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diff --git a/old/69907-0.txt b/old/69907-0.txt deleted file mode 100644 index ff8bbcd..0000000 --- a/old/69907-0.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,2241 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg eBook of A Viking's love, by Ottilie A. -Liljencrantz - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and -most other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions -whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms -of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at -www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you -will have to check the laws of the country where you are located before -using this eBook. - -Title: A Viking's love - and other tales of the North - -Author: Ottilie A. Liljencrantz - -Release Date: January 30, 2023 [eBook #69907] - -Language: English - -Produced by: Richard Tonsing and the Online Distributed Proofreading - Team at https://www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from - images generously made available by The Internet Archive) - -*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK A VIKING'S LOVE *** - - - - - - A VIKING’S LOVE - - - List of Published Books - - By OTTILIE A. LILJENCRANTZ - - THE SCRAPE THAT JACK BUILT - Chicago: A. C. McClurg & Co. - 1896 - - THE THRALL OF LEIF THE LUCKY - Chicago: A. C. McClurg & Co. - 1902 - - THE WARD OF KING CANUTE - Chicago: A. C. McClurg & Co. - 1903 - - THE VINLAND CHAMPIONS - New York: D. Appleton & Co. 1904 - - RANDVAR THE SONGSMITH - New York: Harper & Brothers. - 1906 - - Also: Various Magazine Stories and - Articles published in later - years - -[Illustration: - - _Drawn by Arthur E. Becher._ - - “_Schooling her how she must put him from her heart and forget him._” -] - - - - - A VIKING’S LOVE - AND OTHER - TALES of the NORTH - - - BY OTTILIE A LILJENCRANTZ - -[Illustration] - - CHICAGO - A C M^cCLURG & CO - 1911 - - - - - Copyright 1911 - A. C. McClurg & Co. - Published October, 1911 - - - The Caslon Press - Chicago - - - - - CONTENTS - - - Page - I A Viking’s Love 13 - II The Hostage 29 - III As The Norns Weave 41 - IV How Thor Recovered His Hammer 63 - -[Illustration] - - - - - OTTILIE A. LILJENCRANTZ - - -Ottilie A. Liljencrantz was born in Chicago in 1876, the daughter of -Gustave A. M. and Adeline C. Liljencrantz. On her mother’s side, she was -a descendant of the Puritans; on her father’s she could trace her -lineage from Laurentius Petrie, an Archbishop in Upsala, a disciple of -Martin Luther, and a translator of the Bible in the sixteenth century. -The first ancestor to bear the family name was Count Johan Liljencrantz, -Councillor of State and Minister of Finance, who was ennobled for his -valuable services to the Kingdom during the reign of Gustavus III. - -She received her education at Dearborn Seminary in Chicago, graduating -in 1903. While her health did not admit of a college course, she took a -post-graduate course in literature and was always a persistent student -in that line. She showed a marked literary taste at an early age. “I was -brought up,” she said, “on Longfellow and Bret Harte, as well as on the -myths and sagas of the North, and wrote my first story at the age of -seven, a tragic love story, which was a great deal funnier than anything -I have ever written since.” - -While yet a school-girl, she wrote a number of plays for amateur -theatricals, and some short stories. Her first book, “The Scrape that -Jack Built,” was published in 1896, but the tales of the North, with the -daring exploits of its Heroes, were alluring, and she made a thorough -and exhaustive study of Northern literature—Paul Du Chaillu’s “The -Viking Age,” “Frithiof’s Saga,” Rasmus B. Anderson’s introduction to -Norse Mythology, and nearly forty other works of the same character. -Among these should be specially mentioned “Havamal,” which comprises the -sayings of Odin and is regarded as the laws of the Vikings, and from -which quotations appear at every chapter in her two great historical -novels, “The Thrall of Leif the Lucky” and “The Ward of King Canute.” - -Her writings are all morally wholesome, for both the virtues and the -vices of her Viking heroes are those of their own times. In the eyes of -a Viking, the slaughter of an enemy was not a crime, but a noble and -righteous deed; and on the other hand, he would cheerfully lay down his -life for a friend. - -Ottilie A. Liljencrantz had a most charming personality, and she was an -honored member of “The Little Room,” “The Chicago Woman’s Club,” and of -the “Lyceum Club” of London. - -She died in Chicago on the seventh of October, 1910. - - - - - A VIKING’S LOVE - - -It was long ago, when the world was so young that peace meant little -more than a breathing spell between battles. At the Royal Farm of -Augvaldsnes, in Norway, King Olaf Haraldsson sat at an Easter feast with -his men. - -Right and left on either hand the long tables stretched away, cleared of -all their bounty, save two lines of brimming ale-horns. Down the middle -of the hall fires burned brightly, flushing the delicate faces of the -women on the cross-benches, sending the golden light higher—higher—until -every shield upon the tapestried wall flashed back an answer. Overhead, -through the smoke-holes between the sooty rafters, shone the still white -stars. - -“So, it may be, the eyes of angels look down upon our earthly pastimes,” -King Olaf said thoughtfully, and his stern face softened with the -satisfaction he had in a scene of such orderly good cheer. Rolling his -ale on his tongue, he settled himself to listen to a man who had just -risen from a place on the left of the high-seat. - -Thorer Sel was the man’s name, and he was the bailiff that had this -royal farm of Augvaldsnes under his management. As he stood now, a showy -figure in the firelight, he would have been good to look at if his eyes -had not been shifty and his mouth coarsely overbearing. He smiled -jeeringly at the man who had addressed him. - -“So you want to know what took place between me and your friend, Sigurd -Asbiornsson, do you?” he asked. - -“If you will,” the man on the bench answered. “I was away on a Viking -voyage last summer when it happened.” - -Next above this man on the bench sat a tall, broad-shouldered young -fellow with a frank, comely face and the air of one amiably used to -having his own way. He was the son of King Olaf’s most powerful vassal, -and his name was Erling Erlingsson. Now suddenly he, too, spoke up. - -“I, also, would like to hear that story. If it is true, as I have heard -it, then are you the only man in the world who has ever made Sigurd -Asbiornsson bow his neck.” - -Thorer Sel threw him a glance over his shoulder. - -“I forgot that it would not sit comfortably in your ears,” he said. “It -had slipped my mind that the Halogalander is your kinsman.” - -“Kinsman or not, I like to see justice done to men of courage,” young -Erlingsson answered. “I say, in the presence of everybody, that Sigurd -Asbiornsson is one of the bravest men that ever drew sword or breath.” - -“The story will show,” Thorer Sel said mockingly, and began forthwith. - -“To start at the beginning, Sigurd Asbiornsson is the man who came down -here from the north and bought corn and malt to carry home for the -entertaining of his friends, though it was well known to him that -because of the bad seasons, King Olaf had forbidden that any meal should -be carried out of the south of the country. Dauntless as I am wont, I -went down where he had put in under the island for the night and -stripped him of his cargo and his fine embroidered sail, and drove him -home in disgrace—all in the manner which I will truthfully relate.” - -“I have seen that you have his sail in your possession,” Erling said -slowly, “but only he could convince me that you got it without a trick, -if you got it against his will.” - -That was not a bad guess, since the only cause to which the bailiff owed -his success was his forethought in providing himself with sixty men, as -against Sigurd Asbiornsson’s twenty, and in falling upon him at the -moment when he and his crew were dressing after a morning swim and stood -utterly defenseless against attack. But a guess is only a guess—and no -one stood up to confirm it. - -“The story will show,” sneered Thorer Sel, and proceeded to tell it at -great length, with less and less regard for the truth. - -He drew it out so long that many of the feasters tired of him and began -talking among themselves; but four people continued to listen -attentively. One was the Viking who had asked for the tale. Another was -Erling, ominously fingering his sword-hilt. A third was a young girl -sitting among the matrons on the cross-bench—a beautiful girl who bore -her small fair head with brave dignity. The fourth was a strange man in -poor attire who had come in unnoticed among the servants that were -fetching fresh supplies of ale. - -The stranger listened the most keenly of all—it almost seemed as if the -bailiff might have left him hanging on the words. Step by step, he was -drawn forward until only a space of bare table lay between him and the -storyteller. - -He was a tall man, with a mighty girth of chest and limb. For all that -he wore a shabby hat and held a hayfork in his hand, he did not carry -himself like a churl. As he moved from the shadow of the last pillar -into the firelight, the girl on the cross-bench stifled an exclamation, -and her cheeks went white as the linen before her. - -“Astrid, my friend, what ails you?” the housewife beside her asked -kindly. - -A woman on the matron’s other side admonished her with a nudge. - -“Have you forgot,” she whispered, “that Asbiornsson wooed her before her -father married her to Hall the Wealthy? Naturally she would be troubled -at hearing him ill-spoken of.” - -Then both forgot her and their gossip and all else. - -“How did Sigurd behave when you unloaded his vessel?” the Viking had -just inquired. - -And the bailiff had answered brazenly: “When we were discharging the -cargo, he bore it tolerably, though not well; but when we took the sail -from him, he wept.” - -They were the last words Thorer Sel spoke on earth. While they were -still on his lips, the stranger cleared the table at a bound. There was -a flaming of warrior-scarlet from under homespun gray, a hiss of steel, -the sound of a blow—and then the whole room seemed turning scarlet, and -the head of Thorer Sel rolled on the table before the king. - -“Sigurd!” the girl on the cross-bench cried piercingly. - -“Sigurd!” shouted young Erlingsson, leaping to his feet. - -After that, it was hard to tell what any one said. Pushing forward in -obedience to an awful gesture from King Olaf, guards laid hold of Sigurd -Asbiornsson and hurried him from the hall, and thralls came running with -towels and water and a board. While some took up what lay heavily among -the reeds of the floor, others spread fresh linen, and still others -removed the bespattered mantle from the king’s shoulders. Only in one -thing they all acted alike—no man raised his eyes to the king’s furious -face. - -Of a different mettle was Erling Erlingsson. Coming back from the door -through which the guards had led his friend, he came straight up to the -high-seat. - -“Lord,” he said, “I will pay the blood-money for your bailiff, so that -my kinsman may retain life and limbs. All the rest do according to your -pleasure.” - -King Olaf’s voice was very low. It was his way when his rage was -highest. - -“Is it not a matter of death, Erling, when a man breaks the Easter -peace, and breaks it in the king’s lodgings, and makes the king’s feet -his execution-block? Though it may well be that it seems a small matter -to you and your father!” His teeth showed through his quietness. - -Erling tried his unpractised tongue at entreaty. - -“The deed is ill-done, Lord, in so far as it displeases you, though -otherwise done excellently well. But though it is so much against your -will, yet may I not expect something for my services to you?” - -After a little, King Olaf said: - -“You have made me greatly indebted to you, Erling, but even for your -sake I will not break the law nor cast aside my own dignity.” - -By a gesture he forbade a reply, and spoke on, asking what had been done -with the murderer. - -“He sits in irons, upon the doorstep, with his guard,” Erling said, -heavily. - -Then he roused himself to ask one thing which he thought might not be -denied him. - -“Lord, it is a year since I have seen him, and we have been -blood-brothers since we were children. Give him into my charge this one -night, and I will answer for him in the morning.” - -After a long time, King Olaf said grimly: - -“It is true that to hang a man after sunset is called murder. Take him, -then, for the rest of the night. But know for certain that your own life -shall pay for it if he escape in any way.” - -“It must be as you will,” Erling answered, and went out of the -feasting-hall that but a short while before had seemed to him a place of -such good cheer. - -Upon the doorstep, ironed hand and foot, Sigurd Asbiornsson sat -listening quietly to the excited expostulations of his guard. Now that -the broad-brimmed hat had fallen off, it could be seen that there was -nothing blood-thirsty in his handsome sun-browned face. Strong-willed -and proud and hard, it might be, and yet in some delicate curve of his -mouth, some light of his fine gray eyes, lay that which won him, -unsought, women’s trust and men’s love. He looked up with a smile to -meet Erling’s troubled gaze. - -“Why take your failure so much to heart, comrade?” he remonstrated. “I -came prepared to pay Olaf’s price. Stay here by me that we may at least -have to-night together, for I suppose he thinks too much of his -wonderful laws to hang me before sunrise.” - -Nodding, Erling turned and spoke to one of the guards, who caught up a -hammer and commenced knocking the chains off the prisoner’s limbs with -far greater alacrity than he had shown in putting them on. - -“What is the meaning of that?” Sigurd asked in surprise. - -“Olaf has given you into my charge until morning,” Erling explained -briefly. - -For as long as the space between one breath and the next, the prisoner -grew tense and alert. - -“What pledge did you give for my safety?” he asked quickly. - -Less quickly, Erling answered: “My own life.” - -The half-formed hope faded. Sigurd’s mighty frame relaxed. - -“I give you thanks,” he said, and no more was spoken on the subject. - -One by one, the guards drifted back to the ale-horns, and the friends -were left alone in the starlit silence of the courtyard. Suddenly, -Erling laid hold of the great shoulders before him and shook him -fiercely, while at the same time his fingers clung to them in a caress. - -“You madman!” he burst out. “Could you not guess that I was going to -kill him for you? Olaf dare not slay me—a fine would be the uttermost. -What fiend possessed you! Did you imagine Olaf loved you because you had -always defied his laws? You madman! Did you not know that I would do it -for you?” - -“Would that have rubbed out my disgrace, if you had done it for me?” -Sigurd asked quietly. - -He laid his hands on the other’s shoulders, and they stood breast to -breast and eye to eye. - -“Come, come, kinsman, these are useless words; why waste breath on them? -If you knew how Thorer Sel spoke to me that morning—spoke to me before -my men!—and how the tale spread northward until churls that had never -dared sneer behind my back before, taunted me to my face! No, no, it was -the only way to do it, boldly and openly, with every one looking on. Now -I shall leave a clean name behind me. What more could I do if I lived to -be a hundred?” - -Erling was silent; only, his hands that rested on his friend’s shoulders -gripped and held them so that marks were left on the flesh, and the two -men remained looking into each other’s eyes until a mist came between. - -Then, without speaking, they freed each other; and Sigurd said quickly: - -“One more thing lies on me to do. Will you help me?” - -“I trust there is killing in it,” Erling said through his teeth. - -“It is to get a message to Astrid, Gudbrand’s daughter,” Sigurd replied. - -Erling cried out in amazement: “The wife of Hall the Wealthy!” - -“Hall the Wealthy has been dead two seasons.” - -But Erling exclaimed again: “Gudbrand’s daughter! Of whom you could not -speak bitter words enough—even though you knew they would reach her -ear!” - -“I spoke unfairly,” Sigurd said, flushing. “She sent me a token that I -did not receive—I cannot tell you more. I do not ask now that she should -stoop to see me herself, but if she would send some woman who has her -confidence—if I could speak my message to her with the certainty that it -would come truthfully to Astrid’s ear——” His dark face flushed redder -and redder in the moonlight, and he did not turn away to hide it. “It is -the greatest service you could render me, kinsman,” he finished. - -Stifling an impatient breath, Erling flung the end of his cloak over his -shoulder and turned. - -“The sooner the better, then—before they are gone to bed. Wait in the -herb-garden, yonder. It is the spot where you will be the least liable -to interruption.” - -Netted around with bare bushes and strewn underfoot with shriveled -leaves, the herb-garden lay in desolation. Yet even here the slender -sides of branches showed the swelling hopes of springtime. A thought -came to Sigurd of the budding trees at home, and the harvest he would -never reap; then he thrust it from him angrily, and strode up and down -the pathway, waiting. - -Three times the wind rustling through the bushes tricked him. But at -last there was the ring of spurs on gravel, and Erling came out of the -shadows, followed by a slender figure wrapped from head to foot in a -hooded cloak of blue. - -Trying to guess which one of Astrid’s women the silken folds hid, Sigurd -stood gazing at her silently. She halted before him without speaking; -but Erling said shortly: - -“You have little enough time. I was only able to manage it because -Gudbrand is still swilling drink in the hall. The instant I see his -torch-bearers, I shall call you.” - -He disappeared again into the gloom that lay between them and the gate. - -Unconsciously, Sigurd’s glance must have followed him, for when it came -back to the girl, she had answered the question in his mind. The blue -hood was thrown back, and the moon shone on a small fair head, upborne -with brave dignity, even while the lovely eyes and lips were tremulous. - -“Astrid!” he breathed. - -She returned his look with the grave steadiness that was a little -pathetic in so young a girl. - -“For the second time I have lowered the point of my pride to you,” she -said. “Are you going to make me sorry this time also?” - -He began to speak eagerly. It seemed that he would have caught her hands -if he had dared. - -“Astrid, I was not to blame! I beg you not to believe that I would -slight a token from you who have always sat highest in my heart. The -churl you gave your rune-ring to—he must have mislaid it, and then -feared to give it to me when he found it afterwards. Not until this -Spring, when he died and his relation came upon it among his things and -brought it to me, did I know that you had sent me a message of love -after your father refused to bargain with me. Because I was not in the -king’s service, Gudbrand was even disrespectful in his treatment of me. -And the next month, I heard that you had married Hall. And I had had no -farewell from you. What could I think but that you had held me lightly, -and lightly let me go? What else could I think?” - -“You could have remembered that I was helpless,” Astrid answered slowly. -“Could I wed you against my father’s will? Could I hold back from -marrying Hall, though he was in everything what I detested most?” - -She steadied her lip in her little white teeth. - -“You could have believed in me,” she said, “as I would have believed in -you. Three seasons we had spoken and feasted and ridden together, and -when had you ever found me changeable toward my friends, or greedy after -gold? You could have believed in me.” - -“I ought to have believed,” Sigurd said humbly. - -His face had grown white, as no man had ever seen it. Even when spurs -clanked on the path, he stood before her helplessly. - -“I ought to have believed,” was all he could say. - -Moving a step nearer, she laid her hands upon his breast and looked up -at him with a little flickering smile. - -“You would have believed—if you had loved me as I loved you,” she said. - -She touched her finger to his lips, as he would have cried out. - -“I do not think it is in your nature to feel much love for a woman, my -friend. If you had not loved your own way better than me, would you not -have entered the king’s service to win me, when only that lay between -us? Your land—your chiefship over your men—the freedom to do as you -pleased—all those you loved; and what was left over, you gave to me. It -was not very much, was it? Yet perhaps it does not matter, since I was -so glad to get it.” - -Though her eyes were misty with tears, she held up her mouth to him -bravely. - -“I give you thanks for telling me,” he whispered softly, when he had -kissed her. - -As Erling’s voice sounded urgently, she drew her hood over her head and -was gone. - -It was a soberly thoughtful man that was pacing the garden-paths when -Erling came back. They walked away the rest of the night in silence, -while the moon went on in darkness, and the gray dawn which is neither -light nor shadow spread coldly over the sky. - -It was this new expression which caught King Olaf’s eye, when he and his -outlaw faced each other again. - -With the first burst of morning sunshine, the king came out of the hall -on his way to mass, followed by the high-born people of his household. -Blinking laughingly in the dazzle, and drawing in great breaths of the -fresh sweet air, the retinue made an odd contrast to the other group -waiting on the doorstep—three swarthy thralls testing a coil of rope in -their hairy fists, and Sigurd Asbiornsson once more ironed and guarded. - -King Olaf stopped abruptly. - -“How is it that things which I dislike are always kept before my mind?” -he demanded. “Why was he not put to death at sunrise?” The guard -answered that the king had named no definite time, and they feared to -misunderstand his will. - -“I have seldom heard a poorer excuse,” King Olaf returned coldly. - -But he did not make his will clearer. He remained scrutinizing the -prisoner with a touch of uncertainty in his strongly marked brows. -Fearless, Sigurd Asbiornsson looked, as always, but for the first time -that something seemed gone from his boldness which had stirred the -king’s temper against him. - -Olaf smiled slowly as a test came to his mind. - -“To please your friends, Sigurd,” he said, “I will make you an offer -which you can do as you like about accepting. It is the law of the land -that a man who kills a servant of the king shall undertake that man’s -service, if the king will. Would you submit to that law, and undertake -the office of bailiff which Thorer Sel had, if I gave you life and -safety in return?” - -He gathered up his mantle to depart, as he concluded, so sure was he -that his offer would be rejected. Of all the throng, from Gudbrand’s -daughter to Erling, not one believed that it stood any chance of -acceptance. They almost ceased to breathe when—slowly—with a flaming -face and the stiffness of a pride that was cracking at the joints, -Sigurd Asbiornsson bent his head and kissed the king’s hand. - -Not to save his life could he have spoken. His power of speech did not -come back to him until the churchgoers had swept on across the court, -and he was left alone with Astrid in his arms. - -“Do you believe now that I love you?” he asked, raising her face between -his hands. - -Then it smote his heart that he should even seem to reproach her, and he -finished lightly: - -“What does it matter? We will make a jest of it between ourselves. Let -the world think me the king’s man—we know that I am yours!” - -[Illustration] - - - - - THE HOSTAGE - - -I seek to tell of a Danish hostage, called Valgard the Fair, that in his -youth was ceded to our great Alfred by the Danish king Guthrum when they -two made peace together in the year eight hundred and seventy-eight. - -From Denmark young Valgard came to England in the following of Ogmund -Monks-bane, who was his elder brother and Guthrum’s first war chief; and -though no warrior of more accursed memory than this same Ogmund ever fed -the ravens, it was known that toward his young brother alone of all -living things he showed a human heart. Wherefore those on whom it lay to -choose the hostages were swift to name the comely boy as the one pledge -that might clinch the Monks-bane’s shifty faith. And that nothing might -be lacking, they further fixed it in the bond what would be the fate of -Valgard and the eleven other hostages if they that gave them should -break any part of their oath; and it was this—that the discipline of the -Holy Church should take hold of them, and after that they should die a -shameful death. - -A snared and a savage man was Ogmund Monks-bane when they brought this -word to the tent of skins in which he laired; and it saddened him -besides that the boy Valgard strove to contend him, saying: - -“It will be no hindrance to you, kinsman. Never will you so much as -think of me when the battle-lust comes on you. And I shall bear it -well.” - -In our king’s will at London, therefore, young Valgard grew into man’s -estate and, contrary to his expectations, throve mightily, discovering a -rare aptitude for gentle accomplishments. And for that his heart was -noble as well as brave and he was as _débonaire_ as he was comely, the -king and the royal household came to love him exceeding well until—as -the years went by and the peace held—they scarcely remembered that he -might one day stand as a scapegoat for loathsomest crimes against them. - -Only Valgard himself never for the span of one candle’s burning forgot -it. Like poison at the bottom of a honeyed cup it lay behind every honor -he achieved. Yet even as he had promised his brother, he bore it well -and gallantly enough—until, in the sixth year of his captivity, it -fortuned to him to fall in love. - -She of whom he become enamoured was a young maid in the queen’s service, -whose rightful name was Adeleve but whom men called Little Nun both by -virtue of the celestial sweetness of her face and because of her being -but newly come from a cloister school. And in this cloister they had -taught her so much of heaven and so little of earth that whenso her -heart was taken by Valgard’s brave and _débonaire_ ways she knew neither -fear nor shame therein, but continued to demean herself with the lovely -straightforwardness of an angel or a child. Wherefore Valgard, who was -used to women that smiled at him from under heavy lids or drew full red -lips into rosebuds of enticement, might not dream that she felt more -than friendship. And since in her presence he was always silent and -humble as he had been before Our Blessed Lady herself, though elsewhere -light speeches sparkled on his lips as bubbles on the clear wine, he -wist not for a long time the true name of what he felt. - -But one day at that season of the year when the king’s household rode -often to hunt the wild boar in the woody groves that compassed London -round, it happened to Valgard to become separated from the rest and -stray alone through still and shadowy glades. There in the solitude, as -was ever his unhappy case, his gayety fell away and his forebodings -climbed up behind and went with him heavily. Riding thus, it chanced to -him to approach the spot where the queen and her maidens tarried and so -to come upon the Little Nun herself, that also rode apart, following a -brook which sang as it went. Then at last was he made aware of his love, -for suddenly it was neither a dislike of death nor any rebellious wish -to flee therefrom that possessed him, but solely the dread of being -parted from her, which so racked him that he was in very agony. - -Now as soon as ever Little Nun perceived that a great trouble was upon -him she spoke straight from her heart, though timidly as a child knowing -the narrowness of its power, and prayed him to say whether his distress -were aught which her love might assuage. When he heard her speak thus -sweetly and marked the angelic tenderness of her eyes under her little -dove-colored hood, lo! everything fell clean out of his mind before one -almighty longing. Descending from his horse, he took her hands and spoke -to her passionately, so: - -“Tell me whether you love me. My heart cries out for you with every -beat. Must it be as the voice of one calling into emptiness? Tell me -that you return my love and my life will be whole though it end -to-night.” - -The Little Nun’s face of cloistral paleness flushed deeply like an -alabaster vase into which is being poured the red wine of the sacrament, -but her crystalline eyes neither fell nor turned aside. - -“I love you as much as you love me—and more,” she answered softly. - -Whereupon he would have caught her in passionate arms, but that even as -he reached this pinnacle of bliss it came back to him how he was a -doomed man; and he was as one that is cast down from a height and -stunned by the fall. - -Anon his voice returned, and sinking to his knee he begged her in broken -words to forgive the wrong he had done her in gaining her love, that -well knew himself to be set aside for shame and dole and apart from the -favor of woman. - -To which the Little Nun listened as it might be one of God’s angels, -bending over the golden bar of Heaven, would listen to the wailing in -the Pit. And so soon as he paused she spoke with halting breath. - -“Alas, could anything so cruel happen? Ah, no! The peace has held six -years—the king believes it firm—and every night and morning I will pray -to Our Lady to change your brother’s heart.” - -As she said this, her face bloomed again with her hope. But Valgard only -bowed his head upon his hands and groaned; for that albeit he had faith -in the Virgin, he knew the nature of Ogmund Monks-bane. - -Soon after, constraining himself to hardness for her sake, he rose and -drew her away and continued to speak with the dulness of one in great -pain, schooling her how she must put him from her heart and forget him. - -But to that, when she had listened a while with widening eyes, the -Little Nun cried out piteously: - -“Alas! what then shall I do with my love? It came into being before you -called it—it cannot cease at your bidding. Oh, if it be God’s will that -we shall have a long life together, then God’s will be done, but make -not a thwarted useless thing out of the love which He has permitted me! -Let me give it to you. Even though it be too poor to ease you much, yet -let me give it! How else shall I find comfort?” - -Suddenly, as their eyes met, she stretched out her hands to him with a -little sobbing cry that was half piteous and half pitying. And so drew -him back, _malgre_ his will, until he had put his arms about her where -she sat in the saddle above him, when she gathered his head to her -breast and cherished it there, with little soft wordless sounds of -comforting. - -Thus, for that he was so well-nigh spent with struggling, he leaned a -while upon her love. And it heartened him. And he lifted his head, -thinking to set burning lips to her sweet mouth. - -But even as he thought to do this, something in himself or her checked -him, so that he kissed instead her small ministering hands. Wherefore -the Little Nun remained unstartled and blessedly trustful, and raising -her eyes to the blue heavens of which they seemed so much a part prayed -softly to Our Dear Lady to keep true the heart of Ogmund Monks-bane. - -The fourth morning after this, the queen’s maiden Adeleve was wedded to -Valgard the Hostage. And that day at noon did our benignant king and his -housewifely queen make a marriage feast for the young pair that both of -them held dear. A marriage feast, well-a-way! - -It happened to the sweet bride to come to it last and alone, for that -she had lingered above to pray once more to her on whom she fixed her -faith. Blissfully enough she began the descent of the stairs that cored -the massive wall; but ere she reached the foot, where a door gave upon -the king’s hall, dead was her joy. For this is what befell. - -First, a quavering shriek as of an aged woman stabbed by evil tidings; -and after that a deathlike stillness. Then the door opened and a girl -staggered forth up the stairs, her hands groping before her as her -staring eyes had been sightless, the while she moaned over and over the -name of her soldier lover. - -Though she knew not why, little Adeleve shrank from the groping hands -and crept by them down the stairs. Whither rose these words in a man’s -loud voice: - -“—but last week came a load of Danish pirates to the shore, reeking of -slaughter and gorged with Irish spoil. And every night thereafter a band -of them sat at drink with the Monks-bane, stirring his fighting lust, -until——” - -Here the voice was lost in the outburst of many voices, till it -overleapt them hoarsely to answer a question from the king. - -“The twoscore English soldiers I named to your grace; besides all the -nuns of Saint Helena’s that lie stark in their blood——” - -Then once again the tumult rose, which now there was no overleaping, and -the bride cowering against the wall saw how all heads turned toward him -who stood opposite the king in the mockery of gay feasting clothes. And -suddenly one called down Christ’s curse on the race of Ogmund -Monks-bane, and a second echoed the cry. Whereat the other Danish -hostages—to show that their hands were clean—took up the shout more -fierce than any, and smote Valgard so that he reeled under their fists. -And the aged woman whose son had been slain flung her cup of wine in his -face. - -Thereafter the young wife saw only the figure of her doomed lord upon -whom it seemed that the curses descended as a visible blight, withering -to ghastliness his fresh beauty and blasting his spirit so that he -shrank farther and farther from the damning looks and tongues till he -might no longer in any wise endure them, but calling in agony upon his -God strove with his hands to stop his sight and his hearing. And when -presently he became aware of the Little Nun approaching, he cried out to -know whether she also was come to curse him, and bent his arms around -his head as against a blow. - -But even as he did this, he met the anguished love in her eyes and saw -how she was laboring to make of her fragile self a buckler for him -against the press of crowding bodies; whereupon he caught hold of her -shoulder and held to her as a man sinking into Hell might hold to the -robe of an angel. Until brutal hands thrust her one way and dragged him -the other. - -Now the sentence was that he should die at sunrise, unto which time the -Church should have him to chasten. And this sentence our king might not -alter, for that he was called the Truth-teller and had sworn to take the -atonement of life for any breach of the faith. But this much he granted, -out of the pity and love he had toward the young pair, that they might -be together when the end drew near. And stranger than betrothal or -marriage feast was this vigil of their wedding night! - -Strange was all the world now to the Little Nun, since the arch of her -Heaven had fallen about her with the destruction of its keystone, which -was her faith in the Virgin. As the white dove of the Ark hovering over -a changed earth whereon it might see no familiar foothold, she hung -falteringly on the threshold of the king’s chapel, while the bells -tolled the midnight hour, gazing at the group of deathful men looming -amid blended smoke and starlight and torch-glare, at the pitiless -shining figure of Our Lady above the altar, at him who stood in grim -endurance before it, stripped to naked feet and a single garment of -horsehair. - -When Valgard felt her eyes and turned his set face toward her, she -fluttered to him as the dove to the Ark. But no longer to brood or -minister; only to cling to him in utter helpless woe of her helpless -love. And when it happened to her hand to touch his horsehair shirt -where it was wet with the blood of his atonement, she screamed sharply -and was like to go wild with weeping over him and lamenting that she -might not bear any of his punishment on her own soft flesh. It was he -that kneeling on the stones gathered her to his breast and cherished -her, speaking to comfort her such words of resignation as no priest’s -scourge had drawn from him with his life-blood. - -Lo! it was so that from the very helplessness of her love he drew his -best strength, that he no longer cared anything at all for his own woe -but only for lightening hers. When she cried out piteously that she must -always fear Christ’s Mother now her whole life long, and all the world -saving him alone, he spoke with tenderest artfulness, thus: - -“For my sake then, heart beloved of my heart! Be brave for my -sake—because your tears are the only part of my doom that is heavier -than I can bear.” - -Which was the one plea in all the world that had a meaning for her, so -that she tried obediently to choke down her sobs. - -Yet which was the easier to bear, her courage or her tears, it were hard -to say. When the time of parting came and she had suffered him to loosen -her clinging hands and fold them upon her breast and leave her, a little -white and shaking figure at the Virgin’s feet, it seemed to Valgard -looking back that death was easier to him than life, and he pressed with -mad haste upon those who went before him to the door. - -Now in this vill it was that the king’s chapel was hollowed out of the -wall of the king’s hall; wherefore the opening of the door permitted -Valgard and those surrounding him to look down into the great dim room -wherein our king kept sorrowful vigil with his knights, and to behold -also a man that stood before the high-seat with the mud and mire of the -road yet besmirching him. Upon whom Valgard’s glance fell amazedly for -that he knew him to be a Danish thrall and his brother’s trusted slave, -albeit the Monks-bane had used him so cruelly that some of his features -were lacking. - -As the door opened, the thrall began speaking, thus, in the dull voice -of one who has neither wit nor will but only dogged faithfulness: - -“This is the message of Ogmund Monks-bane, that because as soon as he -got into his senses again he disliked the thought that he should cause -the death of his brother whom he loved, he sends you this atonement.” - -Saying which, he thrust his hand under his cloak and drew therefrom, by -the knotted yellow hair, a bloody head. And the ashen face on the head -was the face of Ogmund Monks-bane. - -Through stillness, the thrall spoke again. “Do you accept this -atonement, king?” - -To whom, after a little time has passed, our king answered in a strange -voice: “I accept this atonement.” - -Then, his task being accomplished, the thrall loosed an awful discordant -sound of grief; and raising the head between his palms kissed it on -either cheek, crying: - -“I slew you and I brought you hither because I have never dared go -against your will in anything, but even you cannot hinder me from -following you now!” - -Wherewith he slew himself with the knife he had at his belt. And the -sound of his falling body broke the spell, so that the bars of silence -were let down and men’s voices rushed in like lowing cattle. - -Excepting only in the little chapel in the wall. There Valgard stood as -a man in a dream, gazing on the dead face of his brother; while the -Little Nun, clasping him close, yet lifted awe-filled eyes to Our Lady -that thus in her own inscrutable way answered the prayer to keep alive -in the nature of an evil man its one good part. - -Let us all give thanks that there is such a Lady, and pray that she may -harken to us in our need! - -[Illustration] - - - - - AS THE NORNS WEAVE - - -There was a man named Thorolf; he was Thrain’s son, Eric the White’s -son, of Norway. He kept house at Thorolfstede, in the Rangrivervales in -Iceland. He was an honorable man, and wealthy in goods. His wife’s name -was Thorhilda, but she does not come into the story for she died the -year after she was married to him. The name of their daughter was Rodny. -While she was yet in her childhood, it could be seen that she was going -to be fair of face, and her eyes were as blue as the sea where it is -deepest. - -Lambi was the name of another man, a son of Grim the Easterling. He -dwelt in the east dales when he was at home, but he was more often at -Thorolf’s for the bond of friendship was strong between them. He was a -true-hearted man, but somewhat soft-tempered. The name of his son was -Skapti, and he comes shortly into the story. - -Now one spring while Rodny was still a child in years, Thorolf took a -sickness and died; but before he breathed his last he spoke to Lambi and -asked him to see after his daughter and take in hand the care of her -goods, and Lambi gave his word to do that. - -So Thorolf died and was laid in a cairn in the Rangrivervales, and Lambi -came to live at Thorolfstede to see after Rodny and her household. And -Skapti, his son, came with him. And so they sat for ten winters, and -nothing noteworthy happened. - -At the end of that time Rodny was grown up, and the fairest of women to -look upon. Some said that she was rather wilful in her temper, but for -all that she was one of the best loved of maidens. A fast friend she -was, too, and warm-hearted and generous; and the best proof of that is -that she never grudged Skapti, Lambi’s son, his way about anything. - -Skapti was this manner of man. He was so born that one foot was withered -and there was a hump on his back, and he never waxed large of frame or -sturdy. But in his face he was the most handsome of men, and his hair -hung down in long curls of good color. It was thought that his father’s -rearing had not bettered his disposition. In order that his spirit -should not be humbled by his deformity, Lambi praised his face and his -wit and all he did, and begged everyone else to do the same; and the -upshot of it was that Skapti thought there was no man like himself for -dash and keenness, and was always bragging and boasting, and every one -had to give way to him or have his wrath. He had a shrewd mind, but he -was so spiteful that many were afraid of him. - -Now a fourth man is named in the story. He was called Hallvard, the son -of Asgrim the White. He owned a good homestead in the Laxriverdales, but -he lived more on his longship than on land for every spring he went -a-sea-roving. He was the most soldier-like of men, and the best skilled -in arms; tall in growth, too, and powerful and well-knit. Some said that -his wits were rather slow because he lived so much where it was of most -importance that hands should be quick; still for all that he was -fair-spoken and bountiful, and better liked and more humble than any -other man. - -It happened one spring that he rode to the Assembly, with all his -shipmates at his back. Many great chiefs were there besides, but -everyone said that no band was so soldier-like as his; and a group of -women that stood near the booths of the Rangrivervale men turned their -heads to look after him; and one of them who knew him called out merrily -and bade him stop and talk to them. - -He got red in his face at that, for his mates were much given to gibes -and jeering; still he would not refuse her; so he rode back and got off -his horse and greeted her well, and told her all the news she wished to -hear. It is told about his dress that it was of red-scarlet and very -showy, and he had on his head a gilded helmet that King Sigurd had given -him, and his face was brown from the sea-winds. - -Now the maiden that stood next to the one that had hailed him was Rodny, -and no woman there was as fair as she. She was so clad that she had on a -kirtle of a rich blue color that trailed behind her when she walked, and -a silver girdle around her waist. Hallvard could not keep his eyes off -her as he talked, until his tongue began to blunder and say the same -thing twice over. Rodny kept her feelings better in hand; still it could -be seen that she listened eagerly to everything he said, and the color -trembled in her cheeks as the Northern Lights tremble in the sky. - -As soon as he got a chance to speak apart with the woman he knew, -Hallvard asked her what maiden that might be. The woman told him; and -then she managed it so that he should talk alone with Rodny, though the -others stood near and spoke among themselves. And they talked together a -long time; though sometimes there were silences between them, but -neither of them seemed to mind that. - -At last Hallvard said: “Many strange wonders have I seen abroad, yet the -thing which seems strangest to me I see here in Iceland.” - -“What is that?” says Rodny. - -“It is that a maid like you should be unwed.” - -“Oh!” says Rodny. - -Hallvard said: “It is easily seen that you would be thrown away on any -match you should make; yet that would not hinder me from trying my luck -if you thought me good enough to ask for you.” - -She was rather slow in answering that, but at last she spoke in a -well-behaved way and said there could be no two minds about that since -every one thought him a man of the greatest mark. - -“I might be all that,” said Hallvard, “and still not be at all to your -mind. I should be glad if you would say that you would have nothing in -your heart against such a bargain.” - -Then Rodny could no longer keep herself altogether in hand, and she -began to laugh a little and said that he was hard to deal with, and that -perhaps if she should say that she had nothing against the bargain, he -might answer that that was too bad because he had no mind to it. But the -end of her jesting was that she broke off without finishing, for he got -red in his face again, and it could be seen that he was much in earnest. - -“I should have thought that the risk as to that lay all on my side,” he -said, “but now I will say right out that my life will never seem good to -me again unless I get you to wife.” - -Then Rodny answered him well and straightforwardly, and said: “From what -I have seen of you so far, I think I could love you well; but you must -see my foster-father, Lambi, about it; though it will go as I say in the -end.” - -After that they left off speaking together. - -But the next day Hallvard came to Lambi’s booth, and all his shipmates -with him to show him honor, though they had gibed much when they first -heard what he had it in mind to do. - -Skapti sat in front of the booth entertaining himself with the antics of -a tumbling-girl, that cut capers there while an old man played on a -fiddle. The man’s name was Kol, and his nickname was Fiddling Kol. -Jofried was the name of the girl, and she was Fiddling Kol’s daughter. -She had on a man’s kirtle, and she was well-shaped and not ugly of face, -though one could tell by her mouth that she was determined in -disposition. They were vagabond folk, that went from house to house and -lodged where they could. Skapti always talked with the girl because she -had the greatest store of gossip at her tongue’s end; while on her side -it could be seen that she set a value on every look he gave her. - -Hallvard greeted Skapti kindly, and his mates did the same, for when -they saw his deformity they thought that there was more than enough that -was wanting in his life; and Skapti took their greeting well because it -seemed to him that they could not but be envious of the fairness of his -face. And so they talked together smoothly, for a while, and Skapti -offered to give them his help about their errand—whatever it might -be—and sent a man to call Lambi out, when he heard that that was what -they wanted; but he himself went back to his sport with the -tumbling-girl. - -Lambi came out of the booth at once, and gave them a good welcome. After -that they fell to talking, and Hallvard asked for Rodny, and added that -he had spoken to her about it and the match was not as far from her mind -as might have been expected. - -Now Lambi had long had it at heart to wed Rodny to his son, and there -was no bargain that he would not have been more willing to make than -this one. And at the same time he knew that it would be pulling an oar -against a strong current to go against Rodny’s will. So he held his -peace for a while, and after that he answered in this way: - -“Every Spring since you have been able to stretch your hand over a -sword, Hallvard, you have fared abroad; and for all that we in Iceland -can tell, you may have wooed a maiden in every land your ship has -touched. It is said that the sea’s own fickleness soaks into the bones -of them who live on her, and many a man has done such things and been -thought no less of. But with Rodny I will not have it so, and these are -the terms I lay down. You shall sail abroad as you had the intention to -do, and there shall be no betrothal between you; but if you think of her -often enough while you are gone so that four times during the summer you -send a man out to Iceland to greet her from you, then when you come home -in the Autumn the bargain shall be made. But if you do not think of her -that often, it is unlikely that she would get any pleasure out of her -love even if she were wedded to you, and you shall not get her.” - -Hallvard said at once: “I agree to those terms. And now let us take -witnesses.” - -So they stood up and shook hands, and the bargain was struck; though -Hallvard’s friends murmured among themselves and said that such terms -ought not to be laid down for a man like Hallvard. - -Then Hallvard said: “I only make this condition—that Rodny should give -me her word not to betroth herself to any other man while I am gone.” - -“I have no fault to find with that,” said Lambi. - -So he sent for Rodny, and she came thither, and with her three women. -She spoke to them all well and courteously; and after that she sat down, -and Lambi told her all about the bargain and left nothing out. - -It could be seen from her way that she thought the terms far too strong. -And when she heard what it was that Hallvard wanted of her, she answered -without waiting: - -“I will promise that, and more besides. I will promise that when his -ship comes to land in the Autumn, I will come down half-way between my -house and the shore to meet him, that some honor may be done him, as too -much has not been shown so far.” - -Hallvard said that it was honor enough that he got the right to woo her, -still he would not fling back the kindness she offered him; and they -made a bargain about that also. After that, they bade each other -farewell, and Hallvard and his friends rode away to their booth. - -Now it must be told how Skapti wearied of his pastime and came in and -asked his father what it might be that Hallvard wanted, and Lambi told -him of the bargain he had made. - -At first it looked as Skapti could not believe it, and then it seemed as -if he would never leave off scolding. - -“Now,” he said, “it is proved true what I have long suspected, that you -are a doting old man that no longer knows how to behave with sense, when -you thus give away to another man the woman that I have always had it in -my own mind to marry.” - -So he went on, and made it known in every way that he thought he had -been wrongfully used. - -Then Lambi said: “You take it ill, kinsman, and there is some excuse for -you. But now this is to be taken into consideration, that Rodny had set -her heart on the man, and his honor is great everywhere.” - -“His body is great,” said Skapti, “as big as a bear’s; and he shall yet -dance to my wit as a bear dances to a willow pipe.” - -Then they had many words about it, until they were both wroth; and Lambi -said: - -“There is no use in troubling oneself about what is done and over, but I -see now that my rearing has made you crooked in your temper as well, and -limping in your sense.” - -After that he went away; and Skapti flew into a great rage, so that -there was no speaking to him; and he laid saddle on a horse and rode -without drawing rein until he came to the booths of the Laxriverdale -men. - -It happened that Hallvard and his friends were still out of doors; and -they were in a merry mood, and drank and made jesting wishes about the -bridegroom; and Hallvard wore a joyful face, and took all their jibing -blithely. - -When Skapti rode up, Hallvard greeted him well and asked him to get down -and drink with them. But Skapti began at once to talk in the most -ill-tempered way, and the end of his scolding was that he bade Hallvard -turn his steps and his thoughts away from Rodny from that time -henceforward because he had the intention to wed her himself. - -Now in the beginning of his speech it was so that Hallvard looked at him -and did not know what to make of him. And in the middle of it, his -temper got a little tried. But when he came to the end, Hallvard burst -out laughing. And his friends began to laugh, one after the other; and -no one took further heed of Skapti, but all went back to their drinking. - -It is said that Skapti was so wroth, and had his temper so little in -hand, that he wept. Then he went away by himself, aside from other men, -and stayed so a long while. After that he rode over the plain until he -found Jofried, the tumbling-girl. He talked long and low to her, and no -man knew what passed between them. But when they stood up to part, -Skapti said this out loud: - -“So things shall take this turn, that she shall not come down to meet -him when his ship makes land next Fall, nor shall he have courage enough -to follow her up in her hall. And then it will be put to proof whether -or not I am to be set aside and made game of.” - -Then the tumbling-girl spoke so as to flatter him, and said that she had -never heard a plan that promised to work out better. - -Skapti swelled out his chest and said: “Jofried, this is how it is, that -when I look at the clods around me it seems as if it were given me to -know their every weak spot; and I declare with truth that I can take -their life-threads and weave them as the Norns weave, and my judgments -are no more to be spoken against than theirs!” - -After that, Skapti rode home. But Jofried did as he had bidden her and -went down to the shore where Hallvard’s ship lay, and prayed Hallvard to -give her and her father leave to fare abroad with him that they might -show their accomplishments to other audiences and increase their goods. - -Hallvard gave them leave; and now the story follows the ship for a -while. - -Shortly after, they got a fair wind and sailed away to sea. Hallvard -stood by the steering-oar, but Jofried sat on the deck at his feet. When -they could no longer see the land, Jofried began to weep much and bemoan -herself, so that Hallvard asked what was on her mind. - -Jofried said: “I would give all I own that I had never come hither; and -it will stand me in little stead though I get all the goods in Norway, -if by going away I lose my chance of Skapti’s love.” - -Hallvard laughed and said: “I did not know before that Skapti got on so -well with women. But tell me who it is that you think is likely to rob -you of his heart.” - -“It is Rodny, Thorolf’s daughter,” said Jofried. “He has always looked -upon her with eyes of love, but now I can see by his manner that his -love is at the harvest; and the likelihood is that they will be wedded -before we get back.” And as she said this, she wept. - -But Hallvard looked as if he did not know whether to laugh or get wroth, -and at last he said: “I think there is no need for this to look so big -in your eyes, messmate. Skapti sets too much store by himself to love -anyone who does not love him, and there is little danger that Rodny will -ever do that.” - -“But she will do it,” Jofried answered, “for he is the most handsome man -that men ever saw; and his hair is as fine as silk; and there is so much -of it that it hides his lame back like a cloak of gold.” - -“He is a little crooked stick with a gilded head,” says Hallvard. - -“You can call him that if you want to,” said Jofried, “but it only -proves what I knew before, that you know nothing at all about women; for -with a woman, a gilded head counts for more than a great clumsy body -like a dancing-bear’s.” - -Now it had happened to Hallvard, each time he came before Rodny, to feel -himself very big and clumsy and out of place; so he got red in his face -at that, and went away to another part of the ship, and he and Jofried -saw little of each other for a time. - -But when they had been out three weeks they came to Norway, and sailed -into the Bay there and made land at the King’s Crag. And Hallvard went -up to the town, where some trading-booths were, and bought a good gold -finger-ring and sent it out to Rodny on a ship that stood ready to sail. -Jofried praised the ring much, and Hallvard was so pleased at that that -he answered her eagerly and said: - -“It is no lie what you say of me, Jofried, that I know little about -women; yet this has occurred to me which should also be borne in mind, -that Rodny is different from other maidens. I know it for true that she -sets great store by weapon-skill and deeds of might, and I tell you for -your comfort that she will never give herself away to a man who spends -his days kissing the maidservants by the fire.” - -But Jofried shook her head and answered: “That may well be, master; and -yet Rodny is a woman for all that, and all women think alike. And the -proof of that is this, that although I am no more than a gangrel woman, -I have the same feelings as a maiden reared in a bower; and to me as to -them, all other men look like shambling giants when Skapti, Lambi’s son, -is by.” - -In this manner she kept on speaking about Skapti’s fairness until it -seemed to Hallvard as if it could be no otherwise than so; and he got -wroth and said that if it went as she foretold, Skapti would not be so -handsome of feature after he got through with him. And after that he was -very short with her for a while. - -Then they sailed from the Bay out into the open sea again; and there -they fell in with sea-rovers and a great fight sprung up; and they got -the victory, and much goods. Among the spoil there was a necklace of -fine gold and the best workmanship; and Hallvard took that for his -share, and sent it out to Rodny by a trading-ship that was shaping her -course toward Iceland. But before he sent it, he showed it to Jofried -and said: - -“Do you not think that will get me some favor in her eyes?” - -Jofried answered: “Good is the gift, but methinks it would be still -better if it were not dumb.” - -He asked her what she meant by that, and she went on: “I should think -any one could see that when Rodny has hung the necklace around her neck, -she will think no further about it; but Skapti will sit by her side and -be always speaking so as to flatter and gladden her, and the end will be -that he will have all her thoughts; for in the whole of Iceland there is -not his equal for a quick wit.” - -Now Hallvard knew himself for a slow-witted man, so his heart went down -at this; and thereafter he took no pleasure in the gifts he sent. And -from that day forth he grew very silent, so that men noticed it. - -At first no one could guess what was at the bottom of it, but soon -Jofried repeated everything that she had told him about Skapti. - -All spoke against it, in the beginning; but the end was that they -believed her. After that the matter was their daily talk, when Hallvard -was not by; and the more they talked, the more wroth they became for his -sake. At last they went so far as to go before him, one after the other, -and beg him not to stop at the Rangrivervales as he had intended, lest -Rodny should break the tryst and make a laughing-stock of them, but to -hold his course north to the Laxriverdales and send a man back from -there to see how the land lay. - -Hallvard listened to them all without speaking, but it was easy to see -that each piece of advice left him more sick at heart than before. - -And now the days run on until the time comes to turn their faces toward -Iceland. - -Then one night when the shipmates were drinking under the tents on the -forecastle, Hallvard came among them and said: - -“I have taken counsel with myself about what you want of me; and though -I will not sail past the Rangrivervales as you wish, neither will I ask -you to ride up to the trysting-place, as was intended. But we will so -manage it that we come to land after sunset, and make a night-camp on -the shore; and there we will be that night and the next day. And if it -happens that during that time Rodny sends anyone down to us with a -bidding, we will ride up to her hall and make the excuse that we could -not come before because we had much goods to see to; but if she does not -send any welcome down, then—when we have camped on the shore one more -night—we will weigh anchor and sail away north.” - -All said that was a better way than to keep the tryst and run the risk -of being laughed at. And now the story goes back to Thorolfstede, and -what happened there. - -When Hallvard had been away six weeks, a ship came out from Norway and -ran into the Rangriver, and a man that was on board came to Thorolfstede -and greeted Rodny from Hallvard and gave her the gold finger-ring that -Hallvard had sent. And Rodny was glad, and put it on her hand where she -could see it all the time that she stood at her loom; and at night the -hand that wore it rested under her cheek. - -But when the next month had worn away, and that trading-ship came into -the river which had on board the necklace that Hallvard had taken from -the sea-rovers, Skapti went down to meet her, and sought out Hallvard’s -man and made him drunk and robbed him of the necklace and threw it into -the river. And when the man came into his wits again and saw what had -befallen him, he was so frightened that he dared not come near Rodny at -all, but fled back to the ship and stayed there while she held her -course northward. And Skapti came home and told Rodny that no greeting -had been sent. - -Rodny was rather cast down at first, for she had made sure that the ship -would have some word for her. Still it was not long before she had -thought of many good reasons why Hallvard might have been hindered from -sending; and she looked at her ring more often than before, and was soon -light-hearted again. So another month passes away. - -Then a third ship came out from Norway, and on her was one of Hallvard’s -men that had in his keeping for Rodny a brooch of gold with four silver -crosses hanging from it. But Skapti went down to meet him, and then it -was the same story over again. The man leapt overboard and swam to a -ship that was just pulling out for the east. But Skapti went home and -told Rodny that no greetings had come. - -At that Rodny held her peace for a long while; and once tears came into -her eyes, and that was not her way. But still, when Lambi spoke and said -that it began to look as if her lover had forgotten her, she answered -quickly and said: - -“If he has forgotten me, it is in doing deeds that men will praise; and -so it may well be forgiven him. And besides, it will not be long now -before he remembers me again.” And in this way she answered all who -found fault with him, and showed herself big-hearted in everything. - -But when the Summer had worn away till it lacked but five weeks of -Winter, a fourth ship came out of the east; and Rodny got no greetings -that time either, for the man that was bringing a gold arm-ring to her -was in such haste to take passage back again that he handed over his -charge to Skapti of his own free will, and rowed out to another ship as -fast as he could go. And Skapti threw the gift into the sea, and told -Rodny the same lie as before. - -Then Rodny could no longer speak up for Hallvard, but sat biting her -lips in silence, when Lambi spoke against him and said how much better -it was to make bargains with men whose lives she knew all about. Men -thought that this time her pride was put to a hard trial. Yet she never -spoke any ill words of Hallvard. - -And now the time goes on until the last of the days before winter comes. -One day at even, Rodny’s shepherd came galloping up to the door and said -that Hallvard’s ship had sailed into the river. Skapti and everyone -looked at Rodny; and first her face was as though it were all blood, and -then it was as white to look on as the moon. - -Skapti thought there was little risk, but that her temper would jump the -way he wanted it to, and yet to make sure he spoke up sharp and quick -and said: - -“Now Hallvard has forgotten much, but one thing I hope he will remember, -and that is that he has promised to meet you half-way between your hall -and the shore; for you would get the greatest shame if you went down and -he was not there.” - -Then Lambi said: “If you will lean on my counsel, foster-daughter, you -will call up your pride and stay at home. Hallvard has broken agreements -enough to set you free, and more besides; and it is even as my son says, -that mocking tongues will not be wanting to shame you if you keep a -tryst that your lover has forgotten.” - -But Rodny, when she had held her peace for a little, answered them -slowly and said: “It is true that Hallvard has seemed to forget me, and -that my pride has been sorely tried; and it is no less true that if he -gives me fresh cause for anger, I may let my temper go as far as it -will. But now you both show how little you guess what love is in a -woman’s breast, or you would know that while there is any chance at all -that he may prove himself guiltless of meaning disrespect toward me, I -care no more about mocking tongues than I do about the blowing of the -wind.” - -After that she went away, and at first Skapti thought matters had taken -a bad turn. But shortly he saw that it was unlikely that Hallvard would -keep the tryst himself, and that would become a fresh cause of strife -between them; and then he was merry again. - -Now it must be told how Rodny rode the next morning to the -trysting-place, and Lambi and Skapti and ten men with her. And when they -got there, there was no one to meet them. - -“What did I tell you?” said Skapti. - -“It is early yet,” replied Rodny; and so they sat for a while. - -Then there came the noise of hoofs trampling over brush. But it was only -one of Rodny’s house-carles that had taken horse and come after her to -tell her that he had just been up on a high hill that overlooked the -river, and there he had seen Hallvard’s men camping on the shore, and -taking no steps to get ready to ride, but lying about on the sand and -amusing themselves with the tumbling-girl. - -Rodny made him tell it three times over, and then she was so wroth that -no one had ever seen any woman so wroth before. She swung her horse -about and was for riding home without a word, when Hallvard came out of -the wood before her, red in his face and out of breath because he had -come on foot from the shore while his mates thought him sleeping on the -ship. - -As soon as Skapti saw that, it seemed to him that he had got into a -luckless state; and he slipped behind a bush and made off toward the -shore to find Jofried and scold her for her great falling-off of wit. -But Hallvard went up to Rodny and gave her a joyful greeting; and after -a little she welcomed him with both hands. - -Then he said: “I see that you dislike my tardiness, and I want to beg -off from your wrath; for it is the truth that I came as fast as I -could.” - -Rodny said: “But where are your friends, that you come alone and -unattended like a man of no honor?” - -Hallvard seemed to find that hard to answer, and he waited a while; but -at last he said: “I will tell it just as it is and not lie about it. I -did not want my mates along for fear that you would not keep faith with -me, and I should be put to shame before them. And now I see that I have -behaved like a great fool from the beginning; though the reason is that -it seemed so wondrous a thing that you should love a man like me, that I -could hardly believe it when you were no longer before my eyes.” - -At that Rodny was so well pleased that she did not want him to see how -much pleased she was, and kept her eyes on her hands where they lay in -his. But shortly he spoke again, and then his voice was a little -down-hearted. - -“Though I see,” said he, “that you did not like my gifts, since you wear -them neither on your neck nor your breast nor your arm. And yet I had -hoped that they would please you a little.” - -“Gifts!” said Rodny. Then he began to ask questions, and it came out -that she had never set eyes on the pretty things. - -Hallvard was so wroth that it looked for a while as if some man would -have to go down before him. But Rodny took it in quite another way. - -“It is to me as though I had got the three best gifts in the world,” -said she. “And I care not a whit what became of the gold so long as you -remembered to send it.” - -With that, she slipped off her horse and put her arms around Hallvard’s -neck and kissed him; and thereafter their love ran smoothly enough. - -And now all that is left to tell is how Skapti came down to the shore -and began to scold Jofried, and she answered in this way: - -“No more of the blame for this lies on me than on you; for it is proved -by this that though you know much of men’s weaknesses, you know nothing -at all about the strong parts of their natures. And now you may have -your choice of two things—either you shall take me to wife and give me -equal rights with yourself over your goods, or I shall go to Hallvard -and tell him everything about this plan, and then you will have his -wrath to bear, and you know as well as I whether you would be able to -stand up under that.” - -Because he thought he knew enough of her to be sure that she would do as -she said if he did not give way to her, Skapti took her to wife; though -he thought the choice a hard one. They went away into the east dales to -live on a homestead that Lambi gave them; and Jofried stood up for her -rights in word and deed. - -And here we end the story of how the Norns wove. - -[Illustration] - - - - - HOW THOR RECOVERED HIS HAMMER - - - In Three Parts. - - -As I have told you before, Bilskirner, the palace of Thor the -Strong-One, was built in his kingdom of Thrudvang, the realm that lay -beyond the thunder-clouds. It was the very largest palace that was ever -roofed over, for it had five hundred and forty halls beneath its silver -dome; and it was so dazzling bright that when people on earth caught a -glimpse of it through the clouds, they blinked and said they had seen -lightning. In a tremendous hall in the centre of it, Thor spent most of -his time when he was not away fighting giants or attending -assembly-meetings. There were benches all around the walls for his -followers; gleaming weapons hung above them; a fire blazed on the golden -hearth; and in the middle of the line of seats the Strong-One had his -splendid shining throne or high-seat. - -One would have supposed that such a bright place would have been -difficult to sleep in, yet here every night, when the feasting was over, -the members of the household stretched themselves on the cushioned -benches and took their rest; and here, on this particular morning of -which I am going to tell you, they all lay sleeping soundly—perhaps even -snoring, if the truth were known. Thor leaned back in his high-seat, his -red beard tossed up and down by his deep breathing. Loki the Sly-One, -who was visiting him, sprawled unconscious among the cushions beside -him; even the fire was slumbering and only roused now and then to wink a -drowsy red eye down among the embers. - -Amid all this peace and comfort, Thor’s bushy brows began to frown as -though a bad dream were troubling him. You know how proud he was of the -hammer that the dwarfs had made for him? He called it The Crusher -(Mjolner) because nothing could withstand a blow from it; and always -while he slept it stood on the floor leaning against the arm of his -seat, within easy reach of his hand. Now he dreamed that Thrym, the -giant king, had stolen it and borne it away to his stronghold. - -He awoke with a start and sat up and looked about him. He was safe in -his own hall, surrounded by his own men. It was impossible that anything -could have happened. Yet—just to make sure—he put out his hand and felt -for The Crusher. - -If you will believe me, it really was gone! - -The Strong-One uttered such a shout that down on the earth people -thought they had heard a thunder-clap. His hair and his beard rose and -quivered like a million tiny flames. He bent over and shook the sleeping -Sly-One. - -“Mark, now, Loki, what I say! What no one knows on earth or in high -heaven—my hammer is stolen!” - -Loki was instantly awake. He was a very handsome youth and one of the -cleverest of all the mighty beings who lived above the clouds. Sometimes -he was more clever than honest, which is why I call him the Sly-One. -There came a time when he was so wicked that he brought a terrible -punishment upon himself. But just now his shrewdness was of great use to -Thor. - -He answered as soon as he had heard about the dream, “It is likely that -you are right and that Thrym is the thief. But it would be unadvisable -for you to go to him. You are so fiery that you would kill him before -you had learned anything. I will borrow the feather-dress of Freyja the -Lovely and do the errand for you.” - -“I should be very thankful to you,” said Thor. - -Hastening out, they harnessed to the chariot -The-Goat-That-Gnashes-His-Teeth (Tanngnjost) and -The-Goat-That-Flashes-His-Teeth (Tanngrisner) and drove to Folkvang, -where Freyja’s immense palace (Sessrymner) stood. No mansion in the -upper world had so many seats for guests as hers; and she was as -generous as she was hospitable. - -When Thor had told her why they had come, she answered with the sweetest -of smiles, “I would give you the dress gladly though it were of gold. -Though it were of silver, I would give it to you instantly.” And she -ordered her attendants to bring it at once from the chest in which it -was stored. - -Though it was neither of gold nor of silver, yet it was very handsome. -It was made of the white and brown plumage of falcons and fitted Loki’s -graceful body like a glove. - -“I only hope no one will think me such a pretty bird that he will catch -me and shut me in a cage,” the Sly-One laughed, rustling his feathers as -you have seen canaries do after a bath. - -Then he spread his shining wings and flew out of the window, over the -world, on and on. By the time the goats had brought Thor back again to -Thrudvang, the magic pinions had carried Loki into the Land of the -Giants (Jotunheim). - -It would almost seem as if Thrym were expecting him, for he had placed -himself where he was very easy to find—on a mound in front of the royal -cavern. There he sat sunning himself and braiding gold collars for his -greyhounds, while half a score of his horses nosed and browsed around -him. He was very, very large and very, very old. His long beard and hair -glittered like frost, and short glistening hairs grew all over his face -and his hands. When Loki alighted before him he did not seem in the -least surprised, but looked up with a wicked grin. - -“How fare the mighty ones? How fare the elves? Why come you alone to -Jotunheim?” he asked. - -Loki answered sternly, “Ill fare the mighty ones. Ill fare the elves. -Have you concealed the hammer of Thor?” - -The giant’s grin broadened until the mouth looked like a wide crack -across his face. It was evident that he thought he had played a very -clever trick. He answered promptly, “I have concealed the hammer of Thor -eight lengths beneath the ground. No man brings it back unless he gives -me Freyja as my bride.” - -Freyja the Lovely the bride of such a hoary old monster! Loki burst out -laughing. But the giant only turned his back upon him and began talking -to his horses and running his huge fingers through their snowy manes. -They were all of them as large as hail-clouds. It suddenly occurred to -Loki that if one of them should chance to step upon him, there would be -very little of him left. - -There was nothing to do but carry the answer back to Thor. So again he -spread the shining wings, leaped into the air, and flew back over the -world to Thrudvang. - - - II - -Although he was not long kept waiting, Thor had time to imagine all -sorts of unpleasant things—even to fancy that perhaps the Sly-One was -playing another of his tricks and would not return at all. The instant -Loki in the feather-dress appeared upon the threshold, he called out -sternly: - -“Have you succeeded in doing your errand? Then give me the message -before you sit down. What one tells after he has had time to sit down -and think up fibs, is often of little value.” - -As Loki happened to be acting honestly for once, he felt somewhat -aggrieved at this. - -“Well have I succeeded in doing my errand,” he answered; “Thrym the King -of Giants has your hammer. No man brings it back unless he gives him -Freyja as bride.” - -Thor snorted so that his red beard streamed far out, and down on the -earth people thought they had seen the fiery northern lights streak -across the sky. - -“Is it to win her that he has made all this trouble? Ride we to Freyja -without delay.” - -They mounted the chariot, and in an astonishingly short time the -lightning-swift goats had drawn them to Folkvang. - -Freyja the Lovely sat in her high-seat playing with her wonderful -necklace, whose beads sparkled and flashed like water-drops in the sun. -When she heard wheels, she guessed that the Strong-One was approaching -and came out into the courtyard to meet him. - -“I give you good greeting,” she said, smiling kindly as Loki flew to her -and dropped the feather-dress at her feet. - -But she did not smile so sweetly when Thor had reined in the goats -before her and told her of the giant’s demand. - -“Dress yourself, Freyja, in bridal robes,” he finished, “together we -will ride to Jotunheim.” - -The Lovely One straightened up so quickly that her hand caught in her -necklace and broke it into a shower of sparkling balls. - -“Sooner will I die than put on bridal robes for such a monster,” she -declared. - -The Strong-One looked at her in surprise. The hammer was so important to -him and to them all that he thought any one ought to be willing to do -anything to recover it. - -“It is likely that you will die if I do not get The Crusher back,” he -said at last. “If the giants should invade the sky, I would have nothing -to fight them with and they could get the victory over us.” - -Freyja answered nothing whatever, but she put back her beautiful shining -hair from her beautiful rosy face and looked at him sorrowfully. All at -once it occurred to Thor that she was much too lovely to be given to -such a wicked old creature. He made only one more very faint attempt. - -“I am told for certain that Thrym has got great riches,” he said, “he -has a herd of all-black oxen and all his cows have gold horns.” - -Then Freyja stamped her foot. - -“I would be a love-sick maid indeed if with you I would ride to -Jotunheim!” she said severely. And with that she left them and ran into -the house—and I am not sure that she did not close the door pretty hard -behind her. - -Thor scratched his head thoughtfully. - -“Much goes worse than is expected,” he said at last. “We will see now -what advice my kinsmen have to offer.” - -Again he puffed and snorted so that the trees on the earth below were -stirred and swayed as by a rushing wind. - -“Certainly there is going to be a great storm,” the earth-people said to -each other. And as they heard the chariot-wheels rumbling along above -the clouds, they added, “Hark! Do you hear the thunder?” - -They must have thought it a very long storm for before he stopped, Thor -had driven to almost every palace in the sky. Odin the All-wise Ruler, -Balder the Bright, and Heimdal the White One, Tyr, Brage, Vale—he -visited each of them. Soon they were all gathered together at their -meeting-place on the plains of Ida. - -They consulted long and earnestly. At last Heimdal the White One, who -had the gift of fore-knowledge, gave them this counsel: - -“It is my advice that we play a trick upon the King of the Giants and -allow him to believe that we have done as he asked. We will dress Thor -in bridal robes and send him to Thrym.” - -At this, loud laughter went up from the others. You remember that Thor -was not only stronger than any man on earth, but he was also mightier -than any being in the sky. Imagine dressing him up for a beautiful -graceful woman! - -“That is cleverly devised!” cried Loki. “With a bridal veil will we hide -the red beard, and Thrym shall not know him until the Strong-One has got -his hand on his hammer. Then will he know him to his sorrow!” - -They all laughed again; but the mighty Thor frowned angrily. - -“Never will I submit to it,” he growled. “Every living thing would mock -at me, should I go dressed in bridal robes.” - -Perhaps Loki wished to revenge himself on the Strong-One for having -spoken so sternly to him when he first brought the message from -Jotunheim. Now in his turn he said sternly: - -“Be silent, Thor. Stop such talk. Soon will the giants build in the sky -if you do not bring your hammer back.” - -Because he knew this to be true, Thor could say nothing more. He stood -frowning and stamping and growling in his beard while they brought -Freyja’s jewels and her beautiful robes to dress him in. - -They put on him a very long gown that trailed about his feet so that he -was certain that it would trip him up when he should try to walk. They -hung sparkling necklaces around his neck, and placed a bunch of jingling -keys at his belt to show that he was a good house-keeper. Broad gold -brooches they pinned on his breast, and then they braided his red-gold -hair into two beautiful wavy braids. - -How the Mighty-One did stamp and fume at all this! And how the others -laughed at him! The more they laughed, the angrier he grew—and the -angrier he became, the funnier he looked in his bridal robes. The whole -vault of the sky echoed and re-echoed with their mirth. - -At last he was all dressed and they dropped the bridal veil over his -furious face. - -Then Loki said, with a slim grimace, that such a lovely bride could not -be allowed to travel without at least one serving-maid. So he took the -dress of one of Freyja’s attendants and put it on himself. As he was -young and handsome and with no more beard than either you or I, he made -a very pretty waiting-damsel. - -He got into the chariot beside Thor, the lightning-swift goats were -hitched to the car, and away they went to Jotunheim. - - - III - -The chariot-wheels rumbled like thunder. The-Goat-That-Gnashes-His-Teeth -and The-Goat-That-Flashes-His-Teeth struck out fiery sparks from their -gold-shod hoofs. So came Loki and the Strong-One into Jotunheim. - -While they were yet a long way off, Thrym heard them coming and laughed -exultantly. - - “Much wealth have I! - Many gifts have I! - Freyja, methinks, is all I lack!” - -he sang; then he called out to his followers, “Giants, arise and spread -the embroidered cloths over the benches. Freyja comes to be my bride.” - -The servants tumbled over each other in wild excitement. Some covered -the seats and the walls with embroidered tapestries. Some strewed fresh -straw upon the floor. Others scoured the shields and brought in the -tables and set forth the massive golden dishes. - -Just as twilight was falling, the chariot thundered into the courtyard. - -When he saw Freyja’s robes and Freyja’s jewels, it never occurred to -Thrym to doubt that it was really Freyja under the veil. He took the -bride’s hand and led her to her seat, laughing exultantly and singing -his boastful song: - - “Much wealth have I! - Many gifts have I! - Freyja, methinks, was all I lacked!” - -Then he ordered the food to be brought in, and invited every one to help -him keep his wedding-feast. - -When they began to eat, it was a wonder that Thor’s appetite did not -betray him the very first thing. Either he was so hungry that he did not -care what they thought, or else he forgot that he was pretending to be a -dainty lady. Besides all the cheese and the curds and the honey, he ate -seven whole salmon and one whole ox, and after that he drank three -barrels of the sweet spicy mead. Loki pinched him under the table as a -sign for him to stop, but he only growled in his beard and ate one -salmon more. - -Thrym’s eyes grew as big as milk-bowls. - -“Saw I never such a hungry bride!” he exclaimed, pushing back to stare -at her. “Saw I never a bride eat so much! Saw I never a maid drink so -much mead!” - -At that, even Thor was a little alarmed, for if the giant king should -discover them before they got the hammer, not only would their plan fail -but they would lose their lives into the bargain. He could think of -nothing to answer, however, so he sat silent. Lucky was it for him that -Loki always had his wits about him. - -The Sly-One answered quickly, “Hungry is Freyja, thirsty is Freyja, for -nothing has she eaten or drunk for eight days—so much did she long to -come to Jotunheim.” - -Thrym’s look of surprise changed to one of complacency. - -“Is it so indeed!” he exclaimed, and finished his supper very -pleasantly. - -But by and by he became so pleased with his bride that he wanted to kiss -her. Before Thor could hinder it, he reached out his great hairy hand -and pulled at the veil. It slipped aside just enough to disclose Thor’s -furious, fiery eyes. - -The giant king sprang back the whole length of the hall. - -“Why are Freyja’s eyes so sharp?” he cried. “It seems that fire burns in -her eyes.” - -By this time, the Strong-One was so angry that I think he hardly cared -what happened. Lucky was it for all the folk of the sky that Loki was -there to answer for him. - -The Sly-One spoke up quickly, “Sharp are Freyja’s eyes, fiery are -Freyja’s eyes. She has not slept for eight nights, so much did she long -to come to Jotunheim.” - -“Is it true indeed!” said Thrym, much flattered that his bride had been -so eager to come to him. And he came back and sat down beside her and -looked at her affectionately. - -Finally the time came for the giving of the bridal gifts. An old sister -of Thrym came and bowed low before the bride. - -“Give from your hand the golden rings if you desire friendship of me,” -she demanded, “if you desire friendship of me—and love.” - -Because he was determined that he would never give her anything but a -blow, Thor answered nothing whatever. Thrym feared that his bride was -offended by the questions he had asked, so he hastened to do something -to appease her. - -He called to his servants, “Bring me the hammer to please my bride. -Place the hammer on the lap of the maid. Wed us together in the name of -Var.” - -Thor’s heart laughed within him when he saw his beloved hammer drawn out -of its hiding-place and borne toward him. But he sat as stiff as a -stick. Until his hand grasped it, there was still danger. Nearer they -came with it. Nearer—and all unsuspecting, they laid it upon his knee. - -Then at last Thrym learned how the cleverness of the sky-people -surpassed his cleverness. Thor’s mighty hand closed upon the handle; he -threw back the veil; he leaped to his feet. His terrible eyes blazed -upon them as his arm flew back to strike. - -Once! and Thrym fell dead at his feet. Twice! and the old giantess lay -beside her brother. Again and again and again—until the whole race of -giants were felled like a forest of towering trees. - -Thus came Odin’s son again by his hammer. - ------------------------------------------------------------------------- - - - - - TRANSCRIBER’S NOTES - - - 1. Silently corrected obvious typographical errors and variations in - spelling. - 2. Retained archaic, non-standard, and uncertain spellings as printed. - 3. 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