faring goods. So 
 his father fitted him out and bought him a half share in a 
 ship that was going to Norway. But while his partner was 
 making the vessel ready for sea, Gunnlaug must needs go 
 and loiter about at Thorstein's house, for he was fain to be 
 where Helga was. And as the time drew on for the ship 
 to sail he grew wonderly loth to go. Then Thorstein said 
 he would give him a parting gift, and taking him away 
 to the stables where he kept his stud-horses he chose out 
 an unbroken chestnut, very spirited and well bred, and 
 bade Gunnlaug keep it for his own. But Gunnlaug shook 
 his head, saying he cared little about horses and would 
 not have it. Thorstein had four powerful mares, and the 
 best grey horse in Burgfirth ; and he prayed Gunnlaug 
 to take his choice amongst them all, for that he certainly
 
 oy 
 
 Tales of the Teutonic Lmids. 
 
 should have a gift. Howbeit Gunnlaug would have 
 naught to do with them. He said, 'If thou art truly- 
 minded to give me a gift, give me, I pray, the gift that I 
 shall ask of thee.' 'And what is that?' said Thorstein. 
 ' Helga the Fair,' he answered. 
 
 Then Thorstein frowned, and would not speak at all of 
 that matter, but talked of other things till they got back 
 to the house. But as soon as they were set down 
 Gunnlaug said, ' Thou hast not answered me.' ' In sooth, 
 no,' said Thorstein ; ' I heed not vain talk.' ' I have 
 spoken my whole mind,' said Grunnlaug, 'and mine are no 
 vain words.' Thorstein answered, ' As yet thou knowest 
 not thy mind. Thou are greatly unsettled, and bound 
 to fare abroad. How then shouldest thou wive ? Besides, 
 I do not count thee to be her match. No, I will not hear 
 of it.' Then Grunnlaug fired up and said, ' Not her match I 
 If the son of Illugi the Black be not a match for thy 
 daughter, where wilt thou find in Burgfirth a man of better 
 kin ? ' Then said Thorstein, ' Wert thou a staid and settled 
 man like thy father, maybe I should not turn thee away. 
 But there is many a man whom I esteem a better match for 
 my daughter than thou. There is Rafu the Skald, there 
 are Thortinn's seven sons, all men of good estate.' ' And 
 none of them of kin so good as mine,' said Gunnlaug ; 
 ' true, thou art of the race of Egil ; but hast thou at any 
 time done a deed such as my father when he fought with 
 Thorgrim the Godi and his sons at Thornes Thing ? ' 'I 
 care not to liken myself to other men,' said Thorstein, 
 ' but this I know, I drave out Steinar, the son of Onund 
 Sjoni, and folk reckoned that was somewhat of a deed.' 
 ' Thou dravest him out forsooth,' said Gunnlaug, ' when 
 thou hadst gotten Egil thy father to come and help thee. 
 But om" kin are more wont to trust to their own right 
 hands than to their fathers' swords.' So Thorstein waxed 
 angry and bade him carry his bragging up to the moun-
 
 Gimnlavg and the Faw Helga. 'XiZ '^ 
 
 tains, for that it would avail him little down there in the 
 marshes. 
 
 Then came Grunnlaug home to his father and besought 
 him to ride over to Thorstein with him to woo Helgra. 
 And Illugi said, ' My son, thy mind ought to be wholly 
 set on ship matters and on thy faring abroad. Why busy 
 thyself now about wife-wooing, the more so as it is not at 
 all to Thorstein's mind ? ' But Gunnlaug intreated him, 
 saying that he would go abroad just the same, but that 
 he could not give his mind to aught else till this matter 
 was settled. So Illugi rode over with Grunnlaug next day 
 and greeted Thorstein and said, ' My son has had some 
 talk with thee about wooing thy daughter Helga, and I 
 cannot get him away till he knows what will come of it. 
 We are neighbours and friends, long known to one another, 
 and if for old friendship's sake thou canst say yes, I shall 
 be well pleased, and will spare neither land nor gold when 
 Gunnlaug weds.' 
 
 Thorstein said, 'I see naught against it, save that 
 Gunnlaug is a roving man. Were he like thee I would 
 not say thee nay.' 
 
 Illugi answered, ' Then will our friendship come to an 
 end, for it is plain to me that thou deemest my son not 
 good enough for thee.' 
 
 ' Nay,' said Thorstein, ' it is not so. It is only because 
 he is unsettled. But rather than lose thy friendship, this 
 much will I do ; Helga shall be the vowed maiden of 
 Gunnlaug, and tarry three winters for him, but I will not 
 betroth her to him. In that time let him rove and shape 
 his ways. If in three years he come not back, or coming, 
 if his ways mislike me, I shall be free to wed Helga to 
 whom I will.' 
 
 So with that bond the two friends went their way. 
 Gunnlaug and Helga kissed and parted ; he with a light 
 heart hied off to his ship and sailed for Norway, and left
 
 332 Talcs of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 her radiant with a joy that shone out through her parting 
 tears. 
 
 Yarl Eric and his brother Svein ruled Norway then, 
 and being- come to land, Gunnlaug took six of his ship- 
 fellows with him, and leaving the rest to unload the mer- 
 chandise, came up to Hladir, at Drontheim, where the 
 Yarl kept court. The Yarl saw as they came into the 
 hall that Gunnlaug had a great and very painful boil 
 upon his instep, wherefrom came blood and matter as he 
 walked ; yet Gunnlaug flinched nothing, but strode along 
 the firmest of them all. And Yarl Eric said, ' Icelander, 
 what ails thy foot ? ' 'A boil,' said he. ' "Why then dost 
 thou not walk lame ? ' asked the Yarl. Gunnlaug 
 answered, scornful of the pain, ' Why should a man walk 
 lame wliile both legs are of one length ? ' The Yarl said, 
 ' How old art thou ? ' ' Eighteen winters,' answered 
 Gunnlaug. Then said Yarl Eric, ' A man of so sharp a 
 tongue will not live eighteen winters more without good 
 prayers for him.' Gunnlaug muttered something. ' What 
 saidst thou, Icelander ? ' asked the Yarl. ' Pray rather 
 for thyself than me,' said Gunnlaug. ' What have I to 
 pray for ? ' said Eric. ' Pray,' answered the Icelander, 
 ' that thou be not slain by a thrall in the first hiding- 
 place whereinto thou sneakest, even as Hakon thy father 
 was.' The Yarl flushed up blood-red, and called to his 
 men to seize the Icelander ; but he thought better of it, 
 and bade them instead to tell Gunnlaug, if he held his 
 life of any account, to begone at once and never more set 
 foot within the realm. 
 
 So Gunnlaug went down to the shore, and finding a 
 ship bound for England took a passage therein, and after 
 a fair voyage, came sailing up Thames river to London 
 Bridge about the time of autumn. 
 
 In those days ^thelred was King of England and kept 
 court in London ; and they spake the Norse tongue 
 throughout the land, which indeed prevailed until William
 
 Gunnla7ig and the Fair Helga. 333 
 
 the Bastard won England and changed the tongue to 
 French. And Gunnlaug came to King ^theh-ed saying, 
 ' I have made a royal song in thine honour which I fain 
 would sing.' Then the King commanded to keep silence 
 whilst the song was sung ; and straightway Gunnlaug 
 gave forth a right worthy song, the hurden whereof was 
 the might and majesty of the King of England. Well 
 pleased was ^Ethelred with the skald, and for a song-gift 
 he gave Gunnlaug a scarlet cloak glittering to the hem 
 with gold embroidery, and lined with precious furs. 
 Moreover he made Gunnlaug his man, and took an oath 
 of service from him. 
 
 One morning early, when London streets were lonesome, 
 three men met Gunnlaug, and their leader, a burly man 
 of evil eye, named Thororm, stopped him saying, ' North- 
 man, lend me some money, and on such and such a day I 
 will repay thee.' Then said Gunnlaug, ' Thou art unknown 
 to me ; nevertheless take the money and see thou keep 
 thy word.' A while after, this coming to the King's ears, 
 iEthelred spake to Gunnlaug, saying, ' Thou hast done 
 foolishly, for the man Thororm is the greatest robber and 
 the strongest viking in the land. Howbeit, take no 
 thought for thy money ; I will repay thee ; but have no 
 more dealings with this man.' But Gunnlaug said, ' Nay, 
 I have no mind to gather my debts save from my debtors ; 
 and a shame it were for us, the King's men, to be put in 
 fear of any.' Therewith Gunnlaug went and sought out 
 the \aking and said to him, ' Pay me that thou owest 
 within three days, or else I will come and take it from 
 thee.' Thororm laughed and said that when folk asked 
 him for lendings of gold he was ready to pay them back 
 with steel. So Gunnlaug came again to the King and 
 told how he was going to fight the viking within three 
 days. And the King said, ' It has ill befallen ; for this 
 man's eyes can dull the edge of any blade. Nevertheless 
 I have a sword that is proof against evil craft ; that shalt
 
 334 Tales of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 thou take.' And it was so that when Gunnlaug went out 
 to do battle with Thororm, the viking said, ' Let me look 
 upon thy sword, Northman.' And Gunnlaug drew forth 
 his own blade from its sheath and showed him, but the 
 King's sword he kept slung on his left wrist by a loop and 
 hidden behind his shield. The viking said, ' I fear not 
 that sword,' and thereupon set on Gunnlaug and cut his 
 shield atwain. Gunnlaug drew the King's gift, and the 
 viking, weening it had been the sword he had looked upon, 
 recked not so much as to ward off the blow ; so the sword 
 smote him and slew him. 
 
 Gunnlaug got great renown for this deed all over Eng- 
 land ; but when spring was come he told the King that he 
 must fare away to other lands. So King yEthelred gave 
 him a gold ring that weighed six ounces, and let him 
 depart, but charged him by his fealty to come back in 
 autumn-tide next year. Then Gunnlaug sailed for Ireland, 
 and came and sang at the court of King Sigtrygg at 
 Dublin. From him he received rich gifts of scarlet 
 raiment, a tunic gold-broidered, and a gold ring worth a 
 mark. Thence he went north to the Orkneys and abode 
 the winter with Yarl Sigurd, and afterwards took ship 
 again and came to Upsala in Sweden, where King Olaf 
 had set up his throne, and all his noblest counsellors and 
 warriors were gathered about him. 
 
 And when King Olaf knew Gunnlaug for an Iceland- 
 man, he greeted him well and said, ' We have here already 
 a man of some note from thy country. Go thou and sit 
 beside him.' Then Gunnlaug said, ' What is his name, 
 lord, that I may know him?' The King answered, 
 ' Kafn the Skald.' 
 
 Gunnlaug had heard the folk at Burgfirth talk of Eafn 
 the Skald who dwelt down south in JNIossfell, but had 
 never yet set eyes on him ; and when he now beheld 
 Eafn an ill boding seemed to come into his mind. But 
 the two men sate together and made friends, and spake
 
 Gunnlaug and the Fair Helga. 335 
 
 one to another of their travels ; and the foreboding 
 passed. 
 
 Now on a day when they were both before the King 
 Gunnlaug spake to King Olaf, saying, ' Lord, I pray thee 
 hearken to a song which I have brought thee.' Eafn spake 
 also, saying, ' King, I have likewise brought a song, 
 and since I was the first to come to thee, I pray thee 
 hear mine first.' Then Gunnlaug turned upon him saying, 
 ' In what ship came thy father forth, that mine was in the 
 little boat towed behind ? ' ' Nay,' answered Eafn, ' I will 
 not bandy words with thee. The King shall rule.' And 
 Olaf said, ' We will first hear Gunnlaug's song, since he 
 spake first.' 
 
 Then Gunnlaug gave forth a noble song with a fair 
 burden to it ; and they which stood about the King with 
 one accord said it was a worthy song ; all save Eafn, and 
 he spake not. And the King said, ' What sayest thou, 
 Eafn ; is the song well done ? ' ' Well enough,' he 
 answered ; ' big words and sounding rhymes ; a lack of 
 smoothness ; rough and uncouth as the singer's mood.' 
 Thereon the King bade Eafn put forth his song ; and when 
 it was done the King said to Gunnlaug, ' What thinkest 
 thou of this ? ' Gunnlaug answered, ' Lord, it is like 
 him — smug and pretty, like the singer ; mean and little, 
 like the singer's soul ; but ill befitting thy degree. 
 Knowest thou not, Eafn, a king-song from a yarl-song, 
 but must needs bring thy short-song without burden to 
 offer to a King ? Thou art meeter for yarls' company 
 than kings'.' Thus was Eafn put to shame before the 
 King and all his chiefs ; for it was reckoned an ill thing 
 to have brought a yarl-song without burden to a king. 
 He said to Gunnlaug, ' I will talk with thee hereafter on 
 this matter, but not now.' And when they met again 
 Eafn said, ' Thou hast cut our friendship in twain ; but 
 the day will come when I shall put thee to no less shame 
 than I have taken at thy hands.' Gunnlaug laughed and 
 in his heart despised the threat.
 
 336 Tales of the Te2itonic Lands, 
 
 Soon after, Rafn prayed King Olaf to give him his 
 dismissal, and having received of the King his parting 
 gifts, he set out by sea and came to Iceland. Summer 
 passed, and winter, and summer came again ; and Rafn 
 went up to the Thing and there met his kinsman Skapti 
 the Lawman. And he said to him, ' Wilt thou give me 
 thy help in an undertaking I have in hand ? ' ' Aye,' 
 answered Skapti, ' if it be lawful and right. What is 
 it ? ' He said, ' I would fain woo Helga the Fair.' Skapti 
 said, ' That may not be, for she is already the vowed 
 maiden of Crunnlaug of the Worm-tongue.' ' The time 
 is out,' answered Eafn, 'and Gunnlaug will not come 
 back. A year ago I left him at King Olaf's court. He 
 is waxed wanton and careth more for new faces than old 
 ones. Help me, I pray thee.' 
 
 Then Skapti said he would do what he might, and 
 Thorstein Egilson being likewise at the Thing, he went 
 straightway to his booth and laid before him Rafn's suit, 
 urging his good blood, his great wealth, and his strong 
 kinsmen. Thorstein answered, ' I passed my word to 
 Gunnlaug, and that word I will keep, even beyond what 
 holdeth good in law, lest any man reproach me here- 
 after. It is true three winters have gone already, but the 
 third summer is not past, and Grunnlaug yet may come. 
 Leave the matter till next summer. Meantime I promise 
 nothing, but then I think I should feel free.' So the 
 Thing broke up and men went home. 
 
 Summer passed, and winter ; and summer came again. 
 Helga sat and sighed ; for Oruunlaug came not, and her 
 betrothal to Rafn was openly talked of. And the time of 
 tlie Thing being again come round, Thorstein went up 
 thither and met Skapti the Lawman there. And Skapti 
 urged him strongly, saying that he was free both in law 
 and honour. But Tliorstein answered, ' I have but one 
 davighter, and I am in great fear lest she should become 
 a cause of strife to any; wherefore let me first go and see
 
 Gunnlaug and the Fair Helga. 337 
 
 Gunnlaug's father.' With that he went away and found 
 Illugi the Black, and said to him, ' How sayest thou ? lu 
 all rightwise meaning am I not now free from my pledge 
 to thy son?' Illugi answered, 'I have nought to say 
 further than that thou hast kept thy troth right truly to 
 me and to my son. Of a surety thou art free. Yet I 
 cannot understand why Gunnlaug comes not back to 
 fetch his bride.' Then Thorstein went again to Skapti 
 and made a covenant with him, that if Grunnlaug came 
 not back, Eafn should wed with Helga on the first day of 
 winter ; but if he came so much as an hour before the 
 wedding, the covenant should be void. 
 
 Now to tell why Gunnlaug came not back to claim his 
 bride. That same summer when Eafn left Olaf's court, 
 Gunnlaug departed from Sweden and sailed for England 
 to redeem his pledge to King ^thelred. He landed at 
 London in the autumn according to his promise ; and 
 there he found ^thelred in deadly fear because the great 
 Cnut, but newly come to the throne of Denmark in the 
 room of his father Svein, had vowed to war against 
 England. And since Svein had before come down on Eng- 
 land many times, and left a strong garrison of Danishmen 
 under Heming, son of Yarl Harald, to keep their footing 
 upon English ground, ^thelred was in a great strait for 
 fear of the Danes, and bound down every man to stay and 
 fight for him ; so Gunnlaug for his oath's sake durst not 
 go. However, as it chanced, winter set in, and changed 
 to summer and back again to winter, but no Danes came. 
 Yet iEthelred kept him lingering there far on to another 
 summer, and then finding, spite of all his fears, that 
 Cnut and his Danes came not, ^thelred let Gunnlaug go. 
 And because Gunnlaug knew the time was overpast, he 
 entered into the first ship he could find going northwards ; 
 and that was a ship bound for Norway. This was the 
 same summer when Thorstein made the covenant with 
 Skapti.
 
 i^Q 
 
 Tales of the Teuto?tic Lands. 
 
 Gunnlaug feared not now to go to Norway, save for 
 the wasting of the time, inasmuch as some messengers of 
 Yarl Eric at the Orkneys by chance had heard him sing 
 a song in praise of their lord, and Yarl Eric, learning 
 this, liad caused it to be made known that there was 
 peace henceforth for Grunnlaug through his realm. So 
 being come to Drontheim he was well greeted of Yarl 
 Eric, at his court at Hladir. But the last ship bound for 
 Iceland had sailed five days before. Nevertheless Yarl 
 Eric, having learned what errand he was on, said that 
 Gunnlaug should not be delayed from his bride by any 
 slackness on his part. And straightway the Yarl had a 
 swift barge put out to sea and manned with the brawniest 
 fellows he could pick. ' Now,' said he, ' row hard for 
 Hallfred Vandrseda-Skald's ship ; that left the last ; and 
 since for five days the wind has blown dead on shore he 
 can have made but little headway.' So they rowed, and 
 by good-hap overtook the ship ; and Hallfred took 
 Grunnlaug aboard, and a fair wind arose and bore them 
 away toward Iceland. And all that voyage Grunnlaug 
 made songs of his remembered maiden. 
 
 But as ill-luck would have it, though they came to 
 shore two weeks before the first day of winter, they 
 landed in Hraunhaven, a weary way from Bui'gfirth. 
 And no sooner were they come out of the ship than a 
 lout of a farmer's son, named Thord, fell to wrestling with 
 the mariners, and got the better of them all, so that it 
 was settled that next day he should match himself 
 against Gunnlaug. On the morrow they had a wrestling 
 bout together, and the end of it was that Thord, having 
 both feet kicked from under him, got a fall upon his back 
 that drave the breath nigh out of him. Nevertheless 
 in that wrestling Grunnlaug put his ancle out of joint. 
 Stout at heart as ever, he tried to walk, but could not, 
 and fell down in a swoon. However, his companions got 
 the ancle into joint again, and having swathed it up.
 
 Gunnlaug and the Fair Helga. 339 
 
 went about the country to borrow'horses for their journey. 
 This took some days, for there were twelve of them in all, 
 and so it befell that Grunnlaug and his comrades rode 
 into Burgfirth on ^that same Saturday night in mid- 
 October when, the wedding being over, Eafn sat at the 
 marriage feast with fair Helga, his bride. 
 
 So Gunnlaug came too late upon that winter night. He 
 heard the sound of merriment at Thorstein's house, and 
 saw the cheerful wood fire gleam as he rode by ; and 
 knew it was too late. He durst not go in, but rode to 
 his father's house, and there abode apart from his kin. 
 He spake but little ; and it seemed as though the winter 
 gloom had fallen upon him. 
 
 The bride, folks said, was drooping. And some called 
 to mind the old saw, ' First love is last forgot.' 
 
 Many a wooing comes of a wedding. And it befell 
 at Helga's marriage-feast that a man named Sverting 
 wooed Hungerd the daughter of Thorod to be his wife. 
 They were to wed at Yule-tide, and Eafn and Helga were 
 bidden to the marriage. So the feast came to an end 
 and Eafn rode home to Mossfell with his bride. 
 
 But Helga had seen folks whispering together, and 
 here and there had caught a word whereby she knew that 
 Gunnlaug had come home. And after that Eafn gat 
 small comfort of his wife. She would pace about her 
 strange new home like something in a cage ; her hus- 
 band's riches she esteemed for naught ; and of all the 
 fair raiment and bright jewels which he gave her to put 
 on she recked nothing. But round the farmstead, or away 
 upon the hills, she wandered at her will ; least wretched 
 only when alone, and free to call on Gunnlaug's name. 
 
 Now at Yule-tide Illugi the Black and his son Gunn- 
 laug were bidden to Hungerd's wedding feast, which was 
 to be held at Skaney. And Illugi made ready to go, but 
 Gunnlaug stirred not from the hall. And when they 
 urged him he only answered, ' I am not going.' Then 
 
 z 2
 
 340 Tales of the Teuto7iic Lands. 
 
 said bis father to him, ' Sit not here for ever grieving. 
 Helga is another's. It is now too late.' ' Aye,' said his 
 son, 'too late.' 'Then get thee up and wear a merry 
 face. 'Tis better than to wear thine heart upon thy 
 sleeve. But waste not time in sorrow for a woman. 
 There are many in the world ; and a man like thee may 
 take his choice.' Then Gunnlaug said that he would go ; 
 and he arose and came with his father to the wedding-feast 
 at Skaney. 
 
 There, on the high seat next the bride, sat Helga the 
 Fair, her cheeks snow-pale, and a wistful longing in her 
 eyes. Gunnlaug looked on her, and the colour flushed 
 into her face as though the sun had shone. He was the 
 comeliest man in all the company, and richly clad in the 
 gold and scarlet raiment which the King of Ireland gave 
 him. Helga stole many a glance at him, whereby the 
 truth of the saying was made plain, ' If a woman fain 
 would hide her love, her eyes must needs betray her.' 
 But not until the end of the feast could they get speech 
 together. Then, while the men were making ready to 
 depart, Helga and Gunnlaug talked for a little space. 
 Bitterly spake Gunnlaug, and he said, ' A curse on 
 them which snatched the joy-cup from our thirsting lips ! 
 A curse on them which wedded thee to gold and lands, 
 and cared not that they made an endless winter of oiu- 
 lives ! ' Tears were in Helga's eyes, and tears in his. 
 But she shook back her heavy golden hair and lifted 
 her lips to him. In both his hands he took the upturned 
 face, and kissed it tenderly. So they talked and talked, 
 in joy and bitterness, until the folk came back arrayed 
 for journeying. 
 
 Then Gunnlaug said that he had not yet given a wed- 
 ding-gift to Helga, and he brought forth the cloak. King 
 J^thelred's gift, that blazed with embroidery of golden 
 thread, so bright that one could scarcely see the scarlet 
 ground for gold ; and this he gave to Helga. Then he
 
 Gtmnlatig and the Fair Helga. 341 
 
 leapt to horse and rode a-gallop across the farmstead. 
 Eafn, it happened, stood in his way, and had to spring out 
 of the road. And Gunnlaug drew his horse up short 
 upon his haunches, saying, ' Why slink away ? Have I 
 yet threatened thee ? Or dost thou know that there is 
 something to be settled betwixt us ? ' Eafn answered, 
 ' What folly is this, that we twain should be at strife for 
 the sake of one woman ! I have made my choice. The 
 world is surely wide enough for thee to choose in. 
 Doubtless in lands over-sea there are maids as fair as 
 Helga.' Gunnlaug said, ' As to that I care not ; there is 
 but one woman in the world for me.' Then he got off 
 his horse, and straightway would have fought with Eafn, 
 but Illugi and Thorstein came up and would not suffer 
 it. So Illugi took Grunnlaug home, and Thorstein led 
 Eafn away. 
 
 But after she had met Gunnlaug, Helga would have no 
 more fellowship with Eafn ; neither took she pleasure in 
 aught save the glittering cloak which Grunnlaug gave her. 
 And Eafn had sorrow and great heaviness ; for he loved 
 his wife with all his heart and soul. 
 
 Now in summer-time, when men came to the Thing, 
 Gunnlaug came also ; and after the lawsuits were done 
 for the first day, he stood up in the midst of the court and 
 cried, ' Is Eafn the son of Onund here ? ' And when 
 Eafn had answered to his name, Gunnlaug said, ' Take 
 notice all men present that since Eafn has got to wife 
 the maiden vowed to me, I call upon him to meet me on 
 the holm of Axe river within three days.' Eafn said that 
 he would be ready. And it being lawful in those days 
 to call a man on holm for wrong-doing, the people 
 from the Thing went over on the third day to Axe-river 
 to see that all was done according to law. The custom 
 was for each man to deal one blow, and he that was first 
 wounded must pay three marks of silver. Eafn, being 
 the challenged man, dealt the first. He smote at
 
 342 Tales of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 Gunnlaug's shield so mightily that the sword brake off 
 at the hilt, and the broken blade rebounding, struck 
 Grunnlaug's cheek and drew the blood. Thereupon the 
 kinsmen of both ran in and parted them, and there arose 
 a great disputing, inasmuch as Gunnlaug claimed that 
 Rafn was overcome, he being weaponless ; while Rafu 
 declared Grunnlaug, being wounded, to be beaten. Thus, 
 until this dispute could be settled, Gunnlaug was not 
 suffered to deal his blow. Wherefore the people went 
 back to the Thing and argued the matter in law ; and 
 since they could come to no agreement whatever abovit it, 
 a law was passed whereby going on holm was thenceforth 
 forbidden. So that was the last holm-gang in Iceland, 
 and Gunnlaug gat no quittance for the blow. 
 
 But after this Rafn was ill at ease ; for his wife would 
 not endure his love, but grieved always after Gunnlaug ; 
 moreover it was noised abroad that she had met him 
 once down by Axe river. And because of these things 
 lightly esteeming his life, Rafn came to Gunnlaug 
 saying, ' There is joy neither for me nor thee while both 
 of us are alive. Wherefore next summer let us fare 
 abroad, where none of our kin can hinder us, and we will 
 fight the quarrel out.' Gunnlaug answered, ' Thou hast 
 a brave heart ; and these are welcome words to me.' 
 Wherefore, despite all their kinsmen could do, they fitted 
 out each of them a ship in the summer, and sailed for 
 , Norway. But many things befell both upon the voyage, 
 so that Rafn waited two winters at Lifang in Drontheim 
 and had no tidings of his enemy. And afterward when 
 Gunnlaug reached Norway, and came to Yarl Eric at 
 Hladir, their errand had got abroad and the Yarl forbade 
 them to fight in his dominions. Gunnlaug abode 
 another winter at the Yarl's court, silent and doAvncast 
 because Rafn would not move out of Lifang, and he 
 durst not fight him there. One day in his walks 
 Gunnlaug came upon a mob of courtiers ringed about
 
 Gzmnlaiig and the Fair Helga. 343 
 
 two boys who fought in jest. One lad called himself 
 Gunnlaug, the other Kafn ; and in their play they said 
 that Icelanders cared nothing to be avenged, and soon 
 forgot their wrongs : and the bystanders laughed and 
 made merry, saying that the two foes when they met 
 would get no more hurt than their namesakes in the ring ; 
 with many such-like words. 
 
 Grunnlaug looked on and held his peace. But he came 
 to Yarl Eric, saying that he could no longer bear these 
 taunts, but that the ban upon their fighting must be 
 taken off. Now Yarl Eric, having beforetime under- 
 stood that Eafn was on his way from Lifang into Sweden, 
 scrupled no longer about the matter, but gave him leave 
 to go, and sent guides with him for the journey. 
 
 But when Gunnlaug came to Lifang, Eafn, who had 
 tarried there longer than Yarl Eric wotted of, was only a 
 day's journey on his road. So Gunnlaug made haste 
 and followed after him ; nevertheless, finding at sundown 
 that he only canae to the place where Eafn was the night 
 before, he travelled day and night, and on the third 
 morning, reaching Dingness at sunrise, he looked upon 
 his foe. 
 
 Grunnlaug said, ' It is well that I have found thee.' 
 Eafn answered, ' Whether ill or well, a fated thing has 
 come to pass.' 
 
 Four men were with Eafn and six with Grunnlaug. 
 And Eafn said, ' Choose whether we two alone shall fight, 
 or whether all of us man to man ? ' But the men on 
 either side having" no mind to stand by and look on, 
 Gunnlaug made his two guides sit down to bide the 
 issue, charging them to take no part in the combat. So 
 five stood up to five, and fought till only one stood up to 
 one. Gunnlaug and Eafn being left alone to fight their 
 mortal strife, rushed furiously together, maddened with 
 the memory of old wrongs. Mighty were the blows they 
 dealt ; but Gunnlaug bare the better sword, King
 
 344 Talcs of the Teiitoiiic Lands. 
 
 ^thelred's gift. At last he made a feint at Kafn's head 
 to make him lift his shield, then swung the sword down 
 athwart Eafn's knee, and hewed his leg from under him. 
 Yet Eafn fell not ; he limped away to where a tree had 
 been cut down, and set the bleeding stump upon the tree- 
 root ; then cried, ' Fight on ; for I must do this battle to 
 the uttermost.' 
 
 ' Nay,' answered Grunnlaug, ' I will not fight a man so 
 maimed.' 
 
 ' Had I but a drink of water,' said Eafn, ' I could 
 withstand thee yet.' 
 
 Grunnlaug said, ' Betray me not if I fetch it thee.' 
 
 And Eafa sware to him, saying, ' I will not betray thee.' 
 
 Then Grunnlaug went and dipped up water in his 
 helmet, and brought to him. But Eafn, while he put 
 forth his left hand to take it, with the other drave down 
 his sword into Grunnlaug's skull, and smote him a mortal 
 wound. 
 
 ' 111 hast thou done,' cried Grunnlaug, ' thus to break 
 thy faith and basely to requite a kindly deed.' 
 
 ' Yea, I know it,' answered Eafn ; ' I have done exceed- 
 ing shamefully. Yet, how could I die, and give up fair 
 Helga to thine arms ? ' 
 
 So the two men fought on ; and in the end Eafn was 
 slain, and Grunnlaug fell back swooning on the ground. 
 
 Yarl Eric's two guides washed the wound in Grunnlaug's 
 skull, and when they had bound it up, they gat him on a 
 horse and brought him back to Lifang. There he lay 
 three days ; and on the third day, after he had been 
 shriven by the priest, he died. 
 
 Now Illugi the Black away in Iceland dreamed that 
 his son Gunnlaug came and stood before him covered 
 with blood ; and Onund that same night saw his son Eafn 
 in the like evil case. And when the tidings came and 
 both knew certainly what had befallen, Illugi went to 
 Onund saying, ' Make atonement to me for my son.'
 
 Gimnlmtg and the Fair Helga. 345 
 
 Onund answered, ' Are we not both in the same plight ? 
 Yet, do I ask thee for atonement for my son ? ' Then 
 said Illugi, ' My wrath shall evermore pursue thee and 
 thy kin.' That autumn Illugi came with thirty men to 
 Mossfell seeking vengeance. Onund and his household 
 took refuge in the church, but Illugi caught two of 
 Onund's sons ; one he slew, and had the legs smitten off 
 the other. And yet again in the spring a son of Illugi 
 slew another of Eafn's kinsmen. But Onund gat no 
 redress for all these slayings. 
 
 Helga the Fair sat lonely in her father's house, her 
 mind dwelling always upon Grunnlaug. Across her lap 
 she laid the shining cloak which he had given her, 
 gazing evermore thereon and plucking at the golden 
 threads. So the time went by, a,nd her father wedded 
 her to Thorkel, a busy-minded man, wealthy in land and 
 goods. Still she sat all day with the cloak upon her 
 knees, and plucked the threads out one by one. And as 
 the years passed, children came about the house, and 
 grew up lads and lasses, and gladdened Thorkel's heart. 
 Yet Helga had no other joy than to gaze upon the 
 fading cloak and pull the scanty threads away. Then, as 
 time wore on, it came to pass that a heavy sickness visited 
 Thorkel's home-folk ; and Helga fell ailing, yet would 
 not keep her bed. And so on a Saturday night, as 
 she sat in the fire-hall leaning her head on Thorkel's 
 knees, she said, ' Bring me again the cloak that was 
 Grunnlaug's gift.' And when they had brought it, she 
 spread it out upon her lap as at other times, to gaze 
 upon it. Then she sat up and plucked the last gold 
 threads away, and sank back dead into her husband's 
 arms.
 
 J46 Tales of the Tetitonic Lands. 
 
 BUENT NJAL. 
 
 I. THE STORY OF GUNNAE, NJAL'S FEIEND. 
 
 When Harald Fairhair began to rule over Norway, he 
 put away the old laws, and made a decree that freemen 
 should henceforth pay taxes and always be the king's men, 
 instead of rendering service only in time of need as here- 
 tofore. For this cause many freemen strove long against 
 the King, until, being worsted continually, they sold all 
 their possessions and came out from the land. Faring 
 away to Iceland, they made themselves a new home. 
 Thence they roved the sea for plunder, and oftentimes 
 came down and harried the coasts of Norway because of 
 their bitterness against the King. 
 
 Some threescore years after the Norsemen were come 
 out to Iceland, there arose amongst them a man very wise 
 in law whose name was Njal. He dwelt at Bergthors- 
 knoll, and was wealthy and gentle-minded, and greatly 
 looked up to of all folk ; his match for law was not to be 
 found, and he was foresighted, knowing things to come. 
 Njal was ever ready to give counsel, and when he 
 counselled a man in aught, it was sure to be for the best. 
 His face was handsome but beardless ; he had to wife 
 Bergthora, a brave-hearted woman, and they had three 
 strong sons, named Skarp-hedinn, Grim, and Helgi, and as 
 many daughters. 
 
 Now though Njal was greatly beloved of all men, he had
 
 Burnt Njal. 347 
 
 one friend dearer to him than any, and that was Grunnar 
 of Lithend, the most matchless warrior in Iceland. Tall 
 and straight and strong, Grunnar had bright blue eyes and 
 ruddy cheeks, and thick fair hair which fell in curls. 
 None would contend with him at any warlike game, for 
 when he handled sword three blades seemed flashing in 
 the air at once, and he had equal skill to fight with either 
 hand. With the bow he never missed his mark. He 
 could outleap, outrun, outswim all men. He was dauntless 
 as a lion, yet gentle and courteous withal, a fast friend, 
 and a bountiful man. He and Njal had long been friends ; 
 Njal advised him in all that he undertook, and they vowed 
 that nothing should ever sunder their friendship. 
 
 Now Grunnar being newly come home from faring abroad, 
 having gotten both fame and treasure, rode to the Thing, 
 clad in scarlet clothes and with a gold ring on his arm. 
 And as he wandered among the booths there came forth a 
 fair woman arrayed in a red kirtle and over all a cloak of 
 needlework. Her hair fell over her bosom in long locks, 
 and she had turned the ends in beneath her silver girdle. 
 She came to Gunnar, and witli nought of bashfulness 
 straightway began to ask concerning his voyages and 
 battles, saying that she was minded to talk with him. 
 She said that her name was Hallgerda, and that she was 
 Hauskuld's daughter. So the two fell talking long together, 
 and presently Gunnar asked if she were wed. ' Nay,' she 
 answered, ' there are few men bold enough to wed with 
 me. Folks say, too, I am not easy to please in husbands.' 
 Then said Gunnar, ' If I were bold enough should I dis- 
 please ? ' She answered, ' If this be truly thy mind, go 
 ask me from my father.' 
 
 Then went Gunnar away and sought out Hauskuld's 
 booth. Hauskuld and his brother Hrut were within, and 
 Gimnar having told his errand, Hauskuld said to his 
 brother, ' How sayest thou, Hrut ? For I find it hard to 
 answer in this matter.' Then spake Hrut, ' Gunnar, thou
 
 34^ Tales of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 art a brave fellow and all that is to be desired for a 
 match ; but I will not cheat thee. Hallgerda is older 
 than thou, and has been twice wed aforetime. She is a 
 widow with an evil name, in that she compassed the death 
 of both the husbands she has had already. Each smote 
 her on the face, and ever mindful of the blow she rested 
 not till Thiostolf her foster-father slew them. Hallgerda 
 is no match for a man of unblemished fame.' But 
 Gunnar made light of it, saying that he was content 
 to abide by the bargain. Wherefore Hrut said, 'It is 
 plainly of no avail to reason with a man whose heart is 
 set upon a woman ; and if ye two are fain to run the risk, 
 it concerns none else.' So Hallgerda was sent for 
 and betrothed to Gunnar ; and on a set day the marriage 
 was made at Lithend. 
 
 One winter, being bidden to a feast at Njal's homestead, 
 Gunnar brought his wife Hallgerda with him. She sat her- 
 self unbidden in the chief seat upon the cross bench, and 
 when Thorhalla, the wife of Njal's youngest son, came into 
 the hall and walked up to the bench, Hallgerda spread out 
 her robes and would not give her place. Then came 
 Bergthora to her, saying, ' Give place to my son's wife ; 
 for I will be ruler in this my house,' and therewith sat 
 Thorhalla beside her. But presently when Bergthora 
 went round with water to wash the hands of the guests, 
 Hallgerda took hold of her hand and reviled her, saying, 
 * Thou hast hangnails and thieves' iingers — a fitting wife 
 in sooth for beardless Njal.' 'Aye,' said Bergthora, 'and 
 being so fitly matched we dwell in peace together. To 
 thee it may seem strange that a woman should live happily 
 with one lord so long, and never have plotted his death.' 
 Then Hallgerda cried out to her husband, saying, ' Gunnar, 
 avenge me of this woman's slander.' Straightway strode 
 Gunnar across the hall and said to his wife, ' Make thyself 
 ready and go home. Beneath thine own roof thou mayest 
 wrangle to thine heart's content, but thou shalt not befool
 
 Burnt Njal. 349 
 
 me into breaking friendship with Njal, whom I honour 
 more than any man.' So Gunnar took her home. But 
 thenceforward Hallgerda sought how she might requite 
 Bergthora for this saying. 
 
 Between the homesteads of Gunnar and Njal was a 
 wood wherein both hewed timber as they needed. And it 
 fell out while Gunnar was away upon a journey that 
 Hallgerda sent her woodman out to slay Bergthora's wood- 
 man in the forest. The man did her bidding, and Hallgerda 
 looked that this should embroil her husband with Njal. 
 But far from this, when Gunnar heard it, he went to 
 Njal and said, ' My wife and one of her men have slain a 
 carle of thine. But why should we be ill friends because 
 of it? Put a price upon his life and I will pay it thee.' 
 Njal answered, ' I foresee that thou wilt be sore tried with 
 this woman, but our friendship shall not be broken at her 
 hands. Thou shalt pay me twelve ounces of silver for 
 the slaying ; or, if the price seem too great to thee, make 
 thine own award ; I am content.' So the money was paid. 
 Nevertheless Bergthora was not content till she could be 
 avenged. Wherefore she likewise sent out a man who 
 slew Hallgerda's woodman. Njal came to Gunnar and 
 paid him back the price he had received, but never a 
 word of anger passed between them. After that the feud 
 went on for years between the women, and there were 
 many slayings both of house carles and freemen on either 
 side ; yet for all this the wives sought vainly to stir their 
 husbands up to strife. Njal and Gunnar always met, and 
 paid or took the price which either awarded, and their 
 friendship only grew the closer for the contentions of their 
 women. 
 
 A Swede named Sigmund came over the sea, and Gunnar 
 gave him winter lodging. But while he abode in the 
 house Hallgerda won him to her will, and set him to lie 
 in wait to slay Thord, who was one of Njal's kinsmen. 
 Gunnar got an inkling of what was brewing, and sent
 
 350 Tales of tJie Teutonic Lands. 
 
 straightway to warn Njal of it. The evening that Njal 
 got the tidings he was walking with Thord on the high- 
 way when suddenly Tliord stopped and pointing with his 
 finger, cried, ' See there ! ' 'I see nothing,' answered Njal. 
 ' Nothing ! ' said Thord ; ' what is that goat which lieth in 
 the road all dabbled with blood ? ' 'No goat is there,' 
 said Njal ; ' but a fetch perchance that goeth before thee, 
 to warn thee of doom.' So Njal bade Thord ride away 
 east for safety. But a flooded river which he could not 
 cross delayed him, and on the third night from tlie time 
 when he saw the fetch, Thord fell dead by Sigmund's hand. 
 
 Njal's sons were eager to avenge the slaying of their 
 kinsman upon Gunnar and all his house, but Njal still 
 made the peace and took a money price of two hundreds 
 in silver. 
 
 Yet Sigmund tarried on at the homestead at Lithend, 
 and Hallgerda in a little while by her blandishments and 
 fair words prevailed upon him to make a song befouling 
 Njal and his sons, and to sing it where it should come to 
 their ears. Njal heard of it and bade his sons take no 
 heed thereof. But one night when he went to bed he 
 missed his sons' spears and shields from the wall, and said 
 to his wife Bergthora, ' Where is Skarp-hedinn ? And 
 where are his brothers Helgi and Grim ? ' She answered, 
 ' They went out a while ago a-fishing.' Njal said, ' Men 
 seldom fish with spear and shield.' That night was 
 Sigmund slain. Howbeit Njal made atonement to Gun- 
 nar with the same two hundreds in silver which he had 
 received ; and they passed their words always to settle 
 any matter which came between them in like friendly 
 fashion. 
 
 Now one year there fell a great dearth upon the land ; 
 the sheep and cattle died for want of pasture, and the 
 scanty corn crops withered in the ear. Gunnar shared his 
 hay and meat among the people so long as they lasted ; 
 but his hand was so liberal and the need so great, that
 
 Burnt Njal. 351 
 
 presently he began to be in want. Then Gunnar went 
 to Otkell, a rich man but very covetous, who dwelt at 
 Kirkby, and sought to buy food of him. Otkell had a 
 friend named Skamkell, on whose counsel he always acted, 
 a great liar and lickspittle, who fawned about him and 
 puffed him up with evil counsels. And being advised of 
 this fellow, Otkell said to Grunnar, ' In sooth I have stores 
 in plenty, but I am minded neither to sell nor give to 
 thee ; so go thy way.' Then the men which came with 
 Gunnar urged him to take what he needed by force and 
 lay down the worth of it. But Gunnar scorned to do so, 
 and rode away. Howbeit Njal heard that he was in want 
 of food, and without waiting to be asked laded twenty 
 horses with hay and meat and sent them to Gunnar, 
 saying, ' A friend's gift to a friend ; and, by our friendship, 
 I pray thee in time to come seek all that thou mayest 
 lack from me alone.' Gunnar sent back word, ' Good are 
 thy gifts, but better than all gifts is thy friendship.' 
 
 But Gunnar's wife was stirred up to anger against 
 Otkell because of his avarice. She had a thrall named 
 Malcolm whom she had bought not long before from 
 Otkell, and she sent out this man at night with two 
 horses, charging him to break open Otkell's storehouse, 
 and having laden the horses with provisions, to burn 
 down the storehouse so as to hide all trace of theft. So 
 Malcolm fared away to his old master's homestead at 
 Kirkby. The house-dog knew him and did not bark. 
 Malcolm laded the horses with butter and cheese, and 
 burnt the storehouse to the ground. But going home, 
 one of his shoe-thongs breaking, he took out his knife, 
 and having cut a new thong from the leathern belt about 
 his waist, went on his way. When he was come back to 
 Lithend he missed his knife and belt, and knew that he 
 had left them on Otkell's land, yet durst not go back to 
 fetch them. 
 
 Next day as Hallgerda set out the food upon the
 
 352 Tales of the TetUoiiic Lands. 
 
 board, Gunnar said, ' Whence came the cheese and 
 butter ? \Ye have made no such things on the farm for 
 many a month.' Hallgerda said, ' It ill befitteth a man 
 to busy himself about housekeeping. Eat and ask no 
 questions.' But he said, 'Nay, I will be no partaker with 
 thieves,' and waxing angry, gave her a slap on the face, 
 sent the food from the table, and" had meal brought in 
 instead. ' That,' said he, ' is honest food, for it comes 
 from Njal.' Hallgerda grew sullen and said, ' One day I 
 shall make thee remember that blow.' 
 
 Otkell was not a little vexed for the burning of his store- 
 house, but wist not how it came to pass till Skamkell 
 brought a knife and belt which he had found hard by the 
 place. ' Knowest thou aught of these things ? ' said 
 Skamkell. ' Surely I do,' said Otkell ; ' they belong to 
 Malcolm the thrall whom I sold to Gunnar.' 'Then 
 keep thy counsel,' said this busybody, ' till I get to the 
 bottom of the matter.' With that Skamkell went away 
 to a man of no little cunning, named Mord, who had 
 always envied Gunnar, and asked his help. Mord said, 
 'Give me three marks of silver, and I will promise to find 
 whether any of the goods are in Gunnar's house.' So the 
 bargain being made, Mord sent out women to go from 
 house to house peddling small wares, and bade them take 
 note of what they received from each house in return for 
 their goods. In a fortnight's time the women came back 
 with big bundles of things which they had gathered. 
 When Mord looked over the bundles he found about half 
 a cheese cut in thick slices. ' Where got you this ? ' he 
 asked. ' Prom Hallgerda at Lithend ; she was very 
 bountiful to us,' the women said. ' Aye,' thought Mord, 
 ' folks are always liberal with what is not their own ; ' so 
 taking the cheese to Otkell's house he bade him bring 
 out his wife's cheese-mould. Then he laid the slices 
 together and set them in the mould, and they fitted it in 
 every way.
 
 Bur7it Njal. 353 
 
 But while Otkell and Skamkell were scheming how 
 best to break the matter to Gunnar, who should come in 
 but Gunnar himself, who said, ' I find that thou hast 
 suffered a g-reat loss through the plotting- of my wife and 
 that worthless thrall I bought of thee. Wherefore I 
 come to make amends, and I make thee this offer : let 
 the best men round the country-side settle the matter.' 
 But Skamkell said, ' Seldom an offer sounds so fair and 
 yet is so unjust ; for all men hold by thee, whereas Otkell 
 has few friends.' Gunnar said, ' Then I will utter an 
 award myself. I am willing to restore double for all that 
 Otkell has lost.' ' Nay,' answered Skamkell, ' this shall 
 not be, for it is not thy right to make an award, but 
 Otkell's.' Gunnar said, 'I am not dealing with thee, 
 Skamkell, but with Otkell. Come now, Otkell, thou 
 hast refused my two offers, but I would keep friends with 
 thee. Utter an award thyself ; whatsoever it be I will 
 abide by it.' But Otkell turned to Skamkell and 
 whispered, ' How shall I answer ? ' Skamkell whispered 
 back, ' Say nay, and that thou wouldst rather leave it in 
 the hands of men of law.' Wherefore Otkell answered, 
 ' The offer is not amiss, but I cannot make an award till 
 I have seen Gizur the White and Geir the priest.' 
 ' Well,' said Gunnar, ' I have made three good offers by 
 which I am ready to abide, but I shall do no more,' — and 
 therewith rode away. 
 
 Now instead of going himself Otkell sent Skamkell to 
 see the lawmen. And when Gizur the White and Geir 
 the priest heard the man's tale they said, ' No one could 
 have made fairer offers than Gunnar has done ; let Otkell 
 choose which of them he will : it is no case for law.' 
 Howbeit Skamkell cared little to take this message to his 
 master since it condemned his own counsels ; wherefore 
 being come back to Otkell he lied to him and said that 
 the lawmen advised him to summon Hallgerda for 
 stealing the victuals, and Gunnar for partaking of them. 
 
 A A
 
 354 Talcs of the TeiUonic Lands. 
 
 So a suit was set on foot ; but when it came on for 
 hearing- at the Thing- and the truth was testified to by 
 Gizur the White and Geir the priest, Otkell was put to 
 shame, and the end of it was that Grunnar, being left to 
 make his own award, stood up and thus uttered it : ' For 
 the storehouse and the food I will pay thee, Otkell, the 
 full price. I will pay no fine for the thrall, because thou 
 didst hide his faults, but I award him back to thee. And 
 now, since thou hast summoned me wrongfully and in 
 mockery, I award myself no less a sum than the house 
 and the burnt stores were worth. So there will be no 
 need for money to pass between us.' Folk thought it 
 rather hard on Otkell ; but none pitied him, since all 
 believed that he had brought it on himself. So hands were 
 shaken on the bargain, and Gunnar rode away with great 
 honour. 
 
 One day in the springtime Gunnar was sowing corn in 
 a newly ploughed field on his farmstead, and as he 
 scattered the grain from the sieve in his left hand he 
 stooped over his work heeding nothing but his sowing. 
 Otkell came riding a-gallop over the field and saw not 
 Gunnar till he was close upon him. He pulled the 
 bridle athwart and swerved his horse, but in that moment 
 Gunnar stood upright, and Otkell drave one of his spurs 
 by misadventure into Gunnar's ear and gashed it open. 
 Howbeit, Otkell stayed not, but rode on ; and Skamkell 
 hearing of it, noised the affair abroad, and said that 
 Gunnar had shed tears at the pain. 
 
 Gunnar said naught, but went indoors and took down 
 his sword and spear and slneld and helm. He took from 
 the nail where it hung a great war-bill which he won in 
 battle with Hallgrim. A mighty weapon it was; and 
 there was this about it, that whensoever a man was to be 
 slain with that bill something sang in it so loud that it 
 might be heard a long way off. And when Gunnar had 
 armed himself and had gotten the bill in his hands he
 
 Burnt N'jal. 355 
 
 leapt upon his horse and rode away. As he went, his 
 mother Eannveig from an upper room heard a shrill 
 singing in the war-bill, and went and awakened Gunnar's 
 brother Kolskegg, saying, ' Kise up and follow after 
 Gunnar, for men will die to-day ; the bill gave out the 
 death-sound.' 
 
 At Eangriver, against the ford at Hof, Gunnar and 
 Kolskegg- came upon Otkell and Skamkell riding- with 
 six men. Gunnar and his brother got off their horses, 
 and called to the others to do the like and guard them- 
 selves. Otkell and his band were nowise loth, seeing how 
 the numbers were, and quickly gathered about the two. 
 Then flashed Gunnar's sword so swiftly that no eye could 
 follow it ; he smote down two of the men, then took the 
 bill in both his hands, and thrusting' Skamkell through 
 the midst, lifted him up and cast his body headlong in 
 the muddy ford. Otkell smote with his sword at Gunnar's 
 knees, but Gunnar leapt in the air and avoided the blade, 
 and before Otkell could recover himself the bill was 
 through his chest. So Gunnar slew six and Kolskegg 
 two ; and they left all eight men dead about the ford. 
 
 Gunnar rode straightway off to Njal to tell what had 
 happened. And Njal said, 'This need not turn out either for 
 thy loss or for thy dishonour so far as I can foresee, though 
 it will be the beginning of many manslayings.' Then Gun- 
 nar prayed him for some wise counsel to guide him in 
 time to come ; and Njal said, ' See to it in all thy quarrels 
 that thou slay no more than one man of the same stock ; 
 so shalt thou come to be an old man ; but when thou 
 forgettest this warning thou shalt have but a little while 
 to live.' And Gunnar said, ' Since thou knowest so well 
 what will happen to other men, canst thou tell what shall 
 be the manner of thine own death ?' Njal answered, 
 ' Yea, I know it.' ' How will it be ? ' said Gunnar. ' It 
 will be a death,' he said, ' more dreadful than any man 
 would think, neither would any believe it if he were told.' 
 
 A A 2
 
 356 Tales of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 When the suits for these slayings were laid at the 
 Thing, Njal helped Gunnar with his wise counsels, and 
 the award was that Otkell's death should be set off against 
 the wound which Gimnar got from the spur ; Skamkell, for 
 his lying and for stirring up the strife, was to be unatoned ; 
 and for the rest of the men fines were to be paid according 
 to their worth. 
 
 After this Gunnar and his brother had a battle with 
 fourteen men, which arose out of a horse-fight, all of whom 
 they slew ; and Njal by his wisdom settled matters at 
 the Thing so that Gunnar suffered little loss and got 
 great honour. But Thorgeir, a kinsman of one of the 
 men that was slain, went to Mord and promised him 
 money if he would show some way whereby he might have 
 vengeance upon Gunnar. Mord said, ' This I know, that 
 Njal has foretold that whenever Gunnar slays twice in the 
 same stock it shall prove his bane. Now Otkell has left 
 a son who is both strong and brave-hearted ; wherefore I 
 counsel thee to drag him into a quarrel with Gunnar ; 
 and when ye two are together in the affray, do thou 
 guard thyself and liold back ; so Gunnar shall slay 
 Otkell's son and accomplish his own doom ; but thou 
 shalt flee away.' 
 
 So Thorgeir went away to work out this plot. By the 
 gift of a spear inlaid with gold he first made friends with 
 Otkell's son, who being himself true-hearted and guileless 
 judged others to be the like. Then Thorgeir raked up a 
 matter long gone by, about a cornfield which Gunnar was 
 to have given Otkell as atonement for an old slaying, but 
 which he afterwards redeemed with a money price. Little 
 by little he wrought upon the young man's mind, and 
 made him feel aggrieved at Gunnar's keeping back a piece 
 of land the worth whereof was now threefold what Otkell 
 got for it. So at last Thorgeir hardened the heart of 
 Otkell's son against Gunnar, and they both agreed to fall 
 upon him unawares. But they durst not seek him at
 
 Burnt Njal. 357 
 
 home, for Grunnar bad a faithful hound named Sam, which 
 was gifted with more than a man's wit to know a friend 
 from a foe, and would lay down his life for his master. 
 "Wherefore they got four and twenty men together and 
 made an ambush by Eangriver, where they lay in wait 
 till Gunnar should ride down to see after his house-carles 
 working across the ford. 
 
 Now as Grunnar rode down that way with his brother 
 Kolskegg, he perceived blood sweat out npon his bill and 
 stand in drops upon the blade. And while he marvelled 
 he espied men rising from an ambush. Grunnar strung 
 his bow and slew many of them with his arrows, and 
 wounded many more before they could come up with him. 
 Then clutched he the war-bill in his hands and ran upon 
 the men. He hewed one man's legs from under him ; 
 another he smote in twain ; but the rest drew back from 
 the sweep of the bill. Then Thoigeir egged on Otkell's son, 
 saying, ' Little would one think that thou hadst a father to 
 avenge.' With that Otkell's son ran in and drave his spear 
 into Grunnar's shield. With a twist of his shield Grunnar 
 brake the spear-head off ; then he thrust his bill through 
 the youth's body, and hoisting him aloft flung him lifeless 
 far out into Eangriver. Then Thorgeir and his fellows 
 turned and fled. 
 
 Njal was very heavy at heart when Gunnar told him of 
 the affray, and he said, ' From this time forth beware of 
 thyself; for thou hast slain twice in one stock, and evil 
 will surely come of it. But above all see thou hold to 
 the terms of the settlement which shall be made.' 
 
 The suits being brought, it was agreed on both sides to 
 take the award of twelve men. And they gave it that 
 money fines should be paid for all the slayings, but that 
 Gunnar and Kolskegg must go abroad three winters, or 
 in default might be slain by the suitors or their kinsmen 
 without atonement. So Gunnar and Kolskegg, having 
 passed their words to go abroad, went home and got things
 
 358 Tales of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 together for seafaring, and took their passage in a ship. 
 And all being ready, the two brothers bade their mother 
 farewell and rode away from the house. But they had 
 scarce passed their own boundaries when Gunnar turned 
 in his saddle to take a last look at his home. And he 
 said, ' How fair is Lithend in the summer sunshine ! 
 Never has it seemed to me so fair. The corn-fields are 
 yellowing to harvest. They are carrying the hay from 
 the home-field — how sweet it smells ! I cannot leave the 
 old place, brother ; by my life I will not leave it !' Then 
 Kolskegg urged him, saying, ' Do not so shamefully as lo 
 go back and break the atonement left to thy good faith ; for 
 surely if thou dost it shall befall even as Njal has foretold.' 
 He said, ' I care not what may come of it. Lithend is 
 grown so dear to me to-day I cannot leave it.' Kolskegg 
 answered, ' Brother, if so thy mind is set, abide here. 
 But I will keep my pledge and fare abroad ; neither shall 
 I ever return more ; for this resolve will cost thee thy life, 
 and then there will be nothing left in Lithend to bring 
 me back again.' So the brothers parted ; Kolskegg went 
 to his ship, and Gunnar turned his horse's head and came 
 home. 
 
 It soon got whispered about that Gunnar abode still at 
 Lithend, and would not go out of Iceland ; and at the 
 next Thing he was proclaimed an outlaw. Then Thorgeir 
 and Mord and Gizur the White gathered together forty oi 
 the kinsmen of those men whom Gunnar had slain, and 
 planned how best to attack him. Njal heard of it and came 
 and warned Gunnar of what was brewing, and said, ' Let 
 my sons, Skarp-hedinn and Grim, come and abide with thee 
 in the house ; for they will both give their lives for thee.' 
 But Gunnar said, ' Nay ; thy sons shall not be slain for 
 my sake ; that were a poor requital for thy goodness to 
 me. But I pray thee, if anything befall nie, see after my 
 son Hogni, wdio is dear to me : I say nothing of my other 
 son Grani, whom I had by Hailgerda. for he is his mother's
 
 Burnt Njal. 359 
 
 boy, and has ever been froward to my mind.' Njal pro- 
 mised him, and went his way. Grunnar scorned to remain 
 in hiding- ; he rode to the Things and all other meetings 
 of men as aforetime, and held his head on high. None of 
 his friends spake of his outlawry, or turned their backs on 
 him; and none of his foes for very shame durst lay hands 
 on him openly. 
 
 But Mord and Thorgeir and Gizur the White, with 
 their forty fellows, gathered about Grunnar's homestead 
 one day before sunrise. They heard the baying of the 
 hound, and knowing- that they must iirst destroy him, they 
 sent six of their band to go and secure the bonder who 
 lived on the next farm. Him they fetched from his bed 
 and bound with cords, threatening to take his life unless 
 he would go and bring them the dog. The man went, 
 and called the hound by name ; Sam knew him, and 
 fawned and leapt about him whilst he unloosed the 
 chain. The hound followed him down the pathway and 
 far across the farmstead till they came upon the band of 
 men. Then seeing how he had been betrayed, the dog- 
 flew at the bonder, pinned him by the throat and tare 
 him to pieces. But the men smote him with their axes 
 as he worried the bonder's flesh, and one of the axe-blades 
 sank into his brain. The hound lifted his head, and 
 giving a strange howl like the cry of a man in despair, 
 set off and ran, and coming to the homestead, found his 
 way into the chamber where Gunnar slept. He leapt 
 upon the bed and licked his master's face ; then stretched 
 himself by his master's side and died. Gunnar awoke 
 and said, ' Sorely hast thou been treated, Sam, my foster- 
 ling ; and I take it as a warning that our two deatlis shall 
 not be far apart.' 
 
 When the men were come nigh the house they would 
 fain know whether Gunnar was at home, and Thorgrim 
 tlie Easterling said he would climb up the pillars of the 
 house and look into Gunnar's chamber. But when
 
 360 Tales of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 Thorgrim was come up under the roof-beams Gunnar 
 saw him peeping through the window-slits, and thrusting 
 out his bill smote him through the middle ; so the man 
 fell down backwards to the ground. Gizur ran to 
 Thorgrim, and said, ' Tell us, is Gfunnar at home ? ' 
 Thorgrim answered, ' I cannot tell ; but this I know right 
 well, that his bill is at home ;' and so saying he died. 
 
 Grunnar gathered a pile of arrows before him and shot 
 out from the windows at his foes. No arrow missed its 
 mark. Then the men drew back and took shelter in 
 the outhouses, and anon came out to hack at the door- 
 ways of the homestead. But the house was strongly 
 built of timber, and Grunnar's arrows searched them 
 through and through, so that they could not abide these 
 onslaughts long together. 
 
 Presently Gizur said, ' Lo, I saw Gunnar put forth his 
 arm from the window and take an arrow off the roof; he 
 must be running short of shafts within doors. Now let 
 us make a fresh attack.' Then by Mord's counsel they 
 fetched ropes, and having thrown them over the roof 
 beams, they made fast the other ends to a rock, and 
 twisting them tight with levers dragged the roof oft" from 
 the hall. Still Gunnar shot out arrows and kept the men 
 back; till one of them stealthily climbed the house-pillars, 
 and smiting in at the window with his sword, cut 
 Gunnar's bowstring asunder. In a moment Gunnar's 
 bill was through his body and the man fell backwards 
 dead upon the ground ; but others clambered up, and it 
 was hard work to guard the roofless loft on all four sides 
 from them which came. Then Gunnar called to his wife 
 Hallgerda and said, ' Quick, now ! Take two locks of thy 
 long hair, and do thou and my mother twist them into a 
 bowstring for me.' His wife laughed coldly. ' Does 
 aught hang upon it ? ' said she. ' Aye,' he answered, 
 ' my life hangs on it ; for with naught but my bow can 
 I keep these men at bay. Quick, the bowstring ! '
 
 Btirnt Njal. 361 
 
 Then said Hallgerda, ' Thinkest thou I have forgotten 
 the blow on the face which thou gavest me ? What is it 
 to me whether thou holdest out for a short while or a 
 long V And so thy life hangs on my hair ! Thy 
 mother Rannveig's is too short ! ' She loosed her ample 
 locks and shook them to her knees — laughed bitterly in 
 Grunnar's face, and went down to the hall. 
 
 Gunnar flung the useless bow aside and caught his bill 
 in both hands. A stout defence he made ; for the first 
 eight that swarmed up the walls fell wounded nigh to 
 death ; but his foes were too many, and in time they 
 hemmed him in against a corner of the loft and slew him 
 there. For all that, when the suitors came to reckon up 
 their loss, they found sixteen sorely wounded and two 
 dead. Then came Gizur the White and some of the 
 band to Gunnar's mother Eannveig, saying, 'We pray 
 thee grant us earth enough wherein to lay our two dead 
 men.' Eannveig answered, ' You are welcome enough ; 
 and I am only sorry that I have not to grant it to all of 
 you.' And Gizur said to his fellows, ' Come away, and 
 take no heed of her words, for she has had a great loss.' 
 And he charged them all that they should not spoil or 
 rob anything about the place. So they buried their dead 
 and went quietly away. 
 
 Eannveig after this grew so bitter against Hallgerda 
 that there was no abiding in the house ; wherefore 
 Hallgerda took her son Grani and fled away to Gritwater 
 where Thrain her son-in-law dwelt, who had wedded her 
 daughter by her first husband. So Gunnar's son Hogni 
 took to the farm at Lithend. They raised a great cairn 
 over Gunnar and set him upright upon a chair, with all 
 his weapons by him save the bill, which Eannveig 
 said was to be kept for the man that should avenge him. 
 But for many nights such strange noises were heard from 
 Gunnar's cairn, that at length Hogni fetched Njal's son 
 Skarp-hedinn, and they two went at midnight to see
 
 362 Talcs of tJic Teutonic Lands. 
 
 what it might betoken. It was a clear cold night, and 
 fleecy clouds drifted over the bright moon and stars. 
 And as they beheld, lo, it seemed as if the cairn stood 
 open, and Gimnar had turned himself within the cairn : 
 the moonlight fell upon his face, and he was merry, 
 singing a battle-song which might be heard a long way 
 off; four lights burned round about him, but cast no 
 shadows. As they gazed and listened, the moon was 
 hidden by a cloud ; and when it shone again the song was 
 done and the cairn was shut. 
 
 Then Hogni took Skarp-hedinn home with him, and 
 being come into the house Hogni laid his hand upon 
 Gunnar's bill which hung up in its place. As soon as he 
 touched it there was a singing in the bill, and Rannveig 
 sprang up, saying, ' Thou art he that shall bear it to 
 avenge thy father, and already has the bill spoken of one 
 man's death or more.' Hogni took the weapon and went 
 out, Skarp-hedinn going with him. That night they 
 came upon Thorgeir and three other of the suitors. 
 Two died by the bill and two by Skarp-hedinn's axe. 
 Mord they found likewise, but he went upon his knees 
 and begging for mercy offered all he had for life. So 
 Skarp-hedinn took an atonement from him at a great 
 price in money for his share in Guunar's death and let 
 him go. 
 
 II. THE BURNING OF NJAL. 
 
 Now ^Njal's two younger sons Grim and Helgi joined 
 themselves with some other men and went sea-roving 
 about the Orkneys where they met with many adventures. 
 Once when they were beset by thirteen ships a viking 
 witl] ten ships, who chanced to steer that way, saw how 
 hard they were put to it, and striking in on the weaker 
 side fought a great battle and drave off their enemies.
 
 Burnt Nj'al. 36 
 
 3 
 
 This viking wore a helm of gold upon his head, scarce 
 brighter than the golden hair which fell upon his 
 shoulders ; his face was frank and handsome, and he 
 fought with a great two-handed sword named Life-luller. 
 He told them he was called Kari, and that he was the 
 son of Solmund. And from that time a great friendship 
 sprang up between him and Njal's sons ; and many times 
 thenceforward Kari succoured them and fouglit at their 
 side both on sea and land. 
 
 After a while the brothers left Kari, and sailing east 
 came to Norway. There they fell in with Thrain who 
 had wedded Hallgerda's daugliter. Thrain had been 
 some winters in Norway serving Yarl Hacon, and v>dth his 
 war-ship, the Vulture, had gained no little wealth and 
 renown. Grim and Helgi having known Thrain in Iceland, 
 renewed their fellowship with him, and were often aboard 
 his ship when he went out a-raiding. It happened one 
 day as the Vulture lay out in the offing ready for a criiise, 
 that Thrain and Njal's sons were just putting off from 
 shore in a little boat to take the water-casks aboard, 
 when a man came racing to the water-side, and sprang 
 down upon the shingle, crying, ' Help me, good men and 
 true ! Yarl Hacon and his men are at my heels, and 
 they will kill me like a dog.' Helgi looked at the fellow 
 and said, ' Take him not in, Thrain, for if I misjudge not 
 he is an unlucky man to have to do with. Besides, it 
 were an unseemly deed towards thy friend Yarl Hacon.' 
 Thrain heeded not, but tm-ning to the man asked, ' Who 
 art thou ? What hast thou done ? ' He answered, ' My 
 name is Hrapp. I have the blood of many men upon 
 my hands ; I have beguiled the daughter of my friend ; 
 I have burned the shrines of the gods, and plundered 
 them of their jewels.' ' Hast thou the jewels with thee ?' 
 said Thrain. ' Aye,' said Hrapp. ' Grive them to me, 
 and for that price I will take thee aboard.' ' Not all,' 
 the man pleaded ; ' good master, let me keep a portion
 
 364 Talcs of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 for myself.' Thrain clashed his oar into the water, 
 saying, ' All or none ; do as you will. But listen ! ' 
 Hrapp listened, and heard the tramp of horses' feet and 
 the hue and cry of his pursuers. He said, ' I have no 
 choice ; take all,' and leaping into the boat, lay do^vn 
 beneath the benches at the bottom. The boat shoved off. 
 Yarl Hacon and his men came down upon the beach and 
 hailed her, but she made no sign. The boat rowed to 
 the ship and the men went on board. 
 
 Not a ripple was on the water ; not a breath of wind in 
 the sky. ' A plague on it ! ' cried Thrain, ' we must lie here 
 at anchor till a breeze gets up, for we are too short- 
 handed to man the oars. And where is this man to hide ? 
 For of a surety Hacon will search the vessel.' Then he 
 took an empty water-cask, and putting Hrapp therein 
 lowered the cask overboard so that it should lie under the 
 shadow of the stern. 
 
 Very soon Yarl Hacon put off in a barge and came to 
 the ship. He said to Thrain, ' We seek a man named 
 Hrapp who has done vis all manner of evil. Deliver him 
 up to us.' Thrain answered, ' He is not here ; I know 
 naught of him. Many a winter have I served thee well, 
 and I deem it in nowise a fit return that thou shouldst 
 charge me thus. Howbeit, seek him if thou art so minded.' 
 The Yarl sought but could not find him. Then he bespake 
 Njal's sons, saying, ' I know that ye are men of truth ; tell 
 me wliere this man is hidden.' But though they held not 
 with Thrain they counted it shame to betray him ; so they 
 answered, ' Gro ask of Thrain, or seek him for thyself ; 
 we will have naught to do with the matter.' And with 
 that they took the ship's boat and rowed off to their own 
 Tessel. The Yarl likewise went away, doubting and ill- 
 satisfied. But no sooner had he got back to land and 
 espied the water-cask than he put off again. Thrain 
 watched him coming, and taking Hrapp up out of the 
 cask, stowed him away in a sack amongst the ship's lading.
 
 Burnt N'jaL 365 
 
 Wherefore Hacon came and turned the cask bottom np, and 
 routed the ship over a second time, but could not find the 
 man he sought. Yet when he got ashore again it seemed to 
 come into his mind that Hrapp must be among the sacks, 
 and a third time he came aboard. He said, ' I know the 
 man is here, and when I am ashore I seem to see it plainly, 
 but aboard the vessel thou dost balk me. Give him up, 
 or it will be worse for thee.' ' Well,' said Thraiu, ' if 
 thou art bent on making me out a liar, seek for thyself, I 
 shall not help thee.' This time they had folded Hrapp 
 in the sail w^hich was brailed up to the yard. The Yarl 
 searched the vessel through, and came away dissatisfied ; 
 but scarce had he got ashore when a breeze sjDrang up, the 
 Vulture spread her sails, and immediately Hacon saw 
 Hrapp in the rigging. 
 
 Straightway Hacon made ready four war-ships, and put 
 out to sea after Thrair^, but the Vulture had a good 
 start and got clean off. Being very vexed thereat, Hacon 
 cruised about till he fell in with the ship wherein Njal's sons 
 were, and feeling assured that they were privy to Hrapp's 
 hiding, he gave them battle, and after a long fight took 
 Grrim and Helgi prisoners, and having bound them flung 
 them in the hold to wait for death. But in the night 
 Grim espied an axe lying edge up in the hold, and rolling 
 himself over thereto he cut his cords, and then went and 
 loosed his brother. At daybreak they saw an island 
 scarce a mile away, and getting softly over the ship's side 
 they dropped into the sea and swam to land. A ship had 
 put in thither for water, and to their joy they found it was 
 the ship of tlieir friend Kari, Solmund's son. Yarl Hacon 
 steered in shore and asked Kari if he was harbouring 
 Njal's sons. ' I am,' said Kari. ' Wilt thou give them 
 up to me ? ' ' That will I not,' said he ; ' they are my friends 
 even as I am thine, and thou hast misjudged them. But 
 I am ready to make the peace betwixt you ; and when 
 thou shalt learn of a truth that these men had no hand
 
 v5 
 
 66 Tales of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 in deceiving thee it shall be left to thee to award them 
 recompense for the despite done to them.' So when Yarl 
 Hacon knew the truth he made full atonement, anVl they 
 all became friends. 
 
 After that Njal's sons roved the sea with Kari, and 
 went harrying about Anglesea and the southern isles. 
 And when they had gotten much booty, Grim and Helgi 
 coubtrained Kari to come ovit to Iceland and abide at their 
 house. And so he did ; and in the springtime Kari wedded 
 Helga, one of Njal's daughters, and there was the greatest 
 of good fellowship betwixt him and all Njal's house, both 
 then and ever afterwards. 
 
 Now Thrain had likewise come home, and abode at 
 Gritwater with Hallgerda his mother-in-law ; Hrapp also 
 dwelt with him. And there was very little love between 
 that household and Njal's. For Thrain was sore against 
 Helgi and Grim because they had not lied for him over 
 Hrapp's hiding, but had made friends with Hacon at his 
 expense. Hrapp hated both brothers because they with- 
 stood his being taken into Thrain's ship. Hallgerda bare 
 yet in her mind the memory of her old feud with 
 Bergthora, Njal's wife ; but Njal and all his sons she 
 hated for another cause. In wedding Gunnar she had 
 looked that, with the bravest and most dauntless man in 
 Iceland for a husband, every fancied slight to her should 
 have been avenged with blood. Instead of that, in all things 
 Gunnar had been peacefully ruled by Njal ; for Njal he 
 became a man whom she despised ; for Njal's light-given 
 meat he had disdained the food which she had got by theft. 
 Njal made her husband a man of whom she would fain be 
 rid ; but being rid of him she hated the man that made 
 her content to see him die. The ill-will of Thrain and 
 Hrapp might soon have cooled, but Hallgerda fanned it 
 day by day. So time went on, and Thrain would talk of 
 Njal as ' that old beardless fool,' and when he met Njal's 
 sons he spake not to them. There was only one in all
 
 Bjinii Nj'al. 367 
 
 • Thrain's household untainted with bad feeling towards 
 Njal ; and that was Hauskuld, Thrain's son, a generous- 
 minded youth who bare no living- soul ill-will. 
 
 Grim and Helgi were annoyed beyond measure at 
 Thrain's coldness, the more so after what they liad 
 suffered for his sake ; and Skarp-hedinn their elder 
 brother hearing continually of Thrain's ill words grew 
 restless, and fell to whetting his great two-handed axe 
 War-Ogress. Skarp-hedinn was a tall gaunt man, with a 
 rugged face as pale as ashes; his hair was short and 
 crisp ; his front teeth stood out from his mouth ; he 
 was impatient and quick of speech, but very valiant. 
 Skarp-hedinn would straightway have gone with his 
 brothers and fallen on Thrain, but Njal counselled them 
 all to forbear. He said, ' Ye have none of you with your 
 own ears heard Thrain speak evil concerning us ; it may be 
 idle tale-bearing; wait and see.' ' Not so,' said Skarp-hedinn, 
 ' but we will go to Thrain's house and set all doubt at 
 rest.' Thereupon Njal's sons and Kari their brother-in- 
 law rode over to Gritwater ; and being come to the home- 
 stead they saw Hallgerda standing in the porch ; but she 
 gave them no word of greeting. Skarp-hedinn said, 
 ' Perchance we are not welcome here ? ' Hallgerda 
 answered, ' None within this house will say that ye are 
 welcome.' 
 
 ' Well,' said Skarp-hedinn, ' our errand is not with 
 thee.' So they entered the house and came to Thrain. 
 Then spake Helgi, ' I am come to know if thou wilt make 
 amends for what befell me and my brother Grim in Norway 
 because of thee ? ' Thrain answered, ' Canst thou measure 
 thy manhood by naught but money ? ' Helgi said, ' A 
 word from us to Yarl Hacon would have cost thy life ; 
 yet we spake not that word ; and for that cause we 
 suffered hardships.' Then Hrapp said, 'Luck ruled it 
 that ye had the stripes while we got free ; tempt your 
 luck no further lest the like befall you all again.' Skarp-
 
 o 
 
 68 Tales of the Teittoiiic Lands. 
 
 bedinn said to his brother, ' Bandy no words with a man 
 who has robbed the shrines of the gods.' ' Hold thy 
 tongue, Skarp-hedinn,' cried Hrapp, ' or I will drive my 
 axe into thy skull.' Skarp-hedinn scoffed at him, saying, 
 ' We shall see before long which shall scatter gravel over 
 the other's head.' Then Hallgerda cried aloud, ' Away 
 with you, sons of a beardless fool, who grew your beards 
 as we grow hay upon the meadows, by dunging them. 
 Ye Dungbeards get you gone ! ' In like manner also did 
 Hrapp revile them, but Thrain held his peace. 
 
 jSjaFs sons came home and told their father. And their 
 mother Bergthora hearing it, said, ' Ye have borne these 
 words ? And yet I see no blood upon your axes ? Verily 
 folk will say that my sons have not the heart to lift their 
 weapons.' 
 
 But not many days after, Xjal's sons and Kari set out 
 in quest of their revilers. It was winter time, and as 
 they wended along by the side of the river Fleet, they 
 saw Thrain and Hrapp with six men on the other bank. 
 The ice being broken away from the side of the river 
 where the brothers were, they could not get across, till, 
 perceiving a tongue of ice further down which stretched 
 to the shore, they hasted thither, all save Skarp-hedinn, 
 who lagged behind to tie his shoe. Thrain and his 
 fellows from the other side espying them came out upon 
 the ice, Thrain foremost. Then Skarp-hedinn had no 
 patience to go after his brothers, but took a run and a 
 spring from the bank, and leaping twelve ells across the 
 water on to the sheet of ice, came sliding down on Thrain 
 swift as a bird flies. Down came the axe cleaving Thrain's 
 skull to the jaw-teeth ; and before the others could get a 
 blow at him, Skarp-hedinn had slid to where his brothers 
 were. Afterwards a fierce fight befell, wherein Grim slew 
 Hrapp, and Kari smote down a strong man named Tjorvi ; 
 the rest prayed for peace, and Skarp-hedinn gave it to 
 them. Howbeit Helgi was against the peacemaking, for
 
 Burnt Njal. 369 
 
 he said, ' These men will never be true to us.' One of the 
 men was Grani, Gunnar's froward son, and it was for his 
 sake that the peace was made. 
 
 After Njal had paid down the blood-money which was 
 awarded for these slayings, he took out a ring of gold, 
 and calling Hauskuld, Thrain's son, to him, he set it on 
 his hand, saying, ' Wilt thou take this as a gift from me ?' 
 The lad said, ' That I will ; for though I know full well 
 that SkarjD-hedinn slew my father, he was greatly provoked 
 to anger. Thou and thy sons are jus: men; the atone- 
 ment has been fully paid, and I cannot bear malice against 
 any of you.' Njal said, ' Thou hast answered well, and 
 thou wilt live to be a good man and true.' Then he made 
 Hauskuld the offer to take him for his foster-son, and the 
 youth was glad thereat and went home with him to 
 Bergthors-knoll. There he abode, and grew up with Njal 
 and his sons, much beloved of them all, for he was ex- 
 ceeding comely and withal blithe and gentle and fair- 
 spoken. 
 
 Now Hauskuld set his mind upon a maiden named 
 Hildegunna, one of the fairest of women, but very proud 
 and hard-hearted. She dwelt witli her uncle Plosi. And 
 being desired of Hauskuld to ask this maiden for him to 
 wife, Njal came to Plosi and offered to lay down such 
 money as he should deem fitting to make the match on 
 behalf of his foster-son. Then Hildegunna being called 
 in, said, ' Who is this man that he should think to wed with 
 me ? I will only wed with one who has the priesthood 
 and who is a lead<^r among men.' Wherefore Njal besouglit 
 Flosi to let his niece tarry three winters for Hauskidd, 
 the while they tried to get him a priesthood. And Plosi 
 made that bargain. 
 
 All that winter Njal tried to get a priesthood and a 
 leadership for his foster-son, but no man was found willing 
 to sell his priesthood. Howbeit, when the Althing came 
 on, it chanced that there a was great deal of talk about the 
 
 B B
 
 370 Tales of the Te^itonic Lands. 
 
 four Quarter Courts being- too few to settle the multitude 
 of suits which were brought. So it fell out that a fiftli 
 court was named, and new priesthoods being set up Njal 
 got the one at White-ness for Hauskuld, who was thence- 
 forward called the Priest of White-ness. After that, Hil- 
 degunna was reconciled to a marriage with Hauskuld ; so 
 they were wed and set up housekeeping at Ossaby. And 
 there was the greatest of friendship between Hauskuld 
 and Njal and all his sons. They bade each other to the 
 harvest-feasts, and gave gifts to one another, and Njal's 
 sons were always in Hauskuld's company. 
 
 Then came the change of faith, for King Olaf, being 
 come to the throne of Norway, sent out men to christen 
 the western isles. They preached the faith with spear 
 and sword. Many repented at the spear-point ; some died 
 in their sins, and some were saved ; but most believed. 
 In Iceland, where the people held so much by Njal, men 
 came and asked his counsel, saying tliat it was a strange 
 and a wicked thing- to shake off the old faith in the gods. 
 But Njal went away by himself and mused, and when he 
 had long pondered he said, ' The flower is better than 
 the seed, the fruit than the flower. Happy is he who 
 knoweth that the flower is from the seed and wlio looketh 
 for the fruit. You cannot hinder the new faith ; but 
 if you are wise you will help it, as I shall. What will 
 be, will be.' 
 
 Now the court whereof Hauskuld was priest took in 
 part of the district which had beforetime been in Mord's 
 priesthood ; and Mord was sore vexed at finding men 
 continually declare themselves out of his Thing, and go 
 over to Hauskuld's Thing ; for which cause he began to 
 bear ill-will against Hauskuld the Priest of White-ness. 
 About the same time, Mord's father fell sick from old 
 age, and being brought to his death-bed he said to his 
 son, ' Tlie money I leave thee is nothing to what it ought 
 to be. We have scraped and saved in vain : for Skarp-
 
 Burnt Nj.il. 3;i 
 
 hediun impoverished us wlien he made us pay that heavy 
 price for tliy share in Gunuar's death. How he robbed 
 us ! my son, remember this against him evermore. 
 Let him smart for it, and I shall die in peace. INIake 
 friends with Njal and his sons, and so learn how best to 
 wreak thy vengeance on them all. Promise me. They 
 have got our gold.' Mord said, ' I promise. Leave that 
 to me. But now, father, since thou art nigh to death, I 
 would that thou shouldest repent, and shake off the old 
 faith and take the new.' Then lie brought to his father 
 crosses and many other holy tokens and set them before his 
 eyes. Valgard lifted himself fiercely in his bed, caught up 
 the crosses in his hands and brake them to pieces, saying, 
 ' I abide by the old faith, and I die and curse the thief 
 which stole my gold.' So he breathed his last breath. 
 
 Then Mord began to devise how to be avenged at once 
 on Hauskuld the Priest for coming into his district, and 
 on Njal's sons ; and the better to set them by the ears he 
 made friends with both. He bade Njal's sons and Kari 
 to a feast, and when the feast was over he gave gifts to 
 each, but the gift of greatest price he gave to Skarp- 
 hedinn — a brooch of gold. Njal saw the gifts and said to 
 his sons, ' Take heed ; for they will be bought full dear. 
 But most of all, beware how ye repay the giver in the 
 coin he wishes to get.' 
 
 Then came Mord to Hauskuld, saying, ' Much it griev- 
 eth me to lay aught to the charge of any man, but I warn 
 thee against Njal's sons, and most of all against Skarp- 
 hedinn, for thou trustest him, the while his heart is 
 not right concerning thee. He envies thee the priest- 
 hood. Knowestthou that he took it up for his own when 
 thou camest not to the last Thing ? He will never let it 
 go.' ' Nay, Mord, thou art wrong,' said Hauskuld, ' for he 
 gave it back to me at harvest-tirae.' ' Then Njal must 
 have made him do it,' said Mord ; ' for this I know, that 
 Skarp-hediun meaneth thee mischief. Hast thou for- 
 
 li B 2
 
 372 Talcs of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 jrotten his treachery when ye twain went together towards 
 ^larfleet ; how an axe fell out from under Skarp-hedinn's 
 ])elt ?' Hauskuld answered, ' What of it ? Was it not his 
 woodman's axe? Spare thy words ; for I have no mind to 
 hear slanders against Njal's sons. They are my friends, 
 and I would rather die at their hands than doubt them. 
 ]>ut thou art all the worse man in my esteem for sioeaking 
 thus concerning them.' 
 
 Then Mord went his way to Njal's sons, and said, 
 ' What a double-faced man is Hauskuld ! Who would 
 believe it of one so fair-spoken ! Yet he is always talking 
 ill of you behind your backs. He says that Skarp-hedinn 
 dealt treacherously by him, because forsooth a wood-axe 
 fell from his belt on the way to Marfleet. Ijittle do you 
 know the man. Last time you feasted with Hauskuld do 
 you remember where you slept ? ' ' Aye,' said Skarp-he 
 flinn ; ' the beds were made in three outhouses, because 
 Hauskuld had pulled down his hall that he might build 
 it anew.' ' True,' said Mord, ' but round about the out- 
 house wherein ye slept Hauskuld piled up faggots, and 
 would have burned you in all your beds ; but Hogni, 
 (funuar's son, came in the night and Hauskuld was afraid 
 of him. And after ye were gone your ways Hauskidd 
 ;^ent out a band of men to fall iipon you, only their 
 courage failed them.' At first Njal's sons believed not 
 his words — the tale perchance had too much circum- 
 stance — but day by day as Mord grew vaguer in his 
 slanders, throwing out dark hints of treachery and ill- 
 faith, the brothers doubted, and a coldness sprang up 
 betwixt them and Hauskuld. Then Mord fed their 
 juisgivings so guilefully that in Hauskuld's sadness at 
 their altered behaviour they only read liis guilt. 
 
 Flosi came and abode awhile with Hauskuld, and hear- 
 ing from his niece Hildegunna how things went with 
 liim and Njal's sons, he said, ' Get thee up and leave 
 this part, and I will give thee a homestead away in
 
 Burnt Njal. 373 
 
 Skaptarfell.' But Hauskuld said, ' Nay, wherefore should 
 I flee ? I have nauL;ht but kiudness in my ]ieart towards 
 Njal's sons. Something unknown to me hath estranged 
 us. They will presently learn the truth, and love me the 
 better for never losing faith in them.' Then seeing that 
 he could not turn Hauskuld from his resolve, Flosi gave 
 him a riclily broidered cloak of scarlet and rode away. 
 Hauskuld was greatly beloved of men, and he had no foes 
 that he knew of save Njal's sons, whereat he grieved 
 heavily. 
 
 One spring day at the seedtime of the corn, Bergthora 
 heard Kari and her sons talking eagerly outside the 
 house porch, and she said to her husband, ' What are 
 they planning now ? ' Njal answered, ' I cannot tell ; I 
 am not in their counsels ; but when their plans are good 
 they seldom withhold them from me.' 
 
 That night NjaFs sons went not to their beds. They 
 took their weapons and coming out softly from the house 
 met ]Mord at a trysting-place which they had appointed. 
 Mord stirred them up to fall upon Hauskuld at once lest 
 he should be beforehand with them ; and they agreed 
 amongst themselves that all should give him a wound 
 and thereby set their hands to the slaying. 
 
 Now Hauskuld had risen up in the early morning. The 
 sun was shining blithely, and he put on the scarlet cloak 
 Flosi's gift, and taking his corn sieve went into the fields 
 to sow the corn. Njal's sons together with Mord and Kari 
 lay in wait for him behind a fence, and when Hauskuld 
 drew nigh the hedgerow, singing as he scattered his corn, 
 Skarp-hedinn leapt out on him. Hauskuld saw him and 
 sought to turn away. But Skarp-hedinn ran up to him, 
 saying, ' Wouldst thou seek to slink away, thou sneaking 
 Priest of White-ness ? ' and straightway hewed at him. 
 The blow smote Hauskuld on the head ; he fell upon his 
 knees and spake these words : ' God forgive thee, Skarp- 
 hedinn my friend, as I do ! ' And before he could say
 
 374 Tales of the Teiitonie Lands. 
 
 more the rest ran in, and all gave him wounds so that he 
 died. Then Skarp-hedinn said, ' His blood is on all our 
 hands.' Mord answered, ' That is true enough ; never- 
 theless, I will fare home straightway and make as though 
 I first heard the tidings from other folk, since by so 
 doing I shall the better spy out how this slaying may be 
 atoned.' ' Do as thou wilt,' said Skarp-hedinn, ' but 
 forget not that we all had a share in this man's blood.' 
 
 Then the brothers went home to their father and told 
 what they had done. And straightway there fell a great 
 heaviness upon Njal insomuch that he bowed himself aud 
 wept and groaned aloud. He said, ' Better have lost two 
 of my sons so Hauskuld were yet alive.' Skarp-hedinn 
 answered, ' Thou art an old man ; who shall blame thee 
 for thy bitterness ? For I know that thou lovedst 
 Hauskidd passing well.' 'Nay,' said Njal, 'it is not that. 
 In sootli I am old, and I loved Hauskuld well ; but most 
 of all I grieve foreseeing what shall come of it. All my 
 life kng I have gone in dread of a day like this. And 
 now I know that a horrible death is surely at hand for me 
 and my wife and all my sons.' Then said Kari, 'Hast 
 thou naught to foretell for me ? ' Njal answered, ' Thy 
 good luck is so great that it will be hard for any ill-fortune 
 to overcome it.' 
 
 It was late that morning when Hildegunna awoke. 
 She had dreamed ill dreams, and when she missed her 
 lord from her side she sprang out of bed and called aloud 
 to her servants, saying, ' Go search for Hauskuld ; for evil 
 is nigh him, or perchance has already overtaken him.' In 
 haste she dressed herself and came down into the hall. 
 And when she was come down, lo, there was something 
 lying on the threshold wrapped in a broidered scarlet 
 cloak. Hildegunna wept not ; she was very calm. Mord's 
 shepherd was by the porch, and seeing her, he came in and 
 said, 'Mord lade me say that Njal'ssons did this deed ; in 
 sooth many folk already have heard them boast of it.
 
 Burnt Njal. 
 
 0/ D 
 
 ' A mauly deed,' said Hildeg-unna, ' if one bund had done 
 it.' She knelt and unwrapped her husband's body from 
 the cloak. Her face grew dark and frowning- ; she never 
 kissed the dead man's cheek ; no tear of hers fell on his 
 wounds. She took the scarlet cloak and wrapped it to- 
 gether, with the clots of blood yet in it ; then laid it up 
 in her chest. 
 
 The dead man's mother looked about for one to take up 
 the suit for the slaying of her son. Soe fixed on Mord ; 
 would hear of none but Mord. Hildegunna demurred not ; 
 and Mord, feigning reluctance, at last consented. Then 
 Mord brought neighbours with him and showed the body 
 of Hauskvdd wherein were five wounds. He named Skarp- 
 \iedinn, Grrim, Helgi, and Kari as the dealers of fovir of the 
 wounds, but of the fifth wound said he nothing, save that 
 Skarp-hedinn had given the death-blow. 
 
 Men spoke ill of this slaying on all hands, calling it a 
 foul deed and wrought without excuse, because Hauskuld 
 had been gentle in his bearing and had made himself 
 beloved of all folk. So it came to pass when Njal's sons. 
 went to and fro about the land seeking men to help them 
 in the suit, that even their friends looked coldly on them 
 or promised at most to hold aloof. Nevertheless because 
 of Njal and the great esteem wherein he was held there 
 were yet found staunch folk to stand by him. 
 
 It was said that Hildegunna recked little of the slaying 
 of her husband. She laid him in the earth and none 
 heard her bewail, and after that she busied herself about 
 house-tending and spake but little. But it chanced one 
 day that her uncle Flosi journeyed to the homestead, and 
 Hildegunna set him in her husband's seat and cumbered 
 herself greatly to serve him. And it came to pass when 
 Flosi had eaten his full, that Hildegunna arose, and going 
 into the midst of the hall, loosed her hair about her face 
 and brake out a-weeping. Plosi lounged upon the bench 
 and said, ' Thou weepest for a good husband ; but I shall
 
 3/6 Tales of the Teiito7iic Lands. 
 
 follow up the suit, and I dare say we shall get an ample 
 atonement in money for such a man.' Hildeguuna turned 
 on him fiercely, saying, ' Money ? Suits ? Talk not of such 
 things. I will have blood.' Then she ran to her chest, 
 and taking out tlie cloak, blood and all, as she had stripped 
 it off Hauskuld's body, she came softly to Flosi while he 
 dozed after meat, and flung it over his head, so that the 
 clots of gore rattled down all about him. ' This was thy 
 gift,' she cried, ' to Hauskuld ; and now I give it back, 
 charging thee before God to take vengeance for every 
 woimd which his dead body bare, or else to be adjudged 
 a dastard evermore.' Flosi flung the cloak away. ' Thou 
 grim hell-hag,' he cried ; ' cruel are the counsels of 
 women.' And Flosi came over by turns blood-red and 
 ashen pale. 
 
 On a set day at the Thing men gathered to the Hill of 
 Law from all parts in gi-eat multitudes to hear the suit of 
 Mord and Flosi against Xjal's sons for the slaying of the 
 priest of White-ness. Folks said, ' Who is that tall, spare 
 man, pale, sharp-visaged, with a face as rough as a sea- 
 crag, who shows his front teeth and carries a great axe 
 across his shoulder ? ' Others answered, ' That is Skarp- 
 hedinn ; he goes about among the booths seeking for 
 some to stand by him in the suit.' 
 
 Men tried hard for Njal's sake to bring about an atone- 
 ment, but Flosi was steadfast and would abide by nothing 
 but the law. 
 
 Now the court being opened, Mord and Flosi set forth 
 the indictment and called on Njal's sons to challenge the 
 inquest. Then arose Thorhall the Lawman on their behalf, 
 who said, ' This suit must needs fall to the ground inas- 
 much as it is brought by a man whose hands are not clean. 
 At the showing of the death-wounds Mord only named 
 the smiters of four of them. But on Hauskuld's body 
 were five wounds ; and I hereby impeach Mord as the giver 
 of the fifth, whereby he made himself an outlaw, and as
 
 Bu mi t Nja /. 377 
 
 such is debarred from bringing this suit.' Then Njal stood 
 up and said, ' It seems to me that according to law this 
 suit must come to naught ; but yet I would not have it 
 ended by a quibble which will only increase the rancour 
 between us. Truly Hauskuld was dearer to me than my 
 own sons ; and when I knew that he was slain the sweetest 
 light of my eyes was quenched. I have grieved for him 
 more bitterly than you all. And now I pray his kindred 
 by our common grief that they will suffer me to make 
 atonement. I pray Flosi that he will choose out men to 
 utter an award. And let it be a liberal one, for I deem 
 no price too great for one so dear as Hauskuld was to me ; 
 nor will I murmur though it cost me all whereof I am 
 possessed and leave me destitute in my age.' Then many 
 of the chief men interceded with Flosi, px'omising him 
 their friendship if he would take an atonement. And 
 after they had m'ged him long, Flosi consented that six 
 men named on either side should utter an award ; and all 
 the folk at the Thing were glad thereat. 
 
 So twelve of the best men were left alone in the court 
 to consider an award, and when they had determined what 
 it should be, a bell was rung and all the people flocked to 
 the Hill of Laws to hear Snorii the priest deliver the 
 award on behalf of the twelve. He said, 'We have 
 sought in this matter to fix the terms of a lasting peace, 
 for which cause we have not awarded outlawry either from 
 the district or from the land, seeing that banishments are 
 for the most part ill-fulfilled and oftentimes kindle strife 
 afresh. We award instead a money price greater than has 
 heretofore been paid for any man. Hauskuld shall be 
 atoned with triple man-fines, which will be six hundreds 
 in silver ; and the money must be all paid up here at the 
 Thing. But of this price, lest bitterness should arise 
 because of its greatness, we the awarders will pay one 
 half, and we pray that each man of you will give some- 
 thing, for God's sake, and so for ever end the feud.'
 
 37S Tales of iJie Teutonic Lands. 
 
 Njul thanked the judges for this award, but Skarp- 
 hedinn laughed scornfully and held his peace. Then the 
 awarders laid down their three hundreds in silver; Njal 
 and his sons and Kari mustered two hundreds between 
 them, which was all they had ; and the people gave so 
 liberally that at last all the money was laid down in a 
 heap. And Njal took off a rich silken scarf which he wore 
 and laid that on the top of the heap. 
 
 Presently Flosi came up to count the money, and seeing 
 the scarf took it up and waved it about his head, crying 
 aloud, ' Who gave this thing ? ' And when none spake 
 he waved it again, and laughed, saying, ' Can no one tell 
 who gave this rag?' Then Skarp-hedinn said, 'Wlio 
 dost thou think has given it ? ' Plosi answered, ' Sooth 
 to say I know of none that would own sucli women's gear 
 save thy father the Beardless Carle, for it is hard to tell 
 whether he be man or woman.' At that Skarp-hedinn's 
 pale face flushed red, and he cried, ' Thou mayeh;t soon 
 learn that my father is a man, in that he has sous who can 
 guard him from affront. But the reviler of an old man 
 is neither man nor woman ; wherefore I counsel thee to 
 wear these, and hide thy shame ' — therewith Skarj^-hedinn 
 flung a pair of breeches to him. Then Flosi waxed very 
 wroth, and kicked the heap of money over, vowing he would 
 not touch a penny of it, neither would lie any longer make 
 fveace, but said he would have vengeance for Hauskuld 
 instead. So the money was handed over to Gizur the 
 White to take charge of, and the Thing broke up in con- 
 fusion. Njal was very heavy at heart because the peace- 
 making had thus been spoiled, and he said to Skarp-hedinn, 
 ' It has all come to pass as I feared ; for I foresaw from 
 the first that evil would follow tliis suit.' Skarp-hedinn 
 answered, ' There is naught to fear, for we are not out- 
 lawed, and they cannot pursue us by law.' Njal said, 
 ' The worst that can happen to us is nigh at hand.' 
 
 Now Flosi rode away from the Thing and gathered men
 
 BnrrJ A'j'aL 379 
 
 tog-ether, one hundred and twenty in all. He took an oath 
 from every man to stand by him in the quarrel till the 
 destruction of Njal and his sons should be accomplished ; 
 and when they had all pledged themselves with shaken 
 hands they took counsel how best to bring it about. 
 
 One evening at the homestead of Bergthors-knoll Berg- 
 thora had an ill-foreboding, and she spake to her household, 
 ' Choose now each of you what meat he likes best, for 
 this is the last meal I shall ever set before you.' They 
 smiled and said, ' This shall not be so.' 
 
 Now Grim and Helgi had gone that day to Holar, there 
 to abide for a week, and Bergthora answered her house- 
 hold, saying, ' It shall be even as I have told you; and I 
 give you this for a token, that Grim and Helgi will come 
 home before the meal is done. If this come true, the 
 rest will surely happen.' And when she had set the meat 
 out on the board Njal suddenly said, ' Things have a 
 wondrous seeming in my eyes to-night. I seem to see 
 out into the home-field as though the gable wall of the 
 house were down. And the board, with all the meat upon 
 it, seems one gore of blood.' Skarp-hedinn frowned, and 
 spake about old age, and the enfeebling of the mind. 
 But before the tables were cleared Grim and Helgi came 
 home ; and the house-folk whispered together and took it 
 for a sign. Njal asked his sons why they came so soon. 
 They said they could not tell — they had seen men riding 
 hither and thither, and the whole country side seemed 
 faring abroad — they knew not what it meant, and thought 
 it better to be where Skarp-hedinn was. 
 
 That night from a vague foreboding none went to bed. 
 Njal and his sons, with Kari and nearly thirty serving-men, 
 stood out upon the threshold of the door and watched, till in 
 the glooming twilight they saw men steal forth here and 
 there and gather together into a mighty band. Njal saw 
 themi halt to hold counsel, and he said to Skarp-hedinn, 
 ' They are far too many for us to deal with ; wherefore it
 
 380 Talcs of the Tciito7iic Lands. 
 
 is my will that we all go indoors, for the bouse is strong. 
 Remember bow bard it was found to master Gunnar of 
 Litbend tbougb be was alone in bis bouse. Tbere are 
 quite enough of us to keep tbem at bay if we remain 
 within walls.' ' Nay,' said Skarp-hedinn, ' Gunnar, it is 
 true, held out bravely, but that was because those chiefs 
 who attacked him were too noble-minded to burn him in 
 the house. But these men will stick at nothing. Nor do 
 I blame them, for they know full well it ' will be their 
 deaths if we escape. But as. for me I have no mind to be 
 stifled to death indoors.' Then Njal spake querulously, 
 ' My sons are ever setting at naught my counsel, now that 
 I am old. They did not always so.' So Helgi said, 
 ' Let us do as our father wills.' ' Well,' said Skarp-hedinn, 
 ' I for one am not afraid of death, and if ye are all agreed 
 to humour our father by being burnt in doors along with 
 him, I will not say nay.' 
 
 So they made fast the doors ; and immediately afterwards 
 Flosi and bis men came thronging about the bouse. Then 
 Skarp-hedinn and his brothers hurled out spears and 
 wounded many men. One of Flosi's baud, named Hroald, 
 spied Skarp-hedinn at a window, and climbing up thrust 
 a spear in at him, but Skarp-hedinn hewed off the spear- 
 bead, and the second blow of the axe smashed through 
 Hroald's shield and into his face and beat him backwards, 
 dead. 
 
 Flosi's men suffered greatly from the darts hurled out 
 upon them, and seeing that they could do nothing in 
 return, because the house was so stoutly built, Flosi 
 said to bis fellows, ' It is clear that we cannot get at them 
 with weapons, and tbere remain but two choices for us. 
 One is to turn away ; and that is not to be thought of 
 since Njal's sons will certainly be avenged on us all for 
 what we hav^e done already. The other is to burn them 
 in the house ; and though that is a dreadful deed which we 
 shall all have to answer for before God, it must be done.'
 
 Biirnt Njal. 381 
 
 Then they brought wood and piled it round about the 
 house, and set fire thereto, while Skaip-hedinn mocked 
 them from the wiudows, saying, 'Wliat, you scullions I 
 are you going to take to cooking ? ' ' Aye,' answered one 
 of them, ' and we shall give you little cause to complain 
 of being under-done.' Skarp-hedinn looked at the man 
 who said this and saw it was Grrani, Grunnar's son. ' Grani,' 
 he said, ' I avenged thy father; and this is my reward. 
 God help thee ; thou art a thankless fellow.' 
 
 Now the wood was green, and as fast as it was kindled 
 the women within the house put it out by pouring down 
 water and slops thereon. But hard by was a vetch stack, 
 and Flosi's men fetched the dry fodder and filled the loft 
 that was over the crosstrees of the hall therewith and set 
 fire to it. And the inmates knew not of this till the hall 
 was blazing overhead. At the same time piles of the 
 vetches were kindled before all the doors until the wood 
 took fire and began to burn fiercely. Then the women- 
 folk witliin doors fell to bewailing themselves and weep- 
 ing pitifully. But Njal comforted them, saying, 'Be of 
 good cheer, *for this is the last pain you shall ever have to 
 endure.' 
 
 In a little while the whole house being kindled, Xjal 
 looked out of a window and calling to Flosi to come near, 
 said, ' Wilt thou take atonement for my sons, or allow 
 them to go out ? ' Flosi answered, 'I will take no atone- 
 ment for them, but here I will remain until they are 
 all dead. Nevertheless the women and the house-carles 
 may come out.' 
 
 Then Njal called together the women and the serving- 
 men and all who had leave to go. Thorhalla, Helgi's wife, 
 wept bitterly at parting from her husband ; and first 
 would go, and then would die with him, then wept anew. 
 But some of the other women persuaded Helgi to let them 
 disguise him in a woman's cloak and kerchief; and being 
 intreated very sore of his wife he yielded. So they came
 
 382 Talcs of the Teutonic Lands. 
 
 out, Helgi going in the midst of the women. But Flosi 
 watched the door and cried to his men, ' A tall woman 
 passed me, very broad across the shoulders ; she is yonder ; 
 hold her.' Then Helgi flung away his cloak, and drew his 
 sword. The first man that laid hands on him he cut 
 down, but others ran in upon him, and Flosi came up and 
 hewed off his head. 
 
 Then Flosi came back to the house and called for Njal 
 and Bergthora. And when they were come to the window 
 he said, ' Njal, thou art an old man, and I would not burn 
 thee indoors. Thoushalt pass out free.' 
 
 Njal answered, ' I am too old to avenge my sons upon 
 thee, but I could not live in shame. I will stay with them.' 
 Then Flosi said to Bergthora, ' Do thou come out ; for I 
 would not have it on my soul that I burned a woman 
 alive.' And he intreated her. But Bergthora said to 
 him, ' I was very young when I was given to Njal, and 
 then I promised him that nothing should ever part us 
 twain. We have lived long together and nothing has 
 parted us, nor ever shall.' 
 
 So they went back together, hand in hand, into the 
 house. And Bergthora laid her head against Njal's 
 shoulder and said, ' Husband, what shall we do ? ' He 
 kissed her tenderly and answered, ' It is bed-time, dear 
 one. It is time to rest.' So he led her to their chamber. 
 A little boy, Kari's youngest son, was lying in their bed, 
 and Bergthora went to lift him up to take him to another 
 room ; for she said to Njal, ' We cannot see the boy die 
 before our eyes.' But the child said, ' Grandmother, I have 
 always slept with you, and I would rather die with you 
 and Njal than live afterwards.' 
 
 Then they laid them down in the bed and took the boy 
 between them ; and having signed themselves and the 
 child with the cross and committed their souls into God's 
 hands, Njal called to his house-steward, who had not yet 
 gone out, saying, ' Mark well how we lie, so that thou
 
 Burnt Njal. 3S 
 
 o 
 
 mayest afterwards be able to tell where to look for our 
 bones ; for we shall not stir lience for any pain or smart 
 of burning. And now take yonder ox-hide from the wall 
 and cover us therewith.' The steward took the hide, 
 which came off an ox but newly killed, and having- spread 
 it over them, went out. That was the last that was seen 
 or heard of Njal and Bergthora alive. Skarp-hedinn, 
 when he knew from the steward how his father had laid 
 himself down, said to his brother Grim, ' Our father goes 
 early to bed. What wonder ? He is an old man.' 
 
 Then Skarp-hedinn and Kari and Grrim begaii to tear 
 down the blazing timbers and to hurl out firebrands upon 
 Plosi and his men. These cast spears at them, but the 
 brothers caught the spears in their hands and flung them 
 back again, till Flosi said, ' Forbear I the fire will overcome 
 them fast enough.' 
 
 The heat grew stifling and the fire-forks crossed with- 
 in the hall. All overhead was a fierce roaring sheet of 
 flame, and ever and anon the great roof-beams came 
 crashing down on fire, encumbering the place with blazing 
 ruins. Skarp-hedinn said, ' Father must have died easily, 
 for we have heard neither groan nor sigh from him.' 
 Kari and Skarp-hedinn were by a window on the leeward 
 side to get the air ; and Kari said, ' Let us leap out here ; 
 the smoke blowing hitherward may give us a chance to 
 get away unseen.' Skarp-hedinn answered, ' Do thou leap 
 out first, and perchance if thou gettest off safe I will 
 follow thee. If not, thou wilt avenge me.' Kari said, 
 ' In sooth I will ; ' and snatching up a blazing bench, 
 hurled it down among those who stood outside. These 
 ran away, and Kari leapt out and crept along in the track 
 of the smoke. But his hair and clothes were on fire, and 
 some of the men seeing something pass, cried, ' Was not 
 that a man leapt out at the roof?' 'Nay,' ansvrered 
 another, ' but much more likely a firebrand that Skarp- 
 hedinn hurled at us.' So Kari got off safely and came to
 
 384 Tales of tJie Teutonic Lands. 
 
 a stream wherein he threw himself to quench the fire that 
 was on him. 
 
 Now Skarp-hedinn made a trial to get to the window 
 to leap out, but the charred beams whereon he stood 
 brake under him and threw him back on the fiery ruins. 
 He got up, and leapt up to the window with a run, but 
 the wall-plate came down with his w^eight and fell on 
 him within the house. And after this the fire became 
 so fierce upon the walls that there was no more getting 
 nigh them. Then Skarp-hedinn and his brother Grim 
 held one another by the hand and went about treading 
 the fire ; but when they came into the midst of the hall 
 Grim fell down dead. Skarp-hedinn heard a shattering 
 of the timbers overhead and ran to the end of the house. 
 But the roof fell in with a mighty noise and jammed him 
 fast against the gable so that he could neither move hand 
 nor foot. For a moment the fallen roof choked the flames ; 
 the crackling sparks went up in clouds ; then huge rolling- 
 billows of smoke belched up into the sky, and there 
 broke out a-blaze. Loud roared the flames and all the 
 place was wrapped in fire. But between whiles, as the 
 flame-noise lulled, a man's voice was heard singing in tbe 
 midst of the fire ; and they which heard it marvelled 
 greatly, for they thought Skarp-hedinn had been dead 
 long before. They heard the voice for near an hour ; 
 then it ceased, and there was no sound but the crackling 
 of the wood, the noise of falling timbers, and the uproar 
 of the fire. 
 
 When the fire began to burn low there were some of 
 Flosi's men who broke out rejoicing ; but Flosi was sad 
 and rebuked them, saying, ' Hold your peace. We must 
 find something better to boast of than burning an old 
 man in his house. And now I know of a truth that ven- 
 geance will be taken for this deed ; wherefore it is my 
 coimsel that none of you go to your homes. Not a man 
 of us must part from the other henceforth, but do you all
 
 Burnt Njal. 385 
 
 ride east, with me.' So Flosi gathered together stores 
 and provisions without stint, and all the Burners rode 
 east with him to his homestead at Swinefell. 
 
 Now Kari came to Mord and told how he had escaped 
 from the fire ; and Mord having now seen his vengeance 
 accomplished, and knowing that the people would be stirred 
 up to anger against the Burners, gladly espoused his 
 cause and proruised him help. Then they got men 
 together and came to Bergthors-knoU to search for Njal's 
 bones, Kari showed them the spot, and when they had 
 digged through a great heap of ashes they came upon the 
 ox-hide charred and shrivelled. The hide was lifted, and 
 lo, the bodies of Njal and Bergthora were bright and 
 fair, and scarce the smell of fire had passed upon them.. 
 They lay as though they slept, and smiled in their sleep ; 
 and the child in like manner, save that one of his fingers 
 was burnt where he had stretched it forth from beneath 
 the ox-hide. Then the men sought for Skarp-hedinn in the 
 place whence the sound of the singing had come. And 
 they found his body betwixt the roof and the gable. He 
 was jammed in upright, his legs burnt off to the knees ; 
 he had bitten through his under lip with the pain ; his 
 eyes were open, but proud and calm in their aspect. He 
 had driven his axe up to the haft in the gable wall that the 
 blade might not be softened. Over his breast he had 
 laid his hands in a cross, and the fire had branded the 
 crossed hands on his body. Men had no dread of Skarp- 
 hedinn when they beheld him, but all said it was good 
 to be near such a dead body. They found Grrim's bones 
 in the midst of the hall, and in other places the bones of 
 four serving men ; in all nine souls. 
 
 When they had buried the dead, Mord began to take up 
 suits on behalf of Njal's kinsmen against Flosi and tlie rest 
 of the Burners. And first he summoned nine thanes who 
 were Njal's neighbours on an inquest of outlawry against 
 Flosi for the killing of Helgi. But a cunning lawyer 
 
 c c
 
 386 Tales of the Tetitonic Lands. 
 
 named Eyjolf took up Flosi's cause. And when he had 
 looked into the old statutes Eyjolf challenged four of the 
 thanes on the ground that two of them by baptismal 
 kinship with Mord were debarred from serving on the 
 inquest ; and other two, because instead of being separate 
 householders they had only one hearth in common. 
 Mord answered that, even if baptismal kinship were a 
 hindrance like blood kindred, it went for nothing, he not 
 being the real plaintiff but only the pleader of the suit ; 
 and that the householder statute was annulled by the 
 later law which laid down that a man may sit on an in- 
 quest who is worth three hundreds in land and dairy stock. 
 But the Speaker of the Law adjudged that kinship with 
 the pleader was unlawful, inasmuch as the pleader was 
 for the time being the real plaintiff; and he also laid 
 down that the old statute as to separate householding 
 was not set aside but only added to by the newer law 
 concerning money qualification. So it fell to the five 
 thanes only to give judgment, and they found Flosi 
 guilty. But their finding came to naught, for Eyjolf 
 showed that the suit ought to have been brought in the 
 Northlanders' Court instead of the Eastfirthers', and he 
 therefore uttered protest against the judges giving judg- 
 ment. And other suits being brought on for the Burning, 
 Eyjolf brought every trick and quibble of law to bear 
 on Flosi's behalf, so that these also fell to the ground. 
 Yet still new suits went dragging on from coiurt to court 
 on different issues, until it came to this — the great wi'ong 
 of the Burning had long ceased to be the matter in dis- 
 pute, and the only quibble that was wrangled over at the 
 Althing was whether one of two lawyers, Mord or Eyjolf, 
 was guilty of contempt of court. 
 
 But Kari and Njal's kinsmen got many powerful friends 
 who held it shame that a great wrong unredressed should 
 dwindle down to a mere squabble betwixt lawyers. And 
 at last, wearied with daily waiting about the courts, they
 
 Burnt Njal. 387 
 
 drew their swords at the Althing and made a great on- 
 slaught on the Burners. Then the Court of Laws brake 
 up in haste. Snorri the Priest and Skapti Speaker of the 
 Law threw down their parchments and seized bill and axe ; 
 and men were fighting all about. The booths were over- 
 turned and great was the tumult. Kari with his great 
 two-handed sword Life-luller hewed many of the Burners 
 down, and Njal's kinsmen fought so fiercely that at last 
 Flosi and his folk had to turn and flee across Axe-water. 
 There Flosi drew up his men, and during a lull in the 
 battle he began to think within himself of what he had 
 brought on Njal and what he was bringing on the land. 
 And he sent a messenger to Kari's people, saying, ' I have 
 sinned against you all ; but I will make atonement. 
 Choose whom you will to utter an award and I will abide 
 by it. Only let not the land be divided against itself for 
 my fault.' 
 
 So the matter was left to twelve chief men, and Snorri 
 the Priest delivered their award. Triple fines were to be 
 paid for Njal, and double fines for Berglhora and Grrim 
 and Helgi. Skarp-hedinn's death was to be set over 
 against that of Hauskuld, Priest of White-ness ; and single 
 fines were awarded for all others which had been burnt in 
 the house. The slayings in the affray at the Thing were 
 to be set one against another, and that which was over 
 and above on either side was to be paid in money. Tlie 
 Burners were all to go away into banishment or be pro- 
 claimed outlaws, and Flosi was besides to make a pilgrim- 
 age to Kome. 
 
 Flosi heard the award and was content ; and he would 
 not so much as put a price upon the wounds which he had 
 got in the affray. 
 
 So the settlement was made, and it was well kept after- 
 wards. Flosi sailed away and came to Eome, where he 
 abode a long while, doing penance and getting his soid in 
 health. As for the Burners, some failed to go abroad, 
 
 c c 2
 
 388 Tales of the Te7itonic Lands, 
 
 and being thereby outlawed Kari and Njal's kinsmen 
 hunted them down and slew them ; moreover they tracked 
 the Burners into other lands and hunted them there. Of 
 the rest, some fell in battle in far countries, and many 
 more were overtaken by ill-haps on sea and land ; so that 
 scarce a man of them came to die in his bed. 
 
 Years afterwards, when Flosi had fulfilled the time of his 
 banishment and had paid all the fines and gotten absolution 
 from the Pope's own hand, he came back to Iceland and 
 dwelt at his farmstead in Swinefell. He was waxed 
 graver and gentler than his wont and seldom spake much. 
 Kari still went about hunting the Burners, giving them 
 no rest. Yet when Flosi heard of the deaths of any of 
 them he would go forth peaceably, and, seeking out their 
 bodies, would bestow much money on their funerals, so 
 that prayers and masses might be offered up ; but none 
 ever heard him utter a wrathful word against Kari. 
 Nevertheless for all this Kari thought that he had not taken 
 vengeance enough. 
 
 But it fell out once when Kari was out at sea that a 
 storm drave his vessel against the rocks off Swinefell. Kari 
 and his men saved notliiug but their lives ; and when they 
 had swum ashore the storm raged wilder. Then they 
 said one to another, ' What shall we now do for food and 
 shelter, for we are on Flosi's land and have no weapons ? ' 
 And Kari said, ' This will we do ; we will go up to 
 Swinefell and put Flosi's manhood to the proof.' So they 
 went up, drenched as they were and with scarce a rag upon 
 their backs, and stood at Flosi's door. And when Flosi 
 beheld Kari he knew him immediately and brought him 
 in and kissed him. With his own hands he took off 
 Karl's rags and clothed liim in the best raiment that he 
 had, and sate him on the high seat by his side. 
 
 So Kari and Flosi were made fi'iends, and the Burning 
 was atoned. And in aftertime when Kari's wife Helga 
 died, he wedded Flosi's niece Hildegunna, who was 
 beforetime the wife of Hauskuld Priest of White-ness.
 
 INDEX. 
 
 ACHILLEUS, 23 
 Adonis, 18 
 JEgiT, 222 
 ^sir, 213 
 ^thelred, 332 
 Agamemnon, 4 
 Agnar, 52 
 Agni. 3, U 
 Ahi, 16 
 Alberichthe Dwarf,81, 91, 109; see 
 
 Audvari 
 Aldis, 247, 262,316 
 Aldrian, 115 
 Alf, 41, 69 
 Ali, 276 
 Allfather, 211 
 Alphar, I3i ei seq. 
 Alswid, 54 
 Amphion, 26 
 
 Andrari, 21, 28, 46; see Alberich 
 Angantyr, 228 
 Angurvadel 221 e^ scq. 
 Antziiis, 156 
 Arnbiorn, 259 
 Arnor, 279 
 Arthur, 2 
 Asdahag, 5 
 Asgard, 212 
 Asklepios, 18 
 Asmund, 247 
 Asterodia, 3 
 Astolat, Maid of, 1 
 Astyages, 5, 22 
 Atli, 22, 69 
 
 — the Viking, 230 
 
 — son of Osmund, 247 
 Attila, 9 
 
 Audun. 252 
 Aurentil, 26 
 Azidahaka, 5 
 
 BALDUR, 23, 28, 211 
 Balin, 1 
 Balmung, 80 ei seq., 120 
 Bekkhild, 54 
 Bele, 210 e( seq. 
 Berchtung of Meran, 156 ei scq. 
 Bergthora, 346 
 Bessi, 260 
 Bikki, 76 
 
 Biorn, slain by Grettir, 259 
 Bjorn, 225 
 Bleda, 10 
 Blodel, 123 
 Biudi, 10 
 Boots. 27, 28 
 Borghild, 39 
 Branstock, 32 
 Bredi, 31 
 Breidabliek, 212 
 Briar-rose, 16 
 Brjnhild, 21, 52 ef seq. 
 ■ — of the Nibelungeulied, 86 et scq. 
 Budli, 10, 59 
 Burnt Njal, 28 
 Busil-tarn, 45 
 
 CASTLE Balian, 174 
 Children, the faUl, 12 
 Cinderella, 27 
 Cloud-cloak, the, 88 «< seq. 
 Conall Gulban, 3 
 Crosslet. the red, 102 
 Cnut, 337 
 Cyrus, 3, 26, 30 
 
 D 
 
 AG, 42 
 Dame 
 Kirtle, 3 
 
 of the Tine Greea
 
 390 
 
 Index. 
 
 Danae, 25 
 Dankwart, 79, 86 
 Demophoon, 23 
 Dietrich, 118, 130 
 Dionysos, The -womanly, 25 
 Disir, 48 
 Disirsaal, 219 
 Drogo, 147 
 Dropnir, 216 
 Diimmling, 29 
 Dwarfs, 20 
 
 ECKEFEIT, 145 
 Eckewart, 113 
 Einar, 273 
 Elaine, 2 
 
 Ellide, 28, 222 et seq. 
 Endymion, 3 
 Eric of Norway, 254, 332 
 Erp, 22, 76 
 
 Etzel, 9, 24, 111 fi" seq., 133 et seq. 
 Eumenidcs, 17 
 Eyjolf, 386 
 Eylimi, 40 
 
 FAFNIE, 20, 45 et seq. 
 Eeng, 48 
 Eenrir, 1.54, 213 
 Fiolnir, 48 
 Elosi, 369 
 Eramniis, 220, 232 
 Frigga, 211, 238 
 Erithiof, 27, 210 fi seq. 
 
 — the Exile, 28 
 
 — treasures of, 221 
 
 — the Madman, 233 
 
 — the Beggar, 236 
 Ereya, 13, 31, 211 
 Ereyr, 237 
 Erute, 174 
 
 GALAHAD, 2 
 Gamelo of Mctz, 142 
 Ganymedes, 26 
 Ganzblick, 177 
 Gareth, 1 
 Geir, 353 
 Gelfrat, 116 
 Gerlinda, 27, 193 et seq. 
 
 Gemot, 79, 82, 107 
 
 Gerwich, 146 
 
 Giaflaiig, 66 
 
 Gibicho, 24, 133 
 
 Gimo, 144 
 
 Giuki, 55 
 
 Giukings, slaiighter of the, 72 
 
 Giselher, 79, 85, 107 
 
 Gisli, 290 
 
 Gizur the white, 353 
 
 Glam, 262 
 
 Glasir, 215 
 
 Glaiike, 22 
 
 Glaukos, 17 
 
 GlaumTor, 71 
 
 Glistening Heath, 45 
 
 Gonse-girl, the, 27 
 
 Gotelind, 117 
 
 Gram, 14, 41 
 
 Grani, 24, 45 tt seq., 59 
 
 Grani, Gunnar's son, 358 
 
 Granmar, 42 
 
 Grettir, 28, 247 et seq. 
 
 Grim Thorhallson, 279 
 
 — the Outlaw. 286, 293 
 
 — son of Njal, 346 
 Grimhild, 55 
 Gripir, 47 
 Gudbiorg, 269 
 Gudrun, 21, 65 et s(q. 
 
 — daughter of Hettel, 26, 180 ct 
 seq. 
 
 Guenevere, 1 
 Guest, 295, 302 
 GuUrond, 67 
 Gunnar, 22, 23, 55 
 
 — brother of Biorn, 260 
 
 — of Lithend, 347 
 Gundiear, 11 
 Gunnlaug, 28, 325 
 Gunther, 11, 23, 24, 79 et seq. 
 
 — son of Siegfried, 98 
 
 — son of Gibicho, 133 ct seq. 
 Guttorm, 55 
 
 Gyrid, 273 
 
 HACON, 363 
 Hadawart, 145 
 Hpering, 306 
 Haflidi, 250 
 
 Hagan, 79 et seq. 134 et seq. 
 Hagbard, 56
 
 Index. 
 
 391 
 
 Hagen, 23 
 
 — aud the Griffins, 26, 167 
 
 Hahnir, 20, 46 
 
 Haki, 56 
 
 Halfdan, 19, 44 
 
 Halftlan, son of Bele, 218 cf seq^. 
 
 Hallfred, 338 
 
 Hallgerda, 347 
 
 Hallgrim, 354 
 
 Hallmund, 290 
 
 Ham, 230 
 
 Hamdir, 22, 76 
 
 Hamlet, 26 
 
 Hamund, 39 
 
 Harald, 337 
 
 Harald Fair-hair, 346 
 
 Harpagos, 22 
 
 Hartmuth, 26, 180 et seq. 
 
 Haunter of Shady-vale, 264 
 
 Healers, the, 25 
 
 Haiiskuld, 34", 367 
 
 Heideger, 158 
 
 Heimir, 53 
 
 Hel, 78, 212 
 
 Helche, 24, 111, 134 et seq. 
 
 Helen, 3 
 
 Helfrieh, 129 
 
 Helga, 28, 325 et seq. 
 
 Helgi Hundingsbane, 18, 39, 41 ci! 
 
 seq. 
 Heigi, son of Eele, 218 ef seq. 
 Helgi, the Scathe of Hadding, 19, 
 
 44 
 Helgi, Njal's son, 346 
 Helgi Sagas, 1 
 Helm-Gunnar, 52 
 Helmnot, 129, 147 
 Heming, 337 
 Hephaistos, 3, 20 
 Herborg, 66 
 Herrich, 133 
 Heregard, 193 et seq. 
 Hermes, Eod of, 21 
 Herwig, 26, 181 et seq. 
 Hettel, 26, 175 
 Heyd, 230 
 Hialti, 300 
 Hiarandi, 259 
 Hilda, 26, 154 
 Hilda, daughter of Hagen of Ireland, 
 
 173 et seq. 
 Hildebrand, 129 
 
 Hildeburg, 157 et seq. 
 
 Hildegund, 24, 134 et seq. 
 
 Hildegunna, 369 
 
 Hilding, 210 et seq. 
 
 Hindfell, 31 
 
 Hjalti, 73 
 
 Hjalprek, 41 
 
 Hjarrandi, 26 
 
 Hjordis, 40, 47 
 
 Hlymdale, 53 
 
 Hnikar, 48 
 
 Hoard, the Golden. 24, 109, 139 
 
 Hodbrod, 42 
 
 Hoder, 215, 244 
 
 Hogni, 22, 00 
 
 Horant, 26, 174, 177 
 
 Horselberg, 3 
 
 Hrapp, 363 
 
 Hreidmar, 45 
 
 Hrimthursar, 20 
 
 Hrimnir, 32 
 
 Hrut, 347 
 
 Hugdietrich, 25, 156 et seq. 
 
 Huginn, 212 
 
 Hunding, 41 
 
 Hungerd, 339 
 
 Hunold, 79 
 
 I LION, -n-ar cf, 3, 6 
 lUugi, 262 et seq. 
 — the Black, 328 
 lokaste, 12, 17 
 Isenstein, 87 
 Isolte, 1 
 Issland, 86 
 
 JOFEID, 326 
 Jokul, 251 
 Jonakr 22, 76 
 Jormunrek, 22, 76 
 
 KARA, 19, 44 
 Kari, 363 
 Karl the Great, 5 
 Karr the Old, 252 
 Keingala, 247 
 
 Knight of the lU-shapen Coat, 1 
 Kolskegg, 355 
 Kormak, 269 
 Kostbera, 71
 
 592 
 
 Index. 
 
 Kriemhild, 23, 79 d seq. 
 Kronos, 15 
 
 LASIPETIE. 2 
 Lancelot, 1 
 Lenore, Burger's, 19 
 Liebgart, 157 
 Ljod, 32 
 
 Loki, 29, 46, 213 
 Ludegast, 83, 100 
 Ludeger, 83, 100 
 Ludwig, 27, 180, 20+, 
 Lj'kanthropy, 15, 36 
 Lyngi, 41 
 
 MACDUFF, 14 
 Madness of Frithiof, 28 
 Madness of Lancelot, 28 
 
 — Tristram, 28 
 Malcolm, 351 
 Maruts, the, 23 
 Matalan Castle, 184, 208 
 Medeia, 3, 18 
 Memnon, 18 
 Menelaos, 4 
 
 Mimir, well of, 25, 154 
 
 Mistletoe, the fatal, 214 
 
 Mord, 352 
 
 Morung, 173 
 
 Mythology and Morality, 17 
 
 Myths, recurrent, 1, 19 
 
 — Aryan, 2 
 
 — historical elements in, 8, &e. 
 
 — solar, 1 1 
 
 — classification of, 28 
 Muniun, 212 
 
 NAJMES, historical, in mythical 
 traditions, 7 et seq. 
 Nana, 13, 212 
 Nastrond, 240 
 Nibelungs, Story of the, 7, 79 et 
 
 seq., 133 ei seq. 
 Niblung, 75 
 Niflheim, 240 
 Nidhoggr, 213 
 Njal, 28, 346 et seq. 
 Noise, 300 
 Norns, 145, 213 
 
 ODENWALD, 102 
 Odin, 42, 211 
 Odin, treasures of, 20 
 Oidipous, 12, 17 
 Oinone, 25 
 
 Olaf, Saint, 269, 334, 370 
 Oliver Cromwell, 4 
 Onund Sjoni, 330 
 Onund Treefoot, 269 
 Onund of Mossfell, 329 
 Orendil, 26 
 Ortlieb, 114, 124 
 Orpheus, 26 
 Ortrun, 189 et seq. 
 Ortwin, 183, 200 
 Ortwine, 79, 154 
 Ospirin, 24 
 Otkell, 351 
 Otter's skin, the, 20, 46 
 
 PAN, 26 
 Panch Phul Eanee, 17 
 Pandaros, 144 
 Patafrit, 145 
 Phaethousa, 2 
 Phaiakian ships, 28 
 Poljndos, 17 
 Python, 20 
 
 pAFN, 329 
 
 Xt Ragnar-Lodbrog, 22 
 
 Ran, 46, 238 
 
 Randolf, 146 
 
 Randver, 76 
 
 Rannveig, 355 
 
 Rapunzel, 25 
 
 Redbeard, 287 
 
 Regin, 3, 20, 44 et seq. 
 
 Reidmar, 20, 45 
 
 Rerir, 13, 31 
 
 Ring, King, 224 et seq. 
 
 Ring, the mystic, 21, 46, 60 
 
 Ringhorne, 216 
 
 Romulus. 26 
 
 Roncesvalies, Battle of, 5 
 
 Rose of the Alhambra, 25 
 
 Rota, 239 
 
 Rudeger, 111 
 
 Rumold, 79 
 
 Eustem, 23
 
 Index, 
 
 393 
 
 SALGOFNIR, 44 
 Sara, 359 
 Sarama, 2 
 Sarpedoii. 18 
 Saurli, 22, 76 
 Savitar, 25 
 
 Scarborough Castle, legend of, 4 
 Schilbung, 80 
 Scliwemmelein, 114 
 Serpent, the life-giving, 17 
 Ship of Baldur, 216 
 Siegbert, 11 
 Siegfried, son of Gunther, 95 
 
 — 23, 80 et seq. 
 
 — the Horned, 81 
 
 — of the Moorland, 261, 80, ei sccj. 
 Sieglind, 80 
 
 Siegmund, 80 et seq. 
 
 Si gar, 56 
 
 Sigeband, 167 
 
 Siggeir, 14, 32 et seq. 
 
 Sigi, 31 
 
 vSigmund, 14, 32 
 
 Signy, 15 e;; seq., 32 et seq. 
 
 Sigrun, 18, 42 et seq. 
 
 Sigtrygg, 334 
 
 Sigurd, 6, 21, 44 e^ seq. 
 
 — Bisliop, 278 
 
 — of Micklegarth, 318 et seq. 
 Sindold, 83 
 
 Sinfiotli, 17 et seq., 36 tt seq. 
 
 Skaid-Torfa, 260 
 
 Skamkell. 351 
 
 Skapti, 262 et seq., 336, 387 
 
 Skaramund, 144 
 
 Skarp-hedinn, 346 
 
 Skeggi, 249 
 
 Slaughter, Hall of, 125 
 
 Sleipnir, 45, 212 
 
 Snake-leaves, the, 17. 37 
 
 Snakes in Mythology, 16 
 
 Snorri. 298 
 
 Sote, 221 
 
 Spes, Z18 et seq. 
 
 Stein, 295, 307 
 
 Steinar, 330 
 
 Steinvor, 295 
 
 Surya Bai. 21 
 
 Snoekoll, 273 
 
 Sverting, 339 
 
 Swanhild, 22, 76 
 
 Swan-maidens, 115 
 
 Swein, 259, 278, 332 
 
 TAMMUZ, 19 
 Tanhaiiser, 3 
 Tannenast, 147 
 Tarnkappe, see Cloud Cloak 
 Telephos, 26 
 Thiostolf, 348 
 Thomas of Ercildoiine, 3 
 Thor, 216 
 Thorbiorg, 285 
 Thorbiorn Oxmain, 269 
 
 — Angle, 300 
 
 — the Tardy, 269 
 Thord, 338 
 
 Thorfinn of Haramsey, 252 
 
 Thorgaut, 265 ', 
 
 Thorgeir, 280 
 
 Thorgerd, 327 
 
 Thorgils, 280 
 
 Thorgrim, 330 
 
 Thorhall, 262 
 
 Thorhall, the Lawman. 376 
 
 Thorhalla, 348 
 
 Thorir of the Pass, 275 
 
 Thorir the Berserk, 255 
 
 Thorkel, 249, 256 
 
 Thorinod, 281 
 
 Thorod, 298 
 
 Thorod Drapna-stump, 280 
 
 Thororm, 333 
 
 Thorstein Dromond, 260, 316 
 
 Thorstein Kuggson, 220 
 
 Thorsten, 210 et seq. 
 
 — Egilson, 325 
 Thrain, 361 
 Thurid, 308 
 Tjorvi, 368 
 
 Traditions, classification of popular, 
 
 29 
 Treasure, the Lost, 24, 131, 139 
 
 — of Fafiiir, the. 50 
 
 — of Frithiof, 221 
 Tristram, 1 
 Trolls, 217 
 
 Tyr, 25 
 
 UESULA, 3 
 Ushas, 2, 23 
 Uta, 79, 115 
 
 — wife of Sigeband, 173 
 
 VALGARD, 371 
 Valhalla, 213
 
 394 
 
 Index. 
 
 Vermund, 285 
 Vingi, 70 
 Vishnu, 21 
 Volker, 79, 83 
 Volsung, 6, 13, 32 
 Volsunga Saga, 6 
 Vritra, 16 
 
 WAINA3I0INEN, 26 
 Walgimd, 157 
 Walter of Aquitaine, 24, 133 et seq. 
 Wasclienstein, 145 
 ■\Vate, 174 e< scq. 
 Wayland. 3, 21, 147, 221 
 Werbel, 114, 124 
 Werinhard, 144 
 Windhelm. Bridge of, 44 
 Wishing Eod, the Golden, 110 
 Wolf and Seven Kids, 15 
 Wolf, the She, 34 
 
 Wolfbrand, 129 
 Wolfdietrich. 26, 163 
 Wolf hart, 129 
 Wolfwine, 129 
 Wolves of Odin, 212 
 Woden, Odin, 25, 154 
 Worms in Mythology, 16, 36 
 Wulpensand, 186, 194 
 
 yANTEN, Castle of, 80 
 
 TGGDRASIL, 14, 147 
 Yrolt, 174 
 Ynmala, 245 
 
 ZAGREOS, 19 
 Zio, 25, 164 
 Zohak, 5 
 
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